GOD’S REST
GOD’S REST
HEBREWS 4:1-13
God knows us completely: noting can be shielded from his searching examination.
We now take up an expression in the Psalm, “They shall never enter my rest.” Actually this has probably been behind the argument for some time, but the writer now openly concentrates on it. As the people wandered through the wilderness, the “rest” stood for the end of their troubles when they entered their Promised Land. But there is a deeper meaning than merely the ending of external hostilities. The writer recalls that the Bible speaks of God as resting on the seventh day from his work of creation (4:4). This shows that there is a blessed state in which God is, and into which God’s people might come. But when God swears that certain people will never enter it, then obviously the entering has not yet been accomplished. It is not these people, but some others, who will enter.
But perhaps the words apply strictly to the entering of Israel into Canaan? This possibility is ruled out by the date of the Psalm. Long after Joshua’s generation had entered Canaan, it was recorded that God swore they would not enter his rest. Clearly the “rest” in question was something other than the uncertain rest of living in Canaan. The true rest still remains for the people of God (4:9). It is explained as resting from our labors as God did from his. This refers to the work of salvation. It is not obtained by strenuous striving. It is a good gift of God. And we do not enter into it until we stop our own ineffective efforts to obtain it and rest quietly on the promises of God. It is only then that we are really found resting in and with God.
It is then important that we concentrate on this rest and do not fall away by the kind of disobedience that ruined the Exodus generation of Israelites (4:11). This leads to the reflection that God’s word is not to be taken lightly. It is conceived dynamically. It is not static waiting for us to handle it as we will. It is “living and active” and stands in judgment on us. It is sharper than a sword, for it penetrates to the innermost recesses of our human personality (4:12). Nothing is hidden from God (4:13). It is impossible to bluff our way through. The word is always adequate, always revealing. We stand before God as we are, stripped of all pretensions and shams. This is still a solemn warning.