Sovereign Call To Rest

Q: What does the Bible say about finding rest in Christ?

The Bible teaches that Jesus invites the weary and burdened to find rest in Him, emphasizing His sovereign power over salvation. In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus calls those who are weary and burdened to come to Him for rest, highlighting that this call is a sovereign act rather than a mere invitation. He states that all authority has been given to Him, underscoring His ability to provide true rest for souls. This rest is not just physical but spiritual, relieving the burden of striving for righteousness that we can never achieve on our own. The verse emphasizes that the weary do not need to labor for acceptance; rather, they can find peace in His completed work—'It is finished'—which means all the requirements for salvation have been accomplished by Christ.

Q: How do we know that Jesus' call to rest is a sovereign call?

Jesus' invitation to rest is a sovereign call because it expresses His authority and the divine choice behind salvation. The call to rest in Christ is described as sovereign because it originates from God's authority and divine will. When Jesus says, 'Come to me,' it is not just a simple invitation but a command that reflects His position as the ruler of the universe. The passage reveals that the Father has hidden the truth from some while revealing it to others, indicating that knowledge of God and acceptance of Christ is not based on human effort but on divine election and revelation. Thus, those who come to Him for rest are responding to a sovereign act of God where salvation is a gift and His grace precedes any human response or decision.

Q: Why is it important to understand grace precedes our response to Christ?

Understanding that grace precedes our response is vital because it reveals that salvation is entirely a work of God, not human effort. Recognizing that grace comes before any human response helps clarify the nature of salvation as an unmerited gift from God. It shows us that we do not earn our way to God through good works or decisions. In Matthew 11:27 and John's Gospel, it's emphasized that knowing God is a result of Christ's sovereign choice. This leads to a clearer understanding of human depravity and the need for God's intervention for salvation, as no one can 'decide' to follow Christ apart from His grace. This foundation of grace ensures that the burden of laboring for salvation is lifted, allowing believers to rest in the finished work of Christ.

Q: How does Christ relieve the burdens of life for believers?

Christ relieves burdens by providing spiritual rest, affirming that our greatest burden—condemnation—is removed through His sacrifice. In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus assures the weary that He will give them rest, highlighting that He carries the burdens we cannot bear. This includes the weight of sin and the guilt that comes with it, which is addressed in Romans 8:1 where it affirms there is no condemnation for those in Christ. The burdens of daily life are temporary and do not have ultimate control over a believer’s life since Christ has already triumphed over the greatest burden of all—death. By recognizing that our acceptance before God is secure through Christ’s finished work, believers can find peace amid their earthly struggles, knowing they are held securely by His grace.

♪♪ So, ♪♪ Congratulations, guys. You know what I mean? I'm learning from my precious. I think we got it. Okay. you you ♪♪ ♪ ♪ Yeah. you. Good morning, everybody. Great to see you, as always. You guys are still throwing me off a little bit, but we'll get used to it.

Hopefully the audio's working this week. I know we had some issues last week, but I think we've got it fixed. So if anybody's watching online and we're having more problems, text the group. Hopefully someone in the group can help us, because we're a little busy.

For announcements, I sent an email out earlier, might have been the end of last week, that Bernie fell and broke his wrist. Obviously, he was here with his broken wrist last week, but now he had surgery this week. He had a couple screws put in, so he's had a lot going on, and I dearly love Bernie. He's a great friend and a dear brother, and we must keep him and his wife and his family in our prayers.

And then also we have a new young person amongst us this morning. We want to say definitely congratulations to Jason and Carrie and Lincoln Dale who's joining us this morning and the whole Vlastein clan. Or like his big sister said, Winkin. Winkin is here. So that's all I've got for announcements this morning and we're going to get started by singing the hymn of the day on the cover of the Bulletin. We'll stand together as we sing.

Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now am found Was blind, but now I see It was grace that taught my heart to fear, and grace my fears relieved. How precious did that grace appear, the hour I first believed. dangers, toils, and snares, I have already come. Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home. The Lord has promised good to me. His word my hope secures.

He will my shield and portion be as long as And when this flesh and heart shall fail, and mortal life shall cease, I shall possess within the veil the life shall soon dissolve like snow, the sun forbear to shine. But God who called me here below will I was looking at the second and third stanza of that song. The first stanza is obviously the most famous one, for good reason.

But it's amazing, hence the term amazing grace, but to think that grace is what taught us to fear in the first place, to see who we are, and to see the situation that we're in without Christ, that was grace. Grace gave us the eye to see the truth. And then it says, and grace my fears relieved. The same grace that shows us our need provided our needs. And then it says, tis grace that has brought me safe thus far and grace that will bring me home. The grace of God through Christ is everything. It is what brought us out of darkness It is what granted us safety and peace with God. It is what is guiding us through this world and it is what will take us home. We just, to be grateful for that is, we can't put it into words. So we do our best and sing a song saying amazing grace, because it truly is amazing. Now take out your chorus books. And we'll turn them to number 12. He surrendered all. Number 12, and you can remain seated.

Christ did surrender all, for me He freely gave. Holy One, made sin for sinners, by His death my soul is saved. He surrendered all. surrendered all. Coming from his throne in heaven, Jesus laid his glory Thus this sinner is forgiven and shall soon be glorified. He surrendered all. He surrendered all.

All to be my blessed Savior. Surrendered all From his throne in Even death upon a cross, all to save the worst offender, mine the gain, his all the loss. All to be my blessed Savior He surrendered all At the cross the Father's pleasure prospered well in Jesus' hands. Now He's honored without measure, so the Father's will demands. All to be my blessed Savior, He surrendered all. Let's go to our Father in prayer together. Our Father in heaven, we come to you for all things.

We come to you this morning especially for your blessing in our time of worship. We pray, Lord, that you will help us to drop aside the distractions of this world. There are many, and they can be heavy, and they can really latch on to who we are. But we pray, Lord, that you'll give us a time of rest from those things. where we can truly be at your feet, worshiping you, speaking of you, learning of you and preaching of you, of who you are, of the grace that has been bestowed among your people because of your spilt blood, the blessing that you are, the perfection that you are, You are everything we need and you are all we need, Lord. That is all we want to hear this morning. Bless our time, Lord, that it be about Jesus Christ and his crucifixion, his resurrection, and his victory. We pray this for all of your people in all of your churches. We thank you for your love. We pray this in your name. Amen. Take out your course books one more time, and we'll turn them to number 11. Hallelujah, God has saved me. Number 11, and we'll stand as we sing. I was lost and did not know it, rushing madly to my end.

But my God, who's rich in mercy, would not let me die in sin. Hallelujah. saved me, saved me by His sovereign grace. Jesus died, the Spirit called me, I am saved by sovereign grace. Chosen by my Heavenly Father and redeemed by Jesus' blood. I am justified, forgiven, and accepted by my God. Hallelujah! God has saved me, saved me by His sovereign grace. Jesus died Saved by sovereign grace In time the Spirit called me Gave me life and set me free He revealed my blessed Savior And created faith in me Hallelujah, God has saved me, Saved me by His sovereign grace. Jesus died, the Spirit called me, I am saved by sovereign grace. and will keep me by the power of His grace. He will guide, guard, and protect me till I see my Savior's face. Hallelujah, God has saved me.

You can take out your Bibles, and we'll turn them to the book of Matthew. Matthew chapter 11, verses 25 through 30. Matthew 11, verses 25 through 30. At that time, Jesus said, I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise, and learned it, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.

All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those whom the Son chooses to reveal Him. Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

So the title of today's sermon is called The Sovereign Call to Rest. Well, to explain that, even the call, come to me by Christ, is sovereign. It is not a request. The call to rest is a sovereign statement. And we'll learn that as we go, but that's the title, The Sovereign Call to Rest.

This came, well, on a personal note, it's just, we all deal with a lot in our lives, and sometimes those things can feel heavier and more burdensome than others. And I was looking through scripture, to find comfort during times like that when you've just got a lot going on.

Some things feel heavier than others. We all have that. It's part of this world and it can really dig in and hold on tight. And it's very hard for us to let those things go. And the list is endless. I mean, I could go through the list and we'd be here for an hour of the things that can be on our minds, that can weigh on us, whether it's family or friends or jobs or responsibilities.

You all understand what I'm talking about. So that's where I came to this specific scripture, and we're gonna focus mostly on just verse 28. We are all super familiar with this verse, but we're really gonna study it. Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

What does that mean? Well, it means a lot, and there's a lot of different ways we can look at it. But before we start talking about the burden, or the labor, or the weariness, or even the rest, we must look at the first three words, come to me. So we must first realize who is speaking these words.

We take for granted so quickly that these words are in red and they are the words of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is on the throne of the universe. It says specifically here, all things, in verse 27, have been committed to me by my Father. This is the man speaking. All things are committed to him.

There are no truer things ever than the words of Jesus Christ. He defines truth. What we know is truth in this world is no truth at all. It's all temporary, it's all temporal, and it's all going to end. The only real truth is what is defined by our Lord and Savior. These words are His. They are the truth.

This is the Son of God whom all authority has been given. And he says, no one knows the Father except the Son, and anyone whom the Son chooses to reveal to him. No one knows the Father except the Son, and no one knows the Son except for those who the Son has chosen. Could it be clearer that this is a sovereign choice by an almighty ruler?

Salvation for us is only a revelation. Salvation has been finished. Salvation has been accomplished. We're only let in on it. It has been revealed to us. And that's exactly what it says here. It says, except the Son and those whom the Son chooses to reveal Him. It is not our discovery. It is not our effort. It is not our human initiative that figures it out. The Father says has hidden the truth from some. They will never see the truth. If God has hidden the truth from someone, they will never see it. But by the grace of God, the Father has revealed the truth to others.

The Son chooses, God chooses. This tells us that grace precedes any type of response from us. There's no response needed for grace. I think I brought this up a few different times, but I'll never forget an entire gigantic church in Sioux Falls all wore t-shirts this one day when everybody was getting baptized and it said, I have decided. No, you haven't. Grace happens before you even knew who God was. It says that right here. It precedes your response. There's no response needed. You don't decide. You don't give approval. Grace is given, not offered. Jesus is not making a weak offer that might succeed or might not. He is calling those who the Father has given him, and they will be saved. God does not fail.

It says in John 10, 27 and 28, my sheep listen to my voice. I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life and they shall never perish and no one will snatch them out of my hand. Does that sound like an offer or a hope This is for everybody. I really hope you guys will decide and put on that t-shirt and go get baptized. My sheep know me. I know them. They follow me. No one will snatch them out of my hand.

There is nothing neutral or weak about Christ and what he has done. It is perfect and powerful and successful. And saying it any other way is not the truth. It's very easy to tweak it just a little bit, and it still sounds good to our human ears, but it is no longer sovereign grace through the work of Christ. When Christ calls, he doesn't invite. There is not a choice for those who have been called.

Think about this. The voice who is saying these words, come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest, is the same voice that says, Lazarus, come out, Come to me, those who are weary and burdened. Lazarus, come out. Did Lazarus have a choice to become alive? No. Can dead sinners choose to not accept life? They're dead. Lazarus can't decide, you know what, I'm comfortable where I'm at, I'm just gonna stay here. Lazarus was given life and he had no choice about it.

That's the same man, Jesus Christ, who says, Lazarus, come forth, is saying, come to me, all you who are weary and heavy burdened. It is not an invitation, it is a demand. They will come. and they will find rest. And this is the foundation of rest, in the fact that there is no work from the beginning to the end on our part. So come to me, and it says, all you who are weary.

Now, that's what it says in the NIV. In the King James, it actually says, all ye that labor. Which, similar, labor makes you weary. But I found it interesting that the word labor, the original Greek word for labor that's found in the King James Version, is kapiontes, and it comes from the verb kapheio, or kopheio.

And it means, it doesn't just mean to work or to labor, it means to work to the point of exhaustion. To grow weary from strenuous effort. So this is not just casual fatigue or mild tiredness. This is exhausting, grinding effort that never ends. And that's exactly what this, it's striving that wears you out, but what kind of striving? It's not physical striving, it wasn't their work, it wasn't their jobs, it wasn't their day-to-day lives.

Spiritual striving for salvation. Earning salvation. And that labor, which is defined as the work to the point of exhaustion, is precise for a reason. Striving for righteousness on our own is never-ending work. Striving to the point of exhaustion. And because the reason it's never-ending is because the work can never be accomplished. So if you're choosing to work your way into salvation or a blessing from God, you will work forever and never earn it. Work to the point of exhaustion. That's the labor that our Lord is talking about here.

Trying to make yourself worthy of God. Now, no one comes out and straight says that, well some do, but very few do. But many follow that belief. Even just the idea of I have to make a decision, I have to accept, that right there is work. That is putting a little bit of your salvation in your pocket. Trying to earn mercy, trying to build righteousness through effort. trying to silence your guilt, which we all have. And we've all probably done this, where you try to use some sort of performance to silence your own guilt. I need to be better. The Pharisees embodied this. They turned obedience into a burden. They measured spirituality by effort. And Jesus says to those who are under that crushing weight, come to me. Me.

Because you, striving for righteousness, will never produce life. Scripture is clear, it says in Romans 3 verse 20, therefore, no one will be declared righteous in God's sight by the works of the law. No one will be declared righteous by the works of the law.

Galatians 3.10, it says, for all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse.

Why is it a curse to be under the law? Because the standard of the law is perfection. We can't be perfect. Can't even get close. So therefore, anybody under the law, striving for perfection under the law, striving for approval under the law, is under a curse. It says in James 2, for whoever keeps the whole law, yet stumbles at just one point, is guilty of breaking all of it.

So to labor your way into God's favor is to strive and work toward the impossible. And it leads to two different places. It either leads to pride because of what you've done. I feel pretty good because man, am I trying hard. Or the opposite. It leads to despair because all you do is fail. And either way leads to death.

Which is why Christ says, come to me. I am the only way. So when Christ says, come to me all who labor, he's calling you to know this, the work required for righteousness has already been done. Just come to me. Christ already obeyed the law perfectly. Christ satisfied the law, Christ bore the curse that we are under. All striving, all working ended. All striving towards salvation ended when Christ said it is finished. Because all salvation for all of God's people was won at that moment. This is why his yoke, he says, is light. Because it replaces your exhausting, endless, wasted effort with his finished work.

And then after labor, it says, all you who are weary or laboring and burdened Those go well together. Labor produces burden. You try, you fail. Labor, burden, guilt, shame. You feel the weight of the deserved judgment. the weight of divine justice, the certainty of death, the reality of condemnation. The law says, pay what you owe. And your labor says, I have nothing to give. That's the burden.

And this is where This is where the gospel explodes in Christ. In Isaiah 53, verse five and six, it says, but he was pierced for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The punishment that brought us peace was on him. And by his wounds, we are healed. Our wounds disappeared because of His. We all, like sheep, have gone astray. Each of us has turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

At the cross, the full weight of judgment was on Christ. Your labor your burden fell on him. Not partially, not symbolically, fully, truly, and completely. Your labor and burden died with Christ. Which is why he says, come to me All you who are weary and burdened, my yoke is light.

I have already taken care of it. It says in 2 Corinthians 5 21, God made him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. The heaviest burden that has ever existed. Eternal wrath of God was placed on Christ. And this is why His yoke is light. Because the ultimate burden, your burden, has already been carried.

And then he says, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Before I even get into what that rest is, I love the fact that he says, I will give you rest. I will not teach you how to rest. I will not show you breathing techniques to calm you down in tough times. I will give you rest because the rest that you're given is mine. Christ gives you his rest. I will give you rest. Rest from what? From responsibilities? From life? Now rest from condemnation.

It says in Romans 8.1, therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Your debt is paid. Your not guilty verdict has been stated. The courtroom is closed. It is finished. That was the end of labor. Salvation isn't something we achieve. Salvation has already been accomplished. Accomplished by the only one capable. The Son of God obeyed perfectly. The Son of God suffered truly. and fully, the Son of God died as a substitute, and the Son of God rose victoriously.

If death has been defeated, then our greatest burden is gone. It's actually our only real burden. All the burdens of this world are temporary. The only real burden is to appear before God in judgment and be guilty. It makes any other burden pale in comparison. That burden has been taken care of. It is no longer ours. Our greatest burden is gone. So that's the rest he speaks of. I will give you rest. I will give you rest from that burden.

The overarching singular burden that really matters. But we also have to deal with the guilt and shame of our sins. That's another burden. Believers still struggle. Matter of fact, believers struggle more. Because we have not only this flesh life, we have spiritual life, and they're combined, they're connected. It's a constant battle. It's two enemies living in the same house.

The weight of guilt and shame, we grieve our sin, our failures are always in front of us. but we do not strive towards God's acceptance. We don't strive towards it. Think about this, we do not strive towards God's acceptance. Thanks to Jesus Christ, we already have God's acceptance.

The accuser's case, Satan, the accuser of the saints, the accuser's case has collapsed. You may feel conviction, you will feel conviction, but you are not under condemnation. That's what he's saying when I will give you rest. I will give you eternal rest, which in turn gives you rest now. because you can know you are not under condemnation and never will be.

And another burden that we need rest from is the earthly responsibilities. Life still carries weight, work, parenting, difficult times, suffering, loss. Those burdens are real, but they are not ultimate. They are not eternal burdens. God's people have been shown that. They're temporal burdens. Temporal means related to time, especially in this world. It's basically the opposite of eternal. And that is exactly what these worldly burdens are. They're temporal. They will come to an end.

If Christ has defeated death, eternal death has been defeated then nothing temporal has authority over you. It says in 2 Corinthians, and I very much appreciated this scripture this week, 2 Corinthians 4, 16 and 17, it says, for our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. I love that he calls them light and momentary troubles. They don't feel that way. Sometimes they feel very heavy and that they're never going to end. But in reality, in compared to what our Savior has given you, all your troubles right now are light and momentary. for our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.

It says they're light and momentary, not because they feel small, but because the eternal glory of Christ is so much greater. So the lightness of his yoke is found in the certainty of his work, the certainty of what he's accomplished. The Father has given a people to the Son. The Son has paid their debt. The Spirit calls them to life.

And not one of them will be lost. If Christ conquered death, then no burden can ultimately harm you. No temporal burden of this world and no eternal burden. None of them can really harm you. Not if Christ has already conquered death and taken the only true burden away. So come to Christ. Rest in the finished work of Christ. He has finished your labor. It is over. He has carried your burdens. He carried them himself.

The burden would have crushed you forever. It never would have stopped. but the wrath of God against your sin has already fallen, and it fell on Christ. The wrath of God that you deserve has already been executed, emptied, You and I could have never emptied it. We would have died an eternal death forever because our worth was never gonna pay off the debt that we owed. Christ's worth paid off the debt of every one of his people so that that wrath of God we deserved is gone, emptied, finished.

You are not striving towards acceptance. You're already standing in it. You're not laboring to earn mercy. Mercy has already been secured. You're not carrying the weight of your eternity. Christ has already carried it. And that's exactly what he's saying when he says, come to me. the weary and heavy laden. Your work is finished. Your burden is no more. I will give you rest. You can labor for God your entire life and you will never find rest.

Or you can come to Christ and find that the work required for life, salvation, forgiveness, has already been done. Our Father, we come to you with great thanks. We thank you so much for your Son. We thank you for the grace that has been given us through his work. We thank you that we can find rest from our labor, from our never-ending labor, and we can find rest from our burdens. We thank you, Lord, that that rest is already here, that the labor and burdens needed for us to be in your favor are finished. accomplished by our perfect Lord and Savior. We would be lost, eternally, hopelessly lost, were it not for your mercy and grace, and not for the perfection and power of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We thank you, Jesus, for everything you've done for us, and we pray this in your name, amen.

You can take out your chorus books one more time and we'll turn them to number 16. He Included Me, number 16, and we'll stand as we sing. me then. He chose me for his own, an heir of throne. His rich eternal love wrote my name above. Thank God he included me. Yes, he could from eternity.

No room to boast have I, the law said die. But God in wondrous grace came and took my place. Thank God he Christ paid my debt one day, the only way. He died upon the tree to set me free. And sovereign grace, Jesus took my place. Thank God. Yes, He included me from eternity. No room to boast have I the loss and I. But God in wondrous grace came and took my place. Thank God He included me. In time the spirit sought, and grace was wrought. He took the word of God, the mighty rod. He broke my stony heart, and in faith impart. Thank God he included me. Yes, He included me from eternity. No room to boast have I, the law said die. But God in wondrous grace came and took my place. Thank God He included me. ♪

Sovereign Call To Rest

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about finding rest in Christ?

How do we know that Jesus' call to rest is a sovereign call?

Why is it important to understand grace precedes our response to Christ?

How does Christ relieve the burdens of life for believers?

Sermon Transcript

Comments

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Sovereign Call To Rest

Key Quotes

What does the Bible say about finding rest in Christ?

How do we know that Jesus' call to rest is a sovereign call?

Why is it important to understand grace precedes our response to Christ?

How does Christ relieve the burdens of life for believers?

Sermon Transcript

Comments

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