♪ Shelter, shepherd, savior, king ♪ ♪ I give everything to you ♪ ♪ Precious Jesus, Lord and friend ♪ ♪ I give everything to you ♪ ♪ Shelter, shepherd, savior, king ♪ ♪ I give everything to you ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ Father of kindness, you have poured out grace ♪ ♪ You brought me out of darkness ♪ ♪ You have filled me with peace ♪ ♪ Giver of mercy, you're my help in time of need ♪ ♪ Lord, I can't help but sing ♪ ♪ Faithful you are ♪ ♪ Faithful forever you will be ♪ ♪ Faithful you are ♪ ♪ And all your promises are yes and amen ♪ ♪ All your promises are yes and amen ♪ (upbeat music) (upbeat music) ♪ Beautiful savior, you have brought me near ♪ ♪ You pulled me from the ashes ♪ ♪ You have broken every curse ♪ ♪ Blessed redeemer, you have set this captive free ♪ ♪ You have set this captive free ♪ ♪ Lord, I can't help but sing ♪ ♪ Faithful you are ♪ ♪ Faithful forever you will be ♪ ♪ Faithful you are ♪ ♪ And all your promises are yes and amen ♪ ♪ And all your promises are yes and amen ♪ ♪ Faithful you are ♪ ♪ And all your promises are yes and amen ♪ ♪ Faithful forever you will be ♪ ♪ Faithful you are ♪ ♪ Yes you are ♪ ♪ All your promises are yes and amen ♪ ♪ I will rest in your ♪ (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) (soft music) - You took away the timer.
Are we just starting? All right, we're starting. Well, good morning, church family. We are a little bit more cozy and intimate today 'cause we do have 800 of us out in the desert. And we're having a good time out there, not to rub that in, but we are just resting and observing the Lord's day this morning.
And I wanna just read a passage of scripture, five verses for us to meditate on, and then we will begin our service. From Psalm 57, verse seven to 11. My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast. I will sing, yes, I will sing praises. Awake my glory, awake harp and lyre.
I will awaken the dawn. I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples. I will sing praises to you among the nations, for your loving kindness is great to the heavens and your truth to the clouds. Be exalted above the heavens, O God. Let your glory be above all the earth, amen.
This passage is in the context of a lot of wrestling that David is doing. And situationally, this is not a good time for him, but he commands his heart to give praise. And so whether you have ample reasons to just say thank you, or it's a little bit more of a wrestling, like, Lord, I know theologically you are so good, but right now I don't feel it.
This is when we command our hearts. I will give thanks to the Lord. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and let your glory be above all the earth. And so we're gonna sing about the Lord and his greatness this morning. But let me lead us just in a song that you guys know how great is our God.
(gentle music) The splendor of the king. ♪ The splendor of the king ♪ ♪ Glowing majesty ♪ ♪ Let all the earth rejoice ♪ ♪ All the earth rejoice ♪ ♪ He wraps himself in light ♪ ♪ And on his trice to die ♪ ♪ Trembles at his voice ♪ ♪ Trembles at his voice ♪ How great is our God.
♪ How great is our God ♪ ♪ Sing with me ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ ♪ And all will see how great ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ Age to age he stands. ♪ And age to age he stands ♪ ♪ And time is in his hands ♪ ♪ Beginning and the end ♪ ♪ Beginning and the end ♪ ♪ The Godhead three in one ♪ ♪ Father, Spirit, Son ♪ ♪ Lion and the Lamb ♪ ♪ Lion and the Lamb ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ ♪ Sing with me ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ ♪ And all will see how great ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ How great is our God?
♪ How great is our God ♪ ♪ Sing with me ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ ♪ And all will see how great ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ Name above all names. ♪ You're the name above all names ♪ ♪ Worthy of all praise ♪ ♪ And my heart will sing how great is our God ♪ Name above all names.
♪ Name above all names ♪ ♪ Worthy of all praise ♪ ♪ And my heart will sing how great is our God ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ ♪ Sing with me ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ ♪ And all will see how great ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ How great is our God?
♪ How great is our God ♪ ♪ Sing with me ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ ♪ And all will see how great ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ ♪ How great is our God ♪ - Let's begin with a couple of announcements. As you guys can tell, it's a little bit of a sparser gathering this morning.
As I mentioned at the beginning, the retreat is going on and they're doing Sunday worship up there with Pastor Carlos right now. And so because most of our people are at Palm Desert, there's not gonna really be anything outside of our service today. So we're not gonna have the cafe.
I would assume parking was pretty easy this morning, right? And so there's nothing going on outside of just a time of just feeding of the word and praise to the Lord. But a couple of announcements that pertain to things that are coming up, our Bible study will begin on August 30th.
And if you have not signed up, we need you to sign up because if you don't, you won't be placed in a group or you'll be placed in a group afterward. And if you're, let's say 22, you might be in a group of 50 year old women, all right?
Assuming you're a girl, all right? So please do sign up because the groups are still being finalized. And if you don't sign up, then you're gonna be in some kind of a hodgepodge group or you're gonna be stuck with me at my table for the whole semester. So that's coming up.
For the men of our church, September 9th, we have a men's ministry fellowship workshop followed by a lunch. And so that's gonna be $10. The signup sheet is on our app and you can just follow along there as well. If you are a parent of a child in the elementary department, we call that the Sprouts Ministry, there will be just a parents meeting on September 10th.
Okay? And there are some, if you're a family member, if you have a spouse and you have kids, there are some announcements that pertain to you on the app and on the website. So I will refer you to those. Okay. Right now we're gonna take a time of offering.
If you have a physical offering, you can bring it to the back over there, just at your convenience and whenever your heart feels ready to do that. Otherwise, we encourage you to give your offering to the Lord electronically through OnlyZell. All right? So let me go ahead and pray.
We don't have any baptisms or anything today, but let me just pray, give you a little bit of time to just prepare your hearts and then we'll continue with our time of praise. Father, we're so thankful to be gathered here this morning. And Lord, we pray for your word to be proclaimed in a powerful way to your flock, and especially Lord God, to our church family that is here this morning and those that have started worship up in Palm Desert.
Father, would you minister to your people, not for the sake of us just growing in knowledge, but Lord, that we would grow to be a people who respond appropriately and wholly living in love for our brothers and sisters and love for our neighbors. Lord, ultimately so that you would receive glory in our lives.
We pray that as we just bring our offering, Lord, it's a sign of just our response to say, Lord God, everything that we have is yours. And so continue to give us wisdom to steward all that we have, our time, our resources and our opportunities. Help us to steward those well in faith and in worship.
So we thank you, God, for just being so kind to us. And we pray that this morning that you would be honored. And we pray all of this in Jesus' name. (gentle music) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) (gentle music continues) Can we all rise together? (gentle music continues) And as we sing these songs, just as a reminder of who it is that we serve.
(gentle music continues) ♪ Lord of all creation ♪ ♪ Water, earth and sky ♪ ♪ Heaven's on your tabernacle ♪ ♪ Glory to the Lord on high ♪ Lord of all creation. ♪ Lord of all creation ♪ ♪ Water, earth and sky ♪ ♪ Heaven's on your tabernacle ♪ ♪ Glory to the Lord on high ♪ ♪ God of wonders beyond our galaxy ♪ ♪ You are holy, holy ♪ ♪ You are holy, holy ♪ ♪ Universal pleasure of majesty ♪ ♪ You are holy, holy ♪ ♪ Lord of heaven and earth ♪ ♪ Lord of heaven and earth ♪ ♪ Early in the morning ♪ ♪ I will celebrate the light ♪ ♪ When I stumble in the darkness ♪ ♪ I will call your name by night ♪ ♪ God of wonders beyond our galaxy ♪ ♪ You are holy, holy ♪ ♪ Universal pleasure of majesty ♪ ♪ You are holy, holy ♪ ♪ Lord of heaven and earth ♪ ♪ Lord of heaven and earth ♪ Lord of all creation.
♪ Lord of all creation ♪ ♪ Water, earth and sky ♪ ♪ Heaven's on your tabernacle ♪ ♪ Glory to the Lord on high ♪ God of wonders. ♪ God of wonders beyond our galaxy ♪ ♪ You are holy, holy ♪ ♪ Universal pleasure of majesty ♪ ♪ You are holy, holy ♪ ♪ Lord of heaven and earth ♪ ♪ Lord of heaven and earth ♪ ♪ Hallelujah to the Lord of heaven and earth ♪ ♪ Hallelujah to the Lord of heaven and earth ♪ ♪ Hallelujah to the Lord of heaven and earth ♪ ♪ Hallelujah to the Lord of heaven and earth ♪ God of wonders.
♪ God of wonders beyond our galaxy ♪ ♪ You are holy, holy ♪ ♪ Universal pleasure of majesty ♪ ♪ You are holy, holy ♪ ♪ Lord of heaven and earth ♪ ♪ Lord of heaven and earth ♪ (gentle music) ♪ One church, one faith ♪ ♪ One anthem raised ♪ ♪ God and God alone ♪ ♪ One cross, one grace ♪ ♪ One name that saves ♪ ♪ All praise to you belongs ♪ ♪ All praise to you belongs ♪ ♪ We lift you higher, higher ♪ ♪ God and God alone ♪ ♪ Your name be louder, louder ♪ ♪ Any other song ♪ ♪ You are forever seated on your throne ♪ ♪ You are forever God and God alone ♪ One church, one faith.
♪ One church, one faith ♪ ♪ One anthem raised ♪ ♪ God and God alone ♪ ♪ One cross, one grace ♪ ♪ One name that saves ♪ ♪ All praise to you belongs ♪ ♪ All praise to you belongs ♪ ♪ We lift you higher, higher ♪ ♪ God and God alone ♪ ♪ Your name be louder, louder ♪ ♪ Than any other song ♪ ♪ You are forever seated on your throne ♪ ♪ You are forever God and God alone ♪ ♪ Who else can wash our sin away ♪ ♪ God and God alone ♪ ♪ Who else can raise us from the grave ♪ ♪ All praise to you belongs ♪ ♪ All praise to you belongs ♪ ♪ We lift you higher, higher ♪ ♪ God and God alone ♪ ♪ Your name be louder, louder ♪ ♪ Than any other song ♪ ♪ You are forever seated on your throne ♪ ♪ You are forever God and God alone ♪ What could separate us?
♪ And what could separate us ♪ ♪ From this amazing love ♪ ♪ What could say it's greater ♪ ♪ Than our God ♪ ♪ Every knee will bow down ♪ ♪ Oh, every knee will bow down ♪ ♪ We lift you higher, higher ♪ ♪ God and God alone ♪ ♪ Your name be louder, louder ♪ ♪ Than any other song ♪ ♪ You are forever seated on your throne ♪ ♪ You are forever God and God alone ♪ ♪ We lift you higher, higher ♪ ♪ God and God alone ♪ ♪ Your name be louder, louder ♪ ♪ Than any other song ♪ ♪ You are forever seated on your throne ♪ ♪ You are forever God and God alone ♪ - Amen, please be seated.
It really is a joy for us to be able to hear the word of God from our guest speaker this morning. A lot of you guys know who Pastor James Lee is. He is the senior pastor at Cross Life Bible Church, which is also in Irvine. And from the day Cross Life became a church, we've been right there alongside with Pastor James, praying for, supporting, and encouraging to the best of our ability this church.
And today he's gonna be speaking the word of God for us. So if you guys can, just as he walks up, just give him a big warm applause and a thank you in advance. So let's welcome Pastor James up. (audience applauding) - All right, well, it's good to see everyone.
It's much more filled than I thought it would be. So again, it's a pleasure just to be here and to be preaching God's word. Hold on for one sec. Oh, I can't move that. That was awkward. All right. (audience laughing) Well, I just wanna begin by saying, thank you so much for having me to come and minister the word to all of you.
Berean is a dear church to us. Your pastors are dear friends to me. I just had lunch with Pastor, or breakfast with Pastor Peter yesterday, and he treated me out for breakfast. And your pastor, Pastor Peter, he's a mentor to me. He's an older brother in the faith, and he has guided me and helped me as I try to lead and shepherd our church.
And I'm just really thankful for him. So you are in good hands under his ministry, and I'm thankful for Pastor Peter Chung, Pastor Mark. Pastor Mark was a classmate of mine in seminary, and Pastor Nate. Yeah, wonderful. You guys are really blessed. And I hope, coming in and out of a church like this, regularly attending a ministry like this, it's kind of easy to, you know, when you're eating steak every day, it's just kind of a common thing.
You eat galbi every day. It's like, it's good, right? And then you go out, and then you don't have any of that, you eat porridge, and you're like, man, I had a good. You guys are eating, you guys are eating well here. And I want you to realize that your pastors who are cooking up this meal, they're doing it with much prayer, with much love.
And I want you guys to never take that for granted. And even Pastor Peter Chung, he was at the retreat. He was at the retreat. He could have just told me to come and just, you know, preach and be done with it. But he came all the way here, drove back here to minister to all of you and to care for you.
And that just shows the kind of hearts that your pastors have at Berean. So I just want to really encourage you. You're at a wonderful place, and you are truly blessed. And so, you know, thank Pastor Peter Chung. Don't forget to do that. He's very approachable. When the other pastors come, be sure to appreciate them and to express your love to them.
They are, again, wonderful, wonderful men. Well, today, I was thinking about what to preach on, and I thought it might be fun and a blessing to go over a subject that is relatively new to me in my theological journey and study, and that is the subject of rest. It came to my attention this morning that the people who might attend service today may be guests, newcomers to the church.
I totally didn't think about that, because there might be some of you who are relatively new to the faith, young as Christians, maybe even seeking as seeking and trying to search out what Christianity is about. Now, the Bible talks about the pure milk of God's word. It talks about milk being given to spiritual infants.
I realize that today's study is just gonna be tough steak. So, hopefully, you'll be able to process it, and if there are any questions about the study today, Pastor Peter and I, we would love to just stay behind and talk and chat with you about the gospel, about the word of God.
And so, again, the subject I wanted to talk about was the subject of rest. The subject of rest is infused with salvific implications and realities. Oftentimes, when we think about salvation, we normally think about things like justification, sanctification, glorification. We think about redemption. We think about faith. We think about the gospel of the kingdom.
But a term that may not come to our minds very often is the concept of rest, rest. Now, I was studying through and preaching through the book of 1 and 2 Samuel, and I came across the relationship between the kingdom of God and the concept of rest. In the promise of the Davidic covenant, it says the following in 2 Samuel 7, verse 10 to 13.
If you will take your Bibles and turn with me to 2 Samuel 7, verse 10 to 13, we're gonna do a lot of Bible flipping today. 2 Samuel 7, verse 10 to 13. So this is the promise of the Davidic covenant. 2 Samuel 7, verse 10 to 13. It says, "And I will appoint a place for my people Israel "and will plant them so that they may dwell "in their own place and be disturbed no more.
"And violent men shall afflict them no more, "as formerly from the time that I appointed judges "over my people Israel. "And I will give you rest from all your enemies. "Moreover, the Lord declares to you "that the Lord will make you a house. "When your days are fulfilled "and you lie down with your fathers, "I will raise up your offspring after you "who shall come from your body, "and I will establish his kingdom.
"You shall build a house for my name, "and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever." Now take your Bibles and turn with me to 1 Chronicles, chapter 22. 1 Chronicles, chapter 22. The chronicler extends the attribute of rest in the kingdom to the king himself, to a son of David, a son of David.
So 1 Chronicles, chapter 22, verse seven through 10. (pages rustling) It says this. David said to Solomon, "My son, I had it in my heart "to build a house to the name of the Lord my God." Verse eight. "But the word of the Lord came to me, "saying, 'You have shed much blood "'and have waged great wars.
"'You shall not build a house to my name, "'because you have shed so much blood "'before me on the earth. "'Behold, a son shall be born to you "'who shall be a man of rest. "'I will give him rest from all his surrounding enemies, "'for his name shall be Solomon, "'and I will give peace and quiet to Israel in his days.
"'He shall build a house for my name, "'he shall be my son, and I will be his father, "'and I will establish his royal throne in Israel forever.'" And so a promise is given that David will have a child, he will be known as a child of rest. Now as you know, the promise of a king extends beyond Solomon to the Lord Jesus Christ.
Matthew chapter 12, verse 42, it says, "The queen of the south will rise up "at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, "for she came from the ends of the earth "to hear the wisdom of Solomon, "and behold, something greater than Solomon is here." And as one who is greater than Solomon, Jesus brings a rest that is much more profound than political and international peace, but he brings a rest that is spiritual, a rest that is heavenly.
Take your Bibles and turn with me to Hebrews chapter four. Hebrews chapter four. Hebrews chapter four, verse one through 10. This is the reading of God's word. "Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest "still stands, let us fear, lest any of you "should seem to have failed to reach it.
"For good news came to us just as to them, "but the message they heard did not benefit them, "because they were not united by faith "with those who listen. "For we who have believed enter that rest, "as he had said, as I swore my wrath, "they shall not enter my rest, "although his works were finished "from the foundation of the world.
"For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day "in this way, and God rested on the seventh day "from all his works." And again, in this passage, he said, "They shall not enter my rest, "since therefore it remains for some to enter it, "and those who formerly received the good news "failed to enter because of disobedience." Again, he appoints a certain day today, saying, "Through David, so long afterwards," in the words already quoted today, "If you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.
"For Joshua had given them rest, "God would not have spoken of another day later on." So then there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, but whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Now, the rest that God offers to us, ultimately, is a rest that is in heaven, but to enter that rest, we must find our rest in Christ.
So today, what I wanna do, I wanna develop the biblical theology of rest, the biblical theology of rest. But before we do that, join me in a time of prayer. Let's pray. Father, how good it is to come before your word. Your word is holy and it is true.
It is the revelation from above. It is ultimately the words of God, pen through men. And Lord, I pray that all of us here, as we hear your word, read your word, that we will submit ourselves to it and that the truth of your word would impress itself upon our hearts, it would convict us.
And God, I pray for the congregation here, your body here, that they would be a people, take a step back from the busyness and the chaos of life, the troubles of pain, and to realize that there is rest in Christ. May we come to you, Lord Jesus, all who are burdened and heavy laden.
And Lord, we know that we will find our rest in you. Pray this in your name, amen. One of the things that, interesting things about this text in the book of Hebrews, Hebrews chapter four, is that the author seems to talk about three kinds of rest. You notice that when we just read that.
He talks about three kinds of rest. He talks about a creation rest. So let's look at verse four, look at verse four. For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way, and God rested on the seventh day from all of his works. So there's a creation rest.
The second kind of rest that he talks about is a land rest, that is rest in the land of Canaan. You look at verse five, chapter four, verse five, and again in this passage he said, "They shall not enter my rest." Verse eight, he says, "For if Joshua had given them rest, "God would not have spoken of another day later on." You know that after the nation of Israel was redeemed from Egypt during the days of the Exodus, Joshua, who succeeded Moses, led the people of God into the promised land, the place of rest.
And you immediately notice that the two types of rest are very different. The first one has to do with time, where God rested on the seventh day after he created the world. The second rest has to do with the place, the place of rest, where the land of Israel was called the place of rest, the land of promise.
Now the last reference to rest, the third reference, is to the celestial country of heaven. And like the second type of rest, it's a place, albeit a place outside of this world. So if you look at chapter four, verse one, it says, "Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest "still stands, let us fear, "lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it." And verse nine says, "So then, there remains a Sabbath rest "for the people of God." Talking about heaven.
Now the question is, how do all of these references to rest relate to each other? How is creation rest, land rest, and heavenly rest connected? So in order to answer that question, we're gonna dive into each one of these types of rest, and then we're gonna string them together to develop a biblical theology of rest.
Okay, so that's what we're gonna do today. That sounds like fun, I think it's fun. Okay, yes. Creation rest, creation rest, let's talk about that. Genesis chapter two, verse one through three. You can just listen here. Many of you are familiar with this story. "Thus, the heavens and the earth were finished, "and all the hosts 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.
"And the Lord made the world, he rested on the seventh day." Now, the reason why that is significant is because the rest signaled the completion of a perfect and sinless creation where mankind communed with God in the Garden of Eden. Okay, I'll say that again. The reason why it's significant, why it's significant that God rested on the seventh day is because the rest signaled a completion of a perfect and sinless creation where mankind communed with God in the Garden of Eden.
So the biblical idea of rest includes two elements, perfect creation, epitomized in Eden, and communion with God. These are the two things. So if you're taking notes, this is two things to jot down. Perfect creation, epitomized in Eden, and communion with God. Now, within the Garden of Eden, there are several significant items, including the tree of life.
There are rivers and precious stones. These are the kind of details you might just overlook when you're reading the story, but they're very significant. And the reason why it's important to single these things out to pick out these details is because when you look at the allusions later on in scripture with progressive revelation, you'll see the writers referencing back and alluding back to the creation account.
So let's look at Genesis chapter two, verse nine through 12. Genesis chapter two, verse nine through 12. (silence) Genesis chapter two, verse nine through 12. It says the following, and out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to sight and good for food.
The tree of life was in the midst of the garden and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land Havilah where there is gold, and the gold of that land is good.
Delium and onyx stones are there. So again, very important details. Even though God, now even though God created the world in perfection, we know what happens in Genesis chapter three. Mankind sins against God, and all of creation is cursed. Mankind is corrupted. In Genesis chapter three, verse 17 to 19, it says the following, and to Adam he said, because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, you shall not eat of it.
Cursed is the ground because of you. In pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life. Thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, and you shall eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken, for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.
In Romans chapter five, verse 12, it says, therefore just as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, so death spread to all men because all sin. So as a result, as a result of sin, rest was stripped away from man. Creation was corrupted, man was kicked out of Eden, and man's relationship, communion with God, was severed, was broken.
Life itself will be wrought with sweat, blood, and tears. Nature would attack man in the form of natural disasters, including earthquakes, tsunamis, droughts, and floods. Life would no longer be one of rest. And again, this is not something that is just theoretical, but something that all of us have felt, right?
We felt all of this. I mean, think about 2020, I mean, the virus, that tiny little thing. It's just the struggle, the pain that it caused. The thorns and thistles of your daily grind at work, the pain of losing somebody that you love. And although there's times of respite, there's vacation time, there's maybe an escape to retreat, we will never be able to escape the pains of sin.
We can never restore the alienation from God, that separation, or avoid death, or bypass eternal condemnation. And so generally, we can't say that we are at rest. No matter how good things might be on this earth, we can never say it's restful. At least we can't say it permanently, finally, ultimately.
The rest of the seventh day after creation was disrupted by the entrance of sin. The biblical story about man's redemption, therefore, includes his return from chaos and unrest of a fallen creation to a new day where he can once again rest with his creator. So that begins the framework of understanding the concept of rest, creation rest.
Now, the second type of rest that the author of Hebrews mentions is the land rest. And again, when I say land, I'm referring to the promised land of Canaan. In Psalm chapter 95, verse 10 through 11, it says the following. For 40 years, I loathed the generation and said, "They are a people who go astray in their hearts, "and they have not known my ways.
"Therefore, I swore in my wrath, "they shall not enter my rest." They shall not enter my rest. The rest here is a reference to the land of Canaan. And it's important now for us to understand the historical context in which this is understood. Psalm 95. Before Israel made their journey into the promised land of Canaan, they were enslaved in Egypt.
Very common story is if you grew up in the church in Sunday school. They were enslaved. But God in his great mercy delivered them from their bondage by pouring out various plagues. Poured out his wrath. And the last judgment that was finally released against Pharaoh and the Egyptians was the death of the firstborn, the last plague.
In Exodus chapter 11, verse four through six, it says, "So Moses said, "'Thus says the Lord, about midnight, "'I will go out in the midst of Egypt, "'and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die. "'The firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, "'even to the firstborn of a slave girl "'who is behind the hand mill, "'and all the firstborn of the cattle.
"'There shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt "'such as there has never been nor ever will be again.'" So death of the firstborn, a horrific judgment, horrific plague. "But the nation of Israel will be spared from that judgment "because they will slaughter a lamb, "they'll take the blood and spread it across a doorpost.
"The blood will serve as a sign to the Lord "who would then pass over that household "and spare the firstborn of the family." Effectively, the death of a lamb took the place of the life of the firstborn child. Now, of course, in fulfillment of God's word, all the families of Egypt lost their firstborn, including the household of Pharaoh, so that the king finally let the people of Israel go.
What we see is that through the blood of a Passover lamb, the people of God, they were redeemed, they were delivered, they were ransomed from slavery and brought into the promised land of Canaan, the land of rest. So that's the historical background. Now, the question at this point is to ask, why was the land of Canaan called the resting place of God?
Why was the land of Canaan called the resting place of God? And the answer is because, this is cool, okay? The land of Canaan was supposed to be symbolic of the Garden of Eden. Okay? It was supposed to be Edenic. Listen to the language that is used to describe Canaan.
I'll just read this for you guys. Just listen. "And I have come down to deliver them "out of the hand of the Egyptians, "and to bring them out of the land "to a good and broad land, "a land flowing with milk and honey, "to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, "the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, "and the Jebusites." Deuteronomy chapter six, verse 10 through 11, it says, "And when the Lord your God brings you into the land "that he swore to your fathers, "to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, "to give you with great and good cities "that you did not build, "and houses full of all good things that you did not fill, "and cisterns that you did not dig, "and vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant, "and when you eat and are full." And then it says in Deuteronomy chapter eight, verse seven through eight, "For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, "a land of brooks, of water, and fountains, "and springs flowing out in the valley and the hills, "the land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees, "and pomegranates, and land of olive trees and honey." So the Bible uses very vivid language to allude back to the Garden of Eden, including a reference to rivers and fruit trees.
And initially when you read something like this, the connection may not be very obvious. It may not even seem strong to you. But the Edenic reference does become much more obvious with the building of the temple of God, which was constructed in the heart of the promised land in the city of Jerusalem.
When you, and this kind of blew me away when I came to this realization. When you read about the temple of God, it was designed to look like a garden. I don't know if you ever caught that detail. 'Cause you know when you read 1 Kings, you read all the details, the lampstand, and all the veils and stuff, you just go, ah.
You know, people try to finish the Bible in a year, Genesis to Revelation, and then they're good for Genesis in the first half, Exodus, then they die in the wilderness with the Israelites, they stop reading, you know. (laughs) You know, and then Levites in the book of Leviticus, like the second death, you know, they try to get back up, go, and the book of Leviticus wipes them out, and then they start all over the year after.
Anyways, all that to say, it's very easy to overlook the details of the tabernacle and the temple. But those details have been given to us from God and are meant to be read carefully, intentionally, for they have been given to you for a purpose. Take your Bibles and turn with me to 1 Kings chapter six.
1 Kings chapter six. 1 Kings chapter six. (clears throat) I was talking about the temple, so check this out, okay? 1 Kings chapter six, verse 18. The cedar within the house was carved in the form of gourds and opened flowers. All was cedar, no stone was seen. Skip down to verse 29.
Around all the walls of the house, he carved engraved figures of cherubim and palm trees and opened flowers in the inner and outer rooms. Skip down to verse 32. He covered the two doors of olive wood with carvings of cherubim, palm trees, and opened flowers. He overlaid them with gold and spread gold on the cherubim and on the palm trees.
And if you just read the entire chapter, you begin to notice that a lot of the things that were crafted in the temple were meant to convey images of fruits, plants, and angels. It was made to look like a celestial garden. Now listen to the description of the lampstand that was in the tabernacle and the temple.
Take your Bibles, turn with me to Exodus chapter 25. Exodus chapter 25. Exodus 25. Verse 31 through 33. So this is the lampstand, okay? Look at this description. "You shall make a lampstand of pure gold. "The lampstand shall be made of hammered works. "Its base, its stem, its cups, its calyxes, "and its flowers shall be of one piece with it.
"And there shall be six branches going out of its side, "and three branches of the lampstand out of one side of it, "and three branches of the lampstand "out of the other side of it. "Three cups made like almond blossoms, "each with calyx and flower on one branch, "and three cups made like almond blossoms, "each with calyx and flower on the other branch, "so for the six branches going out of the lampstand." Okay, what does that sound like?
A tree, right? It sounds like a tree, right? It sounds like a tree. I believe it's a direct reference to the tree of life. Even when it came down to the entrance, both for the garden and the temple, it was located in the east. Hence we get the term east of Eden.
In Genesis chapter three, verse 24, it says, "He drove out the man, "and at the east of the garden of Eden, "he placed a cherubim and a flaming sword "that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life." Exodus chapter 27, verse 12 to 13, this reference to the tabernacle, it says, "And for the breadth of the court on the west side, "there shall be hangings for 50 cubits "with 10 pillars and 10 bases.
"The breadth of the court on the front to the east "shall be 50 cubits," which means that the front was facing east. And then we get the same detail in the Millennial Temple in Ezekiel chapter 47, verse one. "Then he brought me back to the door of the temple, "and behold, water was issuing from below," very much like there was rivers flowing in the garden of Eden, "Waters was issuing from below "and the threshold of the temple toward the east, "for the temple faced east." But the most significant detail that is shared between the temple and the garden is the manifestation of God's presence.
First Kings chapter eight, verse 10 through 11, it says, "And when the priest came out of the holy place, "a cloud filled the house of the Lord. "So the priest could not stand to minister "because of the cloud, "for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord." Now, if you remember from what I said before, the biblical idea of rest includes two elements, a perfect creation epitomized in the garden of Eden, and man's communion with God.
The land of Canaan, with all its fertility and fruitfulness, was a picture of the divine garden epitomized in the temple, where God manifested his presence before the people through the intermediary ministry of the priest and the high priest. And so the reason why God calls the land of Canaan his place of rest is because it is a faint shadow and an image of paradise lost, a picture of Eden.
And so the psalmist says the following about the temple of God. In Psalm 132, verse seven through eight, "Let us go to his dwelling place. "Let us worship at his footstool. "Arise, O Lord, and go to your resting place, "you and the ark of your might." What the Bible is trying to present is a story that connects the idea of national redemption to the resting place of God.
The nation of Israel was redeemed by a blood of a lamb to embark upon a wilderness journey to the Edenic lands of Canaan to commune with God in his place of rest. And this isn't just some fanciful stuff I'm making up. The scripture makes this connection for us. Take your Bibles and turn with me to the book of Exodus.
Exodus chapter 20. Exodus 20. This is with the giving of the 10 commandments from Moses. From God through Moses. Exodus chapter 20, verse eight through 11. Verse eight, "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 servants 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." The reason why the ark should rest on the seventh day is because God rested on the seventh day. Yes? Pretty simple, okay? Take your Bibles, turn with me to the book of Deuteronomy. Deuteronomy chapter five. Deuteronomy chapter five, verse 12 to 15.
(pages rustling) Listen to what it says, verse 12. "Observe the Sabbath day to keep it holy, "as the Lord your God commanded you. "Six days you shall labor and do all your work, "but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. "Honor you shall not do any work, "you or your son or your daughters "or your male servants or your female servants "or your ox or your donkey or any of your livestock "or the sojourner who is within your gates, "that your male servants and your female servants "may rest as well as you." Now listen to verse 15.
"You shall remember that you were a slave "in the land of Egypt, "and the Lord your God brought you out from there "with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. "Therefore the Lord your God commanded you "to keep the Sabbath day." Why are they to keep the Sabbath day in Deuteronomy?
In order to remember the redemption from captivity. I remember when I first read these texts, it didn't make any sense to me. Why was Moses giving two completely different reasons for why the Israelites had to observe the Sabbath? The book of Exodus, they had to rest on the Sabbath day because God rested after the seventh day after creating the entire world.
The book of Deuteronomy, they had to rest in order to remember the redemption from the nation of Egypt. So how were the two related? And so from a cursory read, it might seem like Moses is giving two unrelated reasons for why Israel had to observe the Sabbath. But remember, Moses was a theologian.
I think that's something that we forget. Remember, he's a prophet, but he is also a theologian. And within his mind, the reason that he gave in the book of Exodus, and the reason that he gives in the book of Deuteronomy, is intimately connected. Namely, that God had redeemed the nation of Israel from the bondage of slavery, to lead them to the Edenic lands of Canaan in memory of creation's paradise that was lost because of sin.
That's the relationship between Exodus and Deuteronomy. The authors of both the Old and New Testament take and develop the relationship of redemption and rest, and they then apply this to our lives in the New Testament. And we come to our last point, heavenly rest. Heavenly rest. This is how the author of Hebrews is weaving all of these things together.
He's not just randomly bringing a hodgepodge of thoughts together just because they share the same word. It's a theological truth he is weaving together from Genesis to Revelation with this concept of rest. In Hebrews chapter four, verse eight through 10, it says the following, "For Joshua had given them rest, "God would not have spoken of another day later on.
"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." Israel's redemption from Egypt to the promised land of Canaan serves as a pattern, and like a grid by which we can understand our salvation experience.
Flip to Romans chapter eight, Romans chapter eight, verse 14 to 17. Okay, listen to this, okay? Very carefully. Romans chapter eight, verse 14 to 17. "For all who are led by the Spirit of God "are sons of God. "For you did not receive the spirit of slavery "to fall back into fear, "but you have received the spirit of adoptions as sons, "by whom we cry, 'Abba, Father.' "The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit "that we are children of God, "and if children, then heirs, "heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, "provided we suffer with him, "in order that we may also be glorified with him." We are heirs.
This text, in this text, Paul uses Exodus language to describe our salvation experience. This is a common observation among commentators. Just as Israel was called the national son of God, so we are called the sons of God. Just as Israel was enslaved to Pharaoh, we were enslaved to sin.
Just as they were led by the Shekinah glory, we are led by the Spirit of God. Just as they were brought into the inheritance of Abraham, we are partakers and heirs with Christ, the recipients of the inheritance of Jesus. And then look at verse 18, look at verse 18, Romans chapter eight.
For I consider the sufferings, that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. But the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
But we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves who are the first fruits of the Spirit groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoptions as sons, the redemption of our bodies. When you notice that, right after Paul talks about the spiritual exodus, he's talking about the restoration of creation.
And he's not randomly changing subjects here. Sometimes we just think that. He's just randomly changing topics. Again, they are interconnected. The same way that the nation of Israel was redeemed from captivity and brought through the wilderness to the Edenic lands of Canaan, so we who have been redeemed from captivity to sin will one day cross the Jordan of death and enter into a creation that will be restored from the corruption of sin.
Our Christian life is an exodus journey from our former days of bondage to the lands of rest in the restored creation of God. And the scripture teaches that the final state of land in which we find our rest will not just be a restored creation, but an entirely new creation, a new heaven and a new earth where the whole world will in fact be Edenic.
In Revelation chapter 21 verse one, it says, "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth "from the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, "and the sea was no more." In chapter 22 of Revelation verse one through two, it says, "Then the angel showed me the river "of the water of life, bright as crystal, "flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb "through the middle of the street of the city, "also on either side of the river, "the tree of life with its 12 kinds of fruits "yielding its fruit each month.
"The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. "Just as rivers and waters nourish the land of fertility "in the first Eden, so the rivers will flow "from the throne of God to give life in the new creation. "And the tree that was taken away from Adam "in the first creation will return "and be given to those who are in Christ, "that is the second Adam.
"And in that place, humanity will once again "commune with God, but not through a veil, "not through the intermediary ministry "of the priest or the high priest, "but we will commune with God "the same way that Adam communed with God, "and that is face to face." Revelation chapter 21, verse two to three says, "And I saw a holy city, the new Jerusalem, "coming down out of heaven from God, "prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
"And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. "He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, "and God himself will be with them as their God." This is the final rest for Christians, the rest in the second creation, the rest after our wilderness journey in this world.
That's what we look forward to. But the staggering reality of the promise is that even on this day, even though as Christians we should be looking forward to the day when we will be with our Savior, we experience that rest even now today. Remember, it was sin that ruined the Edenic paradise of creation and plunged the world into restlessness.
The toil that we suffer right now is not because of sin, it's the bondage of sin, the oppression of sin, the hopelessness wrought by sin, death wrought by sin, damnation wrought by sin. It was Christ who came into this world to deliver us from our enslavement to sin as the second Moses, a prophet that is greater than the first, Deuteronomy 18, verse 18, to lead us in a second exodus to the land of promise, the holy residence of God, because Christ will be the one who bears our transgressions.
He upon the cross will be slaughtered as the Passover lamb so that through the blood of the Son of God, the wrath of God might pass over us and be poured out upon the Son, and that through Jesus Christ, we might be brought into the land of promise, not just a final place in heaven, but to a place of communion in this present time.
The power of the gospel brings future realities into the present. That's incredible. The power of the gospel brings future promises and realities that we might have a foretaste of it now in the present. God, by uniting us with his resurrected life, he has made us a new creation. New creation, as we read, should have been something in the future, something that happens when the Son of God comes back.
But by the grace of God in union with the Son of God, we are made to experience that new creation in ourselves. Second Corinthians chapter five verse 17, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. "The old has passed, behold, the new has come." And we know that the temple of God, the tabernacle of God was made to be a picture of the first creation, to capture the beauty of Eden.
And the Lord calls us now the temple of God. First Corinthians chapter three verse 16, "Do you not know that you are God's temple "and that God's spirit dwells in you? "And just as Adam saw the glory of God "in the garden of Eden, and just as the high priest "in the temple saw the glory of God in the holy of holies, "we see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ "in the gospel." Second Corinthians chapter four verse six, "For God who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' "has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge "of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." The Bible promises a future day of rest, but in Christ we have already experienced that rest in him, though not yet fully.
And so our Lord says in Matthew chapter 11 verse 28, "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, "and I will give you rest." Our Lord understood what that word meant. He understood what it meant in the past, and he knew the implications for the future, that term rest.
He says, "Come to me, and I will give you rest." You've been ravaged by sin. You've experienced the pains of death. You suffered. Your relationships have been strained. "Come to me, and I will give you rest. "Come to me, for I bore your sins. "I was damned in your place.
"Come to me, for I will reconcile you to the God "with whose relationship you have been severed. "Come to me, and I will give you rest." (audience members applauding) - You know, back in 2020, this teaching of rest especially pressed itself upon my heart. That year was so, it was unbelievable.
Sometimes I still can't believe that it actually happened. The world was in panic mode. It seemed like every nation was in a frenzy. And then within our own nation, there was a social and political unrest. The death of George Floyd, the protests and the riots on the streets, the debate of BLM, the defund of police in 2020 elections.
Sadly, even churches splintered. They became divided over issues of mass COVID policies and political views. Then being, all of this was happening outside, and even within my home, I felt so restless. Couldn't go out, and I'm sure like many of you, you had Zoom fatigue. I remember thinking, man, I can't wait until things go back to normal.
Things go back to normal, I can go outside, spend time with my family and my friends, have a normal church service. I was looking forward to the future when all of the chaos would come to a rest. And praise God to a degree that it did. I feel like things more or less came back to normal.
But just as it was before the pandemic, old problems resurfaced and new problems rose up. Like traffic just coming back on the five in the 405. Stress at work ramps up, student loans resume. Some of you may have been hit with financial difficulties, especially because of the inflation. I know we had the tech layoffs.
There's anticipation of recession. Then there's the relational issues that are independent, maybe, of the circumstances around us, the personal problems through which we struggle. And you realize that even though things go back to normal, what is normal is still a state of unrest. And you realize that no matter how much rest you get on Earth, it's never gonna be enough.
Summer after finals might seem like a time of rest, but you know that it's not ultimately. The return to normalcy after lockdown. How many of you are restless? Two weeks of vacation after months of work, retirement after a life of work, there'll always be something missing, always something wrong, something empty.
The thorns and thistles of the fall will continue to poke in the prick while you're on this Earth, no matter how good things might be. These things are a reminder to you that you are not meant to find your rest in your home in a wilderness. You're meant to find your home and your rest in heaven.
With God. And what a joy it is that Christ gives you that rest even now. All of you who are weary and heavy laden, burdened by your guilt, sin, shame, stressed at work, maybe a relationship, families breaking apart, and you just don't know what to do. And how many people try to escape from those things to worldly means?
Christ is the one who says, "I will give you rest. "I will save your souls. "I'll strengthen you to endure. "I'll remind you the hope of what awaits. "Through me you will see and experience "the rest that is to come, "for even now in the midst of chaos, "you will know a peace that transcends all understanding, "but you have to come to me," he says.
So what is holding you back? Come to him. For our Lord Jesus Christ is the place of rest. Let's pray. Dear Father, (thumping) God, what a powerful and loaded term, rest. God, what a appropriate and relevant term. I feel like so many of us are tired, tired at work, tired of conflict, this burden, my day-to-day responsibilities.
Even in times of vacations, we can be exhausted. Some of us, maybe our health is failing. And our hearts, as a result, feels like it's in a state of tumult, of chaos. But Jesus, it's for that very reason you came to save us. You came into this wilderness of fallen creation, a place that is governed by the devil, the God of this world.
And you, Lord Jesus Christ, subjected yourself to suffering, condemnation, death, so that you might sanctify us and deliver us from the present age of darkness to the kingdom of light, to give us rest in the presence of God Almighty. Lord, we give you glory, we give you praise. Again, I pray for my brothers and sisters here that they would remember that in you, Lord, they can be content, they can do all things.
In you, they can strive and fight, for when we are weak, we are strong. In you, we have a hope that surpasses the hopelessness in this world, a hope of being with you forever. And God, I pray for those who do not know you, that the beauty of the gospel of Jesus Christ would draw them, and that they would find that true rest in you, Son of God, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
We pray this in Jesus' name, amen. - I invite you guys to stand for our closing praise. And as we sing this, it will be a response to the word that was preached. And let's meditate on the words that we sing and reflect on what was taught today. And so.
(gentle music) (gentle music) ♪ For my waking bed ♪ ♪ For my daily bed ♪ ♪ I depend on you ♪ ♪ I depend on you ♪ ♪ For the sun to rise ♪ ♪ For my sleep at night ♪ ♪ I depend on you ♪ ♪ I depend on you ♪ ♪ You're the way, the truth, and the life ♪ ♪ You're the well that never runs dry ♪ ♪ I'm French and you are fine ♪ ♪ Draw me close and teach me to abide ♪ (gentle music) ♪ Where the spirit leads ♪ ♪ As I'm following ♪ ♪ I depend on you ♪ ♪ I depend on you ♪ ♪ For the victories ♪ ♪ They'll be in front of me ♪ ♪ I depend on you ♪ ♪ I depend on you ♪ ♪ You're the way, the truth, and the life ♪ ♪ You're the well that never runs dry ♪ ♪ I'm the French and you are the fine ♪ ♪ Draw me close and teach me to abide ♪ ♪ Be my strength, my song in the night ♪ ♪ Be my all, my treasure, my prize ♪ ♪ I am yours forever, you're mine ♪ ♪ Draw me close and teach me to abide ♪ (gentle music) ♪ When I pass through death ♪ ♪ As I enter rest ♪ ♪ I depend on you ♪ ♪ I depend on you ♪ ♪ For eternal life ♪ ♪ To be raised with Christ ♪ ♪ I depend on you ♪ ♪ I depend on you ♪ ♪ You're the way, the truth, and the life ♪ ♪ You're the well that never runs dry ♪ ♪ I'm the French and you are the fine ♪ ♪ Draw me close and teach me to abide ♪ ♪ Be my strength, my song in the night ♪ ♪ Be my all, my treasure, my prize ♪ ♪ I am yours forever, you're mine ♪ ♪ Draw me close and teach me to abide ♪ (gentle music) (upbeat music) - We're gonna ask Pastor James to come back up for the benediction.
- Please bow your head to receive the benediction. I made the grace and peace of God, the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit upon everyone here who rests in the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and anticipates and looks forward to the day when they will see God face to face.
Be now and forevermore, amen. ♪ God sent his son ♪ ♪ They called him Jesus ♪ ♪ He came to love ♪ ♪ Heal and forgive ♪ ♪ He lived and died ♪ ♪ To buy my pardon ♪ ♪ An empty grave is there to prove ♪ ♪ My Savior lives ♪ ♪ Because he lives ♪ ♪ I can face tomorrow ♪ ♪ Because he lives ♪ ♪ All fear is gone ♪ ♪ Because I know ♪ ♪ He holds a future ♪ ♪ And life is worth the living ♪ ♪ Just because he lives ♪ - Amen, thank you.
We're gonna, you guys can enjoy fellowship, but at about one o'clock, we're gonna lock up everything 'cause we are under manned for today. so if you have an opportunity, please come up.