Hebrews 4:9-10
Soul Rest
“I’m tired! I’m tired of work. I’m tired of the tension in the world. I’m tired of struggling with… I’m tired of taking care of….” How would you finish those sentences?
God understands. Our body, mind, and soul need rest. The Bible says God rested on the seventh day (Genesis 2:2). One of His Ten Commandments is, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8).
Today, some ignore God’s command to have a holy day of rest each week. Their reasoning? Believers aren’t bound by Old Testament laws. I agree that we are not legalistically bound to keep the Jewish Sabbath. I agree that Jesus’ work to obtain our salvation on the cross means that we don’t work for our salvation. I agree that God has provided a future eternal sabbath rest (Hebrews 4:9-10). However, is there value in setting aside a day of holy rest and gathering with others to worship (Hebrews 10:25)? Apparently, God places value on both (Exodus 16:22-30, John 20:19, Isaiah 58:13-14). What that looks like will be different for us. But no doubt, holy rest and worship are important.
What does your day of soul rest and worship look like? As you reflect, consider the following passages from Isaiah 58:13-14 and Matthew 11:29.
“If because of the sabbath, you turn your foot
From doing your own pleasure on My holy day,
And call the sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable,
And honor it, desisting from your own ways,
From seeking your own pleasure
And speaking your own word,
Then you will take delight in the Lord,
And I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;
And I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken” (Isaiah 58:13-14).
“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS” (Matthew 11:29).
Lord, thank You for the eternal Sabbath Rest we have in You. Thank You for the REST FOR OUR SOULS You alone give.
Have you ordered a copy of Debbie’s most recently published book, From My Heart, Poems of Faith? Within the pages, Debbie beautifully records her thoughts and prayers through the following sections: “Prayers to the Father,” “Poems of Faith,” and “Poems to Encourage.” As you read through each poem, you’ll find words of hope, comfort, and encouragement that deeply resonate with your heart. Get a copy HERE.
Soul Rest
“I’m tired! I’m tired of work. I’m tired of the tension in the world. I’m tired of struggling with… I’m tired of taking care of….” How would you finish those sentences? God understands. Our body, mind, and soul need rest. The Bible says God rested on the seventh day. (Genesis 2:2) One of His Ten Commandments is, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” (Exodus 20:8) Today, some ignore God’s command to have a holy day of rest each week. Their reasoning? Believers aren’t bound by Old Testament laws. I agree that we are not legalistically bound to keep the Jewish Sabbath. I agree that Jesus’s work to obtain our salvation on the cross means that we don’t work for our salvation. I agree that God has provided a future eternal sabbath rest. (Hebrews 4:9-10.) However, is there value in setting aside a day of holy rest and gathering with others to worship? (Hebrews 10:25) Apparently God places value on both. (Exodus 16:22-30, John 20:19, Isiah 58:13-14) What that looks like will be different for us. But no doubt, holy rest and worship are important. What does your day of soul rest and worship look like?
“If because of the sabbath, you turn your foot
From doing your own pleasure on My holy day,
And call the sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable,
And honor it, desisting from your own ways,
From seeking your own pleasure
And speaking your own word,
Then you will take delight in the Lord,
And I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;
And I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find REST for YOUR SOULS. Matthew 11:29
Lord, thank You for the eternal Sabbath Rest we have in You. Thank You for the rest of our souls You alone give.
Soul Rest
“I’m tired! I’m tired of work. I’m tired of the tension in the world. I’m tired of struggling with…. I’m tired of taking care of….” How would you finish those sentences? God understands. Our body, mind, and soul need rest. The Bible says God rested on the seventh day. (Genesis 2:2) One of His Ten Commandments is, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.” (Exodus 20:8) Today, some ignore God’s command to have a holy day of rest each week. Their reasoning? Believers aren’t bound by Old Testament laws. I agree that we are not legalistically bound to keep the Jewish Sabbath. I agree that Jesus’s work to obtain our salvation on the cross means that we don’t work for our salvation. I agree that God has provided a future eternal sabbath rest. (Hebrews 4:9-10.) However, is there value in setting aside a day of holy rest and gathering with others to worship? (Hebrews 10:25) Apparently God places value on both. (Exodus 16:22-30, John 20:19, Isiah 58:13-14) What that looks like will be different for us. But no doubt, holy rest and worship are important. What does your day of soul rest and worship look like?
“If because of the sabbath, you turn your foot
From doing your own pleasure on My holy day,
And call the sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable,
And honor it, desisting from your own ways,
From seeking your own pleasure
And speaking your own word,
Then you will take delight in the Lord,
And I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;
And I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”
Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find REST for YOUR SOULS. Matthew 11:29
Lord, thank You for the eternal Sabbath Rest we have in You. Thank You for the rest for our souls You alone give.
Soul Rest
“I’m tired! I’m tired of work. I’m tired of the tension in my life. I’m tired of struggling. I’m tired of taking care of….” How would you finish that sentence? God understands. Our body, mind, and soul need rest. The Bible says God rested on the seventh day. One of His Ten Commandments is to keep the Sabbath Day as a day of rest. Today, we often ignore the command to have a day of rest saying that it doesn’t apply to us. But isn’t that a little strange to decide which of God’s commands have value and which don’t? I agree that we are not bound to legalistically keep the Jewish Sabbath. I agree that Jesus’s work to obtain our salvation on the cross results in our NOT WORKING for salvation. And, I agree that God has provided a future eternal SABBATH REST. (Hebrews 4:9-10.) Until then, however, is there value in taking one day each week to rest our body and soul? I think there is, although I am admittedly late to learn the value. Rest. God modeled it.
Lord, thank You for the eternal Sabbath Rest we have in You. Thank You for modeling resting one day each week. May we wisely learn from You and follow Your example.
“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find REST for YOUR SOULS.” Matthew 11:28-29
Soul Rest
NEWS! Montana P.R.A.Y. with Passion Conference DAY 2. Thank you for your prayers for an outpouring of God’s Spirit and travel safety as I return home.
“I’m tired! I’m tired of work. I’m tired of the tension in my life. I’m tired of struggling. I’m tired of taking care of….” How would you finish that sentence? God understands. The Bible says God rested on the seventh day after He completed the creation. One of His Ten Commandments is to keep the Sabbath Day as a day of rest; as He rested on the seventh day. Jesus’s work in obtaining our salvation on the cross results in our NOT WORKING for salvation. God has provided a future day of eternal SABBATH REST. Hebrews 4:9-10. Until then, what do we do if our soul is anything but at rest? We respond to Jesus’s invitation in Matthew 11:28-29. We learn how to walk in step with Him. Soul rest. Ahh – it’s nice. And it is ours for the taking.
Lord, thank You for the eternal Sabbath Rest we have in You. Thank You that even though our days may be filled with family, work, and ministry commitments, we can experience SOUL REST by walking in step with You. You are our RESTING PLACE.
“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find REST for YOUR SOULS.”
Soul Rest
“I’m tired! I’m tired of work. I’m tired of the tension in my life. I’m tired of struggling. I’m tired of taking care of….” How would you finish that sentence? God understands. The Bible says God rested on the seventh day after He completed the creation. One of His Ten Commandments is to keep the Sabbath Day and to not work on it. Jesus’s work of obtaining our salvation on the cross results in our NOT WORKING for salvation. God has provided a future day of eternal SABBATH REST. Hebrews 4:9-10. Until then, what do we do if our soul is anything but at rest? We respond to Jesus’s invitation in Matthew 11:28-29 and learn how to walk in step with Him. Soul rest. Ahh – It’s nice. And it’s ours for the taking.
Lord, thank You for the eternal Sabbath Rest we have in You. Thank You that even though our days may be filled with family, work, and ministry commitments, we experience SOUL REST when we walk in step with You. You are our RESTING PLACE.
“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find REST for YOUR SOULS.” Matthew 11:28-29
Praise to the Lord, Our Sabbath Rest
“So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His” (Hebrews 4:9-10).
I’m tired! I’m tired of work. I’m tired of the tension in my life. I’m tired of struggling. I’m tired of taking care of…. How would you finish the sentence? God understands. He gets it.
The Bible makes a point that God rested on the seventh day after creating the world. One of the Ten Commandments is to keep the Sabbath Day as a holy day and to cease from work on it. Jesus’ work of gaining our salvation on the cross resulted in our not working for salvation; but rather resting in what Christ accomplished on the cross.
God cares about you being weary. We will one day enter God’s ultimate provision of His presence – an eternal Sabbath rest. Until then, we can thank God that life won’t always be so hard. We can thank Jesus for paving the way for our future rest. And, we can prayerfully ponder Matthew 11:28-30. “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
Lord, thank You for the eternal SABBATH REST we have in You. Thank You that even though our day is spinning out of control, we can come to You and find rest.
SABBATH REST
“So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His.”
Hebrews 4:9-10
I’m tired! I’m tired of working so hard. I’m tired of the tension in my life. I’m tired of struggling. I’m tired of…. How would you finish the sentence? God understands. He gets it. The Bible makes a point that God rested. He rested on the seventh day of creation. One of the Ten Commandments is to keep the Sabbath Day as a holy day and one on which to cease from work. Jesus’s work of gaining our salvation on the cross resulted in our not working for our salvation; but rather resting in what He accomplished. God cares about you being so weary. We will one day enter God’s ultimate provision of His presence – an eternal Sabbath rest. Until then, we can praise God for paving the way for our future rest. And, we can learn what Matthew 11:28-30 means.
Lord, thank You for the eternal SABBATH REST found in You. Thank You for the REST for our souls you give us when we are yoked to You.