When Did Bible Build A Godly Balance Between Work And Time Of Work?

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Question 2
In modern society, it is considered a badge of honor to be in a constant state of overbooked calendars full of events no one person could ever hope to attend. We are constantly bombarded with the messages that we need to work hard for our future, family, and God. However, most of us are painfully aware that as humans we need times of relaxation as a physical necessity. Using the Bible as a guide, it is possible to strike a godly balance between labor and leisure time. This can be accomplished by examining the way the Bible treats times of work and times of rest and synthesizing these to determine the correct division of the two. The Bible often speaks of the necessity and morality of work and how to use that work to glorify God. …show more content…

In Mark 6:30-34, the Bible gives an account of when Jesus demonstrated this to his disciples. The disciples had been hard at work and they came to Jesus to give him a report. The account states that they were so busy they did not even have time to eat so Jesus said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while” (Mark 6:30b ESV). Another time the Bible speaks to the need to rest is in the account of Mary and Martha in Luke 10. Here, the Bible pits two contrasting attitudes against each other, the attitude of Martha being the need to work while the attitude of Mary being the need to rest and worship. When Martha confronts Jesus about Mary’s lack of helpfulness he responds to her saying, “Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:42b ESV). Here we see that sometimes, choosing rest over work can be the right choice, especially when that rest is coupled with adoration for Christ. Another example of this is seen in God’s gift of the sabbath. In Mark 2:23-28, an account is given of the disciples picking grain on the sabbath. The Pharisees are displeased by this because picking grain on the sabbath is forbidden. However, Jesus answers the Pharisee's criticisms saying, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27b ESV). From this, we can establish that to reject the sabbath, a time of rest, is to reject a blessing provided to