Homeward Bound: Sabbath Rest for the People of God
Overview
A thorough but highly accessible guide to thinking more creatively and biblically about the theme of Sabbath Rest throughout Scripture.
Homeward Bound examines the biblical theme of ‘rest’ and how this should impact on our understanding of faith and life.
While many Christians today have focused on a Sabbath rest as somehow just relating to what we do or do not do on a Sunday, Goldsworthy takes the reader on a journey of discovery through the whole Bible to show that God’s idea of Sabbath rest goes far beyond taking one day a week off work.
In fact, the idea of a Sabbath rest for God’s people is deeply embedded in the whole history of humanity, from creation to Revelation. With an expert eye and a light touch, Goldsworthy looks at key areas of the Christian idea of rest, including the Sabbath day, the idea of the promised land, return from exile, heaven as the Christian’s final ‘home’, and ultimately the final consummation of time in ‘the kingdom of God’, the new creation.
Goldsworthy expertly shows how the themes and ideas of rest in the Old Testament foreshadow truths that are ultimately revealed in the New Testament.
- Considers the central theme of the Sabbath rest througout the Scriptures
- Explores the implications of the unity of the Bible
- Examines the intersection between rest, faith, and life
- Introduction: Which Day of Rest, and What May I Do on It?
- Rest: Belonging Somewhere and Getting There
- Exile and Homelessness: Humanity’s Expulsion from God-given Rest
- The City as Humankind’s First Futile Attempt to Find Rest without God
- The Sabbath Rest: Its Definition and the Promise of God-given Rest
- The Authentic Christian Life of Rest While Still Moving towards Our Rest
Top Highlights
“The Sabbath law is not a creation ordinance but a Sinai ordinance based on God’s covenant with Israel.” (Page 92)
“Not only is there no mention of a domicile for the humans, there is also no house for God. Eden is the temple and home; the dwelling place of God with his people.” (Page 36)
“We find our true humanity by going outside ourselves towards God and other people, and by rightly relating to the whole creation. This is the very opposite of mystical religions and existential philosophies which encourage one to go inwards to find oneself. These philosophies define us by what is supposed to be inside us. The Bible defines us by relations to who and what is outside us. In this way, being created in God’s image means that we somehow reflect the divine society: the relationship of the three ‘persons’, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, within the unity of the one God.” (Pages 6–7)
“The Sabbath law was the regularized way to express dependence on the goodness of God’s provision for his chosen people. The Sabbath thus signified the rest that God gave and always promised to give; a rest that meant life in the presence of God in the good land he gives. Sabbath, or rest, was to express the stability of kingdom existence: God’s people in God’s land under God’s rule and provision.” (Pages 102–103)
“Jesus as Saviour and Lord, to provide the definitive interpretation of all that foreshadows him and his kingdom in the Old Testament. Thus, stage one examines the biblical history, and especially that from Abraham to Solomon. Stage two is concerned with prophetic eschatology.10 Stage three looks at what it means for Christ to be the fulfiller of all God’s promises.” (Page 14)
Graeme Goldsworthy applies a lifetime of in-depth scholarships to the current existential sense of spiritual “homelessness”, reflecting along the way with the themes of the exile from Eden and the unhelpful and helpful ways of considering “the city”. He deftly guides the reader to think biblically about the notion of rest and the Sabbath. The result is an accessible, beautifully written book that focuses on Christ and the writings of his apostles, all within a sensible overall theological framework.
—Paul Barnett, Lecturer Emeritus, Moore Theological College, Sydney
‘In keeping with his previous publications, Graeme Goldsworthy’s latest volume is a biblical-theological tour de force. Rather than laboriously working through the usual proof texts in the perennial Christian debate concerning Sabbath rest, the author examines this topic within its broader biblical theological context, masterfully demonstrating how the prospect of rest with God finds its eschatological fulfilment. Readers are thus helped to think carefully about the topic in a biblically-informed manner. This stimulating and pastorally encouraging discussion will surely enrich the spiritual lives of us all.
—Paul Williamson, lecturer in Old Testament, Hebrew and Aramaic, Moore Theological College, Sydney
What is your life’s goal? In this concise, clear, and convincing book Graeme Goldsworthy explores this fundamental question through a masterful interweaving of three biblical themes. To bring the storylines of exile, the city, and sabbath together is novel, but within a framework of biblical theology the exercise proves to be rewarding. I enthusiastically commend this book, which can be enjoyed by novice and expert alike.’
—Andrew Shead, Head of Department of Old Testament and Hebrew, Moore Theological College, Sydney
- Title: Homeward Bound: Sabbath Rest for the People of God
- Author: Graeme Goldsworthy
- Publisher: Paternoster
- Print Publication Date: 2019
- Logos Release Date: 2020
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subjects: Ten commandments › Sabbath; Sunday
- ISBNs: 9781788930277, 9781788930284, 1788930274, 1788930282
- Resource ID: LLS:HMWRDBNDSBPPLGD
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-30T00:33:21Z
