Stressed out, pressed down, overwhelmed, anxious, frazzled, unable to sleep - sounds like a normal day in the lives of many people today. It’s important to stop and allow our bodies to rest when we become physically fatigued. Yet, it’s possible that even when our physical bodies may be rested and refreshed, our inner spiritual man is still exhausted and restless. We can only have rest in our spirit when we have total trust in God. Jesus spoke often about this rest, and He wants our lives to be free from stress and fear of what a day may bring.
He said, in in Matthew 11:28-30, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. And learn of me; I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
This may have been a call for those who had not yet accepted the gospel message of salvation and the freedom, peace and rest it brings to their soul. Perhaps, He was also speaking to the people who were under the laws of the Pharisees, which caused them to bear a heavy yoke of bondage.
Notice the word “labour,” (or, “labor” in today’s modern English), meaning to “work with much effort.” Then, the word “laden,” which means “heavily burdened, oppressed, weighed down or loaded.”
Generally, physical labor is good for the body. But when we being to labor with everyday things that make for a happy life, we often find ourselves overloaded and stressed beyond measure. And, indeed, there are things we have to deal with on a regular basis that are not always pleasant. Jesus never promised every day would be all sunshine and roses, but He did say He’d be with us every step of the way if we choose to invite Him into our lives and allow Him to be the Lord of our lives.
It is when we try to do it all on our own that the chore becomes too much, and few can handle it alone. Jesus knew life could sometimes be overwhelming. That’s why He invites us to come to him. To “come” means to “approach, to remove the distance between, to draw nigh.” If we want His help we must partner with Him.
To teach a young ox to work, he would be yoked together with an older, experienced ox. In the beginning, the older ox does most of the work, pulling most of the load. But as the days go by, the older ox gradually lessens his efforts, and the younger builds more strength each day he pulls a heavier load.
Comparatively, when Jesus said, “Take my yoke upon you,” He was inviting us to be joined together with Him. He said His yoke was easy because He wears the yoke with us, therefore sharing the load and carrying all of it when we are not capable of doing so. If we never had to carry a heavy load we would never become strong, our faith would always be weak.
Jesus said, “Learn of me.” When we learn what His power is able to do, that He knows no impossibilities, we can say as Paul in Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.”
Perhaps, you are in desperate need of spiritual rest. Maybe the circumstances of life have pulled you away from the close relationship you once had with Christ and your peace has been shattered. There may be a storm raging in your spirit that needs to be calmed.
Jesus had such peace that He could sleep in a deadly storm (Matthew 8:24). Peace and rest enabled Him to walk away from the mob when they wanted to throw him off a cliff. He had an ability to think of others when He was in such horrible pain himself. Jesus can give you that rest and that peace.
One, dark, stormy night, when the disciples were out at sea, Jesus came walking on the water toward them. Laden with despair, they were exhausted physically and no rest in their spirit. At Christ’s invitation, Peter stepped out of the boat in the midst of the storm, and walked on the water toward Jesus.
Accept his invitation to come, take His yoke in partnership with Him, learn of Him, and you will find rest for your soul.
Rest For The Weary