Warning: Contents are extremely hot, handle with care.

Something like this is printed on the side a coffee to go cup at any average java dispensing location. For those of us who acknowledge the warning we carefully take that first sip with excitement and respect. Here is a substance that we coffee drinkers enjoy/need all the while understanding that we can really wreck our mouths if we do not proceed with caution. The more I reflect on our summer topic of Sabbath, I wonder if we should attach a warning or disclaimer.

Warning: The Sabbath life generates a revolutionary hope for the coming age. Proceed only if you desire a new life!

Why should we be cautious?

If we approach the Sabbath life without a properly examined heart we could end up burdened rather than liberated. Through out scripture we are warned of the pitfalls of legalism and hypocrisy. Legalism in our denomination and local culture is present, but not as much as it used to be. Of course it is always present and sometimes legalism travels under a different name, tradition(I must offer that not all tradition is legalistic, but there are somethings that are done because they have always been done). As we explored a little in the last post, legalism says “Get your butt in church, otherwise your damned”. All of this began with good intentions, like the passing on of the story to the new generations that do not want to go to church. Unfortunately, the challenge to others distorted our own view of why we come together for a worship service.

Hypocrisy is very different. Too often I hear people say that they don’t go to church, because there are a bunch of hypocrites there. In order to counter that accusation, we as the church, need to take a moment to pause and reflect on our heart condition, spiritually speaking of course. Unfortunately, this I fear is becoming a dying art in an age of “I am defined by my actions, which are never wrong if they do no immediate harm to myself”. Reason and thought have left the building. Actions grounded in whatever feels good have taken center stage. Justification of ones actions comes secondary and only if one is “caught”.

We have to be able to bow our egos, our human nature, and submit ourselves to the glory of God. When we do this, we are ready to walk into Sabbath. If we are entering Sabbath with a “what’s in it for me” heart the entire event will be meaningless and a waste of time (for both us and God). However, if we approach the Sabbath with a humble heart and a spirit that seeks to offer praises to God and place God front and center that day I believe that God will bless us and change our lives.

The question is……do we want to change?