Do you ever feel weighed down by the cares of the world? Does it feel like most of what comes at you causes you fear or anxiety? Do you ever feel like you are not doing enough or accomplishing enough even in your Christian walk? Do you realize this is not at all how God intended you to live? You may have picked up some unnecessary burdens.
There are many places in the Bible where God invites us to trust Him, to rest in Him. One such place is in Matthew 11 beginning in verse 28. Jesus is extending an invitation to those around Him for greater intimacy with Him. “Are you weary, carrying a heavy burden? Come to me. I will refresh your life, for I am your oasis. Simply join your life with mine. Learn my ways and you will discover that I’m gentle, humble, easy to please. You will find refreshment and rest in me. For all that I require of you will be pleasant and easy to bear.” Matthew 11:28-30 (TPT)
The heavy and unnecessary burden we tend to pick up at times is the burden of religion. Religion is often trying to prove yourself to God and others. Later in Matthew, Jesus again addressed the crowds and called out the Pharisees, the religious experts of the day. Speaking about the Pharisees, Jesus says in Matthew 23:4-5 (TPT), “They tie on your backs an oppressive burden of religious obligations and insist that you carry them, but will never lift a finger to help ease your load. Everything they do is done for show and to be noticed by others. They want to be seen as holy, so they wear oversized prayer boxes on their arms and foreheads with Scriptures inside, and wear extra-long tassels on their outer garments.”
Jesus essentially says that the Pharisees may be experts of the law, but they do not have a relationship with Him. In fact, the Pharisees did not even recognize Jesus, the Son of God, when He was standing right in front of them. They were so busy doing works that showed their perceived holiness and demanding others do those and other works to also show they were holy that they were placing unnecessary burdens on the people they were supposed to be helping and guiding.
In contrast, in Matthew 11 Jesus describes himself as “gentle, humble, easy to please.” How is it that Jesus is easy to please, but the Pharisees are not? Jesus also describes himself as an oasis. An oasis in the natural is a land that is life-giving in the midst of otherwise dry land. It is a place of refreshing, life, and abundance. The implication is that if you are trying to check off the boxes of religion, you are carrying an unnecessary burden because if you go to Jesus, He gives you rest.
God loves to partner with us. He chooses to partner with us. There is Bible story after Bible story where God comes down and asks to partner with people. His stance is I want to do this with you. I want to partner with you, my people. He does not have to partner with us. He is God. He can accomplish any and all things on His own, but partnering with us is clearly His preferred method of doing things.
Think about Jesus coming to the Earth. God could have sent Jesus down to Earth, and Jesus could just begin appearing to people announcing who He is and healing people. But that is not what God did. He chose to partner with Mary and Joseph to bring Jesus into the world. He chose to announce His birth through shepherds and wise men. He chose to have Jesus grow up in a family with a mom and dad and siblings. He chose for Jesus to learn a trade from His father. Jesus spent the majority of His time on earth with His family. I think this shows just how much God values partnership with us.
I find it interesting to think of ourselves as truly yoked to Jesus. The metaphor here of course is as if two animals are yoked together to plow a field. This allows the animals to stay together and connected as they work to complete the job.
With this in mind, think of being yoked to Jesus to accomplish your purpose here on earth. Jesus invites us to be yoked with Him. So when you choose to say yes, you are yoked with the smartest, strongest, wisest, most peaceful person ever. Why would His yoke not be easy? Your partner (Jesus) is the best partner you could ever have. How could we lose?
In Psalm 50, God is speaking to His people. During this time, the people were required by God’s law to bring sacrifices for their sins. God is telling them that they are doing a great job with the religious part. They are fulfilling the law by bringing sacrifices as they are required to do. However, this is not all He wants. Psalm 50:14-15 (TPT), “Why don’t you bring me the sacrifices I desire? Bring me your true and sincere thanks, and show your gratitude by keeping your promise to me, the Most High. Honor me by trusting in me in your day of trouble. Cry aloud to me, and I will be there to rescue you.”
Even before Jesus entered the picture and fulfilled the law, God was after His people’s hearts. He didn’t want religion boxes checked over a relationship with Him. He wanted His people to trust Him and be in relationship with Him.
Psalm 55:22-23 (TPT) says, “So here’s what I’ve learned through it all: Leave all your cares and anxieties at the feet of the Lord, and measureless grace will strengthen you. He will watch over his devoted lovers, never letting them slip or be overthrown.”
What would our lives be like if we truly left all our cares, worries, fears, anxieties, and unnecessary burdens at the feet of the Lord? What would our lives look like if we allowed measureless grace to strengthen us? I invite you to think about that. Maybe even write in your journal all the unnecessary burdens you are carrying around. Whether these be burdens of life or burdens of religion or both, God tells us in multiple ways and multiple places in the Bible that we are not supposed to be carrying unnecessary burdens. Invite the Lord in those places of fear and worry and anxiety and ask Him for His grace instead. Watch how your mind and heart change.
Remember friend, God is always for us not against us. He longs to be in relationship and partnership with you. He is waiting for your yes to His invitation.
Check out these other great posts!
Career and Mom Life: The Big, Unnecessary Sacrifice by Ashley Olivine
Release the Unnecessary Weight and Find Joy As You Run With Jesus by Lisa Crowder