Sabbath

In Exodus 31, God gives Moses some commands about the Sabbath. He's already included keeping the Sabbath in the Ten Commandments, but there's some additional guidance here. God emphasises the importance of the Sabbath (breaking it is a capital offence), and repeats the injunction against doing any work on that day. But he also twice refers to it as a sign. A sign points to something; what does the Sabbath point to?

Whoever saves his life will lose it

In Mark 8 Jesus says that whoever wants save their life will lose it. Like many of Jesus' sayings, this seems counter-intuitive. Surely saving a life is a good thing? Don't we congratulate and celebrate those who save lives, whether they are surgeons, firefighters or quick-thinking passers-by? Surely saving your own life isn't different from saving someone else's? Is it bad to save your own life?

This isn't what Jesus is talking about. He's not talking about rescuing yourself (or anyone else) from a burning building. This is part of Jesus' teaching about what it means to be a disciple. He says that anyone who follows him must take up their cross. There is only one outcome for the person who takes up their cross: they will die. There isn't an option of taking up your cross on a part-time basis, or doing a bit of occasional leisurely cross-carrying. Taking up your cross is a full-time, and final, commitment. It's in this context that Jesus talks about people who want to save their lives. But what does he mean when he says that those who want to save their life will lose it?