Matthew 11:29 – Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me for I AM gentle and humble in heart. And you will find rest for your souls.

A yoke is something that joins two animals together. The point of this verse is to be joined with CHRIST. Learn to do life HIS way. Why? Because our problems and just everyday life can cause stress and exhaustion, and our LORD does not want us to live stressed and exhausted. HE wants us to have a more abundant and fulfilling life than that. In John 10:10 JESUS tells us that the thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy; I came that they may have life and may have it abundantly.

Matthew 11:28-30 is an invitation to enter into this abundance that JESUS offers – that’s not just abundant materials, but a rich and fulfilling spiritual and emotional life that is anchored by love, joy, and peace.

Come to Me all who are weary and heavy burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me for I AM gentle and humble in heart. And you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy (kind and forbearing) and My burden is light. Matthew 11:28-30

When we read this passage, we usually think of coming to JESUS with our problems and pains – and we definitely want to come to HIM with those burdens. We also want to come to HIM with the burden of our human condition that has caused stress. Stress on our bodies, stress on our finances, stress on our relationships … after all, we (in our human nature) had something to do with those stresses in the first place. Most of the time, those stresses do not just come upon us without our involvement. We are stressed. Sometimes because of our decisions, sometimes because of our attitudes or perspectives… That’s our human bondage.

A disagreement or simply an incompatibility between two people causes stress. JESUS chose to make Himself compatible with everyone. In 1 Corinthians 9, the Apostle Paul tells us that he becomes all things to all people so that more may be saved. He learned that from JESUS.

JESUS came to this earth to show us Relationship – to reveal to us a love that is willing to lay down its own agendas and do Someone else’s bidding. This is how we de-stress our lives. Take up this yielded cross and follow HIM. HE will rescue you from your stress and give you rest when you learn of HIM. JESUS’ work was either complete or incomplete. The Bible I read tells me HIS work is complete. “It Is Finished!” JESUS’ last words HE spoke with the last breath HE breathed.

There is no fear in the “ship going down” – GOD causes HIS beloved to float to safety and spread HIS Good News while we choose not to worry. No need to stress about our jobs or our health or our families – HIS plans to redeem, restore, and even resurrect will drown our fears in an ocean of victory! This is the complete work! This is the Good News!

So what do we do with this Good News?

We enjoy it! We stop trying to make the journey happen and we enjoy what has been done for us. Just like the Israelites could not deliver themselves from the bondage of Egypt and they could not protect their firstborn sons from certain death, we cannot deliver ourselves or any others from hell. And just like the blood of the lamb on the doorposts was pointing to Someone else covering the people with life when death threatened their homes, so we look to the complete work of JESUS. Death could not keep HIM in the grave! HIS complete work will cover us and any others we may be concerned about. We enjoy this covering for ourselves and for our children. Enjoy more rest!