Rest

7-5-26

Hoonah-Hadley

Matthew 11:16-19,25-30

Call to Worship Psalm 145:8-15

Daily Verse’s Matthew 11:28-30

Rest

“Come to Me all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” We live in a world that is determined to interrupt our rest, our peace. Maybe it is bent on having us look in all the wrong places for it. There is a rest to be had, it is available, it is near and we find it here in the red letters of the Gospel of Matthew chapter 11 in the oft used and familiar verses 28-30. It’s not the first time God tells us about rest. Genesis 2:2 “On the seventh day He rested from all His work.” The first item of interest concerning rest, God rested. So we see straight away, rest is part of Gods economy. In Exodus 31 He gives us the Sabbath Law. Vs. 12-16 “And the Lord spoke to Moses…Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations…You shall keep the Sabbath, therefore, for it is holy to you…Work shall be done for six days, but the seventh is the Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord…to observe the Sabbath…as a perpetual covenant.” Not only did God rest, but He gave us a day of rest. Apparently, He thought it a necessary part of life. We’ll let you take your excuses and your argument to God on this matter. Exodus 33:14 “My presence will go with you and I will give you rest.” God rested. He set the Sabbath day of rest as a “sign” and a “perpetual covenant” we are to “observe”. And finally, here in the Old Testament, He goes with us on our journey and “gives” us rest. Rest is a necessary part of our journey.

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Let us take a side trip to Hebrews chapter 4 in what could be considered the ultimate chapter on rest. 4:1 “Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it.” 3 main items in this introductory verse to chapter 4. Number 1, entering this rest is a promise. God’s word is a reminder to us of many things, many, many things, not the least of which is His covenant with us, and that covenant is a promise. His word will not return to Him void, but it will accomplish what He pleases, it shall prosper in the thing for which He sent it. (Isaiah 55:11) Our Lord is a promise maker, and a promise keeper, when He says a thing, or does a thing, you can trust Him, you can take it to the bank as a surety, as part of the inheritance He has established for us. Number 2, this rest, it’s “His rest”. This rest we speak of today comes from God and no other. It cannot be bought, manufactured or found in any other place, person or institution. The world is a market place for stimulants to get us going, and depressants to slow us down. And though much of it may be temporarily effective, it all to often becomes the “thing”, taking over our lives. The third item in Heb. 4:1 gets lost in the shuffle, namely “fear”. Rest and fear in the same verse, how can that be? Proverbs 4:7-13 “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding. Exalt her and she will promote you…she will deliver you…Take firm hold of instruction, do not let go; keep her, for she is your life.” Proverbs 8:13 “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil.” Proverbs 8:34 “Blessed is the one who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the post of my doors.” Proverbs 9:10 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. His rest is a promise, take hold of it, it’s your life.

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Our lesson in Matthew and Hebrews chapter 4 are strikingly parallel, then you can add Psalm 95 to that, more evidence, scripture confirms scripture. Matt. 11:16-24 “But to what shall I liken this generation…Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His work had been done, because they did not repent…But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you.” Compare Hebrews 4:2-3 “For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. For we who have believed do enter that rest.” Psalm 95:7-11 “Today if you will hear His voice: Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion…They tried Me, though they saw my work. For forty years I was grieved with that generation, and said, ‘It is a people who go astray in their hearts, and they do not know My ways.’ So I swore in My wrath, ‘They shall not enter My rest.’” Perhaps we can go one step further to support our cause with Isaiah 48:16-22 “Come near to Me, hear this…I am the Lord your God, Who teaches you to profit, Who leads you by the way you should go…Go forth from Babylon! Flee from the Chaldeans…And they did not thirst when He led them through the deserts…There is no peace, says the Lord, for the wicked.” We can run with this to a fan favorite in Psalm 1. “Blessed are those…who meditate on His word day and night…whatever they do shall prosper. Not so the wicked…For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked shall perish.”

Now, the penman of Hebrews takes us back to Gen. 2:2 “And God rested on the seventh day from all His works.” God establishes the pattern on which our lives are to be built. Work 6 days, 1 day of rest, this is the principle upon which humanity has been constructed. It is the rhythmic cycle for humanity, by faith and belief.

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If we deny God, we deny the structure of creation and we find ourselves wandering around in a world without purpose. Not long ago, as children, we set aside our “church” clothes Saturday evening. We went to church on Sunday, that decision was made for us, we had no say in the matter. In fact, I can see when our lives spiraled out of control when my father bought a business and he decided to be open on Sunday. There are businesses that still observe the Sabbath today, but for the most part we have deviated from it. Should we observe God’s Day, His plan for creation, for humanity, His word? God established physical rest in Genesis, in the beginning, here in Matthew and Hebrews He gives us the pattern of rest for our souls. Vs. 6 “…and those to whom it was first preached did not enter because of disobedience.” To listen to the gospel, memorize its verses but have not faith, we will not enter His rest. God’s word is the MRI, the CT scan, the ex-ray of the heart. Vs. 11 “Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience.” Gods word discovers our condition, “…is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” Other versions use the word “careful”. Remember, this is a covenant between God and us, the diligent and careful part is our side of the agreement, less we fall because of “disobedience”. Now how do we enter that New Testament rest for our souls? Rest from all that burdens us, the daily trials and heart ache, the pressure, deadlines that tax our hearts and minds? Matt. 11: 28 “Come to Me all you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.” Jesus Christ is Gods remedy for our disobedience. God establishes the pattern upon which our lives are to be built. He sent His Son, His side of the deal, but we must “come” to Him. By faith and belief, let us be diligent, careful “and you will find rest for your souls.” Amen.