Our Lord said to keep the Sabbath day Holy – sacred – set aside from the other days. A day to separate yourself from your work and rest in Him. God ordained that day for us. He knows we need rest from the weariness that sometimes accompanies our day-to-day work. He gives us six days to be creative, to labor by the sweat of our brow and receive His blessings. Then, He commands us to set aside one day to focus our thoughts and our energy on giving back to Him. After all, doesn’t “everything” belong to Him anyway?
His word leads us in the way everlasting. It guides us to better understand what is vital for our eternal souls’ welfare, not our personal desires for physical comfort. You will only know what is Holy by what you define as Holy! For example, is your spouse Holy to you? Have you set him/her aside from the world? Is his/her physical body sacred to you? Would you share their bodies with the world?
There is a discipline, a perseverance that must accompany our walk in faith. There is a reason why our Lord said we “must deny ourselves…” There are boundaries that must be set in order to find the “narrow road” to everlasting life. They are not to be interpreted as punishment or restrictions, but as sacred markers pointing the Way. In hiding His holy, sacred Word in our hearts we better understand the freedom afforded us by His suffering and death on the cross. For the just punishment we deserve, He gracefully took for us to be free from our sin, guilt and shame.
