Honoring the Sabbath with Work, Rest, or Play | Dr. Joel Biermann

The Concordia Publishing House Podcast

Dr. Joel Biermann joins as guest on this episode of The Concordia Publishing House Podcast to discuss his new book, Day: 7: For Work, Rest, or Play. In this episode, Biermann discusses how his book explores the sabbath and how it's all about living in the joy and celebration of God's good gifts.

Get a copy of his book on cph.org.

Show Notes
The third commandment asks Christians to remember the sabbath day by keeping it holy - but how is one supposed to keep it holy? And how does work, rest, and play help us do just that? Dr. Joel Biermann joins the episode to talk about the sabbath and what it means for us in our daily lives.

Listen to the full episode to hear Dr. Biermann talk about who he wrote his new book for, what his goal was when writing, how we can understand the sabbath’s implications for our lives, the significance of the sabbath in the Bible, and more.

Questions

• You wrote this for a lay audience. How did you know that it was ready for a lay audience?
• What is your goal for Day 7?
• What do most people get wrong about the Sabbath?
• What does the Sabbath have to do with God creating the world?
• Is there any significance to Adam and Eve being created on the sixth day, and then resting with God on the seventh day?
• How did the Israelites in the Old Testament understand and observe the Sabbath?
• How did Jesus' teachings and healing miracles on the Sabbath help shape our understanding of what Sabbath means for us?
• Does the Sabbath give us a glimpse into what our eternal life with Christ in heaven will be like?
• What does it look like to live the vita receptiva?
• In your introduction, you say that the biblical idea of remembering the sabbath deserves more attention. What do you mean?
• What does it mean to follow the sabbath?
• What do you think most people get wrong about the sabbath?
• Why is called the sabbath?

About the Guest
The son of a pastor, Joel Biermann was raised in parishes in Alberta, Nebraska, and Michigan. After serving St. Matthew Lutheran Church in Holt, Michigan for 11 years, Dr. Biermann returned to Concordia Seminary to pursue graduate work. In 2002, he joined the faculty at Concordia Seminary in the department of systematic theology, teaching doctrinal theology with a special interest and emphasis centered on ethics and the correct role of the law in the life of the believer. Outside of his responsibilities at the seminary, Dr. Biermann serves actively at his home congregation, leading evangelism training, teaching an ongoing Sunday morning Bible class, and creating material for small group Bible studies. Dr. Biermann is a frequent speaker at district and congregational gatherings and conferences covering a variety of topics especially relating to issues of discipleship and sanctification. Dr. Biermann holds the following degrees: B.A., Concordia College, Ann Arbor, Michigan M.Div., Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri Ph.D., Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri. Dr. Biermann and his wife Jeannalee live in St. Louis where they enjoy staying active in a variety of ways in the outdoors. They have three grown children and 11 grandchildren.