Sabbath Dimensions – Remembrance

[This post is part of a series about observing a sabbath.]

The second major dimension of observing a sabbath is remembrance.

On a sabbath day, we remember the Lord. We remember what he has done. We remember that he has rescued and redeemed us. We remember that he is always working, that he is always watching over us.

This dimension of the Sabbath becomes clear in its second iteration in Deuteronomy:

[12] “‘Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the LORD your God commanded you. [13] Six days you shall labor and do all your work, [14] but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter or your male servant or your female servant, or your ox or your donkey or any of your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. [15] You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the LORD your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day. (Deuteronomy 5:12–15)

Whereas Exodus emphasizes its relationship to rest, Deuteronomy stresses its connection to remembrance.

This remembrance finds expression in reading and worship. As Christians, at church, we open God’s Word to recall, meditate on, and better understand who God is, what he has done, and what he is doing. We worship him in response and as another way to stir up these remembrances (Colossians 3:16).

This remembrance goes hand-in-hand with the rest of a sabbath day. As Exodus and Deuteronomy show, though resting may have come first, resting and remembrance are nonetheless the twin dimensions of sabbath keeping.

And in fact, the kind of remembrance called for here happens best when we stop. The two go together functionally. It is difficult to remember and sense God’s goodness and grace, when we are still frantically in gear, worrying about everything. Remembrance comes not just when we rest but as a result of resting. It’s not just that we try to know the Lord and be still. It’s that when we are still, we come to know the Lord (Psalm 46:10).

So, is it good to lounge in a hammock on your sabbath day? Sure! But you must not use your leisure solely for leisure’s sake. On a sabbath you should leverage your leisure to remember God.

You will find this marriage of rest and remembrance to be far more life-giving and life-altering than focusing on either dynamic on its own.