I need God's rest!
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Big Idea:
Big Idea:
I am stressed because I am not resting as God commanded/designed.
Intro:
Intro:
Hey everyone, welcome to Church Online...
…well, it’s November (already) and the holidays are upon us. I love the holiday season.
I love thinking about Thanksgiving.
I love watching the holiday Hallmark movies.
I love counting down to Christmas!
It’s my most favorite time of the year. However, it’s also a very stressful time of the year. For me...
There’s the overlap of the youth football and basketball. Yesterday, I had a practice for both sports!
There’s the budgeting of food and gift-giving expenses.
There’s the increase of the heat bill (amen?).
And even at church, there’s the added planning of many seasonal events like retreats, parties, and special worship services.
All of this can be very stressful. And though my personal circumstances are different than yours, I’m confident you have your own added seasonal strain.
And while this holiday increase is nothing new, what may be different than year’s past is the state of our society. Our mental health crisis continues to spread and increase throughout the year. And as it does, normal, rhythmic, seasonal additions can take a different toll on us than maybe in the past.
Last week, we didn’t have church because the men were at Man Camp. It was so awesome. Men, if you didn’t get a chance to go… open your calendar app - right now - and save the date for 2023. We’re going the first weekend of November again! This year we had 18 guys go! Last year we only had 8. I’m hoping for more next year!
But at Man Camp, a few guys entered the flag football tournament. I was glad my friend Dennis came with us because he’s an ex-high school state champion running back. If you go to my Facebook page, Pastor Jon captured a video of me throwing a touchdown pass to him.
Here’s the thing: Dennis hasn’t played football in like 20 years. Now, muscle memory is an amazing thing. Dennis was pulling off moves I’m sure he didn’t even know he could do anymore; however, just because your body remembers how to do it, doesn’t mean you SHOULD do it.
He came into the office on Thursday limping. He’s like, “Oh, strange thing. I pulled a muscle doing -whatever it was.” I was like, “Bro - you didn’t pull a muscle from that. It was those football moves on Saturday. The “thing you were doing” was just the straw that broke the camel’s back!
And I think there’s the potential for normal holiday stress to have same back-breaking effect on our lives. Because of the increased daily stress levels we’ve been living with… anything more could push us over the edge!
That’s why I thought it’d be a good idea for us to spend the next four weeks talking about stress.
What it is.
What does God say about it?
And, how we can overcome stress.?
Today, we start a new sermon series titled, “Why am I stressed?”
And like I did for the sermon series we did earlier in the year on biblical thinking, I need to give credit where credit is due. Right now, I’m reading a book titled, “The Stressless Life” by Vance Pitman. A lot of what I will share over the next few weeks is inspired by what he writes about.
And one thing he gives is a definition of stress. Now to be clear, this isn’t a textbook definition, rather, a real-life definition. Additionally, he explains that for the purposes of his book, he recognizes a large overlap between anxiety, worry, and stress. And for simplicity sake, we’re going to lump them all under the concept of stress.
So, here’s the definition Vance gives and the one we’ll be referencing over the next four weeks:
Stress is the fearful concern experienced when life’s demands seem greater than my ability to meet them.
Also, let me add a few other phrases, with definitions, that’ll help us process the idea of stress:
Stressors - are not stress, but rather the circumstances in our lives that create the levels of pressure, tension, and strain that can lead to stress. Another way Vance says it is, “Stressors are what we face, while stress is what we feel… stressors are the primary source of stress.”
Genuine concern - these are the normal, reasonable things we should be concerned about and expect, given we live in a fallen world. And for the Christian (the follower of Jesus), our response to this concern is “What will God do through this?”
Fearful concern - often, these can be identical to the “genuine concern” circumstances, however, the response is radically different. With the fearful concern, our response is, “What am I going to do?” The burden shifts from God to us.
Peace - What we will see, over the next few weeks, is the opposite of stress is God’s peace. Peace is also part of the resolution, and protection against, stress. And the way Vance defines peace is, “The sense of divine favor arising from confidence in God and your relationship with Him.”
Let’s look at a familiar Bible passage that shows us this relationship between stress and peace...
do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Again, there’s enough overlap between anxiety and stress for us to read it, “Do not be stressed about anything.” And for now, skip down to the end. What do we see is the resolution to stress? It’s the “peace of God.” Furthermore, notice God’s peace doesn’t just resolve our stress, it also protects us from further stress - it guards our hearts and minds.
This holiday season (or at any time), God doesn’t want you stressed. He wants you to live with His supernatural peace. That’s the sense Jesus gives when He says...
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
The devil wants you stressed because stress destroys you - LITERALLY. Did you know “stress is linked to the six leading causes of death in the modern world?” The devil wants to steal, kill, and destroy, and stress is a favorite weapon.
However, Jesus wants you experience an abundant life filled with peace. And He’s given us instructions on how to do it in His Word. For example, look at this...
Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”
Exposition:
Exposition:
How many of you have heard this story before?
How many of you are Team Martha?
How about Team Mary? [hmm… lazy]
Regardless of which sister you identify with, one thing we see is both sisters loved Jesus. Martha wholeheartedly welcomed Jesus into her home and was giving everything to create the best experience for Him. Mary lovingly sat at His feet giving Him her full attention.
And here’s something I discovered in my study time this week. There’s an untranslated Greek word in the sentence describing Mary’s sitting at the Lord’s fee (v. 39). Inbetween the word “who” and “sat.” It’s actually the Greek word “and.” We leave it out of our English translations because it doesn’t flow well. It would read like, “Mary, who AND sat at the Lord’s feet.” That’s weird.
But here’s why I share it. One scholar suggest the untranslated “and” meant that Martha also loved to sit there too. RIght next to Mary. I like that. Because I don’t think this passage is about...
Martha being the less spiritual sister.
It’s not about Mary being more spiritual.
It’s not diminishing the value of hard work.
Both sisters loved Jesus and likely practiced sitting at His feet.
…but there was something different this time. And we see it in verse 40, “But Martha was DISTRACTED with much serving.”
The word distracted isn’t so much losing focus, but rather an inability to focus (or focus on the right things) because you’re getting pulled into too many directions. And it causes you to spin out of control - you ever felt that way?
Maybe the house wasn’t as clean enough.
Maybe there were more guests than she expected.
Maybe she needed help cooking.
Whatever the circumstances were, they were pulling Martha in too many different directions. And it became overwhelming. Her genuine “hospitality” concerns became fearful concerns as she thought, “This is more than I can handle!!!”
Jesus noticed it. It’s why He says...
But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things,
In other words, “Martha, you are stressed out.” And He adds...
but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”
You know, I think we’ve often read our own opinions into this story. We assume Martha is the workaholic and Mary is either the super spiritual one or maybe even the lazy one. Nothing in Scripture gives us that.
I think it’s more accurate to assume Mary usually helped serve. She was hospitable like Martha. And, as I mentioned before, I think Martha liked to sit at Jesus’ feet too. Maybe she was trying to hurry up and get everything done so she could take her place beside Mary. However, what I think is revealed here is how the two sister responded to stressors differently. And what they model INSTRUCTS US on properly responding to stressors.
Consider another thing Jesus said...
I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
We live in a fallen, sinful, broken world. While not all stressors are bad, many are - and Christians are not exempt from experiencing them. In this world, you will have many stressors! But what does Jesus say? He says you don’t have to let them lead you to fear-based stress. You can have My peace instead!
In this story, Martha and Mary are both faced with the same stressors as they host Jesus and other guests. The difference is in how they responded:
Martha gets stressed out and thinks, “What am I going to do?!?”
Mary peacefully sit and thinks, “What is Jesus going to do?”
And that leads me to what I’d like to talk about for the remainder of our time. Something I see Mary doing. Something Martha isn’t doing. And something I know most of us aren’t doing, which is a big reason why we’re all stressed too.
What is Mary doing in this story? She’s sitting down. She’s RESTING.
Why are so many of us stressed out? Because we’re not RESTING! Too often, we’re like Martha… DISTRACTED… living a life where we’re pulled in too many directions and it stresses us out. Additionally (and this is important), the main instructive truth of this passage is Mary’s willingness to listen to Jesus’ teachings.
She is commended for valuing that above all things. We should value that too. And do you know one thing Jesus teaches? He teaches us to REST!
Speaking of the Sabbath, a day of REST that God commands His people to take, Jesus said...
Then Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath.
Jesus teaches us that we were made to rest. When we don’t, we function outside of God’s design for our lives. And honestly, when we put it that way, not resting is sinful. Any time we rebel against God and His purposes, it’s sin! And sin always lead to death and destruction.
And today, if you’re not practice rest, don’t let that stress you out. There’s hope for us sinners. Knowing we are sinful people, unwilling to naturally rest, Jesus also says...
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
All of you who are tired and stressed out (because you haven’t been resting), come to me and I will give you rest. Jesus invites us into rest because rest is in important part of the abundant life He wants for us.
Even beyond that, look at what the writer of Hebrews says...
God’s promise of entering his rest still stands, so we ought to tremble with fear that some of you might fail to experience it. For this good news—that God has prepared this rest—has been announced to us just as it was to them. But it did them no good because they didn’t share the faith of those who listened to God. For only we who believe can enter his rest. As for the others, God said,
“In my anger I took an oath:
‘They will never enter my place of rest,’ ”
even though this rest has been ready since he made the world. We know it is ready because of the place in the Scriptures where it mentions the seventh day: “On the seventh day God rested from all his work.” But in the other passage God said, “They will never enter my place of rest.”
So God’s rest is there for people to enter, but those who first heard this good news failed to enter because they disobeyed God. So God set another time for entering his rest, and that time is today. God announced this through David much later in the words already quoted:
“Today when you hear his voice,
don’t harden your hearts.”
Now if Joshua had succeeded in giving them this rest, God would not have spoken about another day of rest still to come. So there is a special rest still waiting for the people of God. For all who have entered into God’s rest have rested from their labors, just as God did after creating the world. So let us do our best to enter that rest. But if we disobey God, as the people of Israel did, we will fall.
There’s a lot in this passage, but two things I want to point out:
God values rest and it’s always been part of His plan for His people.
Our salvation in Jesus is described as a special rest; in other words, eternal life (the abundant life) is a life of rest.
And again, I mention these things because one reason many of us are stressed out is because we disobey God’s command to rest. We ignore God’s good purposes for rest. Instead, we let the stressors of our lives spin us around and distract us, which produces fearful, overwhelming stress.
But that’s not the life God planned for us. It’s not the life Jesus invites us into. Jesus came to give us an abundant life. A life filled with peace. But to fully experience that , we need REST.
Response:
Response:
And so as we close, let me suggest a few ways to practice biblical rest instead of worldly stress.
First off, when life gets overwhelming, SIT AT THE FEET OF JESUS. Instead of letting the stressor cause you to fearfully say, “What am I going to do?” Be like Mary! Look at Jesus and say, “What is He going to do?”
Peter talks about a way to practice this. He says...
Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
Give all your stressors to God and let Him take care of it. Now, you might be saying, “That’s easier said than done.” True. But do you know why we feel that way? Because of the sin in our lives.
Look at what Peter writes before verse 7...
Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you,
One of the reasons we don’t want to rest and give all our cares to God is because we’re prideful. We think we can and should handle it all by ourselves. In many ways (although we’d never say it), we think we don’t need God. PRIDE. And then when we crash and burn under the stress, we complain, “God, why didn’t you help me!!!”
He’s like, “Because you said you didn’t need Me!”
Don’t do that. Humble yourself. Believe Jesus when He says...
I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.
You can’t handle this world without Him. You weren’t designed to. Therefore, when you’re overwhelmed with stress...
Sit at the feet of Jesus.
Give Him all of your worries.
And then rest.
The next thing is a really practical suggestion. CREATE MARGIN IN YOUR LIFE. You know what a margin is, right? It’s the blank space on a piece of paper. We should have blank spaces in our schedule too.
One reason we’re both stressed and not resting is because our schedule is too full! And one of the reasons our schedule is too full is because we keep choosing to fill it up! We keep writing in the margins!
And I know some of you are thinking, “You don’t understand pastor (especially since you only work on Sundays), I have too much to do to rest. I need to use the margin!” If that’s you, consider what Vance Pitman writes...
If you have more on your schedule than you can realistically accomplish… then there are things on your schedule God didn’t put there. More to the point, there are things on your schedule God doesn’t want there.
Think about it: God’s not going to command us to rest and then call us to do so many things that we have no time to rest. Our schedules are full because we’re doing things God didn’t ask (or want) us to do.
Or… another reason may be we just sinfully refuse to rest.
I’ve shared this before, but I’ll share it again because it’s been key in making sure I take God’s command to rest seriously. I believe the Scriptures reveal that God has chosen to partner with us in accomplishing His purposes for the world. And that’s an amazing privilege when we stop to think about. The God of the Universe chose us to help Him accomplish His glorious plan.
That’s crazy because God doesn’t really need our help. That’s proven when He tells us, “Take a day off! Rest!” But what’s crazier is our resistance to rest. Because in our mind, we think if we rest, things will fall apart. But truthfully, it’s only when we take a day off that things happen EXACTLY as God planned them to happen, because we’ve taken our sinful hands off the project. When only God’s working. The One who’s perfect and never messes up.
When we don’t rest, when we don’t build leave margins in our lives, two things happen:
We proclaim by our actions that we don’t truly believe God is in control or all-powerful. Eek - don’t do that!
We get stressed out because we’re taking on more than we can handle and operating outside of God’s design for our lives. That’s sin.
Therefore, we need to REST.
Like Martha, too much work produces destructive stress. However, like Mary, rest helps us experience God’s peace.
Are you stressed today? That’s NOT God’s will for your life. God has called you to peace. And the path to peace includes biblical rest.
How can you begin to practice rest this week?
Maybe this week, when you encounter stressors, instead of freaking out... sit down, look at Jesus, and say, “Lord, what are you going to do?”
Maybe this week, take a full day off. Or, start with a half day?
Maybe your next step is finally entering the eternal rest Jesus won for you on the Cross. Sin is destroying your life, but God offers you a new life - full of peace, full of rest. However, you’ve hardened your heart in unbelief towards God. And that’s kept you from His rest and led to more stress. But TODAY… you can have peace. All you need to do is turn from your sin and put your faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior.
Let me close with this final thought. Church - this is IMPORTANT. Don’t ignore or dismiss it. Rest is important. It’s so important it’s one of our core values here at The River Church...
We delight in spending time with God and resting in His peace.
If TRC is your home church, embrace REST because it’s part of who God has called us to be as a church family.
Additionally, what does it say if all people experience in the world is stress, and then we invite them into church and they experience more stress? But... how refreshing would it be if they walked into this place and experienced the rest they longed for? That they were created for?
Let’s be a people of rest. Because Jesus commanded it. Because we were created for it. And because our community needs it.
Let’s pray...
Father, give us rest. Forgive us for all the times we’ve resisted it. All the times, in our sin, we’ve chosen stress over your special rest. Today, we want to rest because, Jesus, that’s what You say we need. Give us the faith to practice that. Give us your peace. And help us be a people who create environments of rest, so our communities can be invited into the rest they were designed for . In Jesus name, amen.
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