Gospel + + + + + MT 11:28-30
Jesus said to the crowds:
“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart;
and you will find rest for yourselves.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”
The word of the Lord.
“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart;
and you will find rest for yourselves.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”
Just a thought:
Imagine a wick that is placed in oil, and then lit. If the oil runs out, the wick burns. As long as there is oil, the wick doesn't burn. As long as we are living in dependence on the power of the Holy Spirit, we don't burn out. The question to ask: what's burning?
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.
So, are you weary? Are you carrying a heavy burden? Do you need rest? Jesus is inviting those who answer “Yes” to take on His yoke and become His yoke-mate.
It’s tempting for to take these words of Jesus and turn them into a
promise that says, “No matter what your problems, come to Jesus and He will make you burden-free.”
There are those who present Jesus as the remover of every problem. They portray the Christian life as though faith lifts you up and out of the realm of life’s difficulties, sorrows, and disappointments. This, I believe, is a false portrait of discipleship and a mistaken use of Jesus’ words.
Jesus makes it clear that the rest He offers us is not burden-free. He speaks of the putting on His yoke, and yokes are for bearing burdens.
Yokes were common in Jesus’ day. Yokes were made for oxen so that the animals could work together as a team and not be hurt by the burden they carried.
Yoke-making was a skilled craft. Good yokes were made of strong wood that could be made smooth. Any area of roughness on the yoke would cause skin irritation and muscle damage to the oxen as they pulled their load. Yokes also had to be expertly sized of the team for which they were made. If the yoke put the two animals too close together they would jostle and hurt each other. If the yoke put them too far apart they would not be able to share the load as easily as they might if the yoke had had a better fit. The yoke was made perfectly for the one who wore it, the yoke was not a burden, rather, the yoke made life bearable.
Jesus is telling us that He is an expert yoke-maker.
promise that says, “No matter what your problems, come to Jesus and He will make you burden-free.”
There are those who present Jesus as the remover of every problem. They portray the Christian life as though faith lifts you up and out of the realm of life’s difficulties, sorrows, and disappointments. This, I believe, is a false portrait of discipleship and a mistaken use of Jesus’ words.
Jesus makes it clear that the rest He offers us is not burden-free. He speaks of the putting on His yoke, and yokes are for bearing burdens.
Yokes were common in Jesus’ day. Yokes were made for oxen so that the animals could work together as a team and not be hurt by the burden they carried.
Yoke-making was a skilled craft. Good yokes were made of strong wood that could be made smooth. Any area of roughness on the yoke would cause skin irritation and muscle damage to the oxen as they pulled their load. Yokes also had to be expertly sized of the team for which they were made. If the yoke put the two animals too close together they would jostle and hurt each other. If the yoke put them too far apart they would not be able to share the load as easily as they might if the yoke had had a better fit. The yoke was made perfectly for the one who wore it, the yoke was not a burden, rather, the yoke made life bearable.
Jesus is telling us that He is an expert yoke-maker.
Try Him on for size!
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