Dear Pastor,

Rest.

This is what I would tell you if you were to ask me for one word of advice. Rest. It’s the same thing I’d tell any follower of Christ, but it is an especially strong word for the pastor.

What do I mean by “rest”?

I could mean that you should take time off and get away with your family, ignoring the phone calls, and embracing silence and relaxation. I do mean that.

I could mean that you should take a regular Sabbath. A time where you remember and trust that Jesus is the great shepherd of your church, husband to your bride, and father to your children. We should rest and reflect on him as savior so that we do not try to play the roll of savior ourselves. I do mean that.

But I could also mean that we should rest, not so much for a period of time, but in a state of mind.

It’s a rest that requires faith and is the expression of faith.

It’s a rest that calls us out of a work-based system of beliefs into a worked-base system of beliefs.

It is a rest in the gospel.

It is a rest in truth.

It is a rest in the words of Jesus echoing out from the cross, “It is finished”.

It is a rest in the words of Hebrews 1:3b “After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.” Christ did the work, and then he sat down in rest. The work was finished.

This is the rest I am talking about.

Dear pastor (and all other followers of Christ), rest in the gospel today. Jesus did the work.