At the end of His work, God rested (Genesis 2:2-3). From the beginning of time, God instituted the Sabbath. God not only commands this rhythm of rest (Exodus 20:8-11), but it foreshadows the rest He will give to those who love and honor Him once their work for Him on earth is done (Hebrews 4:1-13). The eternal Sabbath is the goal of all who proclaim Christ as Lord.
I cannot stress the importance of the Sabbath enough. God first ordained it by modeling the behavior for us, then enshrined it as the fourth commandment so it would be a practice for all generations to come. We ignore the practice of the Sabbath at the risk of disobeying God and to our peril.