It probably could be traced back to 易經:...天地盈虛,與時消息...
This is interesting, I found an online dictionary and both words' original meanings:
消:originally indicates the situation that a river becomes a stream, then it has developed other meanings, like "digest", "eliminate"
息:like what you've already known, means "breath", also "rest", "growing", like 修養生息
I guess it means how things "grow with time", like moon, plants, etc. Then it is also a noun now