Scripture
25 At that time Jesus said,
"I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden
these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26
Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure. 27 "All things have been
committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no
one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal
him. 28 "Come to me, all you who are weary[1]
and burdened,[2]
and I will give you rest.[3]
29 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.[4]
30 For my yoke is easy [5]and
my burden[6]
is light."[7]
Jesus speaks
of those who are weary and burdened. The word “burdened” gives us
a picture of a pack animal loaded down with its burden. Jesus says we labor and become weary under
this burden.
Jesus speaks of this as something of the soul, rather than the Spirit. Although soul can sometimes be used
interchangeably with Spirit, there is a difference. We cannot be sure, but it may be that Jesus
has this difference in mind here.
The writer of Hebrews 4:12 said, “the word of God is
living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing
soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of
the heart.” The word for soul is psuche while the word for spirit is pneuma.
If it is something of psuche and not pneuma,
then it may be that it relates to life but not salvation. That is what I think. Jesus is speaking to our psychological
well-being rather than to our eternal salvation, although both are achieved by
coming to Jesus.
I come to this conclusion, in part because of the background
to this preaching by Jesus. In the Jewish literature before Christ, there
is a document called Ecclesiasticus. In several places there are thoughts expressed which are very similar
to what Jesus says here. In the Sermon
on the Mount Jesus took the law and showed how he fulfilled it. He took it to its ultimate meaning. In this case, he may be relating himself to
what they already knew.
Ecclesiasticus
speaks of wisdom as a function of learning.
It is something which gives rest.
It is related to the yoke and plowing.
In 6:18-19 it speaks of wisdom as something that is approached as one
that plows. “My son, from your youth up
receive instruction, and even to your grey hairs you shall find wisdom. Come to
her as one that ploughs, and sows, and wait for her good fruits.”
In verve 29 of that chapter, wisdom is something that provides rest. “For in the latter end you shall find rest in her.” Verse 33 speaks of learning. “My son, if you will attend to me, you will learn: and if you will apply your mind, you will be wise.”
Chapter 40 speaks of the labor and
the burden of life. It really is the detail that Jesus summarizes with the
phrase “weary and burdened.” He
didn’t need to go into all the detail in Matthew because his audience already knew
what he was talking about.
“Great labor is created for all men, and a heavy
yoke is upon the children of Adam from the day of their coming out of their
mother’s womb, until the day of their burial into the mother of all. Their thoughts, and fears of the heart, their
imagination of things to come, and the day of their end: From him that sits on a glorious throne,
unto him that is humbled in earth and ashes:
From him that wears purple, and bears the crown, even to him that is
covered with rough linen: wrath, envy, trouble, unquietness, and the fear of
death, continual anger, and strife. And in the time of rest upon his bed, the
sleep of the night changes his knowledge.
A little and as nothing is his rest, and afterward in sleep, as
in the day of keeping watch. He is
troubled in the vision of his heart, as if he had escaped in the day of battle.
In the time of his safety he rose up, and wonders that there is no fear. Such things happen to all flesh, from man
even to beast, and upon sinners are sevenfold more.”
When we come to Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel,
however, there is a change from what they knew in the past. In the past, it was impersonal wisdom that
provided the rest for the soul. Now Jesus
says he is the one who will provide rest.
They were hearing the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy:
“The Spirit of the
LORD will rest on him-- the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit
of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.”[8]
I would like to bring this to the
present. My observation is that this is universal. Every person is carrying some kind of burden. Both
pauper and prince know its weight. From
richest to poorest, powerful and weak, male and female, young and old, educated
and ignorant, the rule seems to be without exception.
The burden comes in infinite variety. It is the thing that drives us or haunts
us. It may be part of any age from
childhood, youth, or adult. Sometimes it
is repressed beneath the surface, but surfaces in a dozen surrogates. Other times we deny it in ourselves, but see
it in everyone else. Freud had some idea
of it and characterized our dealing with it as “defense mechanisms.”
“Troubled in the vision of his heart” is how
Ecclesiasticus described it.
There is fear.
Fear that it will happen again.
Fear that we cannot overcome it. The ancient writer revealed our burden
when he said, “their
thoughts, and fears of the heart, their imagination of things to come,
and the day of their end.” It all is the
burden we carry. We know what it was
like, and we imagine what is to come, and it lays on us like a load of cement
in a little pickup.
We pray that today would be a day of
rest for your souls. Instead of burdens,
you would come to Jesus to find rest.
Abused and abusers can find rest.
What good does it do to pretend? Why not face it and bring it to Jesus. If it is too painful for you, it is not too
much for Jesus.
Rest for your souls can arrive by
enlightened counsel or a moment of understanding and revelation. It might happen at an altar or in
worship. In every case, it is the work
of Jesus.
[1] kopiao (kop-ee-ah'-o); to feel fatigue; by implication, to work hard.
[2] phortizo (for-tid'-zo); to load up (properly, as a vessel or animal), i.e. (figuratively) to overburden with ceremony (or spiritual anxiety): KJV-- lade, by heavy laden.
[3] anapano (an-ap-ow'-o); to repose KJV-- take ease, refresh, (give, take) rest.
[4] psuche (psoo-khay'); breath, i.e. (by implication) spirit, abstractly or concretely (the animal sentient principle on which is the rational and immortal soul; KJV-- heart (+-ily), life, mind, soul, + us, + you.
[5] chrestos (khrase-tos'); employed, i.e. (by implication) useful (in manner or morals): KJV-- better, easy, good (-ness), gracious, kind.
[6] phortion (for-tee'-on); an invoice (as part of freight), i.e. (figuratively) a task or service: KJV-- burden.
[7] elaphros (el-af-ros'); light, i.e. easy: KJV-- light.
[8] Isaiah 11:2