Join me please in your copy of God's Word, which I hope you have with you in Matthew's Gospel, chapter 11.
Last week we talked about working diligently to the glory of God.
And as promised, and to set some balance to last week, this morning we're going to talk about rest.
And as I was preparing this week, both to preach today and to go on this sabbatical,
it was a very fitting topic for me, as this is probably one of the busiest weeks I've had.
And I've been suffering from a vicious head cold, as I know many of you all are.
I've got a cough drop resting in the side.
I've got a cough in my mouth right now, just in case I need it today.
It's been a fairly unrestful week, pushing for the hope of rest in a temporal sense.
So it's been a good thing for me to stop and to consider this week.
I hope it'll serve you as well.
I discovered in my studying this week that I find poetry rather restful.
And so we'll see today there's quite a bit of poetry in my sermon notes.
But the text for today is Matthew chapter 11, verses 20 through 30.
And before I read that for our benefit, let me remind you, beloved, that this is God's word to us.
It was written for his glory and for our good.
We would all do well to listen to it in order to believe its promises and obey its commands.
Beginning in verse 20 of Matthew chapter 11.
Then Jesus began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done because they did not repent.
Woe to you, Chorazin.
Woe to you, Bethsaida.
For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you.
And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven?
You will be brought down to Hades.
For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
But I tell you that it will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for you.
At that time, Jesus declared,
I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children.
Yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.
All things have been handed over to me by my Father.
And no one knows the Son except the Father.
And no one knows the Father except the Son.
And anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him.
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden.
And I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me.
For I am gentle and lowly in heart.
And you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy.
And my burden is light.
In verse 28, Jesus extends to you and I a great invitation.
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden.
And I will give you rest.
And this is such a great invitation for those who are weary.
I don't know if any of you feel that way this morning.
Feel beat down by the world around you.
This is such a good invitation for us for at least two reasons.
Firstly, Jesus' invitation is a great invitation because He offers us rest from our greatest problem.
Jesus speaks such comforting words in the conclusion of our text.
But not all of His words in this text are comforting.
Recall how it began with denouncement and woes.
Jesus publicly declared the wickedness of the unrepentant people of the cities of Chorazin and Bethsaida and Capernaum.
These were all Jewish cities in which, as Matthew here records for us,
most of Jesus' miracles had been performed.
Jesus' miracles accompanied His preaching to give validity to them.
Jesus coming onto the scene, speaking new things with authority,
used signs to give validity to what it was He was saying.
And Jesus here juxtaposes their unbelief
against how the Gentile cities of Tyre and Sidon
and the ancient city of Sodom would have responded.
Had such miracles been performed amongst them.
Now, lest we lose sight of what is most important here.
The point that Jesus is making,
it is He came with power and He preached a message.
A message that these denounced cities did not respond to.
Many in our day are seeking new signs,
wanting some taste of the metaphysical in order to believe.
But God has given us His Son.
We have, as miracles before us,
the incarnation,
and we have the resurrection.
We need nothing further.
Look at what Jesus says just a chapter later in Matthew's Gospel.
In Matthew chapter 12, beginning in verse 38.
Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered Him saying,
Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.
They're saying,
Do something miraculous for us so that we will believe.
But He answered them,
An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign,
but no sign will be given to you except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish,
so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it.
For they repented at the preaching of Jonah,
and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.
So we see in this little brief passage in Matthew chapter 12,
of the incarnation, Jesus saying,
Hello, I am here, I am before you.
The Son of Man, which is taken from Daniel,
this was an Old Testament reference,
He was understood in calling Himself this to be the Messiah,
God made flesh, come to deliver His people.
Behold, something greater than Jonah is here.
The people of Nineveh listened to Jonah's preaching.
They had no sign to accompany it.
They simply heard the call of the Lord and they repented and believed.
We see also in this text the resurrection.
So will the Son of Man, so will Christ be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
And then what?
He was raised three days later.
So, what was the message that Jesus came to preach?
The message that He preached accompanied by signs?
The message that He preached without signs?
The message that He preaches to us today?
Matthew chapter 4, verse 17.
Chapter 4, Jesus begins His ministry.
In verse 17, Matthew records,
This is the summary of what it is that Jesus taught.
Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
So He preached repentance.
But what is repentance?
Repentance is recognizing one's offense against a most holy God.
Feeling remorse for that offense.
Not merely recognizing that it is an offense,
but recognizing that we must feel something.
We have a remorse for offending such a holy God.
And seeking to satisfy the consequence of that offense.
Apart from Christ, I am not okay, and you are not okay.
Romans 3, Paul says famously in verses 10-12.
Here's the crux.
The Lord wants us to sink in.
Here we go.
Romans chapter 3, verses 10-12.
Paul says,
None is righteous, no, not one.
No one understands.
No one seeks for God.
All have turned aside.
Together, they have become worthless.
No one does good.
Not even one.
And then later in chapter 3, verse 23.
All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
All of us have not lived up to this high expectation of us, of holiness.
Right?
God intended for us to be His image bearers,
to reflect Him in the world around us by keeping His good commands.
And each and every one of us, right?
From our federal head, Adam, all the way through to the babies being held in mom's arms this morning,
have sinned against a most holy God.
And we are in need of repentance.
Repentance begins with humility.
Turn with me to Luke chapter 18.
Beginning in verse 9 and following.
I like it when the biblical writers tell us why Jesus told the parable.
Verse 9,
Jesus also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous.
And don't we have so many around us in this day?
You might find yourself in this place thinking that somehow,
if there is a God and if there is an afterlife,
that you can find the way to please Him on your own.
You can believe that you're good enough.
Jesus speaks this parable to you.
These that find themselves to be righteous and treat others with contempt.
In verse 10,
Two men went up into the temple to pray.
One a Pharisee and the other a tax collector or publican,
some of your translations may say.
The Pharisee would have been an outwardly righteous man,
a practicer of all of the Jewish law.
The tax collector or publican would have been seen as the most vile traitor to Israel,
to God's people.
One who submitted himself to the Roman government and collected taxes on their behalf.
Verse 11,
The Pharisee standing by himself prayed thus,
God, I thank you that I am not like other men,
extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
I fast twice a week.
I give tithes of all that I get.
But the tax collector standing far off would not even lift up his eyes to heaven,
but beat his breast saying,
God, be merciful to me, a sinner.
I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other.
For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled,
but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.
And so repentance begins with this kind of humility, right?
A man not even willing to approach the temple,
not willing to lift his eyes to heaven
because he knew the offense he had given to God.
Isaac Watts, who was a late 17th, early 18th century hymnist,
rather popular hymnist,
wrote the following poem.
I don't actually think there's music to this.
Hint, hint, musicians.
He wrote this,
Saints, at your heavenly Father's word,
give up your comforts to the Lord.
Behold how sinners disagree,
the publican and Pharisee.
One doth his righteousness proclaim,
the other owns his guilt and shame.
This man at humble distance stands
and cries for grace with lifted hands
that boldly rises near the throne
and talks of duties he has done.
The Lord, their different language knows
and different answers he bestows.
The humble soul with grace he crowns,
whilst on the proud his anger frowns.
Dear Father,
let me never be joined with the boasting Pharisee.
I have no merits of my own,
but plead the sufferings of thy son.
Now we have sinned against an infinite God
whose holiness is infinite,
and therefore our offense against him is infinite,
which is why we need the infinite sacrifice
of Jesus Christ to satisfy the consequence
of the offense.
We must humbly recognize our offense against God,
feel remorse for it,
but then find the remedy in Jesus.
You see, friends,
God expects perfection from us,
but he extends to us that perfection
in the person and work of Jesus Christ.
Upon humble admission of our offense against God
and our placing our faith
in the saving work of Christ,
God not only forgives us our sins,
but also gives us Jesus' righteousness.
We take on his perfect life
as he takes away our sin.
This is a glorious truth
that we can rest in.
John Bunyan,
if you're not familiar with,
was a 17th century English pastor and writer.
He was a preacher who preached without a license,
which was necessary in those days,
and therefore was imprisoned.
And in prison,
with a copy of Fox's Book of Martyrs
and his Bible,
he wrote a wonderful work called Pilgrim's Progress.
And if you are a follower of Jesus Christ,
you must read your scripture first
and Pilgrim's Progress second.
It will be nourishing to your soul
to read this work.
There are abridged versions,
there are modern English versions.
It is a work that you should pick up
as it will serve you well.
The work is an allegory,
and it begins with the writer,
the narrator,
I'm assuming Bunyan,
falling asleep and having a dream.
And he follows in this dream
the main character named Christian.
And it's about his journey
and then later his wife's journey
to the celestial city.
And Christian,
at the beginning of this dream,
finds himself with a heavy burden
laid upon his back.
If you find this illustrated,
it's usually a big, ugly,
bulging backpack
strapped onto his back.
And we come to understand
that this is the weight of his sin.
Right?
He comes to have this burden
because he's picked up a book.
And he's read from the book
about this good king
who has a high standard
which he has not met.
And so he sets off
to find himself
loosed of this burden.
I'm going to read just a brief bit
to you
from Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress.
Now I saw in my dream
that the highway
which Christian was to go
was fenced on either side
with a wall.
And that wall was called salvation.
Up this way, therefore,
did burdened Christian run,
but not without great difficulty
because of the load on his back.
He ran thus
till he came to a place
somewhat ascending,
and upon that place
stood a cross,
and a little below
in the bottom
a sepulcher.
That's a grave.
So I saw in my dream
that just as Christian
came up to the cross,
his burden
loosed from off his shoulders
and fell from off his back
and began to tumble.
And so continued to do
until it came to the mouth
of the sepulcher
where it fell in
and I saw it no more.
Then was Christian glad
and lightsome
and said with a merry heart,
he hath given me rest
by his sorrow
and life
by his death.
And then he burst into a song,
another poem for you
this morning.
Christian says,
Thus far did I come laden
with my sin,
nor could aught ease
the grief that I was in.
Till I came hither,
what a place is this?
Must here be the beginning
of my bliss?
Must here be the burden
fall off my back?
Must hear the strings
that bound it to me crack?
Blessed cross,
blessed sepulchal,
blessed rather be
the man that there
was put to shame
for me.
So,
Jesus extends to us
a great invitation
because he offers us
rest
from our greatest
problem.
And because we can rest
eternally,
we can rest
temporally.
Because our greatest
problem has been
alleviated.
All the light
and momentary
problems
we can rest
from.
You and I
do not have to labor
to find ourselves
approved
before God.
If you have placed
saving faith
in Jesus Christ,
you
are
approved.
And now,
any work
that we do
comes as a
grateful outflow
of what he
has done
for us.
Becomes the
natural thing
we do
because of
who
we
are.
If God
is pleased
with you,
you can
and you
should
rest.
Psalm
127
2
says this,
It is in vain
that you
rise up
early
and go
late to
rest,
eating the
bread
of anxious
toil,
for he
gives to
his beloved
sleep.
God is
not
unaware
of your
human
frailty
and he
intends
rest
for you
in the very
way that he
created the
world.
He intended
to set forth
for us
a pattern
of six
days of
working
and then
what?
A day
of rest,
that we
would see
that as
created
beings,
we need
to rest
in our
eternal
security,
that we
can lay
our heads
down at
night and
know that
we have
satisfied
our God.
The Puritans
famously
talked about
recreating
versus
recreating,
which is the
actual root
of that
word,
to take
time to
step back
away from
in order
to be
rejuvenated,
for service
to the
Lord.
And I'll
close this
point out
with the
quote from
Spurgeon
that's on
your bulletin.
He said,
rest time
is not
waste time.
It is
economy to
gather
fresh strength.
It is
wisdom to
take
occasional
furlough.
In the
long run,
we shall
do more
by sometimes
doing
less,
by doing
those things
that bring
rejuvenation
to us.
rest.
So,
Jesus'
invitation
is a
great
invitation
because
he's
offering
to us
rest
from our
greatest
problem.
Secondly,
Jesus'
invitation
is a
great
invitation
because
he offers
us
rest
in the
greatest
person.
Jesus
invites
us
to
come
to
him,
all who
labor and
are heavy
laden,
and he
will
give us
rest.
Jesus
makes
some
astounding
claims
about
himself
in this
text.
If you
look at
verse
27,
Jesus
claims
that he
is the
Son of
God.
This is
not a
new
claim
in
Matthew's
Gospel,
but it
is still
an
astounding
one,
all the
same.
He
says,
all things
have been
handed
over to
me by
my
Father,
and no
one
knows
the
Son
except
the
Father,
and no
one
knows
the
Father,
except
the
Son.
He
claims
that he
himself
is
the
Son
of
God.
Secondly,
he
claims
that he
possesses
all
authority.
Verse 27,
all things
have been
handed
over to
me by
my
Father.
He
says this
elsewhere
in
Matthew
as well.
Chapter
28,
verse 18,
this is the
beginning of
what we
call the
Great
Commission.
Jesus
says,
all authority
in
heaven and
on earth
has been
given
to me.
He
also
claims
that he
has
the
power
to
save.
He
says,
no one
knows
the
Father
except
the
Son
and
anyone
to whom
the
Son
chooses
to reveal
him.
Previously,
in the book
of Matthew
chapter 9,
beginning in
verse 1,
we read,
getting into
a boat,
he crossed
over and
came to
his own
city.
And behold,
some people
brought to
him a
paralytic
lying on
a bed.
And when
Jesus saw
their faith,
he said to
the paralytic,
take heart,
my son,
your sins
are forgiven.
And behold,
some of the
scribes said
to themselves,
this man is
blaspheming.
This man is
saying that
he's God
able to
forgive
sins.
Yes,
this is what
Jesus was
saying.
Verse 4,
but Jesus,
knowing their
thoughts,
said,
why do
you think
evil in
your hearts?
For which
is easier
to say
your sins
are forgiven
or to
say rise
and walk?
But that
you may
know the
Son of
Man has
authority on
earth to
forgive sins.
He then
said to
the paralytic,
rise,
pick up
your bed
and go
home.
And he
rose and
went home.
When the
crowd sought,
they were
afraid and
they glorified
God who
had given
such authority
to men.
It's the
astounding
thing that
Jesus is
saying that
he has
the power
to forgive
sin,
that no
one makes
it to the
Father.
No one
can know
the Father
except by
knowing the
Son.
John 14,
6.
John records
Jesus said,
I am the
way and the
truth and the
life.
No one comes
to the Father
except through
me.
Jesus makes
some incredible
claims in the
Scripture.
Peter, in
a 1950 essay
entitled,
What Are We
To Make
of Jesus?
by C.S.
Lewis, he
said the
following,
In my
opinion, the
only person
who can say
that sort of
thing, that
he's the
Son of God,
is either
God or a
complete lunatic
suffering from
that form of
delusion which
undermines the
whole mind
of man.
If you think
you are a
poached egg,
when you are
not looking for
a piece of
toast to suit
you, you may
be sane.
But if you
think you are
God, there is
no chance for
you.
You catch that?
Like, you'd be
more sane to
think that you're
a poached
egg.
But if you
think you are
God, there is
no chance for
you.
We may note
in passing that
he was never
regarded as a
mere moral
teacher.
He did not
produce that
effect on any
of the people
who actually
met him.
He produced
mainly three
effects.
You have to
find yourself
in one of
these three
places.
You're honest
with the
Jesus of
the Bible.
He produced
mainly three
effects.
Hatred,
terror,
or adoration.
There is no
trace in the
Bible of
people expressing
mild
approval.
Jesus made
astounding
claims about
himself.
The son of
God.
People could
only come to
the father
through him.
He had the
power to
forgive sins.
In fact,
power over
all things.
But Jesus
makes a
further and
possibly more
astounding
claim in
verse 29.
He says,
I am
gentle and
lowly in
heart.
As we think
about coming
to Jesus for
rest, this is
incredible.
Jesus is not
unable to
sympathize with
us in our
weakness.
Having become
fully men,
he experienced
your pain and
he experienced
your exhaustion.
Jesus grew
tired, John
4, 6, and got
thirsty, John
19, 28, and
hungry, Matthew
4, 2.
He became
physically weak,
Matthew 4, 11,
Luke 23, 26,
Hebrews 4, 15.
He suffered
just as we
suffer and
more so to
the point of
the cross.
The writer of
Hebrews says
in Hebrews 4, 15,
For we do not
have a high
priest who is
unable to
sympathize with
our weaknesses,
but one who in
every respect has
been tempted as
we are, yet
without sin.
beloved, you
can go to
Jesus with all
of your hurts
and all of
your struggles,
and you will
find with
Jesus Christ
no condemnation,
you don't have
to bear guilt
before him.
He says,
come to me,
you who are
weary and
heavy laden,
and I will
give you
rest.
Even as we
work to see
the kingdom of
God fully
realized,
Jesus promises.
And this was
such a good
meditation for
my soul this
week as I'm
thinking about
taking my
hands off of
this church for
a month,
which is
something I've
never done
before,
just fully
removing myself
from my
involvement in
it.
And some of
you who know
me well know
that I can be
a bit controlling.
Jesus says in
Luke 12, 32,
fear not,
little flock,
flock, for
it is your
father's good
pleasure to
give you the
kingdom.
I think wrongly
I have this
idea that the
kingdom, I
must go take
it, right?
That I have to
get out and I
have to work so
hard that I
gain the kingdom,
right?
That without me
the kingdom
doesn't come.
But here,
Jesus speaks so
very clearly to
that frailty in
my heart.
Fear not,
and I love
little flock,
little sheep,
for it is your
father's good
pleasure to
give to you
the kingdom.
Brother, we
have so much
room for rest
in the good
shepherd.
So Jesus'
invitation is a
great invitation
because he offers
us rest in
himself.
The Bible also
uses the metaphor
of thirst to
express our
need of rest
in God.
In Jeremiah
chapter 2,
verse 12 and
13, the
prophet Jeremiah
writes,
Be appalled,
O heavens,
at this.
Be shocked,
be utterly
desolate,
declares the
Lord.
For my people
have committed
two evils.
They have
forsaken me
the fountain
of living
waters.
They have
not come to
me for rest,
is what he is
saying.
And instead,
they have
hewed out
cisterns for
themselves,
broken cisterns
that can hold
no water.
Going to
things,
pursuing things
to meet our
needs,
to find us
satisfied,
to give us
rest that
cannot give
us rest.
When we have
access to
the Lord God
Almighty,
His Son,
Jesus Christ,
the fountain
of living
waters.
John records
in chapter 7,
verse 37
and 38,
Jesus is in
Jerusalem at the
feast of booths.
In verse 37,
John records,
on the last
day of the
feast,
the great
day,
Jesus stood
up and
cried out,
if anyone
thirsts,
let him
come to
me and
drink.
Whoever
believes in
me as the
scripture has
said,
out of his
heart will
flow rivers
of living
water.
What a
blessed
rest we
can have
in Christ.
And in
closing,
I have one
more poem
for you.
This is
actually a
hymn.
It has
music written
to accompany
it.
It's called,
O Christ
in thee
my soul
hath found
by Francis
Bevan.
She was a
19th century
hymnist.
O Christ
in thee
my soul
hath found
and found
in thee
alone
the peace,
the joy
I sought
so long,
the bliss
till now
unknown.
I sighed
for rest
and happiness.
I yearned
for them,
not thee.
But while
I passed
my Savior
by,
his love
laid hold
on me.
I tried
the broken
cisterns,
ah,
but how
the waters
failed.
Even as
I stooped
to drink,
they fled
and mocked
me as
I wailed.
The pleasures
lost I
sadly mourned,
but never
wept for
thee,
till grace
the sightless
eyes received
thy
loveliness
to see.
Now
none
but Christ
can satisfy
none other
name for
me.
There's
love
and life
and lasting
joy,
Christ
Jesus
found.
Let's pray
together.
Let's pray
together.
Let's pray
together.
Let's pray
together.
Let's pray
together.
Let's pray
together.
Let's pray
together.
Let's pray
together.
Let's pray