The Gift

The Sabbath was a gift to mankind. (Mark 2:27)

Salvation is a gift. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Love - in the form of the Christ child- is a gift.(John3:16)

We should appreciate these gifts

And be careful not to trample them underfoot

(Isaiah58:13-14 Hebrews10:29)

It makes God very sad if we do that (Matthew 23:37)

But if we think of these gifts primarily as obligations

The beautiful gift could be turned into a burden

That’s what the scribes and Pharisees did

Some people 'work hard' to make sure that the gift is used appropriately.

The parable of the talents teaches that we should improve God’s gifts

But if we keep wondering whether we should do more

And feel frustrated and worried because we aren’t

We can destroy the joy which should be found in the gift

Concentrating on ourselves can cause us to forget

what the Sabbath is all about

The Sabbath is a memorial of creation

That is something that GOD did

So why not emphasize the goodness of the Giver

Rather than overemphasizing

The obligation of the recipient.