Now since RESTING is another of those biblical topics that's important to God but forgotten by most Christians, we need to increase our appreciation for it by first understanding what the Bible actually means when it talks about PEACE and REST:

• In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word SHALOM is most often translated PEACE and sometimes PROSPERITY. SHALOM means being in a state of complete wellness or well being. In the New Testament the Greek word for PEACE (iraynay) means completion or wholeness (unity). Thus biblical PEACE is the condition of existence when there is nothing missing or broken in any area of life: spirit, soul or body. Friend, the Word of God says you can have this!

• REST then is the lifestyle that becomes possible when we're committed to living in PEACE and it's very special to God. In fact, the Lord Himself entered into REST on the seventh day of Creation when He had completed His work (Genesis 2:2). REST is so special to God that He would NOT allow the Israelites to enter into it because of their disobedience and unbelief (Hebrews 3:18-19). In the New Testament the Greek word translated REST (katapausis) means to repose or settle down. Therefore, the Believer who has entered into REST has ceased from his/her own works just as God did from His on the seventh day (Hebrews 4:10).

According to Scripture, God wants His children to be at REST, i.e., to cease from depending on our own works and instead to trust in Him. In fact, the Word actually tells us that REST is such an important thing to possess we should pursue it with diligence (Hebrews 4:11) and "fear" coming up short (Hebrews 4:1,9). Unfortunately though, many Christians are so busy trying to accomplish things in the World they've forgotten about REST or they believe as the World does it's more "virtuous" to work hard than it is to REST. Thus, in the process of abiding too close to the World, REST has become a low priority even as the soul continues to long for it.

Beloved, the Bible says that REST comes from the presence of God (Exodus 33:14, Psalm 23:2) so it's only available to us when we're walking in the Spirit. It's just not possible to REST and be in the Flesh at the same time. Also, REST comes from hearing the Word of God and uniting it with faith (Hebrews 4:2). Believers who aren't very familiar with the Word of God have trouble RESTING because: 1) without a working knowledge of the Word, faith doesn't grow (Romans 10:17); and 2) without strong faith it's not only impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6), it's not possible to TRUST Him either. And when the Believer is not able to TRUST God, our only option is to fall back to relying on our own strength, on our own works and on the World that evaluates all things by the five physical senses.

Jesus Christ has REST for you today. He wants you to have it and we know this because He said so in His Word in Matthew 11:28-30:

"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

In the Parable of the Seed, Jesus confirms for us that in the Kingdom of God there is supposed to always be a time for RESTING. Let's look carefully at the following verses from Mark 4:26-29 to see this principle explained:

• The second reason God responded differently was because Abel entered into FAITH through his offering but Cain didn't (Hebrews 11:4). In other words FAITH was generated in Abel as a result of giving the Lord his FIRST and BEST which then served to establish his righteousness, i.e. his right standing with God. It was righteousness through faith that prompted God to respect Abel's offering and scripture shows us repeatedly that faith always establishes righteousness. In fact, without faith it's not even possible to please God (Hebrews 11:6).

The story of Cain and Abel demonstrates that the heart of God is for His children to come to Him VOLUNTARILY with their FIRST and their BEST and in FAITH. Faith is defined as having the confidence that God will cause everything to come out right; faith is trusting God for one's provision and protection even though He can't be seen (Hebrews 11:1). Abel demonstrated his faith by honoring God with his FIRST and BEST. Cain's offering demonstrated a lack of faith because he used his FIRST and BEST for his own purposes instead of trusting the Lord. God was not honored because Cain put himself and his own interests ahead of the Lord.

In sum, we learn from the story of Cain and Abel that a cheerful giver will come to God VOLUNTARILY with his/her FIRST and BEST portion from which FAITH can be generated and that this is a process that pleases God.

(26) "The Kingdom of God is like a man who casts seed upon the soil; (27) and he goes to bed at night and gets up by day, and the seed sprouts and grows-how, he himself does not know. (28) The soil produces crops by itself; first the blade, then the head, then the mature grain in the head. (29) But when the crop permits, he immediately puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come."

Notice first in these scriptures that in verse 26 we're told that this Parable is a description of the Kingdom of God. When Jesus makes this particular point, we should pay special attention because we should want to live under the principles of life in the Kingdom of God instead of the World. Here He is saying: "This is the way the Kingdom of God operates." And the man does his first work which is to sow the seed but then in verse 27 he enters into REST. He doesn't dig up the seed everyday to see if it's spouting. He doesn't stand over it worrying whether or not the seed will eventually take root and grow a plant. He just knows the process will work even if he doesn't know quite how it will work. He doesn't need to understand it; he just knows the plant will grow. The soil does the work and the man ceases from his own work and enters into REST.

In time the plants emerge from the ground and start to grow. It's important not to get ahead of God and harvest the plants before they're mature. Some Believers who get in the Flesh and worry too much about receiving the blessings they need from the harvest are prone to start the harvest too early. No, you have to wait, to continue in your REST until the plants are mature and ready for harvesting.

But when the crop is finally mature the man must then return to the field to work, to harvest the crop. It's the man that does this work; conceptually God has taken care of the part between the sowing of the seed and the harvest. There are a lot of Christians these days that are involved in a number of wrong things at harvest time:

• They are waiting for the harvest to drop on them from God in Heaven when the Lord is saying it's we Believers who are to put in the sickle.

• They don't know about the harvest and don't have any idea where to look for it because they don't know enough about the Word of God and are not Spirit-led (Romans 8:14).

• They are totally involved in their own works instead of trusting in God and are working in the wrong field and trying to harvest the wrong crop.

Friend, the lesson here is that there's always a time for RESTING. Does that mean we're not supposed to work? No, it means we work when we're supposed to and we REST when we're supposed to. We work as the Spirit leads putting the Kingdom of God first (Matthew 6:33) so that we always harvest at the right time and in the right place. Many Christian have harvesting opportunities all around them but can't discern them because of the "worries of the World and the deceitfulness of riches" (Mark 4:19). Or for the same reasons they are harvesting at the wrong time or in the wrong place. But we can work in the Spirit instead of in the Flesh meaning we have ceased from our own works so we can work on the things of God. Biblical prosperity is closely linked to REST. The Believer who can REST is the one who is trusting in the Lord for everything. The one who can REST is the one who can say truthfully that the things that were important to my Flesh don't matter anymore. I am trusting in the Lord!

As we go through life we're faced with many situations for which the best thing to do is REST in the Lord but we're tempted to go out and develop solutions in our own strength. Which way will we go? Will we trust in the Lord to solve our challenges and problems or will we get in the Flesh and try to work out things ourselves? Most people will start out trying to develop their own solutions before they remember there's a better way. The more mature the Christian, the shorter the time spent in the Flesh trusting in one's own works. The sooner we enter into the REST, the sooner the Lord will start developing His solutions and the sooner our circumstances will change.

If you think about it, there're only a few particular recurring types of problems we're faced with that require us to enter into REST and trust in the Lord for our solutions:

• Resting through our trials: Our trials are usually the result of wrong choices and decisions WE have made. God wants us to be Spirit-led but it's pretty easy to take off in the wrong direction in the Flesh and forget to consult with the Holy Spirit. When that happens a trial results because we open a door for the enemy to bring consequences against us. God is not the cause of those trials but He is the one who has the best solutions. We need to take responsibility for our trials and stop blaming the Lord. Then when we stop trying to overcome the trials on our own, God will step in and lead us out.

• Resting through our persecutions: Persecutions are a particular type of trial that the enemy sends against us for the Word's sake (Mark 4:17). In other words, we become afflicted by the World because of what we believe or because we have taken a stand on a particular aspect of the Word of God. Again, these afflictions don't come from God. He will help us out of them but we're required to exercise our authority over the enemy and enter into our REST so the Word can help us overcome the persecutions. When we're fully trusting in the Lord, we will have entered into our REST and with PEACE restored the persecution will no longer be an issue for us.

• Resting while we wait on the promises of God to manifest: In any number of situations we find ourselves believing and waiting on the promises of God to be fully manifested in our lives. For example, the Word tells us that healing is a part of our Redemption because by faith Believers are no longer subject to the Curse (Galatians 3:13) and by His stripes we WERE healed (1 Peter 2:24). But if our bodies feel sick we'll be tempted to revert back to doubt and unbelief and allow fear to replace our faith in the Word. Which is true: the Word of God or the Doctor's Report? Instead of bowing to temptation, resist the devil and his fear and he will flee (James 4:7), do everything the Holy Spirit leads you to do, cast the burden on Christ and then enter into His REST until your healing fully manifests.

• Resting while we receive the provision of God: Of all the promises in our New Covenant, the ones we probably deal with the most frequently regard our financial provision. For example, God's Word promises prosperity and abundance, but we can become impatient when indebtedness lingers. Instead of succumbing to the temptation to take care of our debts by the Flesh, we should do everything we're supposed to do according to the Word including confessing what the Word says instead of what our circumstances look like, cast the burden on Christ and then return to our REST until the Lord takes care of the problem.

The Bible mentions several important reasons that cause us to fail to enter into the REST of God. If we know what they are and stand against them as an ongoing strategy for staying in God's REST, according to the Word of God we WILL succeed. Keep in mind: the REST of God is something we should pursue (Hebrews 4:1,10-11). Here are the things then that we must overcome in our pursuit of it:

Disobedience (Hebrews 3:18, 4:6, 11) - the Israelites didn't enter into God's REST in part because of disobedience. Unbelief (Hebrews 3:19) produces lack of faith which produces fear and anxiety instead of REST. Pride (1 Peter 6-7) occurs when we carry our anxieties, concerns and burdens, instead of casting them on Christ. Stubbornness (Isaiah 28:12) occurs when we purpose to pursue our own works instead of RESTING in the Lord's. Love of the World (1 John 2:15-16) - if we love the World, we'll become involved in things that steal our REST. Failure to Exert Authority (Ephesians 1 and 2) - the Believer has total and complete authority over the enemy.

Friend, if you'll focus on these factors in particular, you'll find that the REST of God can be yours. God wants you to have it and He has prepared the Kingdom for it. If you'll fear the possibility of not having it (Hebrews 4:1), you're sure to find it. Just ask the Holy Spirit to help you and He will.

As we conclude today's article, this section provides some Bible study notes for those readers interested in going deeper to study out for themselves some practical steps for dealing with trials. Of course, the objective of the study is to discover the means for entering into the REST of God. The following notes are based on a recent teaching by Kenneth Copeland Ministries on the subject of REST (2008 Branson Victory Campaign - March 8):

1. Realize that the Word of God has your trial covered because it confirms your authority over the enemy.

• Psalm 110:1, 4
• Ephesians 2:1-6

2. Acknowledge that if you knew what to do about it, it wouldn't be a trial.

• James 1:2-4 = you can know that you will come out of the trial lacking in nothing.
• James 1:5 = ask for wisdom for dealing with your trial. Your faults won't block His gift of wisdom.
• James 1:6 = ask for wisdom in faith without doubting and you can have it.
• Mark 11:22-25 = cast your ignorance into the sea so you can overcome your trial.
• James 1:7-8 = stop worrying about your trial because worrying is being double minded.

3. Obey Jesus and by your faith-filled decision receive His peace.

• John 14: 1, 27 = decide to not let your heart be troubled or fearful and receive the PEACE of Christ.
• 1 Peter 5:5-8 = be clothed with humility by casting your anxiety on Jesus. God resists the proud.
• 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 = take captive those thoughts that come to steal your REST.

4. Hold fast to your confessions.

• Psalm 91:1-2 = SAY with your mouth that you are trusting God for the resolution of your trial.
• Hebrews 4:14-16 = SAY with your mouth that God's mercy has delivered you.

5. Remember that your sins have been fully paid for.

• Hebrews 2:17 = Jesus is a faithful, merciful and just High Priest.
• 1 John 1:9 = if we confess our sins God is faithful and righteous to forgive them.
• Isaiah 43:25-26 = God forgets our sins and invites us to replace those memories with confessions of His Word.

REST can only come when we're trusting God. It's the result of FAITH. In fact, it's God's gift to you but you have to pursue it and take it for yourself. You can have it if you want it. As you study the Word and renew your mind, you will find it easier and easier to enter into His REST. Your enemy the devil wants to separate you from God's REST by convincing you it's not possible or important enough and that you would be better served to rely on your own strength and your own works. Friend, if you'll cease from your own works the Word will cause the solutions you've been looking for to manifest in your life. You can't solve them anyway so just admit it and cast your burdens on the Lord so He can lead the way to His REST.

Thank you for reading Prosperous Life Newsletter today. We are grateful to God for an opportunity to sow His precious Word into your life and we pray it has ministered to you in a special way. May the Lord bless you and your family and we'll be looking for you again in three weeks on April 11.

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