And I'm gonna say it once again.
Let's begin in Hebrews chapter four. And for now, I'm only gonna read
verse three. For we which 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. I know all of us have days, weeks,
and months where we are doing so many things that we could
not, you know, to care for those things for which we know that
need attending to. There's a lot of things that's
going on with us, and we have to attend to those things. We
will work all day long on things that we know had to be done,
but at the end of the day, we do not feel like we had accomplished
anything of any value. Sometimes this would be true.
Sometimes this may not be true. We may really never know whether
it was so or not. The fact is we have this flesh,
and when it is involved, I can never really tell when I am doing
something that Jesus Christ may call a good work. Did I do that
thing which honored the Lord today? Sometimes I may have,
but for certain, there are times that I have not. There's one
time in scripture where our Lord said something that was done
was a good work. Matthew 26, 10 through 13, we
read, when Jesus understood it, he said unto them, why trouble
ye the woman? For she hath wrought a good work
upon me. For ye have the poor always with
you, but me ye have not always. For in that she hath poured this
ointment on my body, she did it for my burial. Verily I say
unto you, wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole
world, there shall also this that this woman hath done to
be told for a memorial of her. What was the work done here?
Ministering, bowing down to, worshiping Jesus Christ for who
he is and what he would do. At this time, it was what he
would do. It is a good work to minister to, to bow down to,
and to worship Jesus Christ for what he has done. Not because
I call it a good work, but because Jesus Christ calls it a good
work. And because of that, because
he calls it a good work, then it is. The work mentioned in
Matthew is fruit manifested. Manifested by the object of that
work. the work was done towards Jesus
Christ. There are a lot of things we
do, and I said we, I'm not talking about everyone else out there,
but there are a lot of things we do which are not towards the
Lord Jesus Christ, but we think we are. We would like to believe
they are. This old heart deceives us at
times to make us think they are. God teaches us in time that this
is not always the case. Now maybe you think that what
I've said thus far has nothing to do with the subject. If you
think that, you would be wrong. We must work to enter in to that
rest. We read in scripture, one said
to our Lord, Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief. The
burden of believing Jesus Christ, that yoke which is placed on
us, is very light. Why is it light? Because he has
bore all the weight of my sin. Not only that, but that which
is needed to work those works towards Jesus Christ are given
to us by God himself. So God does not leave it up to
me to make sure I do the right thing. He enables me to do that
for which is required. But we also have that burden
of this flesh, which is very heavy and cannot be upheld by
the believer. This flesh wants to do, do, do. In doing, it is never satisfied. I think Earl used to say, you
give this flesh a little and it will take the whole plate.
Give it a little bite and it'll take the whole plate. This flesh
loves to do. This makes it an effort or work
to enter into that rest. But this work or this labor to
enter is not grievous or hard, but gladly accepted by believers
by his grace. After all, the one who places
this yoke on us also gives us that which we need to carry that
burden out. This woman, when she did this
thing, she knew what she was and what she had done. She had
people saying things about her and about what she could have
done, which were all true. But Jesus Christ is not interested
in what you can do for anyone else. What you do for anyone
else, and notice I didn't say what you can do. You can do nothing
unless it is given you of the Father. Christ is concerned with
what you do towards him, and concern may not be the best word.
I couldn't think of another word, so I'm gonna leave it at that.
What is it to work to rest? Or what is it to labor to rest?
Because labor is the word that's used in our text. This kind of
begs some questions, don't it? What is rest and what is work? So number one, what is rest?
And I fully realize that the title seems to be a contradiction,
working to rest. But we have to fully realize
what rest is and what work is and where it comes from, I might
add. So now rest, we read in our text
in verses four through nine. For he spake in a certain place
of the seventh day on this wise, and God did rest the seventh
day from all his works. 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
enter not in because of unbelief. 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. 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. God in creation that we read
in Genesis did rest the seventh day. That's what we read here. God rested. As has been said
here before, God did not rest because he was tired. He rested
because he was done. But there is another rest that
this is speaking of here. Although, as this scripture also
says, this work was done from before the foundation of the
world, it was also accomplished in time. But just to be clear,
the seventh day of creation where God rested is not what it's talking
about here when it says this work was done from the foundation
of the world. The seventh day rest is that
time when God rested from his works. God rested, but man did
not rest there. There's another work that this
is talking about. A work that is to be spoken about
as much as we possibly can. That is the work of Jesus Christ
the Lord. Hebrews verses 10 says, Hebrews
4 and verse 10. For he that is entered into his
rest, he also has ceased from his own works as God did from
his. Jesus Christ ceased from his
own works, which he did. He came down to do this very
specific work, and then he sat down and rested. Again, not because
he was tired, but because he was finished. Jesus Christ told
us when he was about to give up the ghost, he said, it is
finished. Jesus Christ is no longer doing
that work. You hear a lot of people talking
about getting under the blood, as if Christ is dying daily on
that tree and is shedding his blood. They talk about getting
under the blood. You can't. You are either under
the blood, put there by God, or you will never be there. Psalm
37.7 says, rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him. Fret
not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because
of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass. The only place
we can find rest is in Jesus Christ the Lord. But again, in
Psalms 132, 13, and 14, we read, for the Lord hath chosen Zion,
he hath desired it for his habitation. This is my rest forever. Here will I dwell, for I have
desired it. There is a place where the child
of God desires to dwell, a place where they want to live. The
child of God, when calling to mine through the gospel and that
by faith given him of God, looks to Zion, that holy hill of God
where the wrath of God was poured out on his son so that the captives
might go free. His works is where I can rest. He was made flesh. He was made
a curse. He was made sin. He died the
death I should have died. He paid the penalty I should
have paid. He was sent to hell in my stead. But thank God it did not stop
there. He was raised again for our justification. Him being raised to life and
His people being in Him are raised to eternal justification. That
is, we are right in the sight of God. Him being raised and
then Him sitting down on the Father's right hand is at rest. Those in Him are also at rest
in Him. This is the rest we are to labor
to enter into. So now then, what is labor? What is work? Number two. And
that is labor. What is labor that's being spoken
of here in this passage? Hebrews in verse 11. Four verses
11. Let us labor therefore to enter
into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of
unbelief. We know what the rest is here.
We know it is the person and work of Jesus Christ. All that
he has done for his people. He has defeated the enemy death
and brought salvation to some. So now we labor to enter into
that rest. The verse indirectly tells us
how we do this. We believe the record God gave
of his son. It says, lest any man fall after
the same example of unbelief. Not believing what God has said
about who his son is and what his son did, you will not enter
into that rest. So that tells me that in believing
this, we do enter into that rest. We by faith do enter into this
rest. We are instructed here, exhorted
here to labor to enter into that rest in these accounts in chapter
three and four. We are to work to believe him.
Now we know we do not do this of ourselves, and no one does
this of their self, They do this by believing the gospel. They
believe this gospel by faith which is given by God. Verse
two says in chapter four, 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. So the
indication here is that if God gives faith, which is then mixed
with the gospel being preached, then it will profit you. If God
does not give us faith, it will not profit us to hear his gospel
at all. There must be a mixing that takes
place. The gospel does and must come,
but it must be mixed with faith in us. In this happening, then
we, to some extent, by the measure of faith God gives us, we believe,
and in believing, we enter into that rest, which Jesus Christ
has accomplished. Other scriptures have put it
this way. Colossians 1, verses 12 and 13 says, giving thanks
unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the
inheritance of the saints in light, who hath delivered us
from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom
of his dear son. We enter into that rest by believing
God. We do this by his power, in him
giving gifts that enable us to do this. We are placed in Christ. And as Joe has said before, the
opposite of in Christ is not outside of Christ, it is without
Christ. entering into his rest is to
be in Christ. As we already read in verse 10,
it says, for he that is entered into his rest, he also has ceased
from his own works as God did from his. I believe this is speaking
of Jesus Christ who has accomplished his work and entered into his
rest, but it is equally true that we cease from our works
as well by doing this. By believing God and by his power
being translated into the kingdom of his dear son, being placed
in his rest, this all because of his power, but we cease from
our works. At the same time, we are laboring
to this end. Why is it such a labor to do
this? Because we have that same wicked,
evil unbelief in us that is spoken of here of those that did not
enter into his rest. Those ones whose carcasses fell
in the wilderness. We must be watchful because sin
will carry us away. This old wicked Adamic heart
will deceive us if we are not watchful. We will leave our first
love just as those did in the wilderness. Back in chapter three
of Hebrews, we read in that time when these in the wilderness
provoked God. That's a scary thought. Provoking
God, that is. And I'll be honest with you.
There seems to have been plenty of times where I seem to have
found myself provoking God. How do I provoke God? By not
believing the record God gave of his son. Let's read verses
8 through 11 in chapter 3. Verses 8 through 11. Harden not
your hearts as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the
wilderness, when your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw
my works forty years. Wherefore, I was grieved with
that generation and said, they do all way err in their heart
and they have not known my ways. So I swear my wrath, they shall
not enter into my rest. What was it that happened here?
We all know the account. You had 12 men go into the land
to spy out the land. Two returned with a good report
and the rest returned with an evil report. Joshua and Caleb
returned with a good report which believed God. They believed that
God had given them this land and that they could go in and
take it by the power of His might, that is God's might. There were
those who did not believe God, and they said to God, we will
not enter in. God was provoked, and he told
them that they would not enter in, and they would die in the
wilderness. Their carcasses would fall in
the wilderness. When God told them this, they,
of course, did what all of us would do. They started backpedaling. Oh, wait, no, we will go in. God has just told them that they
will not go in after they disobeyed God, and then they said they
would go in. Then when God tells them they
will not go in but die in the wilderness, they then say we
will go in. So what happened? They did not
go in. They provoked God. Their carcasses
fell in the wilderness just as it says here in Hebrews. They
would not believe God. They hardened their heart against
the simplicity or that is that singleness that is in Jesus Christ
and him crucified. So this is why we are exhorted
to take heed and strive to enter into that rest. This is done
or this begins by hearing the gospel. He will labor to hear
his word proclaimed. It is his word which will show
us that rest. Hebrews 4.12 we read, for the
word of God is quick 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. God's word will let us know who
and what we are. It will also show us who and
what Jesus Christ accomplished. His word, that is specifically
his gospel, will get the job done. It will tear you apart. It will lay everything out there
wide open to be seen of God. You will be ashamed of yourself
when you see the magnificence of him and what he has done.
He knows us more than we know ourselves. Hebrews 4.13 says,
neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight. But all things are naked and
open unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. Who is it
that we have to do? God, Jesus Christ the Lord, who
is the judge of the quick and dead. He who is our rest knows
us to the T. That is, he knows the evil which
we do. But there are some who he knows
personally, and he knows them in a different way. He knows
them based on the work which He has done. The one He knows
have no works of their own to bring to Him. They are resting
in the work that He has done by His grace. So now, we have
looked at the rest which is Jesus Christ. That rest being Jesus
Christ doing all the works for the salvation of His people.
Him doing this and then being seated at the right hand of the
Father on high. This is the rest of God, Jesus
Christ. We looked at that work or that
labor, which God himself gives those who are his, that which
is needed that they might believe him. They doing this when God
sends them his gospel, laboring to enter into that rest. They
labor to stop their works to rest in his works. this flesh
wanting to have its way, and this flesh loves to work, work,
work. But that new man, which by faith
looks to Christ, seeing he has finished the work needed and
has sat down at God's right hand, resting. We by faith do enter
into that rest, resting in the finished work of his dear son.
And faith, anything that's not of faith, is sin. His gospel
letting us know what and who we are and showing us the very
rest of God, Jesus Christ. As we go through this life, we
should always be looking to Him and what He has done. Laboring
to enter into Him who is our rest. This we do by believing
Him, believing the gospel when God sends us that message. Believing
Him who has informed us that He has fought for us and has
taken the land for us. We dare not provoke God and tell
him we need to do this or we need to do that. When he has
said, he has done this. God help us to believe him. We
must pray as the one did in scripture. Lord I believe, help thou my
non-belief. We can do nothing without him
and we can sustain nothing without him. Bruce Crabtree had a message
that he preached at Millsite Baptist Church where he was talking
about prayer. And he was talking about this
man and his family when they were thinking about getting a
dog. And he said, the man said that he was gonna pray about
it. We don't often think of things such as that as something for
which we should look to God for guidance about, do we? We think
of them as trivial things when it comes to doing things like
that. But you start taking care of a dog, if you care about the
animal anyway, and you will find out that it's not just a small
matter to do this. We should look to him for all
things, not just dogs, anything that you're doing. You should
be looking to God for your help, your guidance. What we do should
all be to the honor and glory of his name. And in order to
do that, it must come from him. It must be done in faith, and
it is he that gives this faith. This faith which looks to him
always and only, because he rested from his work. He rested because
he was done. You all know the saying, salvation
is not due, salvation is done. And I like that saying. Can we
enter into that which Jesus Christ is? He is our rest because he
has done the work needed and he is now seated. Is there something
that God needs us to do? I don't know if you all remember
the message Walter preached on the jubilee, but just as Walter
said in that message, I will say again, Christ has blown that
jubilee trumpet. Jubilee has come for some. There's
nothing for us to bring. We are fully restored whole by
that which he has done on that tree. The trumpet had a very
distinct sound. It sounded like this. It is finished. Can you rest there? God, help
me to rest in him. Keep me, oh God. I want to be
found in him who is my rest. May you cause me always to look
to you for everything I need because that is where salvation
is found, right there in your rest. Let us work to rest, amen.