For we also have received the good news just as they did. But the message they heard did not benefit them. —Hebrews 4:2
The good news for the Israelites in the Old Testament was that God had a rest for them in the Promised Land. They heard the good news, but because they didn’t apply faith to what they heard, they failed to enter the rest God had for them.
Merely hearing and knowing the truth doesn’t mean we experience it. Hearing must be mixed with faith that steps out and takes God at His Word.
I am convinced that many churches are loaded with people who have heard the gospel but have never actually stepped into that Canaan rest because what they have heard hasn’t been mixed with faith. They’re not believing it; they’re not acting on it. So, they stay in the wilderness.
Don’t harden your heart against God’s good news. Instead, believe. Step out in faith. And do it today. Say, “Yes, Lord, I believe. I will take You at Your Word. I will believe the good news of Your promised rest, and I will receive it.”
Make it Personal
Are you experiencing the rest God wants to give you? If not, what’s getting in the way?