doctrine
of rest
I.
Introduction.
A.
The concept
of rest has its origin early in history used of God’s rest in the book of
Genesis on the seventh day following the six days of restoration. Gen.2:1-3
B.
That
omnipotence is one of the attributes of the Divine essence, it is clear that
God did not rest because His strength was taxed in any form. Isa.40:28
C.
Rather,
it is designed to picture God completing His works, ceasing from labor in commemoration
of His grace established for mankind.
D.
Therefore,
rest is understood to teach a principle that God provides all that is necessary
under a plan of grace with respect to every aspect of salvation (Ph1,
Ph2, and Ph3).
E.
One
should recognize that God’s promised rest is first and foremost a spiritual
form of rest for the soul. Psa.116:7;
Jer.6:16
F.
As
we will see, for the believer there are two distinct aspects of rest: the
soulish aspect that is primary and the physical aspect of a settled niche with
associated blessings that is the result of consistently applying doctrine under
testing
II.
Vocabulary.
A. Hebrew vocabulary.
1. tb;v' –
shabath; verb; to sever, to stop, to put an end to something.
2. !wOtB'v; - shabbathon; m.noun; 11x; a sabbath rest, a
complete rest.
3. x;Wn –
nuach; verb; to rest or settle down; the root signifies not only the absence of
movement but being settled in a particular place with overtones of finality.
a. tx;n: - nachath; f.noun; rest, quietness, a state
of physical motionless or of inner peace and security.
b. x;wOnm' – manoach; m.noun; 25x; resting place, a
place of security for animals or people.
c. hx'Wnm. – menuachah; f.noun; 21x; a
resting place, denotes either the place or state of rest; used of temporary
rest, permanent rest, and the eternal resting place.
4. ymiD\ - damiy; m.noun; 4x; to come to an
end, to rest.
B. Greek vocabulary.
1. pau,w – pauo; verb; 15x; actively, to cause one to
stop, to restrain or keep someone from something, in the middle voice, to stop
oneself, to cease or leave off.
a. avnapau,w – anapauo; verb; 12x; transitively, to cause
to rest, to refresh, figuratively, to give spiritual rest, inner peace and
refreshment.
b. avna,pausij – anapausis; f.noun; 5x; a ceasing, stopping
or interruption, the result of resting from labor or burdens, rest, repose, a
resting place.
c. katapau,w – katapauo; verb; 4x; to cause one to cease,
to give or bring to a place of rest; intransitively, to rest, cease from work.
d. kata,pausij – katapausis; f.noun; 9x; ceasing from one’s
work or activity, cessation, calm, rest.
e. sunanapau,omai – sunanapauomai; verb; 1x; to lie down with
or sleep with, to find rest or refreshment in the company of someone else. Rom. 15:32
2. a;nesij – anesis; f.noun; 5x; lit. a loosing, a
relaxing, relief, rest from troubles, burdens, etc.
III.
Definition
and description.
A. Webster defines rest in a number of ways as
applied to its common thread of meaning..
B. The primary meaning for our purposes is in
the sense of rest as getting repose by lying down and sleeping getting
refreshment for the body with emphasis on the act of ceasing or leaving off and
desisting from labor or exertion.
C. Further, it has the nuance of being free from
that which is binding, confining, wearying or disturbing.
D. Spatially it means to be quiet or still, to
remain in the same place or condition, to be fixed or settled.
E. Combined, these concepts indicate a state in
which one is not bothered by external pressures, does not work or labor, but
enjoys a settled status of relaxation, tranquility, peace, and serenity.
F. In the spiritual sense, rest is used to
denote this great condition in all the three stages of salvation, Ph1,
Ph2, and ultimately in Ph3.
IV.
The SAJG
provides a Ph1 rest.
A. Salvation refers either to the process
through which a person is brought from a condition of distress to a condition
of or to the state of ultimate well being.
B. Prior to salvation, the unbeliever is on a
futile mission to obtain a relationship with God, and his condition is marked
by fundamental problems that prevent him from attaining his goal.
C. While there are a number of ways people may
go about this, the most common method is the concept of manufacturing a
relationship with God via human works.
D. However, the Bible is quite clear on the fact
that man’s fallen state and God’s absolute righteousness makes this an
impossibility.
1. Man’s state is not simply one of some
inability; it is one of absolute inability by virtue of the fact that each
person is born into a state of spiritual death, residing under the wrath of
God. Eph.2:1,3
2. In order to share God’s life one must attain
His standard of righteousness (+R) that is an absolute impossibility due to the
indwelling sin nature. Rom.5:18a; Job
35:2 cp.Rom.5:18b; 2Cor.5:21
3. Any kind of works, even those based on the
perfect revelation of God’s standards in the Mosaic Law, are insufficient to
produce or provide salvation. Rom. 3:10,12,28,23; Gal.2:16; 3:10,21
E. The endless and fruitless attempts to acquire
salvation via human effort are precisely the reason God provides Ph1
rest apart from works. Joh.1:12-13
F. When one recognizes that faith in Christ is
the only issue in salvation, he leaves off working to provide his own salvation
and rests in the finished work of Christ.
Mat.11:28-30
1. Jesus Christ promised His rest to all who
would come to Him for salvation.
2. The promise is directed toward those that
have been futilely pursuing salvation through their works and have been
oppressed by the legalistic approach of their religious guides.
3. The principle of taking His yoke upon
yourself is His invitation to serve with Him in the plan of God Ph2;
the concept of learning from Him involves understanding (and then emulating)
the humility that causes Him to submit to the yoke of God.
4. He states that He is not like their religious
leaders (humility was not a virtue among the ancients, but was ranked with
slavery) and they will find Him meek/gently/unassuming
and lowly/humble in heart.
5. In contrast to the legalistic burden of
salvation by works, His service is characterized by that which is kindly/pleasant/easy and His burden light/limited/easy to bear.
V.
The
believer and Ph2 rest.
A. The book of Hebrews that emphasizes the concept
of Ph2 rest provides much of our insight to this area of rest.
B. Hebrews makes it quite clear that there is a
Ph2 rest that God provides and one that He desires His people to
enjoy. Heb.4:1
C. Ph2 rest is characterized as requiring
the following if a believer is going to enjoy God’s rest.
1. Salvation is the beginning, and is our
introduction to this rest. Heb.4:2-3a
2. One must continue to manifest positive
volition toward the Word of God; unbelief is the enemy that will keep you from
God’s rest. Heb. 3:19; 4:11-13
3. The believer must not only maintain fidelity
to God’s word, He must be willing to consistently apply doctrine to his
testing. Heb.4:6
4. In due time, God will bless each believer
with a permanent, settled niche and whatever blessings that come to him in that
niche. 2Sam.7:1
5. David is a good example of this state that is
to be contrasted with the years of conflict and persecution under Saul.
6. To continue to exploit God’s rest demands an
ongoing allegiance to the Word of God to the end of one’s Ph2. Heb.3:14
D. The blessings of Ph2 rest come
after an undetermined period of testing that eventually leads one to a mature
and ultimate permanent niche of service and blessing. Cp.Jam.1:2-4,12
1. The conquest generation is a good example of
entering God’s rest after lengthy testing.
2. David exemplifies the truth of this as he is
tested severely under Saul and finally settles in the palace in
E. There will be continued testing after one is
settled in his permanent niche, but there are temporal blessings for passing
the humility test. Pro.15:33
1. The temporal blessings will vary in degree
and type among believers and are not simply to be measured in net worth.
2. In fact, those very Ph2 blessings
can be tested in order to demonstrate whether or not the believer has sufficient
grace orientation and mastery of the details of life. Gen.22
Abraham and Isaac
F. Therefore, the following exhortations are
appropriate with respect to rest and one’s continued enjoyment of that rest.
1. Do not harden your heart when you hear the
truth. Heb.3:12-13
2. Monitor yourself at all times and watch for
any signs that you may be falling into the evil, unbelieving heart syndrome.
3. Encourage other believers to stick with the
straight and narrow, exhibiting your priorities by example in both word and
deed.
4. One should have sanctified fear of failing to
enter God’s rest and make whatever adjustments and sacrifices are necessary to
enter that rest. Heb.4:1,11
G. Those that have entered God’s rest manifest
the following characteristics.
1. They unite what they hear in Bible class with
faith. Heb.4:2
2. They are obedient under testing. Heb.3:18
3. They hold fast to the doctrine and continue
the course that God is laying before them.
Heb.3:14; 12:1
4. They do not resort to fleshly tactics to
advance themselves or procure blessings; they avoid operation energy of the
flesh and wait for God to bless them.
Heb.4:10
H. Believers are said to find temporary rest
from surrounding –V in their Ph2 when they are in compliance with
God’s geographical will and in the company of other +V. Rom.15:31-32
VI.
The
Exodus generation constitutes the supreme illustration of failure under this
doctrine. Psa.95:8-11; Heb.3:7-19
A.
They
heard the Word of God for 40 years under Moses, but consistently refused to
believe what they were taught. Heb.4:2b
B.
They
were privy to overt miracles during that time, yet would not abandon their own
sufficiency and trust in God’s promise.
Acts 7:36; Heb.3:9
C.
They
failed every one of the ten tests that God had designed to prepare them to
enter the land of promise.
D.
Because
of their refusal to believe and their persistent disobedience God ultimately
denied them entrance into
E.
When
referring to this generation, the majority of whom were believers, God uses the
strongest language of disgust to denote His abhorrence of them. Psa.95:10; Heb.3:10
F.
Therefore,
they constitute a dire warning to believers of future generations. Heb.3:12; 4:11
G.
The
recipients of the book of Hebrews were facing a similar test and were in danger
of compromising the truth. Heb.2:1; 4:1;
6:11-12
1. They had made a good start in the Christian
way of life by separating from mainline Judaism at great personal cost. Heb.10:32-34
2. They had endured religious persecution,
economic deprivation, ostracism by their families and friends, and general
public humiliation.
3. The problem was that they were tempted to
compromise in order to alleviate the pressure, wavering and in need to
demonstrate endurance to the end.
Heb.10:36; 12:1
4. Their Ph2 problems with the Jewish
religious establishment were about to be eliminated by the 5th cycle
of discipline on
5. If they threw in the towel at this point,
they would forfeit the blessings of time and come under discipline and God’s
displeasure. Heb.6:7-8; 10:38
6. Beyond that, they would forfeit some portion
of the eternal blessings associated with the Ph3 niche. Heb.10:35
VII.
Ph3
will provide the ultimate in rest.
A. Like Ph1 rest, the believer will
enter Ph3 rest in a moment and will enjoy the blessings of that rest
for all eternity.
B. In that niche, all labor, work, or striving
will be replaced with glorious peace and rest, as the job is done, the battle
has been fought, the race has been run.
C. That niche is permanent and eternal; nothing
can ever disturb the peace and tranquility of God’s people there.
D. All eternal blessings that one has coming
will be delivered in full and each believer will have the time, ease, and
pleasure of enjoying them forever.
E. Nothing is admitted to the Ph3
niche that binds, restricts, or oppresses the believer in any way. Rev.21:4
F. While our personal existence will be
characterized by ultimate relaxation, peace, comfort, and joy, we will still be
serving in whatever capacity God has designed for us. Rev.7:15-17
G. The Millennium is referred to as rest since
the remnant will begin to enjoy the blessings of this state and physical
creation joins in that rest. Isa.14:3,7;
Jer.50:34; Isa.14:3,7
H. All believers find the eternal tranquility of
rest upon their death as noted by the term “sleep”. 1The.4:13 cp.Joh.11:11-13; Act.7:60; 13:36;
etc.
I. Death is pictured as a final experiential
blessing of entering into eternal rest for adjusted believers that die during
Daniel’s 70th week, a principle that can be applied to all believers
in any dispensation. Rev.14:13
J. What they have to look forward to is the reward
of eternal blessing of SG3 that comes as a result of their Ph2
works. Jam.1:12
K. On the other hand, negative unbelievers are
informed that their Ph3 existence will be characterized by a
complete lack of rest, as they endure unending torment, regret, despair,
etc. Rev.14:11
“Come
to Me, all who are weary
And
heavy-laden,
And
I will give you rest”
Mat.11:28