REST AS A DUTY OR A PRIVILEGE!

REST AS A DUTY OR A PRIVILEGE!

Ex 20:9-11

9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:

10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:

11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

Mark 2:27-28

27 And he said unto them, The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath:

28 Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the Sabbath.

It’s hard for me to fathom the brouhaha that raged between the Pharisees and Jesus regarding the Sabbath. The legalists had turned something good and refreshing into a meticulous taskmaster. Speaking of taskmasters, it is not unreasonable to think that the Lord meant for the Sabbath to show that He was not like the slave drivers of their Egyptian captivity. His yoke is easy and His burden is light.

At the end of creation God did not rest because He was tired but because he was finished. We, on the other hand, have been given rest to refresh the body, to restore the mind and to rejoice the heart. The word recreation means to play but of you stare at the word long enough you will easily see that it says “re-creation.” In rest there is a rebuilding and a healing of those things worn away by labor.

Personality certainly defines both work and rest. Some people’s answer to weariness is more work or perhaps a different kind of work. Some who work in offices in business suits will don work clothes and chop wood or build something. They seem to thrive on it. Others, like me, are more reflective and we enjoy reclining upon the green pastures beside the still waters. To those like me rest is mental and spiritual. We like to think.

We can’t be at our best when there are so many responsibilities and deadlines that we can’t adequately deal with any of them. We lose the ability to prioritize the tasks and either one gets preferred treatment or all suffer alike. I’ve been told that even while sleeping the mind is at work sorting and organizing the files.

Mark 6:30-32

30 And the apostles gathered themselves together unto Jesus, and told him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught.

31 And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.

32 And they departed into a desert place by ship privately.

Check your schedule. Take your pulse. It is possible that you need to take a break.

Dear Lord, there seems to be no time for a forced rest. There is so much to do and everything presents itself as most important. Let me see the need of reconstructive leisure and let me not abuse it. AMEN

EXHAUSTING THE INEXHAUSTABLE GOD!

EXHAUSTING THE INEXHAUSTABLE GOD!

Isa 43:21-25

21 This people have I formed for myself; they shall shew forth my praise.

22 But thou hast not called upon me, O Jacob; but thou hast been weary of me, O Israel.

23 Thou hast not brought me the small cattle of thy burnt offerings; neither hast thou honoured me with thy sacrifices. I have not caused thee to serve with an offering, nor wearied thee with incense.

24 Thou hast bought me no sweet cane with money, neither hast thou filled me with the fat of thy sacrifices: but thou hast made me to serve with thy sins, thou hast wearied me with thine iniquities.

25 I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.

Rom 1:21

21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

Both Isaiah and the book of Romans present a courtroom drama. God, the judge, sits on his heavenly bench while all of nature is called to witness against guilty man.

1. HE FORMED US!

In the portion before us God’s people are reminded that they exist through the formation of the Almighty. He formed them for himself to declare his praise.

Isa 1:2

2 Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.

2. WE GREW TIRED OF HIM!

Man grew tired of worshipping God and first profaned it then dismissed it altogether. Prayer first became a formality without heart and finally ceased. God was forgotten as irrelevant and unimportant although He is our very breath.

3. SACRIFICE AND SERVICE FADED AWAY!

God does not consider His requirements difficult to accomplish. Yet man became peevish in his worship like a child who had been asked to clean his room or clear the table. He whined and pushed out the lip.

1 John 5:3

3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

4. SIN ONCE ABANDONED WAS RESTORED!

Isaiah 43:24 thou hast made me to serve with thy sins, thou hast wearied me with thine iniquities.

Our sins have become excess baggage for the God who carries us. We have multiplied them, lashing them one on top of another so that the Master falls beneath the load.

5. THE INVITATION IS STILL THE SAME!

Isa 43:25-26

25 I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.

26 Put me in remembrance: let us plead together: declare thou, that thou mayest be justified.

Isa 1:18

18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

God invites us to a discussion regarding our sin and His salvation. The result will be wonderful! We shall be justified! Though our sins are red like crimson, they shall be as white as lambs wool.

Dear Lord, today let me not weary you with an additional load of sins. Let us plead together that my sins might be blotted out. AMEN

HE IS MY COUNSELOR!

HE IS MY COUNSELOR!

Isa 9:6

6 For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Ps 16:7-9

7 I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons.

8 I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.

9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.

The Hebrew ya’ats (yaw-ats) means to advise, to deliberate and to resolve. Isn’t that what we desire when we need a good counselor? It is the same Hebrew word used in both portions above. Counsellor is His name! The government rests upon His shoulder.

1. GOOD COUNSEL IS NEEDED WHEN I AM IN TROUBLE!

A good lawyer is a must when I am in trouble. As a sinner that trouble means my eternal damnation if convicted and sentenced according to my guilt. A good lawyer knows the ins and outs of the law. A good lawyer will get me off the hook. Jesus did this for me.

Col 2:14

14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances [indictments] that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross.

Ø     Blotting out the indictments. Erasing them from any court records so that they may never be found.

Ø     Nailed them to the cross. Posting them openly as proof of final judgment.

2. GOOD COUNSEL IS NEEDED WHEN I AM CONFUSED!

Ps 16:7

7 I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins [my own thoughts] also instruct me in the night seasons.

Our own thoughts [reins] are often unreliable at the times when we most need good advice. We sleeplessly wrestle with the knotty issues of life without resolution.  We struggle to put all the pieces together but can’t. We need trustworthy advice.

Isa 30:21

21 And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.

3. GOOD COUNSEL IS NEEDED WHEN I NEED PROTECTION!

Ps 16:8

8 I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.

The right hand was regarded as the post of honor and dignity, but it is also mentioned as a position of defense or protection. To have one at our right hand is to have one near us who can defend us. Thus, in Ps 109:31, "He shall stand at the right hand of the poor, to save him," etc. So Ps 110:5, "The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath." Ps 121:5, "The Lord is thy Keeper; the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand." The idea is, that as we use the right hand in our "own" defense, we seem to have an additional and a needed helper when one is at our right hand. The sense here is, that the psalmist felt that God, as his Protector, was always near him; always ready to interpose for his defense.

(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database Copyright © 1997, 2003 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Dear Lord, be at my right hand today to give me good advice, to protect me and to represent me. AMEN