Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it… For we who have believed do enter that rest…
— Hebrews 4:1,3

Often, when people preach about God’s rest, they say that the only thing a believer should fear is losing the rest or failing to enter it. I thought so myself for a long time, until the Lord opened my eyes. Glory to God for His grace and for teaching us and growing us in the knowledge of the truth. I want to point out right away that many of the things said in the Epistle to the Hebrews are addressed specifically to the Hebrews, and here, time after time, chapter after chapter, the Holy Spirit warns them not to fall short of God’s grace but to believe in Jesus Christ, the final sacrifice, because there is no other sacrifice for sins.

Notice that the Epistle to the Hebrews, which many believe was written by the apostle Paul, is very different in style from his other epistles, which he wrote to churches. Why is that? Because the good news is received differently by Jews and by Gentiles. To the Jews, Christ crucified is a stumbling block. To the Greeks, the Gentiles, He is foolishness. But to us who are called, He is the power of God and the wisdom of God! [1 Cor.1:23-24] Amen! All this is because the Jews grew up on the Scriptures of the Law and the Prophets, the Old Testament. That is why the Epistle to the Hebrews is full of Old Testament promises.

One of God’s promises is His rest. Hebrews 4:1 says: “Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it.” Notice the words “come short”. The Greek word here is hustereo, which is also used, for example, here: “looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God…” [Heb.12:15] How can someone come short of entering the rest, or fall short of God’s grace? Very simply: by not believing in Jesus. Remember the parable of the ten virgins, where the five foolish ones were late for the meeting with the bridegroom and for the wedding feast because they had no oil [the Holy Spirit]. They simply fell short of God’s grace.

But we who have believed in Jesus have nothing to fear, for it is written: “For we who have believed do enter that rest…” [Heb.4:3] Everyone who has believed, who has been born again, has already entered His rest and lives in the promised land, in Christ Jesus. In this land, where milk and honey flow constantly, everything has already been paid for by the blood of Jesus, so all that is left for us is to receive and enjoy His blessings. That is why the Lord has given us the Holy Spirit, to tell us what has been freely given to us by God. [1 Cor.2:12]