Exodus 31

Exodus 31, Genesis 2:17

I find it no coincidence that in Exodus 31, both work and rest are celebrated in the same chapter. In the first half of this passage, God tells Moses, who is supposed to help build the temple and in the second half, commands the sabbath or “everyone who profanes it shall be put to death.”

We hear similar language in Genesis 2:17, except it’s about our very souls, not just the Sabbath. You see, before the fall, the Sabbath and work were meant to go hand in hand. You would work for 6 days and rest for the 7th - your work being complete, and you can rest in God’s goodness and provision. Since the fall, work and rest have been at constant war. You want to work to make a living, make a name for yourself, or prove your worth. You rest when you can or not at all. In the western world, we are surrounded by the ‘awe’ of the American Dream, which sounds exhausting if you ask me. 

So when God tells Moses that HE has gifted others to create and build a Holy Place. They are filled with God’s spirit (V3) and can produce pieces of art in return. They are confident in their abilities because God is their confidence. 

Are you equally confident in God’s provision in work AND rest? Or do you believe that if you don’t do the work, it will never happen? Sometimes, we must be reminded that God doesn’t need us but INVITES us in the work he has set before us. I'm sure Moses, Bezalel, and Oholiab doubted their capabilities but believed that a sovereign Lord was going before them. That promise brought them rest from their work.