Spiritual Rest
I. You can feed yourself and
exercise and still be weak if you do not rest spiritually
A.
There is a rest for your spirit-2 Corinthians
2:13, 7:13, 1 Corinthians 16:18
1.
There was an opportunity to preach and
minister, but because he had no rest in his spirit he had to take a leave; he
couldn’t do what he was called to do with no rest
2.
When you rest your body, you stop moving, you
get quiet, and are still
3.
Resting your spirit the place where your
spirit is quiet, still, at peace
B.
Rest is a principle that in all forms that
when you engage it, you get stronger
1.
When you rest spiritually you become edified
and recover your strength-Acts 9:31
2.
EX: You tear the muscle down, then during the
rest period it builds back up stronger
C.
Not resting will drain your spirit of
strength and make you weak; therefore if you want to be strong in your spirit,
your must learn how to rest spiritually
1.
It’s possible to have strength flowing in,
but flowing out quicker than it’s flowing in
2.
Not resting drains your spirit; We must
eliminate these “non-resting” things that drain our spirit of strength (EX: If
you don’t plug the tub it’ll never fill up)
3.
Proverbs 24:10-If you’re spirit is drained
you can’t win
II.
The life of faith, the life of obedience to and agreement with God’s
Word is the life of rest
A.
Hebrews 3:18-4:3-You enter rest by faith; the
life of faith is the life of rest
1.
4:1AMP-There’s a rest that still holds and is
still being offered today (spiritual rest)
2.
The moment you get in disagreement with His
word you are no longer resting and it is very taxing on your spirit
a. 18AMP-Those who disobey, who do not listen to His word, who refuse to be
compliant or persuaded of it are not resting and do not enter into his rest
b. 19AMP-Their unwillingness to adhere to and trust in and rely on God kept
them from entering into this rest
3.
To rest spiritually you have to get in faith;
and that means you believe God’s Word
a. 4:3AMP-Those who adhere to, trust in, and rely on God
b. The place of rest is the place of agreement with God’s Word
1) Faith is agreeing with what God said
2) The COI didn’t enter into this rest because they didn’t agree with God
4.
You will only lean on what you trust and it’s
only when you are trusting and leaning that you are resting
a. When you trust something, you lean on it and as you do you’re resting
b. When you lean on God and just do what he says, you’re resting
spiritually
B.
The person who has entered into God’s rest
has ceased from his own works
1.
Also-If you have entered into rest, then you have
ceased from your own works
a. The man who is still doing his own stuff is not resting
2.
To enter into God’s rest you’re going to have
to stop doing your own stuff and do only the stuff that God told you to do
a. It is your own stuff that drains your spirit
b. Things like strife, worry, sorrow, being critical of people, that is
your own works and when you engage those things you’re not resting but rather doing
your own works and that keeps you from resting and it’ll wear you out and make
you weak
c. When you engage these things it drains your spirit of strength-Proverbs 15:13
1) Sorrow means to Vex-To irritate; to make angry; to torment, to
harass, to afflict; To disturb, to disquiet, to agitate; to trouble, to
distress
2) In the life of some believers there is not rest; there’s strife, there’s
worry, there’s confusion, there’s sin and that’s why there is no strength
3) This is why so many people (who spend time in the word) are not strong
to fight
3.
Rest is not doing nothing, it’s doing nothing
God didn’t tell you to do and doing only what he told you to do
C.
Some things that are extremely taxing on your
spirit; we have to eliminate these drains
1.
What God didn’t tell you to do, there is no
grace to do, and therefore doing that thing will wear you out
a. Without grace to do, you’re doing on your own, and it’s going to drain
your spirit
b. Grace at it’s highest function makes what you face easy; it removes the
struggle
c. 2Cor4:16-We do not become discouraged (utterly
spiritless, exhausted, and wearied out through fear)
2.
Distinguish what’s hard on your spirit, and
what’s hard on your flesh and always choose the thing that is hard your flesh
and never choose what’s hard on your spirit
a. EX: Worry is hard on your spirit, faith is hard on your flesh
3.
John 6:63-Walking in the spirit brings invigorates,
endows with greater powers of life, gives life; walking in the flesh drains you
and makes you weak
D.
11-We are to work to enter into that rest; he
didn’t suggest it, he commanded it
1. John 6:28-29-The work of the believer is believing/faith and believing/faith
is a rest
2. My work is that I trust God, I believe what he says, I do what he says
and it’s a rest
a. I’m working all the time; believe what he says, do what he says, and
rest
b. Take the emotion out of it and it’s a rest
III. Jesus lived the ultimate
life of resting and as we watch him and do what he does we’ll rest the way he
did-Matthew 11:27-30
A.
If you’re tired, heavy, or worn out the
command of Jesus is to come to him
1.
You’re worn out because you weren’t with him;
you were out doing your own thing
B.
2 keys to find rest (If you do the things
before the and you’ll get the rest after the and)
1.
1) Take his yoke upon you (A yoke is a wooden beam used between a pair of oxen or other animals to enable them to pull together on a load when working
in pairs; the wooden yoke that joined two animals together so they could
combine their strength to pull a load that generally would have been too
difficult for one animal to pull by himself)
a. Take MY yoke upon you
1) He didn’t say I’ll come and help you do your own stuff; he said hook to
me in my stuff and that’s how you get the rest
2) Clearly you haven’t been doing the same work; you’ve been on your own
3) Notice to get the rest you’re going to have to quit your own stuff and
join him
b. To take his yoke upon you and join him you’re going to have to walk like
he walks
1) You can’t be yoked to him and doing it your own way
2.
2) Learn of him---Watch how he does it
a. The way that you rest is in walk with him, work with him, watch how he
did it and do it like him
b. Weariness comes when you get away from him, you’re not walking with him,
you’re not watching how he did things and you’re not doing it like him; That’s
when you get tired because there’s no faith in that and it’s your own works
c. Proverbs 10:29-The way of the Lord is strength to the upright
C.
He lives by the unforced rhythms of grace
1.
This is the unforced rhythms of grace-I only
say what my father tells me to say, I only do what my father tells me to do; I
trust He’s got my best interest at heart and rest in what he’s told me
a. John 5:30-I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my
judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.
b. John 8:26-I have many things to say and to
judge of you: but he that sent me is true; and I speak to the world those
things which I have heard of him.
c. John 8:28-29-Then said Jesus unto them, When ye
have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I
speak these things. And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me
alone; for I do always those things that please him.
d. John 8:38-I speak that which I have seen with my Father
e. John 12:49-50-For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I
should say, and what I should speak. 50 And I know that his commandment
is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto
me, so I speak.
f. Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead; He kept the men from stoning the
women; He raised Jairus’ daughter from the dead; Nothing is forced it is all a
rest
2.
I just believe him and do what he says, my
victory is guaranteed and that’s resting
a. This is the resting side of life because this way guarantees your
success; this way has already been tested and tried and proven and it’s
perfect-Psalm18:30
3.
Don’t make the unforced rhythms of grace
hard-He said my yoke is easy
a. In the life a believer and his relationship with God there should be a
constant conversation of grace and faith between the Father
and his son
b. Psalm 46:10-Be still and know that He is God
IV. The battle shouldn’t wear
you out and if it does you’re not fighting it right-
A.
2Corinthians 4:16-You’re inward man is
renewed day by day not getting more tired
1.
Romans 4:20-Abraham was strong in faith,
giving glory to God
2.
Caleb didn’t say I barely made it after 40
years in the wilderness
B.
The fight of faith is a rest; it’s a fight to
rest; to trust God, do what he says, and rest