Come unto me all ye that 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. Matthew 11:28
I have never been thrilled with the image of being yoked like oxen. So I finally looked up the word. Yes, it is a heavy wooden frame fitting over the shoulders of a pair of oxen or the carrier over the shoulders of a person for transporting containers. Still sounds like a lot of work. So why would Jesus use that as an encouraging scenario that would be easy?
I looked a little further. There was a practice in ancient times and in some cultures still today for training young oxen. A trained ox which knew the essentials of an ox life was yoked with a young inexperienced one. They were paired this way so the experienced ox would carry the weight of the burden while the young one learned to walk beside him. That puts a different light on the scripture. Jesus offers to allow us an “easy yoke”. We can learn from him as we walk with him. We have to stay close to him and be burdened by nothing else. He bears the burden for us. The people of the land who listened to him preach would have well understood this illustration.
Do you feel the weight of the world on your shoulders? Are you heart, mind and soul tired and heavy with the situations around you?
Take his yoke to learn from Him. He will give you rest. He will take your burden on his shoulders as you lean into him. And one day, you will have learned to bear the burdens of others – through His strength and wisdom found in walking close to him.
Mother Factors 