What Constitued God's Rest

"Thus the heavens and the earth were finished and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made. Genesis 2:1-

Was God just plum tuckered out, physically tired, mentally worn out at the end of the creation week? In Exodus 31:17 it states, “On the seventh day He ceased from labor and was refreshed.” The term “from labor” is not in the Hebrew but was added by the translator. So this should read, “He ceased and was refreshed”. In Psalms 121:4 it states, “He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep,” showing us that God does not get physically tired or mentally wore out at the end of a day as we do.

No, what this does show is that God took enjoyment in His finished creation. Just like a carpenter who once had a plan in his head now can stand back and look at the finished creation of a beautiful home and say this is very good.What could be more refreshing and restful than God to be in fellowship with his creation?

I know personally there are times I will sit in a tree stand and watch nature and have communion with my heavenly Father and will have the same refreshing and rest that comes from a personal relationship with Him. God wants all of us to come into this eternal rest with Him and enjoy the rich bounty of His love.

test link

What Constitued God's Rest

What Constituted God’s Rest?

Genesis 2
1Thus the heavens and the earth were finished and all the host of them. 2And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. 3And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
Was God just plum tuckered out, physically tired, mentally worn out at the end of the creation week? In Exodus 31:17 it states, “On the seventh day He ceased from labor and was refreshed.” The term “from labor” is not in the Hebrew but was added by the translator. So this should read, “He ceased and was refreshed”. In Psalms 121:4 it states, “He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep” showing us that God does not get physically tired or mentally wore out at the end of a day as we do. No what this does show is that God took enjoyment of His finished creation, just like a carpenter who once had a plan in his head now can stand back and look at the finished creation of a beautiful home and say this is very good.What could be more refreshing and restful than God to be in fellowship with his creation? I know personally there are times I will sit in a tree stand and watch nature and have communion with my heavenly Father and will have the same refreshing and rest that comes from a personal relationship with Him. God wants all of us to come into this eternal rest with Him and enjoy the rich bounty of His love.

New Testament Church Transparency

2 Timothy 1:7 says this about fear: “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but God has given us a spirit of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

God has not given us a spirit of fear. Fear is not of God, but God has given us a spirit of love. God wants us to first connect intimately with Him, and out of an intimate personal relationship with God, His perfect loves drives out all fear, and we are able to have healthy relationships with others. The problem is, so many of us have not become secure in an intimate relationship with God; therefore, we fear transparency (removing the mask and revealing who you really are; getting beyond the surface to what is really going on in your heart) with other people. So many people I know are living with barriers to transparency in their lives because of past pain - and their pain is real. So many people I know today build walls of protection around their heart.

But look at what God’s love does to eliminate that fear. 1 John 4:18 says: “There is no fear in in love . . . in love, but perfect love does drives out fear.”

If we as the body of Christ are to connect as the Lord intended we must take faith relational risk.

What are the rewards of transparency? In Genesis 2:25, "Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame." There was complete transparency and openness of relationships between God and man, man and women only when sin entered into the equation was the hiding from open intimacy. The reward becomes freedom to love and be loved as God intended from the beginning. Jesus said in Matthew 22:37, “Love the Lord your God will all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.”

We must first start with intimacy with God though Christ, and He said, “the second most important thing is like it, to love your neighbour as yourself.” Let us walk in faith, letting the life of Christ to heal our hearts and recieve freedom in Christ to become transparent.

The Contradictions of Life

“Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. ”  I Peter 3:10-12

Peter tells us the prophets were a bit confused.  They had a hard time reconciling a reigning king Messiah with a suffering servant Messiah.  But to their credit they “inquired diligently.”

We too can be confused by the seeming contradictions we face in our Christian lives.  We know and preach that God wants to bless us, yet we sometimes find ourselves walking through circumstances that are anything but blessings.  We believe in healing and yet sometimes must wait for it.  God has promised to guide us, but there are times we sit waiting in the dark.  The Christian life can seem to be contradictory at times.

When we are confronted with these seeming contradictions Hebrews 12:3 advises us to “consider Jesus” who endured the greatest contradiction. The true essence of Life Himself, left to die a criminal's death on a cross.  Peter also encourages us not to think it strange when some fiery trial comes along, but rejoice that we are partaking in Christ’s sufferings.

There is one sure thing:  Paul encouraged young pastor Timothy, “If we suffer with Him, we shall also reign with Him.” In another place Paul encourages suffering Christians with this thought:  “These momentary light afflictions are not compared to the glory that shall be revealed in us.” 

When the contradictions of life come along – and they will – we have an example of the prophets who went to their knees and diligently inquired of God about the things they didn’t understand.  We also have the example of the savior who patiently waited through the trial and received the greatest honor of all - a name above every other name.  

Learning Through the Tough Times

“Though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered.”  Hebrews 5:8

This is a difficult statement when you really start to think about it.  We often read right past it.  However it is one of those important scriptures that tell us something about what made Jesus’ ministry eternal.

Perfection is never valid until it has been proven.  Faith is not faith without going through some thing that requires us to trust God.  We can talk about BEING courageous, but without some fearsome circumstance we can not BE courageous.  Likewise obedience is only good when you have the option not to obey.  Jesus’ perfection had to be put to the test.

We need to be careful not to miss the point.  Jesus didn’t “learn obedience” as if He wasn’t obedient and through the process of trial and error learned he had to obey or else.  Had He disobeyed once it would have all been over?  The point is what He learned THROUGH obedience. 

It is when we step out in faith and obey that we learn some things about God and ourselves.  In other words there are some things you cannot know until AFTER you have obeyed.  That is the fearful part of the faith walk. Once again we can point to Abraham who, “by faith obeyed…and went out not knowing where he was going.”  

One thing we learn through obedience is that God is faithful.  Until we have experienced that for ourselves, it is only an unproven theory proposed by others.

Jesus’ relationship with the Father did not keep Him from having to take some steps in the dark; neither will ours keep us from learning in the same way.

Faith For Guidance

“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”  Romans 8:14

Today’s passage relates to the mark of true sonship.  It is a two-edged sword. There are many that claim to know God, but have little evidence of that relationship.  Here faith meets reality.  The proof of the pudding is in the eating, as the old saying goes.

It is s two-edged sword because it proves our sonship from two different viewpoints. From heaven’s point of view the proof of our sonship is our faithful obedience to the dictates of the Spirit.  But from this side of the fence the Spirit’s leading in our life proves our sonship.  God is not leading those that are not His.

While we are saved by faith and not works, faith must also have actions that accompany it and validate it.   James dealt with this when he said, “faith without works is dead being alone.”  And Paul relates the experience of Abraham in Hebrews 11 when he tells us, “by faith Abraham obeyed….”

To walk with God requires faith, but faith requires action.   We must believe the Spirit is leading us, and we must have faith to walk in that guidance, even as Abraham who, “went out not knowing where he was going.”

Spiritual Offerings

​​​​​​​“May you accept my prayer like incense, my uplifted hands like the evening offering!”  Psalms 141:2 NLT

Sacrifice was a daily part of life in Jerusalem.  Each morning and afternoon a whole bull was burned on the altar for a “continual burnt offering.”  The time of the evening sacrifice was 3 pm, the exact time of Jesus’ death on the cross.   Likewise, twice a day a priest, designated for the job by lot, went into the temple to burn incense on the golden altar of incense before the Holy of Holies.  Typically the worshippers in the temple area prayed at this hour.  It was this event Luke refers to when John the Baptist’s father, Zechariah, saw the angel and was informed of John’s pending birth and ministry. (Luke 1)

The Psalmist, King David, was the only man in the Old Testament who truly lived as a New Testament believer.  David’s Tabernacle was used for worship during his reign, even while the commanded sacrifices where taking place in the Tabernacle of Moses.   David’s Tabernacle is where singing, praise and worship went on around the clock.  It was an open tent with the presence of God available to all the worshippers, unlike the closed and divided Tabernacle God had Moses build. These two Tabernacles stood as stark contrast between Old Testament legalistic worship and New Testament spiritual worship.  It was David’s Tabernacle, not the Tabernacle of Moses, which Jesus came to rebuild and establish.  (Amos 9:11 and Acts 15:16)  It was also David’s Tabernacle that was associated with the salvation of the Gentiles.

David knew God did not want empty ritual.  He knew God wanted spiritual worship.  This was the gist of the conversation Jesus had with the Samaritan woman at the well.  She asked “WHERE should we worship?”  Jesus instructed her on HOW to worship.  Legalism requires ritual, ceremony and often – the right place.  Legalism limits worship.  Grace personalizes it.  David is asking God to set aside the rituals of sacrifice and incense and accept his personal response to God as true worship.

In applying today’s scripture it is important to note a couple of things.  First the Evening Sacrifice was a whole burnt offering and it stood for entire consecration to God.  In some offerings the priest got the best portion as payment for his service and the person offering the sacrifice got a portion back to eat.  Not so with the burnt offering.  It was totally given to God. Man received no direct physical benefit.   It would be somewhat akin to taking a church offering today (Let’s say $1000) and the whole church going to the parking lot and burning it before the Lord.  I can hear the protests now.  "Why this waste? We could have used that money for ...."  It reminds me of the woman who pours the box of expensive ointment on Jesus' feet.  Judas wanted to know why she had wasted it and not sold it an gave an offering.  Is anything consecrated to the Lord really wasted?  Money?  Time? A life?

When David made this request he was making a statement of total consecration. His raised hands before the Lord indicated surrender, devotion, love, longing for God and more.

In several places the Bible uses incense as a symbol of prayer ascending before God.  It was this regular twice-daily temple ritual David was referring to when he wrote this. Without becoming legalistic about it, perhaps our prayer lives should take on more consistency and structure. 

Peter reminds us “You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. I Peter 2:5

At the end of the day two things that will impact the world for Jesus Christ:  Dedicated prayer and consecrated, sacrificial living.  It is in this way the Tabernacle of David and this Psalm is connected with World Missions and the salvation of the Gentiles.


By Steve Highlander