REST

Reading time: 2minutes 8seconds

Rest is a state of peace, freedom, quiet, and relaxation. It’s not the absence of conflict.
As believers, this is the way of life God has called us into, but only a few of us are operating under this state. We try to help ourselves and think we can be in his wonderful book through our effort. Myself inclusive.
You cannot earn his spiritual blessing, inheritance, or rest. We are saved by grace and not our human efforts. A rest that must be earned is one that can’t be preserved.

I had several struggles with immoral thoughts that led me to struggle with things I shouldn’t have struggled with. Several times, I tried to help myself by leaning on my willpower, but I never made headway.
An experience I can’t forget struggling to help myself was in high school. During one of our long night devotions (thanks to baba yaks. RHS peeps gather here. lool. I digress.)
That night, I determined in my heart, will be the last time I battle with this stuff.
It worked o, but it didn’t even last a week before I was back in the same cycle. And I am wondering what happened?
Just a few days ago, it was like I was never going back.
At a point, I got tired and just turned in.

Now that I have a clearer understanding of what Christ did on the cross, I understood that those times I was trying to help myself. I felt like it’s my life I should be able to control what goes in it.
Sorry, but it’s not your life. We don’t have a life of our own. Trying to engage in these battles in our flesh is an exercise in futility.
    “My old identity has been co-crucified with Messiah and no longer lives; for the nails of his cross crucified me with him. And now the essence of this new life is no longer mine, for the Anointed One lives his life through me — we live in union as one! My new life is empowered by the faith of the Son of God who loves me so much that he gave himself for me and dispenses his life into mine!”
Galatians 2:20 TPT

We never saved ourselves, Christ did. And God’s purpose for the coming of Christ is to give us rest.

But you will cross the Jordan and settle in the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, and he will give you rest from all your enemies around you so that you will live in safety.
Deuteronomy 12:10‭ NIV


During the time of the Israelites, rest was in the promised land. For us, our rest is in Christ. He lives in us. We carry him anywhere we go. So, I need not be in a particular location to enjoy God’s rest, he’s with me everywhere I go. You can call it a mobile rest😂. So, it doesn’t matter what’s going on in our world. Our kind of rest defies circumstances.
So, what he expected of us?
Rest in the finished work of Christ!
Resting in God shows our level of trust in him and his ability to help us.

Now rest does not mean the absence of conflict like I established at the beginning. When God calls us into rest, it’s not to say there won’t be battles or enemies. No!  Expect them to increase at this point. God’s rest is synonymous to peace and peace is not the absence of trouble for a believer it’s the knowing that God got us covered even in the storm.

It’s even when I became serious in my walk with God and decided not to be a slave to immoral thoughts and sexual sins because Christ has set me free that bro Konji pays me more frequent visits.
What happens when we enter his rest is that we are not trying to help ourselves or fight in the flesh anymore. We are now in partnership with Christ. He grants us grace to live above these temptations. And we enjoy it by obeying his word.
He tells me not to watch a movie just because of that one scene with the sexual content, it’s wise that I obey because it’s in my best interest.
He tells me not to engage in that conversation. He brings believers of like minds. We encourage ourselves and even come through for ourselves when these feelings come knocking.

He admonishes us in his word that we continually renew our mind so we can be transformed into living the life of Christ that we carry through our actions.

God provides the inheritance, and by his power we steward it through obedience.

Picture credit: @JadesArt