To those of you who are continually seeking the face of God without breaks, praying to know His will, to understand properly His Word, who can find no contentment in this world, a verse for you.
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matt. 11:28)
What we do for our Savior never seems to be enough, and rarely ever seems to be done right in our eyes, something always seems as if it could have been done better, in a way that might have glorified Him greater, revealed the love for Him that is within us that never seems to be able to be expressed fully.
The work, the tasks that He sets before us, those steps of faith we take, the actions, words and deeds always seem, if even in a small way, to have missed the mark.
“For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.” (Gal. 5:17)
The complete rest that we desire will not be known to us in this life, the accumulation of all our efforts for Him will not be revealed to us until we set foot in our eternal home, and then we will know rest.
We have set our face like a flint, we fight the battle each day, we deny ourselves, we seek the lost, stand against the wicked, rebuke the attempts of our adversary, study to show ourselves approved, and wait patiently in the hope of our Lord’s promises to give us rest.
But it never seems as if it is enough, even when the task at hand is completed that He has set before us in accordance with His will, it never seems as if we have done enough.
Not just in the knowledge that we could have, should have done more, but in the truth that another task now awaits. And as we prepare our hearts and minds to serve Him in love, for His glory, we always have in the back of our mind “perhaps today,” perhaps today I will finally know Hie eternal rest.
These deeds of faith we do for our Lord are not done in any respect of an attempt to pay Him back for His unspeakable sacrifice for us, they are not done as proof of our love for Him, there is no self-centeredness or self-interest in them, we do them because He is worthy of all we are.
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” (Romans 12:1)
We do not work for rewards, we do not serve in the hope of receiving a crown, we serve in love with no thought to ourselves.
But there is that continuing “feeling,” that something that says what we have done is never enough, that there is more we can do, should do, to lift up His Holy name to those we meet as well as in ourselves.
In a way that I cannot properly put into words, and with no disrespect intended, some will be rested more than others, the peace that passes all understanding will be better, more fully understood by them when they get home.
The world with all its cares and pressures will be gone, the battle against our old nature finally over, our adversary never again allowed to attempt to sway us from the path set before us.
Finally at rest forevermore.
But then, if this letter was written for you, you know full well that within that eternal rest you will never find true contentment unless your Lord sends you out with another task, more opportunities to serve Him for His glory.
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.” (Psalm 23:6)
It is enough my friends, if you are serving with a sincere heart for the glory of the Living God, to Him it is enough.
In this regard, it is that feeling that it never is that drives us to do more.
