Last week, we looked at a serious
warning on unbelief. Paul showed us how most of those
children of Israel who left Egypt didn't enter into the promised
land because of unbelief. But he tells us this week, there
is a rest for those who believe. And he tells us at first what
that rest is not, and then he tells us who that rest is. It's the Lord Jesus Christ. He
begins in verse one of Hebrews four. And he says, let us therefore
fear. That's the promise being left
us of entering into his rest. Any of you should seem to come
short of it. Now, the rest that Paul's talking about here is
not the believer's eternal rest in heaven as promised us. No
believer, no child of God will ever come short of entering into
that rest. We won't come short of it because
God promised it. Christ purchased it for us. We're
not going to come short of that rest. The rest he's talking about
is the rest that we have in this life. The rest that we have in
Christ. Now we know that we're promised
future eternal rest and glory. But children of God are also
promised rest in Christ now. You don't have to wait for all
that in the future. You're promised rest in Christ
now. We rest from the works of the law. We rest from the bondage
to sin. We rest from the fear of death. We rest from religious ceremony
and religious motions and traditions. We're free to rest in Christ,
free to rest in his righteousness. And Paul tells us now to fear,
lest we come short of enjoying this rest in this life. And this
is not a fear like we fear the righteousness of Christ won't
be enough, so we've got to do something to add to it. This
is not a fear or a doubt that God's grace will fail. We know
better than that. This is not a fear that somehow
we fear God's wrath. Because God's wrath for our sins
has already been poured out on our subsistence. We don't fear
His wrath. The Amplified says that we're
to fear to not believe the promise of God. That's what we fear. It's a cautious fear. It's a
watchfulness over our faith. Look back in 2 Corinthians 13. It's a watchfulness, a cautious
watchfulness over our faith. 2 Corinthians 13. Verse 5. Examine yourselves whether you
be in the faith and prove your own selves. Know ye not your
own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
But I trust that ye shall know that you are not reprobates.
Well, how will you know that? By examining yourself. Examine
your faith. Look over 2 Peter chapter 1.
2 Peter 1 verse 10. Peter writes, Wherefore, the
rather brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election
sure. For if you do these things, you
shall never fall. And that's what Paul is telling
us back here in Hebrews, to have a watchfulness over your faith,
because our faith is what enables us to rest in Christ. He tells
us in verse two, 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. Now here's
something to give thanks for. Just think about this. The gospel
of Christ has been preached to us. That's amazing grace. God's gospel, the gospel of His
Son has been preached to us. This is the gospel of God's grace. It's not a false gospel of words
that's been preached to you. It's the gospel of grace. It's
the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. We preach Him, who He
is, what He did, why did He do it, and where He is now. It's
a gospel all concerning Him. It's a gospel that tells us salvation
is in the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the gospel of the substitutionary
sacrifice of Christ, the gospel of His blood that cleanses us
from all sin. This is the gospel that tells
us how Christ satisfied God's law and God's justice on our
behalf, as our representatives. It's the gospel that tells us
how God can be both just and justified. The gospel not just
of His death, but of His resurrection, that He was raised again for
our justification. The gospel of His glorious ascension
back to the Father, where He sent to the time comes He comes
back to gather His people Himself. Now that gospel has been preached
to us For some of us here, all of our lives, your whole life
long, the gospel's been preached. Give thanks. And give thanks
if you believe it. Now this same gospel, this is
a warning, this same gospel was preached to those Jews who were
in the wilderness. They didn't believe. It didn't
do them any good because it wasn't mixed with faith. Now the same
gospel was preached to them. And you know why I know it's
the same gospel? Because there's just one. There's only one gospel,
because there's just one saint. The same gospel was preached
to them. Now it's preached to them in type and promise and
picture, but it was preached to them, but it didn't do them
any good because they didn't believe God. Look back at Romans
chapter 1. How we give thanks, not only
that the gospel has been preached to us, but that God's given us
faith to believe. Romans 1 verse 16. For I am not ashamed of the gospel
of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to every
one that believeth, to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to
faith, from one degree of faith to another. As it is written,
the just shall live by faith. The just live by faith, and that
is what Paul is saying. They did not live by faith, so
the word preached did not prophesy. You see, the gospel is the food. Christ is the bread of life.
But faith is the hand that takes it and eats it, puts it in the
mouth. That's when the body's nourished, when we take and eat
the food. This afternoon, when you go home, it's not going to
do you any good to look at that food on your plate. Just sit
there and look at it. You hear other people talk about, oh,
this is so good. Oh, it made me feel so good.
It refreshed me. Listening to others talk about
how wonderful it is, you have to take it and eat it. before
it will do your body any good. And the same is true with the
gospel. It has to be your faith. It doesn't do you any good to
sit and listen to others talk about what a blessing the message
was. It doesn't do you any good to hear others talk about how
wonderful rest in the Lord Jesus Christ is. It doesn't do you
any good to hear others talk about how Christ is their all
and in all. You have to take it in. It has
to be mixed with faith. So, verse 3, Paul says, for we
which have believed do enter into rest. As he said, as I have
sworn on my wrath, they shall enter or they shall not enter
into my rest. Although the works were finished
from the foundation of the world. Now everyone who believes on
Christ enters into spiritual rest. We rest from salvation
by works. We rest from the burden of the
law and sin. We rest in Him. In Romans 5,
verse 1, Paul writes, therefore being
justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus
Christ. How do we have peace? By faith,
by believing and resting in Him. But now only those who believe,
only those who have faith in Christ can enjoy this rest. God has sworn those who do not
believe in Him will not enter into this rest, will not have
this rest. That's where we ended our lesson last week in verse
19 of chapter 3. So we see they could not enter
in because of unbelief. They couldn't enter into that
picture of wrath in the promised land because of unbelief. Look
back at Mark chapter 16. Mark 16, verse 15. And our Lord said unto them,
Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth
not shall be damned. Those who do not believe will
enter into rest in this life or in the life to come. We must
have faith in him. But God's children those who
believe, who have this God-given faith, they can rest. Because this work of redemption
is finished. In a sense, it's been finished
from before the foundation of the world. Before God ever created
this world, He elected a people unto salvation, gave them to
His Son to be their servant. And in the mind and purpose of
God, those He elected were redeemed. It was sure, His purpose was
was sure to happen and they were redeemed. But in time, Christ
had to come as a man. He had to come, he had to work
out that perfect righteousness that he would give his people.
He had to suffer and bleed and die in time. He actually had
to offer that sacrifice. He is the Lamb slain from before
the foundation of the world and in time he came. And he did accomplish
all of God's purpose, so we can rest in Him. This isn't just
some new thing somebody cooked up. This is the eternal God. He's the eternal Savior from
the foundation of the world. Now, verse 4, Paul begins to
tell us what this rest is not. For he spake in a certain place
of the seventh day on this wide, and God did rest the seventh
day from all His works. Now, the believer's rest is not
like God's rest. on the seventh day after he finished
all his works of creation. Creation was finished and God
rested from his works of creation, didn't he? But he didn't rest
from all of his work. He didn't rest from his works
of providence. He didn't rest from his works
of ruling over his creation. He didn't rest from his works
in calling out his people. But he did rest from his works
of creation because that work was finished. And look back in
Genesis chapter 1. I like to read the story of God's
creation. Not only was that work done,
it was good. In Genesis 1 verse 3, God said,
let there be light and there was light. And God saw the light
that it was good. God divided the light from the
darkness. Verse 10, God called the dry land earth And the gathering
together of the waters called he to seed, and God saw that
it was good. Verse 12, And the earth brought
forth grass and herb, yielding seed after his kind, and the
tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself after his kind.
And God saw that it was good. Verse 18, God made the lights
to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the
light from the darkness, and God saw that it was good. Verse
21, And God created great whales and every living creature that
moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly after their
kind, and every winged fowl after his kind. And God saw that it
was good. Verse 25, And God made the beast
of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind,
and everything that creepeth upon the earth after his kind.
And God saw that it was good. And verse 31, And God saw everything
that he had made. And behold, it was very good. He rested from his work of creation
because it finished and it was good. God rested, but he didn't
rest from all his other works of providence and ruling over
his creation. And when we rest in Christ, that
rest is complete. There's no more one. It's complete
because he finished the work for us. Well, verse 5, Paul says
back in our text, and 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." Now the promised land in Canaan was
a picture of the rest that believers have in Christ, and that's all
it was, was a picture. But those Jews that came out
of Egypt, they didn't enter in because of unbelief. They went
back and died in the wilderness. But some did enter in. Some did
enter into Canaan. the promised land. And you know
why they entered in? Because God promised. You can read that back in Genesis
17, verses 6 through 8. God promised that land to Abraham
and to his seed. And his seed entered in all those
years later because God's promise will be fulfilled. His word will
be fulfilled. And that's why they entered in.
But the rest for belief The rest that God has reserved for believers
in this life is not Canaan. It's not going to do you any
good to go over there to that land now. There ain't no rest there. All there is is wars and fighting.
Our rest is not there. It's not any place in this earth.
You'll never find any rest in a place in this world because
it's filled with sin. But that's not the believer's
rest. Well, look on verse 7. And again, he limiteth a certain
day. saying in David, today, after so long a time as it is
said, today, if you would hear his voice, pardon not your hearts. Now the Lord did limit in the
law a certain day for rest, the Sabbath day. That was the Jewish
day of rest on Saturday, the seventh day. But that day was
only given as a picture of our rest in Christ. To the Jews,
that Sabbath day became a hardship. It wasn't a day of rest. It was
a day of hardship. They spent all their time scared
the whole day. Would I take too many steps?
Have to try to count all their steps? You know, do I pick up
too many sticks? You know, do I stop and get my
mule or my cow or something out of the ditch? Is that too much
work? There's no rest in that. There's no rest in that because
there's never, you will never find rest in the law, following
the law. The believer's rest is not a
day. It's in Christ. Well, verse 8, Paul says, for
if Jesus, in that word Jesus, Joshua, had given them rest,
then would he not afterward have spoken of another day? Now, the
word Jesus here is Joshua. The New Testament word for Joshua
is Jesus. Joshua was a type of Christ. He did lead the children of Israel
into the Promised Land, didn't he? Moses couldn't lead them
in because Moses is a type of the law. And the law can never
lead anyone into wrath. Joshua did. He led them into
rest. A land flowing with milk and
honey. And that's what Christ does. He gives His people rest
in Him. But the rest that's reserved
for believers, like I said a minute ago, is not Canaan. It's not
any place on this earth. Those children of Israel entered
into the Promised Land, didn't they? And for a while, They had
rest. They had rest from all their
enemies. They had rest from affliction. But it just lasted for a while.
After a while, they lost it. Because of unbelief. Idolatry
and rebellion. They lost that rest. And they
were carried away, weren't they? Then Lord bring them back. And
they'd have rest for a while. And they'd fall into idolatry.
They'd get carried away into slavery by somebody else. So
that's not our rest. Well, look at verse 9. Paul says,
there remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. God's people,
the ones a father left, the ones a son came to die for, the ones
that the Spirit gives life and calls to Christ, they do enter
into spiritual rest. Right now, in this life, we have
rest. And heaven, when the Lord calls
us out of this life into the next life, Heaven, all that is,
is a continuation and a perfection of what God's given you now in
your heart by faith. It's just a perfection of it.
It's a continuation of it. And there is a rest for God's
people. Now, Paul showed us it's not
God's works of creation like the rest he had when he finished
creation. It's not rest in the promised land or any place on
this earth. It's not a rest in the Sabbath
day. The believers rest is a person, the Lord Jesus Christ. Look at
verse 10. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased
from his own works, as God did from him. Now this he that Paul's
talking about here is the Lord Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, our
Substitute. When he came to this earth as
a man, he came on a mission. He came with the work that the
Father gave him to do. Don't you know I must be about
my Father's business? The work he gave me to do. Look
over in Isaiah 61. Way back there, Isaiah told us
what his work was going to be. He came to preach the gospel. In Isaiah 61, verse 1. The Spirit of the Lord
God is upon me. Because the Lord hath anointed
me to preach good tidings unto the meek, he hath sent me to
bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and the opening of the prison to them that are bound, to proclaim
the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our
God, to comfort all that mourn, to appoint unto them that mourn
in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for
mourning, the garment of praise for the Spirit of heaven, that
they might be called trees of righteousness, the planning of
the Lord, that he might be glorified. Our Lord came and preached the
gospel, the gospel of salvation in him. He came to work, to work
out a perfect righteousness, to obey the law in every single
jot and tittle, minute detail of the law. He fulfilled it. He worked hard at that now, and
he imputes that righteousness, he imputes that obedience to
his people. That's what He gives to us, the
fruit of His labor. He came to be our High Priest,
to offer Himself as a sacrifice to God, to offer His blood that
will atone for all the sin of those that the Father gave Him
to do. And as our Savior hung there on Calvary's cross, what
did He cry? It is finished. The work of redemption. All the
work that the Father gave Him to do is finished. He finished His work. He hung
His head and gave up the ghost and rested from His work. His
work of redemption is eternally finished. Nothing ever needed
to be added to it. It's finished. And now, our Lord
Jesus is seated at the Father's right hand where He sits. He
sits because His work is finished. He ceased from His works of redemption
just like the Father ceased from His works of creation. And when
by God's grace God calls us to faith in Christ, we enter into
Him, we cease from our works. We cease from our works of trying
to gain God's acceptance. We cease from our works of the
law. We cease our works of religion. And we rest. We rest in the Lord
Jesus Christ. Because, my friends, there's
nothing left to do. That's why we rest. He's done everything
that ever was or ever will be required of us. He finished it
for us. So we rest because the Word's
finished. Now, verse 11, Paul says, Let us labor, therefore,
to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example
of unbelief. Now, I want this word labor up
this week. Let us labor, therefore, to enter
into that rest. This word labor doesn't mean
toil. It doesn't mean work. Other places
you see the word labor, that's what it means. Toil or work.
That's not what this word means. This is what it means in the
Concordance. It means to use speed. To use diligence and earnestness. To make an effort to be prompt
and to study. Let us labor therefore. Let us
desire therefore to enter into that rest in Christ right now. Today. In this life. And now no believer, I said this
before and I'll say it again, will ever fall short of entering
into eternal rest and glory. We never will because God won't
allow that. We won't fall short through unbelief
because God won't allow it. Everyone for whom Christ died
will enter into rest and glory someday. But go back to the definition
of this word labor. Let's use diligence and earnestness
Let's be serious about the gospel. Let's be serious about this matter
of learning more of the Lord Jesus Christ. And use some speed
about this thing. Don't delay. Today, enter into
that rest. Today, lay hold on Him. Today, learn more of Him. Be
prompt. My family kind of makes fun of
me. I think it's awful important
to be prompt. I like to be prompt. I think it's rude not to be prompt.
I like being prompt. It drives me nuts not to be prompt. It drives me nuts not to be early.
But anyway, let's be prompt about this thing of entering into rest. Let's be prompt today. Lay hold
on the Lord Jesus Christ. Why would you wait a minute to
deny yourself rest in a minute? Be prompt. Lay hold on Him. I thought this week, if we're
in Christ, We believe on Him. It's high time we rested. He's
left nothing undone. It's high time we rested. Well,
how do I do that? By studying the Word. By reading
the Word. By attending the worship service.
Preparing your heart to come hear the Word and worship and
learn more of Him. We do that by spending time in
prayer. By spending time talking to our
Father. That's how we enter into this
rest. Learn more of Him. I've got a note written here
in my Bible. Somebody else probably said it.
I thought it was good and wrote it down. Resting in Christ in this
life is labor. In this life, it's labor because
of the sin nature that we're born with. It's labor. And we
may, at times, fall short of entering into this rest because
of sin that's in us and the awful nature of unbelief we're born
with. And in a way, The rest, how much we enjoy this rest,
depends on us, on our faith, on our diligence to look into
these things. If we're not resting in Christ,
we've got nobody to blame but ourselves. It's not His fault.
It's my fault. He's not changed. His work's
not changed. His work's not unfinished in
some way. It's my fault. And again, no believer now, no
child of God ever falls short of that eternal rest. You know
why? That doesn't depend in any way
on me. That depends entirely on the Lord Jesus Christ. He's
perfectly finished that work. So while we do rest in Christ
for all of our salvation, we completely, totally rest because
those works are finished. We do labor to know more of Him,
don't we? That's my desire. I labor to
know more of Him and pray that He gives us more faith. All right. I hope that's been a blessing.