Sabbath | Worship
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Genesis 2:1-3
1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array.
2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Abraham Joshua Heschel The Sabbath - “Six days a week we wrestle with the world, wringing profit from the earth; (but) on the Sabbath we especially care for the seed of eternity planted in the soul…The seventh day is man's armistice in the cruel struggle for existence…It is a truce in all conflicts personal and social. It is an exodus from tension.”
Diane Ackerman, Deep Play - “The more an animal needs to learn in order to survive, the more it needs to play.”
Diane Ackerman, Deep Play - For humans, play is a refuge from ordinary life, a sanctuary of the mind, where one is exempt from life's customs, methods, and decrees. Play always has a sacred place—some version of a playground—in which it happens. The hallowed ground is usually outlined, so that it's clearly set off from the rest of reality. This place may be a classroom, a sports stadium, a stage, a courtroom, a coral reef, a workbench in a garage, a church or temple…As Johan Huizinga notes …play "creates order, (and) is order.”
Play as a pathway to delight on the sabbath.
Play - is when you engage any kind of low stakes activity that has no critical outcome for the rest of your life (i.e., board games, sports, crafts, cooking, etc.). The idea is that you remove the pressure of performing well enough that you can enjoy being in the experience. - Dr. Andrew Huberman
Jurgen Moltmann - “Creation is God’s play, a play of his groundless and inscrutable wisdom. It (creative play) is the realm in which he displays his glory.”
Genesis 2:1-3 - 1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. 2 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Dan Allendar - “Most of us see the day (sabbath) as a chance to rest - (by which we mean) to be off, away from work. In this view, it is as if the six days of creation were hard, onerous work for God that required a rest day for him to recuperate, in order to get back to the work of waiting for Adam and Eve to sin, in order to get the other part of the plan of redemption off the ground. What a busy God!”
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Each Sunday we come together we offer an open invitation into the way of Jesus. An invitation to enter into sacred rhythms - to draw near to God through singing, giving, learning, and praying.
As a community that desires renewal in Des Moines as it is in Heaven, we recognize that we cannot offer what we ourselves do not have. We cannot lead where we ourselves have not been led; in turn, these questions aim at reflection. Reflecting on God’s word and making space for his leadership.
After watching or listening consider the following discussion questions as a large group or in groups of three to four:
What stood out from the teaching?