How to Rest

Take your Bibles if you would please and turn to Hebrews chapter 4. Verse 8 is our text today and we're going to start with the subject of rest on Joshua. Joshua's name is rich and meaningful. The title for today's message is "How to Rest." We'll extract this from the text and finish the subject of rest. I'm so grateful for Dr. Anthony preaching last week on the subject of rest as well. We understand theologically what rest is and we see it rooted in creation. We see it on display as Joshua entered into the promised land. And then we also see a salvific rest in Christ and we also see a future rest in heaven. So this word rest has layers of exegetical meaning. We discussed all of those. Now I want to discuss with you what it means to be at peace or at rest in between that salvific rest in Christ and getting to heaven. So how do you apply this rich and wonderful theological term rest? Well, let's look in the passage today and extract some truth from the Bible and hopefully apply it to our lives.

In Hebrews chapter 4, verse 8, the Bible says this, "For if Joshua had given them rest, He," that being God, "God would not have spoken of another day after that." If you would, pause with me for just a moment of prayer. And thank you for this anticipation of rest that Joshua had. I pray that You would help us also to be able to see it and to live it out. How do we do that Lord? We ask You to help us in Christ's name we pray. Amen.

And so we see in the text that disobedience keeps one from this type of rest. Rest truly is salvation in Christ. But in chapter 3 and verse 18, notice with me if you would, chapter 3 and verse 18, "And did He swear that they would not enter His rest but to those who were disobedient." And so the disobedient ones are the ones who are not in the rest of the Lord Jesus Christ. And then as well, not only because of disobedience are they not in the rest, but they also have the wrath of God abiding upon them according to John chapter 3 verse 36. But also notice with me in verse 19 as we're there in Hebrews chapter 3 verse 19, "So we know that they were not able to enter because of unbelief." And so disobedience ultimately leads to unbelief.

Children definitely be ones of obedience. Cultivate an obedient heart inside of you. Be one who is eager to be obedient to your parents first of all because the obedience that you have in regards to your parents will further in life to the obedience that you have authority and the obedience that you have to God. It's very important to develop that. But not only do we see this, but in chapter 4 and verse 2, we see that the good news of this rest was preached. In chapter 4 verse 2 it says, "For indeed we have had the good news preached to us, just as they also, but the word they heard did not profit them because it was not united by faith in those who heard." And so now you see that you must unite by faith these truths and live them out. And so believe them by faith, grab onto them, and now we're going to be talking about today how to actually live out this rest.

It's interesting to see that Israel had the good news preached to them in the Old Testament. That is a phenomenal point for a further discussion that I hope you'll dive into with me as well. But here in chapter 4 and verse 8, Joshua's understanding of entering the Promised Land was certainly a heavenly rest, a heavenly Jerusalem. We see this also as others also anticipated this heavenly rest. Turn to Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 16. I want you to see this heavenly rest, this pursuit of glory, this pursuit of God, this pursuit of rest, this anticipation of it and how we live it out today. In Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 16 it says, "But as it is, they desire a better country." That is a heavenly one. And so you see this anticipation of a better country, a glory before you, something that inside of you you desire better than what you have today. You are looking for. You're looking for this.

And so how do you rest? Well, first of all, you want to anticipate it. Look forward to it. Think about it. Look past today to tomorrow and see the heavenly rest that is yours and start to apply that to you today. And so not only looking past today like Joshua did, but embracing it today. This is something that is a spiritual discipline for you to be able to recognize that you have rest in Jesus and to apply it to your life and live it out.

This contextual point is clarified interestingly in that the good news was preached to Israel. And as they feared the Canaanites and as they feared all of the other rites out there, they were to live with a sense of complete confidence in Christ, to be confident as they were to fight for the Promised Land. And so this really, truly is an issue of striving in rest. It's an issue of diligence. We want to continue to go toward this rest and be diligent to engage in it. And so this contextual point of preaching it and expecting it and embracing it was also for them as well. In chapter 4 and verse 2 it says, "They also..." So not only is this rest for us as we understand rest in Jesus Christ, but the Israelites who were at war trying to get into the Promised Land, displaced, going through the wilderness, also had this ability to enter into the rest.

Now in chapter 4 and verse 8 brings up the character Joshua. This is interesting and it really furthers the idea of rest that was rooted in creation and now is an idea that theologically is going through Joshua. Not just Joshua, but also in verse 7 if you back up and look, He again fixes a certain day today saying that through David, after so long a time, just as it has been said, today if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts. And so you see this idea of rest not only through creation and Joshua and David and the prophets and then Jesus and then into our heavenly rest, it's something that all saints of all time can enjoy.

In their context, Joshua was preaching the Gospel just simply by what his name meant. Joshua is a name with rich theological meaning. In Hebrew, the name Yahweh combined with the Hebrew word for salvation is Yeshua. And so originally Joshua's name was Hoshea, but Moses changed his name. Numbers chapter 13 and verse 16 records the fact that Moses changed Joshua's name. Interestingly, this name means the same as God's Old Testament name. Both Joshua and Jehovah indicate deliverance out of slavery and into the rest of the Lord Jesus Christ, out of bondage and into the freedom of Christ.

So Joshua's name foreshadowed the Gospel and He led Israel out of the wilderness of sin and into the promised land of rest. And as the leader of Israel, He led them into the promised land as a symbol of salvation. These are rich theological signs and themes that we draw from. And so in Joshua's life, the Gospel was preached and Joshua's name, the Gospel was preached, Joshua mirrors Jesus Christ.

In chapter four and verse eight, the author of Hebrews starts with the word for. And this is also anticipating an argument. The Jewish objection to this current preacher would have been something along these lines. If Joshua led Israel into the promised land of rest, then we're good. We're, good. We're Israelites. We're God's chosen people. We're just fine. There's not a future rest. There's not something else to be anticipating. We are the people of God. We've been saved. We no longer need to do anything else. We're good.

Does that not embody what we hear today when you talk to people who are not safe? We're good. I don't need God. I'm just fine. I've never killed anybody. I don't need His rest. There's nothing else that remains for me. Well, this is the reason why the author said in verse nine, look with me if you would, chapter four, verse nine. So there remains a Sabbath rest. The Sabbath rest remains. Now, this is not a technical, literal, limited understanding of the Sabbath. The Sabbath is what the Sabbath is. We've already discussed that the Sabbath in the Old Testament was Saturday and all the laws and all the regulations and all the rules and all the punishments and all of the things that were regulated for the Sabbath remains. But our Lord fulfilled all of those laws and all of those regulations. The Sabbath is now complete. He is Lord of the Sabbath. And there's no verse in scripture that brings Saturday Sabbath to Sunday. The early church started worshiping on Sunday in honor of Christ. And we worship and we love and we enjoy Jesus Christ on Sunday.

And so the rules that apply to the Sabbath then do not apply to us now on Sunday. We have freedom in Christ. It's for freedom that Christ set us free. Galatians 5.1 sets us free from the bondage of the law. And so there is a Sabbath that remains, however. This verse needs to be interpreted and then applied to our lives because the Sabbath rest and Jesus being Lord of the Sabbath still continues to offer rest in Him.

First of all, it starts off with a salvific rest when you repent of your sin and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and His death on the cross as a substitute for your sin's punishment. Then you are placing your faith and trust in Him and are saved, gloriously saved. But now how do you live out your salvation? How do you work out your own salvation? How do you live to the glory of God?

We see this rest continuing all the way through Scripture. The Israelites would have been stubborn saying, "We are of Abraham and we are good." And the same stubbornness still lies. People who are unsaved, which is revealed or removed, that veil is removed in Christ. When people see Jesus as Lord and Savior, that veil is removed whether you're an Israelite or whether you're a Gentile. It doesn't make any difference. We're all saved by the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. Do we need these veils removed? And then you can see truly through the lens of Christ these wonderful truths in that rest not only was rooted in creation and that we can rest from our work once a week as applied today, Genesis 3.6, and then also, or Hebrews 3.6, but also rest as promised in Canaan land, and then moving through, resting Christ for salvation, and then a heavenly rest.

So we would say to the Israelite or to the one who is not saved today, which by the way, there's plenty of Israelites who are saved in Jesus Christ, that is a promise for them to be able to see that rest is truly in Jesus Christ. And as that continues on, Joshua told them of another rest or God said there is still a rest that remains. And so the promised land is not denied as rest. It's just simply denied as the final rest. And so the rest continues. Joshua was not settled or satisfied with the Canaan rest, with the land of Canaan. And so the glorious victory of entering into the promised land, yes, it was amazing, but it was only signifying of the grace to come.

And so have these Jewish Christians then forfeited their Sabbath blessing by denouncing Judaism? Have they truly abandoned the blessings that they have been accredited by leaving Judaism? Well, their fellow Jews around them are the people of God, but as now being grafted into Christ, we are all the people of God. And so we have now the opportunity to enjoy a true Sabbath rest.

Mark chapter two, verse 28 says, the son of man is Lord, even of the Sabbath. The son of man is Lord, even of the Sabbath. And so with Christ being Lord of your life, He is your Sabbath rest. The Sabbath being a sign or a symbol pointing to Jesus, you no longer focus on the sign. You go where the sign points you to Christ and the Sabbath rest is pointing you to rest in Christ. And so now we want to rest in Christ.

Colossians chapter two, verses 16 through 17, clarified that the Sabbath was a shadow, a, shadow pointing to the substance. And so the shadow then is not going to give you rest. But when you focus on the substance of the shadow, that is the source of our rest. And so there remains a Sabbath rest referring to the relief, not only from the struggle of working each week, but also from the struggle of trying to earn your own salvation.

But further applied, the Sabbath rest is more of in the Old Testament context, a celebration. And so in Israelite culture, they would work hard and then perhaps being more of a horticultural culture in the promised land, they would take a rest from the plowing and planting and harvesting. They would rest each week. And this was a day of celebration. And so their Sabbath rest would embody this idea of celebrating and worshiping and eating and singing and fellowshipping and praying. It also included preaching and baking. I love that aspect. Eating and baking on Sunday. It's not breaking the Sabbath or breaking the rule to turn on your electricity today and utilize some type of work to be able to enjoy Christ. You can amuse yourself. You can indulge in rest. You can play games outside and inside. You can, by all means, rake the leaves in your front yard if that causes you to be able to be at rest. This is living in Christ and having rest and peace in Him.

And so for the people of God, you are to enjoy worshiping and dwelling upon your, what would be called the eschatological rest. As you look forward, like Joshua was pointing forward to this type of resting Christ, this is enjoying Jesus. And so a complete fulfillment of rest and from toil and sin is our celestial city to come, according to the book of Hebrews, our future rest. And so rest technically in this passage is referring to something that still stands. It still stands. But not only does it still stand, stands, it is something to be enjoyed today.

And so we are to be celebrating the creator God as defined in the past. We are to be celebrating our salvation in Christ presently and celebrating our heavenly joys to come in the future as testified to by the Hebrew preacher in chapter 11, verses 10 and 16. I'll read it to you. Chapter 11, verse 10 in Hebrews says, "Looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God." Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 10 gives you the idea that you are looking forward to a perfect rest and anticipating it. And then in verse 16, it says, "A desire for a better country, a heavenly one." And so God's rest is for us not only in the future as a perfect rest, but as a present rest and reality for us today.

But it is not only applied one day a week in Christ, it is truly applied to you every single day in Christ. Because now Christ is Lord of the Sabbath, not just the day, not just one day a week. Christ is not just Lord one day a week and He is not just Lord of your life one day a week. Christ is Lord. He's either Lord of all or Lord not at all. And so as you have Christ, Lord of your life, you are able to truly rest in Him.

But how do you do this? How do you rest? I would say to you that it seems fair to say that resting is enjoying Christ and then also conveying Christ. As we flesh this out a little bit on how the present application of this rich theological subject of Christ is applied to our life today, we need to learn how to rest in Him. And we need to not only learn how to be at rest in Him, but to convey what we are doing, how we are living in Christ to others.

And so as this is communicating and transferring and imparting Christ to others, first of all, we need to learn how to enter into this type of rest. It is your duty to enter into this. Entering into rest means to go out and to come in. If you do a little bit of a word study on this subject to enter in, it means to go out and to come in. And so this everyday reality of interacting and intertwining with Christ, you can look at it in several different ways.

Metaphorically, it is one of that is rising up. And so rising into Christ or contextually to stand up and to make one stand. Literally, it is a physical change of position. So your position has changed in Christ once you are saved and you remain in His rest. Positionally, you are not in an area of anxiety or an area of turmoil. You're positionally in Him and in Christ spiritually. It's one of an eternal change. There has been an internal salvation that has happened inside of your soul to enter into this rest. And externally, it is definitely salvific in that you've been saved, gloriously saved.

So now, if I could take just a moment to capitalize on a rich doctrine that is called soteriology that we see in this idea of entering into the rest of the Lord Jesus Christ, His rest, salvation is being saved from the eternal punishment of your sins. John 3 36 says, "He who believes in the Son has eternal life, but He who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides upon Him."

In fleshing out this idea of the doctrine of soteriology, salvation from your sin is that Jesus died for your sin. Instead of you dying, Christ died. 1 Corinthians 15, verses 1-4 explains the death and the burial and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Salvation is God's acting upon us, choosing and selecting us. We once were dead and now we've been made alive. In Ephesians 2, verse 1, we were dead in our trespasses and sins. And in verse 5, even while we were dead, He made us alive together in Christ. So God's acting upon us made us alive together in Christ. We once were dead, we once were lost, but now we're found, now we're made alive. Salvation in Christ.

The "Ordo Salutis", this Latin term, helps us to understand how this happens. And it's not perfect. And it's not something that really needs to be diced up, but it's helpful to be able to understand how God acts upon us. And so this logical scriptural order or sequencing of events happens like this. And there's 11 points, so I'll just go through them quickly.

The decreeing of God is that God spoke first in decreeing something and He also created something and that He is also saving something. And so we see that from the beginning in Genesis, God decrees things. He speaks things into existence. He acts upon. And then also predestining in Ephesians 1, 5, this is His good will of predestining things that He will do. And then 3, electing. Romans 9, 11 is the act of God selecting or choosing. And then the calling, number 4 is calling Jesus, preaching the Gospel to all. Matthew 4, 23 is the example we see as well among many others where the Gospel call to all is happening. And then fifthly, renewing. We've been persuaded by the Gospel and freely accept the offer of salvation. You see that in John 1, verse 12. And so as we are then continuing in this process, we see a sixth element of confessing. We verbalize the faith that God gave us. In John 9, verse 38, it says this, simply, "Lord, I believe." "Lord, I believe You're able to confess your faith." And then seventh, repenting. "Godly sorrow works repentance unto salvation." Second Corinthians 7, 10, repenting is part of it. And then eight, a pardoning. God applies His righteousness, and we are made just before Him eternally. Second Corinthians 5, 21 talks about how we've been made righteous. That's wonderful. Ninth, you have adopting. We're made children. And then we have benefits bestowed upon us, 1 John 3, 1. And then we are engaged in the sanctifying process. 10, a sanctifying. The continual process of abstaining from evil in 1 Thessalonians 4, 3. And then ultimately glorifying, made perfect with the Lord, 1 Thessalonians 4, 17.

This order of salvation happens so quickly. Some of these points are worked out over time, but mostly it's just an instantaneous thing. And we are then saved, gloriously saved, and on our working part of being sanctified in Christ. It's interesting in Philippians 2, 12 that it says to continue to work out your own salvation. And this is the part we're talking about today in regards to applying rest, working out your salvation, applying the rest that is available to you in Jesus. And so singularly, salvation is a monergistic work of God. But, monergistic work of God. But synergistically, we have a part to play in working out our own salvation by way of sanctification. And so we're to work this thing out. We're to be being refined.

In a double sense, rest is as well. It's done by God. But it's also resting in Him. And so it's being done by God. In a similar sense, we are sealed by the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 1, 13. But also, now inside that sealed package, we are working out our sanctification. Yes, you're sealed, but you're not perfect on the inside, right? You still need more work. And so now that salvation's rest is clear, let us clarify what it means to rest in Him, to enter into His rest.

Let's go to verse 11 and to be diligent to enter into that rest. In chapter 4 and verse 11 of Hebrews, it says, "Therefore, let us be diligent to enter that rest." Diligence here means to make every effort, to be eager, to be earnest. It is a passionate and zealous haste to enter into the rest of God. And so resting is not a complete relaxation, kicking your feet up on the couch and taking a couple of naps. Resting is actually pursuing. Resting is a confident pursuit of Christ. It's striving, it's being diligent to enter into Christ.

If you're full of anxiety, you can sit on the couch and sleep and still be full of anxiety after you rest. But being put to rest in Christ, to be putting yourself at rest is a diligence. It is actively entering into Christ and His benefits. The opposite is spiritual apathy. And being aloof and secluded and guarded and standoffish from the things of Christ, and the things of Christ then therefore are not a part of who you are. That is holding up your guard and not entering into Christ. The idea is active and vibrant pursuit of Christ.

In John chapter 10 and verse 9, Jesus said, "I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, He will be saved and go in and go out and find pasture. And so entering in and out, enjoying Christ in and through everyday life, He is the door. Not only initially is salvation a rest in Christ, but it is a resting in Christ. Not only is Christ our Savior, He is also our sustainer. We go in and out, in life with Him. He is using a metaphor here as a door describing Himself as a shepherd of the sheep who guides and provides and also protects. Active metaphor where He is actually guiding and actually providing and actually protecting like a shepherd.

And so applicationally then, how do we enter into our shepherd's daily rest and are put to rest? Well, this verb being diligent is the key. And it means to be striving. It means to be pursuing. It means to be walking with Christ. Your energy is to be being put toward achieving the goal of staying close to Christ. As you are actively staying and remaining in Christ, this is going to result in a resting. You are going to have the sense of God's protection and our being at rest in Him. You're going to be remaining in the presence of your shepherd and are going to be enjoying Him. You're at rest because you're enjoying Christ. You're at rest because you're not fearing your enemies. And you're following Him.

This rest is most certainly not to be ignored. It is not a one-time done deal as in I have been saved. I have entered into His rest. It is to be being one who is resting in Christ. And so this is a resting in Jesus. This is a purposeful and intentional pursuit of Christ in His enjoyment. And so one entry is gained, but you are no longer excluded from Jesus. It's not like you walk through the door and the door closes behind you and then you're in or you're excluded. This is an open door for you to come in and come out and enjoy Jesus in everyday life in a closer fellowship.

And then sometimes as we go and we have our mindset on other things, we're still in Christ. So this is a first-person plural expression to let us be diligent to enter into Christ. We strive in Christ together and each of us have this benefit. You know, the Bible gives us this illustration in John chapter 15 as Jesus is the vine and we are the branches. And so this relationship is so wonderful as we are the branches abiding in the vine and we receive nutrients from Jesus Christ and we bear fruit in Christ. It's like a tree with branches. It's like a body with members. We remain in Christ together. And so part of enjoying this rest in Christ is remaining in Christ together. This produces the rest that you're able to have because we need one another and the gifts that God has given the church help one another. This achieves the whole purpose of God.

Turn, if you would, to Acts 20, 28. I want you to see this verse as Christ is singularly purposed in mind that pursuing the Father's will, getting to the cross, bringing people to salvation as He's on this journey, it can be conceptualized in Acts chapter 20 and verse 28 as the whole purpose of God. You see that in that verse? The whole purpose of God, this salvific rest in Christ and this enjoyment of Jesus is typologically seen all throughout the Bible. Redemption is pictured. It's prophesied and it is accomplished and then it's enjoyed. As you go through the entire Bible, you see redemption in all kinds of different wonderful ways.

First of all, you see it pictured in God's people going into exile, symbolizing their darkness and then coming out of exile by being once you are exiting for the Exodus towards the promised land. This is a picture of redemption. So salvation in Christ, our rest in Christ is pictured. And then as you go through the word of God, you see it's prophesied through the prophets and then it's accomplished by Jesus. And then we get to look forward to a perfect rest in heaven. Really, truly, the entire word of God is picturing this rest and resting in Christ.

And so, applicationally, I would simply say that resting is initially receiving Christ. It's initially receiving Christ. Forgiveness. Forgiveness of your sins. And while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us, the Bible says in Romans 5.8. While we were still sinners, Christ acted upon us and He died for us. He applied His salvation to us.

Now, here's an incredible part of resting in Christ. And it's demonstrated by Jesus on the cross in Luke 23, 34. He said, "Father, forgive them." And so, upon this journey today in applying this theological truth of resting, I would say just one aspect of resting in Christ is forgiveness. It's forgiveness. Jesus demonstrated, even while He was suffering, forgiveness. He said, "Father, forgive them."

Jesus, though suffering, demonstrated forgiveness. Significantly, this glorifies God. This tells us of God, much of God. This tells us of His mercy, in that you can be aggressively torturing and beating the causes of Christ like Saul before he was made Paul was. You can be a murderer and be made into a missionary. We see much of God by the statement in that He is a forgiver. And He has a willingness to display His grace and to distribute His grace and His love and His mercy. And He has a willingness to give this away.

And so, now you see this applicationally. Now, you do it. You do it. You say, "I understand." Good. Now do it. You say, "I get it." Now do it. You want to be at peace? Do you want to be at rest? Do it. Stop holding on to grievances. Stop being an unforgiver. Be forgiving. You say, "I was done unjustly." So what? Be Christlike. Enter into His rest and forgive the offender. You want to know how to be at rest? Be a forgiver. Be like Christ and truly extend the grace and the mercy to those who do not deserve it.

It is not a works-based system that we live in in Christ. It doesn't matter if they deserve God's grace. It doesn't matter how much they've done. It doesn't matter how much they've done against you. You're in bondage if you are an unforgiver, if you're harboring resentment against somebody. You are not at peace. You're not at rest. How do you rest? Resting is not only enjoying the forgiveness of Christ, but it is also distributing the forgiveness of Christ. Enjoying Christ and conveying Christ. This is resting in Christ. You like to study sound doctrine and you like to know the truth of God's word? Good. Now do it. Otherwise, it's going to make us arrogant in our minds and come across as know-it-alls. But those of us who know what the word of God says, we must put it on display daily.

You must truly be at peace with those who have offended you by extending to them forgiveness. In all areas, we must be like Christ to be able to enter into His rest, to be fully free, to be completely at rest. It means to let go of your grievances before God and to pray and say, "I forgive them." Will you forgive them as well? Will you save them? And your heart will be set free and you'll be at rest in Christ. The resting is distributing the forgiveness of Christ. The faster you do it, the freer you'll be. The faster you forgive. The laying leads to being depressed. It means to harboring. It means to grow bitter towards others.

This is just one area, but I think it's the primary area for us to start with when it comes to applying the rest of Christ. If He has truly saved you and set you free, then you need to as well set people free who have offended you and you'll be at complete peace, at, complete rest. It is so freeing to be able to call someone up and say, "I want you to know, you may not know this, but I was offended and I've been harboring this, but I want to make sure that you know I forgive you and that I want us both to be free in Christ. I don't want to allow this lingering, harboring bitterness to be in between us. I want us to be free, truly free in Christ."

This is entering into the rest of the Lord Jesus Christ. But not only is it enjoying and then conveying Christ as ones whom are resting in Christ, but it's also found in every area of our Christianity. Literally, this application of rest could go on and on and on and on and on. And so the strength that you receive from Christ, you then strengthen others. You enjoy the strength of Christ and you convey that and give that to others. The knowledge that you receive of Christ, you convey that and give that to others. The joy, despite difficulty in life, you receive and enjoy Christ and give that to others. The stability that your soul has in Christ, then you go and convey that stability and you offer that and you show that and you encourage that and you help others to be stable in Christ.

The amazement that you have in Christ and Him, you enjoy that and then you go and you convey that. This is the application of resting in Christ and being in Christ and walking in Christ, the healing that you have in Christ, not only salvific, but also the daily healing of Christ and His word that you experienced by way of His vine-like nourishment to you, His provisions for you. Convey that to others. It can't stop with you just enjoying Christ. It has to be conveyed and distributed. The comfort that we enjoy in Christ, this is entering into His courts and enjoying His comfort, but the comfort then will be ignited more and accentuated more as you convey that comfort and the peace and the freedom and the fellowship and the promises and the fullness and the glory.

So take home truth number one is simple. Trust Jesus. Be saved. And while you have the light, believe in the light. John 12 and verse 36 says that while you have the light, while you have the light of the Lord Jesus Christ in front of you, be saved. Believe in Jesus Christ. Second Corinthians chapter six, verse two says, "Behold, now is the day of salvation." Now do not delay in placing your faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. Isaiah 55 verse six says, "Seek the Lord while you may be found and call upon Him while He is near." You're no closer now than you ever have been before and do not delay because you just never know. You're not promised. And so John chapter 12 verse 36 says, "While you have the light, this is important to do that. Since no one can save themselves, they must trust Jesus to save them."

Any offer that we offer to appease God of His wrath upon us for our sin, any offer that we offer Him, it doesn't measure up to anything because we're imperfect and our offerings are imperfect. So we're not going to be able to be the perfect lamb, to be the perfect sacrifice for our sin. And so how do you enter into the rest of God applicationally? Number one is trust Jesus. And now the next point, point number two is be trusting Jesus. If you want to apply this salvific rest, and this is my last point, it may sound simple, but I think you would concur with me that it is most difficult to be at peace and to continually trust Jesus. Be trusting Jesus. Be trusting Him.

The doctrine of sovereignty comes to play here. The doctrine of sovereignty helps us to be at peace by trusting His sovereign control. Proverbs 3, 5, "Trust in the Lord with all of your heart." It's easy to understand and hard to live out. Proverbs 3, 5, "Convey the unwavering reliance upon God who is there and cares." He's there. We know this. His omnipresence is real. And He cares. We know this because He is a good, benevolent, and loving God. And so be trusting God is trusting in His sovereign control.

God's holy character is enough for you then to be competent in Him. Do you know that God is holy? Thrice holy? Isaiah 6, 3. Holy, holy, holy. He is perfect. He is guilty of nothing. You're His children. He's a good Father. And then therefore, based upon His character alone, it is enough for you to be trusting Him in every circumstance in life. No matter how intense and how emotional, how unfair the circumstances might be, God's character is enough for you to be resting in Him mentally, to be resting in Him emotionally, to be resting in Him spiritually. And so this is how then you would also love the Lord your God with all of your heart and soul and mind and strength, to be trusting Him in all of these ways.

Mentally, I trust You, God. I know this. Emotionally, I'm going to harness my heart. John, chapter 14, in verse 1, says, "Do not let your hearts be troubled." This is a part of your responsibility to enter into the courts of Jesus Christ and to put yourself at peace. Calm down the stirring of your mind. Set your mind on things above. Colossians 3, 2. Emotionally, yield. Truly, slow down the anxiety and the stirring of your thoughts and submit to Christ. Rest in Him. Believe, based upon His character, that He's in control. This doctrine of sovereignty will help you put the theological concept of rest into practice so that you can be trusting and be resting.

Please turn and write down Psalm 135.5. If you're going to apply this concept to your mind, Psalm 135.5 says, "I know the Lord is great." So with your mind, where it starts, emotions are simply reactive to thoughts with your mind. Say, "Convince yourself that I know the Lord is good." Psalm 135.5, "I know the Lord is great and that the Lord is above all gods." Intellectually, you start reviewing these doctrines, and it will eventually creep down into your emotions. We must then think first rightly and love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength. And as you review these wonderful truths, they will work their way out in life.

In fact, James 2, verse 20 says, "If faith without works is dead." And so if you truly believe that God is sovereign, then work it out. Work out your own salvation. I'm telling you that sometimes we have to discipline ourselves for the purpose of godliness and ignore all the anxieties of life in the world because God is sovereign and He's in control and discipline yourself to take one step at a time in this area of resting in Christ. I'm taking the next step intentionally in Christ because if I step over here, it's anxiety. If I step over here, it's worry. If I step over here, it's sinking. But I'm taking one solid step at a time, believing and trusting, first of all, mentally, so that it creeps down into my heart becomes an emotion. And then I'll work it out in my life through my belief, my emotions, and I'm doing.

Psalm 103, verse 19 says that His sovereignty rules overall. Psalm 103, verse 19, His sovereignty rules overall. Would you come out from underneath this peace and rest? Underneath His rulership and go find something to be worried about? Would you come out from underneath the lordship of God and find something to be not at peace about? It's real easy to do. There are millions of people in this world that you would perceive as ones who are suffering, suffering, suffering, suffering. And if you look over across the world, a third world country is all their suffering. They don't have enough food. They don't have proper shelter. They live in areas that have unclean water. They don't have electricity. They're suffering, suffering, suffering.

And you could become worried. And yet God, is He not still in control? He is. I mean, testimonies from missionaries, and maybe you and I firsthand could reply to this as well, in that when you get around what you from your American worldview is perceived as, where's God with all these millions of people suffering? Testimonies from missionaries, and you and I and ourselves would get over there and see the happiest people on earth. You're like, they don't have a worried mind. It's crazy how happy the people are. They're fine. And yet we would worry about them. That's how silly it is to not be underneath the lordship of the Lord Jesus Christ and enjoy His sovereign rest.

And so we think first and then it comes of an emotion and then we really, truly live it out. And so you express the truth about these things. The real need over across season or across the street is salvation. And then the application that's the real need. We don't need to be humanitarianist and worry about the pollution and worry about the electricity and the houses. And we don't need to worry about those things. We need to get Christ and we pray for them for the laws to be saved. Instead of worrying, we should be praying. And so having confidence that God has the Gospel in these places and it will be preached to all people, even in our text in Hebrews, you see that the Gospel was preached to the Israelites. How many people have asked you about this fact? What about the people who have never heard? Take them to the scriptures. In Hebrews chapter 4, verse 2, "For indeed we have had the good news preached to us just as they also." Evidence of the Gospel is everywhere. The Gospel is everywhere. Pray that people would preach the Gospel and spread the Gospel because if people seek Him, they will find Him, the Bible says.

And so the Gospel is within reach of every person on the planet. And it always has been. And so there is no injustice with God. He is sovereign and the salvation has been made available. And so we don't need to worry about those things. We don't need to allow people to worry about those things. Instead, rest in Christ. His sovereignty rules overall. Our total dependence and trust on Him needs to be conveyed through the outflow of our life, which resembles the inner condition of our heart. And if your heart is truly resting in Jesus, then you can convey that confidence to others, even in the worst of circumstances, even in the worst of circumstances.

Trusting is not a half-hearted belief. Trusting is not a three-quarters of your heart believing. Trusting is not a four-fifths belief. It's not a nine-tenths belief. It's not even a 99% out of a hundred belief. Trust. Do your own word study. Trust. Trust the Lord with how much you're heart. Now do it. You know it. Now do it. There's no excuses. Okay? Do not be one who grabs excuses. Take one step at a time and do it and be at peace and rest in Christ.

Psalm 135 verse 6 says that the Lord does whatever He pleases. Do you trust the character of God to do what is right, to glorify not only Himself, but to do what's good for humanity? Trust Him. You say, "Oh, but you do not know what I have gone through." You say, "Oh, I have to worry because of all that's been done to me by way of circumstance. You don't know what I've lost. You don't know what I've endured. You don't know what I've gone through." And I would listen. And I would be very sympathetic. I would empathize with your case and I would hear you completely out. And I would hear, "Maybe you've been abused. Maybe you've lost children. Maybe you have children that are alive. They're not walking with the Lord. Maybe the anxieties of life. Maybe you're in financial distress. Maybe you have a death threat in your life. Maybe what you've gone through is hard to even verbalize. You can't even tell me or a trusted loved one."

The Bible speaks to this. In Job chapter 1 and verse 21, the context is Job losing much. Children, family, resources. And his answer is this. "Naked I came, naked I shall return. The Lord gives. The Lord takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord." Job 1, 21. And so, understand that. Emotionally embrace the fact that God helped Job even in what we could perhaps paint as the worst of circumstances to inwardly get to the point to where he could say, "Blessed be the name of the Lord even when his family lost his family." Job chapter 3 verse 27 says, John chapter 3 verse 27 says, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven."

And so, can you say today, "Blessed be the name of the Lord" in whatever circumstances you have? And if you're not there yet, work on getting there. This is to be done today. This is an application of theology for you today. Not to let it linger, not to give yourself another day of an excuse, but to say today, "I'm going to trust God and I'm going to take one step in front of another and tomorrow I'm going to do the same thing and those steps are going to get stronger and bigger and better." And so, this is how to rest. Trust in God and then also be trusting in God.

Let's pray together. Lord, thank you so much for the application of this rich and wonderful theological concept of rest. And I pray that if anyone here is not at rest, that You would, by the power of Your Holy Spirit, invade their heart and their soul and their mind and help them to be put at peace by confidently believing in Your sovereignty. And then as well, if they are not saved, grant them the faith to be able to confess You as Lord and Savior of life that they may be saved and continue in Your word and be biblically baptized and join a biblical church to study Your Bible and then also go and make disciples. Lord, what a wonderful life it is to continue in Your word. Thank you, Father, for the application of this idea of rest. Help us not only to understand it, but to apply it. We love You. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.