He Is Willing to Help You Rest and Run

Writer

Updated March 31, 2023

PLUS

There are times when I feel the need to recommit my heart to Jesus. You too? We can feel pulled away. We can feel frightened by sins that come into sharp focus, while God is doing His good pruning work in our lives. We can see the plots of the evil one against our spirits. We see the failures of our will and how we could have prevented those — if we had just been faithful this way or that way. And all those things being true, when I recommit my heart to Jesus, I think of His great grace. It truly is inexhaustible. And I am forever grateful for that fact.

I think about the character of Jesus to be present with us through His merits. He made a way to be present with us all the time — even in the midst of our most disappointing failures. Even the repeat, I-should-have-been-cured-of-this-by-now failures. He draws near to the heart, mind, will, and soul even when those failures occur. Even while they are happening, He whispers in our ear: You are as good as complete. You are finished in my eyes. You are past-tense glorified in the heavenly places. He whispers hope.

When I groan/bemoan a repeat sin, I trust that this fight, this war, will soon be past. I picture myself in the heavenly places where my life is literally safe in the hands of Jesus by His incredible grace. I’m complete. I’m a heavenly citizen, waiting for my new earth.

With that image within me, I “ponder anew what the Almighty can do” — as the popular hymn goes. If Jesus can do that — make me whole and complete in the heavenlies – what can He do here and now? I am like a lump of clay in His hands, to mold and form: “But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand” (Isaiah 64:8). What serves Him is what I may constantly ask — becoming more like Him in this beautiful Potter-to-clay relationship on this earth. What makes my life all about the God who gives me grace upon grace?

Jesus is near in the times of repeated sin to say that race is as good as done — so run! If I can conclude your race for you by my death and resurrection, giving you perfect righteousness by faith, what can I do, what might I do, in your life even now?

Do you believe that Jesus has the power to change your life right now? Do you believe that the same power that raised Him from the dead is bringing resurrection life to your very spirit? These are truths from the authority of Christ. When we believe what Jesus has spoken to us in His error-free Word, we honor Him greatly.

But we have to believe it. We have to believe Him. We have to believe His presence, His willingness, His power. And these for actual and substantial change in our lives. I have seen Him do it already in mine. How could I doubt that He would do it again — this change, this beautiful molding in me? He can, and He will.

Now, change might come instantly, or it might come over a period of time. We might need practical tools to aid in change, personal reminders from others, Christian disciplines, etc. After all, this is “war,” and we want to wage spiritual “warfare” well. Jesus believes in us to walk through these battles, that is why He has given us the armor we need (Eph. 6:10-18).

Don’t let a repeat sin keep you from believing in the mercy, grace, and power of God in your life. No. Go back to the cross. Be refreshed. Recommit. Drink spiritual milk for a period, instead of solid food (Heb. 5:13-14). Be nourished by Jesus’ love and sacrifice. Feel love. Fall into your love relationship with Jesus all over again — the only one who can (and has!) saved your soul. The God who saved you is able to keep you. Believe it, and know it. Nothing is too hard for God. With Him all things are possible. So, walk this road with Him.

Determine that you desire closeness with you Friend, your King, your Savior, the Lover of your soul more than anything else in this world. Realize that He is for you. He will take you back again and again. Rend your heart with godly sorrow at what pulls you away from Him; don’t become hardened. Ask God for the heart of flesh every believer has to stay soft and never become fallow. Trust in Jesus. He is powerful to “win” us to Himself, to keep us, and to change us. When the race is hard, remember that in Christ — in believing His death and resurrection for the forgiveness of your sin — you race is complete in your Lord. God has already lifted us and set us in His rest in the eyes and mind of Christ: “And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:6).

Rest there, seated, and run. Run your race so as to win the prize (1 Cor. 9:24). Understand? I am still learning, but at the same time, it’s also clear. We rest in His finished work in order to run hard after Him so that He would be honored. Can we do that? Of course we can — we can fix our eyes on the beautiful image of Jesus we have in the Scriptures and tune our ears to His loving words toward us. Jesus will be glorified in His children. And He is highly glorified when we believe this love, this grace, this mercy — that these are real and never run dry. He promises.

We used to be on paths of destruction in sin, but God has freely saved our souls in His marvelous light. The path of sin and pleasing of self is dark, but the path of looking to the salvation of Jesus is wonderful life. Will you join me in praising our God that He has set us on paths of light and life? A life of praise is what He dearly desires from us — lives that display the thanksgiving of being truly saved and redeemed.

Praise is what emanates from us, and this is the light of praise that He wants us to shine before men and never remove from ourselves. We might be tempted to grumble, to complaint, or to fold in on ourselves and think only about what is best for us. But Jesus is worthy of the highest praise of our lives, and we do well to remember that — as well as the light and life of thanksgiving in our inner spirits by His strength within us. These are good.

Jesus wants our hearts. He wants our minds. He wants our souls. He wants our strength, and the direction of our strength, to be aimed at Him. Believe and watch Jesus do marvelous things within you and for you, both in the fight and the rest, of this life!

Photo credit: Unsplash/Morgan Sarkissian

Lianna Davis is author of Keeping the Faith: A Study in Jude and Made for a Different Land: Eternal Hope for Baby Loss. She is also a contributor to We Evangelicals and Our Mission with Cascade Books. Lianna is a graduate of Moody Bible Institute and a student at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. She lives in Illinois with her husband and daughter. You can learn more about her writing at her website.

He Is Willing to Help You Rest and Run

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