Trinity Church Nottingham

At Trinity, August is the month of rest. It is the time when we stop to enjoy God’s presence, refocus our minds and hearts on Christ and receive the Father’s love afresh.

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““Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Matt. 11:28-29)

All this talk of rest right before a passage that deals with Sabbath? This is no mistake. The people have become weary and burdened by the heavy weight of observing the Sabbath, following the letter of the law while missing God’s intent behind the command.

Jesus wants to clarify the meaning of Sabbath for them. The people are in need of rest—to stop hard work (shabbat) and be present together with God (nuakh). And Jesus is here to usher in the full promise. He is God’s rest, and the people can come to him and find the true seventh-day rest that God intended.

Jesus reminds the people of God’s original intention for the Sabbath: unity with God, creation, and each other. Jesus teaches that the Sabbath points to him, the one promised through all of Israel’s prophets, the one who would mercifully restore the rhythm of all creation.

When followers of Jesus recognize the Sabbath, we live as if this restoration has already taken place. We take a break from the broken rhythms of hustle and hardship to set aside a time to honor Jesus’ rule, enjoy his presence, and extend rest to the world around us. When we trust God’s invitation to come to him and truly rest, we become places where his presence can dwell.”

- taken from The Bible Project’s blog, Keeping the Sabbath