The Promise of Rest

A series on the book of Hebrews:
Christ is greater than Moses and leads to a better rest
(Click on the link below to read the verses.)
Hebrews 3:1-4:13 

[When you first start to follow Christ, often it’s done with great excitement. It’s like falling in love when all you can think about is the other person, and you want to tell everyone you know. But then life settles in and can push out those feelings. The day-to-day pressures of living can dull your enthusiasm. In this series, we will look at how the author of Hebrews tried to counteract falling out of love with Jesus.]

  

In 2022, my wife and I went to Disney World with our daughter, son-in-law and three grandchildren – seven of us total. Because it was during Disney’s Halloween celebration, we dressed up as the “Seven Dwarfs”. I was “Sleepy”.

 

Someone in our family observed that each of the Seven Dwarf characters fit the person portraying them. Even though I’ve been known to fall asleep almost anywhere, I have no idea what they’re talking about.

 

Throughout Scripture, God has promised rest to his people. Moses led Israel out of slavery to the border of Canaan, the Promised Land of rest. But they were afraid to take possession because of the people already living there. They didn’t believe that the Lord could defeat them, so they rebelled.

 

As a result, they never entered God’s rest of the Promised Land.

 

¹⁸ And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? ¹⁹ So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.     NIV

 

Just like the Israelites who didn’t enter God’s rest, the Jewish Christians that Hebrews was written to, were about to do the same thing. All they could see were the struggles they had to face and the problems that seemed insurmountable.

 

Therefore, the author reminded them that the Lord still offered his rest to those who have faith and believe. So, he called on them to do everything that they could to enter God’s rest. Then he admonished them to be careful and to help one another.

 

¹² See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. ¹³ But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.       NIV

 

Finally, he reminded them who God was; that God knew what was in their heart; that it was impossible for them to hide their thoughts or struggles. The same is true for us today.

 

¹² For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. ¹³ Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable.             NLT

 

We face the same pressures, temptations and decision today as the Jewish Christians did back then. Will we decide to enter into his rest? Will we keep our eyes on the prize? Will we finish well? Here is Jesus’ promise of rest for us.

 

²⁸ Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.              ESV    Matthew 11

 

Copyright 2025 Joseph B Williams

Feel free to share this blog with others.

www.lifelinebasketball.blogspot.com

 

How Firm a Foundation

A Series on the parables of Jesus
(Click on the link below to read the verses.)
Matthew 7:13-29 

[During the first century, it was common for a rabbi to use parables when teaching their disciples. The parables of Jesus were stories that he told to illustrate spiritual truth using some element from everyday life. Jesus used seeds, fish, trees, bread - things people could easily relate to – for a “teachable moment”.]

  

In 1978, we bought a house that was literally slanted. During the viewing, our realtor tried to convince us that it wasn’t. But, when my wife laid a marble on the floor, and it rolled from one end of the house to the other… he couldn’t deny it.

 

Otherwise, it was a beautiful house with oak trim everywhere, built-in cabinets and a bay window. Unfortunately, it was built on a landfill, and the foundation was bad. There were huge cracks in the basement walls.

 

This passage in Matthew comes at the end of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. Like any good preacher, he saved the punch line for the end of his sermon. To start with, he gave his listeners this warning.

 

^13-14 “Don’t look for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don’t fall for that stuff, even though crowds of people do. The way to life—to God! —is vigorous and requires total attention.         MSG

 

The ESV translates this as “the gate is wide that leads to destruction” and “the gate is narrow that leads to life”. Those gates are evident with every decision we make and every action we take. We daily choose between life and destruction.

 

To this point, Jesus closed his sermon with the parable of the wise and foolish builders, a parable about building on a solid foundation.

 

^24-25 “These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit—but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock.       MSG

 

Long after we sold our house, it was condemned by the city and demolished. In this parable, Jesus made the assumption that rain, floods and winds - the storms of life - will happen. But he also taught that if you build your house - your life - on the Rock, then you will withstand the storms of life.

 

It may not be pretty. In fact, it may very messy. But in the end, Jesus is always faithful, and his Word is eternal. How firm a foundation is not a question, but a statement.

 

How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in His excellent word!

What more can be said than to you God hath said,
to you who for refuge to Jesus have fled?

 

***

¹⁵ Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!

                                                                                                Matthew 11 NLT

 

Copyright 2022 Joseph B Williams

 

 

 

What Was God Thinking?

A Series on God’s Call to Ministry

Luke 1:26-38

(Use the link below to read the verses.)

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+1%3A26-38&version=NIV;NLT

[Preface: How do you know what your calling in life is? Will you know from a big bang experience? Or will it come quietly, almost imperceptible? Will you be inspired by the stories of a visiting missionary; or a book that opens your eyes to the needs of a specific people group; or from your own life experience? This series is about God’s call to ministry for your life; what it means or doesn’t mean.]

It’s not unusual for a teenager to say “NO”! It’s not unusual for a teen to rebel against the authority of their parents; to try and take control of their own life; to flex their decision making muscles.

What if Mary had said “NO!”? What if she had told the angel Gabriel, “No thanks, I’m only a young teenage girl? I’ve got the rest of my life ahead of me.”? Do you think God had a Plan B? Did He have a short list of young virgin girls to call on?

And why did God choose Mary? After all, she was already engaged to be married. He must have realized how the neighbors would talk; how it would look; how scandalous it would be. What was God thinking?

Then there’s the whole thing about choosing a virgin from Nazareth in Galilee. Why didn’t he choose an up and coming girl from the city; from Jerusalem? Instead, He chose Nazareth where it was said, “Can anything good come from Nazareth”.

The only detail that God seems to have gotten right was choosing Joseph as the engaged husband to be. At least he was a descendant of David. Otherwise… what was God thinking!?!

To say that Mary was afraid, is no doubt a huge understatement. She was in the presence of an angel who was saying things that didn’t make any logical sense. In fact, what he said implied an unimaginable future for her.

Up to this point, her life was all planned out. She would get married to Joseph; raise their family; be a part of the community; and be a support to her husband in his carpentry business. Surprise! God had something else in mind.

³⁰ “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! ³¹ You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. ³² He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. ³³ And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”   NLT

You probably haven’t had an angel tell you to do something, let alone something that seemed crazy. God works that way a lot. He calls us to do things that we feel totally unprepared to do. But His promise is that He will always be with you; that the word of God will never fail.

When writing this devotional, I made a short list of things that the Lord has called me to do during my lifetime. They include things that I had no logical reason to do; no confidence to do; no experience to do. What was God thinking?

Using the link below, listen to the song by Faith Hill titled, “A Baby Changes Everything”. Then, consider how that baby has changed your life. And, like Mary, remember that “The Lord is with you and that His word never fails”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-y0_wNPSOaw

Some Things Never Change

Matthew 4:1-11

(Use the link below to read the verses.)

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%204%3A1-11&version=NIV;TLB

  

Have you ever had a face to face confrontation with the devil? Neither have I. But Jesus did, and he won! There are a lot of lessons to be learned from this passage in Matthew.

First though, let’s take a look at the back story. Let’s dig deeper to see what else was going on.

 

Jesus quoted several verses from the book of Deuteronomy. The lessons of Deuteronomy occurred as the nation of Israel finished wandering in the wilderness for 40 years. They were at the Jordan River as Moses gave them his final words of instruction to prepare them before they entered the Promised Land.

 

Here are just a few of the lessons that Moses passed along to them:

 

¹³ Fear the Lord your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his

name.            Deuteronomy 6
 

¹⁶ Do not put the Lord your God to the test as you did at Massah.  Deuteronomy 6

 

³ He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.    Deuteronomy 8

 

Do these verses sound familiar to you? They are the same words that Jesus used to defend himself against the devil. Spoken 1400 years before, they were still powerful!  Some things never change.

 

I would bet that while Jesus fasted for 40 days in the wilderness, that he was meditating on Deuteronomy because he was getting ready to lead the people of Israel to the Promised Land. Not a physical land, like Moses lead them to, but a spiritual home, inhabited by those who have faith in Jesus.

 

In light of this, as we wander in the wilderness, doesn’t it make sense for us to meditate on God’s word to prepare us for battle? Some things never change.

 

⁵ Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. ⁶ These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. ⁷ Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home

and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸ Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ⁹ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.                Deuteronomy 6

 

 

 

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SIDEBAR:

Before leading the people to the Promised Land, Jesus was baptized in the Jordan River and then wandered in the wilderness for 40 days. This is the reverse order for Moses and the people of Israel who wandered in the wilderness for 40 years before crossing the Jordan to the Promised Land.

Some things do change, but the purpose doesn’t.

 

Today's message through images.