Standalone Matt 11:28-30 Sermon Manu

An easy life isn’t an option; an easy yoke is.9 (JMC, 86-88)

In the four Gospel accounts given to us in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and Johh--eighty-nine chapters of biblical text--there’s only one place where Jesus tells us about his own heart. (Gentle & Lowly, 7)

So, we should be perfectly clear about one thing: Jesus never expected us simply to turn the other cheek, go the second mile, bless those who persecute us, give unto them that ask, and so forth. These responses, generally and rightly understood to be characteristic of Christlikeness, were set forth by him as illustrative of what might be expected of a new kind of person—one who intelligently and steadfastly seeks, above all else, to live within the rule of God and be possessed by the kind of righteousness that God himself has, as Matthew 6:33 portrays.

Willard, Dallas. The Spirit of the Disciplines (pp. 7-8). HarperOne. Kindle Edition.

Oswald Chambers observes: “The Sermon on the Mount is not a set of principles to be obeyed apart from identification with Jesus Christ. The Sermon on the Mount is a statement of the life we will live when the Holy Spirit is getting his way with us.”

It’s like telling a drowning man that he must put on the burden of a life reserver only to hear him shout back sputtering “no way! Not me! This is hard enough, drowning here in these stormy waters. The last thing I need is the added burden of a life preserver around my body!”

What helium does to a balloon, Jesus’s yoke does to his followers. We are buoyed along in life by his endless gentleness and supremely accessible lowliness.

Intro/Welcome

Labor Day

celebrated for over 120 years

Recognizing American’s workers achievements and social advances

specifically achieving labor right in a time where people and children as young as 5 would work 12 hours a day for 7 days a week.

In the name of economic success and progress, basic human rights were being violated.

They had gone against God’s created order.

God had written a day of rest into the very creation of the universe.

You and I were meant to work, but we were also meant to rest.

Today we celebrate american workers,

we enjoy 5 day work weeks, 8 hour days, reasonable wages

things all rooted in the basic imago dei.

Outline 3

Title: Living a Rest-filled life.

FCF: we can’t rest

Intro/Welcome

The meaning of Labor Day

The dignity of work and need for rest.

Rest commanded by God, written into the created order

Can we find rest in our work?

How do we live rest-filled lives?

Pray

Come to me

First step is to Come to Jesus

or come back to Him.

His Promise: I will give you rest.

This is soul rest

a rest from ‘works righteousness’

in that day the ‘yoke’ of the pharisees where the unrelenting demands of the law.

Jesus rebukes them.

from striving for meaning, purpose, trying to justify your life

We come to everything but Jesus (hindrances to rest)

in our day we are seeking everything but Jesus for this kind of rest — or shaloam — wholness, peace

Addiction, drugs, porn — Escape.

Come to Jesus “and I will give you rest”

Why?

We have an enemy — intent on keep us distracted

before we meet christ his goal is to keep is from coming tot he King, after it is to keep us from serving the king.

Sinful Flesh — we have a natural tendency to curve everything back to being about us. Serving ourselves

The World — anti God, Anti Jesus ready to offer us anything and everything to escape the burdens of live.

And we fall for it — the ultimate ‘click bait’

Clickbait is a text or a thumbnail link that is designed to attract attention and to entice users to follow that link and read, view, or listen to the linked piece of online content, being typically deceptive, sensationalized, or otherwise misleading

So first step (always) is to Come to Jesus, or come back to Jesus.

How tragic it is that we all have a pantry full of food but are starving becuase we refuse to come to the one place to be fed

Jesus is gentle and lowly

ortlund: the only place in the NT where Jesus tells us his heart, his core nature. from his own mouth.

The great news is Jesus is the most approachable person in the universe

he is not harsh, he is not vindictiave, he is not standoffish he is not concieted

he is welcoming

He does not have a ‘pointed finger or crossed arms’ but open arms and open hands ready to welcome you.

just as you are.

You don’t have to unburden to come to him, it is the burden itself that qaulifies you to come to him,

Ortlund Quote:

“For all his resplendent glory and dazzling holiness, his supreme uniqueness and otherness, no one in human history has ever been more approachable thanJesus Christ…The minimum bar to be enfolded into the embrace of Jesus is simply: open yourself up to him. It is all he needs. Indeed, it is the only thing that he works with…You don’t need to unburden or collect yourself and then come to Jesus. Your very burden is what qualifies you to come. No payment is required; he says “I will give you rest.”

So, Come to Him, Come to Jesus, come back to him,

and he will give you rest.

A Discipled life

having come to him, which is step one, now he calls you to:

take up my yoke and learn from me.

Take up my Yoke

Yoke — rabbinic teaching — a disciple would take up a yoke of teaching and way of life

So to take up the yoke of Jesus is to commit to following Him.

It is to commit yourself to his teaching and his way of life

Think about a yoke — you are literally yoked to Jesus

connected to Him.

Learn from me

Having committed to following Jesus, now you need to learn from him

This is learniing his teaching and his way of life

Think about a yoke:

two oxen yoked together to carry a load

The bigger oxen will carry most of the load

The bigger oxen also controls the way

The goal is to be in step . This is how a yoke works best.

get to far ahead and it will restrict you

Drag to far behind and it will pull you p

try to go your own way and it will bring you back.

Learning from Jesus is learning how to keep in step with him

how to live as he lived

go where he goes

So to learn from Jesus is to listen to his teaching and to follow his way of life.

Paul 1 Cor 11:1 “1 Imitate me, as I also imitate Christ.”

This is how discipleship worked in that day.

you would listen to the teaching and you would follow your rabbi around

This is what the disciples did.

OBJECTION: They had the privelege of walking with Jesus, you and I don’t.

Answer: Ah, but we do in an even more intimate way

We have the gospel accounts written by those who walked clostly with Jesus

so we have his teaching and a picture of his life

it’s as if we are walking with them

It’s why we are going through the Gospel of Mark.

But we also have the Holy Spirit — and empowering presence that reminds us of who Jesus is, what he taught and what he accomplished for us. He also guides us and empowers us for living.

a supernatural yoke?

So what did Jesus teach? How did Jesus live?

we’ll be looking at that.

He taught the heart of the law — ultimately he was pointing us to himself

How did he live?

he knew the word

he prayed often (publically & privately)

he took naps (in the storm)

he went into silence and solitude

He knew the father and did what he said

He practiced the sabbath

JMC stats on taking a sabbath

He was in community with others.

These are what are called the spiritual disciplines

and they are not a spiritual barometer of maturity, they are a way of life that leads to rest.

Illustration of training vs. trying

Free throws in practice and free throws in the game

Dallas willard quote / JMC quote.

SD’s prepare us for life so when the burdens and heaviness comes — we are ready

the olympian doesn’t just show up on game day

they spent a life training

it’s the same spiritually.

Rest is achieved through this kind of effort

Setting the sails — as it were.

We will find rest

Jesus promises to give us rest and he does

but when we commit to follow him and learn form him

we too will discover rest, we will find the very rest that he gives.

Does our life look like that?

Are we training for spiritual health? or just trying for it in moments of desperation.

Question: What if i’m already in the thick of things?

good news — start small.

start walking with Jesus.

Come to HIM, learn from him

he will give you rest.

then take up his yoke and learn from him.

We do this best as a community following Jesus together.

in community groups // this is the nature of the church.

His yoke is easy (kind) his burden is light

his yoke is custom fitted — it fits right, it is kind, easy

burden is light — he is the greater oxen and will carry the weight

we simply have to learn to keep in step with him and see where he might take us.

shoot he may let us drive. often he does, but he is there with us.

he went all the way even to his own death — becuase he yoked himself to us.

but he has the power to rise up, to overcome, to resurrection

and now we can follow him, becuase even our sin can’t defeat him

doesn’t keep him away.

Application

Come to Jesus — wherever you are

he is gentle and lowly — he will not cast you away (John 6)

come back to him

Commit to being his disciple — take his yoke

it is fitted for you, it is kind, it is light.

you are yoked to something if not him.

Learn from Him how to live

join us as we travel for the gospel of Mark

and become disciples of Jesus.

Do this together.

get in community with others for this journey.