I'm a big fan of clean cars. There's just something special about that shine and gleam. Oh, for that newly washed car smell! In fact, I should own stock in Armor All and Turtle Wax. There's just something therapeutic that happens as I slowly pull the soapy cloth over the hood of the automobile. It's cathartic watching the dirt run off the wheel wells and down the drain. Each time I pull out the hose, bucket, and sponge, I experience a deep sense of peace.
So imagine my surprise in the early days of seminary life at Asbury, when my self-righteous fellow-student and neighbor decided it was his job to chastise me for washing my Ford Escort on a perfect summer Sunday afternoon. As the water beaded on the well-waxed auto, he strolled up, folded his arms, pursed his lips, and dryly asked,
"Do you really think it's appropriate to wash your car on the Lord's day?"
At first, I thought he was pulling my leg. But one glance at his stone-cold glare revealed that he was not kidding. He was as serious as an Old Testament Prophet, without all the warmth and charm.
This guy, let's call him Gary because that's his name, believed that any activity other than attending a morning church service and Sunday School, a day filled with Bible study, prayer, and sleep were forbidden from the hours of 12:01 am to 11:59 pm on Sundays. In his opinion, washing a car was definitely off limits. It was clear he believed I was the worst of the back-sliders. With every swipe of the sponge and rinse of the wheels I was that much closer to the fires of hell.
Until his desire to call down the wrath of God on me for my sinful disregard of the fourth commandment, I'd never really given my Sunday activities much thought, or for that matter, what anyone else did with their Sundays. I guess I can thank Gary for forcing me to evaluate my actions and what I now perceive to be his woeful misunderstanding about God's directive.
Looking at this passage, there are three phrases that stand out to me. First, we are commanded not to do "your ordinary work". If I understand this directive, at it's most simple, it's saying that we are to disconnect from the daily grind. Change the routine. Create a rhythm that is distinguished from the other days of the week. If you are student, put down the books. If you are an over-the-road trucker, take your foot off the gas. If you are a stay at home parent...well, I'm not sure what you're supposed to do! But, you get my point. My not-so-dear friend Gary would have been spot on if I worked at Mike's Car Wash every other day of the week.
Unfortunately, it's the phrase, "no one...may do any work" where Gary and many others land. But I believe it's not as cut and dry as so many wish. We have to really think through what WORK actually means. I know the religious leaders of the Old Testament, of Jesus' day, and those self-righteous students at the seminary believed that grinding corn, watering your flowers, doing laundry, slicing bread, walking too far, and healing the sick were activities that could be put off until Monday morning; however, in real life, it's not always that clear cut. For example, I grew up on a farm and the work always went on. We milked the cows EVERY DAY of the week, TWICE! I fed the chickens, collected the eggs, watered the rabbits, and slopped the hogs seven days a week, 52 weeks a year. Judging from their reactions, these animals were okay with my sin. But are there other activities are considered work? If grandma knits a sweater for her daughter, is that work? If I paint a picture, is that sin? If I find peace hiking in the woods, is that walking too far? If I play with a pie recipe, am I in danger of eternal damnation? It's worth considering.
But in my humble opinion, it's the final phrase, and the last word specifically, that is most important: HOLY. What does it mean to keep a day holy? Without doubt, it can be as simple as God-Focused Intentionality (which is never simple, OR easy). It means disconnecting from the daily grind; those things we do day-to-day and spending time focused on God, and yes, even while doing those things that give you peace. And yes, it can include prayer, Bible study and church but it doesn't stop there. It can include participating in a long list of creative, energizing activities (i.e., knitting, visiting family, painting, hiking, baking, even washing your car). It's spending time in the peace of God, relishing the love of the Heavenly Father and the freedom we have to live in that love.
As Jesus said in the book of Matthew, "Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose."
I have to think that God, on the 7th day, rested by trying a new bread recipe and painting a sunset or two. He could have played a little one-on-one basketball with Jesus. If he had a Ford Escort, he might have even spent an hour washing it while whistling, "Onward Christian Soldiers" to himself.