Rest?

Hebrews 3 and 4

Read the following two illustrations, what do they make you think about?

1.  A woman lays down her head on a park bench. She has a slight smile on her face as she descends slowly on to the hard surface. Gradually she tucks her feet under her and places her hands underneath her head to some what symbolize a soft, feather pillow. She is wearing an overcoat made of loose fitting wool. It flows softly, deftly over her shoulders, torso, and legs. Before five minutes is up, she is softly breathing the rhythm of sound sleep, even as she wears the delicate smile on her face, making her eyes, although closed, twinkle.


2.  Nurse, I think we are going to have to take another x-ray of the left lower quadrant of her mouth. Yes Sir, I’ll set that up. Ma’am you’ll have to sit up one more time so that we can get another x-ray of your mouth. Just sit up straight so we can get a good picture. That’s it. Now be still. Great. Now lay back down, ok…you look pretty comfortable. Ma’am can you open up your eyes for just a second so that you can get better situated. You seem to be all slumped down farther than you need to be. Now that’s it. Open up; look over to your right with your mouth open. It might help if you can keep your eyes open for just one minute more. Ok, that’s right. Now you can close your eyes if you would like. Bringgggggggggg, grundnnnnnnnnnnnn, ringgggggggggggggg, ringggggggggggggggggg, bringgggggggggggggggg. Nurse we need some suction. No over on this side. RiNGgggggggggggggggggggg, BrfingGGGGGGGG, Uh Oh, she’s sliding again. Ma’am you have got to stay awake. You came to me knowing that I am the foremost in my field. Can you not pay attention to what I am doing? The woman looks up at him her mouth filled with gauze flowing over with saliva, and says, “The reason why I can relax is because you ARE the foremost in your field”. She then relaxed, one more time, and closed her eyes.

Parts of Hebrews Chapters 4 and 5:  

            

7So, as the Holy Spirit says: 

"Today, if you hear his voice, 

8do not harden your hearts 

as you did in the rebellion, 

during the time of testing in the desert, 

9where your fathers tested and tried me 

and for forty years saw what I did. 

10That is why I was angry with that generation, 

and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray, 

and they have not known my ways.' 

11So I declared on oath in my anger, 

'They shall never enter my rest.' "

12See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. 

 19So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.

1Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. 2For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith. 

How do we as believers enter into rest?  How do we cease from our works?  By Faith.  Faith then, Faith now.  Faith for salvation, faith for everyday EVERYTHING.  We cease from our works, by not trying to earn it any longer.  If we are still trying to earn either our salvation or our sanctification, then we are trusting something other than the God of the Bible.  

Christians....preach the Gospel to yourselves today...............Lynn