A Discipleship of Rest
Tim Melton
Matthew 11:28-29
''Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 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. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.'' Matthew 11:28-29
These words of Christ sound like a refreshing call to work less and rest more, but to the original hearers of these words there was even more meaning.
Words of peace and rest from a religious rabbi would have been very surprising in their day and time. Any Jew who sought to be rightly related to God was constantly trying to obey the many, many rigid Jewish laws that applied to every area of life. Most of these laws did not come from the Old Testament but from their religious leaders who created even more regulations to show the people the way to obey God. It was a religious nightmare. A constant burden. A continuous pressure in the life of anyone who was seeking to be holy. Jesus said of the Scribes and Pharisees: ''They bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders'' (Matthew 23:4).
Jesus' words were contrary to everything that the Jews knew about religion. Could coming to God truly be restful? In regards to rest, Jesus' first instructions in these verses were. ''Come to me.''
Jesus did not give them requirements like the five pillars of Islam. Jesus did not propose a four step path to enlightenment like the Buddha did. Jesus did not give them 7 steps to self-improvement so they could somehow fix themselves. Jesus gave them Himself. He was not an unknowable, distant, God who is out there somewhere running our universe. He is Immanuel, God with Us. He is God come near. Taking the form of a man. He is the exact representation of the Father. If we have seen Jesus we have seen the Father. This is our God who wants us to know Him. . . intimately.
Rest is not found in just knowing all the information about Jesus Christ. Rest ...
Tim Melton
Matthew 11:28-29
''Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 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. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.'' Matthew 11:28-29
These words of Christ sound like a refreshing call to work less and rest more, but to the original hearers of these words there was even more meaning.
Words of peace and rest from a religious rabbi would have been very surprising in their day and time. Any Jew who sought to be rightly related to God was constantly trying to obey the many, many rigid Jewish laws that applied to every area of life. Most of these laws did not come from the Old Testament but from their religious leaders who created even more regulations to show the people the way to obey God. It was a religious nightmare. A constant burden. A continuous pressure in the life of anyone who was seeking to be holy. Jesus said of the Scribes and Pharisees: ''They bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders'' (Matthew 23:4).
Jesus' words were contrary to everything that the Jews knew about religion. Could coming to God truly be restful? In regards to rest, Jesus' first instructions in these verses were. ''Come to me.''
Jesus did not give them requirements like the five pillars of Islam. Jesus did not propose a four step path to enlightenment like the Buddha did. Jesus did not give them 7 steps to self-improvement so they could somehow fix themselves. Jesus gave them Himself. He was not an unknowable, distant, God who is out there somewhere running our universe. He is Immanuel, God with Us. He is God come near. Taking the form of a man. He is the exact representation of the Father. If we have seen Jesus we have seen the Father. This is our God who wants us to know Him. . . intimately.
Rest is not found in just knowing all the information about Jesus Christ. Rest ...
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