This is a new sermon series called “Origin Story”, Rest, Genesis 2:1-3, June 28, You can watch more here.
My wife and I have spent the last 21-years raising children. My wife and I joke that we raised them to be independent and maybe we did too good of a job! Our children today are incredibly independent, which is great, but it’s hard to let go of those parenting years, which is funny because when I was in the parenting years, it was exhausting, and now we cry about how much we miss those parenting years.
We get to be those old people who walk past young parents and say, “You’re going to miss these years one day!” Aren’t those people the worst? The toddler is screaming, throwing food at the parent and some old guy is smiling like, “Isn’t it wonderful?” I think it’s because most of us don’t know how to transition. When we are in the moment it is stressful. When we get on the other side of the moment we are overly nostalgic. But in Genesis to we get to see the God of Scripture do something surprising…He just rests.
He doesn’t rest because He’s tired. He doesn’t rest and remember the good old days of “hovering over the surface of the deep.” He doesn’t rest and do nothing, but our passage this morning says, “He rested on the seventh day.” (Pause) What does that mean? I think “rest” is one of the hardest areas of our American culture right now. We are a “do” oriented culture, therefore, what does it look like as a follower of Jesus to have a biblical understanding of rest.
I will acknowledge on the front end, this is an subject that is really difficult for me to grasp, much less apply to my life. I have one of those brains that is always thinking about things. I like to dabble in the stock market. I like to try to come up with jokes for stand-up comedy. I love talking to Jesus about life in prayer. I love being married to my wife. I love getting to be a father. I love getting to be a pastor, and talking to people about Jesus. But I don’t always naturally grasp a “biblical understanding of rest” so we get to learn and grow in this area together. Let’s look at Genesis 2, verse 1:
Genesis 2:1, “1 Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts.”
This is the first time we are encountering the word “completed.” In the original language the word means “finished.” So that, throughout Genesis 1 God speaks, forms, fills, creates, and orders, but now the work is “finished.” Write that in your notes, because we will come back to it, because this word “completed” means everything He created is as He intended, so that nothing is missing, nothing is broken, and nothing needs revision. It’s like when we finish a project at work or at home, and then we step back to see our work and exhale. It is finished!
I know sometimes life feels like one giant unfinished project. You got to get through school so you can get a job. You got to get a job so you can get a place to live. When you get a place to live, now you need to do laundry, clean the dishes, get oil changes, go to the doctor, get groceries; it’s never ending! Therefore, what does it mean to rest?
We were talking to our adult kids recently about health insurance and they said, “What’s that for?” Well, if you get sick, you can go to the doctor. Our 18-year old said, “You have to pay to go to the doctor?” Isn’t that so sad? This little guy was going through life thinking there are nurses and doctors sitting in rooms playing solitaire, just waiting to take care of him. It’s like Santa Clause all over again!
But sometimes there are parts of life where we don’t get to take a step back and exhale. Sometimes there are parts of life where we have to keep working, keep tweaking, keep cleaning, and it can feel overwhelming. Right? But, how do we rest? I remember when I bought our first house the loan officer said, “You have to factor in property tax.” I had never understood property tax, and like my son I was like, “So, I basically never own my home!” It’s horrible! We’re never finished!
But God’s Word is teaching us, before humanity learns about property tax and health insurance, before humanity ever lifts a finger, the God of Scripture says, “It is finished.” His creation is as intended. We don’t see the fullest expression of His Word today. Right? Genesis 3 is going to teach us that the world we see today is tainted in sin and brokenness, but in Genesis 2 everything is perfect and it is finished. Look at verse 2:
Genesis 2:2, “2 By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.”
The word “rested” means “ceased” but it doesn’t mean He “ceased” being God.” It doesn’t even holding back His glory in some way, because the reference to the 7th day is interesting. Days 1-6 all end with “there was evening, there was morning” but day 7 is written in a way that idea of day 7 is continuing till this day, so that today God is resting and sustaining at the same time.
So, that a biblical understanding of rest isn’t so much focused on taking naps, going on vacation, or avoiding chores. More so, a biblical understanding of rest is living, breathing, and even working under His care and His provision, so that it is on-going reality of rest. (Write that down / repeat)
It’s why Jesus says in John 5, “My Father is working even now.” Sustaining creation is work. Bringing about His sovereign will in our lives is work. Calling sinners to new life in Him is work, so that biblically God is working and resting at the same time. Does that make sense? (Pause)
Take a moment to consider Present Trump. People have different opinions about President Trumps daily activities, but even while he is sleeping or “at rest” He is still functioning as the Commander in Chief. This is a little bit of how our passage is describing a biblical understanding of rest. Consider this chart:
| Category | Boundaries | Celebrate | Gratitude |
| Work (Mon-Friday) | Finish (Stop taking calls, text, and emails) | Write down 3 things that went well. | Prayer of thanks! |
| Milestones (Anniversary, birthdays, etc.) | Mark it on the calendar | Rejoice | Give Him all the glory! |
| Chores | Put them on the calendar | Acknowledge the progress | Acknowledge His blessing |
| Ministry | Build into your calendar | Acknowledge the progress | Acknowledge His blessing |
The key is building rhythms and patterns in our day and throughout our week to remind us that we are living under His care and His provision. Just as there are days and evenings in His creation, we can build those beginnings and endings in our day. Just as there are spring seasons for dynamic growth, and winter seasons for hibernation, we can building those seasons throughout our year. But it is all taking place under His provision and His care. Amen?
Again, the key is multiple touch points to help us a remember. When you care for a plant you don’t want to wat 51 weeks, and then one week in the year you drench it with water. That plant is not going to do well. But that’s what we do with vacations and rest. We push, push, push emotionally, physically, financially, relationally, spiritually, until we say, “That’s it! I need to rest!” I need to take a vacation!
We book the trip, max out the credit card, but our mind, body and soul isn’t used to resting under His care and His provision. Our mind, body and soul is used to go, go, go, self-included, and we come back from vacation exhausted! There’s got to be a better way! Enter Genesis 2. We build a life under His provision and His care. We position ourselves like the plant firmly planted by streams of water, so that a little water every day, little reminders every day or ever week will build patterns and rhythms for that plant to thrive, because the plant knows when nutrients and refreshment are coming. Amen?
What a timely reminder to our church family as we walk through a season of transition! Our rest doesn’t come from a familiar worship leader. Our rest doesn’t come from a familiar building. It would be nice to have those questions answered, but our ultimate rest comes by grace through faith in Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, so that we are living under His care and His provision. Look at verse 3:
Genesis 2:3, “3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.”
Notice the words in bold; He blessed, He sanctified (set apart to be holy) and He rested from all His work, so that just as humanity is set apart from the rest of creation, we see the 7th day set apart from the other 6 days. Let me give you some quick observations on biblical rest to consider:
- The Sabbath doesn’t begin with Moses at Sinai. The Sabbath begins in Genesis 2 with the 7 days of creation, so we’re not talking about religious concept to consider. We’re talking about a biblical truth built into all of creation.
- Humanity’s first day begins with rest. Male and female are created on the 6th day and then on the 7th day there is rest. Take that in for a second. Humanity doesn’t begin with a task list. Humanity opens their eyes in perfect relationship with the Father, Son, Spirit at rest. Isn’t that beautiful? It’s like God is building into creation that our relationship with Him isn’t built on performance. It isn’t built on how many times you attend worship on a Sunday. It isn’t built on how long we pray, or even our morality of behavior. Our relationship with Him is built on His grace, under His care, and His provision. Amen?
- Rest is designed to draw Us closer to Him. I still struggle with this in my life personally. I have been applying the chart we talked about earlier to my life, and it’s been really helpful already. I need help remembering that I am under His care and His provision. I need help remembering that rest isn’t about doing nothing. Most pastors I know love talking about getting in the mountains to sit on a porch next to a river and just be with Jesus. That sounds miserable! After 15 minutes I am going to be like, “Let’s do something!” Which is great! But then I need to finish, celebrate and give Him all the glory!
We know the sin of Genesis 3 is going to make “rest” complicated. The sin in Genesis 3 is going to make work complicated. We know we’re going to confuse our identity with what we accomplish. We’re going to live under fear, anxiety and exhaustion. We know that happens!
That’s why Jesus shows up and says, “Come to Me, and I will give you rest.” He knows there is an exhaustion in our soul that sleep won’t satisfy. We can get the perfect sheets, humidifier, one of those special pillows with all the curves, sounds of running water, and no matter how much we try to get rest, He knows our souls are going to be exhausted. It’s why Jesus cries out, “Come to Me, all you who are weary, and I will give you rest.” He’s not promising Your Best Life Now. He knows we still have bills to pay. He’s not promising a life without problems. He knows we still have doctor visits, challenges in marriage or parenting. He’s inviting us into His rest where we live under His provision and His care.
Listen to me, I can’t be reminded of this enough. It’s so easy for my brain to focus on thoughts like, “If I work hard enough I will get the outcomes I want.” If I am a better leader, father, husband or friend I wouldn’t have challenges. If I was better with people I would never have conflict. If our church family had better systems and communication we would never have misunderstandings.
I am never going to be able to lead, pastor, father, marriage, friend, so well that I never have challenges. Right? That’s heaven! We’re not there yet! But, when I start remember that Jesus is under control and I am living under His care and His provision, it changes everything. When I start turning from thinking, “This weight is on me” and remember, “No, this weight was always His.” Then, I start to receive the rest He has to offer when He says, “Come to Me, all you who are weary, and you will find rest.” Write this down:
Finding Rest in Jesus is Remembering I am living under His care and His provision.
Even as a young person, it would be easy to feel like, “I have to make the grades. I have to get friends. I have to not mess up.” It’s like carrying a backpack to school every day with these weights of expectations, comparison, fear, performance weighing us down over and over and over until we hear Jesus say, “Come to Me. Give those things to Me.”
Don’t get me wrong. You still need to go to class, do homework, and navigate friendships but you are doing it with Jesus carrying those weights. It’s why the author in Hebrews writes:
Hebrews 4:3, “3 For we who have believed enter that rest…”
The book of Hebrews is in the New Testament. Notice the verb tense of that phrase. It isn’t “might enter, could enter or even will enter that rest.” It is present tense “enter” so that when we are in Christ, we are in His rest today!
This is why we must build rhythms and patterns into our life throughout the day and throughout the week.
| Category | Boundaries | Celebrate | Gratitude |
| Work (Mon-Friday) | Finish (Stop taking calls, text, and emails) | Write down 3 things that went well. | Prayer of thanks! |
| Milestones (Anniversary, birthdays, etc.) | Mark it on the calendar | Rejoice | Give Him all the glory! |
| Chores | Put them on the calendar | Acknowledge the progress | Acknowledge His blessing |
| Ministry | Build into your calendar | Acknowledge the progress | Acknowledge His blessing |
We work hard on different areas of our life. We set boundaries to end that area of work. We celebrate what was accomplished. And, then we give Him all the glory as a reminder that we are under His care and His provision.
Imagine two people going to Lake Travis to enjoy the day. One brings a kayak and one brings a sail. The one in the kayak spends the whole day rowing and rowing and rowing. They are enjoying the beauty of creation, but they are sweating and exhausted the whole time. The other brings a sail. The other also enjoys creation, but the wind is doing all the work, so that our passage this morning is teaching us we don’t have to do all the work. We don’t have to carry all the weight. We can rest under His care and His provision. Amen?
It’s likely many of us are carrying the weight of our church in Austin right now? What’s going to happen with worship? Will people stay? Is this going to work? Those are real questions. I am asking those questions! This is why our statement is so important:
Finding Rest in Jesus is Remembering I am living under His care and His provision.
But our focus as a church in north Austin isn’t just getting questions answered. Our focus isn’t on finding a worship leader and a building. Our focus as a church family is Jesus. Yeah, we might have some work to do and we have some questions to answer, but our vision as a church family hasn’t changed.
We’re still here to fall in love with Jesus, side-by-side relationships with one another, and chase after others to do the same. Where we meet and who leads us in singing or teaching on a Sunday doesn’t matter. Jesus is Lord! Isn’t that beautiful? Can’t you imagine the vitality of our church family resting in Jesus?
Men and women not having to prove ourselves to one another! Men and women working hard, setting up boundaries, celebrating, and giving Him all the glory! Men and women walking through challenges with hope! Men and women who know it’s the Lord who created us, provides for us, and cares for us!
If that happens, just on a small percent, you can’t tell me a city like Austin filled with demands, stress, anxiety and fear wouldn’t notice. Right? You can’t tell me this city wouldn’t rub shoulders with us throughout the week and it not lead to spiritual conversations. Right?
It’s possible there are some of us who have never experienced Jesus in a way that brings rest. It’s possible that some of us have never responded to Jesus’ call, “Come to Me.” But, coming to Jesus simply means we acknowledge we are sinners. We acknowledge that we are exhausted. Then, we turn from carrying all the weight, and we turn to the One who is God in the flesh. We turn to the One who died on the cross for our sin, which means Jesus took our exhaustion to the point of death, which is why Jesus says, “It is finished.” Just like in verse 1.
You didn’t have to show up at worship this morning for His love. It’s finished! It isn’t because of what we do, but because of what He’s done. We don’t have to beat ourselves up when we fail. It’s finished! He’s already taken that beating at the cross! Sometimes people are like, “So I can just go out there and hurt people, rob banks, and wear khaki pants” and Jesus will still love me?” Yeah, but if we’ve met Jesus we won’t want to do those things. We might, but if we’ve met Jesus we won’t want to stay there, because we’ve met Jesus!
North Village Church
This sermon is brought to you by North Village Church, a non-denominational church in Austin. established in 2009 and built around Jesus and Bible teaching.
Are you looking for a church in Austin? At North Village Church we put Jesus at the center of our church family. We worship together every Sunday at 10:30am, encourage Christ centered fellowship through groups, and host special events such as Bible studies and Theological Training, to ensure that we are rooted in in God’s Word. We also serve our local community in association with several Austin based organizations.
North Village Church is made up of professionals, married couples, singles, and families who are wanting to experience the life-transforming power of Jesus. If you are a family with children or teens, we can support you with either or both our Kids Ministry and Youth Ministry.
You are welcome to contact us if you would like more information.
NVC Online
Unable to attend this Christian Church in Austin? Don’t worry, because, through God’s provision, we have created NVC online, an Online Church streaming a worship service every Sunday from 10:30am Central Time. You can also watch our short, powerful sermons on demand and follow us on Instagram for daily Christ centered content.