Say Yes to Rest

This morning, we are wrapping up our series “Say Yes”. I hope that you have found this series to be life giving, it that every week you have had the opportunity to respond to the invitation to say “Yes” to embarking upon the kind of life that allows you to live with margin

Slide Margin - freedom to say “yes” to what matters the most.

 The freedom to say yes to God, to living in financial freedom, to making a difference, to community and this morning probably the most misunderstood, challenging and longed for yes …. The freedom to Say yes to rest.

 So, let me ask you this morning to raise your hand, honestly, no judgement, but raise your hand if you could have used a little more rest this morning.

 Slide What comes to your mind when you think about rest?k

·       Having nothing to do?

·       Sitting in your favorite chair, feet up binging Netflix?

·       Going to sleep knowing the kids at the grandparents and they are not going to wake you up in the middle of the night or at the break of dawn.

·       A vacation – totally unplugged and disconnected?

·       Or just a day off to sleep late, no responsibilities, agenda or obligations.

 Ah, rest. But alas, rest is but a fleeting moment and we are back to the grind, the treadmill, the rat race … maybe this morning you are …

·       Sick and tired of being sick and tired?

·       Frustrated with all the “to does” and “have tos”?

·       You are longing for a little rest from the demands and obligations.

·       Life just seems to be hard to the point that it is taking the life right of you?

 What do you do? Where do you turn? What is the answer?

 Rest is a necessary part of life but many of us live in a constant state of exhaustion. Running till we are exhausted, feeling like we don’t have time to rest, to sleep, to turn things off in our minds. We go to sleep anxious, worried, thinking about our problems, exhausted, and we wake up anxious, worried, thinking, exhausted at the thought of another day filled with a never-ending list of to dos, want tos, have tos …

 Slide There is a rest that is merely recovering from our labor. We call it sleep.

 Robert McDonald, set the Guinness world record in 1986 for staying awake. He did not sleep for an astounding 453 hours and 40 minutes, almost 19 full days. As you can imagine he suffered from delusions, paranoia and psychological trauma.

 Sleep is a fascinating biological process that's crucial for our health and survival.

 But the truth is that if all you did was work and sleep, you would not experience or live life the way God intended … even if you added all the other ways you experience rest through recreation, vacation, staycation, play, hobbies or a myriad of others distractions … because …

Slide There is a rest that is greater, eternal and one that is relational, restorative, and redemptive.

 When we think of rest, we think of sleep or getting away from the grind of all that is wearing us out. But when God is talking about rest, He is focused on you.

 In the book of Genesis in the story of creation we read …

 Slide Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.                                      Genesis 2:1–3

 God didn't rest because He was tired. He stopped what He was doing. Adam and Eve were created on the sixth day and the first thing they experienced was rest. The stopping of activity, the ceasing of work and joining God in the enjoyment of what was created. It was an act of trust, it was an act of love, of receiving from God. It was relational, restorative, redemptive. Rest preceded work. And it was from a place of trust, obedience, and love that they embraced their work.

God also rested to establish a pattern that would be part of the life of the Jewish people - a rhythm of life that would become essential for all human flourishing.

In Exodus 20 Moses receives the ten commandments, the fourth commandment reads …

Slide Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.                                                                      Exodus 20:8–11

 The very idea of Sabbath may conjure up all kinds of images of legalistic rules, do’s and don’ts. But what if the Sabbath isn't primarily about what we do or don't do? What if it's actually about entering into something that already exists - God's own rest?

 Slide What is Sabbath rest?

 In the book of Hebrews we read …

 Slide 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

 Sabbath rest is not about rules but about a relationship with God in Christ our Lord and Savior. The sabbath of the OT was a shadow of the rest that we will have in our relationship with Christ now and for all eternity. I don’t want you to miss this … The OT law with its sacrificial system was all pointing to a greater sacrifice, a perfect, truer, and complete sacrifice in whom we have rest for eternity because we are no long striving to enter God’s rest.

Slide What Characterizes God's Rest?

Completion - "It is finished" - John 19:30 – Jesus is on the cross and says in his last words as he dies … it is finished. The sacrifice, the payment for your sins and mine has been made. We now can enter into God’s enteral rest where we are no longer striving to enter. It is also characterized by satisfaction.

Satisfaction - "God saw everything... and behold, it was very good" In the creation story and in the story of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection there is knowledge that God is satisfied. This is my son in whom I am well please. God looks at you and me and we enter into his satisfaction through a relationship with Jesus … God looks us and smiles. We are His beloved children. And That leads the third Characteristic of God’s rest and that is Delight.

Delight – The prophet Zephaniah wrote, The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. Zephaniah 3:17

 God’s rest is filled with joy, love, singing, laughter, play, gratitude all summed up in this beautiful word, delight! As the Psalm 35:27 says … Let those who delight in my righteousness shout for joy and be glad and say evermore, “Great is the Lord, who delights in the welfare of his servant!” Psalm 35:27

 Completion, Satisfaction, Delight are all found in God’s rest that is only found in a relationship with Jesus Christ …

 Jesus says …

 Slide Come to me, all 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.                                                                                                    Matthew 11:28–30

Jesus doesn't present rest as a luxury or an afterthought - He offers it as a gift. Notice He doesn't say "earn your rest" or "deserve your rest," but simply "come." Jesus doesn't say "Create your own rest" or "Figure out how to rest." He says "Come to me... and I will give you rest." The rest we're invited to is already prepared.

 For those that enter into God’s rest in Jesus our Lord, we have come to practice the principle of resting in Christ’s rest and being reminded of our need to stop and rest on Sunday. Joseph Pipa in his book The Lord’s Day writes …

Slide The Christian Sabbath is a creation ordinance renewed and transformed in Christ. Joseph Pipa, The Lord's Day

 God has made the shadow of the Old Testament Sabbath a complete rest filled with satisfaction and delight in the Lord.

 Slide Sabbath rest isn't something we create; it's something we enter into, something we discover.

 True rest is more than physical relaxation - it's spiritual restoration. When we rest, we:

Demonstrate trust in God's provision

Create space for divine encounters

Allow our souls to be renewed

 Slide What are the obstacles to saying yes to rest for you?

 Obstacles that stand in way of saying yes to rest are numerous! Here are just a few.

 Slide Speed of Life

·       Speed of Life

·       Practical Challenge

·       Modern busyness has robbed us of true biblical rest

Slide Self sufficiency

·       Loss of Rituals and Traditions

·       Cultural and Economic Pressures

·       If I don’t keep going I will fail

Slide Sabbath Confusion or misunderstanding

·       It is not fun

·       Legalism – stop that

·       I don’t have time

 Slide Spending time relying on other things

·       Digital Disruptions

·       Distractions

·       Personal freedom without limits

 Slide It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.        Psalm 127:2

·       Sabbath is an act of resistance against the endless demands of our 24/7 world.

·       Rest is a form of spiritual warfare.

·       Sabbath keeping is essential for Christian formation in the digital age.

 True Sabbath rest is both countercultural and transformative - it's not just about taking time off, but about reorienting our entire relationship with time, work, and meaning. The obstacles are real, but the benefits of overcoming them can be profound.

Slide How Do We Enter God's Rest?

 Slide Through Trust

"For we who have believed enter that rest" (Hebrews 4:3)

Releasing control and trusting His completion

Resting in His finished work

Slide Through Acceptance

Receiving grace rather than striving

Embracing our identity as beloved children

Letting go of performance-based worth

Slide Through Presence

Cultivating awareness of God's presence

Practicing contemplative prayer

Enjoying unforced rhythms of grace

Slide Start a Sabbath Rhythm

Slide Sabbath Rest is as much an Attitude as an Action!

Mark Buchanan in "The Rest of God" writes: "

 Slide Sabbath is both a day and an attitude. It is both time on a calendar and a disposition of the heart. It is a day we enter, but it is also a way we see. Mark Buchanan

 Eugene Peterson observes:

 Slide Sabbath is not about scheduling. It is about creating a different way of living, a more restful way of living.           Eugene Peterson

Slide Sabbath's Golden Rule 

Slide Cease from what is necessary. Embrace that which gives life. Mark Buchanan

 In Psalm 46:10 …

 Slide Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!                            Psalm 46:10

 The Hebrew "Be still" (raphah) means to "let go" or “release." It's not just about physical stillness but about releasing our grip on control. The word "know" (yada) implies intimate experiential knowledge, not just intellectual understanding. God's rest comes through surrendered knowing.

 Slide Sabbath is meant to be a delight, not a burden.

 When we say yes to rest, we're not being lazy or unproductive - we're aligning ourselves with God's rhythm for life. We're acknowledging our limits as created beings and trusting in His unlimited resources.

 Farmers know that fields need seasons of rest to remain fertile. A field that's never allowed to lie fallow eventually becomes depleted and unproductive. Your life is like that field - regular rest isn't just a pause in productivity, it's essential for future fruitfulness.

 Slide Sabbath Attitudes

 Slide Presence, Not Performance

Rest is found in God's presence. He is with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you.

 Slide Relationship, Not Rules

Rest Flows from Relationship "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest" (Exodus 33:14)

 Slide Whose I am, Not what I do.

Communion precedes rest. I make Sabbath about enjoying God's presence.

 Slide Receiving rather than achieving

The invitation to Sabbath rest is an invitation to step into God's own rest - a rest that:

Already exists

Is completely prepared

Flows from finished work

Centers on relationship

Transforms our identity

When we understand that Sabbath is about entering God's rest rather thancreating our own, everything changes. We stop striving and start receiving. We cease working and begin enjoying. We move from doing to being. 

Slide Stop striving and start trusting God!

Be still, know that He is God. he loves you and is for you.

 Slide Move from what is good to what is Holy!

 Slide Enter Sabbath Rest and receive restoration!

 As the song Oceans is sung over you this morning, I invite you to enter God’s rest by saying yes to rest!

 Every week during this series we have invited you to make your yes public by coming forward and taking a polaroid. This morning when you come forward will write on your photo, yes to rest!

 Also our prayer team is along the walls to pray for you. If you feel uncertain about your faith, your salvation, you know you are not at peace with God. I want to invite you this morning to enter into God’s rest by confessing your sin and receiving your salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. Just come to one of our prayer team and tell them and they will pray with you.

 Let’s stand, sing and say Yes to Rest. Come now!