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The Haven of Rest
Psalm 107:23-30 Ch. Hymnal 344 I Love the chorus of that old hymn- I’ve anchored my soul in the haven of rest; I’ll sail the wide seas no more; The tempest may sweep o’er the wild stormy deep, but In Jesus, I’m safe ever more. That’s what I want to write about today: the haven of rest. I. The Haven of Rest from Sin Vs. 1 of that old hymn says, My soul in sad exile was out on life’s sea; so burdened with sin and distressed; till I heard a sweet voice saying make me your choice; and I entered the haven of rest. Every person born into this world comes into it with a nature already corrupted by sin; we are sinners- by nature and by practice- For ALL have sinned and come short of the glory of God; There is none righteous, no not one. Sin will attract us then bind us; control us; dominate us; and destroy us. For the wages of sin is Death! Sin when it is finished brings forth death. A life lived in wild stormy deep of sin is a miserable life; a life of turmoil; unrest; dissatisfaction; and distress; bound for an eternity in hell! When you are in sad exile out on life’s sea burdened with sin and distressed you need to hear the voice of Jesus calling out to you. When you come to him in repentance and full surrender you will enter the haven of Rest- safe from the wild seas of sin. II. The Haven of Rest from Life’s Storms. In our text, the Psalmist talked about those who were in the storms that life brings to us all; their ship of life was going up and down; their soul was melting in them because of distress and fear; THEN they cried unto the Lord and he brought them out of their distress; He made the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof were still; then they were glad because he brought them unto their desired haven. Isa 25:4 says of God- Thou hast been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, when the blast of the terrible ones is as a storm. Vs. 2 of the old hymn says, How precious the thought that we may all may recline like John the beloved and blest on Jesus strong arm where no tempest can harm, Secure in the haven of rest. Even in the storms of life there is a haven of rest- Rest in the arms of Jesus- Rest upon his Holy Word; Rest in the Holy Ghost; Rest in his promises and in his presence. III. The Haven of Rest from Suffering. Life brings some suffering to us all; some suffer more than others and there is no way to figure that all out or understand it all to our own satisfaction. The Fact is Human life brings suffering; part of our physical existence. Thank God that there is Rest even during those times of suffering; God is a strong tower and a refuge; when we run into him we are safe. AND- Thank God there is a haven of Rest beyond this world and beyond this life where Suffering Cannot touch us any more! Paul wrote in Col 1:5 about the Hope that is laid up for us in Heaven. That Hope is already There! That Haven of Rest is already Prepared! Heaven is the ultimate Haven of Rest; the final refuge from sin, storms, and suffering. Hebrews 6 tells us that we have strong consolation or comfort in the Lord because we have fled for Refuge and laid hold upon the hope that was set before us; this hope is an Anchor of the Soul, sure and steadfast. When we anchor in Jesus we have found the haven of rest. Vs. 4 of the old hymn- O come to the Savior, he patiently waits to save by his power divine; Come anchor your soul in the haven of rest and say My Beloved is Mine. There is a haven of rest from sin; from the storms of life; and from suffering; Jesus is his name and he wants to bring his rest to you today.
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Living for the Unseen- 2 Cor. 4:18
Intro: I know its difficult for us to Live for the unseen for we as human beings are physical creatures living in a natural world; living by our physical senses; living by what we hear, smell, taste, touch and especially SEE. Still, a life lived only by what is SEEN is a miserable life; a defeated life; discouraged life; depressed life; actually a wasted life. For while it is true that we are physical creatures we are also spiritual creatures, and while it is true that we are human beings we are also heavenly beings in the making. We Must Strive to Live for the Unseen! Paul stated plainly that we are to Live Looking not at the things which are seen but at the things which are not seen, because those things we see are temporal [they are temporary, momentary, brief, fleeting, quickly passing away] while those things that we cannot see physically are Eternal [Real and lasting; not fleeting but infinite; not brief but for ever; not quickly passing a way, but forever sure]. So what does it mean to Live for the Unseen? I. It’s a Matter of FAITH. The whole concept of faith has to do with the Unseen. Heb. 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things NOT SEEN. Let me remind you that Faith is not based on feelings, it is based on Facts. Still, that being said, Faith is based on FACTS that cannot always be Seen with our physical eyes. Faith is believing God even when you have not Seen God. Faith is believing Jesus Christ even when you have not seen him. Faith is believing the Holy Ghost when you have not seen Him. Faith is believing the Word of God even though you did not witness its writing and knew none of its authors. Faith is believing the truth even when you do not see the proof with your eyes. Living for the Unseen means you will be living by FAITH- living IN Faith. Remember when Jesus had been arrested, tortured, crucified and buried? His disciples fled in fear and despair, but remember how he came to them when they were gathered behind locked doors and revealed himself to them and they were thrilled beyond words. HOWEVER, Thomas was not there that evening and when the others told him about it, he could not and would not believe it. Remember what he insisted on happening before he would believe- being able to SEE. Jesus did appear to him; did reveal himself to him; also gently rebuked Thomas and in so doing he gave us all a very important LESSON: “Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.” This is Vital because you and I are not going to SEE the Lord in this human life with our natural eyes, BUT we see him with our eyes enlightened with FAITH. Jesus is not just a historical figure, he is our Divine Savior. He really did come to earth; he really did live and die to save us; he really was buried in the tomb and he really did rise again on the third day; he really did ascend into heaven and he really did send the Holy Ghost on the Day of Pentecost. So Peter wrote about this in 1 Peter 1:8 Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: Living for the Unseen means that we live by Faith and with Faith- seeing spiritually what we cannot see physically. II. It’s also a Matter of the Future. Not only is living for the unseen an important matter of Faith, it is an important matter of our Future, for the future of each and every one us depends on how we live right now. If you live only for what is Seen, you will suffer in your future life here on earth and you will Really suffer in your future in eternity. The only way to have any hope for the future is to live for the unseen. Again, Paul said that our outward man will perish but our inward man can be renewed day by day; and that even though we suffer affliction in this life, it is not even worthy to be compared to the glory that we will receive in our future= IF we live for the unseen. Living for the Unseen means that we will Live for: The Life that Comes After Death. Yes, for those who live for the unseen there will be Glorious Life after death. Death is a Separation from physical life; a separation from human relationships; a separation from all earthly matters; BUT death is not just a separation- It is also a Completion! It unites us with the Lord and completes our salvation. It unites us with loved ones gone on before us and completes our glorification. It takes us from earthly life to eternal life and completes our existence. Death is not the End for the Christian, it is only the Beginning. Are you living for the unseen? Living for the unseen not only causes us to live for the life that comes after death; but We live for the World that Comes after Earth. There really is a world that comes after earth for all true Christians. The words of this old hymn are certainly true- “This world is not my home I’m only passing through; my treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue; my Savior beckons me through heaven’s open door and I can’t feel at home in this world anymore.” Paul said in 1 Cor. 2:9 that Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. I know that Paul may have been referring to spiritual blessings that we receive right here on the earth, but can anyone deny that he must also be referring to the glorious world God has prepared for his people? The descriptions of heaven are amazing and we cannot begin to understand what heaven will really be like. Then when you top that off with NEW Heavens and a New Earth it’s even more amazing. I’m not interested in living for the SEEN but for the UNSEEN! How about You? One last thing- If you are living for the unseen, you are living not only for the life that comes after death and the world that comes after the earth, but you are also living: For the Joy that comes after the Tears! Yes, it’s true that weeping may endure for the night. We all know what it is to go through the “Nights” of human life: the nights of disappointment; nights of broken hearts; nights of affliction and suffering; nights of grief and sorrow brought about by death; weeping may endure for the night BUT JOY comes in the morning. Sometimes we get a Ray of Morning’s Joy right now but then we will get the Fullness of Joy that comes after the tears. For when we enter that New heaven and New earth Jesus our Lord will wipe away all tears from our eyes. And there will be NO NIGHT THERE! There will be No more death, no more sorrow, no more crying, no more pain, and the former things will have all passed away. Living for the Unseen! Living by Faith- Living for the Future- Living for the life that comes after death; the world that comes after earth; and the joy that comes after tears. |
Bro. Dwain GaliherPastor of JHPC Archives
April 2025
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