The Power of Rest

28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Matthew 11:28-30 (KJV)

Sleep alone can’t restore us to the point where we feel rested. Spiritual rest is far more important because it has eternal value.

It’s sweet to know that when we find life to be overwhelming, God has offered rest for us. We are weary people. We are overworked people. I don’t think anyone can say, “I’ve had enough rest!”

The Lord knows we are in desperate need of good, nourishing rest for our souls.

Rest requires that we come.

Have you ever felt like God is distant, He isn’t close to you anymore? Sometimes, life gets heavy so it seems you are all alone? But think about this – maybe it has more to do with our reluctance to pursue Him, rather than the other way around? All throughout Scripture, God desires to be close to His people. (Genesis 3:8, Psalm 91:1)

Jesus is the well-spring of life and the light that has come into the world to give hope to all who will trust on His name for salvation, and His invitation to “COME” is for whosoever will. Christ alone is the One Who can heal the hurting, rescue the perishing, and save a sinner from eternal separation from our heavenly Father. (Acts 4:1)

“Come unto me…” is an invitation for the broken-hearted soul and burdened sinner. COME, just as you are. The rest that Christ gives is an eternal rest beyond our understanding that can never be earned or purchased. The rest He offers, is freely available as God’s gift of grace to whosoever will COME.

Rest requires that we take.

When we decide to willingly take Christ’s yoke upon us, we are invited to lay aside our personal passions and desires, especially those of an immoral and sinful in nature. Only God can promise true rest for the weary soul.

The yoke in this verse also means something deeper. In Jesus’ time, the Pharisees made that load even heavier by adding manmade requirements and regulations on top of the law of Moses (Matthew 23:4). The “yoke of the Pharisees” is the burdensome yoke of self-righteousness and legalistic law-keeping. It has been said by biblical scholars that the Pharisees had added over 600 regulations regarding what qualified as “working” on the Sabbath. That is a heavy burden! Friends, we don’t need to do that! That way to earn your place in heaven will be very heavy and tiring if we base it on our own efforts. One can never achieve enough good works to get to heaven because our God is too holy. (James 2:10)

For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Romans 10:13 (KJV)

Rest requires that we learn.

“Learn of me,” means Christ is commanding us to be His disciples, to be His students – taught by Him for He is meek and lowly in heart — Meek toward all men, lowly toward God.

When we take Jesus’ yoke, He is not offering freedom from commitment. His yoke is still a yoke. In our main text in verse 30, Jesus concluded, “For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” What makes Jesus’ yoke easy, and His burden light is that in Jesus’ own active obedience (His perfect fulfillment of the Law of God), He carried the burden that we were meant to carry. His perfect obedience is applied (imputed) to us through faith, just as His righteousness was exchanged for our sin at the cross (2 Corinthians 5:21). Our obedience to Jesus then becomes our “spiritual worship” (Romans 12:1). Furthermore, we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit who works in our lives to mold us into the image of Christ, thereby making the yoke of Jesus easy and His burden light. Life lived by faith is a much lighter yoke and a much easier burden to carry than the heavy and burdensome yoke of self-righteousness where we continuously do good and prove that we are worthy of going to heaven.

So, what’s holding you back? What’s keeping you from Jesus’ divine rest, and deep soulful contentment in your life? You don’t have to be perfect. You don’t have to be prepared. You just have to be willing.