MY YOKE FITS WELL

MY YOKE FITS WELL!

Matt 11:28-30

28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

29 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.

30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

The Greek word for “easy” is chrestos and literally means “useful” but the Amplified New Testament puts it this way:

Matt 11:30

30 For My yoke is wholesome (useful, good — not harsh, hard, sharp, or pressing, but comfortable, gracious, and pleasant), and My burden is light and easy to be borne.

AMPLIFIED

What Jesus was saying is that the service He requires is not difficult to perform. This was in stark contrast to the Jewish system which had grown and grown into something God had never intended it to be. The Pharisaical requirements were heavy and harsh.

Recently the pastor of a “mega-church” resigned his position saying something like “I’m not OK. I am tired.” A storm of responses from my pastor friends sounded like whining to me. After 45 years in pastoral ministry I am not unsympathetic to the pressures of the task but I see among my peers a lack of resiliency. We were never promised more than a cross!

I do not know what God is requiring you to endure at this moment but this one thing I know, the yoke was designed to be comfortable and to fit YOU well.

The yoke refers to oxen's yoke. The yoke was a wooden collar-like instrument placed on the neck and shoulders of the oxen. It was extremely important that the yoke be fitted for the shoulders of the oxen to prevent rubbing the flesh raw and causing sores. Measurements were taken, the yoke was roughed out and then oxen were brought back to have the yoke tailor-made. According to some traditions, some carpenters' shops may very well have carried signs like "My yoke fits well" (William Barclay, The Preacher's Outline & Sermon Bible)

Whatever God has you facing right now is made to fit you perfectly. You have the Spiritual gifts, talents, and abilities to handle everything He allows you to go through. Therefore, lay your grief into His loving hands and surrender to His will for you.

Jer 31:18

18 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.

Dear Lord, help me to settle into the burden that you have tailor made for me today. AMEN