MATTHEW 11.28-29: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (ESV)
Whenever the difficult and distressing times of life come, it is easy to be enticed into thinking that no one cares and you’re on your own to cope with them. That is not the message of Jesus, so feelings of isolation should be dismissed. In the verses above Jesus reaches out through the ages, calling to everyone, “Come to Me”, wherever he or she may be. He invites everyone to come to Him for comfort and rest, trusting that He has the interest and care to make things right.
The New Testament records for us that religious leaders frequently came against Jesus and He met them with the appropriate amount of iron in His personality to put them in their places. This is not the case in the verses above. Jesus is making His appeal in the most gentle of terms. There are no prerequisites that a person must fulfill prior to coming to Jesus. Just come with your weariness and burdened down life.
Receiving the rest of Jesus can be fast, but it can also take much time. Maybe years. It depends on where an individual may be, or where he or she may have put themselves. But in whatever the circumstances, there is a learning process from Jesus that must be engaged, because He does encourage us to “learn” from Him.
But whether the rest that Jesus gives comes soon or takes much time, in either case His love and care is the same for everyone. He affirms that He is gentle and lowly in heart. The NASB translates this expression “gentle and humble in heart.” So we likewise should embrace the same thinking, and come to Him with humility and a willingness to learn from Him. This affords the opportunity to make changes in life habits and patterns and thinking.