Building with Brad...(14Dec08)

 

Hebrews 4v1 Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. 2For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith.[a] 3Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said,
   "So I declared on oath in my anger,
   'They shall never enter my rest.' "[b] And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the world. 4For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: "And on the seventh day God rested from all his work."[c] 5And again in the passage above he says, "They shall never enter my rest."
 6It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in, because of their disobedience. 7Therefore God again set a certain day, calling it Today, when a long time later he spoke through David, as was said before:
   "Today, if you hear his voice,
      do not harden your hearts."[d] 8For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. 9There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; 10for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. 11Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience.

 

12For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account

 

I read this scripture as I have many times before but this time something became alive to me. I realised that many believers don't find rest, they are always trying to do things 'for God' and in their trying they are never satisfied and they feel God is never satisfied. With this trail of thought they strive even harder and push those around them harder to 'please God', they are looking for rest and satisfaction but never find it.
We can be doing so much, seeking out the sick, preaching the gospel, looking for the demon possessed, visiting hospitals every week, feeding the poor etc. These are all good things that I believe we as believers should be doing, but even in doing these things we are not satisfied and we find no rest.
The question is: Why do we not find rest?

 

I believe this scripture has a few keys as to why we do not.

 

"because those who heard did not combine it with faith."   'Without faith it is impossible to please God', the reason for this is because without faith in the finished, atoning sacrifice of Jesus we will inevitably add in some of our own efforts. If we do not believe that it is finished in Christ then we will always be adding in our bit to 'help' Him get the job done. If we live trying to assist God to finish that which has already been completed than we will never be at rest.

 

"...did not go in, because of their disobedience."  The word here for disobedience, in Greek, means unbelief. I think it is because of their disobedience in unbelief that they are not able to enter into the rest that God has for us in Jesus. Let me put it this way: If we do not believe that the work has been completed in Christ, and God has told us not to add any of our flesh ( human effort) to His working, and we do not believe that the work is complete then we will try to add our effort, which is disobedience, since God told us not to. Put another way we could say: That we are disobedient to what God told us, in that it is finished, by adding our efforts, because of our unbelief. 

 

"for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his."   In order to enter Gods rest we need to rest from our own works, it cant be any more clear than that from this verse.

 

We need to make only one effort, the effort to enter into Gods rest. I would like to add that Gods rest is not sitting for the rest of our lives on a sofa. In Gods rest we are seeing the sick healed as we are out there laying hands on them, we see people free from demons, we see people come to Jesus as we preach the Gospel etc. We are however not doing this out of us striving from a place of 'have to', but out of a place of 'we can'.
If we are having to force or strongly motivate people to do these things then the chances are they do not understand the incredible grace of God, because  in the understanding of Gods grace and our place of rest in Him we are empowered and motivated by the Holy Spirit to function as Jesus did. Jesus said " as you go, preach the kingdom, heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers and cast out demons", the emphasis has to be on "as we go", as we go do what? As we go about our daily lives, to work, to school, to the shops, to the beach, on holiday etc. As we live in Gods rest, as we live by the Spirit, as we yield to the Spirit, He will open our eyes and ears, He will guide us and show us those around us who need that touch from God.
We do it from a place of rest and not a place of human effort or self induced striving.

 

God Bless,

 

Bradley Dearlove