One of my favorite writers, Barbara Brown Taylor, once observed that most Christians keep eight of the Ten Commandments. The first many neglect is the 2nd—the prohibition against graven images. (In 787 AD, the Second Council of Nicaea affirmed that because God had come to earth in human form, images of Jesus were permissible. Since then, icons, stained glass, and portraits of Christ have been widely accepted.)

But the other commandment often overlooked is the 4th: keeping the Sabbath. Its decline has been gradual. I am old enough to remember when Sunday was reserved for church and family, and when most businesses were closed. Perhaps the shift began with Jesus’ words that “the sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.” Some heard that as permission to set it aside. But Jesus was not dismissing the Sabbath; he was reclaiming it—not as a burden, but as a gift.

So what is the Sabbath meant to be? How might it draw us closer to God?

Its importance is clear: it stands among the Ten Commandments. We are told to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy—to work six days and rest on the seventh. And not only we, but our families, workers, foreigners, even animals. The command reaches back to the beginning, to the Book of Genesis: God created the world and everything in it and called it “good; on the seventh day, God rested.

That is where we must begin. Abraham Joshua Heschel, who wrote extensively about the Sabbath, noted that the first thing God called holy was not a place or a people, but a day. All of creation was declared “good”; but the seventh day was declared “holy”.   Heschel called it a “palace in time,” a sacred space we are invited to enter each week.

This reframes the Sabbath. It is not merely recovery time so we can return to being productive. It is a deliberate pause—a setting aside of routine to attend to what is deepest and truest. Yes, it restores the body. More importantly, it restores the soul. It reminds us that our worth lies not in what we accomplish, but in who we are before God.

This rhythm is woven into creation. Without it, our souls grow weary, and we forget who we are and how deeply we are loved.

A holy day. A sacred pause. A return to God. A reminder that whatever our work may be, we are enough—and we belong to Him.

Remember the Sabbath and keep it holy. May that  be so for each of us. Amen.