Faith is the Key to Rest
For we who have believed, enter into rest. (Heb. 4:3)
Heb. 4:1-3, 10-11, and 14:14-16; Ex. 33:14; Ps. 95, 11, 116:7; Isa. 28:12; Rev. 14:13
What Is God Saying?
Hebrews was written to the early Christians, who were thought to be naive and out of the mainstream. They were considered pariahs. They were ignored or ridiculed. Some almost decided to turn back. It was the same scenario in the book of Exodus. There, too, many wondered if the Promised Land was worth all their suffering and sacrifice. They looked back wistfully to the captivity of Egypt. But despite God's miraculous deeds, the Jews rebelled and failed to enter the rest of the Promised Land. Here there is more than physical rest and freedom from the bondage of Egypt. God was calling His own to find rest in His salvation by grace alone. ‘It did not meet with faith in the hearers’ (Heb. 4:2), nevertheless ‘we who have believed, enter into rest.’
How Does This Apply To Us?
Faith is the key. Believing is the way to resting. We have the blessings of Heaven now; the reality of Heaven forever. We are not saved to be idle. It is just the opposite. ‘Looking to Jesus as the Perfecter of our faith’ (Heb. 12:1) is of one piece with ‘laying aside every weight, and sin that clings so closely (vs. 7). Faith brings rest that is more akin to running with patience than to sleep with dreams. Here God speaks of the rest of an undivided heart. Perfect rest is having one Lord to serve, one God to please, one purpose for living, and one hope for dying. It is more than the rest of a boat moored in a marina away from the restless ocean; it is a ship cruising steadily through rough seas with the engines working well. Thank you, St. Augustine, ‘God has made us for Himself and we find no rest until we rest in Him.’
Pray With Me
Lord, I thank You from the depths of my heart for the joy that follows struggle. Thank You for the peace which comes when every ambition and passion is laid without reservation at the foot of the Cross. Thank You for the healing rest that comes because I have believed. This is Your way. Having found and entered into rest, may I let You close the door. Shut me into Yourself, for in You alone is life completed and endlessly complete. Christ alone is my sufficiency. In His power, I will trust. In His truth, I will walk. In His love, I will rest, but it will not be a rest of inactivity. Believers who are at rest must not be detached from the needs of the world nor indifferent to the suffering of the world. Because I am resting, I cannot close my heart to those who find no rest. Resting, I shall be ready to help those in need.
In the name of Him who came to seek and to save the lost. Amen.
Moving On In The Life of Prayer
In this chapter which speaks of rest as the result of faith, we are encouraged and we find one of the clearest patterns for prayer in all of Scripture. To ‘move on in the life of prayer’ (Heb. 4:14-16), we who have believed enter into rest.’ Faith is for living not sleeping, and so is the rest that God gives.
