Today’s Scripture Passage:
Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT)
Jesus said, “Take my yoke upon you.”
What? Wearing a yoke doesn’t sound like rest! Nor does it sound refreshing. Jesus said He would give us rest, and now He’s telling us to take His yoke and put it on?
I’ve spent weeks researching yokes. I found plenty of information about yokes, but I still felt like I was missing something. I needed to understand why Jesus used the words “My yoke.”
I got a WOW of an answer.
The people listening to Jesus that day would’ve understood what I didn’t. You see, I always pictured Jesus in the yoke with me (or you) every time I read those word. But Jesus wasn’t inviting us to yoke with Him!
I’ve learned there are three clear steps of progression in the relationship between a farmer and his ox.
Please don’t be offended, but to see the spiritual parallel, we need to picture Jesus as the farmer and ourselves as the ox.
1) the relationship begins when the farmer buys the ox.
2) the relationship develops as trust is built.
3) the relationship matures as yokes are introduced.
Today we’ll focus on how the relationship begins.
You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price.
1 Corinthians 6:19b-20a (NLT)
Jesus paid for us with His blood!
We all sin and we all owe a debt for our sin. Death is the price and Jesus paid that price in full. He died in our place! (You can learn more about this by using the link in green at the bottom of the post.)
So, what’s the relationship between us and Jesus?
We belong to Him!
But belonging is only the beginning. Next week we’ll look at step two in the relationship–Building Trust!
Between Now and Then…
1 Take time this week to consider the high price Jesus paid for you.
2 Tell Jesus how you feel about belonging to Him. Does it fill you with fear, resentment, gratitude, something else?
3 Do something special to celebrate your relationship with Jesus.
LORD, we’re so thankful to be citizens of Your Kingdom. We’re thank You for the privilege of being your representative in the foreign land we live in now. Help us to grow in our relationship with You, so we will represent You well. Give us compassion and courage and teach us to love those around us as You love them. We want to love as citizens of Heavens and not citizens of this world!
Digging Deeper:
John 3: 3-17, Romans 3:23, 2 Corinthians 5:17, 2 Peter 2:2-3
If you have not yet met Jesus, you can meet Him today. He created you. He loves you. He wants you to be a part of His family. I encourage you to step into the life He created you to live. You will still have the troubles of this world, but you will no longer be facing them alone. I’m praying for you! https://peacewithgod.net/mobile/?utm_source=Microsoft&utm_medium=CPC&utm_term=HowToGoToHeaven&utm_campaign=USPWGMobileSearchMic
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, a Division of Tyndale House Ministries, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.