Gentle and Lowly

TENSION NEEDING REDEMPTION:

Life can leave us weary and heavy laden, and we are left wondering how can I truly find rest and hope?

CENTRAL TRUTH EXPRESSED (MAIN POINT):

The heart of Jesus is for you

GOD'S HEART REVEALED:

God wants us to know the true nature of His Son

OUR RIGHT RESPONSE:

1 | How have I experienced the tension?

As we began this series Revive Us, we have been seeking and asking God, what do we do to posture ourselves in a place to receive your reviving touch in us and through us…

Discovering that the Spirit of God is both the one who gives us breath, sustains our breath, and desires to draw us near to realize our heart of desperation.

Last week, we focused on the fear of the Lord, because without the right understanding of the Father, and how we approach Him we miss out on our desperate need of Him and go after wisdom on our own terms.

and yall got that free book by Michael Reeves.

tonight’s message is rooted in what God has taught me through another book, called Gentle and Lowly. Over the last year this has been the most important book I read over the last year.

im not the only one, late last year a family who was deeply touched by this book and decided to give a bunch of copies to churches across America. So at the end of the evening tonight please grab a free copy. I would love for each of us to savor this book, each chapter is about a ten minute read. And there’s about forty chapters in it.

Think right now about what it has felt like when you feel emotionally and spiritually thirsty or hungry. When you sense your desperate need for the reviving touch of God… and sometimes you don't even know if you trust him enough to want to…

Maybe that is how you are feeling right now, or maybe you just call that Wednesday.

I know that for me the last few years have felt very wearying…

Just one difficulty after the next.

2 | How have you experienced this tension?

I for sure do not want to bring everyone down emotionally, but tonight’s message is meant as a gift for those who are frustrated, weary, discouraged, disenchanted, dry, empty, suffering, or hurting….

If you are in an awesome place, great! Put this one in your back pocket, maybe go back to the podcast and listen to this next time you are in those spaces.

If you are in that space here is what it is vitally important that you understand and believe tonight…

MAIN IDEA: The heart of Jesus is for you

You already know that? Hoping for something more helpful?

Tonight my hope is that you and I would both be utterly convinced of this reality from the core of the being of Jesus to the core of our beings.

Because any other option… 3 steps to feel better. Would just be a band aid solution.

It would be like if we were out on a hike and we only had a few sips of water between us and so you take a sip, you are grateful for it, but before it has even descended your throat you are still thirsty.

Tonight we get to discover the living water, that promises to have you never thirst again…

3 | What do the Scriptures say about this tension?

Go ahead and open your bible to Matthew 11

At this point in Jesus in His life and ministry, things are not peaceful.

One of the most significant realities is that those who are sympathetic to his ministry are greatly disturbed because another known teacher John the Baptist who is Jesus cousin is in chains in Jerusalem for speaking out against the moral corruption of the king of Israel.

Have you ever been at the place where you thought things would go swimmingly, but now you are looking at the path ahead and you are wondering if you took a wrong turn somewhere?

This was John and his disciples. So John says “Are you the one who is to come or shall we look for another?” Did we misunderstand you, because this doesn’t feel like victory right now…

Jesus is speaking to weary souls.

Jesus tells them to bring back word of the incredible movement that is beginning, miracles are occurring on the reg and the Gospel is advancing.

In other words, the chapter you are in is dangerous, but the book you are in is safe.

So they take off, and then Jesus begins to teach and specifically begins to call out spaces of darkness in the world around them. He doesn’t mince words… but he is offering hope to those who want to see God’s justice come to pass…

Jesus is still speaking to weary souls

Read Matthew 11:28-30

Matthew 11:28–30 ESV

Come to me, all 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 heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Jesus is still speaking to weary souls

Can you close your eyes for a moment and meditate on this with me…

Read Matthew 11:28

Matthew 11:28 ESV

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

He is preaching to weary souls.

This was a crowd that believed, but through the school of hard knocks is processing their exhaustion, grief, and longing to see better days ahead.

But how will he give us rest?

Read Matthew 11:29

Matthew 11:29 ESV

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.

now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciplThe concept of a yoke is not exactly the most relevant metaphor for us today, but in an agrarian society a yoke was a vital part of everyday life. This is why for rabbis like Jesus their teachings, their way of doing life, of thinking about life, their ethics, their worldview was called a yoke.

A yoke for cattle is a directing force that is placed on the back of the animal and as they walk they are guided into the proper direction by the farmer.

No matter how much we fight it, we each have a yoke on us, the question is which one?

We have the yoke of the teachings of the culture around us, from the left and right. The yoke of our family. Societal expectations. Religious expectations, etc.

We are not nearly as individual as we think we are. Even the concept of modern individualism is itself a yoke, a way of thinking that we put on.

Jesus says though, if you are weary. Heavy laden.

There is a better yoke. His.

And as we put that yoke on, and allow his teaching to transform our hearts and minds, our imagination and our worldview, we are truly abiding with Him.

But the cost is high. The cost is putting aside what you think is best or good, and putting our faith in the one who guides us.

How do we know that he is trustworthy though?

“I am gentle and lowly in heart.”

In the Scriptures we discover much about Jesus. We discover his passions, hopes, character, resolve, bravery, integrity, the reality that he is both the perfect human and also fully God.

But in this moment, Jesus gives us a window into his heart.

This window was his gift to the Jewish audience who stood in front of him, those who were grieving the imprisonment of John, those who thought the Messiah would already overthrow the Roman oppressors, those who were disenchanted, hurting, battle weary.

If you can relate with that audience then this is the same gift that is offered to you tonight.

He is gentle and lowly in heart.

Let’s work from the end to the beginning of that statement.

In the Jewish imagination, the heart was not a part of who the person is, it was the core of who that person is.

Have you ever seen Russian Nesting Dolls?

These are some fun ones I just bought for Abi so that I could use it for this example…

Imagine that instead of animals each of these represented various character traits of Jesus.

But as we pear deeper and deeper into his being, his heart, his core… he is gentle and lowly

Before we unpack those two words, we have to truly believe the heart piece.

It does not mean that Jesus is nothing other than what is at his core, but that everything outside of his center derives from the center.

He is gentle and lowly.

Read Matthew 11:28-29

Matthew 11:28–29 ESV

Come to me, all 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 heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

Gentle… this Greek word is used three other times in the NT. It is translated as meek (the meek will inherit the earth), humble (Jesus would come into Jerusalem humble riding on a donkey) and gentle (when Peter encourages wives to embrace the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit)

Gentle.

Do you want Jesus to exclusively be a warrior? He for sure cares about Justice, read Revelation. But at his center, his heart, he is gentle.

He is not looking at one person on earth looking to respond out of harshness or with quick overreactions. He is gentle.

I like how Dane Ortland writes this… “The posture most natural to Jesus is not a pointed finger but open arms”

Lowly….

Lowly. Usually this Greek word is translated humble. But not typically humility the virtue, but to be humbled… to be brought low. Usually to be humbled is when someone else brings you low…

What he is getting at is the truth that he is accessible.

Jesus is accessible.

Jesus came down into our reality.

Who loved getting called to the pricinpals office?

It’s terrifying.

Some of you are afraid of coming to Jesus because of that same dread.

Grace only sticks to your imperfections. Your burden qualifies you to come to Jesus.

But here is the truth, he didn’t just call you to Himself, but by His Spirit He has drawn you to Himself.

He came in your direction while you were far off in a distant land.

Read Matthew 11:28-29

Matthew 11:28–29 ESV

Come to me, all 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 heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

But here is the reality… this is not for everybody.

You can stand apart from Him, you can refuse His yoke. You can refuse to come to Him you who are heavy laden. You who are disenchanted. You who prefer your way over the way of Jesus.

The heart of Jesus is for suffers and sinners.

Those who realize their deep and abiding need of Jesus.

Those who realize they are desperate for a drink of water that can truly quench their thirst.

If that is the case for you then this is His heart for you.

We get this image in John 4 of what it looked like for a person who was in the midst of her brokenness coming to Jesus…

I am reading this from The Voice Translation…

5-8 In a small Samaritan town known as Sychar, Jesus and His entourage stopped to rest at the historic well that Jacob gave his son Joseph. It was about noon when Jesus found a spot to sit close to the well while the disciples ventured off to find provisions. From His vantage, He watched as a Samaritan woman approached to draw some water. Unexpectedly He spoke to her.

Jesus: Would you draw water, and give Me a drink?

Woman: 9 I cannot believe that You, a Jew, would associate with me, a Samaritan woman; much less ask me to give You a drink.

Jews, you see, have no dealings with Samaritans.

Also, a man never approaches a woman like this in public. Jesus is breaking accepted social barriers with this confrontation.

Jesus: 10 You don’t know the gift of God or who is asking you for a drink of this water from Jacob’s well. Because if you did, you would have asked Him for something greater; and He would have given you the living water.

Woman: 11 Sir, You sit by this deep well a thirsty man without a bucket in sight. Where does this living water come from? 12 Are You claiming superiority to our father Jacob who labored long and hard to dig and maintain this well so that he could share clean water with his sons, grandchildren, and cattle?

Jesus: 13 Drink this water, and your thirst is quenched only for a moment. You must return to this well again and again. 14 I offer water that will become a wellspring within you that gives life throughout eternity. You will never be thirsty again.

Woman: 15 Please, Sir, give me some of this water, so I’ll never be thirsty and never again have to make the trip to this well.

Jesus: 16 Then bring your husband to Me.

Woman: 17-18 I do not have a husband.

Jesus: Technically you are telling the truth. But you have had five husbands and are currently living with a man you are not married to.

Woman: 19 Sir, it is obvious to me that You are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped here on this mountain, but Your people say that Jerusalem is the only place for all to worship. Which is it?

Jesus: 21-24 Woman, I tell you that neither is so. Believe this: a new day is coming—in fact, it’s already here—when the importance will not be placed on the time and place of worship but on the truthful hearts of worshipers. You worship what you don’t know while we worship what we do know, for God’s salvation is coming through the Jews. The Father is spirit, and He is seeking followers whose worship is sourced in truth and deeply spiritual as well. Regardless of whether you are in Jerusalem or on this mountain, if you do not seek the Father, then you do not worship.

Woman: 25 These mysteries will be made clear by He who is promised, the Anointed One.

Jesus: 26 The Anointed is speaking to you. I am the One you have been looking for.

27 The disciples returned to Him and gathered around Him in amazement that He would openly break their customs by speaking to this woman, but none of them would ask Him what He was looking for or why He was speaking with her. 28 The woman went back to the town, leaving her water pot behind. She stopped men and women on the streets and told them about what had happened.

Woman: 29 I met a stranger who knew everything about me. Come and see for yourselves; can He be the Anointed One?

Imagine if this women, just kept it shallow, refused to acknowledge her need, or refused to put on the yoke of Jesus?

We don’t have to because she was desperate. She wasn’t looking for a debate. She wasn’t even looking for Jesus, Jesus found her. She was thirsty and assumed her life would never offer her a drop of water to quench it, yet the living water found her!

was Jesus being such a visual teacher? He used this moment to point to an ancient Word.

Her imagination would have been drawn to Isaiah 55…

Read Isaiah 55:1-3

Isaiah 55:1–3 ESV

“Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.

Do you believe you have something to offer Jesus?

You can’t nor do you have to… you just have to come.

I and I imagine you spend so much time, worry, and attention on trying to figure life out on our own terms.

Trying to earn. Trying to save ourselves. Trying to figure it out on our own.

We are the hiker trying to quench or thirst with a sip of water or worst yet… coke or ice tea. They taste good when it’s hot, but they only dehydrate us further.

we try to quench our thirst with people, things, dreams, careers, and everything in between.

we are worn working for that which was never meant to satisfy.

4 | How can the Gospel bring resolution to this tension in your life?

What is the most true yearning of your heart?

What do you long to experience?

If you are worn, exhausted, heavy laden, disenchanted, filled with doubt, fear, or anxiety, if you are burdened.

Come.

Come and buy without money. Drink without cost.

Come to Jesus.

The heart of Jesus if for you.

Come.

if you have been trying to quench your thirst on that which doesn’t satisfy, come.

Come.

Come to Jesus.

Read Matthew 11:28-30

Matthew 11:28–30 ESV

Come to me, all 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 heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

The heart of Jesus if for those who realize and express their need for Him.

If you know you are broken and in need. If you are a sufferer or sinner…

The heart of Jesus is for you.

Here is the cost….

Acknowledging and truly believing… I am nothing, you are everything.

Putting on his yoke.

The only path to truly healing.

The only balm for your wounds that will last.

The only water for your thirsty soul comes as you put His yoke on you.

This is what Jesus secured on the cross.

The path back home.

He died on the cross so that you could be drawn near to Himself.

He paid the debt of our death.

Then he rose to life, and gave us the ability to live again with Him

5 | What would the world see if the church embraced this resolution?

My greatest desire is that you and I would both fully and truly embrace the one who is gentle and lowly in heart.

Wherever you are tonight.

He is for you.

He is with you.

He has come to restore you.

I wanted to give us a minute to turn to the living water now….

Express to Him your need, your desires, your hurts, your sufferings, your shortcomings, your sin. Bring it to the well of living water and drink deeply.