Matthew 11:25-30 Amplified Bible
Come to Me
25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth [I openly and joyfully acknowledge Your great wisdom], that You have hidden these things [these spiritual truths] from the wise and intelligent and revealed them to infants [to new believers, to those seeking God’s will and purpose]. 26 Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight. 27 All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one fully knows and accurately understands the Son except the Father; and no one fully knows and accurately understands the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son [deliberately] wills to reveal Him.
28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavily burdened [by religious rituals that provide no peace], and I will give you rest [refreshing your souls with salvation]. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me [following Me as My disciple], for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest (renewal, blessed quiet) for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy [to bear] and My burden is light.”
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Jesus, the True Refuge
Life is never going to be a summer camp but a battlefield full of struggles.
In this long and hard journey, we will inevitably be distressed and tired.
Maybe we are groaning under the weight of a virtual steamroller of anguish, and we feel surrounded, hemmed in everywhere, just do not know what to do.
Jesus says, “Do not despair; come to me.”
He is our refuge, he invites us into a refreshing time of trust and fellowship.
He can relieve us of that heavy burden, remove grief from our hearts, and heal our wounds.
He invites us to share with him a deeply personal, deeply intimate experience: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
Jesus’ command is for each of us: “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me.”
To do this requires a commitment to stop being surrounded, to submit, learn.
Pick up His Holy Scriptures, surround yourself with His resurrected presence.
Jesus even repeats his promise to you and me, and the church: not only does he say, “I will give you rest,” but he also says, “You will find rest” for your soul.
Do not walk hunched over under the weight of despair.
Turn to Jesus, because he has the resurrected power to relieve you, relieve me and relieve the church of their burdens and carry us in his omnipotent arms.
“Come to Me!” Always remember that the Son of God is our only true refuge.
Jesus is My True Yoke of Freedom
Matthew 11:28-30 The Message
28-30 “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
A yoke is a stout wooden frame placed across the back of oxen or other strong animals, joining them together in order to slowly, carefully haul a heavy load.
The yoke’s purpose is to evenly distribute the weight on both sides, making it possible for the animals to walk together, in unison, while bearing its weight.
Jesus uses this illustration to offer those who might follow Him the chance to find unparalleled freedom under His yoke. With His personal invitation to take His “easy” and “light” yoke, Jesus announces an easier way, he distinguishes Himself from mere religion, with its heavy burden of rules and regulations.
The Pharisees of Jesus’ time were consumed with doing what was right—not only seeking to abide by God’s law but adding a great number of their own rules as well. Such man-made obligations and expectations create crushing burdens.
Repeatedly saying, with the millstone of rules on your back; “Come on now, try harder; come on, you can do this,” will figuratively wear down anyone’s neck.
But Jesus’ yoke is different.
To be under the yoke—the authority—of Jesus is not a burden; it is a delight.
How can this be?
There is a definitely different freedom found in Christ—not a freedom to do what we want but a freedom to do what we ought. Since by nature we cannot do what we ought, we’re yoked to our own desires, promising much, delivers little.
We need somebody—Jesus—to set us free from our bondage to sin so that we might live in freedom and obedience to God’s will: to become the people we were designed to be.
So it is that Christ’s commands are “the perfect law that gives freedom,” and so it is those who obey them “will be blessed in what they do” (James 1:25, NIV).
James 1:25 The Message
25 But whoever catches a glimpse of the revealed counsel of God—the free life!—even out of the corner of his eye, and sticks with it, is no distracted scatterbrain but a man or woman of action. That person will find delight and affirmation in the action.
Jesus is My Lord
This is why we declare with joy, “Jesus is my Lord.”
This is His identity—and because of His lordship, when we respond to His invitation and receive His yoke upon our shoulders, we accept a newfound obligation to live freely under His perfect will.
The issues of ethics, morality, sexuality, business, family—all these things and more are gathered under the yoke, the true authority, of the Lord Jesus Christ.
For those who still feel yoked to a burdensome weight, be it impossible rules or sinful desires, Jesus extends the invitation to come, let Him lift these burdens.
You absolutely need to hear this today.
Where are you struggling with sin?
How are you seeing the commands of the Lord as burdensome?
In what ways might you be struggling against His ways?
Hear Him again:
Hear Him again:
Come to Me. I’m humble. I’m gentle. Your burden is so severe that I had to die on the cross for you, and I did so willingly. Come, be yoked to Me. My burden is light.
Matthew 11:28-30 Amplified Bible
28 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavily burdened [by religious rituals that provide no peace], and I will give you rest [refreshing your souls with salvation]. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me [following Me as My disciple], for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest (renewal, blessed quiet) for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy [to bear] and My burden is light.”
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Lord of the Sabbath, In times of weakness and hour of need, yours is the strength by which we carry on, the shoulder we rest our head upon. When our load is heavy and too much to bear, yours are the arms stretched out to help us the true grace that we depend on. In times of weakness and hour of need, your truest voice is heard over the turmoil, ‘Come… find rest.’ This is grace divine, the path we tread to wholeness of body and spirit, the path that leads to you, for which we offer our offering of praise.
Psalm 119:9-16 Amplified Bible
Beth.
9
How can a young man keep his way pure?
By keeping watch [on himself] according to Your word [conforming his life to Your precepts].
10
With all my heart I have sought You, [inquiring of You and longing for You];
Do not let me wander from Your commandments [neither through ignorance nor by willful disobedience].
11
Your word I have treasured and stored in my heart,
That I may not sin against You.
12
Blessed and reverently praised are You, O Lord;
Teach me Your statutes.
13
With my lips I have told of
All the ordinances of Your mouth.
14
I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies,
As much as in all riches.
15
I will meditate on Your precepts
And [thoughtfully] regard Your ways [the path of life established by Your precepts].
16
I will delight in Your statutes;
I will not forget Your word.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 