Introduction
Tension, stress, overwork, exhaustion, fatigue, worn out, long-hours, no rest, sound familiar? This may sound like your daily work routine or it may sound like your struggle searching for the truth and answers to unsolved questions. This is what you find when you try to tackle every problem without help. This is what you find when you look to yourself for answers that aren’t there. Today’s message is one much more hopeful than that. It’s a message of relief that Jesus gives when we rely on Him for our strength and our peace. It’s a message about taking the yoke of Jesus willingly, walking through life side by side with Him and following the leadership that He gives us daily.
James Botts once relayed this story about a farmer plowing his field with a team of Oxen. The man noticed that one of the animals was seemingly a little bigger than the other so he asked him about it. The response from the farmer was very interesting. He said that the big animal was an older animal that was well trained and the smaller one was a young animal that was new to the yoke. The man went on to inquire as to why he put them together and this is the answer that He got, “Well you see, it’s like this. That older ox is the best ox that I’ve ever had; he knows his way around the field. The reason I put the younger one with him is so the that the older, more knowledgeable ox could teach him how to plow. If I never put them together the younger one would never learn. By himself the younger ox would pull himself to death, but together he learns to cooperate with and rest in the strength of the older ox.” (James Botts, “Rest for the Stressed”, http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=49844&libronix=1)
In the gospel message today, Jesus talks about carrying our burdens and giving us rest. He uses the idea of a yoke to accomplish this. My father grew up on a farm and always enjoyed explaining how they plowed the field with teams of horses when he was little. As time went on, they eventually bought tractors and used them to do the heavy work. But the stories of using animals to work seems like a difficult life to this city boy. When I think of a yoke, I think of hard, manual labor. But instead of work, Jesus refers to a yoke as providing relief. How can such a difficult farming tool be used to reduce the weight of the burdens we bear today?
Jesus loved to use the ordinary things in the world to explain more difficult concepts. It was common for Him to use symbols from agriculture to explain His ministry. Today is no different. Using the example of a common yoke, he has a message for us today. He wants us to takes His yoke and submit to His lead. He will bear the weight of our burdens
The yoke keeps us on the same path
For those of you not familiar with a yoke and how it’s used, look at the cover of your bulletin. The yoke is that piece of wood attached between the two people. It’s used to attach two animals together to allow tools such as plows to be pulled by a team. Ox and horses are often used for this purpose. The two animals work much more effectively than one could because they’re able to pool their strength and pull in the same direction. They can work together to pull loads that one animal could not handle alone.
The yoke makes the connection between the two ox so that they work together toward a common goal. They can’t stray far from each other because the yoke restricts where they can travel. You have to follow the same path. The experienced is always there to share with the inexperienced. One of the things Jesus tells us to do in verse 28, is to come to him. Come to him to share in His yoke. He wants us to cooperate together and walk through life together.
Just as a yoke keeps a team in synch with the work, Jesus wants us to follow the same path and go in the same direction as Him. We can’t go our own way. We have to allow ourselves to follow His lead. The yoke of Jesus shows us which way to go and how to lead our lives. Through His actions, He directs our path.
The yoke allows us to submit to Jesus’ Lead
Being yoked to Jesus allows Him to direct our path. But, it also stands for submission to Him as a teacher and leader.
A strong young athlete was wadding waist deep in the shallow part of a recreational lake. Unknowingly he stepped off an underwater ledge and plunged fifteen feet beneath the surface of the water. After several seconds he bobbed to the top of the water flailing his arms and gasping for breath. The lifeguard attentively watched the situation from a nearby bank. A friend of the struggling young athlete grabbed the lifeguard by the arm and cried out, "Bob can’t swim, you’ve got to help him." The lifeguard continued to watch the struggling swimmer, but remained unmoved as Bob continued kicking and splashing wildly. The young man’s friend furiously yelled at the lifeguard, "If you won’t go after him, I will." Calmly but firmly the lifeguard said, "No one can help him yet. I’ll help him when he’s ready for my help." After a couple more minutes the young athlete stopped his struggles. As his body became limp, the patient lifeguard suddenly dove into the water, swam out to the young man, and brought him to shore for a successful rescue. Later the friend asked the lifeguard, "Why did you wait so long to help my friend." The lifeguard responded, "As long as Bob was trying to save himself there was nothing I could do for him. If I swam out to him he would have grabbed me and pulled me under with him. Only when he was weak, exhausted and had given up was I able to save him." (Todd Hudnall, “How to Find Spiritual Rest”, http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=42730&libronix=1)
The story of the struggling swimmer is so much like our own struggle through life. If we continue to struggle on our own actions and deeds, we will get nowhere and may even hurt our chances at living. When the swimmer finally submitted, the life guard was there to rescue him.
The younger ox from our example had to submit as well. If he chose to struggle against the stronger ox, he got nowhere and only tired himself out. Instead, it was in his interests to submit to the lead of the stronger ox and allow him to share the work.
Similarly with ourselves, if we depend on our own efforts to save ourselves, we struggle in vain as well. If we fight against the will of God, we’ll get nowhere and only tire ourselves out. But, Jesus is there waiting for us to submit to His rescue effort and pull us to the Promised Land. He’s waiting there to show us where the path us, as long as we submit to His leadership rather than depending on our own efforts.
In the New Testament times, to take on a yoke referred to someone submitting and becoming a student of a teacher. They were yoking themselves to someone else’s authority. When we submit to Jesus, He becomes the teacher, and we become the student. By being yoked to Jesus and allowing Him to lead, we’re able to follow where He wants us to go, cooperate as we are connected to His rule, and learn from Him as we follow the path and direction He set out for us.
The yoke allows Jesus to bear the weight of our burdens
But, it’s more than just following rules and learning from Him. By taking the yoke of Jesus and submitting to His lead, we allow Him to bear the weight of our burdens.
In the example of the ox, the older and stronger ox was able to take the load off of the young and inexperienced ox. He was able to bear the weight of the work because the yoke transferred that weight from the smaller, weaker ox to the larger, stronger ox.
By working as a team, the two ox are able to share the load that they bear. When one slips, the other can pick up the weight and they can continue on. If the weight is too much for one, the other can pick up the slack and they can continue forward.
When we yoke ourselves to Christ, the situation is exactly the same. Jesus is stronger than us in every way imaginable. He’s powerful. He’s knowledgeable. He’s morally upright. He’s pure. He’s stronger than anything of this world. He defeated the temptations that we fall victim to and He did it with a forgiving heart. When we feel like we have the weight of the world on our shoulders and don’t know where to turn, Jesus is there to take those burdens. He’s not only able, but willing to take that load off of our backs and bear it Himself. Just like the younger ox was able to transfer his concerns to the older ox, we too can transfer our concerns from ourselves, the weaker, to the stronger back of Jesus. We can rest in the strength of Jesus as He carries through the burdens of our life.
When we stumble, He’s there to pick up our burdens. When the weight on our shoulders is too much for us to bear, he’s there to pick us up and allow us to continue on the journey together. When we have no place else to turn, He’s there to support us in our time of need.
A man, carrying a bag of potatoes on his back, was asked by a skeptic: "How do you know you’re saved?" The man took a few steps and then dropped the bag. Then he said: "How do I know I dropped the bag? I haven’t looked around." "No," replied the man. You can tell by the lessening of the weight." "Yes," replied the other, "that’s how I know I’m saved. I’ve lost the guilty feeling of sin and sorrow, and have found peace and satisfaction in my Lord and Savior." (“The Elim Emanuel”, http://elbourne.org/sermons/index.mv?illustration+3586)
Conclusion
Allow yourself to be yoked to Jesus and He will lead you down the path of salvation. Allow yourself to be yoked to Jesus and he will lead you and teach you how to survive the burdens of your life. Allow yourself to be yoked to Jesus and He will bear your burdens for you, support you when you need to be supported and provide relief from the everyday stresses of life.
When you’re over your head with burdens, remember, they are still under the feet of Jesus. He is always able to pull you up from the difficulties and set your life right with Him.
Amen.
