In the Old Testament, the Israelites were instructed to keep the Sabbath holy and to rest on it. The Lord God speaking to Moses, instructing him what to say to the Israelites, said, "Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the Lord that doth sanctify you. ... Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever: for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He rested, and was refreshed" (Exodus 31:12-18). There are those who would pervert the Word of God and claim that we are to obey the Sabbath commandment, charging that worship on Sunday is sinful. However, these people have failed to read the Scriptures on this issue and allow themselves to be taught correctly.
First, if they paid attention to that passage from Exodus 31, it states rather clearly that it is a sign between God and the nation of Israel. Furthermore, in the New Testament, Jesus said, "the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day" (Matthew 12:8; cf. Mark 2:28; Luke 6:5) and "the sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath" (Mark 2:27). Paul writes saying, "Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ" (Colossians 2:16-17). The word "judge" in verse 16 is the Greek krino (κρινω), which means "to condemn." It is the same word used in Matthew 7:1—"Condemn not, that ye be not condemned." The sabbath was a shadow of something better to come. In the New Testament, 9 of the 10 commandments are repeated. The one not repeated? Keeping the Sabbath. Why? Because if you are in Christ Jesus, He is our Sabbath. Any day, all day, every day. Every day the Christian is resting in Christ Jesus. In Hebrews 3:1-4:13, it speaks of Christ as our rest, saying, "For we which have believed do enter into rest" and "For he that is entered into His rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from His" (Hebrews 4:3, 10). Christ did the work for us. There is nothing we can do. Ergo, we have rested from our works and rest in His work.
Now that we have an understanding of rest, let's look at some other passages of Scripture that deal with resting. Jesus told us, "Come ye who are heavy laden, and I will give thee rest" (Matthew 11:28). If you are burdened with your sin and don't want to endure it any longer, come to Jesus. Repent of your sins and He will give you the rest you seek, which can only be found in Him. Scripture tells us that "The Lord shall give thee rest from thy sorrows" (Isaiah 14:3). You're not capable of carrying the burdens that can come your way. Peter wrote, "casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you" (1 Peter 5:7; cf. Psalm 55:22). There are many things that can cause us sorrows in this life, and especially sin. We need to bring them to the foot of the cross and cast them upon Jesus Who will give us rest. He tells us that "My yoke is easy and My burden is light" (Matthew 11:30). The burden of sin is a heavy one and it will weigh us down to our graves.
"Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him" (Psalm 37:7). Here the Psalmist gives us great wisdom. In our hustle and bustle world today, we often want answers now rather than waiting. David instructs us here to rest in the Lord, resting with full trust (v.3) and confidence, waiting patiently for Him. God is seldom early, but He is never late. God is in control of all things and there is nothing that is beyond His control. You either believe that with your head or with your heart. If it is merely head knowledge, you will worry and fret and eventually do things yourself because you think God needs a hand. You don't have faith in Him the way your lips claim. If it is heart knowledge, you will cast your worries upon Him because you know there is nothing you can do about it anyway. You will pray, asking Him to strengthen your patience while you wait for His answer, and you will wait until God has answered, even if that answer is a "No." Matthew 6:25-34 deals with worry and anxiety. You can't change anything by doing so, so exercise control over yourself and leave all else in God's capable hands.
"Return unto thy rest, O my soul" (Psalm 116:7a). When things start to go awry in your life, do you cry this? If you have been enjoying your rest in Christ Jesus and something suddenly comes up that tempts you to worry and fret and be restless in your soul, are you able to speak these words? The Psalmist continues in that verse, "For the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee." God always has your best interest at heart. He will provide the things you need—not the things you want. (see Matthew 6:32b). Your objective is to "seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness" (Matthew 6:33). God will look after the rest. You make sure that you are being "holy, for I am holy" (1 Peter 1:16). Call your soul back to rest in Jesus and trust Him faithfully.
When we have entered into Christ's rest, we have rested from our works, rested from our sins, rested from worries and anxieties. We rest with perfect peace of mind in His work, in our sanctification, and in confidence that God is in control of all things and that "all things work together for good to them that love God" (Romans 8:28). So "do not be anxious about your life" (Matthew 6:25).
First, if they paid attention to that passage from Exodus 31, it states rather clearly that it is a sign between God and the nation of Israel. Furthermore, in the New Testament, Jesus said, "the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day" (Matthew 12:8; cf. Mark 2:28; Luke 6:5) and "the sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath" (Mark 2:27). Paul writes saying, "Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ" (Colossians 2:16-17). The word "judge" in verse 16 is the Greek krino (κρινω), which means "to condemn." It is the same word used in Matthew 7:1—"Condemn not, that ye be not condemned." The sabbath was a shadow of something better to come. In the New Testament, 9 of the 10 commandments are repeated. The one not repeated? Keeping the Sabbath. Why? Because if you are in Christ Jesus, He is our Sabbath. Any day, all day, every day. Every day the Christian is resting in Christ Jesus. In Hebrews 3:1-4:13, it speaks of Christ as our rest, saying, "For we which have believed do enter into rest" and "For he that is entered into His rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from His" (Hebrews 4:3, 10). Christ did the work for us. There is nothing we can do. Ergo, we have rested from our works and rest in His work.
Now that we have an understanding of rest, let's look at some other passages of Scripture that deal with resting. Jesus told us, "Come ye who are heavy laden, and I will give thee rest" (Matthew 11:28). If you are burdened with your sin and don't want to endure it any longer, come to Jesus. Repent of your sins and He will give you the rest you seek, which can only be found in Him. Scripture tells us that "The Lord shall give thee rest from thy sorrows" (Isaiah 14:3). You're not capable of carrying the burdens that can come your way. Peter wrote, "casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you" (1 Peter 5:7; cf. Psalm 55:22). There are many things that can cause us sorrows in this life, and especially sin. We need to bring them to the foot of the cross and cast them upon Jesus Who will give us rest. He tells us that "My yoke is easy and My burden is light" (Matthew 11:30). The burden of sin is a heavy one and it will weigh us down to our graves.
"Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him" (Psalm 37:7). Here the Psalmist gives us great wisdom. In our hustle and bustle world today, we often want answers now rather than waiting. David instructs us here to rest in the Lord, resting with full trust (v.3) and confidence, waiting patiently for Him. God is seldom early, but He is never late. God is in control of all things and there is nothing that is beyond His control. You either believe that with your head or with your heart. If it is merely head knowledge, you will worry and fret and eventually do things yourself because you think God needs a hand. You don't have faith in Him the way your lips claim. If it is heart knowledge, you will cast your worries upon Him because you know there is nothing you can do about it anyway. You will pray, asking Him to strengthen your patience while you wait for His answer, and you will wait until God has answered, even if that answer is a "No." Matthew 6:25-34 deals with worry and anxiety. You can't change anything by doing so, so exercise control over yourself and leave all else in God's capable hands.
"Return unto thy rest, O my soul" (Psalm 116:7a). When things start to go awry in your life, do you cry this? If you have been enjoying your rest in Christ Jesus and something suddenly comes up that tempts you to worry and fret and be restless in your soul, are you able to speak these words? The Psalmist continues in that verse, "For the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee." God always has your best interest at heart. He will provide the things you need—not the things you want. (see Matthew 6:32b). Your objective is to "seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness" (Matthew 6:33). God will look after the rest. You make sure that you are being "holy, for I am holy" (1 Peter 1:16). Call your soul back to rest in Jesus and trust Him faithfully.
When we have entered into Christ's rest, we have rested from our works, rested from our sins, rested from worries and anxieties. We rest with perfect peace of mind in His work, in our sanctification, and in confidence that God is in control of all things and that "all things work together for good to them that love God" (Romans 8:28). So "do not be anxious about your life" (Matthew 6:25).