COME TO ME ALL YOU WHO LABOUR YOU WILL FIND REST

Mt 11:28-30

"Whatever awaits you around the corner, God is already there". That about sums up the relief, the peace, the rest that Jesus gives.

In today’s gospel Jesus talks of an easy yoke. The concept of “yoke” is, mostly in the Old Testament, and is connected with the Wisdom of God, the manifestation of God’s divine orders and commands.  To carry the “yoke” then means to submit one’s life under the Torah or Law. This is indeed burdensome.

Jesus’ “yoke” is probably his teachings and commandments which he presents to us as easy to carry. How and why is it that his yoke is easy and his burden light? Two reasons: Because,

·                 Jesus did not only teach; he lived his teachings; he left an example in his own works.

·                 Jesus is not after a slavish way of carrying the command or teaching. He is interested in a life that conforms because of love, not fear.

My yoke is easy and my burden is light. Jesus emphasizes the kind of help that he is offering by referring to the yoke. He says, "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me." A yoke was a wooden instrument that yoked two oxen together and made them a team. They didn't work independently; they worked together. What Jesus is saying is this: "Become my yoke-mate and together we will pull the burden. The heavy labor will seem lighter when you allow me to help you with it".

To come to Jesus Christ in faith is to be free from all of the meaningless religious efforts that the world attempts. In the remaining verses, Jesus sincerely invites everyone to turn to Him for salvation. He explains that He is the only avenue to God and, therefore, the only way out of our hopeless condition.

He says in verse 28: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” What do we labor with here in this world? It is sin. We are under the “heavy” burden of guilt that sin produces, and all our attempts to remove that burden are in vain. We try religion and philosophy in whatever form we choose but to no avail. Yet, when you realize the vanity of those things, Jesus’ invitation to come to Him is appealing.

When Jesus says “Come to Me”, He is calling us to faith in Him. Those who “labor and are heavy laden” are those who know their guilt before God and are grieved over their sin (“labor”; internal) and who are tired of trying to reach God through religion and philosophy (“heavy laden”; external). It is a call to repentance. This harkens back to Matthew 5:3-6 where Jesus says that those who know they are sinners, sorrow over it, humble themselves and seek His forgiveness are blessed.

The “rest” that Jesus offers is the freedom from sin, guilt, and human effort that is found in having our sins forgiven through His death and resurrection. He did the work for us by perfectly meeting God’s standards in His own life and by suffering our death that was required for our failure to keep the Law. Through Christ we are free from the condemnation of God’s Law and can rest in a relationship with our Creator and Savior (Rom. 8:1-11).

The salvation that Christ offers is “easy and…light.” Jesus teaches us that we must deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Him faithfully even in the midst of persecution (Matt. 16:24), but the reward of knowing God and being free from the burden of sin and guilt is worth the sacrifice. It far outweighs the alternative!

The Lord is calling for our humble submission to His teachings. He wants us to love and obey Him which provides us with great freedom unlike the hopeless, powerless, guilt-ridden burden of human effort.

God wants you to know that He has provided a way to be saved from sin and death. It was determined before the world was ever created and long before you ever born. The world sees it as foolishness, but God chose it in order to prove the foolishness of the world. His offer of salvation still stands. It goes out into the world for all to hear and, as the power of God, it brings repentant sinners to faith that they may know the true rest from sin that is found in Jesus Christ.

Jesus invites us to follow Him, to come to Him and find rest and learn from Him how to carry life’s burden. It is in his merciful presence that we find peace. Have you found the rest of salvation in Jesus the Son of God, or are you still laboring under the heavy burden of sin? Hear and respond today to Jesus’ call to faith, repentance and rest!