Matthew 11:28-30 COME UNTO ME-TAKE MY YOKE

[BaptistBibleBeliever]

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you 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. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).

If all you do is listen to the main media stations, you are probably getting—probably—nothing. You need to get some alternate news. If you have a Google, just search a bunch of things because there is a bunch of stuff going on in the world today—and a bunch of things are happening over in Israel. We don’t know how close we are to the Lord coming back.

Now, we know that there are some amongst us that believe that coming to Jesus is ‘our part’ of the transaction called salvation, and the taking the yoke is their part in the same transaction. Maybe Jesus does His part, say 10% and then the sinner continues to do his part, the remaining 90%. Well, that is NOT what this verse is teaching at all. Jesus Christ does His part which is 100% of the price of our salvation, and then He allows us to serve Him in this life—but the yoke-taking is our insurance against drifting back into this present evil world from which we have been redeemed. If we are bound together with Christ so that we are forced to walk with Him, side-by-side, through life’s challenges we will have less of struggle discerning what would Jesus do in any given situation. Read on, reader—it will become apparent.

In chapter 11 we notice in verse 20 our Lord is frustrated with the national reception of His message.

“Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not” (Matthew 11:20).

And then we notice in verses 25 through 27 . . .

“At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father: for so it seemed good in thy sight. All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him” (Matthew 11:25-27).

So, it is revealed individually by faith. You notice that because He uses the word ‘babes’ in there. Our Lord gives the last three verses of the chapter to individuals, that have a receptive heart.

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you 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. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).

These that have this heart condition, Jesus will reveal His will to. You got to have a receptive heart, you gotta want. It has to be outside of you. It’s not about what you can figure out that you can do—you need God, you need to want to need God.

And don’t get me wrong. Doctrinally, He is still offering the nation of Israel a chance to repent and accept Him as their Messiah-King, but the further we go in the Gospels—that is Matthew, Mark, Luke and John—and as you are going toward the Crucifixion, the more we see this pattern develop and the more we see that the Gentiles believe Him more and He begins to move towards them. We are required to place our entire being into the hands of the Lord Jesus Christ. We think of the lost condition—the contrast—to a person under the yoke. We are talking about that yoke, remember the Lord said to take His yoke upon you?

“It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth” (Lamentations 3:27).

This is why it is important for your kids to grow up with the Bible, not with concepts and ideas about God—but with the holy Word of God—Scriptures. When you give them a Bible story, you make sure that the Scriptures are emphasized—usually emphasized first—then you give them the concepts or whatever you are going to do to illustrate the Bible, but they need to know that it is the Word of God that is important. Because everybody has opinions. Right? But you get that little child knowing the Scripture, remember Timothy knowing the Scriptures from his youth? When they finally arrive to being a teenager and they get to those areas where they think they are already 35, at least they’ll be loaded with a bunch of Scriptures. So, when they keep messing up, a Scripture will come to mind. If they are saved, the Holy Spirit will bring that Scripture to mind, and they’ll say, yea! No Scripture—nothing in your mind.

“Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word” (Psalms 119:9).

How are you going to cleanse yourself? “with the washing of the water of the Word.” “Sanctify them by thy truth, thy Word is truth.”

So, you see by them removing words from the Bible—making all these funny Bibles out there—they are robbing people of the power. And that is where we are today.

Here it is talking about the youth. So, it gives the picture of a young man being taught discipline so that when he grows up he would not become a slave to things that would ruin him.

When God chastened Ephraim, we learn that they couldn’t stay in the yoke . . .

“ I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus; Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the LORD my God” (Jeremiah 31:18).

Boy, Jeremiah had a problem preaching, didn’t he? He actually didn’t see any fruit while he was living. He was a condemnation kind of preacher—he told them what would happen to them if they didn’t quite messing around—and they kept messing around and exactly what he said would happen did happen. Why? Because God gave him the message. God gives you the message and you got problems.

 

[BaptistBibleBeliever]

What happened to Ephraim? Well, he got outside of the yoke. He didn’t want to do what God wanted him to do. He didn’t want to work with God. Ephraim got outside, and God chastened him. Very sorely, to the point where they used that term because it was common. It spoke of two animals under a yoke together, and you are not supposed to mix animals. Somebody say, ‘well I know . . .” Well, where there is an exception proves the rule. You know, two oxen working together works good. You are not going to mix animals that are not going to be contrary one to another—it just doesn’t work that well—something like a Christian and a lost person trying to hang around together. You almost think you got it down to where you can do both—be in God’s family and still mess around with the world—and then something happens, and you find out that you were not in His yoke. Similar things you can spiritualize so.

And the nature of man is compared to a wild asses colt. Yes, it’s Bible terminology I just used. Yes, it is.

“For vain man would be wise, though man be born like a wild ass's colt” (Job 11:12).

So, not only a wild ass, but a younger one. That’s even worse. Wow! I mean, if daddy and mommy are wild, what do you think the kids are going to be like? But Job compares the natural man like that. That’s what he says. ‘Vanity, vanity, all is vanity, saith the preacher.’ He might be wise, but he is still wild. What does that mean? Completely self-willed, determined to have his own way no matter what it costs. They don’t care about their wives, or their husbands, nor the future of their children. Wow! Sounds like today, sure does, don’t it?

Man lost his anchor when Adam sinned. His heart has no mooring. He is at the mercy of winds and waves; his heart has been set on self-destruction—and the amazing thing is—he does not recognize it. None of them recognize it. If you stop the average person who has been partying or whatever he thinks he is doing with his life, and you say, “You know you act like you are going to live forever.” They have to stop and think about that, because that is exactly what they are doing, isn’t it? They are out there living stupid—like fools. They don’t care about the future—they don’t care about anything—it’s heaven now because there is no heaven later. And yet they have the sense inside of them that they are going to live for all eternity. They are never going to die, they are going to party on forever 24X7 because they are never gonna die. That’s the way they feel inside. I’m here to tell you that you are going to die, but the inside is not, that is why you have the sense that you are going to live forever.

The question is where are you going to spend forever after you die?

People don’t stop to think. They are like wild asses! They are out there just living like hell, and wicked. And this country is promoting it—it’s supposed to be okay. It’s dangerous times we are living in. You gotta figure out what yoke you are in.

The yoke of Christ is definitely opposite of all of this—it’s complete dependence, unqualified—unqualified obedience and unreserved submission to Jesus. He says, “Come unto me . . .” Now that is our Lord’s compassionate cry to those who will hear Him. “Come unto me . . .” is a plea with a requirement. What is the requirement? He says, “take my yoke upon you.” That’s what it means. You got to surrender your ambitions, your emotions, your will to the Lord—to His rule—and let His will be yours.

• What part of Jesus Christ and His ministry do you reject? Do you reject the part where He helps others? He speaks out for truth. Do you reject the part where He is being rejected for making a stand? What part of Christ do you reject?
• What part of Jesus Christ is flawed? Have you examined Him? We’d be curious to find out what you think about Him. What part don’t you like about Him? What part is flawed in Jesus Christ?
• What part do you refuse to trust Jesus Christ with? Do you trust Him with your health? You don’t pray before you even go to a doctor? You don’t pray about what’s going on in your body? You don’t think that He is concerned about that?

I don’t know what a person can do, except tell you over and over again—YOU NEED GOD! You need God for salvation, first of all. If you are saved, you need God to live it. We preach and we teach that we should give our body and soul and mind to Him. Is that possible? The Bible says it is . . .

“And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself” (Luke 10:27).

Does it practically work for all of us? It will if you initiate it. Do all of us do it? No. Or if we do it is hit or miss.

Some of you still aren’t getting the money part. So you will continue—continue—to reap that part. If you keep giving your bodies to things you shouldn’t—you’ll reap there also. He is not a bad God, He is a good God—ALL THE TIME!

If you refuse to listen, and you refuse to obey Him by faith—you are going to learn some things the hard way. You may die before you learn it all. But when you get up there you will find out, that those riches that you are putting up in glory up there, they are conducive—they are connected—with your belief down here. Your walk of faith down here. I mean, good night, what if the Lord were to tell you that for ‘reasonable service’ you have to give 90%. Probably none of us would be serving God. We’d be in the poor house or out on the street.

Yoke! You ain’t under the yoke, if you’re doing your own thing. Who does that hurt? You, your family, the church family, it hurts missionaries, hurts everything that has to do with you, because you think that you are so significant. You’re not reading your Bible. You’re not listening to the preaching. You got your mind fixed. Amen.

Lost person, do you need rest? Do you hear Jesus’ offer to you? Why would you wait to receive it? Why reject your only hope? Men, ladies, boys and girls to whom this rest you have already received? Have you neglected the Scriptures and found yourself with unrest?

 

[BaptistBibleBeliever]

Seven questions here . . .

• Have you forgotten Christ’s love for you? The power He gave you to stop playing the wild ass? The peace of assurance you had when you were redeemed. Have you forgotten that?
• Has your pride returned unchecked? You know, the stuff you had before that kept you in trouble, like your mouth? You know, from the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. All you ever talk about is your problems while you whine, and stuff. Nothing about Jesus and how good God has been. Or, how great things you’ve done—not about Jesus working through you to do them? I mean, has your pride returned, unchecked?
• Has your reading Scripture as your daily bread stopped?
• Has your reception of teaching and preaching lost it’s worth? It’s the same old stuff! All the time wanting me to give up stuff! Or to do stuff. That’s all that preacher ever does! Where’s the love? You can’t see no love. You are so far out of the will of God you don’t even know what love is. You want something mushy and emotional? How about some commitment to Christ? How about charity to other people. Those are things that can’t be measured.

You don’t want to serve God, you don’t want to pass out tracts, you don’t read your Bible. You care less if people die and go to hell? And you go to your church and all you hear is how people want you to change. Yea, Duh! When you change things will get better. Preaching will solve problems! You don’t like Bible preaching! It’ll stir you up! It’ll change you! Then you’ll say, ‘Thank God I’m saved!” or if a Christian, “There’s some things I need to change today!” or “Bless God! I’m doing right today!” Hallelujah! There ain’t nothing wrong with that!

Look up the word esteem. How many times it is mentioned in your old King James Bible. How many times? One time! All of our shrink books, everything they teach us in public schools is about self-esteem. God talks about it one time in our Bible, and it’s about esteeming others more than yourself. That’s the context it’s used in. Joy is about Jesus—Others—You, it’s not about You exclusively. When you say, ‘Nobody cares about me!’ You are absolutely right—now go on with your life. Nobody cares about you.

So, once you settle that—okay, fine—now go care about everybody else. Because you don’t care that nobody cares about you, you are going to care about everybody else. Now you feel almost like Jesus did when He was here. Nobody cared about Him, but He cared about everybody else.

See how that reverses a lot of that junk you have in your head. All hard preaching does is put standards and fences to protect you from getting into trouble.

• Has your love for the local church grown cold?
• Has your love for the brethren turned into self-love, self-want, self-satisfaction?
• Has your conversation been unthankful, full of murmuring and complaining?

Seven questions—did you have to say yes to most or all of them? If so, you are deceived and have lost that peace and will increase in unrest, loss of assurance and blessings.

• Your relationships will be chaotic.
• Your rewards will be lost.
• Your position will be shelved on the wall of unworthy vessels.
• You will be a ‘used-to-be’ Christian.
• You used to go to church when the doors were opened.
• You used to get blessed by the teaching and preaching.
• You used to used in reaching souls.

Physically speaking, the best feeling I ever got was when I put my hand in my pocket and pulled out with a wad of money. I’m not talking about this little pimp role, like you had in school. You know you get like thirty or forty dollars and you roll them up and put a twenty dollar bill on the outside—and everybody thinks you are rich. Man! That’s a good feeling! But usually I put my hand in there and all I got is a stupid little knife. And I’m a Christian, so I can’t use it to get me a wad of money, Man! And then I have to pay on a bunch of notes every month—just so I can survive . . . Man! What a mess I am in!

But I have the joy of the Lord in me. That’s amazing!

 

[BaptistBibleBeliever]

What do we need, Christian? We need to wake up!

“Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise” (Ephesians 5:14-15).

“circumspectly”—what does that mean? It means keep your eyes open! Things can take you and hit you broadside, and that is you because you are human. They can not hit God that way. It just doesn’t work that way. He allows the things that happen—never to us, but for us—but if you are walking as a fool, and you are not looking, and you are not separating yourself like you should. Then you are going to get what is going to come to you. That is what He is telling you to do. He’s telling you to wake up!

“Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is” (Ephesians 5:16-17).

See, instead of you complaining about your kids and your family, why don’t you get some Bible verses and do what God tells you to do. Get you some good family books somewhere, read them, and figure out what you are doing wrong—and guess what you got to do—you got to read, you got to devote some time, you got to do what you are supposed to do right—or whatever you are into will continue to go that way until you change. Last time I checked my Bible, the parents were supposed to run the house. Last time I checked my Bible, they are supposed to keep the peace, last time I checked.

And if your kids are not listening to you it’s probably because you developed a pattern where they can not respect you, let alone fear you—because you do nothing consistent. You whine, you cry just like a kid. So if you act like a kid, your kids can’t grow higher than that. That is why a lot times the kids respect other parents more than they respect you. Because you just won’t grow up. You refuse to grow up.

I’m here to tell you, man, you have been out of the yoke. God don’t operate that way. God gives you boldness. God gives you some sense. And above all, what you do have is some wisdom—and that wisdom tells you that you got to have God—and if you are not going to learn, then you are going to go in another direction. Your family will be like way over here, and you are going to focus on you—like you always have been. It’s my fun … it’s my happiness … it’s my stuff … it’s my, my my . . . stop! You’re driving me crazy! Simple stuff. This message is simple, I’m telling you. It’s as simple as I can make it.

The hardest part is just to humble yourself. Just say, “I know I’ve been a mess! I know it, I know it! Good night, I messed up again! God help me! AND THEN START FRESH! You can’t change everything at once, but good night, get a hold of something and stick there.

Can you see Paul? Okay? Now, the Apostle Paul is the one that says, ‘he glories in his infirmities,’ it’s not just his eye problems, this guy’s got problems, plural. And he is glorying in them, why? Because he has learned that in ‘whatsoever state he is in, to be content.’ What else did he know? God told him that ‘His grace was sufficient for him.’ So, God knows where your head it at. If you are messed up with drugs and alcohol, you don’t think He knows what you are missing? If you are half, or three-quarters nuts, you don’t think He knows your nuts? Praise God He knows I’m nuts, but Hallelujah, but He saved me any way!

So what are you going to do? If He is going to save a nut, I got to depend on Him. Thank God! I said that for your benefit—whoever else might be nuts up in here.

“What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's” (I Corinthians 6:19-20).

He owns you. He owns your body.

“And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again” (II Corinthians 5:15).

So, you are not your own. And that verse tells you to live for Him.

“Now I Paul myself beseech you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ, who in presence am base among you, but being absent am bold toward you: But I beseech you, that I may not be bold when I am present with that confidence, wherewith I think to be bold against some, which think of us as if we walked according to the flesh. For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled . . . For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise . . . But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. For not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth” (II Corinthians 10:1-6, 12, 17-18).

 

[BaptistBibleBeliever]

It's about you and God—not about you and other people. So, you got bought with a price, you’re not your own, so live for Him, He gets the glory.

See, some people still think this is a game. Some spend their entire lives believing that Christianity is a game. It’s not a game, people. God takes this thing very seriously, even if we don’t. He’s trying to develop us in the sense that we have faith in Him that He can provide. And He asks a few little requirements just to get your feet a little wet as you go through this ocean of faith, so that you can see that He is in control.

So, you got to understand—living by faith—you trust what He says, and you act upon it. That’s faith. “Without faith it is impossible to please God.” Whether with your money, your life, or whatever—it’s about faith. It’s about knowing Him, His presence.

“Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God” (Romans 6:13).

“Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?” (Romans 6:16)

In conclusion . . .

In the day in which we live, preachers are no longer seen as a lifeguard, sitting on a high seat in a tower with binoculars, watching for sharks, and other things in the water. The same as in Scripture where they are seen as watching out for wolves. And there are Scriptures speaking about the elders in a church and what they are supposed to be doing in protecting the church, but today they don’t do that. You see, warning people about what is coming down is supposed to be part of the pulpit—the message. And God has given us a lot of illustrations and examples throughout the Word of God of what takes place. People have stopped preaching and warning from the pulpit. People have gone to psychology and trying to build people up in their head—forgetting that it is all about the inside. It’s all about God’s Spirit on the inside. It’s all about the Word of God on the inside. It’s all about God’s power on the inside coming out.

People are trying to build up the outside—and they are buying it!

“Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon” (Isaiah 55:6-7).

“. . . for he will abundantly pardon.” – My goodness! I mean, do you even know He is here? If you do, you need to return to Him—that’s all there is to it! Just return, get your head together. Get it screwed on right, or something.

And those that are lost, man! Jesus said, “Come unto me.” Yes, He did. Just come to me, to be saved—or you come to be right. You can do nothing without Him. You can’t go to heaven without Him. You are a mess without Him.

Israel is the sign to the world on the history that God has planned. They are a sign to all of us. They are a calendar. There are things coming down so quick as to remove, probably, all your material junk and you are going to be left with whatever you are left with. I’m left with the Lord, and so far I am left with the Bible. Hallelujah!

 

[MessageOfTheCross]

Come unto Me (is meant by Jesus to reveal Himself as the Giver of Salvation), all you who labor and are heavy laden (trying to earn Salvation by works), and I will give you rest (this "rest" can only be found by placing one's Faith in Christ and what He has done for us at the Cross [Gal. 5:1-6]).

Take My yoke upon you (the "yoke" of the "Cross" [Lk. 9:23]), and learn of Me (learn of His Sacrifice [Rom. 6:3-5]); for I am meek and lowly in heart (the only thing that our Lord Personally said of Himself): and ye shall find rest unto your souls (the soul can find rest only in the Cross).

For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light (what He requires of us is very little, just to have Faith in Him, and His Sacrificial Atoning Work). Matthew 11:28-30

Let Jesus pull the load!

JSM

 

[BaptistBibleBeliever]

Now, we know that there are some amongst us that believe that coming to Jesus is ‘our part’ of the transaction called salvation, and the taking the yoke is their part in the same transaction. Maybe Jesus does His part, say 10% and then the sinner continues to do his part, the remaining 90%. Well, that is NOT what this verse is teaching at all. Jesus Christ does His part which is 100% of the price of our salvation, and then He allows us to serve Him in this life—but the yoke-taking is our insurance against drifting back into this present evil world from which we have been redeemed. If we are bound together with Christ so that we are forced to walk with Him, side-by-side, through life’s challenges we will have less of struggle discerning what would Jesus do in any given situation. Read on, reader—it will become apparent.

And here we have one . . .