So how should we respond to Jesus? - by Jeremy Duke

Matthew 11:28–30 (ESV): “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” 

 

In Matthew’s carefully crafted account of Jesus’ words and works, this well known passage sits amongst responses to Jesus’ public ministry. John the baptiser sent his disciples to ask: “are you the messiah we’ve been waiting for?” (11:3), and Jesus responds with yes - he is bringing a kingdom of blessing, perhaps not the judgment or vindication John was expecting. (If I was stuck in a Roman prison like John, I would have also hoped for vindication from the messiah!) 

 

Jesus describes the generation before him as unresponsive to his call (11:16-18) and goes on to take on the role of an Old Testament prophet, announcing woes on the towns he has performed mighty works in who have not repented (11:20-24). It may be that Jesus was condemning a prominent idea in those towns of organised rebellion against the Romans - the people taking their salvation into their own hands.

 

Immediately, or ‘at that time’ Jesus goes on to pray to His Heavenly Father, thanking him for revealing truth to anyone whom Jesus chooses (11:25-27). Then comes the call: come to me. Following this are descriptions of the responses of the Pharisees to Jesus (chapter 12). 

 

So how should we respond to Jesus? 

 

‘Come to me’: 

  • Our response should be to move toward Jesus, to centre and focus our lives around him. We must bring our doubts, concerns and questions to Him.

  • We come as little children, who rely on their parents to learn right from wrong and truth from lies. We acknowledge that compared to Jesus, we know nothing. He has the meaning and significance you seek for your life.

‘Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me’:

  • The metaphor of being burdened by things in this life is an easy one to understand. That’s the simple beauty of Jesus words: he wants to lift our burdens.

  • But it’s not a complete removal of burden: ‘take my yoke ... my yoke is easy and my burden is light’. What is the yoke we take from Jesus? It is the yoke of being a disciple of Jesus - to seek to honour God in all situations, to love even our enemies, to repent of thinking we know how to best run our lives.

 

In some ways, I think this sounds like a pretty heavy burden. It’s not easy being a Christian today, right? Wouldn’t life be easier if I could just run it my way, not having to worry about honouring God as well? But that is exactly what it is: stop trying to take everything into your own hands! Stop trying to save yourself. You don’t need to shoulder every responsibility or micro-manage every aspect of your life - you’ve got Jesus. Seek to honour him, and the rest will be taken care of. He has saved you, and will continue to. 

 

Simply, come to Him. That’s the right response. Set aside some time now to bring your self to him. 

 

May God bless you richly 🙂

BFC