Matthew 11 30 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.
Can you hear Handel's music as this is
read? Jesus was giving an illustration that was very familiar to
his hearers. This was the custom of Jesus, to use things people
understood, to help them know the message that he had for them.
Of course, its something we know a lot less about! But let's
spend a few minutes here before moving on to things that we are more
familiar with.
Jesus was a carpenter's son.
Carpenters are familiar with all the wood which is used in our homes
and for our furniture. He had probably made many yokes for the
oxen of the local farmers. He'd rough out the basic shape, try it
on the animal, measure it again, and smooth it. Jesus knew that
if the yoke fitted well, the ox would work much more easily.
How can this help us? God has
given each one of us things to do- jobs and positions to fit our
abilities. But let's go further than this. Wearing a yoke
implies there is a farmer guiding where the plough has to go, leading
in the right direction and at the right speed. The animal with
the yoke belongs to the farmer. He's not wandering around
aimlessly with nothing to do (when oxen were threshing the grain, they
were not muzzled, and could eat freely).
Belonging is important to many of us,
for our well-being. I think of Clyde Narramore, a man that the
British navy sent to Iceland. Many men had been sent home.
The strain of the life abroad had caused sickness. But Clyde was
a Christian, and a friend had written to the local church to tell them
that he was being stationed there. One night, soon after his
arrival, there was a knock at his door. A couple from the local
church introduced themselves, and invited him to both their services
and their home. What a difference this made! Deep
friendships formed, and although the climate, language and traditions
were different, Christianity was the same; life seemed worth living
with friends behind him.
Belonging to God's family made the
difference between health and suffering, friendship and
loneliness. It was a "job made to measure" in an unlikely place.
My own experience on first coming to
Canada also illustrates this point. I came as an exchange
teacher. On the first Sunday, I attended the local United Church
in Port Moody. Friends were ready made in this strange
land! Even my supervisor was a Christian, and made me welcome in
her home on several occasions. Belonging made the difference
between an interesting experience and one that I really enjoyed, and
which resulted in a permanent move three years later.
Of course, everything doesn't always
go "swimmingly." There are rough places, things don't go
smoothly, and the yoke can be a burden. I wonder if an animal
chganges shape with the passing years? Is an adjustment
needed? The job that Christ gave us when we were 20 years old is
not the same as that given to us at 40 or 60 years of age. This
can be scary, for time passes, and opportunities can be lost for
ever. So grasp them, and act on them! We can rarely go back
and complete a task that is left undone, but hopefully the experience
will stir us to grasp the next opportunity.
In Romans 1 6, we find "You are also
among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ." Jesus is
our friend, someone who knows alla bout us- our failures and faults,
our strengths and achievements. He loves us anyway. Jesus
knows what it's like to be human, with all its love, heartache, joy and
sorrow. The centre of our faith is not a philosophy, but a
person; not an idol like the smiling, cold Buddha, but someone who has
loved and suffered.
You probably know more about farm
animals than I do- I certainly am ignorant about the oxen of Jesus'
time. The nearest I could think of were the guide dogs who are
trained to lead the blind. When they wear their harness, they
know that they are "on duty," and are responsible to lead their
owner. The harness is not a burden, but a "tool of the
trade." Like sails to a yacht, they are not a burden, but the
equipment needed to move the boat.
John Wesley wrote in his journal of a
meeting that he had with his helpers: "We endeavoured to increase each
others knowledge, and encourage one another to love and good
works." That's what our Lord's yoke does for us. With the
gift of the Holy Spirit to help us, we are enabled to live just as God
wants us to.
How do we help our church to
grow? Not by forming an extra committee! By inviting others
to special events and ordinary services? By just being God's
followers in our daily actions, showing that fear of the future and of
death is needless.
You don't have to accept everything
that is said from this pulpit. But just being here can help us
live more nearly to Jesus. Looking at the cross reminds us that
he died for us- you and me. A look at the lit candle reminds us
that Jesus is the light of the world. Jesus is our light, to help
us live through another week. Our church is not just a friendly
place to spend a pleasant hour on a Sunday morning. Maybe here
you will find strength to face this next week, and maybe the new
direction to go if you must change.
Being in this congregation today means
you belong. Let us avoid criticism, for this destroys. We
can encourage, appreciate, compliment, and listen, for we all belong to
God's family.
I appreciate the articles that Keith
Howard writes in the "Observer." A few years ago, he wrote about
being able to recognize God's presence in our lives. During a
walk, his wife would recognize a bird, though only seeing a glimpse of
it, or hearing its song. He was full of admiration, and realized
it had taken time and practice. So it is with God's
presence. "As Christians, we must make the bold claim that God is
on the loose in this spiritual world. Those seeking an experience
of God may not be suffering from the lack of the experience of God in
their lives, but from a need for people to walk and talk with those who
know the terrain."
In services like this, we find an
opportunity for awareness of God- through the music of the prelude or a
hymn. We listen and hopefully will be able to understand what
he's saying to us. God doesn't necessarily speak through
eartquake, wind or fire- or even the still small voice of calm.
So, you'd like an experience of
God? He's not much on delivery by demand, but let's talk over
coffee, after the service! We can all listen for our next step,
once we belong!