This quarter begins a series titled “Rest in Christ.” Our twenty-first-century society is filled with restless people. Worry and anxiety combined with uncertainty about the future contribute to this restlessness of the soul. There is a growing concern among mental health professionals with the increasing number of depressed people they are treating. It is estimated that there are more than 300 million depressed people in our world and that depression will surpass heart disease as the leading cause of death in a few decades. Worldwide sales of antidepressants are now expected to be more than six billion dollars, according to Thomson Reuters Pharma projections, based on consensus forecasts from analysts. More than 270 million prescriptions of antidepressants are sold in the United States alone each year. Our lessons this quarter, and especially this week’s lesson, focus on the true Source of rest and provide practical counsel on how to find rest in the busyness of our lives.
This week we will travel back in time to the Creation of our world and discover the eternal reminder of rest in Christ, the Sabbath. We will study an Old Testament scribe’s deep grief and its impact on his physical, mental, and emotional health. Throughout this week’s lesson, we will be constantly reminded of Christ’s invitation to rest throughout the Scriptures. As we learn the meaning of the word “rest” in the Old and New Testaments, we will understand Cain’s restlessness more fully and discover how to rest totally in Christ.
Part II: Commentary
The most comprehensive passage in the Bible on Sabbath rest is found in Genesis 2:1–3. At the end of Creation week, Jesus, our loving Creator, establishes what Jewish author Abraham Heschel calls a “palace in time.” Each Sabbath, Jesus invites us to leave our cares, worries, and anxieties behind us and enter His palace to rest in Him. Earthly palaces are distinct geographical locations. For example, the Palace of Versailles in France contains 700 rooms and has more than 67,000-square meters of floor space. As a World Heritage site, it is listed as one of the greatest achievements of the seventeenth century.
The Sabbath, God’s palace in time, is far more significant and amazing. It dates not to the seventeenth century but to the beginning of time, at Creation. It spans the centuries and graces the earth with sacred time each week. It is a perpetual reminder of where true rest is found. The Sabbath speaks of a God who is intimately acquainted with our basic human needs. He “rested on the Sabbath and was refreshed,” not because He was tired, but because He knew we would be tired. Genesis 2:2 says, “On the seventh day God ended His work” (NKJV). Time is not an endless cycle of labor-consuming events. God has graciously given us a divine pause—a time to deepen our relationship with Him, renew our minds, refresh our bodies, and experience positive family relations.
This divine Sabbath rest carries with it the sense of assurance in our Creator’s loving concern for us. In Him, we have peace. The Sabbath is a stress buster. It is the guarantee that the God who created this world has not forgotten it, and He has not forgotten us. As we “remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exod. 20:8, NKJV), our Creator remembers us on that day and pours the abundance of heaven’s blessings into our lives to deliver us from the bondage of fear, the chains of anxiety, and the prison of worry.
God’s Invitation to Rest
Throughout Scripture, God invites us to rest from our busyness. When the busyness of life overwhelms us, three things begin to happen:
• We begin to lose focus. The events of the present seem to overwhelm us. The challenges of life seem much larger, and we focus on the problems rather than on God, who can solve them. In our busyness, we focus on human answers to our dilemma rather than on divine solutions.
• We begin to become physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted. We say and do things we later regret. Busyness leads to tiredness. Tiredness leads to burnout, and burnout leads to discouragement. Busy people often make quick judgment decisions and fail to see the larger picture because they are so busy. They need to get on to the next problem to solve or the next task on their to-do list to accomplish. Thus, they have little time to reflect on the best solution to the problem they are facing.
• We begin to neglect prayer and Bible study. As a result, our devotional life suffers. Busyness produces tiredness, and tiredness produces inefficiency, a lack of discipline, the inability to control one’s feelings, and an erosion of a meaningful devotional life.
Ellen G. White puts it this way: “All who are under the training of God need the quiet hour for communion with their own hearts, with nature, and with God. In them is to be revealed a life that is not in harmony with the world, its customs, or its practices; and they need to have a personal experience in obtaining a knowledge of the will of God. We must individually hear Him speaking to the heart. When every other voice is hushed, and in quietness we wait before Him, the silence of the soul makes more distinct the voice of God. He bids us, ‘Be still, and know that I am God.’ Psalm 46:10. This is the effectual preparation for all labor for God. Amidst the hurrying throng, and the strain of life’s intense activities, he who is thus refreshed will be surrounded with an atmosphere of light and peace. He will receive a new endowment of both physical and mental strength. His life will breathe out a fragrance and will reveal a divine power that will reach men’s hearts.”—The Ministry of Healing, p. 58.
Have you ever felt that you are running from one thing to the next, overwhelmed with the busyness of life? There is one more email to answer, one more text message to respond to, one more phone call to make, one more committee to attend, one more person to see and the list goes on. Your life seems to be governed by “one more.” You have just too much to do to accomplish it all, and when you flop into bed at night you think about all you have left undone. Your work is certainly not finished. Your to-do list is half done at best. Your mind is racing. Sleep does not come as you frantically attempt to think about how you can cram more into an already-overloaded schedule tomorrow.
Christ’s invitation is especially for busy, worn-out, tired people who are living in a 24-7 world. Jesus’ disciples were anxious and confused after the beheading of John the Baptist. Jesus invited them to “ ‘come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.’ For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat” (Mark 6:31, NKJV). In their busyness, Jesus offered them rest. He did not encourage them to rush headlong into exhausting labor. His invitation to rest was not a onetime event only for the disciples. To the crowds following Him, He spoke these words of assurance: “ ‘Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest’ ” (Matt. 11:28, NKJV). The rest that Jesus offers is not freedom from trials. It is the internal assurance that in Him we are secure. He will never leave or forsake us. One of the most challenging experiences in life is feeling alone when we experience difficult times. That’s exactly the way Jeremiah’s scribe Baruch felt.
Baruch’s Grief, Cain’s Restlessness, and God’s Response
Baruch was Jeremiah’s scribe. According to Jeremiah 45:3–5, this poor man went through a time of deep emotional pain. The city of Jerusalem was soon to be attacked by enemy armies. Suffering, heartache, and disaster were swiftly approaching. Life as Baruch knew it would change forever. Fear consumed him. Grief flooded into his life. Worry held him in its debilitating grip. But God spoke and reassured him that “ ‘I will give your life to you as a prize in all places’ ” (Jer. 45:5, NKJV). The promises of God are sure. We can rest, even amid life’s greatest difficulties, because of the assurance that the promises of God give us.
In the Old Testament, there are multiple words translated as “rest.” Their meaning is varied. The words for rest can be translated “relief, quiet, peace, or settled.” In the New Testament, they can be interpreted as “rest, relax, or settled.” These words all have one thing in common. They imply an inner peace, a sense of calm and restfulness. This rest is a gift from God given to His weary children as they come to Him in faith.
The story of Cain demonstrates that there is no rest when human beings rebel against God’s commands and trust their own judgment. Cain disregarded the clear instructions of God. His was a religion of human works. He exalted his own opinion above God’s divine revelation. Abel, on the other hand, had peace even in death, because he placed his trust in the God of life. Today’s lesson provides some practical and crucial lessons for living in our 24-7 world.
Part III: Life Application
This week’s study provides us with at least three practical lessons for daily living.
• When we become too busy to rest in our Creator’s loving care, our lives become filled with stress and anxiety. This stress can lead to physical illness and emotional distress.
• Our Creator has designed us to rest. This rest is more than a physical rest, as important as that is. This rest is a peace of mind that comes from believing His Word, trusting His promises, and entering the blessedness of His Sabbath rest.
• Living life apart from our Creator, as symbolized by Cain’s experience, only frustrates our attempts to have inner peace and lasting joy. Rest comes from having a trusting relationship with the One who made us. In Christ, there is rest. In His promises, there is assurance. In His presence, we are free from anxiety, worry, and care.
Notes
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This quarter begins a series titled “Rest in Christ.” Our twenty-first-century society is filled with restless people. Worry and anxiety combined with uncertainty about the future contribute to this restlessness of the soul. There is a growing concern among mental health professionals with the increasing number of depressed people they are treating. It is estimated that there are more than 300 million depressed people in our world and that depression will surpass heart disease as the leading cause of death in a few decades. Worldwide sales of antidepressants are now expected to be more than six billion dollars, according to Thomson Reuters Pharma projections, based on consensus forecasts from analysts. More than 270 million prescriptions of antidepressants are sold in the United States alone each year. Our lessons this quarter, and especially this week’s lesson, focus on the true Source of rest and provide practical counsel on how to find rest in the busyness of our lives.
This week we will travel back in time to the Creation of our world and discover the eternal reminder of rest in Christ, the Sabbath. We will study an Old Testament scribe’s deep grief and its impact on his physical, mental, and emotional health. Throughout this week’s lesson, we will be constantly reminded of Christ’s invitation to rest throughout the Scriptures. As we learn the meaning of the word “rest” in the Old and New Testaments, we will understand Cain’s restlessness more fully and discover how to rest totally in Christ.
Part II: Commentary
The most comprehensive passage in the Bible on Sabbath rest is found in Genesis 2:1–3. At the end of Creation week, Jesus, our loving Creator, establishes what Jewish author Abraham Heschel calls a “palace in time.” Each Sabbath, Jesus invites us to leave our cares, worries, and anxieties behind us and enter His palace to rest in Him. Earthly palaces are distinct geographical locations. For example, the Palace of Versailles in France contains 700 rooms and has more than 67,000-square meters of floor space. As a World Heritage site, it is listed as one of the greatest achievements of the seventeenth century.
The Sabbath, God’s palace in time, is far more significant and amazing. It dates not to the seventeenth century but to the beginning of time, at Creation. It spans the centuries and graces the earth with sacred time each week. It is a perpetual reminder of where true rest is found. The Sabbath speaks of a God who is intimately acquainted with our basic human needs. He “rested on the Sabbath and was refreshed,” not because He was tired, but because He knew we would be tired. Genesis 2:2 says, “On the seventh day God ended His work” (NKJV). Time is not an endless cycle of labor-consuming events. God has graciously given us a divine pause—a time to deepen our relationship with Him, renew our minds, refresh our bodies, and experience positive family relations.
This divine Sabbath rest carries with it the sense of assurance in our Creator’s loving concern for us. In Him, we have peace. The Sabbath is a stress buster. It is the guarantee that the God who created this world has not forgotten it, and He has not forgotten us. As we “remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exod. 20:8, NKJV), our Creator remembers us on that day and pours the abundance of heaven’s blessings into our lives to deliver us from the bondage of fear, the chains of anxiety, and the prison of worry.
God’s Invitation to Rest
Throughout Scripture, God invites us to rest from our busyness. When the busyness of life overwhelms us, three things begin to happen:
• We begin to lose focus. The events of the present seem to overwhelm us. The challenges of life seem much larger, and we focus on the problems rather than on God, who can solve them. In our busyness, we focus on human answers to our dilemma rather than on divine solutions.
• We begin to become physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted. We say and do things we later regret. Busyness leads to tiredness. Tiredness leads to burnout, and burnout leads to discouragement. Busy people often make quick judgment decisions and fail to see the larger picture because they are so busy. They need to get on to the next problem to solve or the next task on their to-do list to accomplish. Thus, they have little time to reflect on the best solution to the problem they are facing.
• We begin to neglect prayer and Bible study. As a result, our devotional life suffers. Busyness produces tiredness, and tiredness produces inefficiency, a lack of discipline, the inability to control one’s feelings, and an erosion of a meaningful devotional life.
Ellen G. White puts it this way: “All who are under the training of God need the quiet hour for communion with their own hearts, with nature, and with God. In them is to be revealed a life that is not in harmony with the world, its customs, or its practices; and they need to have a personal experience in obtaining a knowledge of the will of God. We must individually hear Him speaking to the heart. When every other voice is hushed, and in quietness we wait before Him, the silence of the soul makes more distinct the voice of God. He bids us, ‘Be still, and know that I am God.’ Psalm 46:10. This is the effectual preparation for all labor for God. Amidst the hurrying throng, and the strain of life’s intense activities, he who is thus refreshed will be surrounded with an atmosphere of light and peace. He will receive a new endowment of both physical and mental strength. His life will breathe out a fragrance and will reveal a divine power that will reach men’s hearts.”—The Ministry of Healing, p. 58.
Have you ever felt that you are running from one thing to the next, overwhelmed with the busyness of life? There is one more email to answer, one more text message to respond to, one more phone call to make, one more committee to attend, one more person to see and the list goes on. Your life seems to be governed by “one more.” You have just too much to do to accomplish it all, and when you flop into bed at night you think about all you have left undone. Your work is certainly not finished. Your to-do list is half done at best. Your mind is racing. Sleep does not come as you frantically attempt to think about how you can cram more into an already-overloaded schedule tomorrow.
Christ’s invitation is especially for busy, worn-out, tired people who are living in a 24-7 world. Jesus’ disciples were anxious and confused after the beheading of John the Baptist. Jesus invited them to “ ‘come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.’ For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat” (Mark 6:31, NKJV). In their busyness, Jesus offered them rest. He did not encourage them to rush headlong into exhausting labor. His invitation to rest was not a onetime event only for the disciples. To the crowds following Him, He spoke these words of assurance: “ ‘Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest’ ” (Matt. 11:28, NKJV). The rest that Jesus offers is not freedom from trials. It is the internal assurance that in Him we are secure. He will never leave or forsake us. One of the most challenging experiences in life is feeling alone when we experience difficult times. That’s exactly the way Jeremiah’s scribe Baruch felt.
Baruch’s Grief, Cain’s Restlessness, and God’s Response
Baruch was Jeremiah’s scribe. According to Jeremiah 45:3–5, this poor man went through a time of deep emotional pain. The city of Jerusalem was soon to be attacked by enemy armies. Suffering, heartache, and disaster were swiftly approaching. Life as Baruch knew it would change forever. Fear consumed him. Grief flooded into his life. Worry held him in its debilitating grip. But God spoke and reassured him that “ ‘I will give your life to you as a prize in all places’ ” (Jer. 45:5, NKJV). The promises of God are sure. We can rest, even amid life’s greatest difficulties, because of the assurance that the promises of God give us.
In the Old Testament, there are multiple words translated as “rest.” Their meaning is varied. The words for rest can be translated “relief, quiet, peace, or settled.” In the New Testament, they can be interpreted as “rest, relax, or settled.” These words all have one thing in common. They imply an inner peace, a sense of calm and restfulness. This rest is a gift from God given to His weary children as they come to Him in faith.
The story of Cain demonstrates that there is no rest when human beings rebel against God’s commands and trust their own judgment. Cain disregarded the clear instructions of God. His was a religion of human works. He exalted his own opinion above God’s divine revelation. Abel, on the other hand, had peace even in death, because he placed his trust in the God of life. Today’s lesson provides some practical and crucial lessons for living in our 24-7 world.
Part III: Life Application
This week’s study provides us with at least three practical lessons for daily living.
• When we become too busy to rest in our Creator’s loving care, our lives become filled with stress and anxiety. This stress can lead to physical illness and emotional distress.
• Our Creator has designed us to rest. This rest is more than a physical rest, as important as that is. This rest is a peace of mind that comes from believing His Word, trusting His promises, and entering the blessedness of His Sabbath rest.
• Living life apart from our Creator, as symbolized by Cain’s experience, only frustrates our attempts to have inner peace and lasting joy. Rest comes from having a trusting relationship with the One who made us. In Christ, there is rest. In His promises, there is assurance. In His presence, we are free from anxiety, worry, and care.
Notes