Daily Devotions
A Rest from Sin
Reading for December 29th: Revelation 13-16
And I heard a voice from heaven saying, "Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Blessed indeed," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labors , for their deeds follow them!"
Revelation 14:13
What is the rest promised in this verse?
This rest is not merely a cessation of physical labor. There is work in heaven. Part of the reward for faithful stewards in this life is additional responsibility in the next (Matthew 25:21, 23; Luke 20:17, 19).
The rest God has promised us is spiritual in nature. When the forbidden fruit was eaten in the garden, a connection was revealed between sin and labor. The ground produced thorns and thistles and man had to eat bread by the sweat of his face (Genesis 3:18-19).
A contrast is also made between war and rest in the Bible. When Joshua finished his violent conquest in taking Canaan, the historian would say that the land then had "rest" from war (Joshua 11:23, 14:15). We also read that the people were given "rest" from the wicked nations they had driven out of the land (Joshua 21:44; 22:4; 23:1).
A similar conquest is still going on today. We are in a struggle against sin: "In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood." (Hebrews 12:4) The Hebrew writer tells us that a rest remains for the people of God (Hebrews 4:9). It is a rest from our struggle with sin!
Father, we're tired of sin and the struggle we have daily with sin. We can't wait till Jesus returns and gives us rest!
