The Second Chance for God’s People. Timothy W. Seid
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can be sure of arriving at our destination, if each of us is heart-conscious toward God, if we encourage each other to stay faithful, and we remember what happens to those who fail through unbelief.
Suann and I don’t go shopping together any more. It probably has saved our marriage; at least it saved our sanity. Shopping for me is like a quest or a hunt; for Suann the pleasure of shopping is the journey. We would go to a store for the purpose of buying something we needed. I figure out how long it will take us to walk to the right section of the store, pick up the merchandise, find a cashier, pay, and then exit. As soon as we enter the store, Suann is pulled away to look at something totally unrelated to what we are doing. If our walk through a store could be plotted, it would look like one of those Family Circus cartoons. It’s a wonder we actually end our journey at the exit. We could end up lost somewhere in the store and have to set up camp in the sporting goods section. We would be the WalMart couple, roaming the store at night looking at pretty colors, feeling fabrics, and smelling candles, perfume and potpourri.
The spiritual journey is in itself exciting. It is filled with satisfying experiences; it is intellectually stimulating. But it is not just about the journey. It is about not being diverted from the ultimate goal. We want to reach that destination together: no stragglers, no one left behind. We’re on our way together with Christ as our companion on the journey.
Rest Area Ahead (4:1–10)
Humans, like all animals, need rest, a cessation of activity, an undisturbed and secure time of quiet and solitude. One of the nicest things that transportation departments have done is create rest areas. Many rest areas are like little parks. They often have picnic areas with shade trees and sometimes have scenic views. I must admit, most of the time for me the beauty of a rest area is that it gives another kind of relief. There have been only a few times when we have planned a stop along the way and have had a picnic meal prepared to enjoy a rest area.
One of my favorite dumb jokes is about rest areas. I have no idea where I heard it, so I’m telling it in my own way. This guy was traveling from Kentucky to Indianapolis. When it began to grow late, people began to worry what could have delayed him. He finally arrived and someone asked him, “What happened? How come it took you so long to get here? Did you have car problems or was there a traffic jam?”
“No, sir,” he began to explain, “It was my first time driving on the freeway. I saw a sign that said ‘Clean Restrooms.’ It took a bit a doin’ but I cleaned five before I left the freeway.”
When taking a trip, people are on the lookout for rest areas. Many times a sign for a rest area will say how much further it is to the next rest area. The ultimate rest area is, of course, when we finally reach our destination. We reach the comfort and security of home.
Hebrews is making a connection between the rest that the Israelites were to have at the end of their escape from Egypt to the Promised Land and the heavenly rest available for the people of God at the end of their escape from this world. Because the generation of Israelites that left Egypt disobeyed through faithlessness, they were to die in the wilderness leaving their children to settle in the new land. Since the rest that was promised was not fulfilled, Hebrews argues that the promised rest is still available, as long as the present generation is faithful to God and doesn’t falter in the midst of persecution. We are told in these verses that the heavenly rest area is still open and still ahead for us (4:1–2). It’s a rest from the labors of life (4:3–8). To enter we must remain faithful and obedient to God (4:9–10).
Rest Area Still Open (4:1–2)
The NRSV translates the main verb in verse one as “take care.” Doesn’t that sound nice? Actually, the term used there is the word commonly translated “fear.” Modern translations have tamed the language to have it read, “take care.” In other texts, the word “fear” is translated as “reverence.” Modern pastors and theologians don’t want to scare people. That’s something for revival preachers. We miss the gravity of the situation, however, if we mask the language. The author of Hebrews is afraid that some of the church members have fallen along the way, just like the Israelites did in the wilderness.
It’s interesting that in this text Hebrews says the Israelites were evangelized just like we are now. Verse two literally reads, “Indeed we have had the gospel preached to us just like them.” The good news of God’s salvation was declared to them, but they didn’t follow through on what God expected of them. The reason the message didn’t benefit them is that faith was not part of the mix in their conduct.
There’s nothing worse than being on a trip and being on a stretch of road without a rest area. I had a horrific experience traveling through Boston. We were going to visit the campus of Gordon College, north of Boston. I began to desire the facilities of a rest area somewhere south of Boston. The further I drove, the more I wanted a rest area, and the faster I went. By the time we found an exit with some hope of a gas station, my body was completely straightened out so that about the only contact I had with the car was my head touching the roof of the car and my foot on the accelerator. To this day, I can’t think of Boston without thinking of needing a restroom. Even worse, I suppose, is anticipating an upcoming rest area, only to arrive at the destination and find the sign says, Closed.
As long as we are still on this journey of life, there’s a sign that says, Rest Area Ahead. God has promised that rest and refreshment is still an open possibility for us. What we should fear, according to Hebrews, is that some of us might lose faith along the way, and for those people the sign will say, Rest Area Closed.
What Kind of Rest? (4:3–8)
The entrance requirement for the final rest area is faithfulness and obedience. The concept of rest in the Bible is complex. The Israelites were slaves in Egypt where their existence was characterized by labor. The Exodus itself was a release from bondage and the beginning of that search for rest. The journey through the wilderness and their entrance into the Promised Land was another kind of rest: It was intended to be a rest from the surrounding nations, a rest from war.
But the concept of rest had a larger symbolic meaning. The practice of working six days and then resting on the seventh, the Sabbath, was based on the belief that God created the world in six days, and then God rested from work on the seventh day. God’s rest has been going on ever since. God worked six days and then retired, so to speak. The people of God will also rest from their work and join God in rest.
For many people, their lives are defined by what they do on the weekend. You could imagine that people’s idea of heaven in some ways matches what they do at the end of the day or on the weekends. Some people will be experiencing in heaven their extreme sports from planet to planet, galaxy to galaxy. Others will be sitting in easy chairs, laying on hammocks, or, for the more active people, rocking on heaven’s front porch. I know one person who will be taking a long nap at the beginning of eternity. Whatever heaven turns out to be, it is a rest from labor and an eternal peace and safety from conflict, fighting, and war.
Perhaps many of us rest so much and enjoy such peace and security that we have lost the appreciation for what an eternal rest is. Others are such workaholics that they don’t like the idea of vacations or retirement, not to mention the inactivity of death. We should think about those people in parts of the world for whom life is constant work just to stay alive and for whom violence and war prevents them from having a moment’s peace. For those people, for people like those to whom Hebrews was written, an eternal rest is a glorious concept and is not something a person would want to miss.
Faith and Obedience are Required to Enter the Rest (4:9–10)
The conclusion to the argument is that there still exists this promise for the people of God to enter God’s rest. The former group did not enter because of disobedience: They were not persuaded that God really was going to give them what God promised. They complained when things got tough and they rebelled when they didn’t get what they wanted in life. However, they were no better or worse than we are now. If we pay attention to what happened to them, we will not make the same mistake but will be able to enter God’s Sabbath rest.
For many people the greatest motivation in life is their retirement. It seems these days