Rest: Our greatest reward
Happy Labor Day! This is the day we celebrate those who work hard every day to provide for their families and keep the economy going. We Americans pride ourselves on our history of hardworking people upon whose backs this country became strong and prosperous. The majority of us still value working hard and feel less valuable when we can’t.
The shutdowns that occurred in response to the COVID pandemic led to business closures, financial constraints, and uncertainty – maybe even panic - about the future. When many of us couldn’t work and when industry shut down, we were suddenly left without assurance, maybe even without an identity.
That’s because work means security. It means we will have food to eat. We’ll have a place, sheltered from the elements, to lay our heads at night. We work for an end result - to obtain peace and rest.
I recently read an author whose words encouraged me to take a fresh look at the Bible’s creation account. We all know that God rested on the seventh day (Genesis 2:2), but sometimes we make the mistake of thinking that He rested because He was somehow tired from all of His creating work. But how could God, Who had only to speak a word and it all came to be, ever get tired? No, rest means something else – something much more. To Him, rest was a sacred, holy celebration (Genesis 2:3). The seventh day was the best day of them all, because He had completed the work He had set out to do – to create a world where He could dwell with His creation in peace and harmony.
Sin has since separated us from that peaceful, restful state. But thanks to His undeserved grace, He is once again on mission, working out a redemption plan to establish an enduring, perfect place of rest – a sacred, holy reality for all of eternity.
In the meantime, in a world where our work is harder and our bodies grow tired, He has given us a beautiful practice:
“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy” (Exodus 20:8).
“Then he said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27).
When we take time to rest, we get a glimpse into Heaven. Its curtain is pulled back, allowing us to see the blessed future of unhindered peace that is waiting for those who trust in Him.
When Jesus Christ – God in flesh – came to earth, He showed us in no uncertain terms that our work here was not our final destination. He stepped out of Heaven to restore the broken bridge into His presence - the place where He dwells, the place where rest is always assured.
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).
Rest is not just a nice pick-me-up when we get tired. Rest is our greatest reward. But it’s available only to those who run to the God who created it.
“Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it” (Hebrews 4:1).
“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts” (Hebrews 4:7).
Turn to the Lord, and you will have strength and guidance to complete your work here, knowing that sweet and everlasting rest will soon be yours. We will have peace with God, and say as the psalmist did: “Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord has been good to you” (Psalm 116:7).