Hebrews 4:1-16
I am seeing three applications/concepts of “rest” in today’s reading. The first is the most obvious, the author’s Sabbath rest discussion beginning in verse 4 and culminating in verse 9: So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God… I commented on that yesterday and in my comments in my first link below – Carol’s and my discipline of setting work aside for a Sunday rest. It’s a good habit – we encourage you to do the same.
I see a second application of rest in today’s first verse: 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. Here I see “rest” as some sense of peace in our daily lives – of resting from worry and anxiety. We have our work to do – employment, volunteer work, household chores – but we do our work with a different sense of peace, knowing that all we do is for God’s glory. Work is good; He made us for work, but He did not make us to be slaves to our work: Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men… (Colossians 3:23)
Finally there is a third concept of “rest” that comes from my Catholic roots, “rest” that is a closing prayer at Catholic funerals: “Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. And may all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.” Eternal rest. Heaven. Sadly, there are millions of people worldwide who are working toward that rest – working! That is, they are striving through their own efforts to be good people, good enough to gain God’s favor when they die – not knowing that Jesus has already done “the work” through His death and resurrection, that we need only to accept His forgiveness for all that we have done and be received into His Kingdom – today! Heaven – on Earth, today!! But that concept of eternal rest for us is essentially what I was talking about in the second application above, that sense of peace in our daily lives. Again, Heaven on Earth…! As I quote in the second link below from verse 11a: Let us therefore strive to enter that rest…!!
See also: November 14 / Hebrews 4:1-10; November 15 / Hebrews 4:11-16
Saying “we need only accept His forgiveness” makes it sound trivially easy. I know what you mean — that we can’t work our way to Heaven, and that salvation is a matter of grace through faith. True enough. But that doesn’t make it trivially easy. It still entails dying to self, which is far from trivial. Indeed, we must strive to enter that rest!