Thoughts in Worship
Message Magazine's Online Devotional for Thursday, November 17, 2016

Audio Link:

“Moreover also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them.” (Ezekiel 20:12).

Sanctification is a serious blessing when you understand what it means for your life.

When God heard the cries of oppression from His people as the Egyptians enslaved them during the days of Moses, He effected their deliverance. Through many miraculous works, He broke the yoke of physical bondage Pharaoh had around their necks and set them free! They were free to live, worship, and move as they pleased.

However, as with all stories of bondage, there was a dark side. The people had become so accustomed to their former slave master’s whip; they continued to live with a slave mentality. When times got rough, they complained and relished the times they lived in Egypt. When they were unsure of what lay around the next corner of their experience, they complained. Even though God showed visible, miraculous signs of His guidance, they often turned their back on Him.

Being the good God He was, He added to the blessing, despite their murmuring. He provided heavenly food, miraculous supplies of water in the desert, and an awareness of rest. And that rest He called Sabbath, which was instituted way back during the creation of the earth, was to be a sign that God was the sanctifier of His people. As I said before, sanctification is a serious blessing when you understand what it means for your life.

Here’s the short version of the story. Like we, God’s people of old were sinful. Like we, they needed Him to deliver them from bondage to sin and an enslaved mindset. Like we, they often needed a sign that consistently demonstrated that God had not forgotten them. Sabbath was that sign. They needed a sign that demonstrated that they were His children, in contrast to all of the others who could not have cared less about God. Sabbath was that sign. They needed a sign that demonstrated that their God was powerful enough, not only to create the universe but also to change them from hopeless sinners into loving saints, free from their sin encumbrances. They had the privilege of worshipping their heavenly Father daily, and the seventh-day Sabbath culminated that experience being the only holy day in the week for them to give complete attention to enjoying time in service to others, and special time with God and family.

What a pity it is that so many of us have forgotten what God said to remember. Could it be that if we asked Him to teach us to remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy, it would serve to commemorate our deliverance from sin and shame? It’s Thursday, why not ask God to prepare your heart over the next couple of days so you can be ready to celebrate your relationship with God on His holy day this coming Saturday. It’s an experience like no other if you surrender your heart to Him.—L. David Harris (www.DavidWritesaLot.com)