Summary: We open with an attempt to convey our understanding of God’s relational design and the relational longing of image-bearers. The video explains our abiding in the Trinity, references John 17:22 and Hebrews 4, defines the practice of God’s rest (Strong’s G2663), and raises the question: what disturbs our rest?
God’s Relational Design
“We open with an attempt to convey our understanding of God’s relational design.”
“As I’ve said before, this is our relational longing. I we can’t help it. We have a longing for God, for others in connection. This is just how we’re made.”
“The image that you see in the corresponding video represents what I feel is the glorious community of the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in unity, reflecting and revealing the opinion and value of the Eternal mind of God.”
Image-bearers, the Heart, and Abiding
“As image bearers, you and I, we long for the reflection and revealing of God’s glory, His opinion, and value onto us, His unchangeable opinion that He has of us.”
“And also, in the video, we are represented as a little smaller, Trinity symbol made in His image. The heart that’s shown represents our abiding in Him, in unity with the Godhead, in agreement in the fullness of God, whole, complete, lacking in nothing in our designed state, reflecting and revealing His opinion of value.”
John 17:22 — “The glory that You have given Me…”
“This is stated in John 17:22. You’ve probably heard me say it before, and I’ll say it again: this is where Jesus is talking about, ‘the glory that You have given Me, Father, I have given to them.’ That’s us. That they may be one just as we are one.”
“And as such, in this relational design of God, in oneness with him, abiding in unity with him, we are in agreement with Him on our identity, how we see ourselves, how we see each other, and how we perceive the world.”
“It is here that we are seen and secure, and I what we call our ‘sweet spot,’ the perfect love of God that casts out all fear.”
Believer’s Rest (Hebrews 4)
“To maintain this in the natural world, we practice His rest. This is Strong’s [G2663] in the Greek. It means cease striving. Here we are abiding in His presence in the fullness of joy, whole, complete, lacking nothing.”
“However, there’s a serious implication with this. The author of Hebrews gives us a big caution in chapter 4. And you’ve heard me speak about this in the God’s Design for Sexual Intimacy video.”
“When the author is speaking of the believer’s rest, he says, ‘Let us fear, lest while a promise remains of entering His rest that any one of you should seem to have come short of it.’”
Strong’s G2663 — “Cease Striving”
“This is Strong’s [G2663] in the Greek. It means cease striving.”
“Here we are abiding in His presence in the fullness of joy, whole, complete, lacking nothing.”
Caution: Our Always-Busy Culture
“And this is where I’ve inserted the ‘I gotta go, gotta do…’ always-busy culture that we live in. I know that I’m susceptible to it. Perhaps you are too.”
“So, the question for you and I is what disturbs our rest?”
What Disturbs Our Rest?
The transcript raises the central question in the closing lines we were given:
“So, the question for you and I is what disturbs our rest?”
Conclusion & Call to Action
We have used the transcript to present the main points: God’s relational design, our longing as image-bearers, the visual heart of abiding in the Trinity, the scriptural reference to John 17:22, and the warning from Hebrews 4 about entering God’s rest — defined with Strong’s G2663 as “cease striving.”
Call to action: To hear the full message and see the visuals that accompany these words, go watch the related video linked with this post.
