“I desire mercy and not sacrifice”
The American culture can be highly driven, performance, and productivity-based. Being surrounded by this intense pace makes any attempt not to be affected challenging to avoid.
We push through, keep going, and take on more than we can handle. We feel trapped in our weariness cycle. Is there a miracle way to enjoy a healthy level of going and doing without exhaustion?
“But if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless.” (Matthew 12:7, ESV)
If they had known.
In the middle of a discussion with the Pharisees about keeping the Sabbath law, Jesus interjects a word from the prophet Hosea, “I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices. I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings” (Hosea 6:6, NLT).
The NIV states the verse this way, “For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.”
In Hosea’s timeframe, the people of Israel knew what God was interested in, but instead, they followed the law out of obligation, checking off the worship/sacrifice box on their to-do list. In Jesus’ timeframe, in addition to “doing” the law, the Pharisees were hyper-focused on the details of “how” one followed the law.
Jesus used Hosea’s words to bring in the character of God that is often missed when super fixated on the details of keeping the law. The Greek word for mercy, eleos, means to have kindness or goodwill for those who are miserable for the down and out to the point of helping in some way. (Blueletter Bible)
In the first part of the Rest Series, we learned that the Sabbath was made for our needs, not for us to fuss over the particulars of the Sabbath. Now we layer mercy into the equation. The Pharisees needed to show mercy to Jesus’ disciples. Concerning rest, we learn not only how to offer mercy to others but how we need to extend mercy toward ourselves.
Translating “mercy over sacrifice” into our modern busy, taking care of our families, and others at the demise of our health begs the question, “How are we any different than the Israelites or the Pharisees?” Are we more intent on the doing over the being?
If we knew.
Where have we shown mercy and kindness toward ourselves in affording room to slow down, rest, and allow for space to love and connect with God? Why is the idea of cyclical rest, like having a weekly Sabbath, foreign to us?
Rest is not weak, but a healthy choice that enables us to live life to the fullest. When we run on empty and worry how others will view our slowing down as lazy, our focus shifts from mercy to madness. We are willing to sacrifice our health and a richer relationship with Jesus for the sake of our schedules.
The advantage of following God’s lead to rest (Genesis 2:3) is that resting becomes where we can grow in our knowledge of Him. Hosea tells us, “I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings” (Hosea 6:6). The beauty of rest affords us time to be still and know God better.
Our bodies need rest, as well as our brains. Our hearts need renewal, and our souls need to be refreshed. How do we slow down if we know these needs are met with rest?
How do we Rest?
Rest looks different for everyone, and we need to ask God for wisdom on what healthy rest looks like. But here are a few ideas to get started.
- Plan rest into your vacation. Times of downtime and just hanging out with no agenda. Our kids loved these days as much as the adventures.
- Plan rest into your week with consistent bedtimes and times to be off technology. Teach yourself to be still.
- Discover ways that will lead you to rest. These methods don’t need to overly engage the brain to work, need to be non-competitive, and have minimal effort. Think of exercise and the importance of the heart to return to a resting heart rate; our brains also need to have a resting rate. Competitive sports, an intense movie, or a book that makes you want to take notes for work are not allowing your brain to rest.
- Consider incorporating a Sabbath. See Rest – Part 1 for more on how a cyclical Sabbath can help reset you for a better week and rhythm for the life you were created to live.
We do know.
We do know that God called us to pull aside and pause long before the industrial age ushered in the technology age. “Cease striving and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10, NASB).
We do know that Jesus has reminded us to be merciful, and he calls us to “come to me all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28, NLT).
We do know that all things are possible with God. “Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God, everything is possible” (Matthew 19:26, NLT). God will be our greatest ally in fighting to slow down and incorporate rest. Because if rest is counterculture, we will be in a fight to make the changes we need. We may not feel we can afford to stop, but can we afford not to?
I pray that you will create patterns of rest into your day, weeks, and months and reap a 10-fold harvest. May God bless your admittance that you are not God and your need for rest. May God bless your ceasing, and may you grow more and more in your knowledge of Him and His love for you. So be it, in Jesus’ name.
Meditate: God, you are my Rest.
Reflect: How can you be kinder to yourself around rest? Are you able to serve others out of abundance, or are they getting your leftovers? Do you spend time with God to get to know Him better? How does knowing God more, affect your ability to love others? How can you incorporate rest more into your daily life?
Rooted: Psalm 46:10, 63:1-8; Matthew 12:1-13; Mark 6:30-31
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(Bible References: NLT – New Living Translation, ESV – English Standard Version, NASB – New American Standard Bible, NIV – New International Version)
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