The promised land has been expanded to the entire earth, which Christians inherit.

This world is not my home? That's not what Jesus said.

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (October 7th)

Always First in Fellowship

He goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him, as he said unto you. — Mark 16:7

Where He appointed to meet His disciples, there He would be in due time. Jesus keeps His tryst. If He promises to meet us at the mercy-seat, or in public worship, or in the ordinances, we may depend upon it that He will be there. We may wickedly stay away from the appointed meeting-place, but He never does. He says, "Where two or three are met together in my name, there am I"; he says not "There will I be," but, "I am there already."

Jesus is always first in fellowship: "He goeth before you." His heart is with His people, His delight is in them, He is never slow to meet them. In all fellowship, He goeth before us.

But he reveals Himself to those who come after Him: "There shall ye see him." Joyful sight! We care not to see the greatest of mere men, but to see HIM is to be filled with joy and peace. And we shall see Him, for He promises to come to those who believe in Him, and to manifest Himself to them. Rest assured that it will be so, for He does everything according to His word of promise: "As he said unto you." Catch at those last words, and be assured that to the end He will do for you "as he said unto you."

#faith #bible #christian

Amen brother. Check out the other articles on that site too.

Calvinism? https://www.recontavern.com/calvinist-soteriology

“Who’s in charge here?”

Dr. Gary North was fond of asking that question as a way of pointing to the first part of the Biblical covenant. We’d be talking about transcendence at that point. That’s a five-dollar word nerds use to speak of being sovereign over everything. God is transcendent. He is the highest. He is the greatest. There is none like Him.

Psalm 50 says He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, which is a pithy way of saying that he owns all the cattle on all the hills. He owns all the hills and everything else there is to own.

This is the bedrock of what we call Calvinism. Contrary to what you see everywhere on the internet, Calvinism is not chiefly about how sinners get saved. Now, as the kids say, don’t get it twisted: Calvinism does explain that. It faithfully summarizes the Biblical data on the topic. But, this is a by-product of the bedrock idea: God is in charge, here.

Calvin didn’t begin his magnum opus, the Institutes of the Christian Religion, by saying, “Okay, let’s start with Point One of Five: Total Depravity.” Rather, the starting place of his theology was the importance of man knowing what sort of creature he is, and what sort of God created him. For Calvin, the creator was sovereign. That sovereignty eventually extended to the question of the eternal fate of every individual. However, the reason it extended there is because it extended everywhere.

God is sovereign, over everything. There is no place outside His sovereignty, down to electron shells and quarks; to the rise and fall of nations; to the progress of time; to the spinning of galaxies we just figured out how to look at a minute ago. It extends to the number of hairs on your head right now, and how your days will be finished. As Kuyper suggested, there is no place in all creation that the Lord Jesus does not touch and declare, “Mine!”

Christian Reconstructionists believe in this radical rule of God over all things. Because God is in charge, a corollary truth immediately confronts us: no one else can be. It is a stark dichotomy with no wiggle room. God is sovereign. We are not. The Bible does not hint about any sort of “shared power” arrangement. He rules. We follow the rules (or should, at least). Even when God does see fit to grant authority to people over certain areas, that authority is temporary, limited, and subject to certain judgment. He has authority over all authorities. They are his and not their own.

As Mark Rushdoony has pointed out, God’s sovereignty over all things is what undergirds the other pillars of Christian Reconstruction. His authority over ethics and morality gives us Theonomy. His sovereignty over history yields our postmillennial hope. God’s rule over the realm of human relationships, including the persistent question of “the one and the many”, gives us our covenantalism. Even the manner in which we defend our faith is subject to His precepts, and so we promote Presuppositional apologetics.

Calvinism; Theonomy; Postmillennialism, Presuppositionalism; and the pattern of the Biblical Covenant: this is the core of Christian Reconstruction.

As you read what Reconstructionsists write, you’ll hear about these over and over. But that shouldn’t be taken as some sign that it stops there. God’s radical sovereignty over all things means that we also need to explore how to do everything according to His instruction. His rule, and our duty, extends to things like business ownership; wealth management; international diplomacy; the family; education; creative arts; scientific inquiry; technology; domestic policy, sexual ethics; healthcare; and so on.

The ramifications of a Calvinistic view of God are things we like to think about. We think they are really great ideas, and, if pursued in real life, they bless everybody. And, yet, we think it would be horrible for us to force you to agree with any of it. You can be sure we’ll work hard to persuade you. We may even manage to make ourselves a nuisance in that endeavor. Please forgive us. We honestly believe we know where the pure water is, and we love you enough to try to lead you there.

We’re not sovereign over you, though. God is.

This brings us back around to a Calvinistic view of soteriology, or the study of how salvation comes to sinners. Believe it or not, every Christian Reconstructionist worth a plug nickel is passionate about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It’s not merely that God elects those he will save. It’s also that He’s chosen the means by which He will save them. He’s chosen “the foolishness of preaching” as Paul said. This is the answer to the well-worn objection: “If you believe in predestination, then why preach? God will save who He wants, with or without your efforts.”

God hasn’t merely chosen the ends, but also the means. For instance, He doesn’t need our prayers in order to get things done, but, by the means of prayer, he lets us share even now in His rulership. He doesn’t strictly need anyone making petitions before the throne of grace, but He invites us to the privilege. So also, though He chooses the ones He will save, and needs no help to do it, He has chosen to use our participation as gospel-spreaders to get it done.

This is where Christian Reconstruction stands or falls. If the gospel is not enthusiastically preached, then the whole rest of our program is a non-starter. If we don’t thunder the proclamation of the grace of Christ around the world, then people remain in their sins. They remain under the illusion of self-sovereignty. They go on clinging to the idea that they are in charge of themselves, and that God is not.

People in this condition will not be interested in the immutable, moral standards of Theonomy. They won’t be cheered or buoyed by the thought of Christ’s progressively increasing kingdom. They’re happy with the law and the kingdom they have, because they think they own it.

I had the privilege of hearing Dr. Bahnsen preach once in person at a little church in El Cajon, California in the early 90s. I still remember the theme of his message. As profound as that was, what struck me the most in the moment was the man’s love for Christ and His gospel, which permeated through both his sermon and his demeanor. I’ve read a lot of Bahnsen since then, and I must admit that this doesn’t always translate to the page. That’s no insult, but rather an admission of the fact that the medium of the message really does matter. You had to hear his tone that night in El Cajon. You had to see, at the crescendo of his sermon about the culmination of Christ’s kingdom, the tears welling up in his eyes.

I mention that anecdote to say this: Christian Reconstructionists, first and foremost, should be Gospel people, with the message of the merciful love of Jesus spilling over their lips, because it’s constantly bubbling up from within them. May their bellies be threatening to burst like wineskins, with the only relief being the actual telling of the Good News of Christ to someone who needs to hear it.

Without this Gospel, this power of God unto salvation, the whole Reconstructionist program, like a colossal airplane, will never find a long enough runway to get off the ground. It may rumble forward with thunderous engines revved high, threatening to go somewhere. But it will prove to be more like an ostrich, having the look of a thing that maybe ought to be able to fly, but trapped here with the rest of us, captive to gravity.

May God grant to the Christian Reconstructionist movement a passionate army of fire-breathing friends of sinners. May their message be as winsome to the common folk as it is threatening to all the villains and tyrants. May it comfort, and discomfort, all the right people.

Granted, we need more intellectual leaders like Rushdoony, North, and Bahnsen (and, frankly, we can already spot some of them, who saw where the mantel was dropped and have picked it up). Our greater need is for preachers like Charles Haddon Spurgeon. Theonomy will become yet another tool for tyrants if it is not pursued by humbled sinners, on whose hearts and minds the Torah of Yahweh has first been inscribed. “Kingdom building” will be the battle cry of oppressors from the Right, just like “Do it for the children” from the Left. In our desire to see the enemies of Christ foot-stooled beneath his feet, let’s include ourselves there first. “Thou art the man!”

The first sphere of God’s sovereignty that lies in need of Reconstruction; where the reign of King Jesus needs to find practical expression; and, His visible kingdom should grow in both intensity and expanse over time, is the life of the individual believer. Without this primary, indispensable work of the grace of God, Christian Reconstruction becomes simply another religious program. Let’s not kid ourselves. Minus the indwelling Holy Spirit, none of this is any better than the old monastic rules, or Charles Finney’s guidelines for creating “revival”. Lots of us are homeschoolers, for instance. But Christian homeschooling, minus the transformative grace of Christ’s gospel, can turn tyrannical just as quickly as any Leftist cry for tolerance. Unsaved religionists love rules, and salivate over the thought of holding positions of power. Reconstructionism is not insulated from that. If you’re looking for rules and structure, well, we’ve got some of that.

Reconstruction minus the gospel of grace is simply another species of Power Religion, as Dr. North coined the term. What we need is Jesus, crucified for sinners and raised to new life. Get saved. Turn from your sins and trust in Christ alone. Be born again. Be recreated in His image, spiritually resurrected. Once you’ve done that, or, rather, had it done to you by the Spirit of God, come read our books and listen to our lectures. That hunger and thirst for righteousness you now have: we can give some guidance.

So, yes, Gentle Readers, we are Calvinists. Not that we follow a man, but we’ve found the theological formulation of things to be top-notch. We believe that, apart from the grace of Christ, the heart of man is fallen in every aspect, deceitful and desperately wicked. What else can explain the course of the world? He can’t reverse his condition on his own, because every resource he might marshal to the task is just as corrupt as the stuff he’s trying to clean. When he opens his spigot to fill his mop bucket, only poison and mud flows out.

His salvation must, therefore, come from outside himself. God must bring it to him. But, being under zero obligation to save anyone at all from what they deserve, God is free to bring that salvation to individual sinners based upon his own will. He saves as He pleases. However, when God pleases to save a sinner, He does so entirely. He does not merely open a prison cell door and then walk away. The blood of Christ actually delivers every single one it was meant to deliver. It doesn’t provide nine tenths of salvation to everyone, and then wait on the sinner to make up the last, little bit. It saves.

The grace of Christ overcomes the persistent corruption of the sinner. It wouldn’t “work” otherwise. It’s not that the sinner has no will to make real decisions: it’s that his decision-maker is just as evil as the rest of him, dead in sins and needing resurrection. God doesn’t save us apart from our wills, but He does save our wills first, by replacing hearts of stone with warm, pliable, beating hearts of flesh.

He keeps on saving in the life of the believer. He keeps on delivering. His mercies are new every morning. He brings his own intention to completion. Though the ones being saved stumble along imperfectly, suffering defeats, setbacks, and even tantrums born of frustration and fatigue, yet He doesn’t kick them to the curb. His intention for them, personally, from before the beginning, was to save them: to save them, in fact, from their own failure to do right. They make it through to the end, faithful unto death. And, when they do, it doesn’t prove how awesome they were, but how good He was to them.

The last five paragraphs have constituted a very short, popular-level summary of the five points of Calvinism. There are Calvinists who will read them and hate them for their imprecision and lack of footnotes and proof-texts. I’m okay with that. You can find the books and articles that do all of that, including one in the Amazon Kindle store from yours truly. My plea to the Calvinist who hated that simple explanation is this: Don’t go on to be a Christian Reconstructionist. I mean, you do you, of course, but we’ve got all we ever needed of nitpickers, who turn the mercy of Jesus into a theology exam, and use any set of rules, including Theonomy, to crush people. Go join a Weslyan fellowship somewhere, and work diligently for the restoration of Calvinistic Methodism.

We need Recons who remember where they were when God found them. We need Recons with a present sense of regret over their present sins. Let us have the ones who remain thankful for the evening long ago, when their Savior led His people from the basin of water, like a slave, washing feet of honored guests. This, even though that group turned out to be a table of turncoats; a dinner with deserters; a meal with malcontents.

He could do this because He knew all about sovereignty and patience. He was well-acquainted with the saving God who has an undefeatable plan, and the powerful grace to make it happen. - Gordan Runyan

#faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (October 6th)

The Leadership of Our Guide

Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth — John 16:13

Truth is like a vast cavern into which we desire to enter, but we are not able to traverse it alone. At the entrance it is clear and bright; but if we would go further and explore its innermost recesses, we must have a guide, or we shall lose ourselves. The Holy Spirit, who knows all truth perfectly, is the appointed guide of all true believers, and He conducts them as they are able to bear it, from one inner chamber to another, so that they behold the deep things of God, and His secret is made plain to them.

What a promise is this for the humbly inquiring mind! We desire to know the truth, and to enter into it. We are conscious of our own aptness to err, and we feel the urgent need of a guide. We rejoice that the Holy Spirit is come and abides among us. He condescends to act as a guide to us, and we gladly accept His leadership. "All truth" we wish to learn, that we may not be one-sided and out of balance. We would not be willingly ignorant of any part of revelation lest thereby we should miss blessing, or incur sin. The Spirit of God has come that He may guide us into all truth: let us with obedient hearts hearken to His words and follow His lead.

#faith #bible #christian

Well said, I'm on board with all of that and I don't see biblical libertarianism conflicting with that at all. Self-government is the foundation of family, church, and civil government. All 4 spheres are separate, but subject to Christ. You described the appeals court process instituted by Moses, the foundation of which was individual families that were supposed to be made up of self-governed individuals.

The state must not swallow up that which belongs to the church, family, or individual. Nor can the church wield the sword against evildoers. The radically minimal biblical system of government recognizes the equal ultimacy of the one and the many, rooted in the Triune nature of God. No man is an island since our behavior is consequential to others, but each individual will give an account of himself to God.

Thanks for the comment Greg. Can you give me an idea of what folks at that site might say in response to this part of the article, "Third, as I point out in detail in my new book, “Radical Moses,” the law of God created a nation that was libertarian in its construction. The government of Israel was based on individual self-control in view of the (few) commandments, with a judicial system that could secure redress for victims of crime. That’s it."

If not, no worries! I'll check out the link. Thanks.

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (October 5th)

At God's Bidding

And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as a dew from the Lord, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men. — Micah 5:7

If this be true of the literal Israel, much more is it true of the spiritual Israel, the believing people of God. When saints are what they should be, they are an incalculable blessing to those among whom they are scattered.

They are as the dew; for in a quiet, unobtrusive manner they refresh those around them. Silently but effectually they minister to the life, growth, and joy of those who dwell with them. Coming fresh from Heaven, glistening like diamonds in the sun, gracious men and women attend to the feeble and insignificant till each blade of grass has its own drop of dew. Little as individuals, they are, when united, all-sufficient for the purposes of love which the Lord fulfills through them. Dewdrops accomplish the refreshing of broad acres. Lord, make us like the dew!

Godly people are as showers which come at God's bidding without man's leave and license. They work for God whether men desire it or not; they no more ask human permission than the rain does. Lord, make us thus boldly prompt, and free in thy service wherever our lot is cast.

#faith #bible #christian

Glad you liked it. I'll pass this along to Gordan. You'd probably enjoy the book mentioned at the end as well. I don't know what your current beliefs are, but I'd just encourage you to justify your convictions for liberty within that system. In a meaningless universe where time and chance acts on matter, and we are just ugly bags of mostly water with chemicals fizzing in our brains, why is the NAP beyond argument? Have a good one man.

New article in the local paper by my pastor: Libertarianism taught in the Scriptures.

"https://www.qcsunonline.com/story/2023/10/04/opinion/libertarianism-taught-in-the-scriptures/25200.html

"Is libertarian political philosophy compatible with Christian faith?

There are evangelical leaders who would say it is not. These tend to be cheerleaders for one party in our current system. I’m jaded enough to believe the real danger they see is that a Libertarian Party candidate might siphon votes from their favorite lesser-of-two-evils.

In fact, I’m convinced that libertarian economic philosophy is the only one advocated in the Bible. It rises directly from its pages. Outrageous, you say? Here are three ways the Bible may be pushing you in a libertarian direction.

First, consider Christ’s cornerstone ethic of love for your neighbor. You should love your neighbor as yourself. In his Golden Rule formulation: Do unto others as you would have them do to you. What if we used that as a political guideline?

Do you like being coerced into behavior you don’t agree with? Do you enjoy the thought of brutes with guns demanding your money? Would you rather be left alone, or burdened with a whole bunch of manmade rules that could land you in jail? Then don’t institute policies that do all those things to your neighbors. Why do you vote to empower a locust-swarm of agents to do that to everyone else?

Second, pay attention to the moments in which Christ’s disciples argued about which one of them would be the greatest in his kingdom, and how Jesus responded.

Pay attention to Jesus washing their feet on the night he was betrayed. Leadership is supposed to work differently now than it did before. Their “great ones” dominated them, lording it over them. Not so with you, he said.

Jesus forbids his followers from the use of executive, coercive power. That’s when your status allows you to say to those in your authority, “Do what I command or else.” Executive power uses threats, sanctions, and actual violence to secure the desired compliance from its subjects.

Jesus envisioned leaders using peaceful, cooperative means in their leadership. Their authority would be moral, not physical, or organizational. Executive power is intrinsically antichrist and is on God’s schedule for abolition (1 Corinthians 15:24).

Here we are, though, stuck voting for which scoundrel we think will wield it in a way that we like a little bit better. It’s no coincidence, that works out badly for the people who voted for the other guy, if ours should win. We’ll do unto them what they did unto us.

Third, as I point out in detail in my new book, “Radical Moses,” the law of God created a nation that was libertarian in its construction. The government of Israel was based on individual self-control in view of the (few) commandments, with a judicial system that could secure redress for victims of crime. That’s it.

Even when a later allowance for a king was made, it’s clear that his role was to serve as a judge and a military leader (when needed) but not as an executive ruler.

That makes us nervous because we’ve all bought into the idea that we can’t survive without an overbearing central authority. We’re more terrified by a lack of executives than by a horde of them.

As that first generation of emancipated Hebrew slaves showed us, freedom is scary. Let’s be brave."

Gordan Runyan is pastor of Tucumcari’s Immanuel Baptist Church and author of “Radical Moses: The Amazing Civil Freedom Built into Ancient Israel.” Contact him at: reformnm@yahoo.com #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (October 4th)

The Mighty Magnet

And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me — John 12:32

Come, ye workers, be encouraged. You fear that you cannot draw a congregation. Try the preaching of a crucified, risen, and ascended Saviour; for this is the greatest "draw" that was ever yet manifested among men. What drew you to Christ but Christ? What draws you to Him now but His own blessed self? If you have been drawn to religion by anything else, you will soon be drawn away from it; but Jesus has held you, and will hold you even to the end. Why, then, doubt His power to draw others? Go with the name of Jesus to those who have hitherto been stubborn, and see if it does not draw them.

No sort of man is beyond this drawing power. Old and young, rich and poor, ignorant and learned, depraved or amiable - all men shall feel the attractive force. Jesus is the one magnet. Let us not think of any other. Music will not draw to Jesus, neither will eloquence, logic, ceremonial, or noise. Jesus Himself must draw men to Himself; and Jesus is quite equal to the work in every case. Be not tempted by the quackeries of the day; but as workers for the Lord work in His own way, and draw with the Lord's own cords. Draw to Christ, and draw by Christ, for then Christ will draw by you.

#faith #bible #christian

Who is the blessed man of Romans 4:7-8?

“Blessed are those whose lawless deeds have been forgiven,

And whose sins have been covered.

Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not take into account.”

Have you read the whole original series yet?

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (October 3rd)

Reflectors of the Lord's Beauty

As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness — Psalm 17:15

The portion of other men fills their bodies, and enriches their children, but the portion of the believer is of another sort. Men of the world have their treasure in this world, but men of the world to come look higher and further.

Our possession is twofold. We have God's presence here and His likeness hereafter. Here we behold the face of the Lord in righteousness, for we are justified in Christ Jesus. Oh, the joy of beholding the face of a reconciled God! The glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ yields us Heaven below, and it will be to us the Heaven of Heaven above.

But seeing does not end it: we are to be changed into that which we gaze upon. We shall sleep a while and then wake up to find ourselves as mirrors which reflect the beauties of our Lord. Faith sees God with a transforming look. The heart receives the image of Jesus into its own depths, till the character of Jesus is imprinted on the soul. This is satisfaction. To see God and to be like Him - what more can I desire? David's assured confidence is here by the Holy Ghost made to be the Lord's promise. I believe it. I expect it. Lord, vouchsafe it. Amen. #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (October 2nd)

Comfort En Route Home

And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob — Genesis 50:24

Joseph had been an incarnate providence to his brethren. All our Josephs die, and a thousand comforts die with them. Egypt was never the same to Israel after Joseph was dead, nor can the world again be to some of us what it was when our beloved ones were alive.

But see how the pain of that sad death was alleviated! They had a promise that the living God would visit them. A visit from Jehovah! What a favor! What a consolation! What a Heaven below! O Lord, visit us this day; though indeed we are not worthy that thou shouldest come under our roof.

But more was promised: the Lord would bring them out. They would find in Egypt a cold welcome when Joseph was dead; nay, it would become to them a house of bondage. But it was not to be so for ever; they would come out of it by a divine deliverance, and march to the land of promise. We shall not weep here for ever. We shall be called home to the glory-land to join our dear ones. Wherefore, "comfort one another with these words."

#faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (September 30th)

Needs to Open Our Mouths

Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it — Psalm 81:10

What an encouragement to pray! Our human notions would lead us to ask small things because our deservings are so small; but the Lord would have us request great blessings. Prayer should be as simple a matter as the opening of the mouth; it should be a natural, unconstrained utterance. When a man is earnest he opens his mouth wide, and our text urges us to be fervent in our supplications.

Yet it also means that we may make bold with God, and ask many and large blessings at His hands. Read the whole verse, and see the argument: "I am Jehovah, thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt: open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it." Because the Lord has given us so much He invites us to ask for more, yea, to expect more.

See how the little birds in their nests seem to be all mouth when the mother comes to feed them. Let it be the same with us. Let us take in grace at every door. Let us drink it in as a sponge sucks up the water in which it lies. God is ready to fill us if we are only ready to be filled. Let our needs make us open our mouths; let our faintness cause us to open our mouths and pant; yea, let our alarm make us open our mouths with a child's cry. The opened mouth shall be filled by the Lord Himself. So be it unto us, O Lord, this day. #faith #bible #christian

“My evidence that I am saved does not lie in the fact that I preach, or that I do this or that. All my hope lies in this: that Jesus Christ came to save sinners. I am a sinner, I trust Him, then He came to save me, and I am saved.”

Charles Spurgeon #faith #bible #christian

A dark hour makes Jesus bright.

—Robert Murray M'Cheyne #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (September 29th)

To Glorify Christ Jesus

He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. — John 16:14

The Holy Ghost Himself cannot better glorify the Lord Jesus than by showing to us Christ's own things. Jesus is His own best commendation. There is no adorning Him except with His own gold.

The Comforter shows us that which He has received of our Lord Jesus. We never see anything aright till He reveals it. He has a way of opening our minds, and of opening the Scriptures, and by this double process He sets forth our Lord to us. There is much art in setting forth a matter, and that art belongs in the highest degree to the Spirit of truth. He shows us the things themselves. This is a great privilege, as those know who have enjoyed the hallowed vision.

Let us seek the illumination of the Spirit; not to gratify our curiosity, nor even to bring us personal comfort, so much as to glorify the Lord Jesus. Oh, to have worthy ideas of Him! Groveling notions dishonor our precious Lord. Oh, to have such vivid impressions of His person, and work, and glory, that we may with heart and soul cry out to His praise! Where there is a heart enriched by the Holy Ghost's teaching there will be a Saviour glorified beyond expression. Come, Holy Spirit, heavenly light, and show us Jesus our Lord! #faith #bible #christian

Spurgeon's Faith's Checkbook (September 28th)

Work is Done; Rest in Him

There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God — Hebrews 4:9

God has provided a Sabbath, and some must enter into it. Those to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief; therefore, that Sabbath remains for the people of God. David sang of it; but he had to touch the minor key, for Israel refused the rest of God. Joshua could not give it, nor Canaan yield it: it remains for believers.

Come, then, let us labor to enter into this rest. Let us quit the weary toil of sin and self. Let us cease from all confidence, even in those works of which it might be said, "They are very good." Have we any such? Still, let us cease from our own works, as God did from His. Now let us find solace in the finished work of our Lord Jesus. Everything is fully done: justice demands no more. Great peace is our portion in Christ Jesus.

As to providential matters, the work of grace in the soul, and the work of the Lord in the souls of others, let us cast these burdens upon the Lord, and rest in Him. When the Lord gives us a yoke to bear, He does so that by taking it up we may find rest. By faith we labor to enter into the rest of God, and we renounce all rest in self-satisfaction or indolence. Jesus Himself is perfect rest and we are filled to the brim in Him.

#faith #bible #christian