What if the reason you're struggling to find rest isn't what you think? In Part 2 of Where Weary Souls Find Hope, explore a powerful biblical truth that can change the way you face fear, anxiety, guilt, and life's heaviest burdens.

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Welcome to the Fortifying youg Family podcast.

It can be daunting to navigate through an anti marriage and family culture.

Our teacher will expound biblical principles to help fortify our families and keep these sacred institutions strong.

And now, here's this week's teaching from Sam Wood.

Thank you baby.

And I appreciate all these personal illustrations and counseling.

It kind of brings it down home because we want to let you know, this is where we all live.

There's so many hurting people around us in different ways.

But Jesus says this.

He says, let me be what bears the weight of your heavy load.

Let me be what bears the weight, your burden.

I am the yoke.

I will shoulder this burden for you.

I will navigate with you through this.

I will lighten your load.

Doesn't mean the load's going to disappear, but I'm going to lighten that load so it's not crushing you.

And he says, I'm going to give you rest if you will yoke up with me.

This is a promise.

This invitation is a promise.

I'll give you you rest.

And rest starts.

And we mentioned this word, I mentioned it earlier and it's a big word.

Rest starts with changing your identity from resting in self effort to resting in Christ.

This is what he promises.

I remind you of Hebrews chapter 4 and verse 9 and 10 where he says, there remaineth therefore rest to the people of God.

For he that has entered into his rest, he also has ceased from his own works, as God did from his.

When we allow our burdens to become our identity to be the driving force in our life, we're refusing to rest in Christ.

When we forget who we are, we look to misleading substitutes, idols to be our yoke, to be our wisdom and redemption direction.

When Jesus tells us, the Apostle Paul reminds us in First Corinthians chapter 1 and verse 30 he says, but of him are ye in Christ Jesus.

This is your identity.

Paul says, I'm going to remind you of who you are, but of him are you in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption.

This is where you find these things.

But you must remember that Jesus is your identity if you want to find deep spiritual rest.

Listen.

Be.

Paul says, be who you are.

Realize who you are in Jesus Christ and be that.

Dr. Lloyd Jones gives a very helpful illustration to help us understand this.

He says, after the Civil War, the slaves were liberated.

Many forgot that they were free men and women.

They've been slaves so long they forgot they were free men and women and they continued to act and behave as if they were still slaves.

So here are free men and women still acting as though they were still in slavery, even though there was a proclamation stating that they were free.

Legally, they were free, which is called, we might call in salvation, justification.

So the old slave man was dead even though he was still alive.

So the thing that had to be said to the slave was put off slavery, put on freedom.

It's the same thing that Paul says in Ephesians 4.

He says, Put off the old man.

Be renewed in the spirit of your mind and put on the new man in Jesus Christ.

He's talking to Christians.

He says, I know you're saved, but put off the old man and be renewed in the spirit of your mind and put on the new man.

You know what he's saying?

Quit acting like these slaves.

Quit acting like a slave because you're no longer a slave.

Don't act like the old man.

Act like who you are.

You are a free man.

Act like a free man.

Know who you are in Jesus Christ.

Let me give you another illustration.

You ever heard somebody say, maybe to another adult, even they say, don't be such a baby.

What they're saying is, don't be who you're not.

Be who you are.

That's what Paul says when he says, put off and put on.

That's what Jesus is saying here.

Realize who you are.

Realize.

Come to me, I am your yoke.

Rest in me.

Learn of me.

Continue to disciple yourself and understand who I am.

I am meek and lowly in heart.

My burden is easy and my burden is light.

Understand?

And boy, this is so big for a Christian today that I really try to pound this in.

Understand you are.

When you say, don't be like a baby, quit acting like a baby.

You're saying, just be who you are as a Christian.

Understand your identity is in Jesus Christ.

That is huge.

Let me help you understand what I'm sharing by looking at an illustration I read by not too long ago by Tim Keller in Luke chapter 10 and verse 20.

And I'm just going to go a few more minutes and we'll close.

But I was reading through a sermon by Tim Keller and I came across this.

And I thought, wow, this is so powerful.

In Luke chapter 10, verse 20, where Jesus makes this very amazing statement.

He says, rejoice not that the spirits are subject unto you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.

Jesus tells them not to rejoice in the power that they have to cast out demons.

You Might say, well, why?

Why does he tell them that?

He tells us.

He says, because nothing compares to your name being written in heaven, knowing who you are in Christ.

Keller states this.

He says, a lot of you pray for that kind of power, don't you?

Zap, oh Lord, if only I had the power to zap this or to zap that.

What Jesus Christ is saying here is that kind of power is nothing compared to the power of knowing who you are.

Or put it this way, what he is saying is the most of the problems you have that you want power to zap.

Most of the problems you have are happening because you're not rejoicing.

You're not rejoicing thinking about the fact that my name is engraved over the heart of Jesus Christ.

I am accepted in the beloved.

I have access to the King of the universe.

I'm exalted to his right hand.

I'm adopted and brought into the family of God.

You're depressed because those things aren't governing the spirit of your mind.

You're tempted because those things are not governing the spirit of your mind.

You're not rejoicing on the platform of what you are and who you are.

You take your identity from what people say about you.

You don't think of the honor of being a Christian.

You toss and turn at bed at night because somebody ignored you that day.

What's wrong with you?

You say, oh Lord, zap my self pity.

Oh Lord, zap my bitterness.

Oh Lord, zap this.

Zap my shyness, zap my self consciousness.

He says, zap.

What are you talking about?

You have this.

Rejoice that your names are written in heaven.

Rejoice in what you are.

Rejoice in the truth.

Let it come in and change the way your mind is being governed by my Holy Spirit.

I'll zip in there.

I'll let the word of Christ dwell richly in your heart.

You put off and put on, but you go to him, but with your mind and you go to the truth and recognize he has to renew that.

And it's a continual process of doing that in your life.

Learn of me.

Be renewed in the spirit of your mind.

So I have to stop and ask every believer here today, are you continuously putting on Christ as your yoke, letting him bear that weight, that burden?

Are you continuously identifying in him?

Do you know who you are in Christ?

You do not continuously put on the new man.

When you don't continuously put on the yoke of Christ, then you grieve the Holy Spirit of God.

Lloyd Jones says Life without Christ is always empty.

It's always vain.

It takes from you, it takes out of you, and it leaves you at the end of an empty husk.

It leaves you exhausted, with nothing to lean on, nothing to be proud of, and nothing whatsoever to look forward to.

When Jesus says, learn of me in our passage, it's another way.

Even as I Refer to Ephesians 4, it says, put off the old man.

Be renewed in the spirit of your mind.

Put on the new man.

It's another way of saying, be renewed in the spirit of your mind.

Continually think of who I am.

Rejoice that your name is written in heaven.

Rejoice that you're adopted into my family.

Rejoice that you are a child of God, you accepted in the Beloved.

Rejoice in who you are in Jesus Christ.

But to learn of him means discipleship.

It means to study him.

It means meditating upon him.

It means continually examining my life to make sure it lines up the way it should with the Scriptures.

It means to trust and obey.

It's only when I trust and obey and I'm leaning into the sovereignty of God that I can truly, truly rest.

It's not a duty.

It's a gift from God to us.

Jesus brings to us what only he can.

Do you long for righteousness?

He's already won it for you.

Do you yearn for identity?

He calls you his own.

Is success what you seek?

He shares his victory on the cross.

Do worries keep you awake?

He shoulders encourage them for you.

Do you lack other people's favor?

You still have his.

Do you feel trapped in in the life that you have or in the marriage that you're in?

He is a world always made new.

Jesus holds a rest for every kind of restlessness, a Sabbath calm for every care.

7Th day for every soul.

Come unto me all that labor and are heavy laden, and I'll give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you and learn to me.

For I am meek and lowly heart, and you shall find rest for your souls.

Are you resting in Christ today?

Does your life, both private and public, prove that you're resting in Christ?

That you're obeying and trusting in God?

I'm not.

Listen, I didn't come here today to ask you to agree with me on all these things.

Just agree with me.

We're not talking about agreeing.

In your head asking, are you agreeing in your heart?

Are you living this in your life?

Augustine made this very true and profound statement that I want to close with today.

He said, you have made us for yourself.

And our heart is restless until it rests you.

You have made us, O God, for yourselves, and our heart remains restless until it rests in you.

Let's pray.

Father, we love you and praise you and thank you, God, for this time we've had today.

I pray God that we've not come just to be hearers of the Word only, but we've come to be doers of the Word.

Father, I pray for my brothers and sisters here today that are striving, trying to work out their problems, carrying the heavy burden and heavy load, and they're weighed down and they're not resting in Jesus Christ.

And because they're not resting, they're reaching out to substitutes, they're reaching out to idols, whether it's sex, another relationship, whether it's Facebook, whether it's social media, whatever it might be.

Lord, drinking.

Well, we have so many of these different things in our life that we can, if we're not careful, allow to come in and we think there'll be our rest.

And they don't give us rest, they destroy us.

Help us to see that we find true freedom in Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ alone.

Help us to rest in you.

Father, we thank you for your Word.

We praise you for it and pray God that you continue to work in our hearts.

In Jesus name and all God's people said Amen.

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Remember, fortifying your family starts with a strong belief in God's Word.