Do stuff with and for your neighbors
Soul Rest
Are you more rested or restless? How might those close to you describe you in this area? Our multi-taking culture may be developing people like the crowds Jesus encountered. He said they were "harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." (Matthew 9:35) When He saw their worn state, He was filled with compassion. He said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest ... you will find rest for your souls." (Matthew 11:28-29)
How could Jesus offer this kind of rest? He could invite people into deep, restorative rest because He was the Lord of the Sabbath. (Luke 6:5) One of the 10 Commandments is to remember and keep the Sabbath. God has framed life to include rest. The Sabbath is a weekly time of consecrated or focused rest in God. It is observed by stopping your normal work and expressing your faith in God - through rest. This rest from work and production is a declaration that you are relying on God for your future.
You don't have to earn Sabbath rest; it is not a reward for completing your work or for being good. It is simply a weekly gift from God for renewal, recalibration and restoration. Israel was called to Sabbath rest no matter what their circumstances, planting, harvest, drought, war or peace. This unearned, consistent rest sounds too good to be true.
Jesus invited the crowd following Him into an even deeper Sabbath rest. He described Himself as the doorway to intimacy with the Father. In Christ we can stop striving and relying solely on our own efforts. In Him we express our faith no matter what our circumstances. In Him we can rest. It sounds too good to be true. Yet, in Jesus we receive all the graces of the Kingdom of God.
Unfortunately, many people I know do not seem to be availing themselves of this deep rest, and their souls are observably weary. Some rationalize their weariness using theology. They think that since Jesus fulfilled the law, and since He is Lord of the Sabbath, they somehow don't need the rhythm of Sabbath rest in their lives. It's as if God suspended His created order for consistent rest - for Christians. This doesn't make sense. Jesus came to illumine and deepen our rest - and make it more satisfying, not to eliminate the need or desire for it.
If you need rest for you soul, consider how you might be able to take short breaks in your day to stop what you are doing and be with God - even for a few minutes. Also consider how you might plan for weekly meaningful and restful Sabbaths. These changes may take weeks or months to apply, but entering into God's gift of rest is well worth it.
Learning to rest with you,
Pastor Tom
tgriffith@rolcboston.org
www.rolcboston.org
How could Jesus offer this kind of rest? He could invite people into deep, restorative rest because He was the Lord of the Sabbath. (Luke 6:5) One of the 10 Commandments is to remember and keep the Sabbath. God has framed life to include rest. The Sabbath is a weekly time of consecrated or focused rest in God. It is observed by stopping your normal work and expressing your faith in God - through rest. This rest from work and production is a declaration that you are relying on God for your future.
You don't have to earn Sabbath rest; it is not a reward for completing your work or for being good. It is simply a weekly gift from God for renewal, recalibration and restoration. Israel was called to Sabbath rest no matter what their circumstances, planting, harvest, drought, war or peace. This unearned, consistent rest sounds too good to be true.
Jesus invited the crowd following Him into an even deeper Sabbath rest. He described Himself as the doorway to intimacy with the Father. In Christ we can stop striving and relying solely on our own efforts. In Him we express our faith no matter what our circumstances. In Him we can rest. It sounds too good to be true. Yet, in Jesus we receive all the graces of the Kingdom of God.
Unfortunately, many people I know do not seem to be availing themselves of this deep rest, and their souls are observably weary. Some rationalize their weariness using theology. They think that since Jesus fulfilled the law, and since He is Lord of the Sabbath, they somehow don't need the rhythm of Sabbath rest in their lives. It's as if God suspended His created order for consistent rest - for Christians. This doesn't make sense. Jesus came to illumine and deepen our rest - and make it more satisfying, not to eliminate the need or desire for it.
If you need rest for you soul, consider how you might be able to take short breaks in your day to stop what you are doing and be with God - even for a few minutes. Also consider how you might plan for weekly meaningful and restful Sabbaths. These changes may take weeks or months to apply, but entering into God's gift of rest is well worth it.
Learning to rest with you,
Pastor Tom
tgriffith@rolcboston.org
www.rolcboston.org
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