Matthew 11:28-30 ESV Come to me, all 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.
A yoke is not something that modern Americans have much experience with so this passage can be difficult to understand. A yoke was a wooden device that fit over the head of two draft animals to allow them to work together.
I used to misunderstand this verse. I didn’t like the idea of Jesus putting a yoke on me. My mistake was that I envisioned God placing the yoke on me so He could control my movement and I would have to carry the burden He put on me. I now realize that Jesus was inviting me to share a yoke with Him so that He can help me carry my burden.
When we share a yoke with Jesus, He adds His strength to ours to carry our burden. His burden is light so He adds little to what we carry and He takes a great portion of our burden upon Himself making our load lighter. I often wonder how people can cope without Jesus, having to struggle under the weight of life on their own. No wonder so many people struggle with substance abuse.
I’ve heard that the way to teach a new animal to work is to yoke them with an experienced animal and they will learn by following what the older animal does. The same is true with us. If our lives are yoked to Jesus and keep our focus firmly fixed on Him, then we will find it much easier to remain in God’s will.
When viewed through this lens, Jesus’ yoke seems more like a golden necklace.
Lord Jesus, thank You for inviting me to join You in Your yoke. Thank You for carry a significant part of my burden so that it does not crush me and I can have joy and peace despite life’s circumstances.