53 “If Christ is our ‘wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption’ (1 Cor. 1:30), it is clear that He is also our rest. As He Himself says, ‘Come to Me, all that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest’ (Matt. 11:28). He says also that the Sabbath – and ‘sabbath’ means ‘rest’ – was made for man (cf. Mark 2: 27); for only in Christ will the human race find rest.
St. John of Karpathos
For Encouragement
100 Texts
Resting is one of the hardest things we ever do. We hold fast to the truth that rest is simply taking a day off work or taking a vacation. These are in fact very healthy things to do, but real rest is not found a on a beach or golf course somewhere. Real rest is found when we remember, as the Lord commanded in Deuteronomy, to sabbath. We have developed a narrow understanding of the sabbath to just be a day in which we worship or serve. In reality, the sabbath is not just a day, but a way of living that points our life back to the one who created us and loves us. St. John of Karpathos reminds us that we are called to rest in Jesus. God grants us the freedom to choose whether we want to rest in God or not. That freedom is what allows us to find God and really rest in the promise that Jesus will truly give us rest. Look at your life today and imagine the places where you have shut the sabbath out and maybe, just maybe, try to find God and find real rest.
Leave a Reply