The Yoke

Psalm 52 explains that we who trust in God’s unfailing love are like olive trees thriving in the house of God.  Our trust is a forever trust. It does not have limitations of time and space, because God’s love never fails. It lasts forever.

To grasp a sense of the everlasting love of God, close your mind off for a few minutes and rest in the perfect communication of the Spirit of God into your spirit. Psalm 46:10 says to be still and know that He is God. His love cannot be measured because it has no beginning and no end. It has always existed. It will always exist. Apart from Earth and the universe and any man, woman, child;  God is Love, and His love cannot change or stop.  That He should pour His love into us and through us and send Jesus to die to place us back into the center of His love from which we had turned away is proof of His love.

Psalm 52 also discusses the turmoil on earth. There are mighty warriors who do not trust God. They do not accept that He could be right in His love and they want to keep control of their own lives. A mighty warrior is anyone who spends his life working to keep a grip on his life. Such warriors may appear small and mousy but fight fiercely in the spirit. God says these people will trust in their wealth and grow more and more bold to do whatever it takes to survive apart from God’s love. Their efforts result in great hurt to other people and themselves. The truth is, God loves them anyway. Surrendering to the Lord of love removes all the shades of wickedness and terror from their lives.

Psalm 53 says terror will grip the ones who do wickedness. Those who return God’s love will put them to shame.  I Timothy 1:5 – 2:1 instructs us in being right with God. To be filled with right love, we will have a pure heart, a clear conscience, and sincere faith. Each of these things is a free gift we receive from God through Jesus Christ, the Son of God. For God so lived the world that He gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. Everlasting life means living in the eternal presence of God’s unfailing love. We die to sin and wrong and live to God.

Is your conscience defiled and you feel you do not know God’s love?  I Timothy 1:19 says that people who deliberately violate their consciences SHIPWRECK THEIR FAITH. We are all given faith to believe God and the choice to do so. Doing what we know is wrong –  and it is built in to us that we should know – sends our faith to the bottom of the ocean. The good news is that Jesus Christ resurrects us from the shipwreck and restores us completely.

God knows that our only way to have a glorious life is to be who we are created to be – His children, living in His unfailing love. Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke fits perfectly, and the burden I give you is light.” (John 11:28-30, NLT)

The yoke is like a training yoke where an adult oxen is hitched to an immature oxen to train it to pull the plow. The adult takes the greater share of the burden while the child walks alongside learning its way. Yokes are made specifically to fit the oxen who wear them so there is no chafing or pain to their necks.

Picture yourself in a yoke with Jesus. You are walking side by side, and his arm is around your shoulders keeping you safe and upright. You do not have to worry about anything because you accept his yoke and he accepts your burden.  While you walk together, he talks with you about everything you need to know and do. When you pray, you are asking him for things that you are absolutely certain he will do because you are always yoked together and you know him intimately. You aren’t going to ask him for silly or irrelevant or wrong things. He makes sense to you, and you are sensible and in agreement with him. If you are not, you feel the yoke pull on you, and step right back into agreement.

Now, some may say that being tied to God is to live with rules and regulations you do not want in your life.  I Timothy 1 says that the rules are not made for people who do right, that is, what God knows is right and keeps us walking in His love. The rules are made for people who rebel against God and do what is evil in His sight.

Therefore, walk with Jesus and see with his eyes the direction you should go. He took the weight of the rules and judgment when he died on the cross for you. In him, your burden is light. I Timothy 2:1 – Pray for God’s mercy, then, on other people, and give thanks.  This is the way of the Lord, and it is not difficult; he makes the way.

God bless you.