Serious Attention – The Fourth Commandment

Serious Attention

Exodus 20:8

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.”

That word, “remember,” is very significant.  In the Hebrew it’s zachar, and it means something much more active and attentive than just “call to mind” (which is how we tend to use that word).

To “remember” in OT terms is to pay diligent attention to, carefully observing every detail and making provision accordingly.  As when God “remembered” His covenant with Israel and put together all the details of their deliverance out of Egypt (Exod. 2:24).  We “remember” the Sabbath not just when, as we wake up on Sunday morning, something in us says, “Oh, wow, right–gotta get ready for church.”

We remember the Lord’s Day as we think about it throughout the week, prepare our hearts and minds for the rest to which it beckons us, make plans for how we will observe that holy day, and begin collecting the praises and thanks we’ll make as a special offering to God in our focus on Him and His works throughout that day.

Are you “remembering” the Lord’s Day today?  How?

Lord, my practice of “remembering” Your Day…

Daily meditation in the Law of God helps us along the path of holiness, righteousness, and goodness (Rom. 7:12). Order your copy of The Law of God, a compilation of the Mosaic Law for contemporary believers, by going to www.MyParuchia.com, point your browser to “Publications,” then click on the drop-down option, “Waxed Tablet Publications.”

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In the Gates is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore.

T.M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001, 2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.