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

 

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.  Come to Me, all you 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."  

 

- Matthew 11:25–30 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus spoke to the crowds regarding both Himself and St. John the Baptist.  He said, "But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying: "We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; We mourned to you, and you did not lament.'  For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'   The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by her children."  Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done,  because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.  But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

 

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  My study Bible cites Blessed Theophylact, who notes that God has hidden the mysteries from the wise of the world, not out of malice toward God's creatures, but rather because of their own unworthiness.  It was they who chose to trust to their own fallen wisdom and judgment, rather than to God.  Moreover, it's out of love that God withholds the revelation from those who would scorn it -- so that they do not receive an even greater condemnation.  See also the rebuke of the cities in which Christ had performed His great works, in yesterday's reading, above.  

 

 "Come to Me, all you 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' yoke is submission to the Kingdom of God.  My study Bible explains that a yoke could be seen as a sign of hardship, burdens, and responsibilities (1 Kings 12:1-11, Jeremiah 27:1-11, Sirach 40:1), but in Christ, the yoke is easy, for the power of God works in each person.  Furthermore, the reward is infinitely greater than any effort human beings can put forth.  The word for gentle here is the same word translated as "meek" at Matthew 5:5.  

 

 In many contemporary circles, discussion of healthy shame versus toxic shame is quite an important topic.  We often understand what toxic shame is, something that imposes a kind of burdensome judgment that impairs one's ability to function and obscures the capacity for loving God and hence receiving God's love which enables maturity and growth.  A healthy shame, on the other hand, is what we feel when we're conscious of being face to face with God who loves us.  That's a kind of shame that does not want to disappoint love, and the powerful reality of the good that calls us to something true for us.  In that case, a healthy shame would be one that does not want to fail to live up to the beauty of the soul that God says is possible for us.  Jesus speaks of His yoke as that which carries a similar context of love, grace, strength, and meekness.  This gentleness of which He speaks is the grace and love of God, who receives and loves us, and yet will instruct us in ways we need to grow and to go forward, goals that are worthy for us to have.  God -- in God's love -- seeks to expand our souls; at the same time, we need to seek to please and to love God, to find God's will, in order to find that enhancement and expansion of our lives toward the true, the good, and the beautiful in God's sight.  And this is Christ's role to us:  He will be the One who offers us His good yoke, the one that teaches us a healthy shame as opposed to the worldly manipulation that disregards our personhood.  Christ's yoke is that which guides us gently in the ways that are best for us, with the authority of the One who loves us and knows us better than we know ourselves, and who is the author and very Being of love  (1 John 4:8).  He is the One who is gentle and lowly in heart, and who gives us rest for our souls.  How can we compare that to the world that pressures us to conform and to submit, to accept an agenda that doesn't recognize who we are, and doesn't care to?  Christ's love transforms as it guides, it gives us a healthy discipline that we can develop and sets our lives on the right paths for us.  The light burden He offers is the responsibility we're capable of carrying and with which He entrusts us.   Christ's love teaches us mercy and gentleness, yet at the same time it asks of us that which God knows we are capable of giving, even if we don't have that kind of faith in ourselves.  Let us consider the yoke He offers, for we learn what love is through Him, how to love properly, how to have a sense of that healthy shame that knows that God is love for us.  

 

 

 

 

  

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

 

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.  Come to Me, all you 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."

 

- Matthew 11:25-30 

 

On Friday, we read that the disciples of John the Baptist came to Christ, asking Him if He is the Coming One (the Christ), or if they should look for another, as John the Baptist is now imprisoned by King Herod. Jesus responded by speaking to the people in defense of John the Baptist, and speaking up to those who criticize both He and John (see Saturday's reading).  Yesterday we read that Jesus continued, "But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying:  'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; We mourned to you, and you did not lament.'  For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by all her children."  Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.  But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

 

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.  Come to Me, all you 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."  For modern urban readers unfamiliar with this term, a yoke is a wooden crosspiece, attached to a pair of animals and the plow or cart they would pull.  My study Bible comments here that Jesus' yoke is submission to the Kingdom of God.  A yoke could be seen as a sign of hardship, burdens, and responsibilities (1 Kings 12:1-11, Jeremiah 27:1-11, Sirach 40:1).  But in Christ, the yoke is easy, as the power of God works in each person.  Moreover, the reward is infinitely greater than any effort a human being puts forth.  The word Jesus for gentle is literally "meek," as in Matthew 5:5.

My study Bible reminds us, in connection with today's passage and Christ's declaration that He is "gentle and lowly in heart," of Matthew 5:5 (from the Sermon on the Mount).  To remind us, that verse reads, "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth."  My study Bible says that meekness is an attitude of being content with both honor and dishonor.  It is an imitation of Christ, as He indicates here when He says, "Learn from Me, for I am gentle [meek] and lowly in heart."  The meek, my study Bible continues, are God-controlled and have mastery over their passions, especially anger.  It notes that meekness is not passive weakness, but strength directed and under control.  The earth that the meek will inherit is not power or possession in this world, but the new earth, which is everlasting (Revelation 21:1).  In such a case, Christ's "meekness" or gentleness would seem to indicate an acceptance of the realities of this world.  That is, we do not see Him challenging the powers of this world with military might or force, nor with manipulation or coercion, but instead with truth and through living in obedience to God.  Christ teaches us to take up His Cross in this sense, that His yoke is the spiritual life He would teach us, the life of the Kingdom even as we live in this world.  Christ's burden, then, for us, is not a worldly sense of obedience or slavery to an overlord, but rather one that teaches us what it is to do spiritual battle, such as St. Paul speaks of in Ephesians 6:12.  When we take on the yoke of Christ, then, we're given a different kind of life to lead, in which the challenge is learning not to hide from truth, but to embrace it, and to meet the evil things we observe in the world through obedience to Him, which means the weapons of virtue and the choice to follow Him and be like Him.  St. Paul calls this "the whole armor of God" (Ephesians 6:11-20).  In His own gentleness and meekness, Christ meets us where we are, teaching us with love and care and grace, that gentleness touching our own hearts so that we know Him in this way.  We, too, learn the kind of courage He has, through His meekness and gentleness with us, and to meet the world with faith in something more than what we see only with our physical eyes, but also with hope in something greater and transcendent, and nonetheless real and at work within us and among us.  John the Baptist is in prison, and Jesus goes toward the Cross, already facing rejection although He has just sent out the Twelve on their first apostolic mission.  In this "meekness" we also learn persistence and endurance in following His word, being true to something much greater than the "worldly" can offer us.  We learn love and courage, and reliance upon God, and we learn the meekness and gentleness of Christ, who does not flinch from what the world does, but meets it instead with the power of God and God's enduring truth for us.  

For My yoke is easy and My burden is light

 

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.  Come to Me, all you 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."

 

- Matthew 11:25-30 

 

In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued His teaching regarding John the Baptist (who is now in prison) and Himself:  "But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying:  'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we mourned to you, and you did not lament.'  For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by her children."  Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.  But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

 

At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  My study Bible cites blessed Theophylact, who notes that God has hidden the mysteries from the wise of the world, not out of malice toward God's creatures, but rather because of their own unworthiness.  That is, it is they who choose to trust in their own fallen wisdom and judgment rather than in God.  Moreover, such revelation who would scorn it out of love for them:  for to reject it would result in an even greater condemnation.  See yesterday's reading (above) and Jesus' condemnation of those places in which mighty works were done, but no repentance ("change of mind")  resulted.  Earlier in this discourse, Jesus referred to Himself as Son of Man (see yesterday's reading, above:  "The Son of Man came eating and drinking . . .").  Here Jesus adds a profound and explicit statement of authority in His identity as Son; the repentance which is lacking is the one which fails to grasp the gospel of the kingdom of heaven which He has been sent to preach.  The mysteries of God to which He refers are His alone to reveal and to withhold.

"Come to Me, all you 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."  My study Bible comments that Christ's yoke is submission to the Kingdom of God.   A yoke could be seen as a sign of hardship, burdens, and responsibilities (1 Kings 12:1-11, Jeremiah 27:1-11, Sirach 40:1).  But in Christ, the yoke is easy, because the power of God works in each person.  Moreover, the reward is infinitely greater than any effort human beings put forth.  Gentle means literally meek (as in Matthew 5:5 in the Sermon on the Mount:  "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth").  To be meek is not to be weak, but rather God-controlled; that is, to have mastery over one's own passions, especially anger.  That is, strength directed and under control.

 

 Jesus says, "Come to Me, all you 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."   These are indeed comforting words; they are words heard throughout the centuries by those needing refuge, help, strength, and guidance.  If we think about them, and what it means to be "gentle [meek] and lowly in heart," then we understand that these are the words of One who is like a good father, a good brother, a good leader and protector.  If we haven't had such a figure in our lives, He can be that figure.  If we need those same skills in our lives (regardless of our gender), to be a good parent, a strong sibling, a good leader in family or community, He is our role model.  These are the words of one who knows how to use His absolute authority, which He has just declared by saying, "All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  We have at once a supreme claim to authority, even to the judgment implied here.  But in the very next verses we have an image of what kind of authority figure this Son of the Father is, and how He uses His authority.  For those countless followers of Christ who have been comforted by these words, the image is one of the ideal figure of the family or community, one capable of great love, great strength, and great guidance and wisdom.  Most of all, the compassion of Christ still shows through in this declaration of authority, and the open hand that is outstretched through the words.  Those who labor and are heavy laden are those already under a different yoke of authority, that of the "prince" or "ruler of this world."  The very word for "evil" or "evil one" in Greek (as in "deliver us from evil/the evil one" in the Lord's Prayer; see Matthew 6:13) has at once these meanings of burdensome toil, oppression, and pain.  Jesus is the alternative.  He is not a competitor except in our own hearts.  But when we have had enough of the ways of the world, so to speak, His is the ultimate authority to which we turn and find rest and learning.  For those of us who experience this easy and light burden, this meekness and gentleness, there is no doubt about His words, and no substitution.  For in contrast to the world which demands a kind of onerous slavery and can practice a merciless judgment, His yoke is easy, and His burden is light. 

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

Christ the True Vine, 2004, icon commissioned by Orthodox Recovering Addicts, Moscow (link)

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.  Come to Me, all you 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."

- Matthew 11:25-30

In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued His defense of John the Baptist:   "But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying:  'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we mourned to you, and you did not lament.'  For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by all her children."  Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.  But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  My study bible cites Theophylact's commentary, that God has hidden the mysteries from the wise of the world, not out of malice toward human beings, but rather because of their own unworthiness in trusting their fallen wisdom and judgment, rather than God.  Moreover, it is out of love that God withholds this revelation from those who would scorn it, so that they do not receive a greater condemnation.   To understand such mysteries, we have to know that they are not obscure intellectual concepts, but rather the presence of the Kingdom of God, which my study bible says cannot be defined.  One must accept this Kingdom in the heart in order to grasp the mystery.  This mystery of the Kingdom is revealed through the Son.

"Come to Me, all you 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."  My study bible comments that Jesus' yoke is submission to the Kingdom of God.  Generally speaking, yoke can be understood as a sign of hardship, burdens, and responsibilities (1 Kings 12:1-11, Jeremiah 27:1-11, Sirach 40:1).  But in Christ, the yoke is easy, as the power of God works in each person.  Moreover, it says, there is a reward to this which is infinitely greater than any effort which human beings put forth.  Gentle here in the Greek is somewhat akin to "meek," but it denotes a strength under control, or having the capacity for power but using it without undue harshness.  Lowly in heart denotes humility that comes from putting God first before self.

In today's reading, Jesus puts two things together that might not normally be seen to go together.  There is first of all knowledge and understanding of His disciples, who are simple people, and not the highly educated or those who form part of the formal religious establishment and its schools.  This is a gift of great wisdom and knowledge that has been given to His followers, whom He refers to as "babes," while the "wise and prudent" are those in exalted offices of authority and social status.  This power of knowledge and understanding is coupled with the authority of Christ the Son, to whom God has granted the authority to reveal God to those to whom He will.   So this wisdom and understanding, knowledge of great mysteries, has behind it the greatest power in the universe, that of God.   But Jesus qualifies the power of God, and His personal power, by teaching that He does not exercise it with harshness.  He rather encourages all those who labor and are heavy laden to come to Him.  In chapter 23, when Jesus criticizes the hypocrisy of the scribes and Pharisees, He says that they "bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers" (23:4).  But about Himself He says that His yoke is easy and His burden is light.  Rather than being a harsh and punitive taskmaster, He offers rest to the same people about whom it was said earlier that they were "weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd" (9:36).  In today's reading, Christ champions those who do have faith, after He has harshly criticized the cities in which He is rejected, despite having done "great works" there of healing.  Those who are the "wise and prudent" have rejected His ministry, in which the "babes" have received wisdom through faith.  He speaks of the hidden power of Creator behind these mysteries, and His own connection to the Father through which all things have been given to Him, including the power of revelation and of the Kingdom hidden to those who cannot receive it.  But the powerful statements in today's reading remain His characterization of that supreme power and authority, as offering a yoke that is easy and a burden that is light, and rest to the heavy laden and those who labor.  It should be remembered, in this context, that the definitions of the Greek word for "evil" or "evil one" (as in the prayer given by Christ, in which we pray to God to "deliver us from evil" or from "the evil one" -- see 6:13), include a sense of toil and tedious hardship.  In this sense, we must also see Christ's characterization of His power as that which is contrasted with what is evil and seeks to lay heavy (and unjust) burdens upon human beings, a harsh power which imposes toil and unnecessary agony.   Moreover, this yoke is rewarding, and the labor for the kingdom a way of sharing in His ministry.  His exercise of His power and authority invites trust, and there we really get to the root of the message.  It all comes down to this question of trust, and where we will place our trust.  We may compare the "wisdom of this age" with the "wisdom among those who are mature" (1 Corinthians 2:6-8).  But Christ's ultimate qualifier of what He offers, in which we may put our trust, is Himself.  That is, the One who is gentle and lowly of heart, in whom we find rest for our souls.  It is He in whom we choose to rest (John 15:9).

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

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.  Come to Me, all you 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."

- Matthew 11:25-30

In yesterday's reading, Jesus said, "But to what shall I liken this generation?   It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying:  'We played the flue for you, and you did not dance; We mourned to you, and you did not lament.'  For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by her children."  Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.  But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

At that time Jesus answered and said, "0. All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  My study bible cites blessed Theophylact, who comments that God has hidden the mysteries from the wise of the world, not out of malice toward His creatures but because of their own unworthiness -- it was they who chose to trust their own fallen wisdom and judgment rather than God.  Moreover, out of love God withholds this revelation from those who would scorn it so that they do not receive an even greater condemnation.

"Come to Me, all you 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."  My study bible says that Jesus' yoke is submission to the Kingdom of God.  A yoke could be seen as a sign of hardship, burdens, and responsibilities (1 Kings 12:1-11; Jeremiah 27:1-11; Sirach 40:1).  In Christ, however, the yoke is easy, for the power of God works in each person.  Moreover, the reward is infinitely greater, it says, than any effort man puts forth.  Gentle is literally "meek" in the original Greek of the text.  It's the same word Jesus uses when He preaches, "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth" (5:5).

Obedience to God is obedience to love.  This is submission to the Kingdom of God, in the words of my study bible.  Christ explains this yoke as easy, and the burden we take on as light, for He is not an abusive authoritarian ruler of violence; He is instead the God of love who Himself is gentle and lowly in heart.  Synonyms for this include "meek" as indicated above, and also "humble."  Let us consider what it means that we worship a God who describes Himself as having the personal characteristics of gentleness, meekness, humility.  It stands the reality of worldly power on its head.  It gives us a sense that what we worship, and what we seek to learn from, is all love -- a different way of being, a different kind of enterprise to learn about when Christ speaks of those who are meek who shall inherit the earth!  He stands what we "know" on its head, and in that light justifiedly tells us that it is a blessed thing, something to be thankful for, that God the Father, Lord of heaven and earth, has "hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes."  So much so, that Jesus adds, "Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight."  In our worldly ways, we tend to confuse the language of obedience, submission, discipline, and sacrifice with that of the power of violence demanding submission.  But when we speak of God -- and in particular God the Father whose attributes are all shared with the Persons of the Trinity -- we are speaking of love.  The Lord of the universe is one who describes Himself as meek, gentle, humble, lowly of heart, and it is to these attributes of leadership in His sight that we submit in order to learn from Him.  For the graciousness of God is so overwhelming that all of our reaction should be as St. Peter's was when Jesus declared that He must wash the feet of the disciples:  "Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!" (John 13:1-17).  The Lord of the universe is a Lord of love, who washes us in His love and prepares us to serve in that same spirit and, maybe most importantly of all, to learn that love and to practice it.  This we are not capable of doing for ourselves.  It is the "wise and prudent" who trust themselves to know what only God can reveal to us.  In service and submission, we find the healing and correction we need to become "like" God; it is in this Kingdom that we seek to participate and learn and grow in that love and to share it with one another.  Let us consider which yoke and burden we prefer, as we look around ourselves and find the abuse of power hidden among so many, regardless of the compassionate masks they seek to wear.  It is in God's truth and authority that we can trust instead.

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

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.  Come to Me, all you 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."

- Matthew 11:25-30

In Friday's reading, John the Baptist's disciples had come to Jesus with a message from John (who is in prison).  After John's disciples had departed, Jesus spoke to the crowds about John, vigorously defending him (Saturday's reading).  In yesterday's reading, He continued His criticism, both against those who now judge John and those who fail to acknowledge Jesus' ministry, particularly among the leadership:   "But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying:  'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; We mourned to you, and you did not lament.'  For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by her children."  Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.  But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes."  My study bible cites Blessed Theophylact, who comments that God has hidden the mysteries from the wise of the world, not out of malice toward God's creatures, but because of their own unworthiness.  It was they who chose to trust their own fallen wisdom and judgment rather than God.  Moreover, it is out of love, my study bible says, that God withholds this revelation from those who would scorn it so that they do not receive an even greater condemnation.  (See yesterday's reading, above, and Jesus' pronouncement about judgment upon those who witnessed mighty works and still rejected His ministry.)  

"Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  Jesus attributes all things in the surprising unfolding of this ministry to God the Father.  There is a particular relationship here that expresses our faith and that which will infuse the Creed and Councils to come in the centuries that follow.  Jesus states His direct relationship to the Father, but also how revelation works to human beings. 

"Come to Me, all you 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."  My study bible notes that Jesus' yoke is submission to the Kingdom of God.  A yoke could be seen as a sign of hardship, burdens, and responsibilities, it notes (1 Kings 12:1-11, Jeremiah 27:1-15).  But in Christ, the yoke is easy, because the power of God works in each person.  Moreover, the reward is infinitely greater than any effort human beings make.  The Greek word translated as gentle means power or strength under control, without undue harshness.  To be lowly in heart means to have a humble heart.  The same word is also translated as "meek" in 5:5:  "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth." 

 It's my belief that notions of courtesy and "gentleness" (as in a gentleman or gentle lady) come to us from the life of Christ and His teachings.  Or perhaps one might say that He sets an example to aspire to imitate.  This word in Greek that is translated as "gentle" or "meek" means, as noted above, a type of strength under control, one who does not lose his temper nor act with undue harshness.  This is in great contrast to the examples of power or "lordship" in Jesus' time, particularly in the great kings and rulers of the world.  He Himself notes the contrast between the power and authority of His Kingdom and that of worldly kingdoms, when He tells the disciples, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant.  And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many" (20:25-28).   Throughout the reading of the Gospels, and over the time of His ministry and preaching, Jesus "fleshes out" for us what it means to be meek and lowly of heart, to be gentle on His terms, to possess the kind of authority and strength that is of the Kingdom.  He lives the life He wishes to show us, from the beginning and to His death on the Cross.  He gives us an image of what that means.  To be humble and meek ultimately means that one serves God just as Jesus sets the example of total loyalty to the Father, a complete and powerful faith -- where even in the midst of rejection and what He knows is coming in His ministry, He accepts it all as given by the Father.  His is a "strength under control."  While He criticizes deeply those who reject both John the Baptist and Himself, and indicates the depth of judgment to come (especially regarding those who know better), His is the type of image we endeavor to follow, of strength under control.  He will do what He is commanded to do, to the death that awaits Him, for the greater good and the salvation of all.  The paradox here is that this understanding is given to the meek and humble, to "babes" rather than those given titles of understanding and education and knowledge of the Scriptures.  The wise and prudent have failed to grasp this ministry, and the knowledge they would possess is revealed to those who are like "little children" in their lack of formal education.  The Kingdom reaches where it will reach, and all is in the hand of the Father, and the Son who knows the Father, and those to whom the Son desires to reveal His Kingdom and His work.  The depth here is in the revelation of humility as the key to this Kingdom.  He seeks those who have the humility to serve His authority,  those who are like Him, "lowly of heart" and willing to live the kind of meekness He teaches.  This will inform the monastics to come, those whose discipline (as "disciples" or "learners") is to attain the heart that is capable of receiving Christ and that which Christ wishes to reveal to His children.  Let us remember, in this world of vast social media and the pressures it brings to us, what true strength is in Christ's sight, and how far humility goes to take us into the Kingdom.  Those proclaimed the "wise and prudent" of the age remain with us, and His easy yoke remains for those who know the value of the One who is gentle and lowly of heart.

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

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.  Come to Me, all you 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."

- Matthew 11:25-30

In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued speaking to the crowd regarding Himself and John the Baptist.  He said, "But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying:  'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; We mourned to you, and you did not lament.'  For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by her children."  Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.  But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  The "wise and prudent" would be those experts such as the Pharisees who can't "see" nor accept Jesus' message in the signs of His great works performed in their midst.  My study bible cites Theophylact as noting that God has hidden the mysteries from the wise of the world not out of malice, but due to their own lack of receptivity:  there is a choice to be made between what one already "knows" and judges and the things God pulls us toward to reveal and to open up and expand our understanding.  Out of love, therefore, revelation may be withheld from those who would scorn it (7:6), so they don't refuse what would result in an even greater condemnation (see Luke 8:10).

"Come to Me, all you 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."  My study bible tells us that Jesus' yoke is submission to the Kingdom of God.  A yoke can be seen as an image of hardship or burdens and responsibilities imposed, especially by a harsh ruler or king (see 1 Kings 12:1-11, Jeremiah 27:1-15).  But in Christ, the yoke is easy, because the power of God works in every person.  Moreover, the reward is infinitely than any effort a human being puts forth.  Gentle here means literally "meek"  (see "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth," Matthew 5:5, in the reading of the Beatitudes).

Christ promises rest in learning.  "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me" is a promise of growth into new things, gifts, mysteries.  We don't do this journey alone, and He shares His yoke with us.  A yoke gives us an image of two things put together:  two oxen pulling a plow under one yoke, for instance.  Christ promises that He is with us, and gives us rest in this place where we take on the yoke He offers.  All of it seems utterly paradoxical, especially given the typical traditional image of the yoke.  And yet, with Christ, this is the life He offers to us.  It is those who refuse it who lose out; they are the ones who are "wise and prudent" in Jesus' words, the worldly who seem to know the wisdom of the world, who go out of their way to scorn what He offers.  And yet He does choose "babes" to carry His message; the apostles do not come from the classes of those educated in Scripture.  What we come to understand is all about acceptance.  Do we accept His help, His guidance?  Are our minds open to what He offers?  Everything seems to come down to two things:  humility and the capacity to desire the kind of love He offers.  This is a love that invites us in to His world, His Kingdom.  It invites us in to learn from Him, to take on the yoke He offers.  It's not the yoke of a worldly king, but of one who is "gentle and lowly in heart."  It's not a yoke that invites our pity, but one that asks for our capacity for love and learning from Him.  It asks us for relationship and emptying, and it will take us to places we never imagined going, to challenges that stretch us out of our own "knowing."   It is in this learning and coming to know what He offers that our joy may be full.

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

At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.  Come to Me, all you 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."

- Matthew 11:25-30

In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued His response to those who scornfully look upon John the Baptist (who is now imprisoned) for his ascetic and rough life, and who have also criticized Him for eating and drinking with tax collectors and sinners:  "But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying:  'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;  We mourned to you, and you did not lament.'  For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by her children."  Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.  But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

 "At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for it seemed good in Your sight."  The wise and prudent are those who criticize Christ and John the Baptist for their different ways of bearing the Kingdom into the world, their holiness that is not in conformity with the wisdom of the world, but strange and different -- each for different reasons.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus criticizes particularly religious leaders and compares them to playing children, who are dismayed equally that John is too ascetic and rough, and Jesus has sat at table, eating and drinking with tax collectors and other sinners.  So the wisdom and holiness of the Kingdom that is present goes unrecognized by the "wise and prudent."  Instead it has been revealed to babes.  My study bible quotes Theophylact as noting that God has hidden the mysteries from the wise of the world, not out of malice, but because of their own unworthiness.  They are the ones who trust their own wisdom and judgment rather than God.  God withholds this understanding from those who'd scorn it so they don't receive a greater condemnation:  to understand and refuse is to encounter a deeper judgment.  Jesus praises the wisdom of the Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for the surprising ways in which Jesus' ministry is unfolding.  He is emphatically pronouncing it good.  Other commentators such as Origen tell us that the "babes" are the Gentiles, unwise in the ways of the God of Israel.

"All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."   This is a profound theological statement, an understanding of Logos, the Son.  Whatever His mission, Christ has had it fully placed into His hands by the Father, and it is He alone who reveals the Father.  It is, in fact, Christ alone who decides to whom the Father will be revealed.

 "Come to Me, all you 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."  Who are those to whom this great mission will be revealed, by whom it will be received?  Jesus invites those burdened with toil and struggle, and those who suffer.  What He emphasizes here is His own humility, an offering to the "babes" who are perhaps buffeted by the world.  My study bible says that Jesus' yoke is submission to the Kingdom of God.  A yoke, it says, could be seen as a sign of hardship, burdens, and responsibilities.  But Christ's yoke is different, it's easy because it conveys the power of God at work in each person.  And the reward is much greater than one's personal effort.  Cyril of Alexandria has commented that this offer is to everyone:  to the Jews who struggle in bearing the demands of the Law, and to the pagan Gentiles, who struggle with idolatry and the kinds of worldly power and sin it brings.  A yoke and burden also characterize language of kings in terms of the tax and tribute they levy on their subjects.

The harsh criticism and harsher reception that both John the Baptist and Jesus will receive is addressed in Jesus' speech here.  He speaks of being gentle and lowly of heart.  This sort of gentle is the type of "meekness" that doesn't engage in aggression for its own sake -- the ideal of strength under control and grace.  Christ's authority is complete, as He's also stated, but it's the authority of grace, of the Kingdom of God, of love.  To take on this yoke is very different from the worldly sort of power that demands adherence to its expectations.  Both John and Jesus will be murdered at the hands of the state, but both offend in particular the religious authorities and leaders of the temple who jealously guard their places.  I think there's a very canny and deep wisdom in Jesus' statement that He's gentle and lowly of heart, and that He calls to those who labor and are heavy laden.  This is not a call to the power brokers, the ones who call the shots.  It's a call from One who is gentle and lowly of heart to the others out there who are the humble of the world.  What He offers isn't something that appeals to those enamored with a kind of worldly power and status that will always have contempt for what is humble.  Jesus brings a Kingdom into the world that stands the values of worldly kingdoms on their head -- that offers a kind of love and grace that is inherently at odds with the "ruler of this world."   He will teach His disciples that to lord it over others is the opposite of His hierarchical structure.  Jesus' power is to heal, it's for community.  It draws in the excluded and seeks to repair.  It calls those by faith and by adoption who don't belong because of worldly status.  It's a voluntary kingdom, and does not coerce.  This is an entirely different sort of power to manipulative power.  It's the power of love.  It's not the power of shoulds and musts and political sloganing, and it's not the power of the crowds or mobs.  It's the power that comes through "gentleness" and humility, the wisdom that manifests through "outsiders" like Jesus and John the Baptist, and it calls to those who can see past the false promises of power that binds and manipulates and burdens for the self-glorification of others, and misses the glory of God who is love and truth.  It's in the contempt for the humble that worldly power is exposed, and Christ's life -- and death -- will surely play this out.  Have we got the heart to receive Him?  

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

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.  Come to Me, all you 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."

- Matthew 11:25-30

In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued His chastising of the crowds regarding John the Baptist.  This is after two of John's disciples came to Jesus, asking, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?"  He then answered, "From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force."  In yesterday's reading, Jesus said, "But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying:  'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; We mourned for you, and you did not lament.'For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by her children."  Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.  But I say to you, i will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes."  My study bible points out that, in this prayer of Jesus, it is the Father alone who is the source of knowledge.  It tells us that the Father alone opens the hearts of men to receive knowledge, and that He "communicates in a hidden way to responsive hearts.  The paradox:  the veiled reality of the Kingdom which Jesus reveals is seen by babes, simple fishermen, and sinners, not the wise and prudent, the Pharisees, Sadducees and scribes."

"Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  My study bible says here:  "Another clear statement about the deity of Christ, Son of the Father, who knows the Father and reveals Him.  The Son reveals only as much as we have the capacity to receive."

"Come to Me, all you 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."  My study bible explains:  "Jesus' yoke is submission to the Kingdom of God.   A yoke may be the symbol of hardship, burdens and responsibilities (1 Kings 12:1-11; Jer. 27:8-28:2; Sir. 40:1).  Although it may feel heavy due to our sins (Ps. 38:4), Christ's yoke is easy.  In Him the soul is refreshed and sees that the Lord is gracious (Ps. 34:9; Is. 55:2; Jer. 31:25).  A sign of Jesus' lordship is His meekness -- He is gentle and lowly.  King David emphasized that the Lord would teach His ways to the meek (Ps. 25:9).  Meekness is the mother of love, the foundation of discernment and the forerunner of all humility.  Jesus finds rest in the hearts of the meek, while the turbulent spirit is home to the devil."

Jesus chastises elsewhere the leadership in the temple regarding their hypocrisy,  "for they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers" (Matthew 23:4).  In this sense, we get a vivid understanding of His familiarity with the subject, and His objection to placing burdens on the faithful which are too hard to bear.  If we take the whole of this Gospel together, then, we get the contrast between Jesus' burden, and the burden imposed through certain legalistic (and hypocritical) practices.  In some sense, this is the core of our faith, because Christ's teaching here really has everything to do with love.  He does not teach His disciples that they will Lord it over others, but rather that they must be servants of all -- again, a teaching about love, and about "meekness."  In this context, the truth of the Father is revealed to babes, and hidden from the "wise and prudent."  What we receive from the Jesus who has just railed against the crowd for its attitude of criticism to both John the Baptist and Himself is the truth of the essence of the character of God, and that is love.  He's not looking for the hard-hearted to bear His truths into the world.  He's looking for those who are like Him, those who know they have need of Him, those who desire what He offers.  Revelation has been given to John the Baptist, who is now locked up in prison, a man of extreme asceticism, who lived only for God, who seized the Kingdom with a kind of violence akin to extraordinary passion.  Revelation has come to "babes," those lost, weary and scattered sheep who know that Christ offers what they desperately need.  It is these to whom He calls to take His yoke and to bear His burden in this passage, those to whom the Apostles have just been sent out on their first mission.  The true essence of Christ is His love, which we encounter in relation to Him, in prayer, a yoke that is easy and a burden that is light precisely because He is gentle and lowly in heart.  This is the quality of our encounter with love, the quality for which people take up their own crosses, face every danger, and find worthy so much sacrifice.  It is love that truly motivates when nothing else will, no material sense of power, no ruler who "lords it over" others, but rather the One who saves, who comes into the world to rescue us from such a worldly and oppressive notion of power.  Let us remember He will call us friends, and lay His life down for us.  But first let us remember His love most of all, in which we find His promise of rest for our souls. 

For My yoke is easy and My burden is light

At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. All things have been delivered to me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. Come to Me, all you 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."

- Matthew 11:25-30

In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued to upbraid the people -- especially the leadership -- for their rejection and criticism of both Himself and John the Baptist. He compared them to children sitting in the marketplace, playing an ancient game, in which one group of children would play or sing for dance or lamentation, and the other group would have to respond properly. Their criticism of John, the ascetic, and their criticism of Jesus, who ate and drank and dined with sinners, was equal for both, disparaging first one way and then the other -- as if the crowds called the tune. But Wisdom is justified by her children, her works. The fruit of both John and Jesus' ministries is good. Next, Jesus condemned the cities of Galilee in which His mighty works, preaching and healing, have been rejected. In Gentile cities of Tyre and Sidon, He said, they would be sitting in repentance in response. He compared Capernaum, His ministry headquarters, unfavorably even to Sodom, because Sodom did not have such revelation within itself to look to.

At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight." John the Baptist is in prison, the tide is turning also against Jesus with opposition from the leadership, and the crowds are fickle -- even those in the Galilean cities of His ministry fail to turn to Him. But here, Jesus turns to the Father with thanks for those who have responded, and the thanks goes even deeper than a simple gratitude for His followers. It is gratitude for the way in which the Father has revealed Him to hearts who can hear and see. They are the hearts of "babes," and not the "wise and prudent." There are all sorts of eloquent speakers, those skilled in rhetoric, in the schools of famous rabbis, but Jesus' followers are not these. My study bible points out: "In Jesus' prayer of thanksgiving, the Father alone is the source of knowledge, and He alone opens the hearts of men to receive it. He communicates in a hidden way to responsive hearts. The paradox: the veiled reality of the Kingdom which Jesus reveals is seen by babes, simple fishermen, and sinners, not the wise and prudent, the Pharisees, Sadducees and scribes."

"All things have been delivered to me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him." Everything, clearly, works through the Father. At some point, all is down to the deepest and highest Source of all things. The Father is at work in our very hearts, even of the "babes." But the revelation, the deliverance of "all things," and all knowledge is in the hand of the Father, and the Son to whom the Father has delivered all things. Thus, anyone who knows the Father is "the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him." It is a clear statement of relationship of Father, Son and human beings who can receive. My study bible says this is another clear statement about the deity of Christ, the Son of the Father, who knows the Father and reveals Him. It says, "The Son reveals only as much as we have the capacity to receive."

"Come to Me, all you 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." I'm reading the first part of Genesis for a class, and it strikes me here that the power of the Seventh Day of rest is at work in Christ, and in His words. Rest is not merely a freedom from labor; it is rather a kind of couch of love, at work within us, feeding us, giving us the spiritual nourishment we need for both body and soul, for all things in our lives. Thus, we can take -- in His rest -- Christ's yoke and learn, and "find rest for our souls." My study bible points out Jesus' yoke is submission to the Kingdom of God. . . . "In Him the soul is refreshed and sees that the Lord is gracious." It adds, "A sign of Jesus' lordship is His meekness -- He is gentle and lowly. King David emphasized that the Lord would teach His ways to the meek. Meekness is the mother of love, the foundation of discernment and the forerunner of all humility. Jesus finds rest in the hearts of the meek, while the turbulent spirit is home to the devil." But, in a sense, what Jesus points out here is the capacity to learn that is in His followers, as well as His own meekness. This is a Lordship that is not abusive and oppressive: rather it is in the spirit of humility and service and love that the Lord comes to us, and from which His yoke is derived and placed upon those who will take it on. In Greek, the word for "light" is perhaps better translated "worthy" or "good." It is all worthwhile to take on, a gift. And this is what we are to learn from His words.

Jesus' yoke, then, is His loving shepherding of those who are His sheep. In the Greek, the words for "gentle and lowly in heart" teach us about a kind of humility, not those who, in words He will use elsewhere, "Lord it over them." Jesus' teaching is with kindness, infinite understanding, humility, and love. To be "lowly in heart" is somewhat similar to what it is to be "poor in spirit." Ultimately, we learn of His great empathy, His compassion. No matter what it is that our cross to bear brings us in the world and in our lives, His yoke is that of a loving brother, a confidant, a mother. He embodies the love that teaches one to love others as oneself. Let us consider, then, the things that can keep us from an experience of that yoke, that love, that teaching that He has for those who respond. An arrogant heart, one puffed up with itself, one who cannot learn, a heart into which He cannot enter. The "wise and prudent" may keep Him out, while the meek allow Him in. Indeed, all those things we think we know, that make us important with material power, just might be the burdens we need to drop in order to find His rest, and the refreshment in it. Another facet of the meaning for "evil" in the Greek is toil, and the burdensome pain associated with it. What do you hang onto that keeps Him from your heart? That keeps you from hearing His knock? From taking on His yoke of guidance, and the valuable burden He gives? Even so, we thank the Father for all the ways in which He is revealed to us, in which His love works in us, in which we can rest in Him.