Matthew 11:28-30  Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke on you and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy to bear, and my load is not hard to carry.”

Jesus was speaking to a crowd of people. I think most of them were merely curious. Possibly there were a few who were convinced He spoke for God. Some were offended by Him, because He wasn’t performing according to their expectations. And no doubt there were some who were hoping against hope that He was their Hope. To all who would come and take on themselves His yoke, Jesus offered rest! I have to believe that 2000 years ago those people’s lives, just like ours, were anything but restful! 

In this hectic world, doesn’t even the word, rest, beckon you? When I ponder the word, my first thought is—a chance to breathe! Rest is the opposite of striving. It means a reprieve from the hamster wheel that can describe so many lives. I think many of us are so used to striving, chasing, fighting to be at the top, that we don’t even realize how weary we’ve become until we hear someone say, “How about taking a minute to rest!” “Rest” is an invitation. Pause. Breathe. Relax. Step away from the struggle. 

Jesus said those who would answer His call to come would be given rest for their souls. And how would that rest come? By learning, being taught by the Master himself! As they yoked themselves to Him, asking Him to be their Rabbi, they would learn true rest. 

Then He offered a clue as to what His “Rest For Your Soul” lessons would involve. Take my yoke on you and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Jesus was letting all of us know that His soul had rest because His heart was both gentle and humble. If we are willing to walk side by side with Jesus under His yoke, you and I can learn to allow gentleness and humility to describe our hearts. Our souls will find rest moment by moment if we will consistently take His yoke upon ourselves and say, “Jesus, teach me gentleness, teach me to have a humble heart”

The struggle, of course, is that both gentleness and humbleness require more than just me. Until someone else is around, any thoughts I have about how gentle I might be are nothing more than ideas. In Philippians 2:3 Paul wrote “be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves.” Being humble begins in my thoughts and heart, but the test comes when I’m with other people. Jesus’ invitation to take His yoke and find rest teaches us that true rest in our souls will never fully happen until our interactions with other people spring from gentle and humble hearts. 

Lord Jesus, I’m taking You up on Your offer of rest! I’m taking Your yoke upon myself today, and asking that You remind me to do this each and every morning. I want to learn from the Master of rest. Teach me Your gentleness. I want to learn to be humble in my heart, just as You are. Thank You that this yoke will keep me close by Your side, so that throughout the day I’ll be able to hear Your whispers of encouragement and correction as I learn from You. How I love You Lord!