Stream services online at www.sjlc.com/live

From the Pastor's Desk

Ah… summertime. Things are different this year than last year, and people are venturing forth to find places of refreshment and renewal. By land, air, and sea, people are going to the beach, the mountains, and making family visits that were delayed because of COVID-19. We’re more than ready for a change of scenery and some time away.

In his earthly life and ministry, Jesus frequently took time away from his busy schedule of preaching, teaching, and healing. He sought out quiet time when he could be alone with his heavenly Father to reflect, think and pray. One of the appointed Gospel readings for worship this month is from Mark 6:30-44 where we read: “And he [Jesus] said to them, ‘Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.’ For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat” (Mark 6:31). I think those same words could describe very well our own modern lifestyle. Even with the effects from the pandemic, we tend to be busy, frantically rushing here and there, and so we meet ourselves coming and going. Frequently, we have “no leisure even to eat,” and so we resort to eating on the run in our cars, mini-vans and SUVs. Sound familiar?

For many, the summer months afford us the opportunity to “come away to a deserted place… and rest a while.” Taking time out to be renewed and refreshed is not just nice, it’s necessary for health and well-being. The demands of work, home, and family can at times make us feel like we’re in a vice, and the pressure continues to increase. There is a plethora of research that clearly identifies the cause-and-effect relationship between chronic, ongoing stress and health-related issues such as hypertension, heart disease, etc. Especially in the high-stress area in which we live, where traffic and congestion can lead to road rage, it is critical to get away in order to rest and be restored in body, mind, and spirit.

The Third Commandment is all about doing just this: “Remember the sabbath day to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8; Deuteronomy 5:12). Based on God’s resting after his work of creation (see Genesis 2:2-3), this commandment is a reminder to us that our Lord invites us to step away from our work so that we might be re-created. In fact, the word “recreation” is a union of two words: “re,” which means to “do over,” or “repeat,” and “create,” which is “to bring into being.” God, who has brought us into being, desires that we be re-created through rest and relaxation on a regular basis. “All work and no play make Johnny a dull boy,” so goes the old saying. Actually, it makes Johnny and each one of us not just dull, but irritable, exhausted, unable to focus and enjoy God’s gift of life. The Lord invites us to a better way.  

The purpose of the sabbath (literally, “to rest” in Hebrew) day was to provide God’s people with an opportunity to rest as well as worship. This was to be a reminder to them that in their enslavement in Egypt, there was no day of rest. Slaves did not enjoy such a privilege. With the Exodus event, God’s people were set free and were commanded to observe this day of rest. Martin Luther, in his Small Catechism, explains the Third Commandment in this way: “We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and his Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.” Interestingly, Luther makes no mention at all of resting, but only of worship. The twin concepts of rest and worship are at the heart of the Third Commandment, and I believe those concepts are needed now more than ever by all of us today.

In these days of summer vacation and travel, I encourage you to reflect on the words of Jesus in another part of Scripture: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matt. 11:28-30). Our Lord Jesus Christ invites us to find our rest in him. May it be so with you.