Riff's Christian Journal

Heb_10:38 (KJV) Now the just shall live by faith:(see also Romans 1:17 and Galatians 3:11)

Mat 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Heb 4:10 For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.

Now that you are a Christian, instead of living by faith are you still trying to please God by doing works – why? Did not Jesus promise in Matthew 11:28 that everyone who comes to Him He would give them rest? Do we not also read in Hebrews that they who enter into the rest offered by Jesus would cease from their own works?

So, what does it mean to rest in Jesus and to live by faith?

As was hinted at in Hebrews 4: 10, when God created the universe and all that is in it, He did so in six days and on the seventh day, since there was nothing else for Him to do, He rested.

You also can rest from your works and live by faith.

In the Gospel of John chapter 10, Jesus said:

Joh 10:27  My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 

Joh 10:28  And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any manpluck them out of my hand. 

Joh 10:29  My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck themout of my Father’s hand. 

Joh 10:30  I and my Father are one.

In these four verses lies the work of salvation. Jesus calls us, saves us and we follow Him, He gives us eternal life and we will never perish. No one can take us from Him or the Father, for He and the Father are one.

Salvation is all of God. God saves us by grace – born-again – and having been regenerated by God He gives us the gift of faith, the faith of Jesus, by which we believe in Him to be Lord. He gives us eternal life and promises never to leave us nor forsake us and that He will lose none of all whom He saves.

God, having created our salvation from beginning to end, left nothing for us to do concerning our salvation, but to just sit back and rest. We can live our Christian life by faith in Jesus, for He has done it all for us, that which we could never do for ourselves; we now live by faith.

However, now comes the part in which we play. We do not just sit around and do nothing or go out and have a good time doing the same things we did, said or thought before we were saved, as we will find ourselves being changed by God and it will give us some fear and we will tremble at the beginning when God starts to work in us.

I am sure you probably have heard the following verse from Philippians:

Php 2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

Most likely, you have been told that you now must do this and that in order to stay saved, and that is why “you” must now work on keeping your salvation. They never seem to tell you the next verse that speaks of why you will find yourself with some fear and will tremble. Here is verse 13:

Php 2:13  For it is God which works in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. 

You see, the reason for the fear and trembling is the fact that God, having saved you, will now start to work in you not only to become willing to be obedient to Him but that you will find yourself wanting to do the good works that He has prepared in advance for you.

In Ephesians, after having saved you, we read this:

Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. 

Seeing yourself starting to think, do and say things differently will at first scare you. For you will know not from where it comes, but when you realize it is God working in you to do His will, the fear will change to being exciting; wondering what will come next as you start to see how God is working in your life.

Yes, there are works involved in the life of a Christian. Good works you will want to do, not to keep your salvation or to receive anything from God, but to please God.

You will do these “works” in praise to God for He has made it possible for you not only to enter into His rest, in this life, but in Heaven as well for all eternity.

The fact is that in this life, God has given you the ability to live a life of freedom from works of the Law. You can just rest in the works of Jesus, which He did for your salvation, and do God’s plan as He works in you to will and to do of His good pleasure. You can live your Christian life by faith, the faith of Jesus.

This is the faith by which we live…

Galatians 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. (KJV)