Overview
Rest is not a reward you earn once the work is finished; it is a pattern God built into creation and then commanded for his people. In this teaching, Dr. Jackie Patterson traces rest from Genesis 2, where God rested after finishing the heavens and the earth, through the Sabbath God gave Israel in the wilderness in Exodus 16, to Christ’s invitation in Matthew 11 to all who labor and are heavy laden. She distinguishes physical rest from rest for the soul, shows that God’s command to rest was never contingent on how much work got done that week, and closes in Isaiah 40 with God’s promise to renew the strength of those who wait upon him.
Transcript
Everyday Objects That Help Us Rest
How many of you could use a little rest in your life? That almost feels like a rhetorical question, doesn’t it? I’ve learned a lot about rest in this past year when many of us have transitioned to working from home. I used to think that I could go to work and power through my day without a break for lunch and be pretty productive the entire day, but since enjoying the flexibility of setting my own schedule at home, I have discovered the importance of mental rest. I now often will take breaks during the day to go for a run, for example, or do something around the house, and I’m discovering when I intermix my work with play that in fact I am more productive during my time at work.
I brought with me a collection of items that I think exemplify rest. Maybe you have an item that you think about when you think about ways that you like to rest. This is our one-year-old’s object for rest, this soft plush pink blanket, and this teddy that is a bit gray but used to be pink is our six-year-old’s object for rest.
When we become adults, our objects transition from blankets and teddy bears to other things that promote our rest. Perhaps it’s taking a bath at night with bath bubbles such as these. For me, when I think of rest, I like to have a nice warm cup of tea or a foot rub with this peppermint foot lotion.
How the Dictionary Defines Rest
Many of you might enjoy sitting on the couch watching TV at night, and so I brought with me a remote. There are many ways that we acquire rest in this life, but today I want to focus on what God says about rest. So let’s start in Genesis chapter 2. I looked up rest in the Merriam-Webster dictionary where it is defined as a noun, a bodily state characterized by minimal functional and metabolic activities, repose, sleep.
It means freedom from activity or labor, and as a verb, to get rest by lying down, to cease from action or motion, to refrain from labor or exertion.
God Rested on the Seventh Day: Genesis 2
God set the example for rest in his word. In Genesis chapter 2 in verse 1, it says, Thus the heavens and the earth were finished and all the host of them, and on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made, and God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
Why did God rest? Was he tired? Certainly our heavenly father does not get tired or grow weary, but what do you suppose he did on this day of rest? Genesis 1 verse 31 gives us a hint, And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good, and the evening and the morning were the sixth day. I think God reflected on his work on this day of rest. God finished his work, the creation of the heavens and the earth, and then he rested.
The Sabbath God Gave Israel in the Wilderness: Exodus 16
Let’s look at Exodus chapter 16. God himself rested after creation, and he instituted the importance of rest for the children of Israel with the Sabbath while they were wandering in the wilderness. And here in Exodus chapter 16 in verse 22, it says, That which you will bake today and seed that you will seed, and that which remaineth over, lay up for you to be kept until the morning.
And they laid it up till the morning as Moses bade, and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein. And Moses said, Eat that today, for today is the Sabbath unto the Lord. Today you shall not find it in the field.
Six days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, which is the Sabbath, in it there shall be none. I can imagine what a welcome directive this must have been. The children of Israel had been enslaved, driven to work at an exhausting pace.
As they wandered in the wilderness, they were learning about God’s sufficiency. They were entirely dependent on him to provide food from heaven each day. And in this context, God instituted this pattern of rest for his people.
He would not provide food from heaven on the seventh day of the week. Instead, he would provide enough food on the sixth day that they could gather it for the seventh and then rest. This directive to set aside the Sabbath for rest was not an onerous command.
Why Some of the People Went Out to Gather Anyway
And yet there were some who did not abide by it at first. Look at verse 27. And it came to pass that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none.
And the Lord said unto Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws? See, for the Lord hath given you the Sabbath. Therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days. Abide ye every man in his place.
Let no man go out of his place on the seventh day. So the people rested on the seventh day. Isn’t it so much like human nature to just continue working? The children of Israel were used to being overworked.
Maybe some of these people thought, I don’t need rest. I know how to work hard. I’m just going to gather food on the Sabbath like every other day.
Or maybe some of them thought, I’m not sure if I trust God that this food is not going to spoil. When we collected extra food other days, it would always spoil the next day. I’m just going to get the food the day of to make sure my need is met.
God didn’t give the Sabbath only to put them behind in their work or to increase their unmet need. He richly provided during the week so that they could rest on this special day. God viewed the Sabbath as among the top 10 keys to success for his children because it became part of the 10 commandments he gave to Moses.
Rest Even in Plowing and Harvest Time: Exodus 34
Look at chapter 34 of Exodus. And in verse 21, it says, Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest. In earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest.
God didn’t make an exception for plowing and harvest seasons, the busiest time, both for their work and their livelihood. He didn’t say, if you’ve plowed enough that your family will have plenty of food for the winter, then take a break. Or if you’ve harvested enough to be able to sell the extras and buy that cloth you wanted for new clothes, then take a break.
His command to rest was not contingent on the progress made with work that week. God commanded his people to rest from their physical work. Look at Matthew chapter 11.
Rest for Your Soul: Christ’s Invitation in Matthew 11
Jesus Christ talked about rest in the Gospels, highlighting not only the need for physical rest, but also rest for our souls. And in Matthew chapter 11, in verse 28, it says, Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. It’s not just those that are laboring that he invites, but also those that are heavy laden from legal requirements and sin consciousness. Heavy laden means to be overburdened with ceremony or spiritual anxiety, to load with a burden of rights and unwarranted precepts.
In this case, with the burdensome requirements of the law and of tradition and with the consciousness of sin. Merriam-Webster also defines rest as being free from anxiety or disturbance, to remain confident. In the age of grace, we are not required to set aside one day a week in which we do no work and focus on God alone.
Grace Instead of Law: The Rest That Remains in Hebrews 4
Instead, we are free to rest when we choose, recognizing that God views physical and mental rest as important. Look at Hebrews chapter 4. Jesus Christ took away the heavy burdens of the law and sin, nailing it to the cross. We are no longer under the burdensome requirement of the law, but under grace.
We need not live under sin consciousness, but rather we are conscious of grace. When we’re overwhelmed, we must recall God’s promise for rest to his people. In Hebrews chapter 4 verse 9, it says, There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.
For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works as God did from his. Sometimes we need to cease from our own works for a Sabbath and get recharged and refreshed. That might mean literal rest from work, much as the Sabbath of the Old Testament, where we sit still and put our feet up, take a nap, go to bed earlier, sleep in later.
Or it might mean rest for our souls from whatever is disturbing us. Time in prayer and the word, fellowship time with friends, time out in God’s creation. Let’s close in Isaiah chapter 40.
They That Wait Upon the Lord Shall Renew Their Strength: Isaiah 40
Isaiah chapter 40 and verse 28. It says, Hast thou not known? Hast thou not heard? That the everlasting God, the Lord, the creator of the ends of the earth fainteth not, neither is weary. There is no searching of his understanding.
He giveth power to the faint and to them that have no might, he increaseth strength. Even the youth shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall. But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength.
They shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint. We cannot underestimate the importance of taking time to rest.
Don’t Let Work or Worry Rob You of Your Rest
Our creator, who knows how we function best, tells us to rest. He set the example for us when he rested from his work as the creator. So when your batteries need to recharge, don’t let work or worry rob you of your rest.
Plug into your creator and be renewed. He promises to renew our strength when we rest on him.
Key Takeaways
- God set the example for rest himself: he finished the work of creation, saw that it was very good, and rested on the seventh day.
- The Sabbath was given to a people who had been enslaved and driven to work at an exhausting pace; it was a provision, not an onerous command.
- God provided a double portion of food on the sixth day so his people could rest on the seventh without falling behind or going without.
- The command to rest applied even in earing time and harvest, the busiest seasons; it was never contingent on how much work had been accomplished.
- Christ offers rest for the soul as well as the body, taking away the burden of the law and of sin consciousness.
- Rest may mean sleeping in or putting your feet up, or it may mean prayer, the word, fellowship, and time out in God’s creation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did God rest on the seventh day if he never grows weary?
God did not rest because he was tired. As Isaiah 40 says, the everlasting God fainteth not, neither is weary. In Genesis 2 he rested because the work was finished, and Genesis 1:31 gives a hint of what he did on that day: he saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. He reflected on his finished work, and in doing so he set the example of rest for us.
Are Christians today still required to keep the Sabbath?
In the age of grace we are not required to set aside one day a week in which we do no work and focus on God alone. Jesus Christ took away the heavy burdens of the law and of sin, nailing them to the cross, so we live under grace rather than under the burdensome requirement of the law. Instead we are free to rest when we choose, recognizing that God still views physical and mental rest as important.
What kinds of rest does the Bible describe besides sleep?
Two kinds. There is literal rest from work, much as the Sabbath of the Old Testament, where we sit still and put our feet up, take a nap, go to bed earlier, or sleep in later. And there is rest for our souls from whatever is disturbing us, the rest Christ offers in Matthew 11 to all that labor and are heavy laden, found in time in prayer and the word, fellowship time with friends, and time out in God’s creation.
Scripture References
Genesis 2:1; Genesis 1:31; Exodus 16:22; Exodus 16:27; Exodus 34:21; Matthew 11:28; Hebrews 4:9; Isaiah 40:28
