Experiencing God's Rest

January 18, 2026

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Right now we're gonna jump into this word. Meditation text comes from a very familiar passage of scripture for many, Matthew 11, verse 28. If we can read it together. Let's read. Come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Amen. I like how the message reads it. It says, Are you tired? Worn out? Burnt out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me, and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. That's not bad. Our main text comes from Hebrews chapter 4, verses 11 and 12. I really want to encourage us with this word today coming out of the fan. That we have some kind of daily habit in God's word. We got a number of disciples in classes that we'll be starting pretty soon. I definitely would like to get a few more Bible studies going and see what the Lord says. But I want to encourage you as you come out of this fashion. If you heard from God, it's because you heard him in his word. And so I really, really want to emphasize that. For 2026. Make it a goal to see God's word every day. And let's see what the Lord does. So, Hebrews chapter 4, verse 11 through 12, here's what it says. Therefore, let us be diligent to enter that rest so that no one will fall. Through following the same example of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword. Tell your neighbor, it's not a feather. And piercing as far as the division of the soul and spirit of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intention, intentions of the heart. Amen. And I want to talk about experiencing God's rest. Experiencing God's rest. When we've entered in a period during the sleep, in what is called REM. Rapid eye movement. This phenomenon occurs throughout the night. Sometimes four to six times. But when it happens, experts say we have deep, deep rest. We experience the true essence of rest. When it happens, we experience better memory processing, better mood regulation for our emotional health, better concentration and problem solving skills, a better overall brain function. In a word, we all need REM in our nightly sleep. It gives us rest. It's similar to what happens for many of us when it comes to our digital devices. Whether it's smartphone or tablets or smart TVs, every now and then our devices will get a glitch where it seems like the software has crossed its wires. Nothing really wrong with the device, it's what's going on on the inside that's not right. And so when that happens, what do we do? We don't go down and trade in the phone or trade in the TV. We ain't got that kind of money, amen. No, we reboot the device. We reboot the tablet, we reboot the smartphone, we reboot the smart TV. And by rebooting it, it comes back and begins to operate optimally, the way it was designed to function. In a word, the device had a deep sleep. In a word, it took a nap and woke up and felt better about itself. Same is true for us. We need that reboot of the soul. We need that REM of the soul, and that's really what I'm raising today. Is there an REM of the soul? Because how many of y'all know you can go to bed early and sleep all night and still wake up worried and bothered? I can get rest in my physical body, but is there rest for my soul? Is there a divine reboot that helps me operate properly? And a society that encourages overwork for lower pay, and a society that advocates for merit and success based on lies and not the truth. In a society in which we don't even know if our children are gonna come home safely that night. How many of y'all know we need some rest? That's what the writer is trying to communicate in this text in verse one of the chapter. The writer answers the question for us is there REM rest for the soul? He says, Yes, there is rest for our souls. In verse 11, the writer encourages us to enter into that rest. And surely there's three elements of rest that usually the scriptures talk about. There's the eternal rest that every Christian has who placed faith in Jesus Christ. That when life ends on this side, there's an eternal rest on the other side. Anybody know what I'm talking about? But a second level would say there's also that kingdom rest. That's when Jesus will bring about the consummation of all things. The world will come to an end, a new heaven and a new earth will be birthed, and an entire new reality will be brought into existence. And what God intended in Genesis 1 will become a reality when Jesus returns. All that is good, but I believe for our purposes, the rest that the writer is talking about here today is what Jesus said. Come unto me. All ye that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Kind of like what that 72-year-old woman said that had just finished the march from Selma to Montgomery when Martin King was marching for the for the vote, the voting right in Alabama. They asked her, Was she tired? She said, My feet is tired, but my soul is resting. That's the kind of rest I want. I may be physically tired, but on the inside I'm still strong. And I believe God wants to give us that kind of rest. And I believe our thesis statement helps us find it. And here it is: the rest of God is found in the word of God. Is there rest for our soul? Yes, it's found in the word of God. Psalm 1 says, but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law he meditates day and night. For he shall be like a tree firmly planted by the river waters, which yields its fruit in season, and its leaves does not wither. And whatever he does, he prospers. Don't miss that. He's doing that in the desert, y'all. He's doing that in difficult times. But you know God is working in your life when he calls you to flourish in unflourishing places. Ah, the word of God is what gives me the rest of God. For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword. What does he mean by the word of God? Because understand, when he speaks this word, they don't have the Bible like we have it today. It's not in its complete form. If anything, they had the Old Testament and may have had a few letters of the New Testament, but we don't get the full canon until the fourth century until that African theologian Athanasius puts together that canon. So what does he mean by the word of God? It's better to say the word that God has spoken for our time. Meaning this it's the word of God through the lens and the eyes of Jesus Christ. He says in verse 1 that God has spoken to us through his son. So Christ becomes the center, he becomes the lens, he becomes the window by which I understand the scriptures that are spoken to me. Put it another way, it's a Christiological hermeneutic that we ought to come to the text to understand what God is saying to our lives. Matter of fact, I'll go so far to say it as Jesus said it in John chapter 5, verse 39. I love this text. He says, You search the scriptures, and in them you think they give you eternal life. But it is those scriptures that you search that testify of me. In a word, Jesus says, if you really want to know who I am, every time you read the scriptures, I'm gonna show up in your life. Oh, I wish I could preach this. Because we got a whole lot of Christians today that can pick up the Bible and say nothing about Jesus and think that somehow God is involved in it. Jesus said, No, everything from Genesis to Revelation, it is a revelation of who I am to the world. The rest of God is found in the Word of God. So I'm gonna say it like my Greek professor at Dallas Seminary, Dr. Daniel Wallace. One of the foremost scholars in Greek on the planet, y'all. This man was so brilliant that when they went to grade his dissertation, nobody on the campus could read it. They had to send it outside the country for somebody else to read it. He's a bad brother. You hear me? But here's what he used to tell us. And I want to get it right. He says, our study of the scriptures ought not lead us to master the Bible, but it ought to lead us to the master of the Bible. Isn't that the problem today? The way some Christians quote scriptures, they act like they didn't master the Bible. And the question is, has the master of the Bible mastered you? That's what it means to have the word of God in our lives. That we are like it ought to lead us to a closer walk with Jesus. So let me just say a few things about the word of God. Number one, the word of God reveals to us the voice of God. Why do we need the word of God? Because the word of God reveals the voice of God to us. How do we know God is really speaking to us? How do you know it was just it just was some bad pizza you had the night before? Or is your mind talking to you? Because when you look online to some of the stuff folks said God told me, okay, you had bad pizza last night, bruh. You need the word of God. Chapters three and four really form a homily. And in this sermon, this mini homily that the Hebrew writer crafts here, he has his main text as Psalm 95 and 7. And in that text, we get these words today, if you hear my voice, harden not your heart. Three times he quotes that verse. And that's the point he wants to make about the importance of hearing God's voice. And that text is a psalm of worship that David wrote for the people of God. And it's like David was reminding them that look, we can come to worship, but now worship alone is not enough. Don't make the mistake of previous generations. And he refers back to what happened in the book of Numbers and how Israel had come to the promised land and they had sent 12 spies into the wilderness, and 10 came back with a bad report. And because the 10 came back with a bad report, they wandered in the wilderness for 40 years. The trip was only a 10-day trip, but took 40 years to get there. Ever wonder why it takes folks so long to get to some purpose and goal in their life? Maybe it's because they're not on board with what God is trying to do in their life. And David circled around and said, Look, we can have good worship, we can have good ministry, but if we don't do what God tells us to do, we're gonna wander in the wilderness. Hear me well. We're more inclined to ignore God's voice than we are to hear. Oh, y'all don't hear me today. Ah, let me say it like this. Let me say it like this. Let me say it like this. Here it is. Say it like this. So, so um, years ago, years ago, because this hasn't happened recently, years ago, counsel, young man that was thinking about getting married and didn't know if he was gonna get married, wasn't sure, and and you know, young folk would ask you questions. And I let them ask whatever question they would ask, whatever you want to ask. And he asked me the question, so Pastor, why should I get married? Who are you to tell me about marriage? Now he didn't mean anything disrespectful, he really didn't understand why he needed marriage, why did he need a paper? Who are you to tell him how to function as a husband or her? He said, I can do that all on my own. Why do I need all this? You know I had an answer, right? Just checking. And I said, you're right. I said, you don't have to do it. You don't have to do any of this. I said, but I do it because I'm a Christian. I do it because my God expects me to do it. What you do, you do what you believe to be true for you. I do it as an act of faith. I do what God expects me to do because I love him enough to demonstrate it in my faith before God. If you don't love the Lord, you don't have to do any of this kind of stuff. And what I was trying to teach him is there's a difference between belief and faith. I can believe a lot of things about God, but until I begin to practice what God wants for my life, it's just a waste of time. Oh, let me put it like this. I've used this illustration, but it works. It's kind of like that man who walked on a tightrope across the Niagara Falls, and there were crowds that were there, didn't think he couldn't do it he could do it, because y'all know they showed up to see if he was gonna fall and die. You know that, right? They show up, they stretch a tightrope across the Niagara Falls, and he walks, and I forgot exactly how what the distance was, but it was a pretty long distance. He walks all the way across the Niagara Falls on a tightrope, and then when he gets to the end, the crowd just erupts in thunderous praise. Couldn't believe a man could do that. He turns to the crowd, he says, Do you believe I can do it again? They said, Yes! Do you believe I can do it again? He says, Yes! I mean, the crowd said yes. Then he says, Who'll be the first one to jump on my back as I walk back? And just like y'all laughing, it got quiet. It's one thing to believe that he can walk on a tightrope across the Niagara fall. It's another thing to get on his back and by faith and trust him to take him across. And I know faith sounds crazy to a lot of us, but it's more than just believing that he rose from the dead. I will trust him and follow him in how he wants me to live my life. It's not just belief, it's faith. Want to hear the voice of God? You gotta respond in faith. We're debating what God wants us to do. What I'm saying is sometimes God has already spoken as to what we're supposed to do. And until we handle that revelation, what makes us think we can handle some new revelation? We ain't even handled the old revelation. Oh, let me keep going. I'd have made you mad. Here's the second one. The word of God allows us to know the heart of God. A lot of things here describing the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, able to judge thoughts and intentions. Number one, the word is refreshing. When it says it's living and active, it's kind of like what the old preacher would say. When we open the Bible, God opens his mouth. It's alive. I put here in 2 Timothy 3:16, all scripture is inspired. That word inspired, God breathed. And it's an image designed to go back to what God did with Adam. The Bible says God breathed on Adam and he became a living soul. The word of God will give you life. It'll bring you back to life. But hey, even Christians need to be restored to new life. Sometimes I need to be renewed. And the word of God acts as breath to renew my life. That I might be fresh. That's what David meant when he says he restores my soul. He refreshes my soul and gives me new life to keep going. The word of God is refreshing. The word of God is a mirror. It's a mirror. Because in the text, he also says it's able to judge. In other words, while we judge in others, the word is judging us. And here's the idea: it's not judged like in a courtroom. Because Paul said there's no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus. The devil will try to put on you something that God has already forgiven you of. No, the judgment is about discernment to help us see in our behaviors what is good and what is not good. It's to help us to distinguish between good and evil. Because we live in a world where all the lines are blurred. Say amen. It's all blurred. And so the word of God is able to judge. The psalmist said it like this, and this is a great prayer. Search me, O God. Know my heart. Try me, know my anxious thought, and see if there's any hurtful. One translation says, grievous way in me and lead me in the everlasting way. The word of God is a mirror for me to look in. Too many Christians think the word of God is a window to look in the lives of other people. Tell your neighbor the word of God is not a window, baby. It's just a mirror. That's what it is. It's a mirror. Helps me see when my hair ain't right and my face ain't right. I don't need you to tell me what's not right. Okay, I'm gonna leave that alone. Word of God is surgical. He calls it a two-edged sword. And the word here for sword is a dagger. It's the same one he uses in Ephesians 6. The sword of the spirit, the dagger of the spirit. And hopefully nobody in here has daggers. Amen. But a dagger is for close to close, close hand-to-hand combat, close encounters. We would call it a scapel. The word of God is surgical and precise in what it wants to do. It's not trying to kill us, but it is trying to kill what could kill us. That's why I use the word scapel. We can't handle daggers. Somebody come at us with a dagger, we're gonna pull our nine millimeter, right? So I said, let me switch this up. A scalpel. We know surgeons use scapels. But we have the good sense. He ain't trying to kill us. But he is trying to kill what may kill us. Had an interesting experience this week that helped me see this in a way I never saw before. So so most of y'all know, I think it was October 31st, I had to have a minor eye surgery. And everything's fine. But the worst thing they want to happen to your eye is get an infection. Because I've had to have a number of cornea transplants. Long story, if you want to know the story, I'll tell you after service, I ain't got time to go through all that. But the last thing they want is an infection. So there was something appearing on my I couldn't even feel it. I was fine. She took one look, put that cotton swab on. I said, ooh, that hurts. And looked like an infection was forming. So they gave me an antibiotic, but this was an interesting antibiotic. This was not an oral antibiotic. They eventually did give me an oral antibiotic, and I'm on it, I'm still on it right now. But this one was a drops, two different medications that went into my eye. And I had to put them in my eye every single hour of the day. And they had to be refrigerated. If you took them out of the refrigerator and left them out too long, they were no good. The antibiotic had to be cold for it to work. Interesting, over the first day, everything was fine. Second day, my eye began to really hurt and sting. Went back to the doctor. I said, you know, my eyes began to hurt. She took one look at it, everything is looking wonderful. She just shouted. She said, Matter of fact, you can start decreasing the dosage. I said, Yeah, but my eye is hurting. She said, that's because one of the medications that you have, it's a toxin. I said, talk to me. My homilytical antennas went up. She said, the toxin has to be put in your eye to kill the infection. I said to myself, oh, it's something that was put in my eye not to kill me, but to kill something that's in me. I said, then what was the second one? I said, when I put that one in, I don't feel anything. She said, oh, that's a soother. It's healing what the toxin leaves behind. Before he can heal me, he thought he has to cut me. Let me wrap this thing up. The word of God brings us into the presence of God. And here's where the shift comes as he comes to the end of chapter four. He shifts and talks about Jesus as our high priest. And in chapter five, through I believe it's seven, maybe eight, he talks about the high priestly ministry of Jesus. And so he says in verse 14, therefore, since we have a great high priest who is passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. In other words, let's hold on to our faith. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses. One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore, let us draw near with confidence. I don't have to be scared. He's waiting for me to come, y'all. Even when I messed up, I can still come to him, to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. The word will give us peace. Because when we get into the word of God, the presence of God becomes real and we experience the peace of God. I'll close with this and I'm done. Ha! Came across the story of a preacher. Been preaching for a number of years, and he was getting toward his senior years, close to retirement. And one of the things he wanted to do, he wanted to learn how to fly a plane. That was one of his bucket list items. And so as he came to the close of his ministry, he began to take up private lessons at a local airport, learning how to fly. He was doing really well. He was on about his eighth lesson, and they're flying, and his instructor is sitting next to him, and for the first time, he flies into a cloud bank. Every single flight before then was always clear blue sky. Just wonderful weather. This time he flew into a cloud bank. And there was a little bit of rain in that cloud and a little bit of wind that he had never encountered. He said, Of course, anxiety began to build up. He became a little bit nervous. He said, the anxiety began to clutch his breathing. He said his legs began to tighten up, his hands began to grip and sweat. He said he began to jerk a little bit. He jerked the car the uh the plane a little bit, and it kind of fly a little bit differently. And the whole time he's he's just sweating with fear. Finally, he looks over to his instructor, hadn't moved, sitting there with a smile on his face, like everything was right with the world. He went on and tried to work through it, but he just was too nervous. Finally, the instructor put his hand on, put his hand on his hand that was on the throttle and moved it over and said to him, just trust the instruments. The instruments will get you through the cloud bank. Rest and enjoy the ride. He said for the first time he had to trust those instruments and his flying instincts. And lo and behold, he was right. As long as he focused on the instruments, it got him through the cloud bank. And the instructor with a smile on his face told him, I told you it was gonna be alright. Pastor, what are you talking about? When we're walking with Jesus, we got an instructor who walks with us. And when the storm gets a little heavy and we get a little bit anxious, you know what he says? Just trust the instrument. Just trust the instrument. It'll get you to where you're trying to go. All I'm simply trying to say, y'all, let's be a people of the word. God will use the word to bring us through every single time. Come on, let's close with a word of prayer. Father, we bless you and thank you again for your word. Thank you again for this fast. Thank you for all that you are cultivating in all of us. Thank you that the word is a two-edged sword. It does cut both ways. It cuts to kill some things in us, but it's not trying to kill us. It's trying to heal us. Trying to make us better. Thank you for that assurance. Now just lift us up as a church. Thank you for being the loving church we are. The compassionate and caring church we are. Lord, may we not lose that. But Lord, take us a little higher and make us a church of the word. Not in arrogance, not in this religious pride and piety. We don't need that. But Lord, by your spirit, in the image and the spirit of Christ, our Savior, our Lord. May we conduct ourselves in his image, in his way. That people will say, There indeed are the people of God. Have your way as we come to the Lord's Supper. Bless us now. In Jesus' name. Amen. Listen to these words of the master. While they were eating, Jesus took bread. And when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, Take and eat. This is my body. Then he took a cup. And when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine. From now on until that day, I drink it new or afresh with you in my Father's kingdom. Take a moment and just bow for a moment of prayer and ask the Lord to help you to receive what you need to receive today, coming out of your fast or just the service, the worship, the word.