Pastoral Sabbath Rest
From the Arizona District

In our culture busyness is a badge of usefulness and exhaustion the proof of efficiency. In the midst of such a culture, the Church of Jesus Christ must once again hear the call to "Sabbath Rest." It has been said that:

The foundation of ministry is character
The nature of ministry is service
The motive for ministry is love
The measure of ministry is sacrifice
The authority of ministry is submission
The purpose of ministry is the glory of God
The tools of the ministry are the Word of God and prayer
The privilege of ministry is growth
The power of ministry is the Holy Spirit
The model for ministry is Jesus Christ

As our model for ministry, Jesus Christ frequently found Sabbath Rest necessary. Indeed, it is clear this is how He kept perspective on ministry. There is nothing that will put an end to effective pastoral leadership more quickly than a loss of perspective. Perspective is gained, maintained, and sharpened in the reflective process known as Sabbath Rest. For the Church, the recognition of God’s call to Sabbath Rest is a ready and honest admission that there is not an inexhaustible supply of adequate pastoral leadership. One of the church’s chief stewardship challenges is to maintain a high level of proficiency among its leadership.

The concept of Sabbath Rest is a God-ordained, Biblically mandated, cyclical season of renewal for the minister and the ministry. God’s Word says:

• Hebrews 4:9-11 (NIV), "There remains, then, a Sabbath Rest for the people of God; for anyone who entered God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from His. Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience."
  
• Leviticus 25:1-7 (NIV), "The Lord said to Moses on Mount Sinai, "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: When you enter the land I am going to give you the land itself must observe a Sabbath to the Lord. For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops. But in the seventh year the land is to have a Sabbath of Rest a Sabbath to the Lord. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards. Do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the grapes of your untended vines. The land is to have a year of rest. Whatever the land yields during the Sabbath year will be food for you, for yourself, your live among you, as well as for your livestock and the wild animals in your land. Whatever the land produces may be eaten."

We are called by God to observe the Sabbath Rest. We do so:

• To obey His command
• To maximize ministerial effectiveness of both pastor and people
• To enhance the joy and fulfillment of ministry
• To encourage relational renewal at all life levels (marriage, family, church, and community)
• To develop a deeper intimacy with God and hence a deeper trust in Him

Sabbath Rest is a time to receive, to be nurtured, to dig deeper into oneself, into one’s relationship with God. All full-time ministerial staff and bi-vocational pastors should participate in the Sabbath Rest. Taking as a point of reference the Biblical idea of a seventh rest, we believe the following should serve as a guideline for the Sabbath Rest: 

• Every seventh day a Sabbath Rest
• Every seventh month a week of Sabbath Rest
• Every seventh year (at a local church) a seven-week Sabbath Rest

Return to Sabbaticals