During my years of college, my roommate and I used to have “self-care nights” to unwind from the responsibilities of being a busy college student.
We would go to the store for face masks, sparkling water, and snacks. We would silence our phones and watch our favorite movies.
It was lovely…
Until the movie was done, face masks dried on our faces, and the bowls were empty. It was time to return to the real world of homework and projects.
Today, there seems to be even less time for facials and movies. Life does not stop for anybody. As much as I want to take a break, there is much that needs to get done.
Reminiscing on my college memories made me wonder if Jesus has something to say about self-care. Is biblical self-care even a thing in Scripture?
Yes. The Bible encourages self-care, but not in the way you think.
Key notes
- Biblical self-care is not a checklist with items I need to accomplish to be more accepted before God.
- Scripture has a better word for self-care: Sabbath.
- Whenever we think we have an active role in our salvation, following Jesus becomes exhausting. The Sabbath is God’s reminder: rest is a gift, not a reward.
- Keeping the Sabbath through Christ is believing that He is the one giving, working, and accomplishing on our behalf.
God’s version of self-care is not trending.
If you search for biblical self-care practices or biblical self-care on your browser you will most likely be presented with a checklist that looks somewhat like this:
- Exercise.
- Prioritize quality time with God.
- Eat healthy.
- Practice gratitude.
- Be a good steward.
- Serve others.
- Praise and worship.
- Walk in nature.
- Get enough sleep.
While all these practices are morally good and important for our human bodies, they are all centered on ourselves and what we can accommodate in our busy schedules.
On a good day, I see myself waking up early, prioritizing my devotional, getting my workout done, eating a healthy breakfast, giving thanks for my work, and sleeping 8-9 hours.
The reality is, that most of my days aren´t like that. Sometimes I sleep through my alarm without time for a devotional let alone a workout. In the rush of the day, I can only make a cup of coffee and jump to my first Zoom meeting.
Soon I get distracted with projects and commitments; before I realize it is already 5 pm. By the end of the day, I feel exhausted and guilty for not having the perfect Christian routine.
This, my dear friend, is not sustainable.
The good news is, that we don’t have to worry about keeping up with a Christian routine because, in Christ, biblical self-care is not about temporary activities that boost my mood. Biblical self-care is not a checklist with items I need to accomplish to be more accepted before God.
Biblical self-care is not a day at the spa, a workout routine, or even a morning devotional.
God’s way of self-care is not trending for the simple reason that His definition of self-care is nothing more than rest in Christ.
In fact, Scripture has a better word for self-care: Sabbath.
Biblical Self-Care Begins with the Sabbath.
The first truth we need to remind ourselves is that rest is a commandment from God. “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Ex. 20:8).
This is something God expects from us. He knows we are obsessed with work, keeping an agenda, and, going from one place to another. That is why, He asks us to stop and rest.
“Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore, the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy”
(Ex. 8:9-10)
Now that we know this is a command from God, the next best thing we can do is recognize that we have not kept it. Our sinful nature cannot cease to try, perform, and achieve.
Productivity and achievement are highly praised in our society and rest is usually equated with laziness. We must recognize that this idea is completely against Scripture.
Self-care according to the Law is only a different version of productivity. It encourages us to take control of our lives and therefore our schedules to engage in temporal activities that do not deal with the root cause of our exhaustion.
Are we then stuck with a commandment that we cannot fulfill? Thankfully, God is not done yet. He, through Christ, has one or two things to say about resting and honoring the Sabbath.
The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath; therefore, biblical self-care is rest in Christ.
In a famous encounter between Jesus and the Pharisees, the Gospel of Matthew narrates how Jesus and his disciples were accused of violating the Sabbath.
“At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, ‘Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath.'”
(Matt. 12:1-2)
You could argue that the Pharisees are right here. Didn´t we just read that the law demands remembering the Sabbath and keeping it holy? Well, let’s keep reading:
He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him to eat nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests? Or have you not read in the Law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and are guiltless? I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. And if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless. For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”
(Matt. 12:3-8)
The Pharisees were known for being advocates of the Law. You could say their outward appearance demonstrated faithfulness to the Word of God. However, their hearts did nothing but reject Christ.
The problem in this story isn´t the disciples plucking heads of grain but the Pharisees’ inability to see that the rest incarnate was right in front of them. Jesus tells the Pharisees that something greater than a temple has come, yet they reject him.
Why would I want to follow a checklist to feel more restful if the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath? And yet, we insist on pursuing righteousness on our own. In our attempts to obey the Sabbath, we also reject Christ’s work for us.
The Lord commands rest not because he believes we can do it ourselves, but the opposite. The command exposes our inability and leads us to the only one who can obey the Sabbath perfectly; Jesus Christ.
Biblical self-care is passive. It is a gift, not a command.
The scandal of resting in Christ, and really of all Christian life, is our passive participation. When God gives the Sabbath to his people, he closes by saying: “The Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy”.
Did you notice that? God already blessed the Sabbath and made it holy for us. No additions from our part.
Whenever we think we have an active role in our salvation, following Jesus becomes exhausting. The Sabbath is God’s reminder: rest is a gift, not a reward. Keeping the Sabbath through Christ is believing that He is the one giving, working, and accomplishing on our behalf.
We only get to love and praise Him in faith. Our role is passive. This is true rest in Jesus.
Martin Luther’s explanation of the Sabbath shows an important truth:
“We should fear and love God, and so we should not despise his Word and the preaching of the same, but deem it holy and gladly hear and learn it”
(Luther´s Small Catechism with explanation. ST. LOUIS, CONCORDIA, 2017)
In other words, we keep the Sabbath not to binge-watch a series, go to the spa, or sleep in, but to gather with other believers to hear the Word of God and be refreshed.
Stopping and resting is our way of telling God “I cannot do it on my own”. Remembering the Sabbath to hear and learn his Word is recognizing that we need the Lord´s forgiveness and grace.
True biblical self-care is humbly resting in what Christ has already finished. Jesus´s invitation is for the labor and weary to come to Him and rest.
- Come to me if you can’t stop working.
- Come to me if you boast in your achievements.
- Come to me if you are busy with ministry.
- Come to me if you feel guilty for not praying or reading the Bible enough.
- Come to me if bubble baths and mindfulness haven’t helped your anxiety.
I will give you rest.
It is in this truth that you can enjoy your routine, vocation, and life. Knowing that true rest does not come from temporary activities but from your Savior Jesus.
I praise the Lord that his invitation does not have an expiration date. I can come to him every single day for as long as I live on this earth and find rest.
My self-care nights with my roommate may only last a few hours, but the rest I find in Christ endures forever. His mercy endures forever.
My Prayer for You
“Dear Father, I thank you for having mercy on us and giving us your Son Jesus. Forgive us when we get distracted and anxious with many things and teach us to rest in your Son. Give us faith in the hearing and preaching of your Word and reminds us that in you our salvation is already fulfilled. In your name. Amen”
For Reflection
Read Matthew 6:30-31.
The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.
- Where in my life do I confuse constant motion or ministry with spiritual health?
- Do I feel guilty or unproductive when I slow down or take time off? Why?
- What would it look like for me to rest not just from something, but in Someone?
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