How to Get Spiritually Fit - Part 8: The Rest That is Found

REVIEW
 
Church, as ignorant as most people are about the importance of physical exercise, it is so much worse when it comes to spiritual exercise. Now we cannot expect the world to understand this. But we, as believers, most definitely ought to know better.
 
You see, each of us is a spirit who lives in our physical body. So we ought not to give the majority of our attention to physical things. Sure, physical exercise is important when it comes to the longevity of our life on this earth, but this earth life we live is just a speck of sand in the beach of eternity. Therefore, living for eternity is of much more importance.
 
The apostle Paul makes this point in our golden text – First Timothy 4:6-8 where he says, “If you instruct the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished in the words of faith and of the good doctrine which you have carefully followed. But reject profane and old wives fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having the promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.”
 
Notice how he says in verse 8 that bodily exercise profits a little. He wasn’t discouraging physical fitness, but was simply making the comparison of it with our spiritual fitness. We know this by how he went on to say, “but godliness is profitable for all things, having the promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.”
 
You see, physical exercise & fitness do have their benefits. For one, it will give you a better quality of life in the life that now is. But the reason spiritual exercise & fitness have far greater benefits is because they have the promise of both the life that now is and the life which is to come. That means that our spiritual fitness will actually produce a better quality of life both in eternity and here on the earth.
 
So that’s why we have been camping on this subject – so that we can learn how this is achieved, and receive these promises. Amen?
 
So we started off looking at some of the prerequisites to getting in shape spiritually like the necessity of being born again and growing up in our salvation. We then looked at some good mindsets we need to have when beginning to work out like the power of having goals and learning to start small. And most recently, we have started looking at some very practical things that we need to be mindful of in exercise – both physically and spiritually.
 
Last week, we looked at the importance of hydration. We looked at how our bodies need fluid to keep functioning because both our muscles and the entire body itself are made up mainly of water. So if we lose fluid in our bodies, we absolutely have to rehydrate ourselves or we are in serious trouble.
 
Well, we looked at what our spiritual hydration is, and His Name is Jesus. Yes, Jesus is that water of life that will quench every thirst and satisfy every desire. So we learned that we have to continually come to the Lord Jesus and drink from the water that only He can provide. Just like you won’t be properly hydrated by only drinking something on Sunday but not on the other six days of the week, we need to realize that in order to remain spiritually hydrated, we must drink, drink, and keep on drinking.
 
So we learned how to go to the well – Jesus’ well – and let Him abundantly satisfy our hearts instead of looking to the broken cisterns of this world to fulfill us.
  
REST & RECOVERY
 
So, let’s look at another practical part of conditioning & exercise – the importance of rest.  Like hydration, this aspect of getting physically fit is also not commonly understood or esteemed among most people who exercise, but it is absolutely necessary.
 
One of the reasons why rest isn’t respected amongst most fitness junkies is because some view taking a recovery day or resting in general as a sign of weakness. In other words, many of those who are into exercise have learned to discipline themselves and press through those feelings of laziness. And because of that, they can tend towards not listening to their body and resting when it really needs it.
 
You see, as important as it is to be driven & determined to exercise and to push through those times that your flesh doesn’t want to put forth the effort, it is equally important to not get over into the other ditch either.
 
What do I mean by that? I mean that there is a balance between being disciplined & working hard, and knowing when it’s time to rest and recover. So whether you’re training for a competition or feeling extra motivated, more isn’t always better. Rest days are just as important as exercise. In fact, any successful fitness regimen isn’t complete without rest days.
 
I think all of this certainly applies to us spiritually as well, amen? Some of us are hard workers. We have the mind to serve the LORD with all of our might and to labor for Him. And while that is certainly good and has its place – those of us who are wired this way can usually tend to err in doing “too much” for Him.
 
I like to call this the “Martha complex” because, in the Scriptures, we have the account of Jesus teaching in Martha’s home. While it was evidently time to be resting at His feet and listening to His teaching, she was busy in the kitchen with much serving. And we know what Jesus told her, right? He essentially said to her that this wasn’t the time to be troubling herself with much serving; there was only one thing that was needful at that time, and that was to be resting at His feet and listening to His Word.  
 
Now Jesus certainly wasn’t saying that it was never time to work hard and serve the Lord. He was just saying that there is a time to rest in Him as well. And wisdom will be able to correctly determine when it’s appropriate to do both.
 
So if you have this tendency to have a “Martha complex,” you might need to take some time and get with the Holy Spirit, letting Him show you some things about yourself and accrue this wisdom that descends from above to get a healthy balance.     
 
THE BENEFITS OF REST
 
Now like I said, there is a lot of ignorance out there of the importance of rest. So let me give you a quick summary of the advantages of taking regular rest days so that we can see why it is so important for our physical well-being:

1. Rest allows time for recovery

 
Rest days aren’t about giving our flesh what it wants. It’s during this time that the beneficial effects of exercise take place. Specifically, rest is essential for muscle growth.
 
You see, exercise creates microscopic tears in our muscle tissue. But during rest, cells called fibroblasts repair those tears. This helps the tissue both heal and grow, resulting in stronger muscles.
 
Also, your muscles store carbohydrates in the form of glycogen. So during exercise, your body breaks down glycogen to fuel your workout. Rest gives your body time to replenish these energy stores before your next workout.

1. Rest prevents muscle fatigue

 
Rest is necessary for avoiding exercise-induced fatigue. Remember, exercise depletes your muscles’ glycogen levels. So if these stores aren’t replaced, you’ll experience muscle fatigue and soreness.
 
Plus, your muscles need glycogen to function, even when you’re not working out. By getting adequate rest, you’ll prevent fatigue by letting your glycogen stores refill.

1. Reduces risk of injury

 
Regular rest is essential for staying safe during exercise. When your body is overworked, you’ll be more likely to have an accident like falling out of form, dropping a weight, or taking a wrong step.
 
Overtraining also exposes your muscles to repetitive stress and strain. This increases the risk of overuse injuries, forcing you to take more rest days than planned.
 
 

1. Improves performance

 
When you don’t get enough rest, it can be hard to do your normal routine, let alone challenge yourself. For example, you might be less motivated to do an extra rep or run another mile. Even if you push yourself, overtraining decreases your performance. You may experience reduced endurance, slow reaction times, and poor agility.
 
Rest has the opposite effect. It increases energy and prevents fatigue, which prepares your body for consistently successful workouts.

1. Supports healthy sleep

 
While regular exercise can improve your sleep, taking rest days is also helpful.
 
Physical activity increases energy-boosting hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. Constant exercise, however, overproduces these hormones. You’ll have a hard time getting quality sleep, which only worsens fatigue and exhaustion.
 
Rest can help you get better sleep by letting your hormones return to a normal, balanced state.
 
So there are obviously multiple benefits to rest. Taking regular breaks allows our body to recover and repair. It’s actually essential for progress and overall well-being, regardless of your fitness level or sport. Otherwise, skipping rest days can lead to overtraining or burnout. By understanding exactly how much rest your body needs, you can maximize your recovery and ensure that each training day is effective.
 
SIGNS THAT WE NEED REST
 
But like I said, it’s easy to forget these things and ignore the need for rest. So what are some signs that reveal that we might need a rest day? Well, if you notice any of the following signs, it might be time for you to take a break:

1. Sore muscles – While it’s normal to feel somewhat sore after exercise, persistent soreness is a red flag. What this means is that your muscles haven’t recovered from past workouts, which is obviously a bad thing.
2. Fatigue – Pay attention to your body, especially when you feel extreme exhaustion. If your body feels spent like this, it’s time to let your body rest.
3. Pain – Muscle or joint pain that doesn’t go away might be a sign of overuse or even an injury.
4. Emotional changes – When you’re physically burnt out, your hormones can become imbalanced. This can cause mood changes like irritability, crankiness, and other volatile mood swings.
5. Sleeping issues – High levels of these hormones can also make it hard to get quality sleep. As a general rule, quality exercise should cause us to sleep better, not worse. 
6. Reduced performance – If your normal routine feels difficult, or if you stop seeing progress, it might be time to take a rest day.

 
OUR SPIRITUAL REST
 
So now that we’ve seen the benefits of rest and signs that we might need to rest physically, how does this apply to our spiritual lives? Well, I think a lot of the same can be applied to the need for spiritual rest.
 
You see, the Bible speaks a lot about different kinds of rest for the children of God. It talks about the importance of physical rest, but also of a spiritual rest that only Christ can lead us into.
 
You see, like our spiritual hydration can only come through Christ as He is that water of life who alone can satisfy our every thirst, He is also that spiritual rest that causes us to rest from both the pressures of this life and the pressure of trying to live the Christian life. 
 
So regarding signs that we might be needing to enter His rest, if we are not sensing any grace to do what we know we are to be doing, like walking in love towards others or being patient, the reason might be because we are doing it in our own strength. When we try to live the Christian life in the flesh, it can create similar symptoms to the soreness, fatigue, and pain. Of course, these symptoms won’t usually be those physical things, but a need for spiritual rest can certainly be manifested as mental & emotional fatigue or pain. Like, are we feeling worn down mentally to where it feels difficult to ward off those negative thoughts? Are we not experiencing the peace that passes all understanding? Is our joy-tank feeling empty? All of these things can be symptoms that we are not currently living in His rest.
 
So it’s important that we pay attention to all of these things that are indicative of not living out of the grace that the Christian life is meant to be lived by. These things reveal to us that we might not be resting in Him.
 
So let’s talk a little bit about this spiritual rest that remains for the people of God …
 
One of the most popular passages of Scripture along these lines is Jesus’ words in Matthew 11:28-30. So, let’s take a look at them: Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
 
One of the first things we see here is who the Lord was addressing – “all you who labor and are heavy laden.” Now this is just another way of describing folks who haven’t learned how to rest, isn’t it?
 
So, let’s look at these two types of people in detail – those who “labor” and those who are “heavy laden”:
 
First of all, the word “labor” describes “the feelings of being tired, fatigued, or weary that come as a result of the hard work (or, in our case, exercise) we are doing.” Therefore, it denotes working hard, laboring, toiling, and the physical and emotional effects that this effort can have on us. But we can see that while this word was primarily used to describe physical labor, Jesus was using it to describe those who were worn out in the spiritual sense.
 
You see, even though there is a good kind of “labor” for the Lord, there is also a bad kind. That is because there is a laboring with Him and then there is a laboring for Him, and there is big difference between these two. One can work for the Lord, but it not be Spirit-led or Spirit-empowered—meaning, they can do a lot of good, well-meaning and religious duties, but it not be what the Lord has directed us to do or how He directed us to do it at that specific time. I can assure you that if a believer is becoming tired when doing the good works that they are doing for the Lord then one of two things are true: Either they are doing something that the Lord did not tell them to do or they are doing what He might have told them to do, but in their own strength. How can I be so confident in this, you ask? It is because, as we’ve seen, the Lord’s yoke does not have unrest accompanying it. It is really that simple, church.
 
But we also see that Jesus invited those who are “heavy laden” to come to Him. Now this is not terminology that we might use today. What it means to be “heavy laden” is a burden is placed upon someone to where they are overloaded. And, oh, how this is certainly a cause of unrest!
 
Now this being overburdened would describe people who are overloaded with the cares of this world and also those overburdened by the law and the keeping of religious rules and rites. All of this leads to unrest—for when we try to work harder, even in our spiritual lives, we add stress that is unwarranted.
 
You see, like I alluded to earlier, many people have the mentality that with anything – from our vocation to our spiritual walks – that if we just work harder, everything will be better. But that is not necessarily the case: working harder is not always the answer and certainly is not wisdom. Like they say in the business world, we need to learn to work smarter and not just harder. This applies to the kingdom business world too! We need to learn to work smarter for the Lord and not just do more and more – and that would certainly include learning when to rest.   
 
So, we can see that those who are in these situations need only do one thing—Come to Him! Yes, like Jesus invited those who thirst to come to Him and drink, He invited everyone who labors and is heavy laden to come to Him to receive rest for their souls. Sounds like a restful life, saints!
 
So, we saw that herein lies one of the primary reasons that we live both dehydrated and tired lives – It is because we do not make our personal relationship with God a priority. I am convinced that if we would make the “first thing first” and accept the invitation to “Come to Him,” we would be more at rest in our souls. 
 
THE REST THAT IS GIVEN VS. THE REST THAT IS FOUND
 
Now I want you to notice Jesus’ promise to those who come to Him when they are tired & worn out: He said, “And I will give you rest.” So, when we learn to come to Jesus—whether that be us simply turning our attention towards Him or us actually drawing near to Him—He has promised that we will be given “rest.”
 
So, what can we determine if we are not at rest? That we haven’t come to Him like He described in this passage. And I’ll tell you—people don’t like to acknowledge that, but either Jesus is telling the truth here or they are. Which one of these options do you think is true? I, for one, choose to believe Jesus over my own experiences. Amen?
 
But I want you to notice that although Jesus said in verse 28 that He will give us rest when we come to Him, in verse 29, He said that we will “find” rest by taking His yoke ourselves and learning from Him.
 
You see, we must understand that one rest is given, and the other is found. Yes, one is experienced when we come to Christ upon making Him our personal Lord and Savior. This is the positional rest we have entered into—and many of us can attest to immediately receiving this rest the moment we called on the name of Jesus and were saved from the burden of sin.
 
However, there remains a rest that we can partake of experientially—and that is when we exchange our weakness for His strength, when we learn to wait on the Lord and draw near to Him in fellowship. But like we saw, this rest for our soul must be found—which indicates that we have to search for it. 
 
How do I look for this rest, you might ask? We find it through our fellowship with the Lord—through learning to sit at His feet like Mary did and seeking Him, not seeking it. Yes, we are not going to find peace by seeking for it, but by seeking the Lord Himself. In other words, once we find that secret place in the presence of the Prince of Peace, we will find the peace we desire. 
 
You see, oftentimes we gravitate towards doing things in our own strength and we begin to pull that “Martha” thing that we have already referred to — and that happens even with trying to find peace. This is when we must become more like Mary who learned when to sit at the Master’s feet and draw her strength from Him. Strength comes from fellowship—strength for everything from serving the Lord to simply being calm and quiet. 
 
But this rest only comes through Him, and that is the point we need to take away from this.
 
THE REST THAT REMAINS
 
In fact, Psalm 23:2 teaches us this principle: In it, King David said of His Good Shepherd, “He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.”
 
First of all, the entire phrase at the beginning of this verse— “Me makes me to lie down”—comes from one Hebrew word, the word rabats. This word literally means “to stretch oneself out or lie stretched out.” Thus, the reason that this word is translated “to couch” in a couple of places. Therefore, this word describes “reclining.” So, we might translate this first half of Psalm 23:2 like so today: “He helps me to take a load off and to rest & relax.”
 
You see, if we are not joyfully serving the Lord, then we are not serving the Lord the way He intended for us to. When we are living the Christian life correctly, we will live a life that is full of rest & relaxation. It is only when we try to live the Christian life in the arm of the flesh that we become stressed-out and lose our peace.
 
Saints, it is not the Lord’s will that any part of our Christian walk feels like “work.” Sure, it is not always pleasant putting the flesh under, and sure, it is not always easy to go through the various trials we fall into. But if everything always seems arduous and an uphill battle, then we are likely missing it in some way. Therefore, to lie down in green pastures describes our Good Shepherd leading us, His sheep, to places of comfort, rest and relaxation—like a spiritual couch or recliner. Amen!
 
Now the next thing David said in Psalm 23:2, essentially teaches us the same thing: “He leads me beside the still waters.” 
 
The phrase “beside the still” comes from the Hebrew word menuwchah and describes a “rest or resting place.” It carries the idea of a comfortable, still and quiet place or thing (and in this case, that thing is “water”). So, these “still waters” that David describes here could literally be described as “waters of rest” and for us to be led beside these still waters would describe us being led and guided alongside places of rest—places that are quiet, still and comfortable. Amen.  
 
So, again, this is what happens: We come to Jesus in our fatigue & exhaustion and He — our Good Shepherd — leads us into our resting place. In other words, there remains a rest for the people of God — a stream that makes glad the city of our God. It is beside these still waters that we find rest for our souls.
 
In fact, this is actually the same word that was used to describe the Rest of God referred to in Psalm 95:11--the same Rest that the writer(s) of Hebrews describe in Hebrews chapter 4.
 
Now most people associate this rest referred to in both the 95th Psalm and in Hebrews chapter 4 as heaven and us passing through death’s doors to enter into His rest in eternity. And while, in all likelihood, we certainly will experience a peace in that day that will by far transcend what we will walk in on the earth today, it is entirely incorrect for us to just roll with the punches of this world and only expect to find rest for our souls when we die.
 
If you recall, we spent a good amount of time in our study of the 23rd Psalm a few years ago emphasizing the fact that it is not just a funeral psalm. No, it is a life psalm because the language in it indicates that the Lord’s sheep is walking through the valley of the shadow of death, fearing no evil, and that the Lord has prepared this table for us in the presence of our enemies. There are no enemies in heaven! There is nothing to fear there—no valleys of the shadow of death, only mountains of life! Amen?  
 
You see, this “Rest” was an obvious reference to Canaan, the Promised Land, and was described as a rest in contrast to their 40-year journey in the wilderness. Canaan had giants in it; heaven won’t. So, the promised land that you and I can possess today is a life of overcoming those giants that oppose us and keep us from receiving our inheritance, which certainly includes rest.
 
Now this “wilderness” period was certainly that feeling of no rest—for it involved always moving and striving and never experiencing the peace the Lord has for His people. Well, likewise, there is rest that you and I can enter into in this life! That is those still waters of rest that He leads us beside! That is that spiritual recliner that He makes us lie down on! All of this is for us now in this life.
 
And sadly, that is where many Christians live—in the wilderness, living from miracle to miracle (which means they are also living from crisis to crisis) and experiencing this striving, working, and arduous lifestyle.
 
There is a better life that that, saints! Yes, I said there is a better life! And that is—living in the blessing of Canaan where we enter into His Rest! Yes, there remains therefore a rest for the people of God—where we can cease from our works, our striving and busyness. This is the Sabbath that we are called to observe—where we learn to rest in the work of another—namely, the Lord Jesus Christ’s work on the Cross. Its ultimate fulfillment will be when we leave these tents and live in the eternal rest in the kingdom of God, but there is also a rest to be experienced now. A sabbath, if you would. Amen.
 
JESUS, OUR SABBATH
 
And this is why Jesus said for us to come to Him in order to receive His rest—because He is the fulfillment of the Sabbath!
 
Now this leads us into an important biblical principle that was first referred to in the beginning during creation, then was instituted under the Law, and finally was fulfilled in Christ—the Sabbath, which is symbolic of this rest we are talking about today.
 
So, let’s start out by looking at this commandment that God gave His people: In Exodus 20:8-11, God gave them the Ten Commandments and said, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore, the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.”
 
In this Scripture, we see how He gave His chosen people the Sabbath by comparing it to when He rested from His work in creation.
 
Now it is important to understand that God did not “rest” in the sense that we think of resting. When we think of resting, we think of recuperating because of fatigue, but this is not what is implied here. God rested on the seventh day, not because He was tired and exhausted. He rested because the work was finished & complete. There was nothing left to do.
 
This word “rest” described more of a cessation of activity, the ending of effort. A good example of what transpired here is an artist who was working to paint a beautiful masterpiece and then when his or her picture was completed, they leaned back in their chair observing their completed masterpiece, maybe with their brush in their mouth. This image in no way describes an artist laying down his brush because it got too heavy. No, he rested from his work because his work was finished and complete.
 
God had created the heavens and earth and all that is within them and saw that it was all “very good” (Genesis 1:31). It was finished! His work was complete! So, He was attempting to get His people to see that the work of creation had been completed. Therefore, He gave them the Sabbath to illustrate to them that they are to rest in God’s finished work of creation and redemption. 
 
So, what is our attitude to be regarding the Sabbath? Are we to keep the Sabbath or not? Well, let’s look over at Colossians chapter two and, in this passage, we will see the true purpose of the Sabbath and how we should be fulfilling it.
 
THE SHADOW OF THE SABBATH
 
Colossians 2:11-15 says, “In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.”
 
So, notice here that things like circumcision (another big point of contention), water baptism, and all the other “handwriting of requirements” (i.e. the commandments of the Law) have been fulfilled in us who are in Him. Amen! 
 
Now notice this: Paul goes on to say in Colossians 2:16, “So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths…”
 
In other words, because the law has been fulfilled in us through the finished work of Christ (i.e. “so”), we are to let no one judge us in food or in drink (this is dietary laws of the law), or regarding a festival (all the feast days) or a new moon (some other requirement for the Jews to keep) or SABBATHS. Or what? Or SABBATHS! This implies we are not to let anyone judge us regarding keeping the different Sabbaths because we are now under the perfect law of liberty.
 
But why? Why are we free from keeping the Sabbath today under our new and better covenant? Well, continue reading: In verse 17, Paul goes on to say, “which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.”
 
Do you see this? All of these requirements of the law—the dietary laws, the feasts, and, yes, even the Sabbath—are shadows of things to come! This means that all of these commands the Lord gave them were meant to foreshadow something which was to come, namely, SOMEONE who was to come—and that is Christ! Praise the Lord!
 
Actually, this word “substance” literally means “body.” So why would we continue hugging the shadow of the One we love when we have their body? That would be kind of weird, wouldn’t it? 
 
So, what does this teach us? It teaches us that the Sabbath is simply a shadow of Christ and, therefore, Christ is the fulfillment of the Sabbath. Yes, saints, JESUS IS OUR SABBATH REST!
 
IT IS FINISHED
 
Let’s look at another passage where the Lord gave His chosen people a command concerning the Sabbath and we will see this more clearly:
 
Deuteronomy 5:15 says, “And remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.”
 
Notice the word “therefore” in this verse: Being redeemed from Egypt is a type of our salvation, so this is why He commanding them to keep the Sabbath? Because He did it (brought them out of Egypt) with His mighty hand and outstretched arm. Likewise, Jesus brought us out of the kingdom of darkness and we should rest in His finished work.
 
Practically speaking, God gave them one day a week not to work to illustrate to them that they are not their own source. In other words, the Sabbath had an element of trust to it. You had to trust the Lord that He could do more by His mighty hand and outstretched arm in 6 days than you could do by your arm and hand in 7 days. It was to illustrate to them that they are not their own Savior and Provider — God is. 
 
So, this is what we need to understand about the seventh day — that when we were made a new creation in Christ that His work in us is complete. Therefore, we are not a work in progress. His work of grace in our spirit is finished! And it was not by our own hands that we were saved — Jesus did the work Himself.
 
This is why Jesus said on the Cross just before He gave up His spirit that “It is finished!” He was saying that the price that needed to be paid for our salvation was complete. He was saying that what He hung on that Cross to accomplish was sufficient. Nothing else needed to be done! The price needed for our redemption had been fully satisfied and we are complete!
 
You see, the word “sabbath” obviously means “rest.” In fact, the words “seven, sabbath, & rest” all come from the same basic word in the Hebrew shabat. And we know the number seven in biblical numerology describes “completion.” Therefore, we see the meaning of the Sabbath: It is that God indeed rested on the seventh day because His work of creation was completed. Amen.
 
So, we being children of God who have been made new creations in Christ Jesus ought to also follow our Heavenly Father’s pattern—know that the work of the new creation (i.e. salvation) has been completed within us and now we are to rest from our works of the flesh that seek to accomplish what has already been accomplished in us through Christ Jesus. Amen. We are complete in Him. The work of salvation has already been accomplished within us, so now we can cease from our works (i.e. works that seek to justify and obtain what can only be received by faith in His grace) as God ceased from His works. We must cease our WORKS of trying to become righteous (which are not good enough) and REST in the work that Christ did to atone for our sins. Therefore, we can rest in all the works that Christ has done for us! He has paid the price and done everything that needs to be done in regard to our salvation!
 
The number seven in Biblical numerology describes “perfection and completion.” Thus, our salvation and the new creation we were made is perfect and complete! There is nothing left undone! God made all things good in the beginning and God has made all the things that are new in us good! When God looked over all that He had made, He said it was very good! Likewise, God looks at His work in us and says it is very good! We have passed His inspection! Therefore, the rest is essentially learning to rest in God’s finished work!
 
You see, so many believers never learn to do this. They see Christianity as a religion, based on a bunch of rules and regulations, and if we do all of these things, or rather, simply avoid certain things, then we find ourselves in the good graces of God. But this is not Christianity! Christianity isn’t even a changed life; it’s an exchanged life. It is where we, as Jesus said in Matthew chapter eleven, “take His yoke upon us.” In other words, it is all about Jesus—learning to come to Him, trust in Him, and letting His life be lived through you. It is resting in His finished work on the Cross! Amen!
 
Boy, I can tell you, this alleviates the exhaustion from our lives when we learn that Jesus has done this “very good” work of salvation, and it is truly finished! Now you and I can learn to not only let our salvation rest in Him, but also every other battle of life. Yes, every need, every care, every trial, etc., etc., etc.—all of these are His concern, not ours. So, that resounding truth that we have all likely heard (i.e. the battle is not yours, but God’s), is true in every situation we find ourselves in. Amen.
 
Therefore, this rest is rooted in knowing that the work of salvation is complete—everything from our eternal security to the temporal situations we find ourselves in. All of these battles belong to Lord, and He has already fought them for us. So, us learning to enter into His finished work is a big part of finding rest for our souls.  
 
THE WISDOM IN THE SABBATH
 
However, this is not to say that the physical observance of the Sabbath has no benefits: Yes, although we are not bound to legalistically observing a day like the Sabbath anymore, this does not mean that there are no benefits to observing a day of rest every week. Yes, like it is with many things contained in the Mosaic and Levitical laws, there are certain natural benefits to doing certain things that the law tells us.
 
For instance, how many of you know that even though we are free to eat bacon, crab legs, pork chops and lobster today, it probably wouldn’t be a good idea to make these things a large part of your diet. Why? Because the world will even tell us that these things are not the healthiest things we can put in our bodies. Likewise, even though we are not bound to observe the Sabbath, that does not mean that there are no benefits to observing a day of rest every week. In fact, we have come to learn that it actually is a good thing for everyone to rest one out of every seven days.
 
Therefore, I would say that this is good principle for each of us to live by in order to live free from exhaustion – have a day each week where we detach, disconnect, and decompress—that is, where we lay down every project, where we turn the phone off, where we don’t even try to problem-solve in our minds; just a day of rest where we put our relationship with the Lord as our priority and we even enjoy some nice recreational things that do not require a lot of physical or mental energy. Amen? I bet if we would make sure to schedule this on a weekly basis, we would live more stress-free lives. Amen?   
 
However, like I stated earlier, the one day a week Sabbath is not the only Sabbath instituted under the law; there was also the seventh year Sabbath. And what this teaches me is that there are obviously other periods of rest that are wise to do as well. For example, it’s obvious that annual vacations are good for the soul too, right? Yes, having a week of rest can really help to rest and rejuvenate you. Likewise, I think it is wise to schedule periodic times of rest throughout the year where we can cease from the physical and emotional labor and focus on the spiritual side of our life.
 
We do this as pastors: Because of all of the burdens of the people that we try to help carry, it is easy for a minister to become weary and overburdened. This is when that term “burnout” can occur. So, a wise decision for those who minister full time is to take a regular “sabbatical”—which is a time period, whether it’s a day, week, month, etc. to disconnect and get refreshed in the presence of God. 
 
But I’ll add this one thing: I think if we really wanted to be balanced and enter into His rest consistently, then it’s not only just one day a week or one week a year that we need to strive for; we need a certain period of time every day in order to find rest for our souls. What I mean is, we need that period of time every day to “come to Him,” simply meditating on His Word, praising & worshipping Him, etc., to where that rest is found daily.
 
Which leads me to my next point: What we do during those “sabbaticals” is important too.
 
Like when it comes to the rest times we take from physical exercise – this doesn’t mean that we just veg out on the sofa, eating whatever we want. No, there are good productive types of rest and there are counter-productive types of rest. The experts out there will tell you how to best utilize your rest periods so that your body can rejuvenate & recover in the best way possible.
 
Well, the same is true for spiritual exercise: Yes, we need to rest, but there are things we can do when resting that make it more productive. Things like reading your Bible, praying for others, etc. but there is something very specific that you and I can do that actually causes us to enter into His rest. Are you interested in knowing what that is? Speaking in tongues! The Scriptures teach us that this is the rest!
 
In Isaiah 28:11&12, we are given a prophetic glimpse of this benefit of praying in other tongues. In this passage of Scripture, we have what many consider to be the only reference to this particular manifestation of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament. In fact, we know these verses in Isaiah are prophetic of this New Covenant gift because the apostle Paul made reference to this Scripture in First Corinthians 14:21 when admonishing the Corinthians on the subject of tongues. So, let’s look at these Scriptures in Isaiah chapter 28.
 
In verse 11, Isaiah says, “For with stammering lips and another tongue He will speak to this people…” The apostle Paul used this particular statement to show how one of the many diversities of tongues is to be a sign for the unbeliever (see First Corinthians 14:21-22), but if you look on to verse 12, I believe the Holy Spirit through Isaiah gives us a result of these “stammering lips and other tongues”… He says, “To whom He said, ‘This is the rest with which you may cause the weary to rest.’ And, ‘This is the refreshing’; yet they would not hear.” Notice in this verse we are told that two of the results of praying in other tongues are that we enter into a rest and that we experience a refreshing. These are two of the specific characteristics of what Paul deemed “edification.”  
 
Did you know that when you become weary in well doing and begin to grow faint in your race of faith, that praying in other tongues is a way that you can enter into a supernatural rest? Did you know that when you feel dry and empty in your soul that you can experience a supernatural refreshing through your prayer language? That’s right! You don’t need to run to someone else to pray for you or to the nearest revival service to get a fix.
 
You see, this is what so many believers do: They look for a place where God is moving and drive miles to go get that quick fix from God. But that is only a superficial way of experiencing a personal revival. The best way to experience a personal revival is to get it from the inside/out and not the outside/in! All you need to do to enter into the rest and refreshing of the Holy Spirit is to set aside a period of time, go into your prayer closet and pray in other tongues for an extended period of time. I guarantee you if you do this, your battery will get charged up and you will experience more peace and joy than you were previously experiencing!
 
Like I made the point of at the beginning of this teaching, this must be done when it comes to physical exercise. Your body needs to have time to rest & repair after exerting itself. Likewise, our spirits need times of resting in Him in order to be renewed day by day. 
 
Church, I’m convinced that if we did these four things: Made sure we scheduled a week or more of rest during the year, made sure we had a day every week where we rested, and made sure we spent a period of time daily in His rest, we would live in this supernatural Sabbath that Jesus said was ours. Especially, when we include praying in other tongues all along the way, every day.
 
May you find your Resting place in Him today and always. Amen.