Because God is our Creator-Redeemer, we must rest in the assurance of his present provision, past faithfulness, and future promise.
I. Present Provision (vv. 21-26)
By providing a Sabbath, God teaches his people how to rely on him as a benevolent king.
Knowing: By providing his people’s daily needs as he did, God taught them the daily rhythms of work and rest that he instituted at creation.
Being: The verbs Moses uses to describe God’s inauguration of the Sabbath are instructive: God finished his work and rested; he blessed the day and made it holy (2:1-3). These are not dour words or concepts. Finishing, resting, blessing, sacramentalizing are words conveying satisfaction, enjoyment, approbation, and an intentional desire to make a day delightful (Collins, Genesis, 70-71).
Doing: The Sabbath is a day of delight on which we are reminded Jesus came to bring us into his rest. In what way(s) can you intentionally use the Sabbath to trust in God’s daily provision?
II. Past Faithfulness (vv. 27-30)
By looking back to God’s past faithfulness, we are sanctified to live freely as his children.
Knowing: Despite God’s gracious intentions, the Israelites refused to trust God would supply their bread every day. So, they tried to stockpile some just in case. Here is an example of the insanity accompanying distrust of God. While holding miraculous bread in their hands, they placed more trust in their own hands than in the God who worked the miracle.
Being: Without harshness, he compels (even forces) us to rest. Our text says right after he rebukes them with the same terrifying words he spoke to the Egyptians, he said, “’See! The Lord has given you the Sabbath’. . .so the people rested on the seventh day.”
Doing: This is the point God wishes us to see in the Sabbath. The reason he commands us to rest on the Sabbath Day is to remind us and prove to us that he provides seven days of supplies for six days of labor. How can you use the Sabbath to reflect on God’s past provision, enabling you to enjoy the rest he provides?
III. Future Promise (vv. 31-36)
God not only provides for us in the present and reminds us of his past faithfulness, he graciously assures us that he will provide in the future.
Knowing: Finally, the Lord gave Israel an objective symbol of his future reliability. Moses was to put an omer of manna in a jar to be kept with the Ark of the Covenant (“the Testimony”) for the next forty years. It would be reasonable for God to say his word should be enough, but he displays his sensitivity to our weakness by providing an objective sign by which to affirm to his people he will always be faithful to his promise.
Being: This manna preserved in a jar has been superseded by Jesus Christ, the bread of life (John 6:35), who assures us of an eternal rest from all further attempts to win favor with God through trusting in him. How might your striving to be accepted by God be preventing you from receiving the rest God provides?
Doing: It is only when we intentionally stop and acknowledge that Christ has done everything necessary for our acceptance with God that we can receive the blessing of rest.
For Further Study:
- See the article referenced in the sermon, “Bring Back the Sabbath” by Judith Shulevitz.
- Listen to Brett Powell’s evening sermon on the Westminster Shorter Catechism questions regarding the Sabbath: “Rest Yourself before Your Wreck Yourself.”