The traditional approach to Sabbath holiness among Seventh-day Adventists has often hovered over discussions about swimming on Sabbath or the appropriateness of eating out on Sabbath. The focus of such discussions tends to center around the first person—me. With myopic piety, we disregard the holiness of the Sabbath for others; we only care about keeping our day holy. We boil down the religious experience to what affects "me," forgetting the corporate nature of worship so often stressed in the Bible. Too often, we view the Sabbath in only vertical terms—between God and me, forgetting the horizontal aspects between others and me (son, daughter, manservant, maidservant, stranger within your gates).

My Sabbath keeping affects your Sabbath keeping. I can ruin your Sabbath, while technically keeping mine. A casual comment from me may land on my wife like a tidal wave; meanwhile, I continue basking in the day with nary a thought about what I just said. Many of us have triggers—connected to stressors in our life—that can wipe out the holiness of the Sabbath with one thought: a poor performance review at work, mounting debt, marital stress, too much to do in too little time.

An example of a common, but seemingly friendly trigger: "How’s work going?" I casually bounced this question off a fellow church member at a potluck. My friend paused, and tiredly related how his new boss was making it difficult for all the employees. The week ahead didn’t look bright from his perspective. My friend was, without my intention, trucked from an oasis in time back into the turmoil of his workweek.

In the church setting we mindlessly toss out comments and advice like candy at a parade. Unfortunately, what seems like candy to us feels more like a bomb blast on the receiving end. A novice Sabbath School teacher may be ignorant of better ways to present her material. A "helpful" tip may have all the subtlety of a grenade blowing her out of her Sabbath environment. My well-intended advice may echo in her mind during the rest of the Sabbath as she struggles against feelings of failure. Her Sabbath peace dissipates faster than a smoke signal on a windy day. Meanwhile, I feel even better about myself for having "helped" a struggling teacher. My Sabbath is blessed; hers is gone. (Unfortunately, sometimes our comments to each other are far from innocent.)

I would like to suggest a Sabbath grace period of tongue biting. Maybe you are in the right about the Sabbath School teacher, the deacon, or the pastor, but don’t spoil their Sabbath with your criticism. Save your comments for the other six days of the week. You may often find the issue is not worth bringing up again after you have some time to cool down. Even if it is necessary later, you won’t have ruined somebody’s Sabbath.

Wouldn’t it be a novel concept in this stressed-out world if people found that being around us on Sabbath eased their stress? The shelter of the Sabbath does not consist only of time, but also involves people—you and me.

Points to Ponder:

Is carrying a load on the Sabbath limited to just the physical? See Neh. 13:15. How do we contextualize this passage in an age when most of our work is mental and not physical? How do we help relieve others of their burdens on Sabbath?

What is the context of the frequently cited Sabbath text of Isa. 58:13, 14? What kind of Sabbath keeping is God looking for in Isa. 58? See Isa. 1:13 and its context in relation to others and the Sabbath. See also Amos 5:21–25, 8:4–10.

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