To Follow Jesus, We Need To Learn What He Is Teaching Us Series

Introduction:

A student might be attending school because mom and dad are forcing the student to go; it is not because that student wants to go to school. Or a student might be attending school so they can hang around with their friends all day. Some students attend school because unfortunately they get more attention at school from the faculty and staff than they do from their parents.

But the right reason a student should be attending school is to learn. A student goes to school because there are things that he or she do not know or there are things he or she cannot yet do and so they go to school to learn those things.

The premise of school is simple. The student does not know, and he or she must learn what they do not know to be successful. There is someone who knows those things that the student lacks and can teach them. In the case of school, the person is called the teacher.

Well, in our passage of Scripture today, Jesus says something interesting to each one of us. Jesus tells us that there are some things that we do not know, and we need to learn them. And Jesus volunteers to be our teacher.

Let's look at our Scripture from Matthew 11:29.

Scripture:

Matthew 11:29 (NKJV) 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. Background Information:

Look at that seventh word "learn". It says to each one of us that we have a deficiency that we need to be instructed by Jesus to master it. Where is our deficiency? Gentleness and lowly in heart. I can hear those wheels turning in your brain. Isn't that one of the fruits of the Spirit? And yes, you are right. Galatians 5:22-23 (NKJV) 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.

Ever since I have been a Christian, I have heard preachers say and on one or more occasions, I have even heard Bro Greg say from this pulpit: "Christians make up the only army that kill their wounded." I have heard Christians saying about other Christians that he or she has thrown me under the bus. We have the fruit of the Spirit as Christians, but obviously we don't know how to use that fruit, so Jesus says, "let Me teach you before I go back to the Father."

So, we want to find out today what Jesus wants to teach us about being gentle.

Point #1

Jesus' defined gentleness by the way He lived His life. Time after time, we knew that Jesus had the strength to do whatever He wanted in any given situation, but He chose to offer grace. And that is gentleness. I have the strength to do something, but I allow grace to work.

John 10:30-33 (NKJV) then 3930 I and My Father are one." 31 Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him. 32 Jesus answered them, "Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?" 33 The Jews answered Him, saying, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make Yourself God."

John 10:39 (NKJV) 39 Therefore they sought again to seize Him, but He escaped out of their hand.

In this passage of Scripture Jesus is attending the Festival of Dedication also called Hanukkah. The festival brought Him to the Temple and as He is walking in Solomon's Court when several Jews came up to Hiim and said" "if you are the Messiah tell us plainly."

And that is when this interaction we just read from John takes place. Now you and I both know that when these Jews picked up those stones, Jesus had the strength to do something about that situation. If He wanted to, He could have turned those stones into water and that water would fall from their hands harmlessly. Or, He could have destroyed those men right there where they stood. Jesus had the strength to do whatever He wanted.

What Jesus did was escaped out of their hands. He exercised grace in this situation. Now that is gentleness.

If you want to think about another example, let me take you to the cross. Jesus is hanging on the cross and the in Luke 23:36-37 it says:36 The soldiers also mocked Him, coming and offering Him sour wine, 37 and saying, "If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself."

You and I both know that Jesus near death hanging from the cross had the strength to do something about the Roman soldiers mocking Him. We also know that Jesus had the strength to take Himself off the cross. But Jesus did neither. He stayed on that cross and died so that by grace through faith we can be saved.