Sabbath as Resistance

I am a child of the resistance.

Star Wars and punk rock music raised me. I’ve been hardwired to question power and challenge the establishment. I don’t trust governments, politicians, or anyone who climbs too high without accountability. It’s not just a phase—it’s in my bones. It’s who I am and who I’ll always be.

So, some might find it strange that I would become a Christian pastor—particularly within a denomination that is rife with administration, accountability, and a structure of authority.

But here I am.

And I’m not some rogue rebel agent trying to burn the whole thing down. I’m here as a full-hearted believer in the connection of the people called Methodists, seeking unity in the global body of believers. This isn’t me selling out on my punk rock roots—it’s me living them out.

Because I believe that this thing we do—following Jesus—is the way of resistance.

Are we the largest religion in the world? According to the data, yes.
Do we need reform? You bet.
Are we still called to be the people who resist the empire, just like we did in 34 AD?
Abso-freaking-lutely.

So how do we, as the people of God, get back into the game as agents of the rebellion?

It starts in the most unlikely of places.

It starts with rest.

Human beings were created with a natural rhythm of rest. Our origin story tells of a God who rests. That same God created us to bear the divine image. And if God rested, then we too are called to rest.

“The Sabbath is the most radical thing in the Torah. It is a visible insistence that our lives are not defined by production and consumption.”
—Walter Brueggemann, Sabbath as Resistance

In Exodus, as God hands down the foundational ethics for a newly liberated people, God gives this command:

“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 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—neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns…”
(Exodus 20:8–10, NRSV)

This was not just a rule. It was a revolution.

Remember: these people had just escaped 24/7 forced labor in Egypt. Every society around them was built on exploitation. Rest was for the elite—if for anyone at all. But here comes Yahweh, saying:

“Resist that system. You all must rest—from the powerful to the most vulnerable.”

The Sabbath command flattens the social hierarchy once a week. It is the original form of resistance economics. It is holy disobedience to Pharaoh’s productivity machine.

And yet, here we are—modern people, baptized into the Body of Christ, and most of us are still slaves to the empire’s rhythm. We’re caught in the productivity cycle, the news cycle, and the outrage cycle.

Sure, we might not be at work, but we’re still working—churning mentally, emotionally, spiritually. Scroll. React. Hustle. Perform. Crash. Repeat.

The empire is burning us out. And when we’re exhausted, we’re more susceptible to lies, division, and the kind of spiritual numbness that robs us of joy.

“People who cannot rest from work are slaves—whether they are employers or employees.”
—Walter Brueggemann

“The Sabbath is a sanctuary in time.”
—Abraham Joshua Heschel

So I’ll ask you:

What do you need to resist this week?
What is burning you out?
What’s pulling your soul apart, even when your body is at rest?

Where do you need space to hear the voice of God again?

This week—give yourself the gift of rebellion.
Rest.
Not as escape, but as resistance.

✊ Join the Resistance. Take a Sabbath.
Practice one full day this week without work, news, social media, or consumption. Light a candle. Take a walk. Pray slowly. Laugh deeply. Let the stillness speak.