Life in the Grove

Rest can be enjoyed and explored in many different ways. Vacations are for rest. Even when we come back from vacation we can be tired even though we are refreshed from having focused differently for a few days. As one wise sage declared… “No one needs a vacation worse than somebody who just had one.”

Rest is not optional. Just like changing the oil on the car is not optional. You can deny the need and suffer the consequences but the need exists never the less.

God understands about rest. For God, rest is not because He is tired, but because He is finished with His work. Creation in six days… Work complete… Time to rest.

Surprisingly, we discover that the pattern of creation was to be a pattern of life for God’s people. Here’s how God put it to Moses and the Israelites.

“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labour and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but He rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”

I have to be honest. As a kid, I didn’t like this commandment. I didn’t like it because it meant that you couldn’t have any fun on Sundays. There was no part of this conclusion that corresponded to reality. But it was interesting to try to discuss with my parents and Sunday School teachers what could be included in the list of appropriate activity on Sunday afternoon.

Why did God call out the Sabbath as an important commandment? Why is this commandment the only one of the Ten that is not repeated in the New Testament? How can we discern the principle and benefit from the application of this commandment?

We’ll talk this through on Sunday, in the mean time here are some scriptures to help set the stage.

• Luke 6:1-11
• Acts 16:13
• Acts 17:2
• Acts 18:4
• Acts 20:7

See a pattern yet?

• 1 Corinthians 16:2
• Colossians 2:16
• Hebrews 4

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140,000 people heard the good news of Jesus proclaimed, and thousands came to know him as their savior.

The food containers that our church packed were distributed to the people of Leon.

Pastors, their families, and their churches were encouraged.

Even the government and local officials were impacted through this event.

We encourage you to read and see even more at Mike Silva’s blog. Praise God!

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In the next few posts we will be sharing what God is doing in Leon, Nicaragua and how Cedar Grove has had the privilege of being involved. Below is the advertisement that was broadcast across Nicaragua that explains what the festival is all about.

We can’t wait to hear more.

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Names are important. Names represent the totality of who we are. We don’t like it when people mispronounce this label of our soul. Forging a name is a crime. Plagiarism is a lie. Names matter.

Business cares about name recognition. Product branding is a big deal. Names matter.

New Parents labor over choosing just the right name for that little bundle of joy. Names matter.

The wise teacher is careful with the names of her students. Names matter.

God cares about His name. It should be no surprise that one of the Ten Commandments would be focused on the proper use of God’s name. As is true of all the commands, this one is a warning sign to keep us speaking well of God. Read the third commandment in a couple of translations…

(NIV) “You shall not misuse the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.

(ESV) “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.”

Whatever you think God is talking about here, you must admit, God cares about how we use his name.

How might we use God’s name in vain? How can we express our freedom to love God by speaking well of Him? These are some of the questions we will think together about on Sunday morning.

There is a lot more to speaking well of God than avoiding cursing. So let’s catch the vision of speaking well of God. After all, we are free to love our Heavenly Father. In fact, why not prepare for Sunday with a prayer that really fits with this discussion. You know the one…

Father in Heaven, hallowed be your name…

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Check out the second of the Ten Commandments recorded in Exodus 20:4-6…

4 “You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.
5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,
6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

It seems at first glance that the experience of ancient Israel is so far from our own as to make this command irrelevant. When was the last time you carved a piece of wood or sculpted a clay image as an object of worship? On so many levels it seems wrong and pointless.

Expanding the gulf of the second commandments applicability to our lives is the arrogant comparison with other cultures where such blatant idolatry still exists. “Clearly” education has saved us from such foolishness.

This Sunday we will look at three questions:

1. What is idolatry?
2. Why should we be concerned about idolatry?
3. How do we deal with idolatry when we see it in our own lives?

This commandment will be relevant in ways you may not have considered. It’s not just about replacing God with a false god. It is also about putting God in a box that keeps us from recognizing Him as He reveals His glory in new ways.

Have you ever met someone whom you haven’t seen for a number of years, and although you were good friends “back then”, you didn’t recognize him. A few more gray hairs, a few less hairs, a few more pounds and wrinkles make it hard to link our memories of the past with the present reality. Images from the past keep you from recognizing the person today.

So it is with God. We have snapshots in our hearts of who God is based upon His past work in our lives. We think we recognize Him when He acts consistent with our expectations. Then God does something outside the box.

Remember, the law (commandments) hang on the greatest commandments: Love the Lord your God… and love your neighbor as yourself.

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