Jesus the Shepherd and His Unlikely Rest

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Good morning, Christchurch. My name is Suzy Shin, and I'm part of the Monthly Oakland Family Group.

Today's scripture reading is from the Gospel of Mark, chapter 6, verses 30 to 43, as printed in your liturgy.

Mark 6:30–43

The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught.

And he said to them, Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.

For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.

And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves.

Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they ran there on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them.

When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd.

And he began to teach them many things.

And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late.

Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages, and buy themselves something to eat.

But he answered them, You give them something to eat.

And they said to him, Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?

And he said to them, How many loaves do you have? Go and see.

And when they had found out, they said, Five, and two fish.

Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass.

So they sat down in groups by hundreds and by fifties.

And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing,

and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people.

And he divided the two fish among them all.

And they all ate and were satisfied.

And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish.

This is the gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Good morning.

Christ Church, it's good to be with you.

My name is Jesse Robinson.

I am not a pastor on staff here.

I'm a friend of Christ Church, friend of Jonathan's and Andrew's.

I'm a pastor of a church called Indelible Grace.

We're in Hayward, North Hayward.

But Andrew is a dear friend of mine.

And since he's taking a sabbatical, I'm trying to give him a favor.

With the hope that he'll give me a favor, too.

That's how the kingdom works.

It's a tit for tat.

You might know this, but we're halfway past the middle of summer, right?

If you're anything like me, summer is always a tease.

I have all these hopes of rest, a slower pace, vacations, catching my breath.

But summer never delivers.

It never delivers.

Actually, many things that we look for, look to for rest, don't deliver.

Are you going on vacation or holiday this summer?

You know the saying, right?

That I need a vacation from my vacation, right?

You get back and you're more weary in a couple of days to recover.

Recover.

Or just the daily places where we go for rest, right?

A brief break on your phone.

To check Instagram.

Or some TikTok.

Does it really give us rest?

Maybe after you collapse on the couch from putting the kids down, you turn your brain off and just put on a show or a movie.

Does it give us rest?

So in honor of summer and of the fact that Christ is going on a retreat very soon, I want us to think about rest.

Now, while I do it through a text, we might not think about as about rest.

The feeding of the 5,000 in Mark 6.

As we look at this, I want us to look at three things.

We're going to first look at the offering of rest, the subversion of rest, and the shepherd of rest.

The offering of rest, subversion, and the shepherd.

So first, the offering of rest.

It's largely overlooked in this story that the feeding of the 5,000 begins with rest.

The disciples have been commissioned by Jesus.

They've been on an extended missions trip since they come back.

And they're reporting to Jesus everything they said and did.

And they've done a lot.

They've been on the move nonstop.

Meeting people.

Confronting demons.

Healing the sick.

Teaching.

They are spreading the word about the kingdom of God.

And Jesus' response when they get back?

He doesn't say,

Oh, you didn't do more?

What does he say?

Look at verse 31.

And he said to them,

Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.

Let's grab an Airbnb down by Yosemite.

Right?

Or the Santa Cruz Mountains.

And let's rest.

You're depleted.

You're tired.

You've got no gas in the tank.

Let's get away just you and me.

And let's go somewhere with no cell service.

And rest.

Jesus offers rest.

And that's on brand.

That's who God is.

Maybe you've been a Christian your whole life.

Or maybe you're not.

And you're just curious about this church thing.

But it's easy to miss.

Christians and non-Christians alike miss how much the Bible is actually about rest.

In fact, the Bible opens with rest.

God creates everything in six days by just speaking.

But then this all-powerful God, all-creating God,

he does something strange on the seventh day.

It says,

And he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done.

The rabbis, the Jewish rabbis in their commentary on this,

say this is not about God needing rest.

God's setting an example for us.

Setting a pattern that we are created for rest.

Rest is not a bug.

It's a feature of our humanity.

And it's like that our culture easily loses sight of.

Journalist Oliver Berkman has a book, 4,000 Weeks.

Your pastor, Andrew, referred me to it.

And it's a great book.

He points out how much anxiety,

modern anxiety comes from thinking that we can do everything.

How anxious we get.

This optimization culture that we live in.

I'm going to optimize so I can get the most out of my work, my vacation.

He says, this is a farce.

It's a farce.

We can't do everything.

That's the first step of wisdom,

is to learn our limitations.

Berkman is not a Christian,

but he's talking about the Christian concept of creatureliness.

That we are made by an infinite God,

but we are finite.

We are made to rest.

And God cares about that.

He built it into the very fabric of our creation.

This was so important,

it even made it into the Ten Commandments.

Right?

This doesn't get much publicity.

Usually it's don't murder or don't steal.

But right in the middle,

right in the middle,

no less morally important,

superior,

is this command to rest.

God says,

honor the Sabbath.

Six days you shall labor

and do all your work,

but the seventh day is a Sabbath.

Your boss,

your divine boss,

wants you to take a break every week.

week.

Is this who you thought God was?

He actually cares about your rest.

Jesus is offering his disciples rest.

In fact,

this Sabbath command

comes on the heels

of the Hebrews being freed from slavery in Egypt.

In his little book,

The Sabbath as Resistance,

scholar Walter Brueggemann,

he connects a culture's economy

to its religion.

The God of Israel is different

than the Egyptian gods,

the Egyptians.

Pharaoh is a slave driver

because his gods are slave drivers.

He makes the Hebrews

produce more and more bricks

for less and less.

When you read the passage,

the story in Exodus,

the Egyptians actually accuse the Hebrews.

They say,

why have you not done more bricks?

You are lazy.

You are lazy.

The God of Israel,

meanwhile,

has a different value system.

Rest is baked in.

God tells us

there's something more valuable,

more essential,

more human

than productivity.

In fact,

modern labor laws

were profoundly shaped

by Judeo-Christian values

about work

and Sabbath.

the work week,

the 40-hour work week,

was originally championed

by Christian reformers.

But in a secular economy,

if there is no God

to regulate

either work or recreation,

then what happens?

In the absence of God,

something must rule

our work

or rest.

And when there is no God,

what is it?

Profit.

Greed.

If profit is ultimate,

there can be no true rest.

The more you work,

the more money you'll make.

But how much different

is Yahweh,

the God of Israel?

God is not a slave driver.

He's not an angry middle manager

trying to squeeze out

more productivity from you.

He's not Pharaoh.

He's a God

who frees the slaves

and gives rest.

Last year,

I was on a pastor's retreat

in the Rocky Mountains.

I'm in a cohort

of younger pastors

and we're led

by this gray-haired pastor

named Scott.

And we went on

a group hike.

Now,

I have a moderate condition

of cerebral palsy,

a disability.

I like to say

that my balance

is impaired,

but my sense of humor

is improved

by this condition.

And so,

we're going on

this hike together

and we're hiking

up some moderate inclines.

We're 8,000 feet.

So we're breathing,

I'm breathing kind of heavy.

This is very different

to the Bay Area.

And there were

some difficult parts

and Scott,

our leader,

over and over

kept checking with me.

Hey,

are you okay?

Hey,

do we need to stop

and rest?

His sensitivity

was attuned

to my work,

my output.

my exhaustion.

Prince,

that is who

Jesus is

to us.

He knows you

better than you.

He sees you.

He sees your exhaustion

even when you deny it.

That is who Jesus is.

Jesus takes a look

at his disciples

and says,

you need a break.

And they don't even

ask for it.

He just gives it.

He initiates.

He offers it.

So here's a question

for you this morning.

What would Jesus say

to you

this morning?

How are you doing?

Are you depleted?

Are you tired?

Maybe you're

physically tired.

Maybe it's emotional.

You're carrying

a lot of disappointment

and hurt.

Or maybe it's spiritual.

Listen,

maybe you're living

a life where you

are serving

a slave-driving God.

Maybe you

are the slave-driving God.

You are Pharaoh

constantly pushing

yourself or others.

And you're exhausted.

Or maybe you're

the disciples

and you're simply

coming off a season

of faithful ministry

and you're like,

hey, Jesus,

I'm tired.

Whatever it is,

God sees your weariness

and he offers rest.

And he said to them,

come away by yourselves

to a desolate place

and rest a while.

That's our first point,

the offering of rest.

Second point,

the subversion of rest.

Now, emotionally,

Jesus is a bit

like summer here.

He's a bit of a tease.

He offers a retreat

and on the way

to the Airbnb,

an instant crowd

appears.

Look at verse 33.

Now, when he saw

them going

and recognized them

and they ran there

on foot

from all the towns

and got there

ahead of them.

And when he went ashore,

he saw a great crowd.

So instead of a retreat,

we have a needy crowd.

And so Jesus

starts to teach them.

That's what Jesus does.

He's a teacher.

And then verse 35,

it says,

it grew late.

And the disciples

are like,

hey, Jesus,

this sermon

is fantastic.

But the call

of the pillow

is starting

to be stronger

than the Holy Spirit.

Right?

Can we go

get some rest?

And they see

an opportunity.

The crowd's getting hungry.

In verse 36,

they tell Jesus,

send the crowd away

to go buy themselves food.

They take control.

They tell Jesus

what to do.

Now, that never goes well

in the Gospels

when you tell Jesus

what to do.

Look at verse 37.

But he answered them,

you give them

something to eat.

Wait.

Wait, what?

Jesus,

you offered us rest.

And now you want

us to cater

5,000 people

in the wilderness?

You know when you're

exhausted

and life springs

something on you?

Back when our kids

were little,

we had this getaway plan.

My wife was grinding

in her job.

I was trying to work

on a PhD

while also working

part-time.

We had two little ones.

We were exhausted.

And we had this weekend

on the calendar.

We're going to go

to a lake house.

We're going to go

to a lake house.

We're so excited.

There's beautiful

waterside views.

We're just going to sit

in the window

and just watch the lake.

That's all we wanted.

We're still ready.

And the morning

we're about to leave,

my wife wakes up

with a fever.

A fever.

I still feel

the disappointment

and the rage.

Like,

I'm mad at God,

but she's,

I was a very,

very terrible husband

in this moment.

I'm like,

this is your,

you're sick

and you're ruining

everything.

Now I'm solo parenting

this weekend

with two babies.

Right?

This is the opposite

of that.

This is what the disciples

are feeling.

Like,

Jesus,

we want rest.

We're tired.

And now,

you want us to feed

these people?

What is Jesus doing?

Why is he moving

the finish line

on them?

Right?

They're on fumes.

They're running a marathon.

They see the finish line.

All of a sudden,

Jesus is like,

nope.

Why?

You see,

we think rest

comes from changing

our circumstances.

Don't we?

Go on the vacation.

Get away from the demands.

Oftentimes,

one of the primary ways

that our culture

envisions rest

is really escapism.

It's escapism.

But you know

that doesn't always work.

Right?

On vacation,

you are still

the same person.

Your kid is still

going to tantrum.

Or maybe your spouse

is going to tantrum.

Or maybe you're

going to tantrum.

The scenery changes,

but your soul

doesn't.

Jesus isn't being

cruel here.

He's exposing

the poverty

of our rest.

And he subverts

their notions

of rest

in two ways.

First,

there's self-protection.

The disciples' instinct

are like,

hey,

let's send them away.

Let's send them away.

Then we'll get rest.

And we do that too,

right?

We think that rest

comes from self-protection.

I've got to block

off my time.

I have to have

better boundaries.

But Jesus

calls them

to compassion.

To feel

for others' rest.

There's a contrast there.

When Jesus

sees the crowd,

it says he saw them

and had compassion

because they were sheep

without a shepherd.

Actually,

the Sabbath command

in the Old Testament,

in the law,

the two commandments,

it's the first law,

the commandment,

to mention others.

All

the others

to this point

mention God alone.

It's your vertical.

The Sabbath rest,

he says,

God says,

remember the Sabbath day

you shouldn't work

and neither should

anyone in your charge.

Not your spouse

or your child

or your employee

or your servant

or guest.

In other words,

compassion

was built

into the Sabbath law.

Jesus

got this.

This is why,

when did Jesus

heal?

He healed people

on the Sabbath.

It angered the Pharisees,

but he was restoring

the meaning

of the Sabbath.

The Sabbath

is about serving

other people's rest.

It's giving yourself

so that someone else

can rest.

You see,

the world says

to us

that rest comes

from self-care.

Camper yourself,

indulge yourself,

treat yourself,

in the words of Donna

in Parks and Rec.

There's a whole lot

less millennials

in this room

than there is

in my church.

Parks and Rec.

It's a great show.

Great philosophical show there.

Jesus says,

look to give rest.

Look to give rest.

That's the backwards kingdom.

Oftentimes,

the way to get rest

is to get rest.

And we know this,

right?

Have you ever sacrificed

this Saturday morning

to help a friend move?

Or maybe you stayed up late

to fix a meal

for someone else?

It's tiring,

but in a restful way.

Like,

you've done something

good and beautiful.

But the second thing

he does,

so he confronts their,

subverts their

self-protection.

He also subverts

their self-sufficiency.

Jesus says,

you feed them.

And they're immediately like,

we can't cater a party

for thousands.

We're in the middle

of nowhere.

And it would cost

a fortune.

A denarii

is a day's wage.

So 200 denarii,

that's like a,

that's almost

an annual salary.

We're going to,

we're going to drop that.

On this like,

impulsive feeding

these people?

They don't have that.

But Jesus knows that.

He knows he's asked

the impossible.

And what if that's the point?

He wants them to realize

that they don't have

what it takes.

He wants them to come

to the end of themselves.

Listen,

the self

is our primary issue

when it comes to rest.

The self is exhausting.

It's not your spouse

or your kids

or your boss

or your parents,

but you.

You are your most

worst enemy

when it comes to rest.

And the stronger

your self is,

your ego,

your ambition,

your reputation,

the stronger

your hold on life,

the more you think

that life is about you,

the more exhausted

you will be.

Why?

Because you're constantly

trying to get what you want.

The control.

And you'll be constantly

anxious

that you won't get

what you want.

It's all up to you.

You see,

self-protection

and self-sufficiency

are really the same root.

One says,

I'll protect myself,

and the other

I'll provide

for myself.

And they're both exhausting.

Both assume

that I know it's best

and I'll get my rest.

And here's the deeper truth

about rest and religion.

Rest reveals

your true religion.

Where you rest,

what you do

to get rest,

it actually says something

about what you believe

life is about,

about who your God is,

about where you get

renovation,

or restoration.

Maybe you rest

in your bank account.

And you think,

once I get this amount

of money,

then I can rest.

And I can retire easy.

Or maybe you look

to your family.

If I can just,

if everyone,

if all the members

of my family

can just be okay,

then I can rest.

Listen,

that's a recipe

for never resting.

They will never

be all okay,

moms.

All you anxious moms

out there,

they will never

be all okay.

If it's not money,

you will never

have enough to rest.

You will never

have enough.

All these

are forms

of self-sufficiency.

But the Bible

says we're made

to rest in God.

That's what

we are made for.

The African theologian,

St. Augustine,

put it this way.

You probably know this.

He says,

you've made us

for yourself,

O Lord,

and our heart

is restless

until it rests

in you.

Any other thing

that we rest in,

our accomplishments,

or our reputation,

or our pleasure,

it will ultimately

leave us

restless.

Because we were

made to rest

in God alone.

So Jesus

subverts

these false

notions of rest

because he loves us.

Which brings us

to the surprise

in our last point,

the shepherd

of rest.

So Jesus

gives them

an impossible task

and they bring it

back to him.

Verse 37.

Should we go

and buy this?

200 denarii

worth of bread?

And Jesus

says, no.

Go see what

we have on hand.

And they come

back

with five loaves

and two fish.

This is a very

pitiful haul.

There are

5,000 men.

We don't know

how many others

and that's all

the food they have.

This is a

massive failure.

Okay?

Appearance

throughout.

They brought

no snacks.

Then what

does Jesus

do?

Look at verse

39.

Then he

commanded them

all to sit

down in groups

in the green grass.

And they sit

down.

Verse 41.

Jesus takes

the five loaves

and the two

fish.

He looked up

to heaven

and said a

blessing and

broke the loaves

and gave them

to the disciples

to set before

the people.

Jesus breaks

off piece

after piece

after piece.

And the

disciples pass

the meal out

to the people.

Can you see

this in your

mind?

Imagine a

beautiful field

of soft

green grass.

It's like

Berkeley and

March.

Clumps of

people seated

hungry and

hopeful.

All eyes

on Jesus.

Mark usually

doesn't fill us

in on the

condition of the

grass.

Why does he say

green grass?

It's one of

several Easter

eggs within this

passage.

The line in

verse 36.

They were like

sheep without a

shepherd.

shepherd.

Jesus has a

great herd of

people on

green grass.

And they're

beside the

water, still

water.

And this

shepherd is

preparing a

table for his

people.

This whole

passage evokes

Psalm 23,

the most

famous of

psalms.

The Lord is

my shepherd.

I shall not

want.

He makes me

lie down in

green and

green pastures.

He leads me

beside still

waters.

He restores

my soul.

He prepares

a table before

me.

My cup

overflows.

Psalm 23 is

the premier

psalm of

rest, of

peace, of

provision.

You see, when

you have the

Lord as your

shepherd, there

is rest and

peace and

ample provision.

Mark is

telling us who

Jesus is

here.

He is the

shepherd of

Psalm 23.

He's the

God who

fed Israel

with manna.

Remember that

in the

wilderness?

How God

miraculously

rains down

bread?

And then here

in the

wilderness,

Jesus, not

raining down

bread, but he

is multiplying

abundantly,

miraculously.

Why?

Because he's

the good

shepherd.

He is the

Lord.

He is God.

Mark is

making a

claim about

Jesus'

identity.

Jesus is

making a

claim about

his identity.

The shepherd

has finally

come.

He is not

merely performing

a miracle.

He is telling

us who he

is.

And he

is God.

He is

the manna

giver.

And the

bread he

gives is

the bread

of life.

What about

rest?

You know,

the disciples

never get

the retreat

Jesus

promised.

Or did

they?

Jesus

says,

come away

and rest.

And then

comes the

crowd, the

teaching, the

hungry people,

an impossible

task, the

serving food,

and the

cleanup.

But it

says, and

they all

ate and

were satisfied.

They all

ate and

were satisfied.

That includes

the disciples.

And that

word satisfied,

the Greek

means filled,

gorged.

It's that

pleasant feeling

when you

haven't eaten

all day and

you come home

and you have

a tasty

meal.

One that

you get

seconds on

and you

just sit

back and

you're like,

yes, life

is good.

They're

satisfied.

Jesus

always

fulfills

his promise,

although it

is rarely

in the way

that we

think it's

going to

be.

Rest did

not come

from a

retreat.

It came

from him.

This rest

that he was

offering is

fulfilled in

him.

He gives

them himself.

He is the

shepherd who

alone can

give his

sheep rest.

He is the

manna giver

who gives

the bread

of life.

It satisfies

not only our

stomach but our

souls.

rest is a

person.

The miracle

here is not

that Jesus

gives exhausted

people a day

off.

The miracle

is that Jesus

gives exhausted

people himself.

Himself.

He is God

come in the

flesh.

That quote

about Augustine

that our

souls were

meant to

rest in God.

The way we

rest in God

is through

Jesus.

It's only

in Jesus.

He is how

we enter into

the rest of

God.

And this

rest, if you

think about

it, it's

freely given.

It's

utterly free.

What did the

crowds contribute

to this meal?

Nothing.

What did the

disciples contribute?

Their

skepticism.

Jesus

satisfies

for free.

He does

all the

work.

And actually

verse 41 is

the foreshadowing

of another

work.

Jesus in

41, he

takes the

bread, he

blesses it, he

breaks it, and

then gives it.

And that's the

same order as

Mark 14 at the

Last Supper.

Jesus takes the

bread, blesses

it, breaks it,

and gives it.

But then he

says, this is

my body.

See, at the end

of Mark, we

find out the

bread is

really Jesus'

own life

given for

us on the

cross.

My body

broken for

you, my

body given

for you.

And on the

cross, Jesus

did all the

work of

salvation, that

you might

rest.

And what did

Jesus cry on

the cross?

He said, it

is finished.

My work is

finished.

Your work is

finished.

finished.

His work of

salvation is a

finished work, and

you don't have to

add anything to

it.

But Jesus did

not stay dead.

In order for him

to be the good

shepherd, he had

to walk through

the valley of

the shadow of

death and

conquer it.

Conquer it.

And so he is a

living shepherd.

He's a living

shepherd.

And he did all

this that you

might have

rest.

That you may

rest from all

your strivings to

justify yourself.

Rest from all

the guilt before

God and before

others.

Rest from all

the shame before

man.

Rest from all

the condemnation

that you feel,

the self-hatred.

Rest from all

the fear and

the anxiety.

You can have

rest.

All you must

do is become

his sheep,

is to accept

the shepherd

as Jesus.

Jesus.

And he says,

I will do

everything for

you.

It's all you

have to do.

This is why

Jesus invites us

in Matthew 11,

28.

He says,

come to me.

Come to me.

All who labor

and are heavy

laden.

All of you who

are cynical

and exhausted.

All of you who

are broken

and bruised.

Come to me

and I will

give you

rest.

Take my

yoke upon

you and

learn from

me.

For I am

gentle and

lowly in

heart and

you will

find rest

for your

souls.

I want to

end asking

the question,

what does it

look like to

rest in

Jesus?

And I want

to give you

three quick

portraits.

First,

come to the

shepherd.

Maybe you're

not a Christian

this morning.

What does it

look like to

rest in

Jesus?

Let me ask

this question.

Who is your

shepherd?

Do you have

one?

Who is

looking out

for you?

Are you on

your own?

You either

have God as

your shepherd

or you have

no one.

Is that

you?

Jesus wants

to be your

shepherd this

morning.

He offers

you true

rest.

And for you

resting in

Jesus is

simply coming

to him.

All you

must do

is simply

ask him

for rest.

And you

must know

it's dangerous.

It's a

surrender of

control.

You will

no longer

define your

own rest.

But the

gains are

tremendous.

Jesus is a

generous shepherd.

He provides

far beyond

our imagination.

Look at how

many baskets

they took up.

There were

12 full

baskets.

That's

symbolic.

They say,

hey,

Jesus is

extravagant.

You will

have

leftovers

when you

come to

the shepherd.

And you

will know

true

satisfaction

and true

filling deep

in your

soul.

Stop

trying to

provide your

own salvation.

Or maybe

secondly,

maybe you

are a

Christian.

And the

lesson here is

to rest for

the shepherd.

A lot of

us are

learning to

daily rest

in Jesus.

It is a

daily

discipline.

In the

wilderness,

God gave

manna every

day.

And Jesus

taught us

to pray.

Give us

this day

our daily

bread.

Which means

that you

need him

every day.

You need

him every

day.

So many

of us

live life

like the

disciples.

All we

see is

the hard

facts.

Hey,

we need

200

denarii

to make

this

happen.

But

resting

in Jesus

is trusting

him as

the provider

for

everything.

Everything

you need.

Berkeley

people,

one of

the primary

problems

for us

is that

we don't

realize how

much we

need Jesus.

We think

because of

our skill

and our

bank

accounts,

we can

provide for

ourselves.

But it's

an illusion.

The way

that you

are meant

to live

is actually

to live

daily,

asking Jesus

for his

provision.

No matter

how big

your bank

account,

no matter

how skilled

you are,

intelligent,

this is

what life

is.

And the

rest in

Jesus is

actually

prayer.

That's

how we

rest in

Jesus.

It's

praying,

seeking

him,

pouring out

your life

to him.

So many

of us,

our prayer

life is

so deficient.

We're like

whispering up

little SOS

prayers here

and there.

That's not

how life

resting is.

Resting in

Jesus is

these prolonged

periods of

Jesus,

I need

you.

I need

you.

It is

pouring out

your heart,

your weariness,

your lack,

your thanksgiving,

your praise,

and saying,

Jesus,

I need you

today.

I need you

for my

kids.

I need you

for my

work.

That is

rest.

And when

you rise

from prayer,

you will

have been

with the

shepherd and

you will

feel rest.

He is

rest.

And finally,

we need to

rethink our

rest.

Remember how

Jesus subverts

our instincts

about rest?

We think

that rest

comes from

getting away,

going on

vacation.

Why?

Because we

listen to the

credit card

companies.

It tells us

all about

this amazing

rest,

right?

Go to a

resort and

you will

feel rested.

You might

not.

In fact,

being in

vacation mode

is a very

spiritually

dangerous

mode to

be in.

You know

why?

Because we

tend to

indulge,

to splurge,

we overeat.

There's a

sin called

gluttony that

no one

talks about.

We over

drink.

Our desires

are inflamed.

And we

lack the

routines that

keep our

desires and

indulgences in

check.

Some of us

become little

tyrants,

bossing everyone

around.

We've got to

keep on

scheduled.

This is how

vacation happens.

Others become

hedonists,

right?

Others become

slothful and

lazy.

But at the

heart of it,

the reason it's

dangerous,

vacations are

not bad.

We need

them.

But at the

heart of it,

it becomes my

kingdom come,

my will be

done.

That's not

where rest

comes from.

Rest comes

from surrender.

Your kingdom

come,

your will be

done.

It comes

from Jesus.

So stop

asking vacations

to provide what

only the shepherd

can give you.

Jesus offers you

rest this morning.

He wants to

give you rest.

He offers it

freely.

So friends,

sit in his

green grass.

Look at his

hands of

provision.

He says,

I will feed

you.

I will satisfy

you.

I will give

you rest.

Would you

pray with me?

Oh,

Father in

heaven,

we are so

silly about

what we

think will

satisfy us.

Oh,

Father,

we thank

you that

when you

look at

us,

you don't

condemn

us,

you see

us through

the eyes

of compassion.

Oh,

Father,

and your

Sabbath

is actually

work to

give us

rest.

Oh,

Father,

I pray

that we

would avail

ourselves

of that

rest,

even this

morning.

Oh,

Jesus,

you are

a provider

beyond our

imagination.

Oh,

Father,

you love

us so

much,

so much

that you

died for

us.

Oh,

Father,

we come

to you.

Please feed

us with

Jesus.

And I do

pray for

Christ's

church as

they go

away to

a desolate

place,

that they

would meet

Jesus

there,

that he

would be

where they

get rest,

that they

would enjoy

the love

and the

beauty of

your covenant

grace to

us.

Oh,

Lord,

we love

you.

In

Christ's

name we

pray.

Amen.