Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - Work Hard, Play Hard? | Torah | Leviticus 23-24

Episode Date: August 15, 2022

Does God care about work-life balance? Is God too strict to have fun? Should you have boundaries for work and rest? In today's episode, Tanya looks at the guidelines for celebrations in Leviticus 23-24 to share what they teach about work, play and rest. Your support makes TMBT possible. Ten Minute Bible Talks is a crowd-funded project. Join the TMBTeam to reach more people with the Bible. Give now. Like this content? Make sure to leave us a rating and share it with others, so others can find it too. Use #asktmbt to connect with us, ask questions, and suggest topics. We'd love to hear from you! To learn more, visit our website and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter @TenMinuteBibleTalks. Don't forget to subscribe to the TMBT Newsletter here. Passages: Leviticus 23-24

Welcome to 10-minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life. In the time it takes to get to work. I'm Tanya Wilmuth. In February 2020, we hosted a college student from Japan for two weeks. Her name was Konami. Now when Konami was here, we shopped and ate and played games and talked about her plans to go to New York City and then returned back to Japan, where she'd celebrate graduation and start her new job as a flight attendant. Then we took her to meet her ride to the airport.

And ourselves, we hopped on a plane to meet our friends for a ski trip. In Colorado, we slept 24 people in one house, and we ate our meals around crowded tables and in crowded restaurants. And we flew home on an overbooked flight. I remember those days in February. I also remember March. I remember the last time I picked up my kids from in-person school. I remember the last time I sat in a coffee shop. I remember waiting, hesitating, wonderful.

Now, while we know more than ever that our perspective is limited, it does feel like we're finally moving forward. These last two years have been a shake-up for sure, but they've given us a chance to think about the way we spend our time. In the rhythms of work, play, rest, what do we value differently? And how are we going to move forward? Work. During the pandemic, employers had an increased need for efficiency, and employees had an

increased need for margin and meaning. As a result, young people, young graduates quit corporate jobs, suburbanites quit commuting into the city even when they could again, and companies like Domino's sped up implementation in machines like pizza doughmakers that replaced entry-level positions. Play. We realized that while virtual was a great invention, we still have a need for face-to-face experiences.

No matter how positive you spin it, a virtual field trip just isn't a field trip. and a FaceTime family game night isn't the same sitting around a campfire or playing Uno and munching on popcorn together. Rest. I think there's a lot we unpacked about rest, but at the top of the list, we know that even if you're stuck at home, the more plugged in you are, the less rested you are. Now, while there's a lot about the last two years we want to leave behind, there's a lot about what we learned that shapes our story moving forward. In Leviticus, we stand in the gap between the despair over a broken relationship. with God and the promised land. And Leviticus begins to tell the story of a way forward.

It was time to dream, not just about the promised land, but life with God in the promised land. The Israelites were free to dream about what their life could look like, and God wanted to be at the center. He gave them a liturgy to shape their hearts and meet their needs. Now, we're in Leviticus 23 and 24 today, and this begins the third and final movement of Leviticus. To put a finger on where we are in the first movement, God provided a way for them to be holy. In the second movement, God told them how to live holy lives. And in this third movement, God tells them how to honor him in his holy seasons. There are seven appointed feasts where the people will meet with the Lord, and this is how the Lord commands them in Leviticus chapter 23.

The Lord spoke to Moses saying, Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, These are the appointed feast of the Lord that you shall proclaim as the holy convocations. They are my appointed feasts. God gave them a liturgy for life as His covenant people. Now, while much has changed from this time until now, there remains a God-appointed rhythm for our work, play, and rest.

Work. The first appointed feast Moses describes is the Sabbath. A day set apart from work. Even in this new land where they wouldn't know how to do the work or where their food was coming from, they were only supposed to work for six days in a seven-day period. They were extra days in the other feasts that were also set apart from work. Work was intended to provide for their families and provide for others. But it had to find limits.

Play. It feels a little strange to use the word play in this context, but maybe that's because we've separated God and play in our minds because we think he's too strict to be fun. I remember when my kids were little and we were at a different church and an older man yelled at Braden for throwing a football in the hallway

and said, church is no place for football, son. Really? Is football no place for God then either? Well, God might not have committed football but he did appoint gatherings where his people would come together and celebrate that the work was done, that God was faithful, that they were his people. And getting together with God's people is really fun.

Rest. God appointed rest every seventh day and as part of the holy feasts. He called the seventh day a Sabbath, a day of solemn rest and a holy convocation. We tend to make the Sabbath hard and complicated, and there are all kinds of books and devotions out there that will help us with it. But Leviticus 233 also gives us the main point when it says it is a Sabbath to the Lord. If we can remember that it's meant to be honored to the Lord, we could help ourselves work through the struggles in a way that honors him instead of man.

There were also days of rest built into the feast of weeks, the feast of trumpets, the day of atonement, and the feast of booths. Not only does rest help us with our physical needs, but it also helps us recognize our limits and find joy and delight in our dependence on the Lord. Now, these feasts sound foreign to us today, but we still recognize God's authority with rhythms of work, play, and rest that put him at the center. We just have trouble keeping them in proper harmony. But this isn't a surprise to God.

He knows we are sinful people, and our needs for significance, margin, and relationship clash within us and off of one another. We need a rescuer and a better hope, and he gave us one in his son. We are free from the condemnation of getting these things out of balance, and we are empowered with this presence to help us use them better. When we give them unto the Lord, as he says in Leviticus,

then he will use them for his glory and give us joy and peace that we can't get on our own. So, work. How are we doing with work? Does it provide for us but not define us? Do we have good boundaries around work that create intentional time for rest and worship and flexibility and fun? Play. Do you feel like the fun part of your life is separate from your spiritual life? If so, what changes do you need to make to bring it under God's authority?

or what do you need to believe about God to truly enjoy being his child? Rest. Rest isn't something God asks us to get around to. He commands it. He builds it into his appointed time. Why? Well, all throughout the Bible, we're called to enter into his rest, where we are forgiven, justified, redeemed, where we receive the peace and joy and hope that comes with living

in his kingdom. Just as God rescued the Israelites, he rescues us from our slavery to be. these things and the anxiety and guilt that comes from letting them define us. And it gives us a better hope under his authority. And he says, come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Before you forget, sign up for the brand new TMBT newsletter. Hit the link in the show notes, and you'll get to an email every Wednesday that will help you beat the midweek slump and go deeper in your walk with Jesus. Thanks for listening.