Genesis Lesson 2
IT WAS VERY GOOD
Genesis 1:26-2:3
Key Verse 1:31
When God created man, what was his plan (26)? What can we say about man’s place in the relationship between God, man, and created things? (Ps 8:4-8)
In whose image was man created (27)? Think about man’s original nature. (Eph 4:24; 1Jn 4:7,8; 1Pe 1:15,16)
After creating man, how did God bless him (28)? Considering how God’s blessing was a mission for Adam, what does this say about man’s existence? And about what true blessing is?
How did God solve the problem of sustenance of man and the animals (29,30)?
After God had created man last of all, what heartfelt testimony did He give (31)? Here let’s think about: 1) What absolute meaning of life we must we have, and 2) What our fundamental purpose is.
6. After creating the heavens and the earth, what did God do on the seventh day (2:1,2)? How did God bless the seventh day (3)? What kind of day is the Sabbath? (Ex 20:8-11) How can we gain true rest for our souls? (Mt 11:28,29)
Genesis Lesson 2
IT WAS VERY GOOD
Genesis 1:26-2:3
Key Verse 1:31
“God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning--the sixth day.”
God created the heavens and the earth by his almighty power and wisdom in Genesis 1:1-25. Today’s passage shows how God created man. After he had created all things, he rested.
God Created Man (1:26-31)
Man was not made arbitrarily by nature; nor did he evolve from an amoeba. Man was created by God the Creator, as his crowning work. It is the most amazing, beautiful and mysterious work of God; literally, God’s masterpiece. The Psalmist wrote about the creation of man in Psalm 139:14-17, “I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!” In this way, God’s creation of man is marvelous. Through today’s passage we learn about God’s will in creating man, and who man is.
First, man is over all other creatures (1:26). In the verses leading up to verse 25, God made an environment suitable for man. Then, in verse 26, we read: “Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." When God created man he had a special way and purpose for man. God created man according to his image and let him rule over all other creatures. This shows that man is the center of all the creatures on earth, as their ruler. By design, God made man to be higher than any other creation.
First of all, God discussed what he was about to do, and he refers to himself in the plural: “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish…” Here the word “us” shows that God is the Triune God. [It is interesting to note that in Hebrew, there are two different words for “one”. The first one is the word echad(דאֶחָ: ekh-awd), which refers to “one in unity.” The other one is yachiyd(דֶחִיָ: yaw-kheed) which refers to “uniqueness.” The word “one” used in Deuteronomy 6:4 is echad (one in unity), and the word “only son” used in Genesis 22:2,12,16 is yachiyd (uniqueness).] The Triune God holds a conference regarding the creation of man. They have a discussion amongst themselves. This kind of expression appears in the Bible in many places (Ps 110:1; Isa 6:8; 48:16).
Man was created on the sixth day together with the animals. So man shares an animal’s elements. Man has the same breath of life as do animals. Ecclesiastes 3:18-19 say, “I also thought, ‘As for men, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals. Man's fate is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; man has no advantage over the animal. Everything is meaningless.’” Even so, man is above animals in important ways. Man walks with two legs, differently from animals, and can use his hands to perform meaningful work. He can use symbolic language, both written and verbal. Man’s brain weighs only 3.5 pounds. But it can retain more than any of the libraries of the world. Computers appeared as an imitation and extension of man’s brain.
In the areas of physical strength, speed and size, man is nothing compared to animals. Yet God crowned man with glory and honor and made him ruler over all other animals and creatures (Ps 8:4-8). God honored man highly; he established the creation order: God first, man second, and then all of the rest of creation. Because of his sin, the first Adam lost his privilege to rule the world according to God’s will, and we with him. But the last Adam, Jesus, came and restored all things, including this lost privilege. Isaiah 9:6 says that a child is born to us, and “the government will be on his shoulders.” “The government” refers to God’s rule, the rule that God intended in his creation of the first man, Adam. Isaiah prophesied that the last Adam, Jesus, would reign with justice and righteousness (Isa 9:7). Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, his position as the ruler over creation is restored.
Evolutionists claim that man is descended from apes, which arose from an amoeba. In this way, man is degraded to the animal level. Those who believe in materialism claim that matter is the first and fundamental substance. They deny God’s existence, and they degrade man. Humanists reject the idea that men belong to God, and they claim a dignity and value apart from God. But those who claim that there is no God become foolish: their thinking becomes futile and their foolish hearts are darkened; they become idol worshipers (Ro 1:21-23). When man turns from God, he loses his original position, and is subject to degradation. Only when man serves God the Creator can he maintain his unique dignity and value as a man. Only when man is in God can he become a great and valuable and precious being.
Second, man is created in the image of God (1:27). See verse 27: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” Genesis 2:7 also reveals in detail how God created man. It reads, “The Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” Genesis 1:27 shows how God created man’s inner being, whereas Genesis 2:7 shows how God created man’s outer body. God formed man from the dust of the ground. Man’s body is composed of fourteen chemical elements, including hydrogen, oxygen and carbon, all of which are found in the ground. Man came from the dust of the earth and returns to the dust (1Co 15:47). Man’s value apart from God is no more than the dust. Since man is formed from the dust of the ground, he is fragile; he is easily broken. When we know how weak we are, we cannot be proud.
After God formed man from the dust of the ground, he breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living being. To be a living being means that he became a living spirit. Only man has a spirit within his physical body. Angels have spirits but they do not have bodies. Animals have bodies but they do not have spirits; so they seek what their bodies desire, and they are happy when their bodily desires are met. But man has a spirit; thus he can communicate with God and cannot be satisfied with physical things alone. Man’s spirit is eternal, but an animal’s spirit extinguishes when its body returns to the dust (Ecc 3:20,21).
The image of God refers to God’s inner character. The image of God means that God created man as a spiritual, moral and reasonable being. Unlike animals, man has a conscience, the ability to think abstract things, a sense of beauty and the abilities to worship God and to love God; only man can pray to God.
Man has reason. With it, he can analyze and synthesize learning. He can pursue knowledge and hand it down. He has written languages and communicates with them. Animals cannot create culture. But man’s creative intellect continually develops new culture. For example, a sparrow’s nest has had the same design throughout its history, but man’s building skills have developed from creating dungeons to constructing skyscrapers.
Man also has morality; animals do not have a sense of shame or guilt, so they cannot live a noble and pure life. Pigs cannot have noble dreams, but man is a moral being. He feels shame when he sins. Man wants to live a noble, pure and true life. This desire shows that he is created as a moral being with a conscience. Man has the ability to distinguish between good and evil. God gave to man the freedom to choose between good and evil.
Most of all, man is a spiritual being. God is spirit. Man also has a spirit, which is immortal. God is love (1Jn 4:8); God’s love is based on truth. It is a sacrificial and unselfish love. Because God’s love is planted in our hearts, we cannot be satisfied with merely physical love. We long for God’s sacrificial love. God is also righteous and holy (Rev 4:8); therefore we have a desire for holiness and we are angry when we see injustice.
As the Father, the Son, and the Spirit are one, so a man’s body, spirit, and soul are one. A man’s soul is his very life, what identifies him as himself. Man is a reasonable being. He feels sorrow and joy. He also has a will, by means of which he can make decisions. But the most important fact about man is that he has a spirit. Man’s spirit can recognize God and have fellowship with God. Man’s spirit is the place where God dwells in man. Proverbs 20:27 reads, “The lamp of the Lord searches the spirit of a man; it searches out his inmost being.” Man can live a powerful life when he can rule his soul and body by his spirit. If a man lives by his bodily desires, he loses his spiritual desires and becomes flesh. However, Romans 8:13 reads, “For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.”
As a result of being created in the image of God, man has absolute value (Ge 9:6). The reason why we should not hate our brothers or curse them is because they are all created in the image of God. People judge others based on race, color of skin, titles, licenses, degrees, nationality, etc., but man is precious because he is created according to God’s image. In this sense, all men are equal.
But man lost the image of God by sinning. Man lost the image of God and lived like a man-animal (Ge 6:3) Man became adulterous, unrighteous, corrupt and violent. He committed all kinds of sins, such as robbery, murder, jealousy and deceit. These sins were the result of losing the image of God. When man lost God’s image, he lost his humanity as well. God had mercy on such men and sent Jesus Christ to atone for their sins on the cross. God helps them to live a life imitating the image of Jesus Christ so that they might restore the image of God (Ro 8:29). In this way, God helps men to restore their humanity and live a new life in Jesus Christ. Ephesians 4:24 reads, “And to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” Colossians 3:9-10 say, “Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” In these verses, the “new self” is different from the “old self,” which is ruled by sinful desires. The “new self” refers to a man who participates in the new person of growing in the image of God. He is not an improved “old self”, but a totally new man created in Jesus Christ. To preach the gospel means to restore the image of God through Jesus Christ and to restore humanity. Some people may think that we lose our humanity if we follow Jesus. But the opposite is true. Man restores his humanity by believing in Jesus. How much can he be restored? He can be restored in the image of Jesus Christ, who is holy, righteous, and true. A selfish man is changed into a sacrificial man, a deceitful man to a truthful man, a dirty man to a holy man. We become saints. Thank God who created us in his image. Thank God who restores his image in us through Jesus Christ.
Third, man has a mission from God (1:28-30). Consider verse 28: “God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.’" Here, “be fruitful and increase in number” means to produce many children who have the image of God. It means to produce much fruit that pleases God. To bear fruit is a sign of blessing: so an apple tree that does not bear fruit has lost the meaning of its existence. In the same way, man loses the meaning of his existence when he does not bear fruit. To man, “be fruitful and increase in number” means to produce many spiritual children through preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ, as well as many biological children. When we produce many godly children, we can glorify God and live joyful lives (Jn 15:8,11). God wants us to be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth. After the flood, God blessed the sons of Noah, saying, “Be fruitful and increase in number” (Ge 9:1,7). When God blessed Abraham, he said, “I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you” (Ge 17:6). Jesus also wants us to bear the fruit, 30 times, 60 times, or 100 times (Mk 4:20).
“Fill the earth and subdue it” means “to cultivate and pioneer” nature. “Subdue” is a translation of kabash (שׁבכ). It means “trample underfoot” or “put under complete control.” It means to occupy or use exclusively. Therefore, to subdue the earth means to cultivate and use it for man’s needs. This includes the development of natural resources, farming, mining, geographic discovery, and scientific invention. The command, “subdue it” led man to overcome nature and develop science. The gospel was transmitted to western nations, and they regarded nature as something to subdue and conquer. So they pioneered and cultivated nature. But eastern countries, where the gospel was not preached, viewed nature as an object of worship. They worshipped mountains and seas and big trees. Because of this, they feared nature and were conquered by it; this is against the meaning of “subdue it.” Subduing the earth, however, does not mean invading other countries with human ambition. The command was not given for destruction, but for construction.
“Subdue the earth” has a great influence on man and nations. When a man has a pioneering and challenging spirit, his life is powerful and full of spirit. He keeps growing and advancing. But when a man sacrifices his pioneering and conquering spirit so that he can live a comfortable life, he becomes sick and corrupt. He becomes fearful and cannot take risks. He lives a powerless life with a narrow vision. When we want to settle down, we become corrupt; eventually, we are destroyed. The principle applies not only to an individual but also to a society or a nation. A nation’s spirit should be to conquer and pioneer; to settle down is the enemy of a nation. If we settle down we lose, but if we pioneer we win.
“Rule over all the fish and birds and animals and every living creature” means to manage the world according to God’s will. It means we should be good stewards over God’s creation, according to God’s will. Stewardship is important. Whatever we are given, whether time, money, children, or talents, is not ours, but God’s. They are entrusted to us by God. Therefore, we should manage them for God’s glory and return them to God whenever God wants them back.
When we look at God’s commands, such as “be fruitful and increase in number”, “subdue the earth”, and “rule over every living thing,” we can see that mission from God is a blessing. Mission from God makes man forward-thinking, progressive and able to meet challenges. Man has a mission from God, and he is supposed to work hard for God’s glory. Man is not supposed to live for his own survival. If we study and work only for survival, our lives grow meaningless and miserable. But man has a mission from God. What makes man great is not wealth or position or power, but mission from God. When man serves God’s mission wholeheartedly, he finds his life worthy of every effort and trial. He feels spirit and power within him. Through Jesus, God gave us the mission to preach the gospel. He gave us the mission to live as fishers of men (Lk 5:10). God also gave us the command to make disciples of all nations and preach the gospel to the ends of the earth (Ac 1:8; Mt 28:18,19). It is the great command of God. When man lives for the sake of his mission from God, he can live a great life.
Verses 29 and 30 show that God provides man with food when man lives to fulfill his mission from God. People say that we can serve God’s mission after we have some financial security. If a man wants to serve God only after he has enough money, however, he will discover that he has let the opportunity to serve God slip away altogether. Such people cling to their financial security rather than to God. It is critical for a man to serve God’s mission; he should do so first, and leave room for God to provide for his financial security. Jesus said in Matthew 6:33, “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Fourth, God is pleased with man (1:31). See verse 31: “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning --the sixth day.” For five days of creation, God shared his testimony, saying, “It was good.” But on the sixth day, after he had created everything, including man, God said, “It was very good.” “It was very good” means that God’s creation was perfect in beauty and harmony. There were no bad elements that existed in all of God’s creation at the end of the sixth day. The world God created was not ruled by survival of fittest, nor was it plagued by disease, pollution, earthquake, flood, disharmony, disorder, conflicts, pain, suffering, sin or death. Only God’s goodness and his love and wisdom and glory filled the whole world. The world before the fall of man was beautiful and perfect. There was no relativism in the world God created, where one thing is compared to another; everything was good. Here the word “good” has a different meaning than the definition that we usually use. Man’s “good” is relative, compared to something bad or evil. But God’s “good” is not a relativistic expression; it is absolute, and it is perfect. In Genesis chapter one, “good” means it is “good” before God who is perfect. Everything God created pleased God. God was especially pleased with man, who was the crown of God’s creation. Here we can see who man is.
In the first place, man pleases God. God was pleased with everything that he had created. But why do we say that man pleases God the most? It is because man occupies the most important position among all of God’s creation. God made man the ruler over all his creation. When man fell because he sinned, God made all other creatures subject to frustration (Ro 8:19, 20). From that time on, all of creation has been groaning as it awaits the sons of God to be revealed, because only together with the sons of God can all of creation be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into glorious freedom (Ro 8:21,22). That is why we interpret verse 31, that says, “It was very good,” as the verse for man, although it includes all other creatures.
Man is a very precious being before God. Suppose we dream of the world’s best computer, and then build it with our whole heart. We would love and cherish it. But man is far superior to any computer. God created man according to his image. He is the crown of God’s creation. How amazing a man is! Shakespeare said in Hamlet about man, “What a piece of work is a man, how noble in reason, how infinite in faculties, in form and moving how express and admirable, in action how like an angel, in apprehension how like a god! the beauty of the world, the paragon of animals.” God was pleased after he created man. Man is such a noble and precious being before God. That is the reason why he gave up his one and only Son in order to save men when they sinned. We are happy when somebody values us preciously. Sometime ago, my wife and I were invited by Shepherds Joseph and Priscilla Jun to dinner along with Missionaries Barnabas and Lydia from Russia. There, the two sons of Shepherd Joseph Jun cheerfully sang songs and made their parents and all of the other guests happy. They did so because they knew that all of us were pleased with them. They were very happy because they knew that we all loved them. In the same way, we are happy when we know that God, who is our Creator, is very pleased with us and loves us.
There are many people who complain about themselves and find no real value in themselves. They ask: Why am I short? Why is my nose flat? Why is my chin sharp? Why are my eyes poor? Why am I not smart? Why am I hot-tempered? Why do I have so many shortcomings? It is because such people have not found their true identities before God. They do not realize how precious they are before God and how much God was pleased after he created them. God was very pleased with us after he created us. The reason why God was pleased with us is because he created us in his own image. Parents love their children, no matter what, because they are their children who resemble them. In the same way, God created us in his own image, and he loves us regardless of our physical condition. God says to us, “You are very good!” He says to us, “Wonderful! Super! Number One!” God is pleased with us just as we are. God does not compare us with others; as our Creator, he is pleased with us. He is pleased with us personally and absolutely. Therefore we are number one when God sees us. Because God sees that we are very good, we do not need to be preoccupied with how others see us. Why do people abuse themselves and cry out in shackles from which they cannot be set free? It is because they have not yet found their true identity before God, and live before men. When we find ourselves before God, we do not compare ourselves with others. We overcome self-consciousness and inferiority complexes and live an absolute life before God. We can overcome the bondage of comparisons and live within God’s providence.
But how can we apply this to man after the Fall? Genesis 1:31 refers to man’s condition before the Fall. God was grieved when man sinned and lost his image (Ge 6:3,5,6). But God liberated us from sin through the redemption in Jesus Christ, who bled and died to take away our sins. In other words, God created us again, in and through Jesus Christ. Through Jesus he adopted us as his own children and freely forgave our sins (Eph 1:4-7; 2 Co 5:17). That is why God does not see us as sinners, but as those who are completely purified through the blood of Jesus. Praise God! This is the very reason why we should approach God with confidence based on the blood of Jesus (Heb 10:19-22).
In the second place, man was created for the glory of God. The very fact that God was pleased with man shows that man was created for the glory of God. Isaiah 43:7 reads, “Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made…." The fundamental reason why God created the world is to reveal his glory. Man is happy when he lives for God’s glory. Some people may think that they should live for themselves because their lives are theirs. Others may think that they should live for their families, or clans, or nations and countries. But families, clans, nations, countries – a man himself – all of this disappears, since it does not have eternal value. The fundamental purpose of man’s life should be something eternal. Apostle Paul said in 1 Timothy 1:17, “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.” Man’s ultimate purpose of life is “the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31 reads, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” So whatever we do, whether we eat or drink or feed sheep or sleep or work or go to school, we should do it all for the glory of God. Then our life has meaning and purpose; then there is true freedom and happiness. The ultimate purpose of man’s life is to please God (Heb 11:6). There is no other absolute meaning of man’s life. Man feels empty when he lives for himself. But he is filled when he lives for the glory of God, and he can enjoy true rest and peace and joy and happiness.
God Rested (2:1-3)
God created all the universe and man, who is the crown of his creation, in 6 days. After he had created them, he rested. It shows that rest comes after working hard. To take rest without hard work is not rest, but fooling around doing nothing. “Rest” has a meaning of “finish” and “cease.” God did not take rest because he was tired. Isaiah 40:28 reads, “Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary…” God rested because he had finished his creation work. Before man’s fall, God could enjoy the completion of his creation because his creation was not damaged by sin. However, while the world is suffering under pain, sorrow, disease and death because of sin, God cannot take rest. He has to work hard in order to save men. God continually sends his servants and carries out his salvation work. When Jesus was in the world, he worked hard and without rest, continually teaching the word of God for God’s redemptive work. Once the Pharisees criticized Jesus, saying that he was working on the Sabbath, and so breaking the Sabbath law. Jesus said, "My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working" (Jn 5:17).
Although God took rest after his creation, it does not mean that he completely stopped working. He preserved and maintained his creation after he completed it. He intervenes continually. If God did not keep up his maintaining work, the order of the universe would not be maintained. Hebrews 1:3 says, “The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” This verse reveals that Jesus sustains all things by his powerful word. Jesus completed the work of salvation and sat down at the right hand of God and intercedes for us. Jesus spoke of God’s maintaining work when he described how God in heaven takes care of a sparrow and clothes a lily in the field (Mt 6:26,28).
In Genesis 2:2-3, the seventh day became a special day with a special purpose. God made the seventh day holy. He separated the day for his rest. It is the day for the rest of God. Here, there is no mention about man’s rest. There was no command of God for man to keep the Sabbath day either. That command was given 2500 years later. God gave that law to the Israelites, who were slaves, in order to mold them as a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Exodus 20:8 says, "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.” The reason for the command is explained: “For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore, the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy” (Ex 20:11). God commanded the Israelites to take rest on the Sabbath day in obedience to the Sabbath law. The purpose of the law is explained in Exodus 31:13,14a, “Say to the Israelites, 'You must observe my Sabbaths. This will be a sign between me and you for the generations to come, so you may know that I am the Lord, who makes you holy. Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you.’”
To keep the Sabbath day was the sign of the eternal covenant between God and the Israelites. They must not work on the Sabbath day. To keep the Sabbath day was a test to see if they believed that the Lord would provide for their Sabbath day, even if they did not work on that day. There was a Sabbath rest even for the land. If they believed the Lord and obeyed him, God promised to take care of their needs for each Sabbath day and Sabbath year. History attests that they failed the test by disobeying the Lord. Because of this, they had to endure many hardships. Hebrews 3:18-19 explain the cause of their failure in this way: “And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.” The Israelites could not enter God’s rest because of their unbelief and disobedience. This shows that man cannot have rest by obeying the law.
The command to keep the Sabbath day was given because they were under the law. Yet man failed to obey the law, and could not find rest. True rest is found in Jesus, who fulfilled the requirements of the law. Apostle Paul spoke of this in Galatians 3:19: “What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was put into effect through angels by a mediator.” The law was given through Moses and it was effective during the time between Moses and Jesus Christ. Jesus came not to abolish the law, but to fulfill the law. Romans 10:4 reads, “Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.” Therefore, the Sabbath day after Jesus Christ has a different meaning than the Sabbath day for the Israelites who were under the law. The law was given by God, and therefore it reflects God’s divine nature. It has lasting moral and life principles to teach us. However, the law as a system became a shadow of what was fulfilled when Christ completed his redemptive work.
To the Israelites, the Sabbath day was a special day as a sign of keeping the law. But to believers of Christ, the Sabbath day is related to their faith in Jesus Christ. Hebrews chapter 4 explains it well. The Israelites did not enter God’s rest because of their disobedience; therefore, much later, when God spoke through David, he again set a certain day, calling it “Today”: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts” (Heb 4:7). Christians’ rest comes from believing Jesus Christ. It is the rest that comes from relying on Jesus with complete trust rather than the rest gained through their own strength and will. Believers can take rest by accepting God’s complete redemptive work through Jesus Christ. God said, “It was very good” after he finished his creation work in 6 days. Then he rested. In the same way, on the cross, Jesus completed his redemption of the sins of all men, and said, “It is finished” (Jn 19:30). Then he rested in a tomb. That is the reason why we can enter rest by believing and accepting Jesus’ marvelous work for us.
In the Old Testament period, the Sabbath day foreshadowed the Lord’s day, when Christ rose from the dead, and the Lord’s day was confirmed as the Sabbath day when believers gathered together to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ (Ac 20:7; Rev 1:10). This is why we should separate the Lord’s day and keep it holy. It is the day when we stop working in order to worship the Lord together and have fellowship with other believers and do good works that please the Lord. When we do so, we can find rest for our souls. We can find true rest even for our physical bodies. People may think of the Sabbath day as a day to rest by sleeping. But rest in God is not laziness or killing time. It is a day of worshiping God together. When we keep our Sabbath day holy we can have a healthy pattern of life and live a victorious life. Weekly rest is the best for our physical bodies. One company gave a day of rest to its workers after ten days of work rather than after seven days, thinking that ten days would be more efficient than seven. But they found that efficiency declined, although working hours had increased. So, they returned to a seven-day cycle. When we live in the grace of God, we can enjoy true rest and peace and freedom.
Jesus invites people who are weary and burdened under the law of sin and death: "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light" (Mt 11:28-30). Jesus says, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, and you will find rest for your souls.” Jesus’ yoke is the yoke of mission. When we take this yoke from Jesus and learn from him, we can find true rest for our souls.
To modern people, nothing is more important than this need for true rest and peace. Genesis teaches us that true rest is rest in God. When we disobey God’s word and abandon God’s mission, we become tired, and our lives have no purpose or meaning or direction; instead, we are plagued by all kinds of anxiety, fear, worries and tension. When we come to God and sincerely confess all of our sins, we can receive Jesus’ grace of forgiveness. And when we take up Jesus’ yoke of mission and learn from him, we can find true rest and peace.
We praise and thank God who created us according to his image and who is pleased with us.