Four Letter Words: REST Matthew 11:28-30

Four Letter Words: REST
Matthew 11:28-30

Introduction

There are some four-letter words that should not come out of our mouths and there are other four-letter words that we should be talking about. Maybe we don’t because these words make us uncomfortable or we don’t know what to say about them, but that doesn’t mean we should hide from them and the conversations they produce! Words like fear, rest, work, and hope are sometimes misunderstood because the world has redefined them. Let’s explore what the Bible says about these four-letter words together so we can stop avoiding them and start proclaiming what is good and true in our lives and in our world.

Four Letter Words:

April 9 – HOPE – 1 Corinthians 15:1-20

April 16 – WORK – 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15

April 23 – FEAR – Psalm 46:1-3

April 30 – OBEY – John 14:15-31

May 7 – HELL – 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9

May 14 – REST – Matthew 11:28-30

REST – Matthew 11:28-30

28Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.

29Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

30For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”

What is the human soul:

The human soul is the part of a person that isn’t physical. And as her soul was departing (for she was dying) …

Genesis 35:18a (ESV)

OT: nep̄eš: soul, self, life, creature, person, appetite, mind, living being, desire, emotion, passion.

NT: psychē: breath of life.

“You don’t have a soul. You are a Soul. You have a body.”

– George MacDonald

1. There is a for rest.

Then Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn’t even have time to eat.

Mark 6:31

Notes:

2. There is a to find rest.

¹⁰ For all who have entered into God’s rest have rested from their labors, just as God did after creating the world.

¹¹ So let us do our best to enter that rest. But if we disobey God, as the people of Israel did, we will fall.

Hebrews 4:10-11

Notes:

3. There is a to rest.

It is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night, anxiously working for food to eat; for God gives rest to his loved ones.

Psalm 127:2

This is what the Lord says: “Stop at the crossroads and look around. Ask for the old, godly way, and walk in it. Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls. But you reply, ‘No, that’s not the road we want!’

Jeremiah 6:16

Notes:

4. There is in rest.

In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe.

Psalm 4:8

Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!

Psalm 34:8

Notes:

5. There is new found in rest.

The Lord replied, “I will personally go with you, Moses, and I will give you rest—everything will be fine for you.”

Exodus 33:14

Notes:

But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Matthew 4:4

Challenge: What do you need to give up to God that is keeping you from resting in Him?

Notes:

It’s your sins that have cut you from God.

Isaiah 59:2a

For everyone has sinned; we all fall of God’s glorious standard.

Romans 3:23

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal through Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 6:23

If openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

Romans 10:9

Notes: