Do you ever have those moments when you’ve heard/read something many times but finally have an aha moment and actually get it? Maybe it’s with a song or maybe it’s with a Scripture. Both of those have happened to me recently, but this I feel I must share because it’s just too good.
Matthew 11:28-30. One of those verses that Christians love to quote and put on coffee mugs and afghans (throw blankets, not people…that’s what they were always called when I was growing up, though I realized I haven’t heard that term in a long time…is that a Midwestern/Minnesotan thing?…Anyways…)
Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 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. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.
I couldn’t possibly even begin to count how many times I’ve read/heard this Scripture, and I thought I understood it. But that’s the beauty of the Bible being the Living Word and not merely a book.
The difficulty in this verse [for our modern culture] is the word ‘yoke.’ You probably seldom use that word in a sentence, and when you do, it’s in regards to ‘egg yoke’, possibly even instructing someone that you like your yokes cooked ‘over easy’.
See what I did there? 😉
BUT that’s not what Jesus is talking about here. (Although I do enjoy a nice over easy egg.)
A yoke is a wooden rod with two curved (or simply straight, for a less fancy yoke) areas (think a boxy-shaped letter M) that is placed over two animals (whether they’re horses or oxen or donkeys, ect) that are hauling a load together.
Of course, it’s understandable why our culture wouldn’t fully understand what a yoke is, but the irony of me not truly getting this verse is that rural Zambia is extremely agrarian, and, therefore, I’ve seen yoked oxen many times. In fact, here’s a picture of two yoked oxen that the extremely hospitable and generous people of Sikalele used to bring firewood to our camp.
Yet, I still didn’t get it. When I read or heard or thought about this verse, here’s what I pictured: Jesus taking a heavy load off of my shoulders and putting a lighter load on instead.
Now that’s not entirely wrong, particularly the first part. Jesus does help us come out from under the weight of our burdens. But the second part I was missing the true beauty of. When Jesus says to take His yoke, that’s not Him putting a lighter weight on our shoulders. That’s Him carrying it with us.
See, here’s the thing about yokes: you only need a yoke when you have two oxen/horses/ect. If a cart or load is being pulled by one ox, you don’t need a yoke. The purpose of a yoke is to keep two oxen moving together at the same speed, in the same direction, perfectly parallel to one another, because if two oxen are pulling a load together and they start going different speeds or in different directions, chaos would ensue.
So, you see, Jesus says to take on His yoke to yoke us to Him, to keep us moving in the same direction at the same speed as Jesus.
My Bible dictionary words it clearly: zygós – properly, a yoke. what unites (joins) two people to move (work) together as one.
That’s what Jesus wants. He wants us to be one with Him. It’s no coincidence that marriage is used as a symbol of God’s relationship with us or that Jesus is called our bridegroom and we His bride.
(Side note, This also makes sense of 2 Corinthians 6:14, which tells us not to be unequally yoked)
The VOICE translation of Matthew 11 makes this notation:
Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.Put My yoke upon your shoulders—it might appear heavy at first, but it is perfectly fitted to your curves. Learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble of heart. When you are yoked to Me, your weary souls will find rest. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.
In order to take on Jesus’s yoke, you can’t keep carrying your own baggage. So surrender it. Let Him remove it. And then spend the rest of your days moving right alongside Him.
Beautiful, eh?
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (MSG)
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