“Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 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.”
Matthew 11: 28-29 KJV
There are times when life is burdensome. Life can be challenging. Life can be painful. Life can be difficult. Life can be disappointing. Life can be lonely. Life can be overwhelming. Not only do our bodies get weary, but so do our souls! Sometimes the weight on our souls can be greater than the weight on our bodies! Jesus fully understands the burdens of life. After all, He lived a genuine human life just like us. The scripture declares that Jesus fully experienced every burden and difficulty of life that we experience. He fully identifies with our humanity! (Heb.4:15). And at the cross Jesus also experienced the full weight of our sin! (Isaiah 11:6). So, when He offers us rest for our soul, it is not an empty promise! He knows the need! And He has the solution!
First note that the invitation is to “Come”! It is open to anyone! There are no exclusions! Second, the invitation is to become joined together, or yoked together, with Him! Third, we are to “learn” of Him! We are to learn just how much He truly loves us! We are to learn that He is faithful in all things just like He promised! His promises never fail. His Word never fails! His Word is true! It is everlasting. It is relevant to every generation. We have to be joined with Him and walk with Him in order to learn that. It is in that place that our soul will find the promised rest.
It is in that place that our soul will find peace! It is in that place that we will find contentment. It is in that place that we will find hope. It is in that place that we will find joy. It is in that place that we experience the richness and fullness of His love. It is in that place that we experience His joy! It is in that place that we experience His overflowing life as we learn to simply “rest” in Him! It is in that place that we discover that He is the One who orders our steps. It is in that place that we discover that we can trust Him in all things! It is in that place that we realize we can trust Him for whatever we face today and we can trust Him for whatever we may face tomorrow. It is in that place that we discover the meaning and purpose of our life. It is in that place that we get a glimpse of His glory. And it is in that place that we get a small peek behind the veil of this life into what awaits us in eternity! There is no one anywhere who can offer us such rest! Let us put aside whatever is necessary to enter into that rest! For it is a rest that far greater than anything we can possibly imagine!
James W. Black
