We are resting in the finished work of Jesus Christ. Based on Christ all my work is finished. What you see today is temporal, what God sees is eternal. We are resting not in our rest but in God’s rest.Total faith is reflected in resting not working. God's rest is not a rest of weariness or inactivity but of finished work.
When you stop, God starts. When you let go, God begins.
Eg Monalisa painting- If you take a brush and try to rectify then you are going to spoil the beautiful painting. You cannot finish the finished work. Let me share with you four types of rest:-
1. Temporary rest- when we sleep we take rest.- Jesus walked away from his disciples to get refreshed.
2. Sabbatical rest- God's rest began after the sixth day of creation. After creating the universe, the earth, and all life (including man) in six literal twenty-four-hour days, God rested. Some on Saturday and some on Monday
3. 1st day of rest (Sunday)- we begin our week with taking rest, by going to church and give rest to our soul. We are no longer under the Sabbath but under grace. When the Spirit of Christ dwells and abides in Christians, the place of God's "rest" is within us In his defense before the Jewish high priest, Stephen explained that "the Most High does not dwell in houses made with hands" (Acts 7:48), and quoted God's statement from Isaiah 66:1: "'Heaven is My throne, and earth is the footstool of My feet; What kind of house will you build for Me?' says the Lord; 'Or what place is there for My rest (Greek katapauseos)?'" (Acts 7:49). The place of God's "rest" is in His new creation people, in the "household" that Jesus Christ has built (3:6), in the church of the living God, in Christian people. Having "Christ in us, the hope of glory" (Col. 1:27), God "rests" in the temple house (I Cor. 3:16; 6:19; II Cor. 5:1; 6:16) of our individual bodies and the collective Body of the Church, expressing His own character in Christians' behavior by His grace, and enjoying the results of His new creation.
Christians, who have experienced God's spiritual knife in the cutting off of sin in "the circumcision of the heart" (Rom. 2:28,29), continue to experience Christ's penetrating work as He exposes the subtle differences between religious performance and the inner "rest" of relying on God's grace.
4. Eternal rest: When we sleep in the Lord we take eternal rest- resting in the presence of God. Rest is not inactivity but directed activity.
Rev 14:13,14- Works is for the crowning and not for salvation.
Jesus said, "Come unto Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. You shall find rest for your souls" (Matt. 11:28,29). Soul means mind, will, emotions.
Augustine responded, "My heart, O Lord, does not rest until it rests in You."
If you come to me, you will find something for your inner life. My inner life is important to God then our outer life. We need inner rest than outer rest. How many of you are in the edge? Tired mentally, emotionally ie fear, worry wears you out.
Jesus did not tell Martha – you work too much but you worry too much. Why? Jesus had come to her house. The house was messy. What woukd Jesus think? Martha was upset , she blamed Mary for her problems. CALM DOWN & CHEER UP!
Through prayer and meditation on His Word we can commune with Him. In the Lord’s presence we can expect the rest and renewal we so desperately need.
16/2/2007
WHY IS GOD SO PARTICULAR ABOUT REST!
The Definitions of Rest:The dictionary gives the following definitions of rest:
1. To cease from action
The word rest means to cease from labor or exertion. Applying that to God's rest, it means no more self-effort--no more trying to please God by your fleshly works. Rest involves cessation from legalistic activity; we rest in free grace.
2. To be free from worry
Some people are never at peace because they're always bothered about something. To rest means to be free from whatever disturbs you, or causes you to worry. It means in this sense to be quiet, still, peaceful, and free from guilt. To enter God's rest means to be at peace with God--to possess the perfect peace that God gives. It means to be free from guilt, because our sin is forgiven.
3. To be settled
God's rest is the kind of rest where a man is established in Christ, and does not run from philosophy to philosophy. He is no longer blown about by every wind of doctrine, but is rooted and grounded in the truth of Christ.
4. To be secure
To enter God's rest is to be secure, having absolute trust and confidence in God's care for you.
5. To have something to lean on
To enter God's rest means that you can lean on Him. You can rely on God for support, trusting Him to supply all your needs.
There are two final definitions of rest not found in a dictionary. The Bible speaks of rest in the millennial kingdom and rest for eternity in heaven. That's what God is promising and that's what He calls rest. Many people fail to believe in God's promises, and thus do not enter into rest because of their unbelief.
Let me take you to a garden because God is so concerned with garden.- The first Garden was the Garden of Eden- the entire earth was a garden and a beautiful paradise. On the 6th day he created Adam the first man. On the 7th day God stopped work.
Why God created man on the 6th day? ( Gen 1:27-31)
Man can enjoy all he has created.
Man had nothing to do except enjoy God’s rest. Adam enjoyed everything.
The 1st temptation that Satan in the form of serpent came and told him “that he can be like God” (3:4). Man was already created in the image of God.
IMAGE -->The way man look like.
In the wilderness Satan tempted Jesus “ if you are the son of God”(Matt 4:3,6,9) Jesus kept quiet because he was already the Son of God.
Satan moved man from rest by making him insecure. “ By the sweat of your brow…………… dust will return” (Gen 3:19). Insecurity is the spirit of poverty. - Let me take you to another garden – The garden of Gethsemane- (Luke 22:42,43)Jesus prayed in the garden. He sweats in the garden. He was so stressed that His capillaries burst. The blood fell to ground. (Without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin- Heb 9:22) Jesus redeems us from sweat. The blood mingled with sweat we are redeemed. Work is not curse but stress in work is a curse.
John 20:12 --------On resurrection morning in the garden tomb Mary saw something. There were two angels sitting on the two sides of the tomb i.e. the head and the feet. This is the first time we find Angels sitting down.
What does it mean?
They are expressing rest. Our sins are forgiven, curses are removed and we are healed.
What we see in the tomb reminds me of the mercy seat of God (Exodus 25:17-22)
John20:15 à Jesus asked Mary Why are you crying? When Jesus arose and he appeared to Mary dressed as gardener> why????
To redeem us!
The first Adam in the Garden of Eden brought curse but the last Adam i.e. Jesus Christ brought back the blessing.
Jesus Christ has again finished the work and removed the curse. So now work has become worship because what we do, we do it to the Lord.
It is not our rest we are entering but it is God’s rest- “ Rest is not inactivity but directed activity.”
Matt 11:28-29. Rest for your souls. Live in rest for the rest of your lives. God is angry with people who do not want to rest. True faith is reflected in our rest and not in our working.
We are resting on the finished work of Jesus Christ- i.e. Painting of Mona Lisa- it is finished, but if you take a brush and try to make the eyes small or nose a bit big you will spoil and you will be like Mr. Bean.
]
God has made man and woman with a free will. We are free to choose what we want. Adam and Eve had a choice i.e. to obey or to disobey. Faith starts with question mark.
Satan does not want man to enjoy rest. Therefore, the number one trick Satan employed was to take man out of rest. God does the labor- you receive it by faith and obey
Gen 3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, "Indeed, has God said, 'You shall not eat from any tree of the garden'?"
Did God really say? The first thought that came to Eve that “You don’t belong to God”
Gen 3:2 The woman said to the serpent, "From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat;
Gen 3:3 but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.'"
Gen 3:4 The serpent said to the woman, "You surely will not die!
Gen 3:5 "For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
Satan guiled “it seems that God is holding something back”,
Gen 3:6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make {one} wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.
Eve was convinced. She looked with the argument in mind. It seems that God is holding something back.
Satan uses the same strategy. Satan brings in the mind of children that he is holding something back i.e. Abraham, Moses and even now. Adam and Eve walked with God. If Eve had asked God for wisdom, God would give it. She wanted her wisdom. Satan tricked her that she can be like God knowing good and evil. She was already like God (Gen 1:26, 27). Adam and Eve were made in the image of God. Jesus had the same temptation in the garden of Gethsemane.
The result of sin:-
1. Shame
Gen 3:7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings.
2. Hid from God
Gen 3:8 ¶ They heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.
God clothed them even when they messed up
Gen 3:21 The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife, and clothed them. This is the first murder.
Where are thou? God gave them a second chance to repent.
Gen 3:9 Then the LORD God called to the man, and said to him, "Where are you?"
Gen 3:10 He said, "I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself."
Gen 3:11 And He said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?"
Gen 3:12 The man said, "The woman whom You gave {to be} with me, she gave me from the tree, and I ate."
Gen 3:13 Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" And the woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."
Instead of confessing, they blamed each other. Adam blamed Eve, Eve blamed Satan and they blew it.
This is the same problem with each of us. Instead of confessing we blame others and we BLEW IT!
Adam and Eve gave rest away- pain in labour. All your life you will labour to scratch to “scratch a living”
Gen 3:16 To the woman He said, "I will greatly multiply Your pain in childbirth, In pain you will bring forth children; Yet your desire will be for your husband, And he will rule over you."
Gen 3:17 Then to Adam He said, "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, 'You shall not eat from it'; Cursed is the ground because of you; In toil you will eat of it All the days of your life.
Gen 3:18 "Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; And you will eat the plants of the field;
Adam literally had to scratch the ground because we find that Noah was the 1st person to use gardening tools. Without a blessing, you are going to sweat.
Gen 3:19 By the sweat of your face You will eat bread, Till you return to the ground, Because from it you were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return."
POINTS TO BE NOTED Gen 3:20 ¶ Now the man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all {the} living.- THE FIRST TIME WE FIND THAT ADAM GAVE A NAME TO HIS WIFE “EVE”
Satan wants to trick you and take you out of rest. Jesus came into this world and purchased the blessing back
Gen 3:22 ¶ Then the LORD God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever"—
“KNOW”- inclined with, intimate with. When they become inclined with evil, they could not walk with God. God had to cut off man from the garden because the tree of life was there. If they do eat, again they will always suffer.
If we do His will and obey Him, I will enjoy rest because evil cannot control us.
Isaiah 54:1-8
Is 54:1 "Shout for joy, O barren one, you who have borne no {child ;} Break forth into joyful shouting and cry aloud, you who have not travailed; For the sons of the desolate one {will be} more numerous Than the sons of the married woman," says the LORD.
Is 54:2 "Enlarge the place of your tent; Stretch out the curtains of your dwellings, spare not; Lengthen your cords And strengthen your pegs.
Is 54:3 "For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left. And your descendants will possess nations And will resettle the desolate cities.
Is 54:4 ¶ "Fear not, for you will not be put to shame; And do not feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced; But you will forget the shame of your youth, And the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.
Is 54:5 "For your husband is your Maker, Whose name is the LORD of hosts; And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, Who is called the God of all the earth.
Is 54:6 "For the LORD has called you, Like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit, Even like a wife of {one's} youth when she is rejected," Says your God.
Is 54:7 "For a brief moment I forsook you, But with great compassion I will gather you.
Is 54:8 "In an outburst of anger I hid My face from you for a moment, But with everlasting lovingkindness I will have compassion on you," Says the LORD your Redeemer.
This is the blessing. When God moves in, he will be your husband- provider, caregiver, caretaker etc. When God is the provider, he will take you.
Let God do the fixing- BOILING
Conclusion: Obey God- You have a destiny.
23/3/2007
Entering God's Rest
- Introduction
Chapter four continues the warning to unbelievers that began in Hebrews 3:7. Throughout this section, the writer of Hebrews illustrates his point with the nation of
A. The Availability of Rest
The rest of
"Let us, therefore, fear lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it." (v. 1)
A. The Forfeiture of Rest
"Therefore" takes us back to what the writer has said previously about
Scripture indicates that Christians don't need to fear. Jesus said, "Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid" (John
B. The Promise of Rest
1. To
Verse 1 says, "A promise being left for us." The "us" is a reference to the Jewish people. What the writer of Hebrews wants to make clear is that when
Is God Finished with
Many Jewish people who had heard the gospel were fearful that
One of the great passages in the Bible that indicates God is not finished with
The phrase "any of you should seem to come short of it" at the end of Hebrews 4:1 could be more accurately translated "lest you think you have come too late to enter into the rest of God." The author is telling his Jewish audience not to think it's too late to enter God's rest.
2. To the church
a) By exercising faith in Christ
There is a perfect rest available to us through faith in Christ. In Matthew 7:26-27 Jesus says, "Every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house and it fell; and great was the fall of it." Jesus warns against missing grace by failing to exercise faith in Him.
b) By acknowledging our sin to God
Some people fear they are too great a sinner to be forgiven, but that's not true. People who acknowledge their sin are the kind of people God likes to deal with. Paul says of himself in 1 Timothy 1:15, "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptance, that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief." You may be too much of a sinner to deserve salvation--no one deserves salvation--but you're not too much of a sinner for the grace of God to handle (
.
II. THE BASIS OF REST (vv. 2-7)
A. Personal Faith (vv. 2-5)
"For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them; but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. For we who have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest; although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. For he spoke in a certain place of the seventh day in this way, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works. And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest."
"Gospel" (v. 2) should be translated "good news." That word has a specific connotation in the New Testament, but here refers to the good news about rest preached in the Old Testament.
1. The necessity of faith
Although the good news about God's rest was preached to
a) The faith that doesn't save
This was an important message for the author's audience to hear because they thought they were safe because they had the law as an heritage. Paul says to such people in Romans 2:25, "Circumcision verily profiteth, if thou keep the law; but if thou be a breaker of the law, thy circumcision is made uncircumcision." Circumcision, Paul says, is meaningless unless you keep the law.
If a police officer stops you for speeding, you could have the entire Vehicle Code memorized and it wouldn't help you-- you'd still get the ticket. Merely having the necessary information does not help unless you act on it; in fact, it makes you all the more responsible. Unless the information you have is mixed with faith, it profits you nothing.
b) The faith that does save
(1) 1 Thessalonians 2:13
SPECIAL DELIVERY"For this cause also we thank God without ceasing because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it, not as the word of men but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe."
(2) 2 Thessalonians 2:13
"We are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth."
(3) James 1:22
"Be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves."
2. The cruciality of faith
Hebrews 4:3 tells us the destiny of those who exercise faith and those who don't. The first part of the verse says, "We who have believed do enter into rest." Note it doesn't say we are on the way to rest; it states we are in it. Every Christian is in God's rest. That is just another way of saying we are saved.
God says of those who fail to exercise faith, "As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest." A better translation of that last phrase is, "They shall not enter into my rest." That expresses God's attitude toward those who do not exercise faith. To fail to believe the truth is to forfeit God's rest for all eternity.
3. The rest of faith
a) Rest defined
In verse 3 God defines the rest as "my rest." God's rest is not a rest of weariness or inactivity but of finished work. God's rest began after the sixth day of creation. After creating the universe, the earth, and all life (including man) in six literal twenty-four-hour days, God rested. His rest is described in verses 3-4: "Although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. For he spoke in a certain place of the seventh day in this way, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works" (cf. Gen. 2:1-2).
b) Rest forfeited
There was only one condition for Adam and Eve to remain in God's rest, and that was to believe God. However, they chose to believe Satan's lies instead and by their unbelief forfeited rest.
c) Rest recovered
The rest of the Bible records God's efforts to get man back into His rest. To do that, He had to deal with man's sin. The coming of Jesus Christ took care of the sin issue, and through the death of Christ, men may enter back into God's rest. Christ bore the sins of those who lived prior to the cross as well as those of us who live after the cross.
Verse 5 reiterates the statement of verse 3 that the unbelieving Israelites failed to enter God's rest. I believe that the people who sinned in the wilderness not only forfeited
B. Divine Decree (v. 6)
"Seeing, therefore, it remaineth that some must enter into it, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief"
The second basis of rest is divine or sovereign decree. We are saved not only by our personal faith, but also by God's sovereign choice before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4). Jesus puts both elements of salvation together in John 6 when He says, "No man can come to me, except the Father, who hath sent me, draw him" (v. 44), and "him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out" (v. 37). How those two doctrines can be harmonized is beyond our limited ability to understand.
Hebrews 4:6 gives us the balance to what the writer said previously in this passage regarding personal faith. By God's sovereign decree, rest still remains. God does not design things for no purpose. Since He designed that there be a rest, He has always preserved a remnant throughout history to enjoy it. Although the way is narrow and few find it (Matt.
"And" a case in point of such refusal is that "those previously having had good news presented to them did not enter in (to God's rest) because of disobedience." (6b)The faithless generation at Kadesh had the good news (4: 2) of a promised land of rest presented to them by Moses (Exod. 13:5) and by Joshua and Caleb (Numb. 13:30; 14:6-9), but they forfeited their opportunity to enter into that provisional portrayal of divine rest because of their defiant disobedience (3:18; 4:11; cf. Numb. 14:11,12, 21-23). In contrast to the "obedience of faith" (Rom. 1:5; 16:26) that God desires, the initial generation of Israelites that departed Egypt responded in "the disobedience of faithlessness," unreceptive to what God promised to do for them, and not persuaded that God could or would provide what He promised. It was their choice; they chose not to enter into the land of promised rest, and God gave them the consequences of their choices. They had no one to blame but themselves!
C. Immediate Action (v. 7)"Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, Today, after so long a time, as it is said, Today if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts."
The age of grace will not last forever. That's why the apostle Paul said, "Now is the day of salvation" (2 Cor. 6:2). Right now is God's today. In Genesis 6:3 God says, "My Spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years." There is a limit to His patience. The pre-Flood civilization is an example of that.
As it is the ever-persistent desire of God to make His rest available to man, "He again delineates some day: 'Today,'..." in which His rest can be realized. This is not a reference to a certain, specific or particular day, for Paul notes that the word was used in David's "day," and Paul is employing the Davidic text to apply to the Jerusalem Christians of the first century. These "last days" (1:2) of the Christian era, the "day of salvation" (II Cor. 6:2; cf. Isa. 49:8), constitute the continued period of opportunity to experience God's grace and rest in Jesus Christ. But more specifically for the Jerusalem Christians to whom he was writing, Paul wanted to emphasize the ever-present "rest" of the ever-present I AM, for "right now."
"Today" refers to the day salvation is offered. The Spirit of God urges immediate action in verse 7 because today doesn't last forever. This is the day that rest is available. Don't delay and risk missing out on God's rest.
So God fixes a certain day, called "today." Again, time is of no consequence. The fixed day is "today." It is always today. The day is fixed for hearing and receiving the gospel, not hardening one's heart against it. The words quoted in verse 7 originally appeared in the Psalms, most of which were written by David to the extent that they were connected with his name. Psalm 95 was written "after so long a time," about 400 years after
God was "saying through David after so long a time, as has been said before, 'TODAY IF YOU
Of course, they are still relevant in our day: "Today if your hear his voice, do not harden your hearts." His voice, in this context, is the gospel. It begins with hearing. If we hear the gospel, we have a chance to believe it. But it is also possible to harden our hearts - to not listen and believe because we suspect it isn't good news. We should therefore open our ears and hearts as wide as possible for as long as possible so that the truth of the gospel settles in our souls. As we shall see, hearing the gospel is not only for those who have never embraced it but for those who have embraced it as well, because those who have embraced it benefit as they discover it afresh.
III. THE NATURE OF REST (vv. 8-10)
"If Joshua had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. There remaineth, therefore, a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also has ceased from his own works, as God did from his."
“[This mention of a rest was not a reference to their entering into
A. It Is Spiritual
Verse 8, beginning with the word "for," further explains that rest is a current concept, not just an ancient one. Joshua, the man who eventually led the Israelites into the land of promise, did not give them rest. The rest spoken of in this passage is not the physical rest of
The true rest comes not through a Moses, a Joshua, or even a David; it comes through Jesus Christ. Many cults promise happiness, health, and wealth in this life, but that's never the emphasis of the Bible. Many of God's people are busy, hardworking, or even afflicted with physical suffering, yet they are in God's salvation rest.
B. It Is for
.In verse 9 the writer further emphasizes that rest is available to God's current people, not just his former people. The Sabbath and the land are linked once again here, for in verse 8, the writer spoke of Joshua, whose work concerned the land, but verse 9 is linked to verse 8 by used of the word "therefore" and speaks of the Sabbath, not the land.
The term "people of God" may refer generally to anyone who knows God, but in this passage context reveals that it refers specifically to
C. It Is Future
There is a final rest coming when we will cease from our work. In verse 10, the writer explains the contemporary meaning of Sabbath rest. Entering into this rest, God's rest, means resting from one's works. What works does one rest from? One rests from his works as God rested from his. How did God rest? God rested by blessing the seventh day and setting it apart for relationship with humanity. Rest doesn't mean absence of activity, then; it means enjoyment of the relationship. Again, this has both future and present implications. There will come a time when we will cease from earthly works entirely and perfectly know and worship the Lord, as John reports in Revelation 14:13: "And I heard a voice from heaven saying, 'Write, "Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on."' 'Yes,' says the Spirit, 'that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds will follow them.'" But certainly, if rest concerns knowing God, we can know him now.
I believe Hebrews 4:10 is a reference to that final day when we cease from our labors and enter into the presence of Jesus Christ.
How does knowing the Father produce rest? As we know the Father, as we draw near to him, as we see his attributes more clearly, we understand that all is well, all will be well and all manner of things will be well. We are weary and heavy-laden - full of guilt, fear, and anxiety. We carry God-like burdens because we don't know him, or don't know him well. We are therefore not at rest, and don't feel that we can ever rest. But as we move toward the Father, it all melts away, because we realize that he will take care of everything. But we only understand that as we move toward him. And we can't move toward him unless we have access to him. Jesus, by dying for us, has given us access to him. Take a good, hard, long look into the face of the Father, and you shall find rest for your soul. And look forward to the day when you will know nothing of guilt, fear and anxiety, when you enter into God's eternal rest.
I have lately noticed an interesting trend in the answers I hear to the question, "How are you?" In our day, this is the equivalent of "hello." It's simply a way of greeting one another, and unless your an interpersonal literalist, "How are you?" doesn't mean, "How are you?" The usual answer is something along the lines of "fine." Despite cultural forms, many of us seem to want to go just a little beyond this answer and be somewhat more revealing. The answer that keeps popping up these days? One word: "Busy." We're not at rest; we're busy. And it's a good bet that this "busyness" is not being driven by our relationship with God but by something within us that is running from God. For if we were moving toward God, we'd be realize that that he will take care of things.
One day, Philipp Malanchton told his friend Martin Luther, "Martin, this day we will discuss the governance of the universe." Luther answered, "This day, you and I will go fishing and leave the governance of the universe to God." What allowed Luther to respond in this way? His knowledge and belief that God could take care of things. As we move close to God, we realize that he will take care of things, and we can rest.
Do we want rest? When rest is defined as relationship with God, perhaps not. The gospel is God's diagnostic tool that shows us whether we want him.
When the Christian enters experientially into God's grace-rest, he/she ceases and refrains from trying to perform for God. The "works" theology of dedicated performance that motivates so much of religious endeavor must be exchanged for a "grace" theology that recognizes that the objective of the Christian life is what God does in and through us, not what we might try to do for God. We "work out our salvation" by recognizing that "God is at work in us both to will and to work for His good pleasure" (Phil.
Since Christians are to rest from their works "as God did from His own" (Gen. 2:2), this must mean that as we rest in His sufficiency we appreciate and enjoy His sustaining work. To participate in God's rest is not passivism, for God always functions in accord with His character, and by our receptivity of faith we continue to allow for the outworking of His character in our behavior.
III. THE NATURE OF REST (vv. 8-10)
"If Joshua had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. There remaineth, therefore, a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also has ceased from his own works, as God did from his."
“[This mention of a rest was not a reference to their entering into
A. It Is Spiritual
Verse 8, beginning with the word "for," further explains that rest is a current concept, not just an ancient one. Joshua, the man who eventually led the Israelites into the land of promise, did not give them rest. The rest spoken of in this passage is not the physical rest of
The true rest comes not through a Moses, a Joshua, or even a David; it comes through Jesus Christ. Many cults promise happiness, health, and wealth in this life, but that's never the emphasis of the Bible. Many of God's people are busy, hardworking, or even afflicted with physical suffering, yet they are in God's salvation rest.
B. It Is for
.In verse 9 the writer further emphasizes that rest is available to God's current people, not just his former people. The Sabbath and the land are linked once again here, for in verse 8, the writer spoke of Joshua, whose work concerned the land, but verse 9 is linked to verse 8 by used of the word "therefore" and speaks of the Sabbath, not the land.
The term "people of God" may refer generally to anyone who knows God, but in this passage context reveals that it refers specifically to
C. It Is Future
There is a final rest coming when we will cease from our work. In verse 10, the writer explains the contemporary meaning of Sabbath rest. Entering into this rest, God's rest, means resting from one's works. What works does one rest from? One rests from his works as God rested from his. How did God rest? God rested by blessing the seventh day and setting it apart for relationship with humanity. Rest doesn't mean absence of activity, then; it means enjoyment of the relationship. Again, this has both future and present implications. There will come a time when we will cease from earthly works entirely and perfectly know and worship the Lord, as John reports in Revelation 14:13: "And I heard a voice from heaven saying, 'Write, "Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on."' 'Yes,' says the Spirit, 'that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds will follow them.'" But certainly, if rest concerns knowing God, we can know him now.
I believe Hebrews 4:10 is a reference to that final day when we cease from our labors and enter into the presence of Jesus Christ.
How does knowing the Father produce rest? As we know the Father, as we draw near to him, as we see his attributes more clearly, we understand that all is well, all will be well and all manner of things will be well. We are weary and heavy-laden - full of guilt, fear, and anxiety. We carry God-like burdens because we don't know him, or don't know him well. We are therefore not at rest, and don't feel that we can ever rest. But as we move toward the Father, it all melts away, because we realize that he will take care of everything. But we only understand that as we move toward him. And we can't move toward him unless we have access to him. Jesus, by dying for us, has given us access to him. Take a good, hard, long look into the face of the Father, and you shall find rest for your soul. And look forward to the day when you will know nothing of guilt, fear and anxiety, when you enter into God's eternal rest.
I have lately noticed an interesting trend in the answers I hear to the question, "How are you?" In our day, this is the equivalent of "hello." It's simply a way of greeting one another, and unless your an interpersonal literalist, "How are you?" doesn't mean, "How are you?" The usual answer is something along the lines of "fine." Despite cultural forms, many of us seem to want to go just a little beyond this answer and be somewhat more revealing. The answer that keeps popping up these days? One word: "Busy." We're not at rest; we're busy. And it's a good bet that this "busyness" is not being driven by our relationship with God but by something within us that is running from God. For if we were moving toward God, we'd be realize that that he will take care of things.
One day, Philipp Malanchton told his friend Martin Luther, "Martin, this day we will discuss the governance of the universe." Luther answered, "This day, you and I will go fishing and leave the governance of the universe to God." What allowed Luther to respond in this way? His knowledge and belief that God could take care of things. As we move close to God, we realize that he will take care of things, and we can rest.
Do we want rest? When rest is defined as relationship with God, perhaps not. The gospel is God's diagnostic tool that shows us whether we want him.
When the Christian enters experientially into God's grace-rest, he/she ceases and refrains from trying to perform for God. The "works" theology of dedicated performance that motivates so much of religious endeavor must be exchanged for a "grace" theology that recognizes that the objective of the Christian life is what God does in and through us, not what we might try to do for God. We "work out our salvation" by recognizing that "God is at work in us both to will and to work for His good pleasure" (Phil.
Since Christians are to rest from their works "as God did from His own" (Gen. 2:2), this must mean that as we rest in His sufficiency we appreciate and enjoy His sustaining work. To participate in God's rest is not passivism, for God always functions in accord with His character, and by our receptivity of faith we continue to allow for the outworking of His character in our behavior.
IV. THE URGENCY OF REST (vv. 11-13)
"Let us labor, therefore, to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. For the word of God is living, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight, but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do."
The Greek word translated "labor" means "to make haste" or "to work Diligently." The passage is not teaching that you can work your way to salvation, but that you diligently seek to enter God's rest by faith.
"We should be diligent, therefore, to enter that rest, lest anyone fall by the same example of disobedience." He is emphasizing that Christians are responsible for choosing to be receptive in faith to what God in Christ wants to do in their lives. They should be eager and zealous to enter in to that experiential "rest".
To make his point, Paul refers again to the "example of disobedience" (
A. The Power of the Word
"For" (to facilitate entering into God's rest) "the Word of God is living and energizing and sharper than any two-edged knife,..."(V-120
The writer warns us to be diligent to enter into God's rest because the Word of God is living and powerful. It will pierce you to the depths of your heart to determine whether you are a genuine believer or not. Although you may claim to have faith in Jesus, if your faith is not real, the Word of God will reveal the emptiness of your profession. Several passages in the book of Revelation illustrate the Word of God used as an instrument of judgment.
In Revelation
In Revelation
In Revelation 19:15, 21 refer to the Lord's smiting the nations with the sword of His mouth. Those passages illustrate that the Word of God is used not only in saving men, but in judging them as well.
B. The Penetration of the Word
The Greek word translated "sword" (machaira) does not refer to a large sword, but to a dagger. Like a small knife that can be thrust with accuracy, God's word penetrates to the innermost part of a man. "Discerner" is a translation of the Greek word kritikos, from which we get the English word critic. The Word of God analyzes a man's thoughts, motives, and attitudes. It penetrates all disguises and lays bare the soul.
The Greek word translated "opened" in verse 13 had two connotations in ancient times.
ü It was used of a wrestler who seized his opponent by the throat so that he couldn't move. In such a situation, the two opponents would be face to face. The Word of God grabs us, and forces us to come face to face with God.
ü The second use of the word was in reference the trial of a criminal. A dagger would be strapped under an accused man's chin with its point up, thus keeping him from bowing his head and forcing him to face the court. Sooner or later, all men will stand before God, whose Word will lay bare their heart and force them to face God and their own sinfulness. In light of that sobering reality, I urge you not to harden your heart.
CONCLUSION: The rest spoken of in Hebrews 4:1-13 is a spiritual rest. God does not promise us freedom from physical suffering or hardship in this life--in fact, He warns us to expect it (Acts
