Entering Rest
From Signs of the Times—April 15, 1869.
Reply to Sister Walker, on Hebrews 4:1 and 2.
“Let us therefore fear,
lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem
to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them;
but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with
faith in them that heard it.”
Hebrews 4:1,2.
The inspired writer in comparing the typical with the gospel
dispensation, shows that the former, although a carnal people, having but a
worldly sanctuary, were with their ordinances and service figurative, having a
shadow of good things to come, and not the very [or exact] image of the things
to which they pointed, could never make, with their perpetual sacrifices, the
comers to their altars perfect; but still they bore a striking typical
resemblance to the things which they prefigured.
Israel under the first covenant were typical of the spiritual
Israel, whose circumcision is not outward in their flesh, but inward, in their
hearts, not made with hands, but in the spirit, whose praise is not of men, but
of God. Their consecration as the people of God, chosen in the flesh of Abraham,
and heirs of the promised rest, in the land of Canaan, was beautifully
emblematic of the spiritual seed of Christ, which were chosen of God in Christ
before the foundation of the world, and in their relation to him, heirs of an
inheritance which is incorruptible, undefiled, and that cannot fade away. In all
that is written of the carnal
The rest prefigured by the land of Canaan, and by the Jewish
sabbaths, is not, as some have supposed, the state of ultimate happiness which
awaits the saints in the consummation of glory, for that ultimatum cannot be
dependent in any degree upon contingencies of any kind. Christ has engaged by
irrevocable decree to raise up at the last day, to that divine abode, all that
his Father has given him. Canaan could not prefigure such a state of
uninterrupted blessedness; for there was much fighting, and many sore conflicts
to be endured in that land; neither could the Jewish sabbaths, for they were
often desecrated, subjecting those who violated them to pains and penalties,
very unlike the perfect security of the saints in glory. But we are informed in
the connection of our subject that those times and places of rest under the old
covenant, pointed to and typified the rest which remains under the gospel
dispensation to the people of God, into which they who believe have entered.
The argument of the inspired writer of our text is that in
the type, the Lord swore in his wrath that the unbelieving Israelites should not
enter into his rest, so that they could not enter in because of unbelief; thus
representing that the rest which is enjoined in the gospel cannot possibly be
entered or enjoyed in the absence of faith. As none but those who are born of
God have, or possibly can have that faith which is the fruit of the Spirit, none
but they can possibly know experimentally anything of spiritual or gospel rest.
And even the saints can only enjoy it when their faith predominates over the
infidelity of their nature. On this very account the admonition comes to the
saints, —to those holy brethren who are partakers of the heavenly calling, to
“fear, lest a promise being left them, of entering into his rest, any of them
should seem to come short of it.”
His rest, or the rest which God has promised to his people,
is said to be glorious. Not only is it a respite from labor and bondage, but a
confident reliance on Christ, as a full and sufficient Savior, on his atoning
blood for the remission of our sins, on his perfect righteousness for our
justification before God; his Spirit bestowed on us in our new birth, to qualify
us to appreciate and enjoy spiritual things; a firm reliance on his promises,
and a complete cessation from all our own legal works, and legal thoughts. Such
a rest is promised to the people of God, and that promise is left on record for
them. “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you
rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart,
and ye shall find rest unto your souls,” (Matthew 11:28,29). While the wicked
are like the troubled sea that cannot rest, our Lord giveth his beloved rest.
That this rest is provided for the people of God, and that the premise of
entering it is left for the comfort of the people of God, is certain. Why then
are we admonished to fear lest those unto whom it is promised should seem to
come short of it? Every child of God while in the flesh knows what this
liability means. Such is the nature of the rest, that it is only entered and
enjoyed when and while we believe. Whenever our doubts and fears prevail, we are
tossed with tempest, and not comforted; labor, toil and unrest, weariness,
fainting and distress will certainly come upon us. How can we rest upon a
promise which faith does lay hold on and appropriate to us? God gave a promise
of rest in the
The admonition, “Let us therefore fear,” is not that we
should cherish doubts and nurse our unbelief; but resist them; for it is said in
verse 11, “Let us labor therefore to enter into rest, lest any man fall after
the same example of unbelief.” The example referred to is that of the carnal
Hebrews in the type; they could not enter into
Now remember all that faith which is indispensable to gospel
rest is of God; it is the faith of the Son of God, and the fruit of his Spirit
of which you are born again, and without which it is impossible to please God.
And all that infidelity, unbelief, doubts, fears and lack of confidence which
disturbs, disquiets and distresses you, is of your own carnal nature. When faith
lifts up her eyes to the eternal hills, joy, peace and rest possesses your
heart; you forget yourself, lost in the contemplation of eternal things, and
like Paul when elevated to the third heaven, you are so perfectly stripped of
all selfishness that you are unconscious of having a body, or whether in it or
not you cannot tell. But when doubts and unbelief prevail, then you know where
the body is, and you begin to worry and fret about yourself. The way of
salvation by grace looks lovely and beautiful, but, O, says old self, how do I
know that I have any interest in it? What is that to thee? Faith leaves that all
with the Lord; and we venture the assertion that no child of Grace ever entered
into gospel rest, except when his faith was sufficiently strong to leave all
personal interest with God. Faith says, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace
whose mind is stayed on thee. Trust ye in the Lord forever; for in the Lord
Jehovah is everlasting strength,” (Isa. 26:3, 4).
When our confidence in God is firm and unshaken, we rest in
that confidence. But when we doubt and fear, and even dispute all that he has
ever done for us, we become restless and comfortless. In our firm reliance on
God, on his promises, on his work that he has wrought in us, we sweetly and
peacefully rest; but when we are tempted to distrust in God, and indulge our
doubts and fears, we seem to come short of that rest. And when we consider the
strong and constant tendency of our carnal minds to doubt and dispute what God
has said and what he has done, do we not find that we have reason to fear that
our rest will be broken? “Let us therefore fear” such insidious and treacherous
propensities of our carnal or fleshly minds. These are what the word admonishes
us to fear, for these are what invade, disturb and prevent our rest, so that
although we have the promise and oath of God who cannot lie, to rest upon, we
seem to come short, and do indeed often come far short of that rest which such
gracious promises are sufficient to secure.
“For unto us was the gospel preached as well as unto them.”
To them the promise of temporal rest was preached; and the preaching of the
gracious promises of God is gospel preaching; but gospel preaching cannot bring
rest and assurance to those who do not believe. The Hebrews could not be
profited by the preaching of the promises when they had no faith in them, and
did not believe them; they were not mixed with faith in them. It is even so with
Christians now under the gospel dispensation. Unless we have faith and that
faith predominating over our doubts, we cannot be profited in a way of rest when
we hear the gospel preached. We will ask the doubting, fearing, trembling
Christian, how has it been with you? You have heard the promises preached, they
have seemed great and precious. Did they bring you rest? O no. Why? Because I
could not believe they were for me. Well then you could not enter into rest,
because of unbelief. You saw that they were blessed provisions for somebody, and
longed to be that somebody. So instead of entering into rest, you seemed to come
short of it. Can you find any other reason why you could not rest in the
preached word, but your lack of faith and confidence to appropriate its
consolation to your own case? The promise, you heard preached to the weary and
heavy laden, and you were weary and heavy laden; but you did not feel satisfied
that it was for you. It was preached to all who have ears to hear what the
Spirit saith to the churches; you had an ear to hear it preached to the
churches, —you saw and were fully satisfied that it was for the churches of the
saints; but your unbelief told you that it was not for you, and so you failed to
rest upon it, or to be comforted by it, because of your unbelief. The promises
to the carnal Israelites, which were typical of the gospel, did not profit that
carnal people, because they had no faith to believe them, and their carcasses
fell in the wilderness—and they entered not into the goodly land of rest. And
have we not reason to fear there are thousands of God’s dear children, who are
born of the Spirit, who love the truth, who have an ear to hear, and who desire
above all things to be numbered among, and in fellowship with the children of
God, whose mortal bodies fall in the wilderness, without ever entering into the
church in her gospel organization? Not so; not because the laws and order of the
kingdom of Christ forbids them; not because they do not love her gates, and
earnestly long for the milk and honey which forever flows within her sacred
borders; but simply because they listen to and are swayed by the infidelity of
their own carnal minds, and reject the testimony of God. To all such a promise
is surely left of entering into his rest; and although we see them hugging their
chains and fetters, and, like Rachel, refusing to be comforted, still the
promise is none the less unto them, and to their children, and unto all them
which are afar off; yet they seem to come short of it. That is, of resting upon
it, by entering in through the gates into the city, where they may have right to
the tree of life, but continue to remain without among the dogs and sorcerers,
and other bad companions. But the enquiry may be, what is to become of them? We
answer, although their unbelief may prevent them from the enjoyment of rest,
while here in the flesh, and deprive them of the communion of the
We would not confine the application of the admonition of our
subject to those timid, trembling, doubting children of our God, whose
unbelieving doubts and fears prevail to keep them from the bosom of the church,
and from the enjoyment of the rest into which believers have entered; for there
are very many who have walked for many years in the fellowship of the churches,
and who have often witnessed the sweet comfort of resting confidentially and
steadfastly on the promises of the gospel, who at times are driven by their
doubts, fears and unbelief from their resting place, and are tossed with
tempests and not comforted. Their faith is sharply contested by their fears and
unbelief; and at all such times they truly seem to come short of that rest which
remaineth for the people of God. And they learn by experience that rest arises
with the triumphs of their faith and confiding reliance on the God of their
salvation, and declines with the prevalence of their doubts and fears.
Before we close this article, we will remark, that although
there is no virtue in doubts and fears, no child of God while in the flesh is
altogether free from them; nor is it possible that any but the heaven-born
should ever be annoyed with such as we have described. They are the muddy
streams which flow unbidden from our carnal nature, and war against the spirit
of holiness which God has given to us. They are often excited by the tempter,
and sometimes the saints are left to their buffetings, as a wholesome
chastisement for our follies, or for the trial of our faith; but from whatever
cause they may come, they disturb our repose, and disquiet and trouble the
saints. But who ever heard of a hypocrite or unquickened person being troubled
in this way? Should we meet with any who have long professed discipleship to
Christ, who are strangers to the annoyance of doubts and fears, we could repose
no confidence in their profession; and yet because we are troubled with them,
what bitter things we write against ourselves.
We are to strive to enter into rest, by fighting valiantly
the fight of faith, making war against our unbelief. “To you who are troubled,”
the apostle says, “rest with us.” The apostles rested in God, and not in
themselves. The direction of God is, “Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he
shall sustain thee.” Cast all your care upon the Lord, for he careth for you.
“Trust in the Lord forever; for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength.”
“They that trust in the Lord shall be as
“Then let the earth’s old pillars shake,
And all the wheels of nature break,
Our steadfast souls shall fear no more,
Than solid rocks when billows roar.”
