Jesus gives rest to the weary

December 31

Scripture Reading

Read Matthew 11:25-30 and reflect on the passage.

If I were crafting a comforting Bible verse about rest, the work of an ox would not be my chosen metaphor. I’m guessing beasts of burden aren’t your picture of rest either. So why is it that Jesus evokes this hard-pressed, driving metaphor when offering us comfort for our weariness?

I propose to you two reasons. First, we are meant for something. Rest for us, is not about inactivity, but about the right activity—faithful activity. Rest for the Christian is about obedience to God’s call in any moment. We may be called to stop at some times, and to go at another. Sometimes obedience will feel easy and sometimes it will be hard. But always it is what is best for us and will lead us toward a source of love and of life that will carry our weariness from us.

Second, a yoke is not taken by just one animal. We are not just taking on Jesus’ yoke, but we are yoked with Him—beside Him. Even when the work ahead seems insurmountable, we are more than conquerors because Christ pulls beside us, and He pulls in our place. We are yoked with Christ and in that there is infinite rest.

Questions

1.      What has you weary right now? Is it something God has called you to, or something else?

2.      What have you been trying to do that Christ can be doing for you? What would it take to convince you that the work you are doing doesn’t really rest on your shoulders?

  

Prayer

Jesus, I want to be yoked to You. Help me to be obedient and to remember that You do the heavy lifting. Amen.

—Aaron Thompson

1 Corinthians 7:1-16

God wants to use us to influence others to believe.  We read over and over again of the importance of our testimony.  Our testimony isn't only the story of the big changes God has made in our lives, but it is also how we approach every day.  We live out our story day in and day out as we encounter people where they are.  A trip to the grocery store, the bank or the Department of Motor Vehicles offers us the opportunity to share our story.  Our actions speak louder than words; we have many chances to make someone's day better by our attitude or lack of attitude as the case may be.

The scripture today reveals this through a different light.  We are instructed to be equally yoked, meaning a Christian should not marry a non-believer.  But, when two non-believers marry and one of them accepts Christ into their hearts, the Word tells us this is an opportunity to witness. Our actions could bring the unbelieving spouse to accepting Christ.  The word sanctified means: holy, consecrated, blessed.

"To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her. And if a woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him. For the unbelieving husband has been sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife has been sanctified through her believing husband." (1 Corinthians 7:12-14)


Our witness to the world changes lives; how we act in everyday situations is important.  We must always remember that we are being watched; by God and by our neighbors.


Read the 1 Corinthians 7:1-16 text here.  Listen to an audio reading of 1 Corinthians 7:1-16 here.