Monday, November 19, 2012

Don't Do These Things




Yesterday I went to church like I do every Sunday. It was a wonderful service, with good worship and a challenging message. I’m one of those people who grew up in church and it’s always been an important part of my life. I love all the different parts of the service. Although there are some styles of worship that I don’t connect with, I usually try to remember that I’m in the presence of the Holy God, no matter what kind of church I’m in.

But I have to confess that I haven’t always done that (even recently, to my shame). I’m not alone. These verses are about people who didn’t honor the Sabbath and I’ve been challenged not to do what they did.

Things people do on the Sabbath that don’t honor it:

Fall asleep during long sermons.
Impatiently wait for it to be over so can go back to making money by cheating others.
Pretend to be sincere in church but really have no intention of obeying God’s commands.
Think about money and material comforts.
Go to church to be entertained.
Give God damaged and stolen offerings.
Defile the temple by not treating it as God’s dwelling place.

How I’ve learned to honor the Sabbath:

Don’t go to church to be entertained.
Don’t watch the clock.
Expect to get instructions for living.
Give God the best as an offering.
It’s more important than work, material goods or comforts. 

When I honor God by keeping His Sabbath rest, my attitudes are corrected, my mind and heart are enlightened and God is honored by my offerings.

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