Whatever is mentioned in Genesis 1 and 2 is a seed. We have seen in previous messages that light, image, and dominion are all seeds. Rest also is a seed, needing the whole Bible to grow and develop. The seed of rest is sown in Genesis and the harvest of this seed is in Revelation. In Revelation we have the consummation of rest.
The Bible has some types of rest. The sabbath of the Old Testament is a type of rest (Exo. 20:8-11). Man was a testimony, an expression of God. Man also was subject to God's authority. God's authority was exercised over the people who kept the sabbath. Thus, it was a type of rest.
The Lord's Day of the New Testament is also a type of rest (Rev. 1:10; Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2). The Lord's Day is a type of the coming rest. The church with the saints releases the Lord's life, expressing God Himself. This is the rest we have today. As long as God can be expressed, there is rest. The church with the saints exercises the Lord's authority to deal with His enemy. If we release the Lord's life and exercise His authority, we have rest even now. On the contrary, if we argue and fight, we will have no rest because we are not releasing the life of the Lord. If we fail to exercise authority over the enemy, there will be no rest.
The rest we experience now is a foretaste of rest because the full rest has not come.
With the saints the life of God flows and God Himself is manifested. As long as the life of God is flowing and God Himself is manifested, there is rest. This is a foretaste of the coming rest. You may experience this rest even when you are on your job. When you allow the life of God to flow and you let God be expressed, you have the sense of rest. If, however, you are cut off from the flow of God's life, immediately you will be upset within. You have no rest. The more you argue with your wife, the more you will have stomach trouble. You may even develop an ulcer, indicating that there is no life and no rest. On the contrary, if you release the Lord's life whenever your wife troubles you, you will have a foretaste of rest.
With the saints the authority of God is exercised and the enemy of God is dealt with. When your wife gives you a difficult time, don't exercise your headship. Don't say to her, "Don't you know that I am the head?" If you do that you will lose the human face and express the face of a serpent. You will become a scorpion. When your wife gives you a hard time, go to the Lord as a priest. Let the life flow and be released. Authority and dominion will be there, the enemy will be subdued, and both you and your wife will have rest. We have all experienced this.