Rest!

# 14 2020 Dev. Heb.4:12. Rest! Read all of Ch. 4-5. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.

Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. ¹³ Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”

Again, the author points back to the last verse of chapter three, concerning unbelief. Unbelief puts God’s intended rest for us in jeopardy. The author brings the example of the people of God in the desert, traveling toward the promised land: again and again they disobeyed right up to the time they stood at the border of Canaan. They refused to believe God would give them the land because of the report of giants in the land, even after the many miracles God brought on their behalf, they still did not believe. God had been patient, even forgiving this last rebellion, but that was the last straw, God said: “so I declared on oath in my anger, ‘they shall never enter my rest.’”  God made them wander in the desert for 40 years until everyone over 19 yrs. old died, except Joshua and Caleb because they believed. 

The promised land is the foreshadowing of God’s eternal rest; our home in heaven, assured for believers by Christ himself, as the author points out in the last part of Ch. 4 and in all of Ch. 5.  In the mean time we are in the desert but we are not wandering aimlessly like those who do not believe. If we ever needed God’s assurance of His rest it is now, during this difficult time.

As in the past, God is patient, God is willing to forgive, willing to take anyone who has faith, but is God starting to loose His patience with this world, with the injustice, with the disregard for life, for the disregard for God’s Sabbath rest and the disregard for God and God’s Word. Given the situation in our country and in our world I am starting to think along those lines. But it is not to late. Turn to Him!  Ch. 5 ends with: “But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.” How do we become mature followers of Jesus? By devouring God’s Word, putting it into practice and being willing to discern good from evil.

God is good all of the time! By faith we live in the arms of Jesus!

© cgvanwyk, all rights reserved