From Striving To Settled
Press stop, then step to the side rails, a picture of resting in the finished work of Jesus while the Spirit carries the next step.
Devotional Credit: Abide Above by Miles Stanford
Photo Credit: Unsplash
Hebrews 4:10 says that the one who has entered His rest has ceased from his own works. Miles Stanford helps us name two kinds of rest. There is the rest of reception, where we receive all that the Cross secured. There is also the rest of resistance, where temptations show up and we answer from our union with Jesus, not from sweat or struggle.
I have tried the other way. Clamp down harder. Make vows. Wrestle with the same thing until I feel spent. Stanford reminds me that when I fight sin in my own power, I step onto sin’s ground. The burden grows, the peace thins, and the temptation starts to feel bigger than Jesus.
The Scriptures give a better posture. Reckon yourself dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Stand fast in the liberty with which Jesus has made you free. Do not chase a victory you already have. Receive it. Walk in it. Trust the Holy Spirit to apply the finished work in the moment you need it.
This is not passivity. It is faith that acts from a settled place. The Cross is the starting point. Jesus is the center. The Spirit takes what is true in Him and makes it real in us as we yield. From that rest, resistance becomes steady and clean. The heart is free to love.
Journal Entry – Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture
I remind you that you have entered My rest in Jesus. You have ceased from your own works. Reckon yourself dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Stand fast in the liberty with which the Lord has made you free. Do not fight for freedom as though you do not have it. Fight the good fight of faith from freedom.
Sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace. The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death. Put to death the deeds of the body by the Spirit. Walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. Your life is hidden with Christ in God. Set your mind on things above where He is.
I work in you to will and to act for My good pleasure. Abide in Me. Apart from Me you can do nothing, yet in union with My Son you bear fruit that remains. Thanks be to God who gives you the victory through our Lord Jesus. Receive the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness, and reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ.
Scripture references: Hebrews 4:10, Romans 6:6 to 11, Galatians 5:1, 1 Timothy 6:12, Romans 6:14, Romans 8:2, Romans 8:13, Galatians 5:16, Colossians 3:1 to 4, Philippians 2:13, John 15:4 to 5, 1 Corinthians 15:57, Romans 5:17.
Real-Life Analogy
Think of a treadmill. When the belt starts pulling you, trying to sprint your way off only makes you stumble. The wiser move is to press stop, step onto the side rails, and let the motor wind down. Resisting temptation in your own strength is like sprinting on the belt. The indwelling Spirit of Jesus invites you to step onto the rails of what He already finished, to press stop by reckoning yourself dead to sin, and to let His life carry you forward with steady footing.
Try this today. If an old pattern tugs while you are texting or opening the fridge, pause for ten seconds and settle into your true position. Say, Lord, I trust You to enforce what You finished at the Cross and to live through me in this choice. Then take the next simple step in peace, maybe closing the app, maybe choosing a different snack, maybe sending an honest, kind reply, expecting Him to respond in and through you.
Prayer of Confidence
Father, thank You that in Jesus I have entered Your rest. Thank You that I am dead to sin and alive to You, and that Your Spirit applies the victory of the Cross in real time. I receive the liberty that Your Son has given. I stand in grace. Lord, I trust You to be my settled center today and to express Your life through my words, my choices, and my relationships.