Rest is not necessarily sleep; it’s not necessarily increased leisure; it’s not even necessarily inactivity, though all of those things matter. Rest goes deeper. Rest is a state in which we live which we can only enter into through the gospel which tells us that because of what Jesus has done on our behalf, we can, at last, stop striving. We can live in a sense of wholeness and peace of heart because Jesus has finished His work on our behalf and for the glory of God at the cross. We don’t have to earn God’s approval; we don’t have to jockey for position; we don’t have to warrant any measure any more. It is finished, and we are the firmly established and beloved children of God.

The practice of rest is an elusive one in our culture. We, as a culture, have built in periods of rest like weekends, have unionized and collectively bargained our way into paid vacations and medical leave acts, and have erected monuments in the form of theme parks that pay tribute to the family vacation. Despite these things, though, most of us are overrun, overstressed, and underrested. Time is a precious commodity; one which we can’t seem to really get a handle on despite our best efforts. You can blame it on all kinds of things:

• Blame it on technology because we can now, at any moment, be connected to work responsibilities that we previously had to leave at the office.
• Blame it on social media because it makes us seem busier than we really are because of the amount of time we spend on it.
• Blame it on societal pressure that tells us that in order to have fully developed and well-rounded children they simply must participate in any and all activities available.

All of these things might be true, but they are only true symptoms of greater obstacles. To get at the heart of what’s keeping us from true rest, we must first understand what true rest is. And the writer of Hebrews helps us with this:

“Therefore, a Sabbath rest remains for God’s people. For the person who has entered His rest has rested from his own works, just as God did from His. Let us then make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall into the same pattern of disobedience” (Hebrews 4:9-11).

Rest is not necessarily sleep; it’s not necessarily increased leisure; it’s not even necessarily inactivity, though all of those things matter. Rest goes deeper. Rest is a state in which we live which we can only enter into through the gospel which tells us that because of what Jesus has done on our behalf, we can, at last, stop striving. We can live in a sense of wholeness and peace of heart because Jesus has finished His work on our behalf and for the glory of God at the cross. We don’t have to earn God’s approval; we don’t have to jockey for position; we don’t have to warrant any measure any more. It is finished, and we are the firmly established and beloved children of God.

If that is what true rest is, then, we can rightly identify what’s keeping us from living in this rest. Here are three such obstacles:

1. Faith.

Why are we unable to rest? Why can’t we put down the project at work? Why can’t we stop worrying about the future? Why do we stay up at night plagued with anxiety? It’s because we are failing to believe all the things that the gospel confirms for us: That we have nothing left to prove before man and God. That our identify is secure as a child of God in Christ. That God will give us our daily bread as surely as He sacrificed His Son for us. That come what may, we will never be separated from His love in Jesus.

These are the things that keep us from resting, and these are the things the gospel tells us. The first true obstacle to rest, then, is faith. Do we truly believe that it is finished in Christ, or are we living in such a way that there is still just a little bit more to do?

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