Take Time To Rest

The children of Israel know how to call upon the Lord but they do not know how to worship the Lord God who delivered them and brought them out of the bondage of slavery in Egypt

The background to today’s text is Moses the called servant of God has been up on the mountain top with the Lord God for almost 40 days and 40 nights. Moses has been up on the mountain fellowshipping with God and being instructed by God on how the people are to worship the LORD God. God has shown Moses images of grandeur, a foretaste of glory divine of what heaven on earth would look. The people are going to be instructed on how to build a temple or a tabernacle, a place in which the Lord God can be worshipped. These images invoke our imagination to what our experience in the church sanctuary ought to be. Sanctuary- a place of refuge and protection, and rest. We get our word for sanctified from the same root word which means holy of holies.

Then God has also instructed Moses on the character of those who are supposed to do the work of ministry and service on behalf of the people of God. Servants who come from the people who do the work on behalf of the people. Those servant leaders or workers are what we call priests or ministers. They offer sacrifices to the Lord on behalf of God’s people.

But then God also instructs Moses on the character of those who actually help to do the building of the tabernacle- must be filled with the Holy Spirit of God. In other words, you cannot do gods work without being filled full of his Holy Spirit.

So if we sincerely endeavor to do the work that God calls us to serve God‘s people or act on behalf of the people of God, we must be called, set aside, and chosen by the LORD.

But then we arrive at today’s text the LORD God provides one last final instruction regarding work. The LORD God, sort of makes the shift and says yeah after doing all the work you must Take Time To Rest!

Sabbath has now been mentioned 3 times:

Exodus 20:8–11 ESV

8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 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. 11 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:

Exodus 23:10–13 ESV

10 “For six years you shall sow your land and gather in its yield, 11 but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave the beasts of the field may eat. You shall do likewise with your vineyard, and with your olive orchard. 12 “Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest; that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your servant woman, and the alien, may be refreshed. 13 “Pay attention to all that I have said to you, and make no mention of the names of other gods, nor let it be heard on your lips.

=13

Above all you shall keep...

Exodus 31:12–18 ESV

12 And the Lord said to Moses, 13 “You are to speak to the people of Israel and say, ‘Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the Lord, sanctify you. 14 You shall keep the Sabbath, because it is holy for you. Everyone who profanes it shall be put to death. Whoever does any work on it, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. 15 Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day shall be put to death. 16 Therefore the people of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, observing the Sabbath throughout their generations, as a covenant forever. 17 It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israel that in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.’ ” 18 And he gave to Moses, when he had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written with the finger of God.

Exodus 31:4

The primacy of Sabbath rest i.e. you need rest!

Body- Why Take Time To Rest (to Keep The Sabbath)?

Rest Represents Relationship (v13)

with the LORD God, and others, hence

sanctify = consecrate; dedicate to service and loyalty to God

Psalm 139:13–14 ESV

13 For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.

You have been fearfully & wonderfully made

Jeremiah 1:5 ESV

5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

Before I formed you in your mother’s womb

(Transition: Our relationship with the LORD is…)

Rest Signifies Holiness- v14

holy = sanctuary i.e. a building dedicated in service to God, a place in which the LORD is normally present when ritual and moral purity are practiced.

sanctuary = a moveable tabernacle building, or a permanent temple building

(Transition: Because the LORD is Holy & his people are holy, so our)

Rest Methods Matter- v14

Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains: Hebrew (Old Testament) 2725 I. חָלַל

defile, profane, treat with contempt, i.e., ceremonially or ritually be common and impure in the eyes of deity and/or society, seen as a violation of covenant

dead = be dead i.e. be killed and so in a state of physical absence of life

dying

soul cut off from among his people

soul = living being, life, self, person, desire, appetite, emotion, passion

doing any work = actual work as well as striving hence not being at peace

(We need to speed time with our LORD God who makes us holy)

What does keep mean? watch, preserve

(Transition: because true/pure holiness)

Rest Reflects Godlikeness- v15-17

Genesis 1:26–27 ESV

26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

“Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.”

Romans 12:1–2 ESV

1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

ESV

https://www.bible.com/59/gen.1.26-27.esv

2 Corinthians 5:16–21 ESV

16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

ESV

Philippians 2:3–11 ESV

3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

https://www.bible.com/59/rom.12.1-2.esv

“From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

(Transition: But the text has one more point to make)

ESV

https://www.bible.com/59/2co.5.16-21.esv

“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

ESV

https://www.bible.com/59/php.2.3-11.esv

But the text has one more point to make:

Rest is a God Given Perpetual Memorial- v18

Christians are in perpetual rest from works

Our children/offspring ought to be in perpetual rest from works

Transition To Close

Illustration: Jailhouse Rest- wife doing all the work while the husband is out of work

Jeremiah 29:11–14 ESV

11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

1 Corinthians 2:7

1 Corinthians 2:7–10 ESV

7 But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. 8 None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”— 10 these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.

Close

Psalm

Psalm 46:10–11 ESV

10 “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” 11 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

John 1:14 ESV

14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Psalm 46:1–11 ESV

1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, 3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah 4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. 5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. 6 The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. 7 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah 8 Come, behold the works of the Lord, how he has brought desolations on the earth. 9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire. 10 “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” 11 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

John 1:17 ESV

17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 2:1 ESV

1 Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.

Hebrews 3:7–11 ESV

7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness, 9 where your fathers put me to the test and saw my works for forty years. 10 Therefore I was provoked with that generation, and said, ‘They always go astray in their heart; they have not known my ways.’ 11 As I swore in my wrath, ‘They shall not enter my rest.’ ”

Hebrews 4:11–16 ESV

11 Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. 12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 13 And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. 14 Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Hebrews

Hebrews 4:11–14 ESV

Hebrews 4:15–16 ESV

15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

-17

Tempted in the wilderness!

Tempted on the Sabbath!

Tempted by Satan through Peter!

Tempted in the Garden of Gethsemane!

Tempted on that old rugged cross!

Why is that cross old and rugged?!

Because the blood still works!

Andre Crouch sang about it this way:

The blood that Jesus shed for me

Way back on Calvary

The blood that gives me strength

From day to day

It will never lose its power

It reaches to the highest mountain

It flows to the lowest valley

The blood that gives me strength

From day to day

It will never lose its power

It soothes my doubts and calms my fears

And it dries all my tears

The blood that gives me strength

From day to day

It will never lose its power

It reaches to the highest mountain

It flows to the lowest valley

The blood that gives me strength

From day to day

It will never lose its power

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Andrae E Crouch

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