Creation: Day 7 - Rest

Introduction
The world we live in is breathtaking and complex. The artistic genius of it points to Something/Someone higher, greater, more wonderful than we can even imagine. How did it all come to be? Was it merely an accident or does nature’s harmony point to a Higher Power? The creation story in Genesis is full of deep spiritual truths that help us understand the character of God and our purpose for being. Today, we learn how important it is to take time to rest and reflect and worship the great Creator.

Genesis 2:1-3

1 So the creation of the heavens and the earth and everything in them was completed. 2 On the seventh day God had finished his work of creation, so he rested from all his work. 3 And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because it was the day when he rested from all his work of creation.

On the Seventh Day, God Rested.

We live in a hectic world that values productivity.  Rise early, work hard all day.  Get off work and go to one or two or even three extra activities before you go to bed too late at night.  Studies show that 60% of Americans don’t get enough sleep.  Lack of sleep increases the risk of being overweight, heart disease, and breast cancer in women. It also leads to more car accidents and medical errors.  Yet we have too much living to do to get more sleep.

It is not just a lack of sleep that plagues us.  There is also a lack of resting—a time when we just refrain from working.  Studies show that 1/3 of Americans don’t take vacation time even when their jobs offer it.  Often this is because they feel pressure not to—either pressure from their bosses or pressure they put on themselves.  When people do take a vacation, they rarely use the time to “rest.”  Instead, they opt to fill the time with numerous activities.  How many of you have gotten home from a vacation and thought, “I need a vacation from my vacation!”?

In our busy world, the idea that God rested and that He made “resting” a Holy commandment may seem alien.  Yet rest is essential to healthy living. 

God did not design us to be machines that work nonstop.  God wants us to take time to “Be still and know that He is God.” (Psalm 46:10).  When we pause from our labors and other distractions, we have time to remember who we are and who God is and to just enjoy life.  When we do not rest, we are less human than God wants us to be.

The very first thing God calls “holy” in the Bible is the Sabbath rest.  A weekly day of rest was so essential that it became one of the most important religious laws in the Bible.  It was a day that God ordered teachers and priests and prophets to defend again and again.  We also see that when God’s people did not keep the Sabbath, they suffered or were punished.

Mark 2:27

In Mark 2:27, Jesus said, “The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath.”  This is a reminder not to let religious devotion to the Sabbath outweigh common sense or common decency.  However, Jesus’ words also remind us that the Sabbath is an incredible gift God has given us—something we need.  Jesus observed the weekly Sabbath all his life.  The Bible tells us it was his custom to worship God in the synagogue each week.

God created the Sabbath for rest and worship.

Work is important.  But working too much can be a way for us to cover up and hide from things.  People—known as workaholics—use work as an escape the same way alcoholics or drug addicts use substances to escape from reality.  When we rest, we sometimes must confront things we might rather have left uncovered—things that need to be confronted.  So we must rest and worship.

Worship is the adoration of God.  It is when we pause to recognize the wonder of God and His goodness and express our gratitude to Him.  Proper worship humbles us, reminding us of our proper place in Creation.  It also opens us up to the voice of God who reveals where we need to change or grow.  At the same time, worship lifts us up as we recognize we are unconditionally loved by an incredible God.  

We were designed to worship God.  It is such an integral part of our DNA, that we cannot avoid it.  Every society that has existed since the world began has had some notion of God and has sought to worship Him.  This fact testifies to both the reality of God’s existence and the innate desire within humanity to worship God.  How else would so many different kinds of people from so many different backgrounds who never spoke to each other to share ideas, all reach such similar conclusions?

Some people—especially in our modern times when we place more value in science than religious traditions—have chosen not to worship God.  Yet we see that even these people worship some kind of “god.”  Perhaps they worship people they admire or things they can acquire.  They may worship an ideology or even themselves, but they cannot avoid worshiping something.  Because of the way God made us, we must worship just like we must breathe.  The question is not “Will you worship?”  The question is “Who or what will you worship?”

Jesus came to help us worship the One True God.

He shows us what God is really like.  Before Christ, humanity was limited in their understanding of God.   We only knew about God from the religious scriptures or from the stories others told.  God recognized that because of our sin, we were no longer able to recognize His voice and worship Him in His fullness.  So God decided to come to earth to live among us.  God was born as the baby Jesus.  He grew up under the supervision of a mother and father.  He learned how to live, suffered the same temptations and disappointments we face, and was obedient to the very laws He created.  Ultimately, Jesus died on the cross to atone for the sins that keep us from worshiping God.  

And so now, through Jesus Christ, we can turn away from our sins of error and sins of willful disobedience and come to worship God.  Jesus said, “Come to me all you who are weary and carrying heaven burdens, and I will give you rest.”

Conclusion

Are you weary from carrying heavy burdens?  Are you working yourself to death trying to do too much?  Are you weighed down with the burdens of grief, guilt, worry, stress, loneliness, disappointments, shame, or anxiety?  The grace of God through Jesus Christ calls to you: “Come, and I will give you rest.”  Jesus wants to forgive you, to wash away all your sin sickness, and give you a brand new life.  Jesus wants you to use your time reasonably.  He wants you to work, but Jesus also wants you to take time to rest and worship and enjoy the amazing life God created in you and all around you.  So what’s stopping you?

Creation: Day 3 - Dry Land

Introduction

The world we live in is breathtaking and complex.  The power and majesty of it points to Something/Someone powerful and glorious, more wonderful than we can even imagine.  Who is this Creator who sculpted the mountains and filled the oceans with water?  What does the story of creation in Genesis tell us about the Creator’s character?

In a world where we feel so small, we yearn to know our place.  Who put us here?  Where do we belong in this mighty world?  What is our purpose?  We need firm footing to stand, to build a foundation for our life and our family.  Give us something solid we can believe in.

Genesis was written to help us know the Truth about God.  The creation story reveals the character of God and the life He offers us.  If you want to know God and why we are here, you can find out by studying the story of creation in Genesis.

Genesis 1:9-13 9 Then God said, “Let the waters beneath the sky flow together into one place, so dry ground may appear.” And that is what happened. 10 God called the dry ground “land” and the waters “seas.” And God saw that it was good. 11 Then God said, “Let the land sprout with vegetation—every sort of seed-bearing plant, and trees that grow seed-bearing fruit. These seeds will then produce the kinds of plants and trees from which they came.” And that is what happened. 12 The land produced vegetation—all sorts of seed-bearing plants, and trees with seed-bearing fruit. Their seeds produced plants and trees of the same kind. And God saw that it was good. 13 And evening passed and morning came, marking the third day.

On the third day, God created the dry land and vegetation.

We live on an incredibly beautiful planet.  A picture of the planet from space reveals a stunning blue sphere with swirling white clouds, continents of green and brown, all set against vast oceans.  The mingling together of all these elements paint a picture of a planet that is lovely and inviting.  Though each of the other planets in our solar system has their own beauty, none seem as friendly or appealing as Earth.  We look at the Earth and we feel, “This is home.”  Our earth would be much less appealing if it were only water.  God knew this and so He made our planet have dry land and water.

All the other planets take their name from a Greek or Roman god, but Earth derives its name from an Old English word that means “ground” or “soil.”  Similarly, the Hebrew word used for Earth in Genesis 1 is “eres,” which means field, ground, or land.  It would seem the very identity of our Earth is tied to the soil upon which we live and grow our crops.

The majority of the earth is cover by water.  However, God made a place for us to stand on solid ground.  30% of the Earth is dry land (approximately 200 billion square miles).  There are approximately 75 billion square miles of cropland or pastureland, 64 billion square miles of forests.  God made sure we have enough land to live on and that there are a variety of land types for us to enjoy—mountains, desserts, forests, prairies, and more.  All of this points to the creativity of our God.

God gives us a solid place to safely stand.

There is a remarkable difference between standing on solid ground with a firm footing and sliding around on slippery mud.  Mud is that uncomfortable surface that is halfway between dry land and water.  Mud can be fun to play in, but you don’t choose mud for firm footing.  No, for a firm place to stand or for a solid place to build our life, we want dry ground.

Jesus said, “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock.” (Matthew 7:24-25)  God gave us the ability to think and make wise choices, but we don’t have to overthink every choice we make.  We are fortunate that we have the teachings of God in Jesus Christ to guide our feet along a safe path.

Does it seem like your life is firmly planted on solid ground?  Or does it feel like your world is sliding around in the mud?  If you are slipping around, you may need to re-evaluate what you base your choices on.  Are you relying too much on your own understanding or do you rely primarily on what Jesus teaches in the Bible?  Be honest.  What really is the foundation of your life?

Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.”

God gives us a good place to take root and grow.

You’ve heard the expression: “That’s about as boring as watching grass grow.”  

But watching a plant grow is only boring to us because it seems like nothing is happening.  If you speed it up and watch in in a time lapse, it's incredible. When God looks at us and sees us growing—physically and spiritually—He is pleased.  2 Peter 3:8 says, “A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day.”  How exciting it must be for God to watch us grow, because He sees things at a different speed! Maybe it is something like a time lapse for God.

Part of the reason we are on this earth is to learn and grow from our life experiences.  Why would God put us here if it were not so?  (Either God would have skipped the whole earth-experience or He would use His unlimited power to solve all our problems in an instant.  But that is not the way our lives work.  We must struggle. We must exert ourselves.  We must stretch. We must endure hardships.  And through these trials, we learn and grow.  

In Mark 4:3-9 Jesus taught a parable about how we can grow and be fruitful in God’s Kingdom.  He said, “Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seed. 4 As he scattered it across his field, some of the seed fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate it. 5 Other seed fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The seed sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow. 6 But the plant soon wilted under the hot sun, and since it didn’t have deep roots, it died. 7 Other seed fell among thorns that grew up and choked out the tender plants so they produced no grain. 8 Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they sprouted, grew, and produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” 9 Then he said, “Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.”

A relationship with God is soft enough for us to set down roots in.  God is not hard and harsh like the footpath or rocky soil.  Seeds (and relationships) cannot survive in these because there is no way to set down roots for a solid foundation or for nourishment.  God gives us the freedom to think for ourselves.  He gives us principles to live by in the Bible that steer us clear of unnecessary harm, yet we are free to apply those principles in ways that are relative to our current situation.  God is like the good soil that is soft enough for roots to grow down into and yet also firm enough to provide a plant with a sure foundation.  When we are firmly rooted in the Truth of God, we are nourished by the Living Water.  We have a hidden resource of refreshment to carry us through the tough times of life.  We look around at others who whither when life gets too hot for them, and yet we press on because we draw refreshment from our relationship with God.  The deeper our roots, the more secure we are.  Even when the storms of life beat upon us relentlessly, we may bend, but we do not break or fall over.  We are upheld because we are firmly rooted in faith and God holds us up when others topple over.

Conclusion

God made dry land for us to stand firm on and He gives us a firm place to take root and grow.  Is your life planted firmly on faith in Jesus Christ?  Are you tending your spirit each day to put down roots deeply in Him?  Days of drought are coming in your life when the trials of this life will beat down like the scorching summer sun.  Are your spiritual roots deep enough to draw refreshing nourishment from Christ when you need it most?  Storms will come too—storms that will threaten to uproot you and throw you down to the round.  Are your spiritual roots deep enough in Christ to hold you firm when the storm comes?  Christ calls to you today.  "Come.  Plant your life in me."