Matthew 11:25-30 Jesus Gives True Rest
“At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.
Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
Unless we look at the context in which Jesus is speaking, we might not realize the full impact of these statements. Jesus has just finished warning his disciples that they may face persecution or death, even from their own family members. In the light of these warnings, how can Jesus possibly give these assurances?
“I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” Jesus has been given authority by his Heavenly Father to teach about the Kingdom and to reveal Him to the world. Under that authority, Jesus has the divine right to make a startling offer.
“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” If Jesus were an ordinary prophet, such a promise would be meaningless, for there would be no power behind the promise. But Jesus DOES have that power. In Matthew 28:18 Jesus tells his disciples, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” Jesus has received the Holy Spirit during his baptism by John the Baptist, giving him the power and authority to offer spiritual rest for people’s souls. (I am not concerned about arguments as to WHEN Jesus received the Holy Spirit; the point is that he is operating under the anointing of the Holy Spirit.)
“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Anybody who thinks being a disciple is easy hasn’t been one for very long. The further you go in your walk with God, the more stringent the trials and temptations. Self-awareness is one of the major stumbling blocks. It’s very easy to begin to examine yourself to the point that you become self-absorbed rather than God-absorbed. While we are advised to examine ourselves, it is also well to ask God to give us HIS mind about us and to die to our own imaginations as to what God wants us to do or be.
There are always temptations to rebellion, but they become more subtle the longer we walk in the faith. God wants to train us so that we will always obey His still small voice without needing to be hit over the head with a large stick before we will listen. The most common response to a prodding from the Holy Spirit is, “Oh, it will be all right.” But it isn’t all right; you are trying to do your own thing while the Holy Spirit is trying to warn you that disaster is looming. Examine yourself for very long and you will realize as someone once said that “If I just could kick the person responsible for all my problems, I wouldn’t sit down for a week!”
How do we give God our burdens? Pray and tell God about your problems and then give them to Him for His solutions AND REFUSE TO TAKE BACK THOSE PROBLEMS! Some of us give God our problems and then retrieve them immediately if no instant answers are forthcoming. While God can work instantly, He frequently uses processes because He is trying to work on several parts of our characters simultaneously. Once you have given God a burden, remind yourself each time you begin to worry that the worry is now God’s problem and not yours. Thank God for the solutions He is bringing and carry on.
“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” When oxen are yoked together, they share the load with the stronger of the two oxen working harder than the weaker. When we are yoked with Jesus, he does the heavy lifting.
Many of us are carrying very heavy burdens, things we cannot even share with others. But Jesus already knows our problems. Why not let Him bear the weight?
There’s an old hymn that sums up our need to trust Jesus with our problems.
I Must Tell Jesus by Elisha Albright Hoffman
I must tell Jesus all of my trials; I cannot bear these burdens alone;
In my distress He kindly will help me; He ever loves and cares for His own.
Chorus: I must tell Jesus! I must tell Jesus!
I cannot bear my burdens alone;
I must tell Jesus! I must tell Jesus!
Jesus can help me, Jesus alone.
I must tell Jesus all of my troubles;
He is a kind, compassionate Friend;
If I but ask Him, He will deliver,
And in my griefs with me He will blend.
Tempted and tried I need a great Savior,
One who can help my burdens to bear;
I must tell Jesus, I must tell Jesus;
He all my cares and sorrows will share,
O how the world to evil allures me!
O how my heart is tempted to sin!
I must tell Jesus; He will enable
Over the world the vic’try to win.
Chorus: I must tell Jesus! I must tell Jesus!
I cannot bear my burdens alone;
I must tell Jesus! I must tell Jesus!
Jesus can help me, Jesus alone.
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