There remains a promise of rest. [Hebrews 4:9]. All that need to be done have already been accomplished by God's only Beloved Son as Jesus the Man for and as me.
When I take the leap of faith to live the "take no thought" and "worry not" life, I enter into that promised rest. [Matthew 6:31-33].
The wind of demands may be howling. I have the protective force-field of God's love all around me. I find that I really need to fling those demands onto the Lord. [1 Peter 5:7]. To fling means to not even be bothered about them. Ignore them! If I ever entertain them, I will me driven to extreme desperation and untold miseries. I adopt the attitude of "whatever happen, happens". If I perish, I perish.[Esther 4:16].
But how can I ever perish when I have John 3:16?!? How can that ever happen when I have John 10:10?!?
Romans 14:17 says that the kingdom of God is not about eating and drinking but righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. When I enter into that rest, all the things I need shall be added to me. [Matthew 6:33]. To me, the kingdom of God is that rest.
Let God do His thing.
What is God's way of doing and being right as stated in Matthew 6:33? To me, it is leaving it to God to take care of all my cares and concerns. When I let Him do His thing, I have my joy and peace knowing that He is working all things for my good. This is the life of the righteousness of God! The indwelling blessed Holy Spirit is there to remind me that God loves me.
Just rest and be assured that if He did not spare His only Beloved Son but gave Him up for me, He shall also together with Him freely and graciously give me all things. [Romans 8:32]. That's my joy! And if I do not get what I asked Him for, I have peace knowing that He did so for my good. [Romans 8:28]. That's my peace! And I know all that to be the truth because Christ crucified is the show and proof of God's love for me. That's my righteousness!
In short, knowing that God loves me is the Kingdom of God.
But I say, 'How to, Lord?'
The giants are too great for me. There are the mounting bills to pay, the negative opinions of others, the disapproval of loved ones, money not enough, etc, etc. I will be mocked at, humiliated and ridiculed!
The Lord replied through the Word, "Have my arm grown weak?' Is there anything I will not do for you? I am the Source of all your provisions. I will vindicate you. I am the lifter of your head. I will restore you to honour. My grace is sufficient for you every day. So let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. For I have not given you a spirit of fear but of love, power and sound mind. I have given you a spirit by which you call out 'Abba, Father'. I have promised to not leave you nor forsake you and that I will be with you wherever you go. I am not a man that I should lie and neither do I repent. What I say, I will do. What I promised, I will make good. Be like Caleb. Be my Joshua."
'Rest in me.' The Lord invites. 'You who are weary and heavy laden, come to Me and I will give you rest.' The Lord encourages. The Lord gives a big bear hug.
How does the Lord give me rest?
I have been badly injured by the fights and struggles in life. There is no more strength left in me. I understand what it means when the Bible says, "What's the point of winning the world and yet lose your soul?" [Mark 8:36].
Every time I make a compromise in exchange for what I deem as success, I lose a piece of my soul.
The Lord takes me in and nurse me back to health. Meanwhile and for all eternity, the Lord takes over all of my cares and concerns. He lifts those heavy burdens off my shoulders. I just focus on getting well. I just need to do that one thing needful. I let Him strengthen me through the Word of God's love for me by the blessed Holy Spirit. Thereafter, the Lord will show me the wonderful plans He has in store for me.
Every time I make a compromise in exchange for what I deem as success, I lose a piece of my soul.
The Lord takes me in and nurse me back to health. Meanwhile and for all eternity, the Lord takes over all of my cares and concerns. He lifts those heavy burdens off my shoulders. I just focus on getting well. I just need to do that one thing needful. I let Him strengthen me through the Word of God's love for me by the blessed Holy Spirit. Thereafter, the Lord will show me the wonderful plans He has in store for me.
My problem was that I was too impatient. Before I could fully recover, I wanted to "die" for the Lord. I wanted to do this and that for Him. The Lord does not need me to do anything for Him. He came to do everything for me. All that He is and will be guiding me to do, He does so for my good. And through it all, He is right there with me to hold my hands. Even though I may stray from His guidance, He will always bring me back onto the paths of the righteous. [Psalm 23:4].
Relax!
The Lord has died for and as me. Stop justifying myself to get into God's good books. I am already in His good books. I am God's blue-eye boy or child. Acts 13:38-39 says, "Therefore my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through Him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses."
The Law of Moses shows me what I must do to get into God's good books. I cannot break even one commandment. But the major problem is that we have all broken the law as Romans 3:23 tells me. Before I become discouraged, the Apostle Paul quickly shared the good news in Romans 3:24, "We are justified freely by God's grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus."
So why did God give the Law?
It was to show me up. Romans 3:20 says that it is by observing the law I become conscious of sin and recognise sin as sin. For I would not have known what I am doing is sin except through the law, Romans 7:7. In other words, I will not have known that I have broken the law if nobody shows me the law.
We were all born with a sinful nature. But we were not aware of it. We imagined that we are "healthy".
We were all imprisoned by and in sin. We were not conscious of it. We imagined we were free.
Once I used to covet what I did not have and strive to get it. I did not know that I was in fact breaking the law. It is through the law that I recognise the sinful nature in me, Romans 7:13. My default response in any given situation is my sinful nature.
The Law of Moses is holy, righteous and good, Romans 7:12. Apart from showing me God's pristine standards, it cannot help me measure up to those standards. In fact, when I try to fulfill the law, I find that I cannot. Instead, the very thing I tried not to do, I ended up doing even more! [Romans 7:18-23]. The Law amplifies my sinful nature. This is what it means to be a prisoner of sin. Sin draws power from the Law, Romans 7:5,8, 11.
What a wretched man I am!
The solution is not found in what I should or should not do. The solution is found in the Person of Christ Jesus, Romans 7:24 to 25.
Christ crucified has released me from the prison of sin and transferred me to the prison of God's love. [Colossians 1:13].
A prisoner is one who cannot get out of the place of confinement.
Once I could not overcome sin no matter what I do and how hard I tried. God sent His only beloved Son to do what I could never have done.
After Christ crucified has set me free, He lavishes me with the love of God. In that sense, I have become a prisoner of God's love.
Once I was trapped in the prison of sin with no way out. Now, I am deeply entrenched in hope, rooted in God's great love for me. Nothing can ever separate me from that love.[Romans 8:38-39].
I am a prisoner of God's love.
When I depend on the Lord Jesus, then it is no longer about me. If it is me, then it is no longer the Lord. It cannot be some part me and other part the Lord. For apart from the Lord, I can do nothing. But in Christ Jesus, I can do anything. All things are possible to those who believe that the Lord can do anything.
If it is by grace, then it is not by law. If it is by law, then grace has been made of no effect.
I thank my Lord Jesus Christ for having placed me under grace. Hence, the law has no dominion over me. When the law has no dominion over me, Romans 8:1 declares that there is therefore now no condemnation for me.
Whether we like it or not, we were all born with a sense of guilt and condemnation. We have inherited these traits from Adam.
As I grow up and find demands being placed on me, those negative sentiments spring to life. I find that no matter what I do or how hard I try, I can't seem to get away from those negative emotions. In fact, those crushing sentiments grew stronger instead. I used to explain them away as part and parcel of this world. I accepted them as part of human existence.
But God's only Beloved Son came to this world as Jesus the Man to free me from this prison of guilt and condemnation. He did it by shedding His precious Blood and crucifixion. Today, anyone can just walk out of the prison of guilt and condemnation by accepting the gift of no condemnation that is in Christ Jesus.
When I live my life fully dependent on what Jesus the Christ has accomplished on the Cross, it pleases God. For it honours what His only Beloved Son has done. It gives due credit to Him. Give to man what is man's, and to God, God's. [Mark 12:17]. It warms God's heart because we reciprocate His love by accepting His love for us. We love Him by letting Him love us. [1 John 4:19]. In that way, we show appreciation for the sacrifices He has made for us.
God sacrificed His only Beloved Son to die for me. Now that is a heaven of BIG DEAL!
It shook the whole of heaven. What is man that You should care for them? [Psalm 8:4]. I imagine the angels scratching their heads.
God's only Beloved Son did not die for angels. He did not die for good people. He willingly laid down His divine life for sinners! He died for you and I, unconditionally.
So, why drool at the prospect of rest when the invitation to enter into it has been extended?
Just cross over, pun intended.
So why did God give the Law?
It was to show me up. Romans 3:20 says that it is by observing the law I become conscious of sin and recognise sin as sin. For I would not have known what I am doing is sin except through the law, Romans 7:7. In other words, I will not have known that I have broken the law if nobody shows me the law.
We were all born with a sinful nature. But we were not aware of it. We imagined that we are "healthy".
We were all imprisoned by and in sin. We were not conscious of it. We imagined we were free.
Once I used to covet what I did not have and strive to get it. I did not know that I was in fact breaking the law. It is through the law that I recognise the sinful nature in me, Romans 7:13. My default response in any given situation is my sinful nature.
The Law of Moses is holy, righteous and good, Romans 7:12. Apart from showing me God's pristine standards, it cannot help me measure up to those standards. In fact, when I try to fulfill the law, I find that I cannot. Instead, the very thing I tried not to do, I ended up doing even more! [Romans 7:18-23]. The Law amplifies my sinful nature. This is what it means to be a prisoner of sin. Sin draws power from the Law, Romans 7:5,8, 11.
What a wretched man I am!
The solution is not found in what I should or should not do. The solution is found in the Person of Christ Jesus, Romans 7:24 to 25.
Christ crucified has released me from the prison of sin and transferred me to the prison of God's love. [Colossians 1:13].
A prisoner is one who cannot get out of the place of confinement.
Once I could not overcome sin no matter what I do and how hard I tried. God sent His only beloved Son to do what I could never have done.
After Christ crucified has set me free, He lavishes me with the love of God. In that sense, I have become a prisoner of God's love.
Once I was trapped in the prison of sin with no way out. Now, I am deeply entrenched in hope, rooted in God's great love for me. Nothing can ever separate me from that love.[Romans 8:38-39].
I am a prisoner of God's love.
When I depend on the Lord Jesus, then it is no longer about me. If it is me, then it is no longer the Lord. It cannot be some part me and other part the Lord. For apart from the Lord, I can do nothing. But in Christ Jesus, I can do anything. All things are possible to those who believe that the Lord can do anything.
If it is by grace, then it is not by law. If it is by law, then grace has been made of no effect.
I thank my Lord Jesus Christ for having placed me under grace. Hence, the law has no dominion over me. When the law has no dominion over me, Romans 8:1 declares that there is therefore now no condemnation for me.
Whether we like it or not, we were all born with a sense of guilt and condemnation. We have inherited these traits from Adam.
As I grow up and find demands being placed on me, those negative sentiments spring to life. I find that no matter what I do or how hard I try, I can't seem to get away from those negative emotions. In fact, those crushing sentiments grew stronger instead. I used to explain them away as part and parcel of this world. I accepted them as part of human existence.
But God's only Beloved Son came to this world as Jesus the Man to free me from this prison of guilt and condemnation. He did it by shedding His precious Blood and crucifixion. Today, anyone can just walk out of the prison of guilt and condemnation by accepting the gift of no condemnation that is in Christ Jesus.
When I live my life fully dependent on what Jesus the Christ has accomplished on the Cross, it pleases God. For it honours what His only Beloved Son has done. It gives due credit to Him. Give to man what is man's, and to God, God's. [Mark 12:17]. It warms God's heart because we reciprocate His love by accepting His love for us. We love Him by letting Him love us. [1 John 4:19]. In that way, we show appreciation for the sacrifices He has made for us.
God sacrificed His only Beloved Son to die for me. Now that is a heaven of BIG DEAL!
It shook the whole of heaven. What is man that You should care for them? [Psalm 8:4]. I imagine the angels scratching their heads.
God's only Beloved Son did not die for angels. He did not die for good people. He willingly laid down His divine life for sinners! He died for you and I, unconditionally.
So, why drool at the prospect of rest when the invitation to enter into it has been extended?
Just cross over, pun intended.
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