Are We Resting?
God rested.
- God rested on a set day & at a set time.
- God did.
- God created the universe & then God rested.
- It’s true; the Bible says it is so!
Let’s see this truth together.
“Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts.
By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work, which He had done.
Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.”
(Genesis 2: 1-3)
Since the time of Jesus’ resurrection, we now honor Sunday as the first day of the week; yet before the resurrection (at the time of the creation of the world) the Sabbath was honored on our current Saturday. However, the weekday names are not nearly as important as the truth God reveals—He completed His work & then He rested.
Two things were revealed to me this day:
- God worked until completion.
- God rested once His work was completed.
The Word of God does not lie, nor contain mis-truths, or anything that is not given for our good. It is a FACT! So, we would do well to learn and to heed the truth the Bible reveals to us, and as we learn, then we can apply this truth (God’s truth) to our lives.
Now, some may say, “Why?” as in “Why do I need to obey the Word of God where His Word reveals to us that we need to rest?” & “Why do I need to apply the Bible to all the days we are given to live in this life?” These are such easy questions to answer; nonetheless, these are two terribly difficult revelations to apply to our individual lives.
(or maybe it’s just me)
As I studied, I was reminded of a disobedience we can live in, one that clouds our eyes and places a veil of fog over our minds. Oftentimes, we get into our minds that we need to keep this pattern—
WORK—WORK—WORK—WORK—WORK—(going strong until the management gives us time away from our work—a “holiday”) & then we jump right back into the pattern—WORK—WORK—WORK—WORK—WORK—WORK—(going strong until the physical house our soul has been given to reside within fails us—a “sickness or illness or disease”) & then we jump right back into the pattern—WORK—WORK—WORK—WORK—WORK—(going strong, making a life, looking toward the day we can “retire” from our work) BUT then we look at our retirement account or our finances & we jump right back into the pattern—WORK—WORK—WORK—WORK—WORK—WORK— & then comes the end of our lives!
We call THIS pattern a pattern for life?!!!
I wonder. When did we truly REST?
When we are prone upon our deathbeds, will we look back within our minds and remember all the days of our work?
Will we be excited about the work we have accomplish—once we are moments away from our death?
Now, do not think the opposite is the correct truth because our Father gave us an internal work ethic, one given to the first man, Adam, when he was created and resided within the Garden of Eden. We are not to “play” away our lives; we are to “work” so that we can eat. The Bible says so. Nevertheless, I can get upside down in my working—resting rhythm. I don’t know about you, but I know me, and for fifty-five years, I have not changed. RUN—RUN—RUN—RUN—going from work task to work task, accomplishing all that needs to be done, keeping myself focused upon the task at hand until the task is “fully finished.”
“Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts.
By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, . . .”
(Genesis 2: 1-2a)
God never makes us “figure out on our own” how we should exist—live topsoil.
NOPE. HIS WORD MAKES IT CLEAR!
- God created the heavens and the earth and all their hosts, until they were completed.
- God created these in six days.
- Then God rested.
- Now, truly God Is God; we are not, meaning—God is not telling us (necessarily) to count days BUT GOD is telling us to work & then to rest. Period.
Let’s see this truth again (later) at the end of that same Scripture.
“and He rested on the seventh day from all His work, which He had done. . . .”
(Genesis 2: 2b)
How are we doing—with this “resting” thing?
Are we resting in all facets: physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually?
Do we totally separate ourselves from our work—as the Bible says we should?
I struggle with this so much—the separating.
Soon, my husband and I will plant our vegetable garden. Since late August, the ground has laid dormant. The vegetables were gathered and the garden was tilled and the cover-crop was planted. Then the ground lay—STILL.
STILL.
I struggle with “still.” Maybe you do not, but I do.
- My mind races.
- My hands stay busy.
- My feet walk.
- My body moves.
- My everything is in constant motion.
- Even in sleep, our brains continue to learn, to remember, to dream.
- Hardly ever are we STILL.
Resting is an “art” and a “gift” from God.
We can come to honor the DAY of REST—the Sabbath Day—as God designed. &
We can come to honor—the Sabbath—within our every day—as we share intimacy with our LORD each day.
As we do, we see the rest of the Scripture truth.
“Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.”
(Genesis 2: 3)
As we honor God & His wonderful gift of “resting” & “stillness” and “completion,” then the Bible tells us that God blesses and sanctifies. That means, as we honor God, He will bring honor to our lives, and as we honor God, He will reward us with spiritual growth (sanctification).
This day, as I studied God’s Word, He was faithful to teach me. Now, I must apply God’s instructions to my day. Thankfully, I am not left alone as I do because Jesus promised His Holy Spirit will go with me through this day.
Are we resting (in all facets)—Physically—Mentally—Emotionally—Spiritually as we TRUST our CREATOR?
May we begin this day.