Here with the Shepherd King

Key Passage: Psalm 23:2-3 

Devotional: 

God never sleeps and He never needs to rest, yet after He created the heavens and earth, and all creation, He rested. Why? Because He delights in His work. Our Good Father modeled for us how we should form our lives. Prior to the fall, God’s perfect design was for man and all of creation to regularly rest and reset—a rhythm of submission. Yet, in our fallen state, we rebel against this God-given model. We boast about how many hours of unused vacation time is in the timebank. We praise new mothers who are out doing errands with their weeks old baby. We celebrate a lifestyle of excess and busyness and in our prideful thinking, we say, “I’ll sleep when I’m dead.” How do we find peace in a world like this? 

He makes me lie down in green pastures—God has commanded sabbath rest to be a regular rhythm of submission, where we acknowledge that we cannot—without the Lord. Sabbath rest gives us the opportunity to humble ourselves to our limitations and to elevate the Lord and His ability. A weekly rhythm of acknowledging that we are not in control. 

He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul—Allow the Lord to lead you and allow the Word to continually renew your mind. Christ is the continual source of life. Remember His words that whoever drinks from His waters will never thirst (see John 4:14). 

He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake—When you reorient your entire lifestyle to accommodate for God’s sabbath rest, He will bless you for His righteousness’ sake. It takes effort and intentionality to complete all of life’s responsibilities in six days and to rest on the seventh, but in Jesus’ own words, He says, “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,” (see Matthew 11:29). At times, you will have to fight for this Sabbath rest—the world despises Him—but cling to the truth that it is for your good and His glory. 

If we are to experience peace for our souls, we must rest in Christ’s work. Today, surrender to His perfect design of Sabbath, allow Jesus to lead you to rest, and for His Word to restore you. How you submit to rest shows the world that you are not of this world. Praise God that in His perfect design of rest, we can advance the kingdom of God! 

Application Question: What can you do today to embrace your limitations? What change can you make right now to prioritize a literal Sabbath? 

Further Reading: 2 Corinthians 12; Matthew 11:28-30; Romans 12:2; Genesis 2; John 4 

Written by Sarah West