Dear Friends,
I do not know about you, but this past week I found myself feeling tired and lacking focus. So many things going on. Many opinions to sift through, events to consider, conflicts that need to be resolved, interpersonal issues to address... It has the potential to be distracting and draining. And if you happen to have felt that as well, I urge you to read the following thought by Charles Spurgeon as he considers Jesus' words, "Come unto me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28).
So enticing, is it not? Rest. Spiritual rest. Inner rest. Rest of soul that leads to the ability to attain physical rest and refreshment. It's a promise. A promise from the Savior. A promise we need to remember every so often when things pile up and make it hard for us to rest. A promise for every weary person that will come to Him... That's why I thought I would offer you wise words from Spurgeon this week, giving guidance on how to find the rest Jesus promises to us when the things of this world work against it. At a time where many feel a sense of unrest, I trust his words might help you find that promised rest. Enjoy.
"The HEART is by nature as restless as the ocean's waves. It seeks an object for it's affections, and when it finds one beneath the stars, it is doomed to sorrow... The more tender the heart, the greater the unrest. For some people the heart is simply the strongest muscle, and these individuals remain undisturbed, because they are callous. But the sensitive, the generous, the unselfish, are often found, "seeking rest and finding none" (Matt. 12:43). To such individuals the Lord Jesus says, "come unto me...and I will give you rest." Look here, loving ones, here is a refuge for your wounded love. You may delight yourself in the well-Beloved One and never fear that He will fail or forget you. Love will not be wasted, however much it may be lavished upon Jesus. He deserves it all, and He requires it all. In loving Him, the heart finds a delicious contentment. When the head rests on His chest (as did the apostle John at the last meal) it enjoys an ease that no down-filled pillow could bestow. Madame Guyon rested amid severe persecutions, because her great love for Jesus filled her soul to the brim! O aching heart, come here, for Jesus says, "I will give you rest."
The CONSCIENCE, when it is alive and awake, is much disturbed when the holy law of God has been broken by sin. As you know, once the conscience is aroused, it is not easily quieted... Like the troubled sea, it cannot rest, but it constantly casts the mire and dirt of past transgressions and iniquities upon the shore of memory. If this be your situation, then Jesus says to you, "I will give you rest." If fears and anxieties arise at any time from an awakened conscience, they can only be safely and surely quieted when we run to the Crucified One. In the blessed truth of Christ's substitutionary death, which is acceptable to God to pay the penalty for our sins, and has been fully accomplished by the Lord Jesus, our minds find peace. Justice is honored and law is vindicated in the sacrifice of Christ. Since God is satisfied with Christ's death on our behalf, we may be satisfied too....
The INTELLECT is another source of unrest, and in these times there are many things that attempt to trouble the mind. Doubts, stinging like the bites of mosquitoes, are suggested on almost every page of the literature of the day. Many men are drifting like vessels that have no anchors, and they come into collision with us. How can we rest? One scheme of philosophy eats up the other, each new form of heresy devours the last. Is there any foundation? Is anything true? Or is it all a fairy tale? Are we doomed to be the victims of an ever-changing lie? O soul, do not seek an answer to this by learning of men, but come and learn of Jesus and you will find rest! Believe Jesus, and let all the rabbis contradict you if they must. The Son of God was made flesh; He lived, He died, He rose again, He lives, He loves. This is true, and all that He teaches in His Word is assured truth. The rest may blow away like chaff before the wind. A mind in pursuit of truth is a dove without a proper resting place until it finds its rest in Jesus....
In Christ we are AT REST. At rest concerning our duties, for He instructs us and helps us in them. In Him we are at rest about our trials, for He sympathizes with us in them. With His love, we are at rest as to the movements of Divine Providence, for His Father loves us and will not allow anything to harm us. Concerning the past, we rest in His forgiving love. As to the present, it is bright with His loving fellowship. As to the future, it is brilliant with His expected coming. This is true of little things as well as the great. He who saves us from the battle-ax of satanic temptation, also extracts the thorn of a domestic trial. We may rest in Jesus concerning our sick child, our business trouble, or grief of any kind. He is our Comforter in all things, our Sympathizer in every form of temptation. Do you have this all-covering rest? If not, why not? Jesus gives it; why do you not partake of it? Do you have something you could not bring to Him? Then flee from it, for it is not a fit thing for a believer to possess. A disciple should know neither grief nor joy that he could not bring to his Lord...
Dr. Horatius Bonar's sweet hymn, which is so suitable for a sinner coming to Christ for the first time, is equally appropriate for a weary believer returning to his Savior's arms. The weary Chrstian can also sing:
"I heard the voice of Jesus say,
Come unto Me, and rest;
Lay down, thou weary one, lay down,
Thy head upon my breast.
I came to Jesus as I was,
Weary, and worn and sad;
I found in Him a resting-place,
And He has made me glad."
I trust some bit of truth from his words helped you. I trust that some needed to be turned back to Jesus as the focus of their lives, rather than the stirring cauldron of opinions and untested ideas. Jesus, as the author of Hebrews tells us, "Fix your eyes on Jesus..." To fail to do so is to risk losing the peace He offers to all who will come to Him - and keep their eyes fixed on Him.
In His Grace, Pastor Jeff
I do not know about you, but this past week I found myself feeling tired and lacking focus. So many things going on. Many opinions to sift through, events to consider, conflicts that need to be resolved, interpersonal issues to address... It has the potential to be distracting and draining. And if you happen to have felt that as well, I urge you to read the following thought by Charles Spurgeon as he considers Jesus' words, "Come unto me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28).
So enticing, is it not? Rest. Spiritual rest. Inner rest. Rest of soul that leads to the ability to attain physical rest and refreshment. It's a promise. A promise from the Savior. A promise we need to remember every so often when things pile up and make it hard for us to rest. A promise for every weary person that will come to Him... That's why I thought I would offer you wise words from Spurgeon this week, giving guidance on how to find the rest Jesus promises to us when the things of this world work against it. At a time where many feel a sense of unrest, I trust his words might help you find that promised rest. Enjoy.
"The HEART is by nature as restless as the ocean's waves. It seeks an object for it's affections, and when it finds one beneath the stars, it is doomed to sorrow... The more tender the heart, the greater the unrest. For some people the heart is simply the strongest muscle, and these individuals remain undisturbed, because they are callous. But the sensitive, the generous, the unselfish, are often found, "seeking rest and finding none" (Matt. 12:43). To such individuals the Lord Jesus says, "come unto me...and I will give you rest." Look here, loving ones, here is a refuge for your wounded love. You may delight yourself in the well-Beloved One and never fear that He will fail or forget you. Love will not be wasted, however much it may be lavished upon Jesus. He deserves it all, and He requires it all. In loving Him, the heart finds a delicious contentment. When the head rests on His chest (as did the apostle John at the last meal) it enjoys an ease that no down-filled pillow could bestow. Madame Guyon rested amid severe persecutions, because her great love for Jesus filled her soul to the brim! O aching heart, come here, for Jesus says, "I will give you rest."
The CONSCIENCE, when it is alive and awake, is much disturbed when the holy law of God has been broken by sin. As you know, once the conscience is aroused, it is not easily quieted... Like the troubled sea, it cannot rest, but it constantly casts the mire and dirt of past transgressions and iniquities upon the shore of memory. If this be your situation, then Jesus says to you, "I will give you rest." If fears and anxieties arise at any time from an awakened conscience, they can only be safely and surely quieted when we run to the Crucified One. In the blessed truth of Christ's substitutionary death, which is acceptable to God to pay the penalty for our sins, and has been fully accomplished by the Lord Jesus, our minds find peace. Justice is honored and law is vindicated in the sacrifice of Christ. Since God is satisfied with Christ's death on our behalf, we may be satisfied too....
The INTELLECT is another source of unrest, and in these times there are many things that attempt to trouble the mind. Doubts, stinging like the bites of mosquitoes, are suggested on almost every page of the literature of the day. Many men are drifting like vessels that have no anchors, and they come into collision with us. How can we rest? One scheme of philosophy eats up the other, each new form of heresy devours the last. Is there any foundation? Is anything true? Or is it all a fairy tale? Are we doomed to be the victims of an ever-changing lie? O soul, do not seek an answer to this by learning of men, but come and learn of Jesus and you will find rest! Believe Jesus, and let all the rabbis contradict you if they must. The Son of God was made flesh; He lived, He died, He rose again, He lives, He loves. This is true, and all that He teaches in His Word is assured truth. The rest may blow away like chaff before the wind. A mind in pursuit of truth is a dove without a proper resting place until it finds its rest in Jesus....
In Christ we are AT REST. At rest concerning our duties, for He instructs us and helps us in them. In Him we are at rest about our trials, for He sympathizes with us in them. With His love, we are at rest as to the movements of Divine Providence, for His Father loves us and will not allow anything to harm us. Concerning the past, we rest in His forgiving love. As to the present, it is bright with His loving fellowship. As to the future, it is brilliant with His expected coming. This is true of little things as well as the great. He who saves us from the battle-ax of satanic temptation, also extracts the thorn of a domestic trial. We may rest in Jesus concerning our sick child, our business trouble, or grief of any kind. He is our Comforter in all things, our Sympathizer in every form of temptation. Do you have this all-covering rest? If not, why not? Jesus gives it; why do you not partake of it? Do you have something you could not bring to Him? Then flee from it, for it is not a fit thing for a believer to possess. A disciple should know neither grief nor joy that he could not bring to his Lord...
Dr. Horatius Bonar's sweet hymn, which is so suitable for a sinner coming to Christ for the first time, is equally appropriate for a weary believer returning to his Savior's arms. The weary Chrstian can also sing:
"I heard the voice of Jesus say,
Come unto Me, and rest;
Lay down, thou weary one, lay down,
Thy head upon my breast.
I came to Jesus as I was,
Weary, and worn and sad;
I found in Him a resting-place,
And He has made me glad."
I trust some bit of truth from his words helped you. I trust that some needed to be turned back to Jesus as the focus of their lives, rather than the stirring cauldron of opinions and untested ideas. Jesus, as the author of Hebrews tells us, "Fix your eyes on Jesus..." To fail to do so is to risk losing the peace He offers to all who will come to Him - and keep their eyes fixed on Him.
In His Grace, Pastor Jeff
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