" Restore to Me the JOY " The Prayer of David in Psalm 51

     " Joy ",  such a simple word, easy to spell but not always easy to keep.  King David knew all too well how easily the true joy, that only comes from the LORD, can be lost or in his case sinned away.  Many people believe that their sin hurts no one but themselves;  that their sin is fun and they don't want to give it up, after all everybody is doing it !  As we will see sin does require a payment not only in eternity but also in this life. King David's sin caused the death of 2 people and the loss of his integrity to many of his men.

     Many people know the sin of King David.  He was not out with his army as he should have been, but was in his palace.  He opened the window and gazed out at the city and spied a women (Bathsheba) undressing on the rooftop, readying herself for a bath (as their custom was). David should have closed the window and talked to the LORD about what he saw and asked for strength to resist, but he did not.  Instead David had the woman brought to him and he had his way with her.  It soon was told him that she was with child and since her husband (Uriah) was away in King David's army there was no chance that it was his.  King David had Uriah brought back home under the guise that he could rest and refresh himself for a couple of days.  Of course David was hoping that Uriah would have relations with his wife (Bathsheba);  but Uriah was an honorable man and would not take a short vacation while the army was out fighting King David's battles.  So Uriah lay outside of King David's palace and slept and did not see his wife.  Now this upset King David so he had his most trusted commander send Uriah out in the front of the fiercest battle and then have David's Army silently retreat; which left Uriah alone and of course he was killed.   

     Now all of this was done to hide the sin of adultery which produced a child; the murder of one of King David's most trusted men by the Kings own command;  and also, when the child was born, he was sick and eventually died. So what did sin cause ?  Did sin only effect King David ? Were there no long lasting consequences of his sin ?   GOD sent Nathan the Prophet to King David to confront him about the sin.  Now GOD told Nathan to tell King David about a poor farmer that had only one small ewe lamb; that the farmer loved and nourished and it grew up together with the farmers children.  Then a rich man came and would not take of his own flocks but had someone go and take the farmers beloved ewe lamb to serve to a traveler.  When David heard this story he was greatly angered and told Nathan that  "surely  as the LORD lives, the man who has done this shall surely die ! "  King David also said that the man shall restore four-fold  "because he had no pity."   Then Nathan said to King David,  " You are the man ! "  Nathan proceeded to tell King David all that GOD had done for him and how much more GOD would have given if David would have asked or needed anything. GOD gave a sad description to David through Nathan the Prophet, of those things that would befall his family including the death of the child.

     So David's sin did not just affect him.  Like a flat stone that a person tries to make skip across the pond and the stone sends out ripples in all directions;  so does sin.  It alters the beautiful course that our lives could have taken if we would stay in GOD's walk.  It steals our  " joy "  as King David's joy was taken from him because of his sin that rippled across so many families, including his own. We shall now see the agonizing prayer of King David that he prayed after Nathan the Prophet confronted him about his sin.  Psalm 51:1-19 is as follows:

Have mercy upon me, O GOD,

According to YOUR lovingkindness;

According to the multitude of YOUR tender mercies,

Blot out my transgressions.

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity;

And cleanse me from my sin.

For I acknowledge my transgressions,

And my sin is ever before me.

Against YOU,  YOU only, have I sinned,

And done this evil in YOUR sight--

That YOU may be found just when YOU speak,

And blameless when YOU judge.

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,

And in sin my mother conceived me.

Behold,  YOU desire truth in the inward parts,

And in the hidden part YOU will make me to know wisdom.

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;

Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

Make me to hear joy and gladness,

That the bones which YOU have broken may rejoice.

Hide your face from my sins,

And blot out all my iniquities.

Create in me a clean heart, O GOD, 

And renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Do not cast me away from YOUR presence,

And do not take YOUR HOLY SPIRIT from me.

Restore to me the joy of YOUR salvation,

And uphold me with YOUR generous SPIRIT.

Then I will teach transgressors YOUR ways,

And sinners shall be converted to YOU.

Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O GOD,

The GOD of my salvation,

And my tongue shall sing aloud of YOUR righteousness.

O LORD,  open my lips,

And my mouth shall show forth YOUR praise.

For YOU do not desire sacrifice,  or else I would give it;

YOU do not delight in burnt offering.

The sacrifices of GOD are a broken spirit,

A broken and contrite heart --

These,  O GOD,  YOU will not despise.

Do good in YOUR good pleasure to Zion;

Build the walls of Jerusalem.

Then YOU shall be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness,

With burnt offering and whole burnt offering;

Then they shall offer bulls on YOUR altar.

                                                             Psalm 51:1-19

     King David had lost that close fellowship that he once had with the LORD.  He acknowledged his sin before GOD and asked for HIS forgiveness.  He also asked the LORD to cleanse him from the sin that had darkened and dirtied deep into his very soul. He asked the LORD to give him back the ability to  " hear joy and gladness. "  His sin had hurt King David to the bone and caused him great physical pain and the very thought of GOD seeing his sin caused David shame.

     King David asked GOD to clean up his heart;  to renew his spirit;  and to "restore to me the joy of YOUR salvation. "  David's fellowship with GOD had been broken by his sin. He asked the LORD to restore that joy he had when GOD was in perfect fellowship with him.  As long as there was this sin festering between him and GOD,  there was no joy. First came acknowledgment of his sin, then confession of it;  which means to agree with GOD about what HE says about your sin;  then to be cleansed of it and then restoration of fellowship and the joy that surpasses all understanding.

     Many times people think that their sin is fun and it may be, for a season. But sin always requires a payment. It always requires a payment of more than we are willing to pay;  and it never just affects the person who sinned. Remember the ripples in the water !  Sins tentacles are far reaching and if you read the complete story of King David you will see that it reached through not only his generation but the next and the next.  There is a phrase that I once heard and the longer I live the more obvious its meaning, " Be sure your sin will find you out ! "

     This may be a strange image for you to think upon but there is an old black and white movie called,  " The Portrait of Dorian Gray. "   It involves a wealthy, young, good looking man and his desire to stay that way.  He made a deal with the devil that if he did anything evil / sinned that instead of the consequences falling on him they would show up in the portrait that he had done of himself. Now this portrait was nearly life size and it showed him gloriously young and vibrant.  As the years went by he stayed young, wealthy and good looking, but as he had his way in life with many women, gambling, drinking and doing such horrible deeds as murder,  his portrait changed with each hideous sin until the portrait was hidden away and covered so that no one would see his true self that the portrait showed.  The end of the movie was his agonizing with himself over how awful he had been in his life and he asked for forgiveness, the evil left the portrait and he died in peace;  his body showing what his portrait had been hiding.

     " Joy " the joy that only a life lived for CHRIST can give. " Joy "  that can be easily lost by sin and shame in the life of a Born Again Christian.  True joy that an unbeliever has never really experienced outside of CHRIST.  If you have never come to JESUS for Salvation;  today is still the day of grace and HIS desire for you is that you accept HIS most gracious gift of Salvation before it is too late.

Your servant in CHRIST,

Julie

But the WORD of our GOD stands forever !

     Many people have their doubts about WHO GOD is and if HE ever existed or if HE exists;  does HE have anything to do with us here on earth ?   GOD is the GREAT  I  AM and has always existed.  When GOD created this world and all that is in it HE did it for HIS good pleasure.  When HE created mankind,  HE did it because HE desired to have a relationship with one of HIS created beings;  so HE created mankind in HIS image as Genesis 1:27 states.

     There is a section in the Book of Isaiah that talks much about what GOD has been up to and is still doing even today.  There has never been a time when HE just went off fishing and left us to our own devices.  There has never been a time when HE has not been involved with HIS creation.  WHY ?   Because HE created us to be in fellowship with HIM and HE only wants our very best.  I am going to write those sections in Isaiah that really give us a glimpse of WHO GOD is and how very much HE is involved in everything then and now.

Isaiah 40  " Comfort, yes, comfort MY people !  Says your GOD.  Speak comfort to Jerusalem, and cry out to her, that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned; for she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins. The voice of one crying in the wilderness (this was a reference to John the Baptist): prepare the way of the LORD: make straight in the desert a highway for our GOD (JESUS).  Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low; the crooked places shall be made straight, and the rough places smooth; the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

The voice said, Cry out ! And he said, What shall I cry ?  All flesh is as grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, because the breath of the LORD blows upon it; surely the people are grass, the grass withers, the flower fades, but the WORD of our GOD stands forever.  O Zion, you who bring good tidings, get up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, you who bring good tidings; lift up you voice with strength, lift it up, be not afraid; say to the cities of Judah,  Behold your GOD !  Behold, the LORD GOD shall come with a strong hand, and HIS arm shall rule for HIM;  behold, HIS reward is with HIM, and HIS work before HIM.  HE will feed HIS flock like a shepherd; HE will gather the lambs with HIS arm, and carry them in HIS bosom, and gently lead those who are with young.

Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, measured heaven with a span and calculated the dust of the earth in a measure ?  Weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance ?  Who has directed the SPIRIT of the LORD, or as HIS counselor has taught HIM ?  With whom did HE take counsel,  and who instructed HIM, and taught HIM in the path of justice ?  Who taught HIM knowledge, and showed HIM the way of understanding ?

Behold, the nations are as a drop in a bucket, and are counted as the small dust on the balance; look, HE lifts up the isles as a very little thing, and Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor its beasts sufficient for a burnt offering.  All nations before HIM are as nothing, and they are counted by HIM less than nothing and worthless.

To whom then will you liken GOD ?  Or what likeness will you compare to HIM ? The workman molds a graven image, the goldsmith overspreads it with gold, and the silversmith casts silver chains.  Whoever is too impoverished for such a contribution chooses a tree that will not rot; he seeks for himself a skillful workman to prepare a carved image that will not totter.

Have you not known ?  Have you not heard ?  Has it not been told you from the beginning ?  Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth ?  It is HE WHO sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, WHO stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.  HE brings the princes to nothing;  HE makes the judges of the earth useless.  Scarcely shall they be planted, scarcely shall they be sown, scarcely shall their stock take root in the earth, when HE will also blow on them, and they will wither, and the whirlwind will take them away like stubble.

To whom then will you liken ME,  or to whom shall I be equal ?  says the HOLY ONE.  Lift up your eyes on high, and see WHO has created these things, WHO brings out their host by number;  HE calls them all by name, by the greatness of HIS might and the strength of HIS power;  not one is missing.

Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel:  My way is hidden from the LORD, and my just claim is passed over by my GOD ?  Have you not known ? Have you not heard ? The everlasting GOD, the LORD, the CREATOR of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary.  There is no searching of HIS understanding.  HE gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might HE increases strength.  Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall.  BUT those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint."

Isaiah 41  " Keep silence before ME, O coastlands, and let the people renew their strength !  Let them come near, then let them speak;  let us come near together for judgment.  WHO raised up one from the east ?  WHO in righteousness called him to HIS feet ?  WHO gave the nations before him, and made him rule over kings ? WHO gave them as the dust to his sword, as driven stubble to his bow ?  WHO pursued them, and passed safely by the way that he had not gone with his feet ?  WHO has performed and done it, calling the generations from the beginning ?  I, the LORD, AM the FIRST; and with the LAST I AM HE .

The coastlands saw it and feared.  The ends of the earth were afraid; they drew near and came.  Everyone helped his neighbor, and said to his brother,  Be of good courage ! So the craftsman encouraged the goldsmith, and he who smooths with the hammer inspired him who strikes the anvil, saying,  It is ready for the soldering;  then he fastened it with pegs, that it might not totter.

But you, Israel, are MY servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the descendants of Abraham MY friend.  You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, and called from its farthest regions, and said to you,  You are MY servant, I have chosen you and have not cast you away:  Fear not for I AM with you.  Be not dismayed for I AM your GOD,  I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you,  I will uphold you with MY righteous right hand.

Behold, all those who were incensed against you shall be ashamed and disgraced;  they shall be as nothing, and those who strive with you shall perish. You shall seek them and not find them--Those who contended with you.  Those who war against you shall be as nothing, as a nonexistent thing.  For I, the LORD your GOD, will hold your right hand, saying to you,  Fear not, I will help you.

Fear not, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel !  I will help you, says the LORD and your REDEEMER, the HOLY ONE of Israel.  Behold, I will make you into a new threshing sledge with sharp teeth;  you shall thresh the mountains and beat them small, and make the hills like chaff.  You shall winnow them, the wind shall carry them away, and the whirlwind shall scatter them;  you shall rejoice in the LORD, and glory in the HOLY ONE of Israel.

When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongues fail for thirst,  I,  the LORD,  will hear them;  I,  the GOD of Israel,  will not forsake them.  I will open rivers in desolate heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys;  I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water.  I will plant in the wilderness the cedar and the acacia tree, the myrtle and the oil tree;  I will set in the desert the cypress tree and the pine and the box tree together, that they may see and know and consider and understand together,  that the hand of the LORD has done this,  and the HOLY ONE of Israel has created it.

Present your case,  says the LORD.  Bring forth your strong reasons,  says the KING of Jacob.  Let them bring forth and show US what will happen;  let them show the former things,  what they were,  that WE may consider them, and know the latter end of them;  or declare to US things to come.  Show the things that are to come hereafter, that WE may know that you are gods;  yes,  do good or do evil,  the WE may be dismayed and see it together.  Indeed you are nothing, and your work is nothing;  He who chooses you is an abomination.

I have raised up one from the north, and he shall come; from the rising of the sun he shall call on MY name;  and he shall come against princes as though mortar, as the potter treads clay.  Who has declared from the beginning, that WE may know ?  And former times,  that WE may say, He is righteous ?  Surely there is no one who shows, surely there is no one who hears your words.  The first time I said to Zion,  Look, there they are !  And I will give to Jerusalem ONE WHO brings good tidings.  For I looked, and there was no man;  I looked among them, but there was no counselor, WHO, when I asked of them, could answer a word.  Indeed they are all worthless;  their works are nothing;  their molded images are wind and confusion. "

Isaiah 42:1-9  " Behold ! MY SERVANT WHOM I uphold, MY ELECT ONE in WHOM MY soul delights !  I have put MY SPIRIT upon HIM;  HE will bring forth justice to the Gentiles.  HE will not cry out, nor raise HIS voice, nor cause HIS voice to be heard in the street.  A bruised reed HE will not break, and smoking flax HE will not quench;  HE will bring forth justice for truth.  HE will not fail nor be discouraged, till HE has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands shall wait for HIS law.  

Thus says GOD the LORD, WHO created the heavens and stretched them out, WHO spread forth the earth and that which comes from it,  WHO gives breath to the people on it,  and spirit to those who walk on it:  I,  the LORD,  have called YOU in righteousness, and will hold YOUR hand; I will keep YOU and give YOU as a covenant to the people, as a light to the Gentiles,  to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the prison,  those who sit in darkness from the prison house.  I AM the LORD,  that is MY name;  and MY glory I will not give to another,  nor MY praise to graven images.  Behold,  the former things have come to pass,  and new things I declare;  before they spring forth I tell you of them.

Isaiah 43  " But now thus says the LORD, WHO created you, O Jacob, and HE WHO formed you O Israel;  Fear not, for I have redeemed you;  I have called you by your name; you are MINE.  When you pass through the waters,  I will be with you;  and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.  When you walk through the fire,  you shall not be burned,  nor shall the flame scorch you. For I AM the LORD your GOD,  the HOLY ONE of Israel,  your SAVIOR;  I gave Egypt for your ransom,  Ethiopia and Seba in your place.  Since you were precious in MY sight you have been honored,  and I have loved you;  therefore I will give men for you.  And people for your life.

Fear not,  for I AM with you;  I will bring your descendants from the east, and gather you from the west;  I will say to the north, Give them up !  And to the south,  Do not keep them back !  Bring MY sons from afar,  and MY daughters from the ends of the earth--Everyone who is called by MY name,  whom I have created for MY glory;  I have formed him,  yes I have made him.

Bring out the blind people who have eyes, and the deaf who have ears.  Let all the nations be gathered together and let the people be assembled.  Who among them can declare this,  and show us former things ?  Let them bring out their witnesses,  that they may be justified;  or let them hear and say,  It is truth. You are MY witnesses, says the LORD, and MY servant whom I have chosen, that you may know and believe ME, and understand that I AM HE, before ME there was no GOD formed,  nor shall there be after ME.  I,  even I,  AM the LORD,  and beside ME there is no SAVIOR.  I have declared and saved,  I have proclaimed,  and there was no foreign god among you, Therefore you are MY witnesses,  says the LORD,  that I AM GOD.  Indeed before the day was,  I AM HE;  and there is no one who can deliver out of MY hand;  I work,  and who will reverse it ?

Thus says the LORD,  your REDEEMER,  the HOLY ONE of Israel:  For your sake I will send to Babylon,  and bring them all down as fugitives--The Chaldean's, who rejoice in their ships.  I AM the LORD,  your HOLY ONE,  the CREATOR of Israel, your KING.

Thus says the LORD,  WHO makes a way in the sea and a path through the mighty water, WHO brings forth the chariot and horse, the army and the power (they shall lie down together, they shall not rise; they are extinguished, they are quenched like a wick):  Do not remember the former things,  nor consider the things of old.  Behold,  I will do a new thing,  now it shall spring forth;  shall you not know it ?  I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.  The beast of the field will honor ME,  the jackals and the ostriches, because I give water in the wilderness and rivers in the desert,  to give drink to MY people, MY chosen.  This people I have formed for MYSELF: They shall declare MY praise.

But you have not called upon ME, O Jacob;  and you have been weary of ME, O Israel.  You have not brought ME the sheep for your burnt offerings, nor have you honored ME with your sacrifices.  I have not caused you to serve with grain offerings,  nor wearied you with incense.  You have bought ME no sweet cane with money, nor have you satisfied ME with the fat of your sacrifices;  but you have burdened ME with your sins,  you have wearied ME with your iniquities.  

I,  even I,  AM HE WHO blots out your transgressions for MY own sake;  and I will not remember your sins.  Put ME in remembrance;  let us contend together; state your case, that you may be acquitted.  Your first father sinned.  And your mediators have transgressed against ME.  Therefore, I will profane the princes of the sanctuary;  I will give Jacob to the curse,  and Israel to reproaches.

Isaiah 44:24-28  " Thus says the LORD,  your REDEEMER, and HE WHO formed you from the womb:  I AM the LORD, WHO makes all things.  WHO stretches out the heavens all alone,  WHO spreads abroad the earth by MYSELF; WHO frustrates the signs of the babblers, and drives diviners mad;  WHO turns wise men backward, and makes their knowledge foolishness;  WHO confirms the WORD of HIS servant,  and performs the counsel of HIS messengers; WHO says to Jerusalem,  You shall be inhabited,  to the cities of Judah,  You shall be built,  and I will raise up her waste places;  WHO says to the deep,  Be dry ! And I will dry up your rivers;  WHO says of Cyrus,  He is MY shepherd,  And he shall perform all MY pleasure,  even saying to Jerusalem,  You shall be built,  and to the temple, Your foundation shall be laid. "

     If you just read these few short chapters in the Book of Isaiah you can see that the LORD is very busy with the affairs of men.  There is nothing that is not within HIS purview nor will HIS plans be thwarted by mere men.  HIS timing is perfect as is HIS ways.  You may be one of those who doubt HIM, you may even be one of those who do not believe in HIM at all;  but one day  " Every knee shall bow and every tongue shall confess that HE (JESUS) is LORD to the glory of GOD. "

Have a blessed evening and Sunday.

Your servant in CHRIST,

Julie

" The Rest of GOD "

     There is a " rest " that only GOD can give.  We read in the Bible in many places where true " rest "  only comes from HIM.  In this post we will see some of those examples with the children of Israel.  The  " rest "  that only GOD could give to them and how that wonderful " rest "  was given and could be relied upon even when they were not altogether faithful.  We will start in the Book of Deuteronomy.

Deuteronomy 25:19a   " Therefore it shall be,  when the LORD your GOD has given you rest from your enemies all around,  in the land which the LORD your GOD is giving you to possess as an inheritance, "

Joshua 1:13-15   " Remember the WORD which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you,  saying, ' The LORD your GOD is giving you rest and is giving you this land. Your wives,  your little ones,  and your livestock shall remain in the land which Moses gave you on this side of the Jordan.  But you shall pass before your brethren armed,  all your mighty men of valor,  and help them, until the LORD has given your brethren rest,  as HE has given you,  and they also have taken possession of the land which the LORD your GOD is giving them. Then you shall return to the land of your possession and enjoy it,  which Moses the LORD's servant gave you on this side of the Jordan toward the sunrise.' " 

Joshua 21:43-45   " So the LORD gave to Israel all the land of which HE had sworn to give to their fathers,  and they took possession of it and dwelt in it. The LORD gave them rest all around,  according to all that HE had sworn to their fathers.  And not a man of all their enemies stood against them;  the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand.  Not a word failed of any good thing which the LORD had spoken to the house of Israel.  ALL  came  to  pass. "

Joshua 23:1-3, 8-11   " Now it came to pass,  a long time after the LORD had given rest to Israel from all their enemies round about,  that Joshua was old, advanced in age.  And Joshua called for all Israel,  for their elders,  for their heads,  for their judges,  and for their officers,  and said to them:  ' I am old, advanced in age.  You have seen all that the LORD your GOD has done to all these nations because of you,  for the LORD your GOD is HE WHO has fought for you. ... but you shall hold fast to the LORD your GOD,  as you have done to this day.  For the LORD has driven out from before you great and strong nations; but as for you,  no one has been able to stand against you to this day.  One man of you shall chase a thousand,  for the LORD your GOD is HE WHO fights for you,  as HE has promised you.  Therefore take diligent heed to yourselves, that you love the LORD your GOD.  Or else,..."

2nd. Samuel 7:8-11   " Now therefore,  thus shall you (Nathan the prophet) say to MY servant David,  ' Thus says the LORD of hosts:  I took you from the sheepfold,  from following the sheep,  to be ruler over MY people,  over Israel. And I have been with you wherever you have gone, and have cut off all your enemies from before you,  and have made you a great name,  like the name of the great men who are on the earth.  Moreover I will appoint a place for MY people Israel,  and will plant them,  that they may dwell in a place of their own and move no more;  nor shall the sons of wickedness oppress them anymore, as previously,  since the time that I commanded judges to be over MY people Israel,  and have caused you to rest from all your enemies.  Also the LORD tells you that HE will make you a house.' "

1st. Kings 5:2-5   " Then Solomon sent to Hiram, saying:  ' You know how my father David could not build a house for the name of the LORD his GOD because of the wars which were fought against him on every side,  until the LORD put his foes under the soles of his feet.  But now the LORD my GOD has given me rest on every side,  so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrence.  And behold,  I propose to build a house for the name of the LORD my GOD,  as the LORD spoke to my father David,  saying,  ' Your son,  whom I will set on your throne in your place, he shall build the house for MY name.' "

1st. Kings 8:56   " Blessed be the LORD,  WHO has given rest to HIS people Israel,  according to all that HE promised.  There has not failed one WORD of all HIS good promise,  which HE promised through HIS servant Moses."

1st. Chronicles 22:6-9   " Then he (David) called for his son Solomon,  and charged him to build a house for the LORD GOD of Israel.  And David said to Solomon:  ' My son, as for me, it was in my mind to build a house to the name of the LORD my GOD;  but the word of the LORD came to me, saying,  ' You have shed much blood and have made great wars;  you shall not build a house for MY name, because you have shed much blood on the earth in MY sight. Behold,  a son shall be born to you,  who shall be a man of rest;  and I will give him rest from all his enemies all around.  His name shall be Solomon,  for I will give  " peace  and  quietness "  to Israel in his days.' "

1st. Chronicles 23:25   " For David said,  ' The LORD GOD of Israel has given rest to HIS people,  that they may dwell in Jerusalem forever; "

2nd. Chronicles 14:6-7   " And he (Asa) built fortified cities in Judah,  for the land had rest;  he had no war in those years,  because the LORD had given him rest.  Therefore he said to Judah,  ' Let us build these cities and make walls around them,  and towers,  gates,  and bars,  while the land is yet before us, because we have sought the LORD our GOD;  we have sought HIM,  and HE has given us rest on every side.'  So they built and prospered. "

Matthew 11:28-30   And JESUS said,  " Come to ME,  all you who labor and are heavy laden,  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. For MY yoke is easy and MY burden is light. "

     There are also warnings given to those who refuse the rest that only the LORD can give and the reasons that many do not and will not enter into that rest.  Let us look into the Book of Hebrews for those warnings.

Hebrews 3:7-12   " Therefore,  as the HOLY SPIRIT says: Today,  if you will hear HIS voice,  do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion,  in the day of trial in the wilderness,  where your fathers tested ME,  proved ME, and saw MY works forty years.  Therefore I was angry with that generation,  and said, ' They always go astray in their heart,  and they have not known MY ways.'  So I swore in MY wrath,  ' They  shall  not  enter  MY  rest.' Beware brethren,  lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living GOD; "

Hebrews 3:16-19   " For who,  having heard,  rebelled ? Indeed,  was it not all who came out of Egypt,  led by Moses ?  Now with whom was HE angry forty years ?  Was it not with those who sinned whose corpses fell in the wilderness ? And to whom did HE swear that they would not enter HIS rest,  but to those who did not obey ?  So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief."

Hebrews 4:1-11   " Therefore,  since a promise remains of entering HIS rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it.  For indeed the Gospel was preached to us as well as to them;  but the WORD which they heard did not profit them,  not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.  For we who have believed do enter that rest as HE has said:  ' So I swore in MY wrath,  they shall not enter MY rest, '  although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.  For HE has spoken in a certain place of the seventh day in this way, 'And GOD rested on the seventh day from all HIS work,'  and again in this place:  ' They shall not enter MY rest.'  Since therefore it remains that some must enter it and those to whom it was first preached did not enter because of unbelief,  again HE designates a certain day,  saying in David,  ' Today,'  after such a long time,  as it has been said:  ' Today,  if you will hear HIS voice (WORD),  do not harden your hearts.'  For if Joshua had given them rest,  then HE would not afterward have spoken of another day.  There remains therefore a rest for the people of GOD.  For he who has entered HIS rest has himself also ceased from his works as GOD did from HIS.  Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest,  lest anyone fall after the same example of unbelief. "

     GOD's rest is for those who come to HIM by faith;  for those HE comes to, and they who believe, by faith, what HE says in HIS WORD. The people of the Old Testament were saved the same way the people of the New Testament were saved and all the people up to present day are saved. People in the Old Testament believed,  by faith, what GOD was going to do in sending a SPOTLESS LAMB, a SAVIOR that would be the final sacrifice to take away their sin permanently;  once for ALL !

     People of the New Testament and everyone thereafter also believe,  by faith, that GOD sent HIS only begotten SON,  the LORD JESUS CHRIST as the SPOTLESS LAMB, the SAVIOR to come and be sacrificed;  once for ALL. JESUS came, born of a virgin as the Scriptures had foretold. JESUS laid HIS own life down on the cross as a requirement of GOD the FATHER as full payment for the sin of mankind. JESUS was buried in a new tomb and rose again from the dead on the third day.  Death could not hold HIM because HE was without sin.  GOD the FATHER raised HIM from the dead because HIS SON was sinless and paid our sin debt in full.  JESUS is the Jews MESSIAH,  HE is our SAVIOR and REDEEMER,  HE is GOD in the flesh and to enter HIS rest is to take HIM at HIS WORD...............

" But what does it say ?  ' The WORD is near you,  even in your heart ' (that is, the WORD of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the LORD JESUS and believe in your heart that GOD has raised HIM from the dead, you will be saved.  For with the heart one believes to righteousness,  and with the mouth confession is made to Salvation.  For the Scripture says,  ' Whoever believes on HIM will not be put to shame.'  For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek,  for the same LORD over all is rich to all who call upon HIM. For 'whoever calls upon the name of the LORD shall be saved.' "   Romans 10:8-13

     Today is still the day of Salvation; DO  NOT  REFUSE  TO  ENTER  HIS  REST !!!

Your servant in CHRIST,

Julie