The only true rest

Matthew 11:28-30…

This promise doesn’t seem very real to many. The whole idea of getting ahead in life is working hard so that we can rest for a while. Yet it never seems to happen, even if and when our hopes and dreams become realities. This is the way of the world. It is all just one big dead end. Maybe that’s why they put “rest in peace” on gravestones. But Jesus has another way. His kind of work gives us rest. What a remarkable thing.

This merciful invitation is to all people. Many are working as hard as they can to prove themselves to the world, to justify themselves before their idea of God. Many are loaded down with care, concerned about all the things they know they cannot handle, yet working too hard to get a handle on them. The day to day experience is wearing them out, let alone any thoughts of their eternal situation. Jesus invites anyone who is like this to come to Him, and promises that He will give them the rest they so desperately need. We work so hard to be able to rest, but Jesus says to come to Him and He will simply give it to us, we won’t have to work for it.

Coming to Jesus means leaving one thing and following another. This is what is meant by the word repentance. What we leave is our own labor and drop our own burden and instead of doing our own thing we do His thing. The work of the unsaved soul never leads to true rest. But the work of the redeemed soul is about yoking up to the very rest and refreshing the soul can eternally feed on.  It is learning to rest in that rest He has given us. He gives us rest from all our striving to save ourselves, and then in His school we learn that His way can help us take it easy, and in finding that path we find a rest for this life as well.

We don’t work for it; we find it and work in it. 

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

The revelation of power

Matthew 11:25-27 / Luke 10:21-22…

Many worry because they just don’t seem to have a grip on things as much as others seem to. Yet Jesus gives us a cause for resting in Him right here in these verses. God reveals His will to the humble in heart. God values the vulnerable, those who trust and treasure what they have been born again to see, the kingdom of God. When we focus on whose we are and what we have been given in Christ (Ephesians 1:1-9), we realize that in the end, if we know God, we know all we truly need to know.

Things may be bad for us right now, but the end of the game is determined (Ephesians 1:10-14), and the goal for now is the same (1 Corinthians 10:31 / Philippians 1:21). To get back that vision of victory, what we need to do is regain our focus with a single eye (Matthew 5:8). Unlike those who do not know the ultimate revelation, we have no need to stockpile strength (Zechariah 4:6). This is not cause for pride, but for humility. When we regain our focus back to where it should be, with Jesus at the center (Psalm 37:4), all our triumphs and all our failures, all our gains and all our losses, all our knowledge, strength, health, wealth, anything and everything else is nothing compared to the surpassing worth of knowing Christ (Philippians  3:8).

This is why we can thank God at all times (1 Thessalonians 5:18), for no matter what happens, we have been given the revelation of ultimate power in the knowledge of Christ (2 Corinthians 4:6). We know the will of God to give us grace.  

If you have been given this revelation, it is your seed of peace. Keep planting it in your mind, your ministry, your family, your friends, your whole life and world, and watch the Prince of Peace reveal Himself.  

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©

Guaranteed success

Luke 10:17-20…

It can be quite thrilling to see God’s power manifest in our lives and ministry. We all long to see the Devil defeated in personal battle, and to see souls saved into the kingdom of God. Yet it is always less about what He has given us to do and more about who He has given us to be. No matter the scope of our personal victory, or the magnitude of our calling, the primary call is to Christ Himself.

Certainly we should be thankful and rejoice in the good seasons. But mark this fact: there will not always be uninterrupted success. We feel as if we have been lifted up into the heavenly realms when we see such awesome displays. Yet we must be on guard, because the higher the climb rises, the greater the potential for a prideful fall. We need to continuously cultivate humility, because our hearts have the tendency to be over excited when the street is smooth and therefore overly depressed when the road is rough.  

This is especially true for unseasoned believers, as they can let the success go to their head. It is not enough to have success; we must learn to handle it properly. We can exhibit power over the enemy and still fall right into his trap (1 Timothy 3:6). Satan was as lofty as you can get yet he fell like lightning (Isaiah 14:12-15). Our ministry victories and spiritual successes are only markers along the way, but they are not the guarantee.

It is the sinless life and atoning death, the resurrection, ascension and return of King Jesus that is the supreme focus for our joy. The guarantee of success is the promise that Jesus Christ will deliver us all the way to heaven, whether we’re winning the war today or not (1 Corinthians 15:58 / 2 Timothy 4:8).  

“Living For Today With An Eye For Tomorrow”©