2/15/26 Weekly Bible Lesson: Rhythms of Rest and Work

Exodus 20:8-11, Romans 14:4-6 NKJV 

Background of Text — People find time to do the things that are important to them. How do we select our daily activities? The biblical witness tells us that just as the Jews kept the Sabbath to honor the creative and liberating acts of God, so too the early Christians set apart the Lord’s Day as testimony to the Resurrection and God’s gift of rest. 

Understanding

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8) is the fourth commandment. Some categorize the first four commandments as responsibilities to God, and the rest as responsibilities to neighbors (see Matthew 22:34-40). The Sabbath was observed on the seventh or last day of the week, sundown Friday through sundown Saturday. 

Exodus 20:8-11. Exodus 20 says, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work.” Genesis 2:2 says, “And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.”  

After God had completed the work of perfect creation in six days, He rested on the seventh. This became a pattern for man—a time to work and a time to rest. The Sabbath was given to help man achieve an appropriate work-rest balance. 

Exodus 20 connects weekly sabbath keeping with God’s work of creation through the giving of the Ten Commandments. These commandments are repeated in Deuteronomy 5. There, the Sabbath is connected to God’s deliverance of Israel from Egyptian slavery (“remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt” verse 15). Both passages reflect concern for the heart of a child of God. Exodus reminds us of the importance of rest from our earthly labors. Deuteronomy reminds us that we are redeemed by God’s grace, and to rest and reflect upon this blessing is critical, lest we lose sight of what God has accomplished for us. 

Sadly, although the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27), it didn’t take long for the Israelites to make it suit themselves. They felt they had to make more out of the day than God intended. They couldn’t restrain themselves from adding to and making even the Sabbath day unrecognizable as God’s law. 

Knowing the severity of the law for Sabbath breakers, the Pharisees watched Jesus closely to see if He would violate the Sabbath. A classic exchange between the Pharisees and Jesus is found in Matthew 12:9-14. Jesus uses the hypothetical example of a sheep falling into a pit to teach that it’s lawful to do good on the Sabbath. There is no better way to honor God and the Sabbath than to do good for one’s neighbor. 

Revelation 1:10 is the only verse in Scripture where we find “The Lord’s Day.” The apostle John is referencing “the first day of the week” when we meet at the table in remembrance of Jesus (Acts 20:7) until He comes again (1 Corinthians 11:26). 

We do not follow the Sabbath Day today; we have the “Lord’s Day.” The Lord’s Day became for Christians the weekly announcement and reenactment of the resurrection of Christ. During the Middle Ages, Sunday worship became associated with Sabbatarian (rest) practices. Although we are not commanded to keep the Sabbath, the principle remains valid. Programmed rest is an essential element to both physical and spiritual health. 

Furthermore, we have the true rest, which is found only in Christ. As the Hebrews writer exhorts us in Hebrews 4:9-11, “There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience.” 

Question. What do I do to ensure my life has an appropriate work-rest balance? 

Romans 14:4-6. It is much easier to criticize and judge others than to honestly evaluate ourselves and set our own thoughts straight. In Matthew 7:1-5, Jesus taught this principle with the humorous illustration of a speck and a plank in the eye. 

In the Roman church, there were converted Jews who apparently wanted to hold on to some of their past by observing days and foods. Yet others had not adopted some of the old Jewish practices. Paul’s primary concern for them is that they “give God thanks” for all things and be “fully convinced in their own mind.” The rest of chapter 14 makes it clear that we should look to this end; that each of us should be concerned about our own accounting to God. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 8:13, “Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never again eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble.” In Colossians 2:16, he writes, “So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths.” 

The title of this lesson, “Rhythms of Rest and Work,” helps us realize there is a time for rest and a time for work. Scripture teaches that we must be diligent to seek the Lord (Hebrews 11:6), to present ourselves approved to God, (2 Timothy 2:15), to be found by Him in peace (2 Peter 3:14), and to make our call and election sure (2 Peter 1:10). Scripture also teaches us to come to the Lord, take His yoke, and find rest for our souls (Matthew 11:28-30).