Begin with 2 minutes of stillness and silence before God.

Our day-to-day lives can be full of hustle and bustle creating a lot of worries and woes. All the pressures and burdens can weigh us down. If we are being completely honest, we know that life can be unbelievably heavy sometimes, but Jesus gives us an incredibly kind gift that is explained in this passage. He offers us a promise of rest and a yoke that brings ease to a burdened soul, and the great thing about His promise is that He offers it to everyone.

When Jesus says “come” in this passage, he is speaking to everyone who is listening. He is not singling out a specific person or a specific group of people. He is addressing everyone. Jesus said, “All you who are weary and burdened”. It is comforting to know that He is speaking to all of us and that no matter our circumstances or our backgrounds, He came to save us all. He came to restore a broken world and to give us lasting rest from the weight of the world. When Jesus is talking about rest here, He is talking about something that is beyond physical rejuvenation. Jesus means that He is giving you transformative peace and comfort for your soul.

There is a catch, though. To receive the rest, He has promised us, we must take His yoke upon us and learn from Him. What does that mean, though? It seems counterintuitive, doesn’t it? How are we to rest if we are now carrying Jesus’s yoke? First, let’s define what yoke means in this context. In the agricultural context of Jesus’s time, a yoke was a wooden beam used to connect two oxen for the purpose of sharing the workload. In the context of this passage, Jesus’s yoke is not heavy. He says, “For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” It is a symbol of partnership and shared responsibility.

Now, that we understand what Jesus’s yoke represents, let’s look at what we are to gain from it. He says, “Learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart.” Carrying His yoke makes us His disciples, and we are to learn to be like Jesus. We must learn to be selfless, meek, and submissive to the will of God. Carrying His yoke will free us from the weight of worldly sins. It is a reminder of how much Jesus cares for us. He gives us lasting rest that only He can provide.

Take 2 minutes to reflect in silence.

Reflection:

• Rest in the promises of these verses today.
• Ask God to teach you to be more like Jesus, gentle and humble in heart.