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God Gives Us the Greatest Invitations!
The Gospel of Matthew
Matthew 11:28-30; Hebrews 3:7-19; Hebrews 4:1-2
Sermon by Rick Crandall
(Prepared March 8, 2022)
MESSAGE:
*Think about the greatest invitation you could ever receive.
For many people it would be an invitation for the best seats at the World Series.
For others it would be for the best seats at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, or the 2023 Super Bowl in Phoenix.
For many others it would be front row seats to hear their favorite singer in concert.
*But all of those invitations put together times a million couldn't begin to compare to the invitation Jesus gives us in these verses.
The Lord gives us the most important, most valuable invitation the world will ever hear.
Jesus said:
28.
Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
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 souls.
30.
For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.''
*This is the Lord's great invitation for us.
How should we respond?
1. FIRST: WE MUST COME TO JESUS CHRIST.
*In vs. 28, Jesus calls out and says, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
God calls people to come to Him.
He calls people to salvation and safety.
Here are a few more wonderful examples:
-In Genesis 7:1, "The LORD said to Noah, 'Come into the ark, you and all your household, because I have seen that you are righteous before Me in this generation.'"
-In Isaiah 1:18 the LORD says, "Come now, and let us reason together, though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as wool."
-John 7:37-38 also tells us that "On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, 'If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.''
*Jesus calls people to come to Him. "Come to Me!" Jesus said.
Church, that was not some ho-hum, laid-back request.
It was a passionate plea from Jesus to come to the only one who can save us, the only one who can give us ultimate rest forever!
*Jesus wants us to come to Him.
That's why God even gave us an invitation in the last chapter of the Bible.
Revelation 22:17 tells us that "The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!''
And let him who hears say, "Come!''
And let him who thirsts come.
And whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely."
*God calls out for all people to come to Jesus Christ.
And we know this because 1 Timothy 2:3-6 tells us that God our Savior "desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time."
*Through His Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ is here right now, calling out for you to come to Him.
I promise you that Jesus is here.
*Robert Beringer told the story of Mark and Susan Thomas.
Years ago, they were transferred to the Middle East by Mobil Oil.
Mark and Susan were excited about experiencing a new culture, but also worried about religious restrictions in their new country.
*On Easter Sunday morning, Mark and Susan held a worship service in their home, and invited some other Christians.
As they worshiped, two police officers burst in and warned them to stop holding services or risk getting kicked out of the country.
*But when the officers later wrote their reports, they couldn't agree on the number of people in the Thomas' home.
The younger policeman counted one extra person.
He insisted that there had been a man "with a radiant look on his face" standing in the corner.
*That night the young officer dreamed that this man appeared to him again and said, "Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am right there in the middle of them."
(1)
*You probably won't see Him, but through His Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ is here!
He is reaching out to you today, and He says, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
The Savior wants to give you rest: Spiritual rest, emotional rest, eternal rest, every kind of rest you will ever need.
But we must come to Jesus Christ.
That's how to respond to the Lord's invitation.
2. WE ALSO MUST SERVE TOGETHER WITH OUR SAVIOR.
*This is what the Lord urges us to do in vs. 29, when He said, "Take My yoke upon you."
King Duncan explained that "Most of us can visualize the kind of yoke Jesus had in mind.
It was a kind of wooden crossbar with two U-shaped pieces that went underneath the necks of a pair of oxen."
(2)
*So, Jesus invites us to get in the yoke with Him.
He is asking us to make ourselves available to the right master.
You see, whether you know it or not, you are going to have to serve somebody.
On the wrong side, it may be sin or selfishness, ambition, pride, fun, fame or money.
It could be some false religion or even Satan himself.
Those ways lead to destruction.
*The only right choice is to serve the Lord!
Get in the harness with Jesus.
Again in vs. 29 Jesus said, "Take My yoke upon you."
Then in vs. 30 He also said, "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.''
*William Ritter asked, "What does Jesus mean by the words 'light and easy?' Are we talking 'easy' as in lots of slack and wiggle room?
Walk with Jesus four days out of seven?
Live the Christian life nine months out of twelve, and take the summers off?
Get a discount on the Ten Commandments?
Keep any six out of ten?
*No.
'Easy' does not mean 'soft.'
The Christian life is anything but soft.
'Easy' means 'tailored' or 'well-fitting'. .
."
Those wooden yokes weren't mass produced like most everything is today.
They were expertly carved and smoothed to fit a particular animal just right.
No doubt this was some of the work Jesus did when He served in his father's carpentry shop.
So what Jesus is saying is that 'My yoke for you fits you well, because it was especially designed just for you.'"
(3)
*Brett Blair helped us understand through a legend about Jesus before He started His ministry.
The legend said Jesus was a master carpenter in those days.
People came from miles around for a yoke to be hand carved and crafted by Joseph's adopted son.
*When they arrived, Jesus would spend much time measuring the team: Their height, the width, the space between them, and the size of their shoulders.
Then, a week later, the animals would be brought back, and Jesus would carefully place the new yoke over their shoulders.
He looked for rough places and shaped them perfectly to fit that particular team of oxen.
*Brett Blair explained that "The yoke Jesus invites us to take brings rest to our weary souls, because it was made exactly for our lives and hearts.
His yokes were always designed for two, and our yoke-partner is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself!"
This truth led Lawrence Richards to say, "Being yoked to Jesus doesn't mean so much that we take on His burdens, but that He pulls alongside us, to take on ours."
Praise the Lord! (4)
*But also understand that Jesus asks us to get in the yoke with Him, because there is work to be done.
There is a cross for us, and there's a cause for us.
We must be committed to the cause of Jesus Christ!
*In today Scripture Jesus passionately called for people to come to Him.
Now, it's our job to call people to Christ.
That's why Revelation 22:17 tells us "The Spirit and the bride say, 'Come!'" Christians: The "bride" is us!
We are the Bride of Christ, working together with the Holy Spirit, calling people to come to Jesus Christ.
We must serve together with our Savior.
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