Sermon Notes from 3/6/2011

Genesis 2:1-3: Our Rest

3/6/2011 Sermon Notes

Hebrews 3-4

1)      Genesis 2:2 in Hebrews 4:3-4 (reasons given in Exodus 20; 31 point to Gen. 2)

2)      Moses: Deuteronomy 5:12-15 (reason for keeping Sabbath is Exodus from Egypt) in Hebrews 3:16-19

3)      Joshua: Hebrews 4:8

4)      David: Psalm 95:11 quoted in Hebrews 3:7-11

5)      Hebrews 4:9-10

Keep in mind:

In Genesis 2, God did all the work through His Word. He created an eternal rest for Adam that Adam failed to enjoy because of unbelief.

The Israelites were kept captive in Egypt for 400 years. They were unable to escape the slavery and oppression of the Egyptian empire. God did all the work by bringing them out by Moses (a type of Christ)

Joshua, which is Jesus name in the Hebrew, brought Israel into the promised-land. They could not remain there because of their unbelief.

The theme of Hebrews is “Jesus is better than.”

Preparation Day for the Sabbath

Luke 23:54, “It was the day of Preparation, and the Sabbath was beginning. The women who had come with him from Galilee followed and saw the tomb and how his body was laid. Then they returned and prepared spices and ointments. On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.”

Matthew 11

Preparation: Matthew 11:10, 25-30

Transition into Matthew 12: It is alright for Jesus to do “work” on the Sabbath, for it would be impossible for us to rest without it.

“He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem. And someone said to him, ‘Lord, will those who are saved be few?’ And he said to them, ‘Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able’” (Luke 13:22-24).

In John 10 Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd” and “I am the door –if anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture” (John 10:9).

Hebrews 4:11

Remember the Sermon on the Mount

·         “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets: I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them” (Matthew 5:12).

·         Remember His teaching on Murder/Anger; Adultery/Lust; Loving Enemies; Oaths

·         Therefore, how can we truly keep the Sabbath?

Back to Hebrews 4:11-16

Tie back to Genesis 2:1-3; 2 Cor. 5:17

We fulfill the fourth commandment in the same way that we fulfill every other commandment – through Christ. It is not through grace that we escape the law, but it is through grace that we are given the only true ability to fulfill it. We can never earn God’s favor through it, but through Christ we are able to walk in obedience to it.

Resources for helping you to pursue Jesus (in addition to Scripture):

·         The Pleasures of God by John Piper

·         The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer

·         God’s Pursuit of Man by A.W. Tozer

·         The Sinfulness of Sin by Ralph Venning

The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment by Jeremiah Burroughs