The Better Way of Life

FOCUS
God wants us to have a better way of life. This rest begins here in this life in the
Holy Ghost, and it will be fully enjoyed in heaven.
KEY VERSE
Hebrews 4:9
There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.
SCRIPTURE SETTING
Job 3:17 Isaiah 28:11-12; 57:20 Matthew 11:28 John 10:10
Revelation 14:13

INTRODUCTION
God is the giver of life and, as its author, He is the best source of direction for living
life to the fullest. We can make our plans, achieve our goals, and boast of our
accomplishments, but if we leave God out of the picture, it is all in vain.
To experience the true joy of life, we must lay aside our preconceived ideas and
break out of the mold of carnal philosophy. Real contentment is reserved for those
who have been filled with the Holy Spirit and have submitted their lives to the
Lordship of Jesus Christ.

Modern society is often characterized as a rat race. It is a system of searching,

striving, and reaching for an elusive goal that is never clearly defined and never
reached. In a word, it is unrest. But the Scriptures speak of a very different
lifestyle. Throughout Gods dealings with mankind He has desired to provide
something better for him. The writer of the Book of Hebrews described it as a rest.
The rest that God has made available for people today is well illustrated in the
Lords relationship to Israel in the Old Testament. When we study His dealings with
them and then apply what we discover to the new covenant of the New Testament,
we will witness Gods master plan for us. Our Savior has provided a better way for
us both in this present world and through the endless ages of eternity.
We should pay close attention to the mistakes that the people of Israel made so that
we do not fall into the same trap and miss the abundant life that is intended for us.
I. THE NEED FOR REST
A. This Worlds System Is Inferior
The temptation that caused Adam and Eve to fall into sin was the belief that they
could improve on the plan of God. God had placed them in a perfect gardenthere
was no sin, guilt, or death; and they enjoyed personal fellowship with their Creator.
But Satan convinced them that God was withholding something good from them
and that the only recourse was to take matters into their own hands. Of course, we
are familiar with the results of their disobedience: they were overwhelmed by guilt
as sin and death entered the world, and they were cast out of the garden and
separated from the presence of God.
Despite the clearly recorded failure of mans attempt to enhance the divine plan,
the temptation to do it our way persists even today. Ignoring, or ignorant of, the
better way God has provided, many people continue to struggle and grope their way
through a meaningless existence. They totally miss the joy and purpose for which
they were created. For six thousand years humanity has tried to design a substitute
to the Masters plan, but the end result is still emptiness and frustration.
A person can acquire the best education available, amass an impressive fortune,
and be prominent in the elite social circles, but if he neglects Jesus Christ and His
influence in his life, he will remain unfulfilled. What a tragedy to reach the end of
this brief life and discover that all of our energies were spent on things that were
not really important.
How much greater the joy of one who is filled with the Spirit and follows His
leadership! That person will find his journey filled both with many wonderful
blessings and the confidence of knowing that he has made investments that reach
into eternity.
B. No Hope Outside of Jesus Christ
When the curse was pronounced for mans sin in the Garden of Eden, the ultimate
destruction of everything that opposes God was declared. (See Genesis 3:15.)
Through the pages of Scripture there appears both the story of mans efforts and
failures and that of Gods mercy and grace. We see the hopeless plight of
unregenerate humanity and the perfect plan of the Savior culminating in the death,
burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Moreover, the Word of God tells us of the
power of the gospel which gives hope to the sincere believer. Obedience to the
gospel of Jesus Christ is the only ray of hope for fallen mankind.
In the seventh chapter of his epistle to the church at Rome, Paul the apostle painted
a clear picture of the helpless plight of unsaved mankind in his struggle within the
flesh. The apostle described a desire to do the things which are right but an inability
to carry out those good intentions. His summary of our predicament is that the only
answer is in Jesus Christ by allowing His spirit to empower and direct our lives.
The search for peace and happiness is never truly successful until we give our lives
to the Lord and commit ourselves to walk in His will.
But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up
mire and dirt (Isaiah 57:20).
There is a desperate need in our world for the rest that God gives, and the secret to
that rest is in the Word of God.

II. SABBATH REST

A. God Rested on the Seventh Day
And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on
the seventh day from all his work which he had made (Genesis 2:2).
The creation of this earth and solar system, along with the many forms of life that
inhabit the earth, is a story of monumental scope. It is beyond our comprehension
that our great God could make everything that we see from nothing. But divine
wisdom chose to record this tremendous event in just a few concise verses. Yet,
though the whole creation account is relatively brief, the Spirit inspired the writer to
stress Gods rest on the seventh day.
God did not tire from His works of creation. He is not as mankind that He should
become weary and faint. Rather, the purpose of God in demonstrating the concept
of resting on the seventh day related to His desire to establish at least four
important truths.
1. Though God did not need to rest, He knew the frame of mankind. He established
an important pattern that man should have a day of rest each week in order to
revitalize his bodily functions and strength.
2. God also set in motion the principle of the Sabbath. That is, man should set aside
a day to focus on His Creator in praise, worship, and commitment. Traditionally,
Sunday is that day for us today.
3. The rest that the Sabbath provides also typifies the rest available only in Christ
Jesus through the Holy Ghost. When we receive the Holy Ghost we receive the rest
and refreshing that comes only from the Lord. (See Isaiah 28:11-12; Acts 3:19.)
4. Finally, Gods rest on the seventh day illustrated the eternal rest at the end of all
time on earth. When mans time on earth is complete, God has a rest eternal for
those who have prepared to receive it.
This seventh day rest was in fact the Creators statement that all was now
complete and perfect. God created man in His image and provided him with the
ideal habitat in which to serve and worship his Maker. God had carefully considered
every need that Adam would have and had made provision for each. Adam had only
to live in obedience to Gods simple commandment and he could enjoy a perfect life
complete with anything he might desire. What is more, he enjoyed a special
fellowship with the Almighty.
The word Sabbath literally means cessation from activity. God had finished His
creative work. Gods work was complete and now He expected Adam and Eve to join
Him in enjoying the perfection of the divine plan. But as the writer of the Book of
Hebrews records, Adam failed to enter into the rest that was designed for him.
Adam and Eve listened to the voice of deception that promised them a better
alternative to Gods plan. Their lack of faith in the promises of the Lord caused
mankind to fall away from God and embark upon a lifestyle of pain and
disappointment instead of joy and peace.
B. Sin Interrupted Gods Rest
Adam and Eve ate the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, and their
disobedience brought sin into the world. This sin caused man to be separated from
God and from His rest. As a result, the serpent, the woman, the man, and the
ground were all cursed by God. The beauty and perfection of Gods plan had been
marred by the sin of man.
It is easy to criticize Adam and Eve for their failure and lack of insight. How could
they possibly think that they could improve on the beautiful life that had been given
to them? But when we attempt to guide our own lives without heeding the direction
of the Scriptures, we are falling into the same snare that banished Adam and Eve
from the garden. God has provided a perfect rest for mankind, but it is available
only through faithful obedience.
As a provision of the law, God ordained that the seventh day be set aside as a
special observance. This Sabbath, or rest, was an illustration of a spiritual rest that
later He would give to His people.
Today, we have available the fulfillment of this Sabbath rest through the new-birth
experience. Let us accept Gods promise and enjoy the fruit of our relationship to
Christ.
III. CANAAN REST
A. God Promised Israelites Rest in Canaan
The people of Israel lived for generations under the harsh tyranny of Egyptian
slavery. Although they were the direct descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
they had lost all true freedom and were far from seeing the promises of God
fulfilled. Into this dark, seemingly hopeless situation the Lord sent Moses with a
message of deliverance and a promise of a land of rest.
For long years the Israelites had toiled in futile labor to build cities and monuments
to satisfy the ego of Egypts rulers. Now God promised them a homeland of their
own that flowed with milk and honey. Cruel taskmasters would no longer inflict
heavy burdens upon them. They would be a free people with houses and lands of
their own.
This seemed impossible because they were only a nation of slaves, held captive by
one of the mightiest governments in existence at that time. But God began to
reveal His power in many signs and wonders, and gloriously brought Israel out of
Egypt. He led them through the Red Sea where their enemies were drowned, and He
completed their separation from the control of the Egyptians. Before them lay the
journey to Canaan, the Promised Land of freedom and rest.
B. Israel Disobeyed and Missed the Rest
The journey from the Red Sea to Canaan should have been a relatively brief journey
with maturing steps along the way. God chose to lead them through some
challenging situations that should have served to strengthen their faith in His ability.
He gave them manna from heaven to feed them and water from a rock to quench
their thirst. He guided them by means of a pillar of cloud by day and one of fire by
night. Yet, even after so many miraculous interventions, they still had a faith
problem.
When they reached Kadesh-Barnea the Israelites sent out twelve spies to survey the
promised land. The report they brought back revealed that everything God had
promised existed in Canaan. It was indeed a land flowing with milk and honey. But
ten of the spies focused on the obstacles and declared that it was impossible for
them to take the land. The people forgot the mighty acts that God had already
performed and listened to the message of unbelief. Only Joshua and Caleb dared
believe God, and they urged the people of Israel to go up at once and take the new
land.
Since the people did not accept Joshua and Calebs positive report and therefore not
believing that God could give them the land of rest, an entire generation of
Israelites failed to enjoy the promises God had intended for them. As Hebrews 4:2
states, The word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them
that heard it.
Joshua and Caleb, because they believed the promises of the Lord, were the only
members of the adult generation that left Egypt that were allowed to enter Canaan.
After forty years of wandering in the wilderness, Israel finally entered the Promised
Land under the leadership of Joshua. God fulfilled His unfailing promise to His
people. But as great as this entrance into the land of rest was, there is yet a greater
rest that awaits the people of God (Hebrews 4:8-9). It is a rest available only in the
redemptive work of God in a persons life.
IV. REDEMPTION REST
A. The Rest of Redemption
The promise of redemption rest is woven throughout the pages of Gods Word from
the earliest chapters. The Sabbath rest and Canaan rest filled a purpose in their
time, but both pointed toward a greater rest. Isaiah prophesied of this rest in Isaiah
28:11-12.
For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people. To whom
he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest (Isaiah 28:11-
12).
Jesus revealed that redemptive rest was at hand when He said, Come unto me, all
ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28).
Peter also declared that the rest God had in mind had arrived in Acts 3:19: Repent
ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times
of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.
That which was hinted at in the Sabbath observance and looked for in the conquest
of Canaan is fully available to the born-again child of God.
B. A Rest We Enjoy Now
The plan of God is for His people to have spiritual rest. Those people who have
experienced the new birth Jesus described in John 3 have found the rest for which
mankind has longed.
Our lives are different now: we have a clear goal, we are no longer frustrated with
life, and we can focus on activities that will have an impact in this world and the
world to come.
The child of God has a great inner confidence, knowing that his life is in the hands
of an allwise, all- powerful Lord who loves him dearly. His former life of guilt and
shame is gone. Hope has replaced hopelessness, and joy fills our heart and lights
our countenance. Truly this is the abundant life of which Jesus spoke in John 10:10.
But just because a person has experienced salvation does not mean he is enjoying
the life God has designed for him. When Israel left Egypt, houses, vineyards, and
cities awaited them. But they could only reap the benefits of Canaan by having faith
to enter into the land.
God has promised abundant life to every Christian, but not everyone is taking
advantage of it. A person must exercise faith to enter into the promises of Christ.
We must believe that we can cast all our cares upon Him and leave them there. It is
up to us to believe that He will never leave or forsake us; He has promised it, and
we must believe it.
We can walk faithfully with Him whether we always feel His supernatural touch or
not. We should believe His assurance that He will never place anything on us that is
greater than our ability to bear. If we believe that He who is in us is greater than he
that is in the world, then we will have a foundation of faith upon which we may
stand and from which victory will come.
May we learn from the examples recorded in the Word of God and not come short of
entering into the rest provided for us! If we will accept Gods rest which He has
promised, we can enjoy life in the way that our Savior intends.
C. Fullness of Rest in Heaven
Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit,
that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them (Revelation
14:13).
Sin interrupted the perfect rest of the Garden of Eden. But Gods plan provides that
man will one day be reunited with Him in an environment free from any influence of
sin. Never again will death or sorrow visit the redeemed. There will be no more
temptation, no corruptible flesh to hinder us. For ages without end we will be able to
worship the One who freed us from the slavery of sin and brought us into eternal
rest. This is the hope and promise of the child of God.