Category: Rest

The Secret Place of Security

Because thou hast made the Lord, who is my refuge, even the Most high, thy habitation, There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come near thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.

Psalms 91:9-11

There is a secret place of security that each human being desires. A place of peace, love, and joy. A place that is safe from all harm, and you do not need to fear the question, “What if something happens?” A place where love reigns. Can there be such a place? Is there a secret place of security? I am always amazed at how our Lord takes care of His own. I have heard of some great stories of God miraculously saving people from harm. We do not understand what it really means to be in that secret place of security. We really can not fathom what it means to abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

Can we say the same as King David, “I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress, my God; in him will I trust,” [Psalms 91:2]? Can we truly say this within our hearts? If you have said yes, then you are in that secret place of security. There is no doubt within your heart that you are dwelling in the secret place of the Most High. You are secured within His love and know that no matter what happens, you belong to Him. Belonging to the Lord is the secret place of security. The promise is here in Psalms 91. He will answer you when you call upon Him. He will be with you when you are in trouble. Not only that, but you will be satisfied with a long life, and He will show you His salvation.

Long life and safety are the acts of God. Many people are having a hard time fully grasping God’s divine intervention because they have not experienced it firsthand. I went halfway around the world to finally see God’s salvation. My stepdad went just about all around the world before he saw God’s salvation. My stepdad dug his way out of a pile of rubble after a bomb hit the ground. He also escaped from a concentration camp during World War II. We have heard and read stories of the horror of World War II, but through it, people walked out alive, like my stepdad and Corrie Ten Boom. Corrie Ten Boom shared her testimony around the world about God’s love and forgiveness. Corrie Ten Boom and my stepdad learned about the secret place of security. Ponder upon this quote from Corrie Ten Boom.

If you look at the world, you’ll be distressed. If you look within, You’ll be depressed. If you look at God you’ll be at rest.

Corrie Ten Boom

Are you at rest? Those who are at rest with God are in that secret place. Those who are at rest with God have peace within their hearts. The work of righteousness is peace, and its effect is quietness and assurance, as is stated in Isaiah 32:17. What about verse 18 of Isaiah 32, “my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.” Can you imagine a dwelling place that is a peaceful habitation? This will happen when our eyes are on the Lord. When we are under the shelter of His wings, and not our own. It is good to know that He gives His angels charge over us. I can affirm this when I have experienced miraculous saving from death and harmful violence. Like a neighbor who wanted to hit me on my porch, but a force stopped her from hitting me. There was an invisible shield in front of me, and I felt it; I was frozen in place and could not move. I have witnessed this three times in different circumstances, so I know that God sends His angels to guard us, even though we do not see them.

We are not aware of them, but it is mentioned in Hebrews 13:2, “be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” Angels unawares are ministering spirits sent from God to help those who are heirs of salvation. Have you ever wondered how Lot knew that the two men who were angels that came to Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis chapter 19? Have you seen the movie Sodom and Gomorrah? Lot is warned by the angels to get out of the city because God is going to destroy it. Do not look back on iniquity, for it is grievous to God. Immoral acts affect us all because they are destructive. Its aim is to consume at all costs. That is what was happening in Sodom and Gomorrah.

Destruction is all around us, yet with God there is peace and rest. We do not have to be afraid, for we can abide under the shadow of the Almighty.   Psalms 91 can be our prayer for deliverance from the destruction that is around us. We can have the assurance of safety within the mighty arms of God. He will deliver us from all evil, and no plague shall come near us, for He shall give his angels charge over us to keep us in all our ways. He will satisfy us with long life and show us His salvation.  Praise His Holy name, let us ever stay in the secret place of the Most High.  If you are not in that secret place, cry out to God in repentance.  We are all sinners in need of saving.  Christ died on the cross for you and me to save us from the evil one and from the power of the evil one, who is Satan. Asking our Heavenly Father to save us in the name of Jesus is the key to deliverance.  It is a commitment we personally make to stay the course in faith by believing in who and what Christ has done on the cross for each of us.  His love for us is real if you allow His spirit to move upon your heart and cleanse it. He alone changes the heart of humanity.  We will forever stay in the place of security when we make Him our refuge.

Have You Entered into His Rest?

“There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.” Hebrews 4:9

Have we entered into God’s rest? What is the meaning of rest in chapter four of Hebrews. How do you define rest? The Oxford dictionary defines it as ceasing work or movement in order to relax, refresh oneself, or recover strength. When a person becomes weary from work, household tasks, finances, taking care of others and projects, then it’s time to stop all activity. Somehow, we become obsessed, and so busy that we forgot the meaning of resting. I have been accused of this myself, so stopping to refocus can help us find the reason for not entering His rest.

Entering His rest is abiding in the vine. Who is the vine? The vine is Jesus. Let us look at the following verse.

Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28

Jesus said to come unto him and He will give you rest. Rest from your labor, rest from your burden, rest from what ails you, and even rest for you soul. Jesus is the one who will give us rest. Jesus ministry as the High Priest will give us rest and service to all who need His help. Jesus is meek and lowly in heart, and we shall find rest unto our souls, [see Matthew 11:29]. The son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day, [Matthew 12:8]. Wow! Who would have thought that He is Lord of the sabbath day. The sabbath day is a day of rest. Resting from work and remembering The Lord and worshipping Him. This is important to do in order to stay connected with God.

Staying connected with God gives us His peace and rest. Let’s look at the tenth verse of Hebrews chapter four.

For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. Hebrews 4:10

Have you ceased from your own works like God? Who would have thought that God had to rest from his own works. However, this verse is given as an example of being at rest and do nothing. Just think about the gardeners who work at creating an oasis or place to rest and never taking that rest to sit and enjoy it. How about that rest stop when traveling on vacation? Some of us truly need that rest stop. That rest is to be a blessing for all of us and not just the few of us. Some of us find it hard to rest and be at peace. Rest gives us time to restore and revive the body, mind, and soul form various tasks. It is taking a break from normal activates such as having a pizza night and giving mom a break from cooking.

Failure to enter His rest is due to unbelief, a hardened heart, and disobedience to His will. Let us not fall short of entering His rest. Let us not just hear or listen to the word only but believe in it. Just listening to it will not profit us if we do not believe in the word.

For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.  Hebrews 4:2-3

Faith must be active when reading the word of God. This means one must believe in order to enter into God’s rest. We do not have to work for our salvation or healing, yet healing is seldom sought after even though it is provided for under the blood of Christ. I have heard God’s voice to rest and let him do the work in regard to a difficult situation or healing. We must get to that place of rest where we cease from our works and let God do the work in Jesus’ name. We need to put to rest our work and let God do the work in our own hearts. All things are naked and opened unto the eyes of the Lord, [see Hebrew 4:13].

We have nothing to lose but our own self-will. Let us labor to enter His rest unless we fall into unbelieve. Christ is our perfect work of redemption and therefore we either believe it or not. If Jesus is our profession, then let us believe the word and enter into His rest. Let us enter our physical, social, and spiritual rest in the Lord. Our physical rest by believing He will heal us. Our social rest for He will give us rest from all our enemies. And our spiritual rest which is the promised rest here on earth and in heaven as children of God.

You can enter the sabbath day every day by taking time out to read His word and pray. This is how we stay connected in the vine and learn about Jesus.

“Take my yoke upon you and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Matthew 11:29

We have an high priest who is touched with the feeling of our infirmities and was tempted like us but without sin [see Hebrews 4:15]. We can boldly come in prayer and lay our petitions before Him. Keep your fellowship open with the Lord and you will be resting in the grace of the Lord.