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Calvary Temple Teaching Library

Entering Rest Pt.2

Let's pick up where we were in our study on Sunday. We were talking about the rest of God; that need for us to labor to enter into that rest. In the last session that I was counseling, in the incident that we are talking about, this is part of what I was sharing with them there, that the labor is the prayer, the study, the fasting. "...this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting" (Matthew 17:21). We are talking about warring unbelief in our lives; the ability to trust God and to come into that rest and live in the peace of God that passes understanding. So, the labor is in our study, the labor is in our prayer, in our fasting; but the labor is also in that aspect that we've talked about many times and that's the choice of obeying, doing. As we do, then, of course, we are strengthened and enabled to do. "To he that has shall more be given," the Scripture says. It's by reason of use, the Scripture teaches us, that we are strengthened and our senses are exercised to be able to discern then. And that discerning isn't just knowing, but it's discerning, judging properly and making the right choice between good and evil.

We left off in that Hebrews portion of scripture, so, let's go back there into Hebrews, Chapter 4, where we were Sunday morning and allow the Spirit to minister to us, because many of us, we face these things on a daily basis. Ceasing from our own labors, how self-destructive it is, how in trying to empower ourselves we're actually destroying ourselves and undermining our own faith. Because when is it when we are the strongest? When we're what? When we're weak. As we're trying to empower ourselves and we're very comfortable, now, in our understanding of this situation, we've got everything figured out how this is going to work, we finally know what God's doing, and we're confident; that's, many times, when we're at our weakest. And when we don't know, and we don't have the capacity, and, "I don't quite understand all of this," is when we're strong, because we're having to trust in Him for the very next step, the very next move toward light and obedience.

The children of Israel, here in Chapters 3 and 4, that we were looking at Sunday morning, the children of Israel as we know, they were just constantly being opposed by the fear in their own hearts of the giants that were in the land. Are you facing personal giants? Are you looking at different obstacles of financial pressures? We're looking at different things that have to do with our vocations, all of these things, and nothing looks like there's any hope, any favorable expectation ahead of us. We, then, become grasshoppers, the passage says, in the enemy's eyes; and the need for us to look and acknowledge: "Yes, there are giants in the land; yes, the situation in the natural does look hopeless, but all things are possible to he that believeth." Amen? This faith that needs to begin to be built into our hearts beyond our own ability, beyond our own comprehension, beyond what appears in the natural--and when I say "appears," I'm not just talking about it not being real, it's real, but faith is more real, praise God!

These circumstances will change; His promises will never pass away. Amen? What's going to change is what's opposing the Word of God; what's going to change is what is defying the lordship of Jesus. So, God says, "I'm wanting to bring you into a land that flows with milk and honey. I'm wanting to give you houses that you didn't build, and I'm wanting you to be able to drink from wells that you didn't dig, and all you can see are the giants, the opposition." And he said, "They didn't enter then because of their unbelief." Now, we talked about the unbelief being unpersuadeableness. I don't want to get off course right now, but let me just share something with you--and if you ever find yourself in that position where you have no belief, where you are in total unbelief, what's the one thing that is probably the most unnatural thing to do but the most necessary thing to do at that moment? Trust your counselors. Amen? Do it, not because you feel like it, not because it sounds right, looks right, not because you understand it, not because you even at that time are able to embrace it, but the very core of unbelief is, say it with me: unpersuadeableness. You've got to be persuaded, that's what you are opposing. In a situation like this, "I know it's true, I know what the Word teaches; I just can't do it." What do you do when you just can't do it? Do it. Amen? You've got to get out of the boat; that's what faith is. Faith is stepping out of the boat, faith is doing what can't be done, because God has commanded it, praise God!

We're talking about moving into a new realm where we're not real comfortable, and as God was calling the children of Israel out of Egypt--out of the world's system and out of the natural--and He began to perform the miracles in their lives, stop and think where they've come. They've come through the Red Sea; they saw the hand of God. Have you ever experienced the hand of God in your life? "Oh, I've never seen anything like that." You've seen a greater miracle than that; God changed your heart, didn't He? Amen? How's that for a starting place? Make all things new. Take a heart and the things that used to be good we call evil, and the things that used to be evil we call good. That's the greatest miracle that can happen. What a start! So, why can't we believe for whatever it is we're facing right now? That's part of what God's trying to get across in these chapters, and He's telling us, "I'm the One who created everything. I've called you, I've gone before you and I've made a way where there is no way. Hold fast to these promises." And then, remember we left as we were talking in Chapter 3, "Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God." Anything that causes us to revert back to the natural mindset--you remember we were talking Sunday the tendency--and we all do it, we get weak in faith, we get tired spiritually, what do we do? We revert back to what we do best in the natural; the thing that usually gets us in trouble: Self-confidence, the things that we're comfortable with, the things we've been successful at. He says, "I want you to come to that place to where you are aware of the need to be free from that comfort."

Most of us here want to live in that comfort zone, don't we? Where we understand what's happening, there's no opposition, but that's not the best place for us to be. In this war that you and I are in, the safest place you can be is on the front line, just out there warring, hand to hand combat with the devil, praise God! Do you want to know the worst place you can be? Back home with David in the palace watching Bathsheba. But that's where the natural man wants to hang out, that's where we think success. "Praise God, look at how God's blessed me; look at what God's done for us. I used to be a little shepherd boy and now I'm a king and now I've got a palace." There's never a place not to be up on the front lines, warring, taking more ground; not trusting in yourself, but being able to walk in faith on a daily basis. The one thing about faith is if you don't use it, you'll lose it; you'll begin to revert back to trusting yourself. It's by reason of use that our senses are exercised that we might discern good and evil.

We talked about the need and we went into Chapter 4 of ceasing from our own labors. Verse 9 of Chapter 4, "There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God." The rest is when we begin to cease from our own works. "Let us labour [verse 11] therefore to enter into that rest..." Our labor is not in the acquisition of the thing, but in the acquisition of the presence of God; the acquisition of faith that will acquire the thing, the promise; because without faith it's--what?--impossible to please God. If what we have in our lives has not been acquired by faith, it doesn't please God; it's not from God, we got it ourselves. What does the Scripture say? "We stand and say, ‘look what my hand has acquired.'" Stop and think of your own testimony, those things that God's given you, the nights when you were so fearful, that His presence got you through, as you lay awake quoting, "‘A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh [me],' praise God!"

I've battled a few nights like that, I've wrestled demonic powers. I'm talking about the real thing. I'm talking about where the room turns totally black, and the lights are on. I'm talking about oppression to where you can't breathe, to where you can virtually feel Satan's hands on your throat, and all you can do is go to the Word of God and say what God said, "Resist the enemy." Those nights are very precious as you look back at what you've acquired by faith. So many things that over the years you can acquire, things that come to us from the Lord that are not necessarily--they're all God's blessings that come upon us--you wouldn't say or boast or think that you've acquired them by your own hands, but there are those special visitations when you know God has placed this thing in your hand, how precious it is. Are we laboring for those? Look what it says, "...labour [not for the stuff] therefore to enter into that rest..." How? What is the labor? The "labor," as we've shared with you many times before, that word literally means to be a doer of the Word, a student of the Word. That labor is talking about studying, living off the Word of God. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.

We talked about in the past many times that word "hearing" isn't just--I had Jonathan put the New Testament on my little MP3, because I'm working out somewhat at this gym over here so we can play some racquetball; you've got to have something to shield yourself against the music--but it's not that hearing of the Word. So, you're listening to the New Testament over and over and it's going in. That's good and we need that and we need to have the knowledge of God's Word. We listen and we study and that's good, but faith comes by an audience with God. Somewhere in that as the Word of God is speaking to you, the Holy Spirit, then, makes it alive; we know it's a rhema, a specific word that becomes real to you at the moment, and it causes divine energy to rise up to where you become one with that promise and nothing can ever take it from your heart. It doesn't have to manifest; it's yours, praise God. Amen? If I die not having received it, praise God, do you want to know what? It's coming to me. It may be something I receive in the presence of God later in a spiritual form, but when you've apprehended it by faith, it is more real than anything else that is ever acquired. Do you have that kind of faith? Have you heard the Word of God in that way?

This is where we're laboring to enter into the rest; studying, doing so that those words can become life to us and nothing can move us off the Word of God; that sure foundation, where you stand and say, "Though Heaven and earth pass away His Word isn't going anywhere. His promises are sure to a thousand generations." Have we come into that rest? Some of us have been believing God for healing; are you resting in that right now? "Man, I'm hurting worse today than I have..." What's that got to do with anything? Of course it's discomforting, and, yes, there are times when we just need to thank God for giving you the refreshing and strength to build you up right now, but we believe that by the stripes of Jesus we're healed. Amen? That's the rest! But, you see when it doesn't manifest, things don't change immediately, we can get discomfited and we need to, then, labor to come back and apprehend that rest that belongs to the people of God, that divine assurance.

So, he says, "Let us labour [be diligent] therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief." Now, you know there's something that's very important for us here. He talked about a new generation that's going to go in. So, God finally said, "Look, these..." how many don't want to be numbered with the old guys? I want to be with Joshua and Caleb. Amen? They were old in body and young in spirit, praise God! Everybody wondering and what was their testimony? "We can take that mountain." I shared with you what God has stirred up in my heart again in Psalms and that's burning in my spirit right now; I'm ready to go take some more mountains, praise God. I kind of feel like I'm getting young again, praise God. Who knows, we may be going back for some more miracle rallies. Amen? We might get busy again just being about Father's business, letting Him open doors of utterance, praise God, boldly speaking the Word of God, shouting from the housetops those things we've seen and heard. "But be careful," he says, "take heed," we saw in Chapter 3, verse 12, "Be diligent about your work here so you don't fall after the same example of unbelief."

You can't just casually wander around in the wilderness; God's trying to get us into the Promised Land. When that cloud moves we've got to have the decision made, "We're following it." "... [Don't] fall after the same example of unbelief. For the word of God is quick, and powerful..." We need to refresh ourselves, beloved, in the integrity of the Word of God. Years ago we used to talk about that a lot, we still do. Now, we know some people moved into error with this and almost came into the place of bibliolatry--worship of the Bible. God and His Word are one. Amen? The Word is alive, this Word reveals to us the heart of God, the purpose of God, powerful--that word in the Greek talks about to be energized, supercharged! How's your faith right now? Where are you when it pertains to healing? Do you want to know how to change it? We talked about some of the apathy. Just get into all of the healing Scriptures, you get what you are believing for, you'll get what you are studying. Amen?

What have you been studying lately? "Well, I've been reading this book, ‘How to Get a Man'." I have too, it's called the Bible. God's not willing--it's not His will--that you should be alone. Let me tell you how to get a man: have a meek and quiet spirit. Amen? Be submissive to your dad. Guys, I'll give you some good advice: Watch the way these girls respond to their dad; that's what they're going to do to you. Are they able to rank under? Is there the meek and quiet spirit? That Word, as we're studying, some of us have been into relationships, and we've taught on relationships just recently. The same thing for you ladies: You're not going to get caught up in the physical--"Oh he's so cute"--You're not going to get off course, if you'll go to the Word of God that is energized to renew your mind, so that when you look at them you'll see what you're supposed to see. You're not being moved by the natural, you're seeing the spiritual, you're looking for those things that are eternal, you're looking for godly character, godly men, godly women. So, if I was a young unmarried person, I'd be spending time studying what my role is to live as a godly man; ladies, the same for yourselves, and allow that to begin to minister in fruit. Of course, we're also in the process of this, learning what it means to find our place in the body and to be servants and to be plugged in. Those are some things that you need, that's what I'm studying as a young person. Now, I'm studying and I'm getting fired up on evangelism. Pastor Jeff was showing the video, so praise God, so now I go to the Word and I need faith to be able to be a witness for Him, to be the salt and the light, so I go to the Word and I study that. I need healing, I go to the Word and I study healing. I need humility, I go look in the mirror.

What do you need? The Word of God is alive--it's alive, it's powerful, it's sharper than a two-edged sword, it divides asunder, the Scripture tells us, it will let you know what soulical and what is spiritual. If you are living in the Word of God, you don't need your counselors to keep hitting you over the head to try to get you to see it. A spiritual person can immediately discern spiritual things, but to the natural mind or the soulical mind they are--what?--foolishness. "Why should we have to...? Well, let me see... Well, I don't know if I agree with that." It's soulical, go to the Word, let it become alive, it will refresh your mind and you'll see it clearly like you used to before you became so carnal; that's how you enter the rest of God. We're just constantly pouring this Word into our hearts, this mirror that reveals what manner of man we are; this light to our feet that the Word of God is. The enemy comes against us, this Word is the sword of the Spirit, praise God.

What is this Word? This Word is the manna that's come down from Heaven, praise God, if we eat it, we'll never hunger again. He's talking about that rest and the need then to constantly live in the Word of God. Some of us are not being strengthened, many of us are living off of praise music, devotionals--nothing wrong with either one of those, but I see those more as the pep rally--the pep rally doesn't cause you to win the game, it's the time in the gym. Amen? It's great to be refreshed and excited, and motivated, and, "Praise God that chorus, it just lifted me," but it doesn't give you strength. Strength comes from obeying the Word of God, strength comes from doing the Word of God, strength comes from choosing against what's natural. As he tells us here in this particular passage, this Word, then, is alive, it is powerful, it causes us to know the soulical realm versus the spirit realm; it is the judge of the thoughts and the intentions of the heart.

To me, this is one of the key elements: Motive. Not, "What am I doing?" "Why am I doing what I'm doing?" Is it about the glory of God? Am I doing this because it's right, not because there are consequences for not doing it? That's a good reason, but not the best reason. As we're laboring to enter into that rest of ceasing from our own abilities, our own agendas, our own morality, God knows our hearts. There is nothing that is being withheld from Him, we can think we are fooling Him, but we're not.

My mother just sent me--she sends me weird stuff--she just sent me this little story that was kind of interesting about parents knowing. A mother came to visit the son, and the son had a real pretty roommate. The son said, "Mom, don't worry, we're just roommates, we're sharing the rent, there's nothing going on here." Mom says, "Yeah, right." "No, I'm telling you there's absolutely nothing going on." Mom says, "Okay." I'll try to make the version shorter as these stories like to be fluffed out. So anyway, Mom goes. The girl comes to the young man and says, "I don't want to accuse, but since your Mother's been gone the silver goblet is missing." The boy says, "Well, let me call Mom and see what's going on." He says, "Mom, we don't want to accuse you, but since you were here visiting and have been gone, the silver goblet's been missing." She said, "Oh it's not missing, it's in the bedroom on your girlfriend's pillow. If she had been in there you would have known it." Mom knows. Father knows the thoughts and the intentions of our hearts. Amen? I like that story. You're just not getting away with anything.

Tragically, in the spiritual realm we're not what or where we think we are, so the Word just has to come and constantly hold us accountable to reality. How at peace are you tonight with where you are in your journey? How moved are you by giants? How badly do you want to just stay in the comfort zone on this side of Jordan? Where do we rank when it comes to those that stand up in our midst like a Joshua and a Caleb and say, "We're well able, let's go." Or is there that tendency to hold back with the majority that says, "We can't go up there, we're just as grasshoppers." How many of us are going to make commitments, as that young shepherd boy did, to run at the giant because of the jealousy for the glory of God? Did you hear what was burning in David's heart? "You uncircumcised Philistine, how dare you defy the glory of God?" As we labor in this Word, as we live in this Word, we constantly, then, see that life and what we're doing isn't about the temporal, it's about the eternal; it's about the glory of God. He goes on and says--and we'll finish with this for this evening, "[All things are] manifest in his sight...we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. [He is one who is] touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." Where are we tonight? Do we see ourselves needing the grace of God, the mercy of God, or do we think we've merited something? Do we think we're able, or do we realize this thing is beyond me? "There is no way I can do this."

We go back to the illustration we talked about a little bit earlier, and it's an interesting thing. I can't tell you how many times in my mind I've been in that boat, "Lord, if it's You, bid me to come." Stop and think about that for just a moment. How many of you would love to be there and hear the words of Jesus, "Come on, you can walk on water." Stop and think for a moment, would you like to hear that? Now, let's go back to all of the other circumstances: there's a storm, they're out there bailing and trying to survive this thing. We, naturally, are of the boat mentality; you are being given the opportunity to go somewhere you've never been before--Captain Kirk--to go out there where no other man's gone. It sounds exciting because we know how the story ended. Go back there without evidence, without an example of that One that's gone before us, the One touched with the feelings of our infirmities, the One tempted in all ways and yet without sin. This is the man who now has not seen the resurrection of Jesus; seen the miracles, but now given the mandate: "Come on, come and do what you've never done before, come and do what no man has ever done before." I believe that that same beckoning is being given today in our generation because we are facing things that no man has ever faced before, and He's looking for somebody who is ready to be used. If you have any ability to recognize reality and truth, that's going to frighten you in the natural; the grace will come when the command is given, but up until then, "Man, I don't know if I can do that or not." Do you want me to tell you something? You can't!

I asked somebody the other day, and you need to answer this in your life, "What if somebody takes your child, puts a gun up to their head and says, ‘You deny Jesus is Lord, or I'm going to kill him.'" What are you going to do? And some of us just instantly say, "I'll never deny the Lord." I read about a guy who said that one time. "Well Pastor, what should we say?" We should say, "If the Lord wills..." Amen? His grace is sufficient, but the fact of the matter is we don't know what we're going to do until we're put into that position. The only thing we know is what we've done, and to this point I've been obedient in everything God's called me to do, so I would presume that I'll be obedient again, and I would ask for the grace and the faith and have no reason to doubt that I would make the right choice. But to have confidence that we would never choose anything or never fail, this is not reality, beloved, it's self-righteousness, it's trust in our own ability and we have to constantly--Listen to how this chapter ends, "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain [what?] mercy..."

If God gives me His mercy and if God gives me His grace in this time of need, I'll stand, praise God! And do you know what? He's promised it to me so I have no reason to believe otherwise; but my trust isn't in me, it's in God's mercy--God's grace, God's Word, God's promises, God's presence--and that's the labor. Constantly laboring to put ourselves in positions where we are dependent upon God. Are you comfortable tonight? Are we in a place where we are having to depend upon God? That's where the real rest is. There is an anxiousness when you've got it together, everything's well. If everything's so right, if I've got everything's in place, if I've got everything under control, why am I so anxious, why am I so discontent? Why is there that tendency to consume this upon myself? Why am I sitting here in the palace when everybody is out fighting? The rest is in our labor, the real peace, the real safety is when we're pressing on to touch Him, to have a little more, to do a little more for the kingdom, to know Him as we're known. The rest is in the laboring in the Word about the kingdom's business and not consuming these things upon ourselves.

Father, we thank You for the Word tonight. As we close, we again have our hearts and our minds going to needs that are among us. Father, my mind goes to Jordan tonight and just the need for Your visitation; the power of God, we need that healing power, Father. Father, as the time's counting down on Tony tonight and his body in need of a touch, our minds just go to You, Father. We go to the Word of God and we're refreshed. Give us a word, Lord, that we could step out of the boat. We confess that by Your stripes we are healed, praise God, and we boast in that. Father, for Cherie tonight, Lord we just-- I don't know if you've heard, her brain has fallen back to that place and she's in pain again. It's so discouraging after the surgery and all that's taken place--Father, just touch her right now in the name of Jesus. Hallelujah! Father, just take the pain out of her body right now in the name of Jesus. We speak peace, Father, we ask You to heal her right now. Father, cause the fluid to come back in, Father, to that skull and to raise that brain to its proper place, Father, in the name of Jesus. Father, don't let these just be prayers for tonight, but let us labor, now, tomorrow as we're in the Word, let us build ourselves up in these promises and speak again the healing into Tony's body, the healing into Cherie, Father, the other needs that are in our midst that we are aware of. To stand, Father, and know that we have all power and all authority over all the power of the enemy. Let us continue to destroy the evil one as he would try to dominate the mind of Denise. That's demonic, that's the devil. In the name of Jesus we just rejoice, Father, in the victory that's been won. We delight, Father, in Your presence; there is a rest for the people of God. We just come to this Word; it's alive, it's refreshing. Father, the passage that we ended on, "We can come boldly to the throne of grace," if that doesn't refresh us! Just come boldly to the throne of grace. Come boldly, just step in there and get all the grace you need, unmerited favor, praise God. You don't deserve it, but God wants to give it to you. He wants you at peace, He wants you healed, he wants you bold! Oh, Father, we just thank You for these promises, we'll be careful to give You all the praise in Jesus' name. Amen.

Let's stand before the Lord tonight. As Gary plays for us, just a time of refreshing in the Word of God; just realize the enemy will do everything possible to keep you from going in there and finding that one word, that rhema that comes to set you free. Hallelujah! Lord, You are so good to us. Hallelujah! Let's sing it, just worship Him, believe Him tonight for what that need is, boldness, healing, peace.

Hallelujah, hallelujah! Lord, we just come and receive that peace that presence brings us, the strength, the joy. Let us go to Your Word; it's alive, it's powerful. We'll give You the praise, Father, for all that You've done, in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. Before you go, turn to somebody and say, "There is a rest." Praise God. Go in peace, God's love go with you.

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