Lesson 6: the Heart of God that we should Rest

11 Oct 2015 Leave a comment

by Carri Worton in teach me Tags: , ,

Lesson 6: The Heart of God That We Should Rest

Jeremiah 50:6
“My people have been lost sheep.
Their shepherds have caused them to go astray;
They have turned them away on the mountains.
They have gone from mountain to hill
and have forgotten their resting place.”

The resting place is not a place we just “stumble upon”. The resting place is found upon the mountain. Here, God likens his people to sheep. and in Israel, for the sheep, the resting place was upon the mountain and the way there was no picnic. It’s easy to understand why the people would so easily be turned away on the journey, and linger instead on a hillside pasture. The hillside is just right there, no traversing rocky slopes and steep cliffs. no dangers hiding in shadows  The grass was still green and the sun was shining. To go from mountain to hill is to go from God’s best to just good enough. It’s the gospel without power. It’s salvation without change. It’s exchanging the truth of pick up your cross and follow me for become a Christian and get blessed. The way to the mountain might be challenging, full of dangers and require sacrifice, but the pasture lands we will feed upon and the rest we will come into is far greater than the easy way of the hillside.

God’s heart is that we should come into the beautiful bountiful inheritance that is ours, but the road to the end of our journey takes discipline, diligence, and sacrifice. The beauty of this is that we do all of it not by our might or power, but by his Spirit! Everything we need to traverse the rocky mountain is found in the person of Jesus, administered to us by the Holy Spirit. the only thing we provide is the actual sacrifice of our selves, our striving to figure it out, our struggle to make it work. It’s God’s heart that we should be at rest.

Devotional Questions:

  1. Have I been settling for less than I read about in the word of God within my life as a Christian?
  1. Is my walk with Christ easy, yet unfulfilling, or is it challenging but full of life?
  1. Am I truly resting in the work of Jesus to live life daily, or am I pursuing a “good life” that focuses on me?
  1. Have I settled for less than what God desires for me?
  1. Am I satisfied with where I am spiritual or am I really longing for a higher ground?

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