Not Alone (In the Yoke)

Matthew 11:28-30 (KJV) - Come unto me, all ye that labour 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. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Jesus is not calling us to walk alone. He is saying come unto me and I will share your burden. A yoke was a wooden implement that was designed to harness two oxen together so that their strength was combined to pull a load. Christ didn’t save you to toil alone and struggle under the weight of this world by yourself. He has prepared a place next to Him where when you are weak He is strong.
As we have discussed in previous posts, the order of our steps is always important. We cannot expect His strength to sustain us unless we first come to him. I have heard it said that you can’t live like a married man unless you first are married. Likewise, you can’t live like a Christian unless you are first saved. We must come to Jesus, that is salvation, not a work that we have done but the work of Christ on the cross. It is a finished work but after we come we must “take His yoke upon us and learn of Him”. Surrender follows salvation. We understand Christ’s love and grace but to walk beside Him we must learn to surrender to His will. Too often Christians struggle to carry their own load and never learn to submit to God’s power and might. We are like Jacob who wrestled with the Lord all night, exhausted and spent, we finally cry out, “I will not let you go until you bless me.” God wanted to bless you from the very beginning. He didn’t come that night to kill Jacob. He came to change his name. He came to set him upon a new path. He came to speak life and not death. That is the invitation to you today. Come unto me, take my yoke upon you, learn of me, I will give you rest!