Hebrews 4:11 (Amplified) says, "Let us therefore be zealous and exert ourselves and strive diligently to enter that rest (of God, to know and experience it for ourselves), that no one may fall or perish by the same land of unbelief and disobedience (into which those in the wilderness fell)."
At first glance, we think the above scripture must be a misprint to say, "Labor to enter rest." We see how those in the wilderness wouldn't believe and accept the fact that God had already taken care of everything for them. On the same token, we're always setting religious standards and things we must to in order to be acceptable to God. Because of this, we can never seem to rest in our approach to Him.
The Apostle Paul summed this up in a letter to the Church in 1Timothy 6:12 (Amplified) which says, "Fight the good fight of faith; lay hold of the eternal life to which you were summoned and (for which) you confessed the good confession (of faith) before many witnesses.
The fight of faith was the struggle against the desire of the flesh (the human effort) to do something on our own to gain acceptance to God. Grace has provided everything that's needed to walk upright and acceptable to our Heavenly Father. Our past life in religion and worldly thinking has made "resting" in this grace very difficult to do.
Man has had a problem appeasing his gods for thousands of years. We made our own gods and our own ways of coming to them. In most cases, we made gods in the image of demons and devils. It seems like we mostly created them as angry and hard to please. These invented gods were made from our own conscience and sense of unworthiness in our own selves. And, in many cases, these gods demanded the lives and blood of the children in order to be satisfied.
These gods always demanded more and more sacrifice. Even God's children of the old covenant, viewed Him as a stern and hard taskmaster. They held an Image of One Who was never pleased. This was the Image they had in their hearts and minds. They never understood that it was Love Who would take the life in the blood of animals to give back life to those who were spiritually dead. Even in the wilderness when God actually led them out by grace, without sacrifice, without separation and without Law, they still wanted to make a golden calf and burn sacrifices to it for their protection.
The Word says in Hebrews 4:2-3 (Amplified) that, "For indeed we have had the glad tidings (Gospel of God) proclaimed to us just as truly as they (the Israelites of old did when the good news of deliverance from bondage came to them) but the message they heard did not benefit them, because it was not mixed with faith (with the leaning of the entire personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness) by those who heard it; neither were they united in faith with the ones (Joshua and Caleb) who heard (did believe)." Verse 3 says, "For we who have believed, (adhered to and trusted in and relied on God) do enter that rest, in accordance with His declaration that those (who did not believe) should not enter when He said, As I swore in My wrath, they shall not enter My rest; and this He said although (His) works had been completed and prepared (and waiting for all who would believe) from the foundation of the world."
In many Christian circles today, we've had a problem entering in by faith into God's grace like they did in the days of old. We continue struggling with a sin conscience and the sins of our past. Even after receiving Jesus, we still feel a sense of unworthiness that keeps peace from our hearts. Even after hearing the message like the Israelites did, we don't mix faith with the message and fall short of the benefits of salvation.
Without faith, the grace offered now, does no good to those who hear. Grace for salvation has been offered to the entire world according to John 3:16, but it's not beneficial to those who will not put faith in the message.
As Christians, we still have the age old struggle of the flesh to achieve right standing with God by by our own works. We don't mix faith with the message of coming "Boldly to the throne of Grace" found in Hebrews 4:16. Even after hearing the gospel, we want to abide by religious rituals to approach God instead of faith in His grace.
Many of His children have lived and died far short form the benefits of God's covenant of grace. We've felt unworthy to receive (and we were) and we allowed ourselves to remain outside of the fullness of grace. We worked at doing things to become worthy, but the harder we worked at becoming worthy, the further we fell away from rest and grace. It became a total frustration of perfection in our lives. The enemy always kept us looking at ourselves and our failures instead of Jesus and His victory.
Grace has provided rest from all our works and rituals. Faith has provided entry into this rest. Jesus has been made the "Door into the very presence of God," according to John 10:7. When we enter into God's presence by the "Door," through faith, we can rest on the other side of the Door. Grace is the throne just on the other side of this Door of entry. All that's left for us to do...is to enter.
Once we enter in by Jesus, everything we could ever need is provided by His grace. We still seem to struggle understanding what the Word is telling us. We cannot seem to accept, by faith, what grace has done. We still feel like there must be something we can do to make it better. We still feel like man has the ability to improve on God's perfection. Romans 3:24 (Amplified) tells us that we were made to be righteous in Him and in Him. Thus, it says, "(All) are justified and made upright and in right standing with God, freely and gratuitously by His grace (His unmerited favor and mercy) through the redemption which is (provided) in Christ Jesus."
How can we ever improve on this righteousness? It is the righteousness of Jesus Himself. How can we ever hope to become more righteous than He is? But, we still won't rest in the righteousness that grace has provided through Jesus. We say that we believe in what He has done to restore us back into right standing (righteousness). But, then we don't put faith and mix it with what we hear and continue standing outside the throne room of His grace.
We rob ourselves of so many things that are ours through Jesus when we don't put faith in His grace. We continue allowing the enemy to keep us out of God's presence even though we have entered in by the Door. We constantly allow the lying devil to rob us of moving from the outer court into the very Holy of Holies.
The Word tells us in Romans 6:10-11 (Amplified) that, "For by the death He died, He died to sin (ending His relation to it) once for all; and the life that He lives; He is living to God (in unbroken fellowship with Him)." Verse 11 goes on, "Even so consider yourselves also dead to sin and your relation to it broken, but alive to God (living in unbroken fellowship with Him) in Christ Jesus."
Through faith, God has provided in what Jesus has done which is the grace that delivered us from all the bondage of the world. Romans 8:1 (Amplified) says, "Therefore, (there is) now no condemnation (no adjudging guilty of wrong) for those who are in Christ Jesus, who live (and) walk not after the dictates of the Spirit."
This is how your rest in Him. But, without faith in what the grace has offered, we will still struggle under the same old bondage of shame, guilt and unworthiness of our past life and won't live in the liberty grace has supplied in our new life with Him.
Hebrews 4:11 tells us to "Labor to enter into rest." That's followed by 1Timothy 6:12 (Amplified) which says, "Fight the good fight of faith." Faith in His grace will provide the "rest" that your fleshly works can never bring (right standing with God). Your flesh will never let you rest in Him. This comes only by faith. That's why Hebrews 11:6 (Amplified) says, "But without faith it is impossible to please and be satisfied to Him. For whoever would come near to God must (necessarily) believe that God exists and that He is the rewarder of those who earnestly and diligently seek Him (out)."
Whoever tries approaching God on his own terms instead of by faith in what God has done through Jesus, is of no avail. Without faith in God's grace through Jesus, we cannot draw near to a Holy God. We must be cleansed and made holy through faith in our Lamb. Any other way is by works and not grace and is not an acceptable entry to Him. Don't allow the life of your past rob you of the truth of your present life in Him. Labor to enter into this rest by faith in Him.
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