“Not a Joint Effort”

Text: Matthew 11:25-30

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

Last week you heard a sermon based on the words of Jesus in Matthew 10 which reminded us all that the Christian life is not meant to make us comfortable. We are not promised peace and comfort in this world but are encouraged to get comfortable with being uncomfortable as Christians. The true peace and comfort Christ came to bring won’t be realized until we’re secure in our home in Paradise. And over the past two weeks we’ve heard about the hardships that Christians will face as conflicts arise among families and within communities over fidelity to Christ and His Word. And now we hear today from the Gospel of Matthew, again in the words of Jesus, that He will bear our burdens. That He will give us rest. That sounds a lot like making us comfortable, and yet these two messages are not contradictory. God’s Word doesn’t contradict itself. Jesus doesn’t say one thing in one place to a certain group of people and then go somewhere else and say something completely different.

We’re not meant to be comfortable in this life, because this is ultimately not where we will reside. If our ultimate home is in heaven, that is where we’ll experience the fullness of comfort that Christ came to win for us. And so today we’ll explore what Jesus means when He says to us, “Come to me…and I will give you rest.” Because it’s so much more than just giving us peace of mind or carrying our load for us. Of course, it is those things, but it’s so much more than that. So,

WHAT SORT OF REST DOES JESUS GIVE?

          The question should really be, What sort of rest do we need? Is it the sort of rest that can be obtained through a couple days off of work to swim, barbecue and watch fireworks? Is it the sort of rest that requires a week’s vacation to the beach or to visit an amusement park? Maybe it’s the sort of rest that comes with sleeping in and taking the day off from all the work you normally engage in. Even though we’re not able to do all these things all the time, they sound good, and are enjoyable when we’re able to fit them into the business of life. But is this the sort of rest that Jesus is speaking of? The answer, of course, is no. Jesus isn’t talking about us taking a vacation or a day off of work, but he is speaking about a type of rest that only He can give.

Our text for today from Matthew 11 shows us that Jesus is willing and capable of giving us rest in all different ways, but that He especially wants for us to have mental, emotional and intellectual rest in addition to physical rest. We’ll explore each of these as well as being reminded of the spiritual rest that God gives to us in Christ Jesus.

“At that time Jesus declared, ‘I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children.’” There’s a certain level of freedom in the understanding that knowledge of God, and the certainty of salvation, is simply given to us, rather than having to be obtained through rigorous study and learning. No matter how hard we might work at understanding God, no matter how wise and understanding about His ways we seek to become, it’s freeing that He makes Himself known to little children. The ones whose childlike faith look to Him with complete trust are the ones to whom He reveals Himself. This isn’t a joint effort. Any effort we might make to obtain anything from God is in vain, because the gifts He gives to us, are free to us, because they’ve been won for us by Christ.

So, we know that Jesus offers mental and emotional rest, assuring us that even in our sinful state, that our trust in Him gives us the freeing knowledge and assurance of salvation, but He also offers us physical rest. These are such comforting words. “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.” That rest that we all so greatly desire. As a father I can understand the desire to take that physical burden away from a child. To pick them up and carry them so that their bodies might not need to endure the strain of whatever they’re doing. What I find interesting is that as little children we let our fathers do this for us. Do you remember a time when you arrived home from a late evening and pretended to still be asleep so that your dad would carry you inside and lay you in bed? We desire to be in the loving and strong arms of our father. Running and jumping into our father’s arms when he arrives home from work…even though he’s holding a hundred other things that end up falling to the floor. That’s the type of rest and comfort that our Heavenly Father desires to provide for us. Stronger and more loving arms than any earthly father could ever provide. With never a concern for what burdens He’s already carrying from so many others.

And yet, Jesus doesn’t tell us that He’ll remove all of these burdens from us. He certainly doesn’t tell us that life is going to be comfortable. But rather he invites us to yoke ourselves to Him. Not so He might share in the load that we are bearing, but so that He might pick us up, burdens and all, and carry us along with Him. Again, this isn’t a joint effort. As much as we’d like to believe the old saying, “Do your best and God will do the rest,” that’s not how it works with Him. Jesus isn’t looking for people who can carry their own weight. He’s looking for those who will allow Him to carry it for them. This sounds so foreign to our ears. Today’s leaders draft followers who can contribute to their success. People who can make a positive contribution. But that’s just not how Jesus works.

Jesus seeks out those who are weary and heavy laden. He doesn’t shy away from the weakest link because it’s going to cause His business to falter. He takes the weakest link and mends it. If you’re the tax collector and collect from the people far more than is your right to do, Jesus wants you. If you’re possessed by demons, Jesus is seeking you out and calling you to Himself. If you’re burdened by sin you’d rather not name, He’s ready to forgive. If you’re fishing in the wrong pond, Jesus says to you, ‘Follow me.’ If you’re weary from providing emotional support to those who show no gratitude, He says to you, ‘I care for you!’

He takes the full weight upon Himself and gives us the rest that we need from the weariness of our sin. He took the weight of the cross and everything that went with it so that we would be free from our sin and He continues to bear our burdens. Just as it’s freeing to rely on our trust in Him, it’s also freeing to know that there’s no burden that we have to carry on our own. In fact, Jesus invites us to cast those burdens on Him, for He cares for us.

We know that this life will never be comfortable as we navigate a world that will always be hostile to Christ and His followers, but we also know that when we’re yoked to Jesus our burden will be light. He’s has taken it all upon Himself. Our only participation in this effort is to trust in the One who has given everything for us so that we might have the rest of mind and body and soul that He promises to us. AMEN.

The peace of God which surpasses all understanding guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus.