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Rest

As I thought about the word "rest", I was led to Matthew 11:28-30:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

I realize that I long for what Jesus offers: rest for my soul. And I’m convinced we all – if we took the time to think about it – would realize we truly long for rest in our souls, that deepest part of who we are.

The Greek word “rest” used here is the same word for “Sabbath” that was used in the Greek version of the Old Testament. Vine’s Expository Dictionary says of the word (anapausis in Greek): “it is not the rest of inactivity but of the harmonious working of all the faculties and affections – of will, heart, imagination, conscience – because each has found in God the ideal sphere for its satisfaction and development….It seems to be in contrast here to the burdens imposed by the Pharisees.”

The burdens of the Pharisees were likely the extra requirements added to the law to “help” the Jews keep the commandments, or the letter of the law. It is so refreshing to think that Jesus does not promise rest by keeping the commands in and of themselves (how many people do you know that think being a Christian means keeping a list of do’s and don’ts?), but rather by submitting to His authority (the yoke) and following His way of gentleness and humility.

The word for “gentle” in this passage is fascinating – because the English language is limited, the words “gentle” and “meek” don’t really capture the essence of what Jesus means. “Gentle” implies outward behavior, but Vine’s says it is more the “temper of spirit in which we accept God’s dealings with us as good…without disputing or resisting”, and it is closely linked to humility. To be gentle and humble in heart like Jesus means we must give up our belief that we know what’s best and surrender our way to His.

And it is reassuring to know that Jesus has this temper of spirit himself; He will not lord it over us. He has modeled for us a surrender to his Father’s will. And keep in mind that this “meekness” manifested by Christ and commended to us as believers is the fruit of power; not some mamby-pamby, milk-toast meekness that implies one cannot help oneself. Jesus had the infinite resources of God at His command; and through the Holy Spirit we have access to the power that raised Christ from the dead (Eph. 1:19-20). No. The gentleness and meekness Jesus calls us to is the willing surrender to God’s way as best.

And when you think about it, isn’t that incredibly freeing? Don’t you find yourself weary from trying to get your way or trying to measure up? Especially for those of us that are type A personalities, there is definite REST in letting go of needing to be right and having our way.

Jesus offers rest for us at the core of who we are when we surrender. We can be confident that He is walking with us, partnering with us in our journey (the yoke he offers) and thankful that the burden we are getting in exchange for the one we’re carrying will be easy to bear. Sounds like a no-brainer deal to me.

Kristi