If you’re carrying a heavy burden or something that feels just too much to a bear, I want to encourage you today that there’s power in rest and there’s power in surrender, and letting go of those things that we never had control of anyway. Matthew 11:28-30 says, “Come to me all 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.”
When I was a kid, I didn’t understand fully this verse. I thought of yoke and I thought of eggs, you know, not exactly what God was talking about. And when Jesus is talking about “my yoke is easy,” He’s actually referring to a yoke that used to be used for oxen. So it was this wooden bar that would go over their heads and lay over their backs, and it would be used to pull either a wagon or a plow between them. And with this yoke, the oxen would be paired and they could pull a weight together. They would have oxen who were really well seasoned, knew what to do, and occasionally would match them up with younger oxen; ones that couldn’t carry the weight or didn’t know as much, and they would train them. And so between the two oxen yolked together with this wooden structure, they could complete a task.
You know, and I just want to tell you that Jesus is inviting us in this scripture to be yoked with Him, and I’ll tell you, He’s the one pulling the majority of the load. It’s not us. Can you just imagine walking side-by-side with Jesus and all of a sudden the burden is just lifted off of your shoulder, because He’s doing the heavy lifting? That’s what He’s inviting us into. And I just want to tell you, if you are carrying something and it feels too heavy, now is the time to hitch up to Jesus and let Him carry that load for you.
I want pray over you. God, I just thank you that you’re the one that carries the weight of the load now. Lord, I thank you that you are the one who pulls the things off of our shoulders that are just too heavy for us. So God, just reveal to us the places where we need to trust you more, the places where we need to just surrender to you and enter into your rest, Lord. I ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.