Way of Rest - 3

Beloved of God,
 
Greetings to you (and yours) in the Name of our Lord Jesus. We thank God for the grace He has given and the opportunity to be ushered into a new year. We are pleased to continue our focus on "The Way of Rest".
 
So far, we have explored the peace that God gives, categories of rest, levels of rest, the pattern of rest established at the beginning, the 'loss' of rest and the God given opportunity to recover. The main thrust of our present focus is the exchange programme that God has ordained for our rest.
 
THE WAY OF REST (3)
 
Take My Yoke
We often fail to see (or appreciate) the conditions Jesus attached to His offer of rest: "Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls" (Matt.11:29). What Jesus expects is an exchange of yokes and burdens. When He says, "take My yoke", the implication is that you have dropped yours, especially when we consider His promise to relieve you of that which makes you "weary and burdened" (see 1 Pet. 5:7). If you believe His words ("My yoke is easy, and My burden is light" – Matt. 11:30) you should consider their implication: your own yoke is difficult and your burden heavy.
 
To understand this ‘exchange programme’, we need to consider the meaning of the words "yoke" and "burden".
Generally, yokes are a symbol of service, responsibility, working partnership, bonding or
bondage (see 1 Tim. 6:1, Ac. 15:10, Deut. 22:10, 2Cor. 6:14, Phil. 4:3, Isa. 10:27, Gal. 5:1). On the other hand, burdens are weights arising from the cares, worries and fears of this life (see Matt. 6:25,27, 34; Mk 4:18 & 19, Lk. 21:34, 1 Pet. 5:7). The implication of this exchange is that the LORD changes your approach to work and service, exercises Lordship even in the area of your lawful responsibilities and bears your burdens for you, all in return for your absolute and unconditional commitment to His will. By taking charge of our yokes and burdens, He nullifies every potential excuse for not doing His will.
 
In practical terms, this involves laying down everything at His feet and starting a new life with a continual emphasis on His will. (see Matt. 6:33, 2 Cor.5:14 & 15, Gal. 2:20). Apart from doing everything "as to the Lord, and not to men", it involves giving up your will for His will. After all, when a man is yoked to the Lord, he is free ONLY to do the will of God.
On this note, we will consider the relationship between the rest of God and the old testament Sabbath of rest.
 
The Sabbath-Rest
The Scriptures reveal that, after the six-day creation period, God rested on the 7th day, and that He sanctified that day and blessed it (Gen. 2:2 & 3). This turned out to be the basis for the weekly Sabbaths of rest observed in Israel. Interestingly, it is also the basis for the rest that God gives His children.