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Good Afternoon GBC Family,

After all, there’s only 43 sleeps until Christmas!

Midweek Meditation: “You will find rest for your souls…”

When Jesus says in Matthew 11:29 that in him you will find “rest,” he means you will find a “stop” for your souls. Jesus isn’t calling us to a perpetual spiritual vacation. Remember Paul calls this life war (Eph. 6:10-18)! But he does call us to a perpetual soul-rest. He says we can stop our striving.

Specifically, here, he calls us to cease striving after self-satisfaction and self-preservation. He invites us to yield to him the insufficiency of self. He calls us to the freedom of admission that we are not enough. He allows us to cast off every subtle belief that we must leverage ourselves into good pleasure with God, others, and self, into the infinite well of his grace. I know Christians who profess Christ’s sufficiency but still fight for the pleasure of earthly parents. I know Christians who profess Christ’s sufficiency but measure themselves as parents by how many badges and ribbons their children earn. I know Christians who profess Christ’s sufficiency but cling to sin rather than admit humanity. I know Christians who profess Christ’s sufficiency but believe that Christian activity is the same as Christian sincerity. So, they make themselves as busy as they can be and don’t even have time to become as godly as they can be. I know Christians who profess Christ’s sufficiency but lose sleep at night because they can’t save their lost family member. I know pastors who profess Christ’s sufficiency but try to play the hero of their people. However you're striving—rest.

Rest in the reality that you are not enough. The pursuit of sufficiency in self is a spiritual Stairmaster with only weakening effects. It’s both endlessly demanding and diminishing. It cannot supply or strengthen life; it can only steal it. Only Jesus, who has provided us infinite resources of grace and rights as God’s children, can extend this invitation. When he finished the demands of the law, the satisfaction of God’s wrath, and finalization of redemption on the cross, he ended my need to find sufficiency and strength in myself. A statement commonly associated with Jonathan Edwards may be a good reminder here, “You contributed nothing to your salvation except the sin that made it necessary.” We didn’t assist Jesus in our salvation. We don’t assist him in securing our lives either. We rest in him at conversion because he’s finished the work. And we rest in his gospel-life as he finishes the good work in us (Phil. 1:6). An “I’ve got it from here Jesus!” kind of sanctification doesn’t understand true salvation.


            Rest.

Ministry Prayer Requests
  • Pray that God would give us a greater love for church family who are lesser known to us.
  • Pray that God would give us a spirit of discernment to approve things that are excellent (Phil. 1:9-11).
  • Pray that God would purify our motives and give us passion his Kingdom mission.  
Ministry Reminders
  • We praise the Lord for once again surpassing our missionary offering of $12,000!
  • Plan for our church-wide Thanksgiving fellowship and decorating day- Sun. Nov. 29th from 5-7:30. Wear crazy Christmas socks or sweaters!
  • Always be checking your bulletins!

 

In Christ,

Pastor Kyle