Rest for the Weary

Have you ever been so tired that even a good night sleep won’t take away your exhaustion?

Your soul is so weary you think you can’t make it.

Do you need rest today? Are you worn out from life’s battles?

There is good news. You are not alone. Jesus is reaching out His hand to you right now. He can help you and lift those heavy burdens that you were never meant to carry alone.

²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.³⁰ For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30, NIV

Jesus is telling us to come to Him. So come, to the One who can lift those heavy burdens. Come to the only One who can give you rest. Real rest for your weary and burdened soul.

“‘Come’; he drives none away; he calls them to himself. His favorite word is ‘Come.’ Not, go to Moses – ‘Come unto me.’ To Jesus himself we must come, by a personal trust. Not to doctrine, ordinance, nor ministry are we to come first; but to the personal Saviour.” Charles Spurgeon

The Jewish audience Jesus was speaking to had been burdened by the religious leaders of the day (Matthew 23:4). They were desperately trying to please God on their own.

The burdens that Jesus is talking about are the ones we place on ourselves. The burdens we were never meant to bear. We get so weighed down when we are relying on ourselves to carry the load.

The yoke of these burdens is unbearable. Heavy, awkward. They weigh you down so much that you can hardly move.

Jesus is the answer to our weariness. It’s all Jesus.

Jesus is gentle and humble in heart.

Jesus’ yoke is easy and His burden is light.

Bible commentator Adam Clarke noted that the ancient Jews signified yoke as their bond or obligation to God. There was the yoke of the kingdom, the yoke of the law, the yoke of precept, the yoke of repentance, the yoke of faith, and the divine yoke. (Commentary on the Bible, by Adam Clarke, [1831], at sacred-texts.com)

“Christ’s yoke means, the obligation to receive him as the Messiah, to believe his doctrine, and to be in all things conformed to his Word and to his Spirit.” Adam Clarke

A yoke is meant for two, not one.

Jesus is in the yoke with us.

We get the privilege of working with Jesus. His burdens do not weigh us down because Jesus is doing the heavy lifting.

There is absolutely no one else I’d rather be yoked with than Jesus. He is the only One who can lighten my load and bear my burdens. I may get tired and worn out at times. We all will. Jesus says, “I will give you rest.“

The rest Jesus gives us is unlike any other. It is a gift from God for those who follow Jesus.

Come to Jesus. He will give you rest.

O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There’s light for a look at the Savior,
And life more abundant and free.

Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
  In the light of His glory and grace.

Love you all,

Meghan

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