An Easy Yoke and a Light Burden

Introduction

How would you describe the teachings of Jesus? Taken as a whole, in one or two words, how would you describe Jesus’ teaching? We could use the words of those first century witnesses that heard him and say authority or powerful. We could use the word comforting at times, couldn’t we? We could use the word profound. Inspired or divine might be a word that you would choose. But one word I think we can all agree upon, at times at least, to describe the teachings of Jesus would be the word challenging. Sometimes they are challenging, challenging on two levels. Sometimes they may be challenging to understand or to interpret. Exactly what did you mean, Lord, when you said this? But also challenging in their application. It might be that you completely understand what Jesus is asking of you, but that’s the problem.

I understand it.

But it may be difficult to put into practice in my life. One such teaching, I think, is in the book of Matthew, chapter 11. Will you get your New Testaments and go with us to Matthew chapter 11 as this familiar text? And the basis for the song that we just sang together. And I think if we examine this text or just think about this text in Matthew 11, verses 28 through 30, we have to come away with a conclusion that this is challenging. Challenging maybe on both of those levels.

What did you mean, Lord, when you said your yoke is easy and your burden is light? Read the words again to refresh your memory. Matthew 11, beginning in verse 28, Jesus said, Come to me. All you who labor and 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 hearts, and you will find rest for your souls. Up to that point we have no problem, do we?

1. What Do You Mean, Easy and Light?

That, can’t we? There’s nothing challenging or difficult to understand about that because if you’ve lived one minute in this life, you’ve been heavy laden and weary. And coming to a loving Savior. It’s a wonderful invitation to be extended and hopefully accepted. But it’s the last verse I want us to talk about this morning. Verse 30 goes on to say, Jesus does, my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. And we just begin with the I think the obvious question. What do you mean, easy and light? This is the challenge. Because this comes from the mouth of the same Lord and teacher who said, unless you hate father and mother, brother and sister, and husband and wife more than me, you’re not worthy of me. That doesn’t sound easy.

The same Lord taught that you are to deny yourself and to take up your cross, which was a symbol of death, and follow me. That doesn’t sound light. And so what do you mean, my yoke is easy and my burden is light? And then we think about real life cases. We think about the Apostle Paul. Apostle Paul, was your yoke easy? Was your burden light? He told the Philippian brethren all that he had given up, a promising career in Judaism. He listed, you remember there in the book of Philippians, he listed his pedigree or his resume of all the things that were his that he counted, he would say, I counted them but loss for Christ. Okay, Paul, you gave all of that up. What did you get in exchange?

Turn with me in your New Testament to the book of 2 Corinthians. Paul, what did you get in exchange for all that you gave up to become a Christian and to serve Jesus? 2 Corinthians 11, begin your reading in verse 23. Of his opponents he said, 2 Corinthians 11, verse 23, of his opponents he said, Are they ministers of Christ? I speak as a fool.

In labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. From the Jews, five times I’ve received forty stripes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. A night and a day I’ve been in the deep, and journeys often, in perils of waters, and perils of robbers and perils of my own countrymen, and in perils of the Gentiles, and perils in the city, in the perils of wilderness, and the perils of the sea, and the perils among false brethren, in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness, besides the other things, what comes upon me daily, my deep concern for all the churches.

Now tell me, does that sound easy and light? And what about all the early Christians? The sacrifices that we read that they had to make in order to serve Christ faithfully. And what they got in exchange. They got poverty. They got imprisonment. They too got beatings and stonings and being put to death. Things that we take for granted, just assembling on the first day of the week would have put them in great peril and jeopardy. Does that sound easy? Does that sound light? And even today, we may not face those kinds, in 21st century America at least, those kinds of perils and persecutions and sacrifices. But modern day life has its own set of challenges, its own set of burdens for the Christian, its own yoke that has to be placed upon our neck.

And we could make our own list this morning. It may not compare to Paul’s, but we could make our own list and say that doesn’t look real easy. That doesn’t seem light.

2. Not by Refusing to Bear It or Halfway Doing It

And so let’s accept the challenge of Jesus’ statement when he says, Come unto me, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. And let’s think about in what sense. How can it be said that Christianity, that accepting Jesus and the responsibility and the sacrifices that he places upon us, how can it reasonably be said that they are easy and light? Let’s begin with the negative, not by refusing to bear it. I fear that for many Christians, Christianity is easy and light because they don’t pick it up. That we just become a Christian in name only, and we never accept the yoke and the burden. And so it may seem light to us because we’re not really making any sacrifices. We’re not really facing any challenges.

3. Assuming the Attitude of Jesus Christ

We really haven’t changed who we are. We were a worldly sinner, and now we’re a worldly sinner who goes to church. That’s not the way we make this yoke easy in this burden light. And ironically, it’s not made easy and light by just halfway doing it. Because strangely as it might sound, it is true that trying to live the life of a Christian halfway will actually make the yoke seem tighter and the burden heavier. And so the way to make this burden easy and light begins by making a wholehearted commitment to Christ by putting our all into it. And it is made easy and light by assuming the attitude of Jesus Christ. Go with me back to Matthew chapter 11. Jesus gave us a clue in that text.

When he says, Come unto me, ye who are weary and heavy laden, and I’ll give you rest. And again, the irony is I’ll give you rest by giving you a yoke and a burden. But a yoke and a burden that are easy and light. And I believe it even tells us how they can be seen as easy and light. Are you back in Matthew 11, verses 28 through 30? Look at the middle verse, verse 29. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me.

For I am gentle and lowly in heart. And you will find rest for your soul. Don’t miss those important words. It’s not just come unto me and I’ll give you rest. It’s not just and I’m giving you a yoke and a burden, but it’s easy and light. I think the key to the whole passage is Jesus saying, Come and learn from me. And when we do that, and only when we do that, do we have a proper perspective of this yoke and this burden. Paul used similar language in a familiar text in Philippians chapter 2. Turn over to Philippians chapter 2 and begin with me in verse 5. And before we read the words of the Apostle Paul, who himself had a yoke and a burden.

Let the words of Jesus echo in your ears as you read the words of Paul. Jesus said, Come and learn from me. The apostle says, Philippians 2 verse 5, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. Who being in the form of God did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation. And taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men, and being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death and to the death of the cross. Jesus didn’t just say, come and enjoy my rest. He says, Come and learn from me, for I am meek and lowly in heart. I think Jesus is saying, that’s how the yoke is easy and the burden is light.

If you learn from, if you’ll have the attitude, or as Paul would say, have the mind of Christ in being meek and lowly in heart. In other words, empty yourself of yourself. And the burden becomes light. And notice what he says beginning in verse 9 of Philippians 2, verse Philippians chapter 2. And verse 9, therefore God has also highly exalted him and given him the name which is above every name. That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, and those in heaven and those on earth and those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Christ Jesus is Lord to the glory of the Father. Jesus said, I am gentle and lowly in heart. Paul says, You have this mind, which was the mind of Christ, you humble yourself, you bear the burden, you wear the yoke, and God will exalt you.

4. God Does Not Ask Too Much of Us

And the burden is light because, first of all, God does not ask too much of us. The familiar refrain of the rebellious child is that’s not fair. You’re requiring too much. You’re asking too much. But in reality, God has not asked too much of us. That when he says, love me with all your heart, soul, mind, and being.

When he says, deny yourself and take up your own cross and follow after me. That’s not too much. And the burden is light, and the yoke is easy in comparison to what God has done for us and will do for us. And maybe this is key in understanding light and easy. It’s all relative, isn’t it? I struggled in coming up with an illustration, and this illustration struggles because we’re all different financially. And so let’s see if we can make it apply to all of us. You think, rather than me giving you a dollar amount, you come up with a dollar amount. What’s an amount of money that would be difficult for you to scrounge up? If you cleared out all of your accounts, sold everything you had of value, bummed and borrowed from family and loved ones, how much money could you come up with?

And struggle to come up with? That number differs for all of us, doesn’t it? But think about how much that would be. What’s your dollar amount? And if I ask you, is that a lot of money? Whatever that number is, you would say yes. Because you just said I’d have to clear all of my accounts, sell everything, and borrow from a lot of people. Yes, that’s a lot of money. But what if I told you that if you could do that? If you could in a week’s time amass that dollar figure that you just visualized, that in exchange, you could get 10 million dollars. Now, is that a lot of money? You see, the perspective changes when the comparison comes into play, doesn’t it? It’s a lot of money if I’m just thinking about the money itself, but if I’m thinking about it in comparison to what I receive.

Then it doesn’t seem that large. And so does God ask a lot of his followers? He just asked for everything. That’s a lot.

But is that heavy? Is that tight? Not in comparison to what God has done for you. And not in comparison to what he will do for you. We started off, go with me to the book of 2 Corinthians, chapter 4. We started off talking about Paul. Paul was your burden. What did you give up? And what did you get in exchange to become a Christian and an apostle? He told us what he got in exchange. Did that sound like an easy and light burden? It didn’t sound easy and light to me at first reading. But what if we ask Paul? Paul, you just listed how many times you were beaten and stoned and imprisoned and left for dead and all the other things that you’re having to bear to be an apostle.

Paul, was that light? We don’t have to ask him. He’s already told us. 2 Corinthians chapter 4, verse 17, he says, for our light affliction. Which is but for a moment. Now we would pause there and remind you that that’s 2 Corinthians, the same epistle where he listed that list that we read earlier. I’ve been beaten this many times, I’ve been stoned, I’ve been left for dead, I’ve been put in prison, I’ve done all. He lists that grocery list of persecutions and burdens. And in the exact same letter, Paul says, our light affliction. How can that be light? He goes on to say, which is working for us a far more and exceeding and eternal weight of glory. While we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen.

For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal. Looked at in a vacuum, what Paul experienced as a Christian was a heavy burden. But when put on the other end of the scale to an eternity in heaven with God, Paul could honestly say it’s a light affliction. Paul lived out the invitation, come unto me, and I’ll give you rest. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

5. Because We Love Him

Turn with you to the book of 1 John, chapter 5. Parents, especially parents of young children. If you want to depress yourself after services, don’t do it now, not just because we’re having internet trouble, because you need to pay attention. But after services, Google, how much will it cost to raise a child from birth to 18? And see that dollar amount. It’ll depress you. And you’ll think, I don’t have that much money. Why would I spend that much money on another human being? And you get to thinking, if I didn’t have kids, I could keep that money. Or I could use that money for me stuff. But what every good godly parent realizes is that we do it again. Those of us with grown children would even do it again today, factoring in the cost of living, wouldn’t we?

Why? Love.

Conclusion

Look what he says in 1 John 5, verse 2. By this we know that we love the children of God when we love God and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. They’re easy and light, John said. It’s a light affliction, Paul said. Why? In comparison to what we get when we are like the Son when we are glorified after our humiliation and in seeing in comparison to the love that we have for God. It’s light. Because we love Him so. As John would remind us, because He first loved us. Are you a Christian this morning? If not, you need to know two things. In addition to what you need to do in order to be saved, you need to know two things.

Number one is sacrifices are going to have to be made. Commandments are going to have to be kept. But it’s an easy yoke. And it’s a light burden. When you learn from Christ to be gentle and lowly in heart and to fully commit yourself to the cause and to remember the glory that follows and always doing it in love. The invitation that Jesus extended almost two thousand years ago still stands today. Are you weary? Are you heavy burdened? Jesus says, Come to me, and I’ll give you rest. Would you respond to that gospel call this morning? Can we help you in any way? Why not let it be known right now as together we stand and as we sing?

When I was lost in sin of wondrous grace that brought me back to his fold again.