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The Gospel brings rest in the College Years Mr. Dustin Thompson Commencement Address for the Class of 2012 Seniors, I cannot thank you enough for your kindness towards me this year. It has been a great joy to spend so much time together. I have genuinely enjoyed getting to know you. Weve had a lot of fun playing Star Wars Miniatures, learning about the Canadian acorn, rapping about economics, and some of you even wrote a fake Wikipedia article about me. Apparently, I had the childhood of Superman, Batman, Spiderman and Ironman and I secretly fight crime while working at Heritage as part of my cover. I have often wondered what it would have been like to go to high school with you. Im quite sure that all of you would be too cool, too smart, or too athletic for me. Some of you would probably be all three. And yet what amazes me is this class was extremely thoughtful and filled with much grace towards each other. To have a class that is close like this one is a wonderful blessing. The Lord has been kind and has displayed many evidences of grace in you. As you head off to your next adventures, I cannot help but think of how performance oriented the next few years of your life will be. Some of you will be striving to make a new or better identity in college; wanting to fit in and make new friends. Others of you will be working hard to make a certain team or get more playing time. All of you will be working hard to achieve good grades and perform well on tests and assignments. All of you will be hoping to do well and earn the job that you desire. In such a world of performance, there is little room for rest. Tonight, I hope to encourage you that the gospel brings you rest. The gospel brings rest to college, a place of constant

striving and performance. Im reminded of the author of Hebrews who, in the first part of the fourth chapter says, While the promise of entering his rest stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it (4:1) and For we who have believed enter that rest (4:3) again whoever has entered Gods rest has also rested from his works as God did from his (4:10) and lastly, Let us therefore strive to enter that rest (4:11). It is here that I would briefly like to remind you of the gospel, so that you know what I intend as I say gospel. Gospel simply means good news. For Christians the best news of all is that the Son of God, the second person of the Trinity came down as a man and lived the life we should have lived (Rom. 5:19); he died the death the we deserved to die (II Cor. 5:21), and was resurrected as a first fruits of the resurrection for those who believe in him (I Cor. 15:20). Jesus has become our substitute, taking on our badness and giving us His perfect goodness (I Pet. 3:18). This is good news because Jesus, the Son of God, has already accomplished all that is needed to satisfy God (I Tim. 3:16). Through his objective work, we have a right standing with God (Rom. 4:5). These seniors, having put their trust in Jesus, are seen through the finished work of Jesus. What this means is that they no longer need to strive to earn Gods acceptance, but already have it in and through Jesus (Rom. 3:24). It is this news that changes everything. It is this news that brings rest to college. The gospel brings rest in the college years. The first place that the gospel brings rest in college is in your social relationships. Many of you are looking forward to making new friends, developing deeper relationships, looking for a husband or wife and trying to stay connected with your long-time friends

here at HCA. One thing that you may have noticed in your relationships through high school is that things dont always work as they should. People say things that hurt. Someone you like doesnt think too highly of you. People may exclude you, ignore you, or even be mean to you. As you strive to grow into yourself in college, you will find that these things have not been left behind in high school. Individual sin brings social mistreatment to wherever you will be in the college years. How will you find rest during the difficult time of college years? Look to the gospel. Remind yourself that in Christ you have acceptance already. Even though others may not accept you or may even outright reject you; you have been accepted by the King of kings. Jesus was rejected on your behalf, and you have already attained the most important acceptance you can have. Because of that, you are free to rest. You see; because Jesus was someone youre free to be no one. Because Jesus was important, youre free to be regular or even unimportant. You dont have to earn your status of acceptance; Jesus has already gotten it for you. As you dwell on that more and more during your college years you will find that the Gospel brings you rest. The second place that the gospel brings rest to the college years is your academic performance. So many of you have already developed great skills to prepare yourselves to do well in college. You have learned to study, practiced self-discipline and time management to get your work done, and are motivated students. As you head off to college you may find yourself in a situation where you seem unable to do enough. Maybe it will be a difficult class where you just cant seem to get an A. Maybe it will be a test that you thought you were prepared for but didnt do well. Whatever it is, what I am here to

tell you is the gospel brings rest. Your identity is not in whether or not you get As, Bs or even fail. Your identity is already secured in Christ. You are in him and your performance in school does not determine your value or acceptance to God. Jesus performance for you has already determined it and that means that you are his beloved son or daughter with whom he is well pleased (Mk. 1:11). As you face academic disappointment remind yourself that it is Jesus who is your hope, not your prowess in the classroom. It is here that you will find gospel rest. Even as you try to determine your major or future career you may feel restless. What should you do? What major should you pursue? Being in Christ means that you no longer have to fear doing enough; you can simply pursue a career and the Lord is honored by your efforts (II Cor. 3:17). The standard of perfection was already met in Jesus, and now you can honor him with the most difficult, or the most mundane of tasks (I Cor. 10:31). Martin Luther had a similar experience with a shoemaker. After a shoemaker had heard the message of the gospel and responded rightly he went to Martin Luther asking, What now? What should I do? expecting Luther to give him a new high calling on his life he was in for a surprise. Luther responded by telling him to, Make shoes to the glory of God (Col. 3:17). You see, his calling was already high, because he had Jesus perfect righteousness (Gal. 3:11). The Lord was honored by what he was doing because he was in Christ. What does this mean for you? This means as you decide what you want to do, you can feel free to pick what you want. The gospel brings rest to your academic performance.

Third, the gospel brings rest to your athletic or extra-curricular pursuits. It becomes far too easy in the world of athletics; especially collegiate sports to become tied up in what you do. Sometimes it can be the clubs you are part of or the extra-curricular activities in which you participate. Whether its the position you play or the success youve had; its easy to make that your identification. The only problem with this is that when you fail to meet your expectations, or the expectations others put on you, disappointment is sure to set in. Feelings of inadequacy or failure can quickly follow. I can speak from experience as someone who was a starting college goalie as a freshman, rookie of the year, even setting school records. By my senior year, however, I hardly played at all. I was quickly overcome with restlessness and feelings of inadequacy. I had been so consumed with finding my identity in hockey, that I had quickly forgotten my identity was not based on my performance but Jesus performance for me (Rom. 6:5). The gospel reminds you and me that regardless of our imperfection on or off the field, our acceptance with the Lord remains because of Jesus (Rom. 8:2). This even means feeling free to say no to honorable clubs, groups or activities, because your righteousness is not found in your doing but in what had already been done. It is in the gospel, that you will find solace and rest during your college years. The gospel doesnt just provide rest when you fail, but the gospel provides rest for those who are and continue to be successful. Some of you will not struggle and find that the college years were quite easy. As you continue to perform and do well, you may find yourself asking, How come no one else gets it; this isnt that hard. You may quickly find yourself impatient with those who dont get it. Maybe youll be slow to help those who are

struggling. It is only when you remember how patient God was with you, in spite your inability that you will be able to rest in your success. Knowing that you ultimately couldnt do it, and Jesus had to do it for you (Gal. 2:16). This will keep you from Phariseeism and a life devoted to comparing yourself to others. A life of success can quickly turn into a life of one-up-man-ship and comparison. The gospel brings rest; rest to college success. There is a final aspect of resting in Christ during the college years that I would like to point out. Resting in Christ is not about not doing. Instead, its about a right motivation for doing. The gospel reminds us that the Lord is now pleased with our works, not because in themselves they are abundantly holy, but because Jesus has already met the requirements of perfection for you. Dwelling on gospel freedom excites your heart to know that now you are actually able to please the Lord of the universe! Even Calvin says, This freedom is particularly evident when people are able to rejoice in the liberty purchased for them by the Lord Jesus Christ, which brings rest to their souls." You see, as you began to realize that your day to day performance doesnt determine your identity in Christ, youre free. The more you realize that you are free, the more you are able to simply pursue that which is good without the disappointing lows or the self-righteous highs of a performing life. You become free to try hard and try difficult things. Free to take on tough classes. Free to challenge yourselves to grow in ways that you never thought possible. Free to enjoy college and all that it entails. Why? Because when you fail, you know that it is in Jesus performance for you that you find your hope. This is the life of a believer (Gal. 5:1). This is how you display the gospel to your college friends. The gospel allows you to

admit your weakness and failures to those around you, because you are secure in who Christ is for you. You dont need to be Jesus; your job is to display honestly your need for Him. Jesus brings a rest that allows you strive freely and not under a burdensome yoke. This is why Jesus could say, Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matt. 11:28) You will find yourself with more energy and excitement to do good as you look to Jesus as your hope and rest. The gospel brings the only rest that lasts, especially in your college years. The Gospel brings rest in relationships, rest in academics, rest in extra-curricular activities, rest when you are a success and rest in the midst of your biggest failures. So to conclude, my prayer for the class of 2012 is simply this: May you find great rest in knowing that it is finished (Jn. 19:30). Jesus has accomplished all, and has done all things well on your behalf (Mk. 7:37). May the Holy Spirit open your eyes daily to look not to yourself, but on to Christ so that you may strive in freeness, without a fear of failure. Thank you.