God's Promised Rest
God's promised rest is a spiritual state of uninterrupted fellowship with God, available every hour of the day or night, where we fully trust in Christ's work for salvation.
David Wilkerson emphasizes the significance of entering God's promised rest, which is achieved through complete trust in Christ's finished work of salvation. He explains that this rest signifies the end of human striving for peace and the necessity of relying solely on Jesus' grace. Wilkerson highlights the spiritual nature of our struggles, contrasting it with Israel's historical failures to fulfill their promises to God, and stresses the importance of seeking uninterrupted fellowship with Christ. He encourages believers to desire Christ as their sole source of satisfaction and to claim their spiritual inheritance in His presence.
Text
"There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his" (Hebrews 4:9-10).
You may wonder, "What does it mean to enter this promised rest? What should it look like in my life?" I pray that God will remove the scales from our eyes and allow us to grasp this. Simply put, entering into his promised rest means fully trusting that Christ has done all the work of salvation for you. You're to rest in his saving grace, by faith alone.
This is what Jesus means when he urges, "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28). It means the end of all your fleshly striving, all your human efforts to obtain peace. And it means relying totally on Jesus' work for you.
Our battle is not against flesh and blood. It takes place in the spiritual realm. The Old Testament makes this crystal clear. Time after time, Israel made empty, futile promises to God: "We want to serve you, Lord. We'll do whatever you command us." But history proves they had neither the heart nor the ability to follow through on their word. God had to strip them of all faith in themselves. Everything we need is to come from our precious Lord's presence.
Paul states, "In him we live, and move, and have our being" (Acts 17:28). This speaks of uninterrupted fellowship. Through the victory of the cross, our Lord has made himself available to us every hour of the day or night. We have to make a decision: "I want Christ in my life. I want to be set free from all flesh. So I'm going to move forward, into his presence and claim my possession. I want Jesus to be my all, my only source of satisfaction."
Sermon Outline
- God's Promised Rest
- A: Entering God's Rest
- B: Fully trusting Christ's work for salvation
- C: Resting in saving grace by faith alone
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The End of Fleshly Striving
- Relying on Jesus' work for peace
- No more human efforts to obtain peace
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Uninterrupted Fellowship with God
- Available every hour of the day or night
- Making a decision to claim possession
Key Quotes
“Simply put, entering into his promised rest means fully trusting that Christ has done all the work of salvation for you.” — David Wilkerson
“Our battle is not against flesh and blood. It takes place in the spiritual realm.” — David Wilkerson
“In him we live, and move, and have our being” — David Wilkerson
Application Points
- Make a decision to rely on Jesus' work for peace and stop relying on your own human efforts to obtain peace.
- Recognize that our battle is not against flesh and blood, but in the spiritual realm.
- Seek to have uninterrupted fellowship with God every hour of the day or night.