Our efforts to impose rest on ourselves often fail.  That’s because the problem is not one of having the right tools to get things done, avoid procrastination, etc.  We can use these things, but it really starts with our hearts – and there is a problem in our hearts called sin – the consequence of our rebellion against God.  Everything we do – work and rest, and the rhythm of Sabbath rest, takes on a selfish tinge as a result.

In the 4th Century a Christian leader named Augustine wrote, “Our hearts are restless until they find their rest in you.”

It’s hard work being separated from God.  God said it would be – sin meant we would have to toil to overcome thorny ground and survive.  But we can find our rest in God.  In Jesus, we have access to that rest once again, even though we opted out in sin.  Jesus did the ultimate work of closing the separation between us and God.

We can once again join him in building his kingdom, in his creative work.  We do this using the gifts he’s given us to work to build a better society, life-giving technology, strong families, new infrastructure and so on.  Whatever is consistent with his plan and purpose.

And we can also rest in him, knowing that it’s his work we help with, and not our work to force by our sheer act of will.  We can find deep satisfaction in knowing God is God, and invites us to work with him, rather than against him or instead of him.  This says it nicely:

So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.  (Hebrews 4:9-10 ESV)

It’s in knowing God is God, and we are not, that we find rest.

Said another way: It’s in knowing God, through Jesus’ work on the cross, that we find rest for our souls.

Challnege: Make a list of the excuses and reasons you’ve used to avoid rest.  Pray about each one of these and turn them over to God in trust.

Ryan Sim - July 17, 2013

Wednesday - Change It - Originality

I know a PHd student who asked this question on Facebook: "How do you cite Facebook?" Researchers like her live and breathe citations. It's critical that they learn how to quote someone properly. There are whole books written about referencing sources properly. Good teaching in Jesus’ day was the same. Rabbi Hirschel says this. Rabbi Hillel says that. At best, a good teacher might come up with some creative parallel, paradox or new insight into those ancient words. But to say something original, that was risky. Maybe you could get away with it at end of your career, or maybe after you'd died, people would say it about you. The Jewish people have such a long history – to make up your own stuff was as if you thought you were better, and could ignore the past. If you did, people would ask, "Who is this guy?" In this case, he was Jesus, a carpenter from a small town. He never went to the advanced schools of Judaism. Lucky he was literate. He was not where you’d expect original, profound teaching to come from. You might expect teaching that was original and trite, or profound and dated, but not original and profound at once. Yet, everyone, even his enemies, saw this profound, original teaching in Jesus. They said the same as these crowds. “He teaches as one with authority” meaning he wasn’t quoting the great teachers of the past, like other Jewish Rabbis always did. He just taught, and people recognized his words as good and true, despite his lack of citations. He hadn’t followed another rabbi, he just gathered a school of students around him. He doesn’t need to cite, because he is the source of all truth. He is called the "Word" of God - the "Word" being a Greek concept of the truth with personality. Question: How is Jesus different from other teachers in your life? What did he teach that no one else said before, or has ever improved upon since? We meet for coffee every Wednesday night at Starbucks in the Chapters Store in Ajax, in Durham Region just East of Toronto. Maybe we'll see you there?

Related Topics: Authority, Jesus, Originality, Teaching | More Messages from Ryan Sim | Download Audio

From Series: "Sermon on the Mount"

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