Happy Monday! We are in our final week of studying the story of the bent woman from Luke 13:10-17. I hope you have enjoyed reading about the bent woman whose life was touched by Jesus himself that day in the tabernacle.
This week as you read back over the text, you should consider the question:
Are there any commands to obey?
For the past seven weeks, the focus for the Sunday sermons at Church That Matters has been on the “Seven Deadly Sins.” One of those sins is Sloth. Have you ever seen a live sloth? They almost appear to have no bones in their bodies. Imagine relaxing every muscle in your body and just slumping to the ground. That’s how I imagine being a sloth would be. On the other hand, have you ever watched squirrels play? They are anything but slothful. They are like little highly-caffeinated creatures, running up, down, and around, and jumping from tree to tree. They never seem to rest. Which one of these animals are you?
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When Jesus healed the bent woman in Luke, the leader of the tabernacle was angry because Jesus had “worked” on the Sabbath. The word Sabbath comes from a Hebrew word that means to rest or take a break from labor. In Genesis 2:3, the word Sabbath is mentioned for the first time,
“Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.”
The word holy means something that is sacred or dedicated to God. God wants the Sabbath day to feel different from the other days of the week; therefore, He asks us to rest from our normal daily routine and dedicate our thoughts and time to Him. Does this mean that we should be slothful and do absolutely nothing on the Sabbath? Is it even possible to do absolutely nothing? It seems like the leader of the tabernacle thought everyone should do just that, but Jesus reminded him that even the feeding of animals was work. Jesus isn’t granting permission to treat the Sabbath like any other work day though. If you are more like a squirrel during the week, running constantly and focusing on work and the things of this world, God asks you to stop and rest from that and set your mind on Him for one day each week. He gave us permission to take a break and reset for the week to come, just like He did after creating the world that we live in.
Command: Take a break and focus on God.
God gave you permission to take the day off. Can you do that? Stop being a squirrel for one day, reset your thoughts and focus on God each Sunday. You don’t have permission to be a sloth though. If you have become lazy in your spiritual life, begin by dedicating Sundays to the Lord: attend church, take a break from work, and enjoy the time by focusing on the good things God has given you.
This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Psalm 118:24
Chelynn is a contributing writer for Shaken and Stirred. She is a long-time daughter of Christ, a wife, mother of two amazing adult children, and Nonnie to four beautiful grandchildren. She teaches Senior English at Charles Page High School and is also a Realtor for Keller Williams. She enjoys all things summer including boating, vacationing, and swimming.