Saturday, July 6, 2019 -
Yesterday nearly completely passed till I realized, shortly before turning in for the night, that it marked the end of my seventh month in prison and the beginning of my eighth month.
I finished my study this morning in preparation for teaching our weekly Bible study this afternoon, Matthew 11:28-30. These are three very glorious verses. I checked my dad’s Matthew commentary and mixed some of his thoughts with my own. So I give him the due credit for those that are his, but I’m certain he wouldn’t mind me using them here.
In these verses, Jesus tells us “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give You rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My load is light.”
Here we find Christ’s invitation for inner peace and rest. What is translated rest, means inner peace. This is intended for all of us, for we are all forced to carry our burdens until we link up to the yoke of Christ. These are physical and spiritual burdens, maybe sin which does not satisfy, which weighs down our heart. But we must accept His invitation through repentance and trusting in His redemption. Jesus promises INNER REST. No matter what we go through, no matter what burden we have, He will make it light. His blood cleanses us from ALL sin (I John 1:6-7). With inner peace, Jesus also provides victory over sin through the power of the Holy Spirit. We must release the burden to Him if we want to express freedom from any sin.
In verse 29 Jesus tells us to take His yoke. A yoke is a piece of wood enabling two to share a load. But we must be willing, and He promises to bear the heavier part of the burden. Jesus says he is humble and meek. How true! He humbled Himself to become a man to suffer and die for you and me. The word meek implies “balanced”. Jesus carries neither more than necessary to strengthen us nor less to overburden us. But again, He cannot share our burden unless we take His yoke upon us.
The phrase we “shall find” implies a learning process on our behalf – a learning process in allowing Christ to shoulder our every burden. Christ’s yoke is easy and light, compared with the pharisaical yoke of the law with loads too heavy, too heavy to be borne (see Luke 11:46 and I John 5:3), or for that matter, legalism.