“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:29-30
One of the challenging struggles of life is the struggle to draw closer to God. Throughout history, humanity has worked so hard to get close to God. We’ve developed religious practices, we listen to sermons, read devotionals, sing hymns, and praise songs. These are all good and right things to do, however, we often feel like we have not grown closer to God, even after all our striving.
The desire to connect with God can be a deep source of stress in our lives. We struggle to know that God is close. We worry that we are unable to connect because of our own shortcomings. We look for new ways to connect, but the truth is God is with us.
In Matthew 11, Jesus encounters the disciples of John the Baptist. It is immediately following the arrest of John the Baptist. They bring him questions from John, and Jesus praises John and sends answers back to him. After John’s disciples leave, Jesus speaks to the crowd. He talks to them about why so many went into the wilderness to hear John speak and to be baptized by John.
The people had gone to the wilderness to listen to John, to be baptized by John, and hopefully draw closer to God through John. Now that John was arrested, a heavy sadness was on his disciples and the people who followed him. Jesus took the opportunity to share with people that the opportunity to draw intimately close to God was right in front of them. Jesus, the son of God, was there offering connection and relationship. He tells them, “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
Our faith is a recognition that God is close to us. We have been invited to connect with Jesus. It is a relationship offered to us because God wants to be close to us. God does not hold us at arm’s length until we act a certain way or do a particular religious act. God is close to us because God loves us. When we realize this love that God has for us, our stress is reduced and we approach our faith practices not from fear of separation from God, but from the desire to know God’s love and to strengthen the relationship God has already offered us.
We are God’s children. We are loved. We have been set free by God’s love. As we start this day, let each of us be reminded that God loved us first. This brings rest for our soul and joy beyond anything that we can create for ourselves.
– Rev. Keith King, Pastor of Worship
