Well, we're going to go back
to the book of Hebrews. You'll recall we were in the chapter
4, and we had kind of taken chapter 4 as a whole in our last study. We took the last study as a whole,
as we see there in verse 1, let us therefore fear. We went through
the chapter. as a whole, looking into where
the four different places where the Lord instructs us, led us. And we spend a little time with
that. This morning I want to pick up again there in chapter
4, this time in verses 5 through 10. So if you'd like to read
with me, join me in Hebrews chapter 4, beginning at verse 5, and
in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest, Seeing,
therefore, it remaineth that some must enter therein, and
they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief. And again, he limiteth it to
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. For if Jesus had given them rest,
then would he not afterward have spoken of another day? There
remaineth, therefore, a rest to the people of God." Now aren't
you thankful for that? There remaineth, therefore, a
rest to the people of God. Verse 10, For he that is entered
into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did
from his." Now the seventh day rest is a typical day of rest
that was given to the folks as an ordinance in the Old Testament.
And the land of Canaan was a typical land of rest. It was a picture
of milk and honey, of rest for the people of Israel. And the
Lord had promised them that. He promised them that land. But
when they got there, if you recall, all but Joshua and Caleb came
back with, oh no, we can't. There's giants in that land.
They didn't believe God's word. When the Lord said to those people,
this is your rest. Now, I want you to picture this,
because this is what God is telling you and I. There is a rest, folks,
for you and I on the other side of the Jordan. It starts right
now in us resting in Him, but it's going to be a perfect, peaceful
rest when we get there. Some of us are a little closer
than others, aren't we? But that's what this is talking
about. God has promised you and I, His people, those for whom
His Son has died, that there is a rest for us in eternity. And that's what this is talking
about here. These people, these folks that had come, all of Israel
had come, and all the spies came back outside of Joshua and Caleb. And they said, there's giants
there. There's no way we can take over
this place. There's no way that this is going
to be ours. And so the Lord turned them around
because of unbelief. This is a picture of the way
of the world. There's no rest for you in heaven unless you
come down here to the front of the pulpit and pray. There's
no rest for you unless you worship on Saturday. The unbelieving
Jews did not enter into the land of Canaan, but were turned around
and wandered in the wilderness until they all died. All of those
who were over 20. They never entered into God's
rest. But notice there it says in verse
5, and in this place, if they shall enter, seeing therefore
it remaineth that some must enter therein. Now what if all of Israel
had been left to themselves out in the wilderness? Did not God
promise that land? Did He not promise Israel, the
people of Israel? Now those ones who didn't believe
God, He let them wander around out in the wilderness. Folks,
do you see the grace of God in bringing the people back? Bringing
those that He had chosen to come back and take the land of Canaan
at the time? Some had to enter, is what the
Lord said. There were some that had to be
there. Seeing, therefore, it remaineth that some, what? What's that next word? Must enter
therein. God has a people, folks. He has
a people for himself, and they must enter into heaven. Multitudes perished in the wilderness,
but the word of God did not and could not fall to the ground
void. Canaan must be inhabited by Israel. Israel must possess the land
of God's promise, and that stands today. That's today. That's as good today as it was
when David walked this earth. Isn't that what we're looking
at back there? Look down there again where it says, in verse
7, again he limited the certain day saying, in David, today,
after so long a time, as it is said, today ye will hear his
voice, harden not your hearts. Today is the day of salvation.
Folks, we have been saved. We are being saved and we shall
be saved. As long as we walk this earth,
our Lord is working everything out for our good. Everything. Don't miss this. God raised up Joshua as a type
of Christ. to do what Moses, who is the
type of the law, could never do. And Joshua led the chosen
nation into the land of promise. Christ leads you and I into the
land of promise. You sing that song, All the Way
My Savior Leads Me? God's people know that, don't
they? We know the type must be fulfilled The Lord Jesus our
great Joshua must and shall bring God's Israel into the blessed
rest of eternal salvation every one of them The covenant promise
must and it shall be fulfilled Some must enter into rest as
we read there in verse 5 and 6 and then we saw today again
He limits it at a time there in verse 7 a certain day, saying in David,
Today, after no long a time, as it is said, Today ye shall
hear his voice harden not your hearts." Folks, did you know
that nearly 400 years had passed between Joshua's day and David's
day? But the Word of God was the same
then as it was 400 years later. It's the same Word of God. The
Word is must. Why? Because God promised it. God promised His Son a people. You could say it this way, even
though nearly 400 years had passed between Joshua and David's day,
but the Word of God was the same in both days, just as it is right
now. Today is our day, the day of
grace and the day of salvation. This seventh verse specifically
speaks of this gospel day. God set this day as the day when
chosen sinners would enter into this rest, this true rest, which
he promised by faith in Christ. Today, this gospel day is the
day of salvation. Now is the acceptable time. We
have nothing to do with the legal, typical rest or the sad days
that the world would love to say you must. of the Old Testament,
we possess what those days only pictured. And I'll show you that.
Mark your place here in Hebrew and we're going to come back
to it. Turn over to 2 Corinthians chapter 2. Our Lord declares
very clearly in 2 Corinthians chapter 2 that we do not Observe
the seventh day that our Sabbath, our rest is in Christ. Look here
at 2 Corinthians verse 16 and 17. You know, I'm in the wrong
book. I'm sorry. Turn it up. Colossians.
Look at chapter 2 of Colossians beginning at verse 16. Let no
man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect, of
in holiday, or of the new moon, or of the Sabbath day. Now, just to make sure we understand
what that's saying, don't let anybody hold over you that you
have to worship, that you're not saved if you don't worship
on the seventh day of the week. That's the Old Testament regulations. Those are the pictures and types
that God spoke about being fulfilled in His Son, the Lord Jesus. And
just to make sure you understand that, look at verse 17, which
are a shadow, a picture of things to come, but the body is of Christ. So just to make sure we understood
this, that the Old Testament seventh day is nothing more than
a picture of Jesus Christ, who is our Sabbath, who we rest in
His works. It says over in verse 8, back
in our text, Hebrews chapter 4 verse 8, it says, for if Jesus
had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken
of another day. Now Joshua's name was changed
from Hosea, let God save, that's what that name means, Hosea,
to Joshua, which means God shall save. And that's over in Numbers
chapter 13, 16. He was named, let God save, but then God changed
him to God shall save when he was sent to spy out the land
of Canaan. Now the law will bring us into a dry and thorny, desolate
wilderness. That's where the law takes you.
It takes you out into a place where there is no gospel. It
takes you out to a place where there is no hope. Why? Because
nobody can fulfill the law. And we know that, don't we? You
can't do it. Oh, there's a lot of people who
think they can though, don't they? Did not Israel grow and
grow the religion of the Jews? Did it not grow and grow and
look how good we are at keeping the law? Was not Saul of Tarsus
one who felt there was nothing for him to be guilty of? until the Lord showed him he
coveted in his heart. As far as the law was concerned,
there was no guilt in solid Tarsus. The law takes you out into the
wilderness, puts you in a place where you cry out, let God save
us, for we cannot save ourselves, causing us to look to the gospel. The good news of Christ and Him
crucified which brings us to the land of rest and gives us
a Savior who shall be called Jesus for He shall save His people. Joshua and Jesus mean the exact
same thing. Joshua is the Old Testament Greek. Jesus is the New Testament Hebrew. Joshua is called Jesus here because
his name in the Old Testament means exactly the same thing
as Jesus in the New Testament, of whom he was a type of. Yet,
even in the rest that he gave in Canaan, it was only a typical
rest, a type of rest, and it was for the Lord spoke of another. He spoke of another rest that
was more glorious. In verse 9, we read back in Hebrews
chapter 4, there remained therefore a rest to the people. The word
rest here is sabbath or sabbath keeping. This rest is Christ
Jesus, our sabbath. The sabbath rest we find in Him.
Those sinners who are chosen of God in eternal election for
whom Christ died and to whom faith is given, those who believe
on the Son of God do enter into a spiritual rest. Our Lord says, my word is spiritual.
It's not carnal. A spiritual rest. It'll be perfect. A perfect rest in glory. But
it began right here on this earth. We begin to put our works away.
We stop trying to earn our own way into salvation, into the
heavens, and we realize there's nothing we can do. It's revealed
to us that our only hope is in Him. Is it a perfect rest? I don't know about you. It's
not with me. But it will be someday. When
the Lord takes me across that river, the river Jordan. We're
going to talk a little bit about this in the next message. A picture
of that. Whacked out crazy dude in the
tombs of Israel. Where was he found? He was found
sitting at the feet of Jesus in his right mind. Folks, that's
what's for you and I. Oh, we've got so many troubles
here on this earth, don't we? So many things raised its ugly
head up against us in the world we're in. So many ugly things
within ourselves raise up their ugly heads against us in this
world. That'll all be gone. All the
Sabbaths of the Old Testament, all those Sabbaths that were
required by the law of God in the days of carnal, ceremonial
worship were designed to picture this glorious gospel rest and
the rest of heaven that shall follow. The Sabbath of those
who belong to God is a Sabbath without end. As the Lord ceased
from His works that we read about in Genesis 2-2, so do God's elect,
believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, cease from our works when we
trust in Christ. Trusting Jesus, that is all. That's what we just saw. This
is what the law of the seventh-day Sabbath was a portrayal of. Did
you know that God also required a couple of other Sabbaths? One
was, Israel was to keep a seven-year Sabbath, during which the ground
rested from its slavery, its curse, and its toil. Portraying
that rest which shall soon come to God's creation and His people. Hold your spot there in Hebrews
again. Turn over to Romans chapter 8. Look with me if you would
at Romans chapter 8. Two verses. 20 and 21. This is that seven year rest. This is what the Lord is talking
about here. In giving the world around us the ground that we
walk on a rest. For the creature was made subject
to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected
the same in hope, because the creature itself also shall be
delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious
liberty of the children of God." It's talking about the whole
creation being delivered. The creature, the decay of death,
shall be delivered into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
That's what we read there. The law also requires a 7th year
sabbath. Every 49 years, the whole land
celebrated a year of jubilee. During that time, all debts were
discharged, all mortgages were cancelled, all the bondmen were
set free, and all that had been lost was restored. Do you get
the picture? Do you get the picture of what
Christ has promised you and I? Back in our text, Hebrews chapter
4 verse 10, For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased
from his own works, as God did from his. This verse very clearly
applies both to Christ and to his people. The Lord Jesus had
a work to do in preaching the gospel and in obtaining salvation
and redemption for his people. This work was given to him and
he finished it. He ceased from those works never
to do them again. He said, it is finished. Is there
anything that God does that he has to do it twice? If you're
God's tribe, your preacher is lying. Our Lord is seated in
heaven right now, folks. having entered into his rest,
as we read over in Hebrews chapter 10. Turn there with me if you
would. You don't need to hold your place. We're not coming
back to 4 for right now. But turn over to Hebrews chapter
10, and look with me if you would, beginning at verse 5. Our Lord
is seated in heaven, having entered into His rest. As we read here,
beginning at verse 5, Wherefore, when He cometh into the world,
He sayeth, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldst not, but a body
hast thou prepared in burnt offerings and sacrifice thou hast prepared
me. In burnt offerings and sacrifice
for sin thou hast had no pleasure. Then said I, Lo, I come in the
volume of the book it is written of me, to do thy will, O God. Above, when he said, Sacrifice
and offering, and burnt offerings, and offering for sin, thou wouldest
not, neither hast pleasure therein, which was offered by the law. Then said he, Lo, I come to do
thy will, O God. We're talking about Christ being
under that same declared to rest in God, to be
in His rest. He must be in His rest, as you
and I must be in the rest that He has provided for us. Then
said He, Lo, I come to do Thy will. He taketh away the first,
that He may establish the second, by the which will we are sanctified
through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Verse 11 goes on to confirm that
even further and every priest and a daily ministering and oftentimes
the same sacrifices which can never take away sins. Verse 12,
but this man after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever
sat down on the right hand of God. From henceforth expecting
till his eminence be made his footstool, for by one offering
he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified." Our Lord
is sitting there on his throne in heaven. He has entered into
his rest just as we are told God ceased from his works of
creation when he had finished them. This is exactly what every
believer does when it comes to Christ. We cease from religion
and from the works of religions and we rest in Christ. Amen.