INVITATION FROM JESUS (guest post)

These days are hard times for almost everyone in the world.  We face uncertainty about tomorrow, there is an illness that seems to be lurking at the door, as well as changes in lifestyle and habits in many areas of life that also have an impact on the family economy.  All of that can be a source of stress that can lead to new problems.  A reflection for us… In the midst of this difficult situation, is our faith getting stronger and more faithful in practicing God’s word, or do we just feel spiritually inadequate and tired.  Praise the Lord!  We have a Savior who invites us with all His love:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11: 28, NIV)

What a comforting and encouraging invitation and promise!  However, we must not stop at verse 28 alone, because Jesus’ words continue until verses 29 and 30.  The unique thing is that “the invitation to come and the promise to be given rest” is followed by the command to take up His yoke and learn from Him:

“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11: 29-30, NIV)

People who are weary and burdened are asked to bear the yoke and learn!  Wouldn’t the burden get heavier and tiring?!  What truth can we get from this passage?

“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me”

In Jewish idea, a yoke means “a heavy burden”, comparable to the yokes resting on the bullocks’ necks.  That heavy yoke is a law that must be obeyed, which is the Mosaic Law.  The Law consists of hundreds of laws which are full of various rituals and are accepted as legalistic tradition.  The Pharisees and the scribes demanded the Jews to obey the laws, while the Pharisees and the scribes themselves didn’t do it.  We can find it in Matthew 23: 4, Luke 11:46, and Acts 15:10.  Thus, in this context Jesus invites people who are weary and burdened by religious laws and rituals that provide no peace.

As a substitute for that heavy yoke, Jesus Christ offers His yoke which is easy to bear and His burden which is light, that is the first and greatest commandment: “’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40). 

The Lord Jesus not only puts the yoke on our shoulders, but it’s His own yoke, which means He carry it together with us.  That’s why the yoke becomes easy and the burden becomes light.  Now, the same invitation is also addressed to us.  The Lord Jesus promises to give us rest, but we must be willing to bear His yoke.  In other words, we must live in His first and greatest commandment, that is love God and love neighbor as written in Matthew 22: 37-40.  Why? Because if we do God’s word only as laws that must be obeyed, then we will be tired of the various rules, “Don’t do this, you have to do that, and if you don’t do it you will receive the consequences.”  We will lose our joy in practicing God’s word.  Conversely, if we do everything out of love, then obedience will not be heavy because love will lighten all burdens (1 John 5: 3). There is no power greater than love, especially God’s love!

If we are full of God’s love, then we will be able to love God and others.  Love makes us treat other people in different ways.  Love makes us live our life in a new way, which is from God’s perspective.  We become stronger and calmer in facing struggles because it becomes easier for us to trust God.  For that, we must continue to walk with Jesus and learn from Him, to be His disciples.  Being a disciple of Jesus means being willing to be disciplined, willing to continue to be taught and trained, so that we become like Him, a person who is gentle and humble in heart.

“for I am gentle and humble in heart”

Many people have the concept of gentle and humble that only emphasizes action.  People who speak softly and not show anger will be considered as a gentle person, and people who deny their greatness in front of others are considered as humble.  In fact, it could be that a person who seems gentle and humble is actually rebelling in his heart or is deliberately controlling himself because he wants to be praised and considered good by others.  The biblical concept of gentle (meekness) and humble (lowliness) is not like that.  In the Greek text, the word “praus” (meek) and “tapeinos” (low) are followed by the word “tē kardia” (in the heart).  So, meekness and lowliness are attitudes that come from the heart, not only measured by visible actions.

Biblical meekness is not weakness but rather refers to exercising God’s strength under His control – i.e. demonstrating power without undue harshness.

Lowliness describing the person who depends on the Lord rather than self.

Let’s learn from Jesus and become like Him.  Jesus has authority and power, but He always submits to the Father and does everything according to the Father’s will.  Jesus also showed His boldness and anger when He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves in the Temple.  But He is also full of mercy on those who are weak and doesn’t reject those who are despicable.  Jesus always full of love and forgiveness towards sinners, including those who tortured and crucified Him.

If we build a relationship and learn from Jesus who is gentle and humble in heart, then we will get rest for our souls, because we know that we are fully accepted and loved.

And if we have meekness and lowliness, we will be calmer and peace in living this life.

Gentleness and lowliness will be reflected in the attitude in living everyday life.  A gentle person will give himself to be controlled by God, not by ego and emotions.  He can be assertive, even angry, but in the right and necessary portions.  A humble person will submit to God and rely on God, not boasting about himself and not looking down on others, because he knows that everything in him comes from God.  If we continue to develop gentleness and lowliness, we will be more able to understand and accept others, more forgiving, less hardened when we are reprimanded and not ashamed to admit mistakes.  We will become easier to control and lead by the Holy Spirit. And we know that we really need the guidance of the Holy Spirit in all things, especially in tough situations like these days.

God’s people who are weary and burdened… Let us accept the invitation from Jesus.

Come to Jesus, take up His yoke and be His disciple, for He is gentle and humble in heart.

His yoke is easy and His burden is light.  Not because being a disciple of Jesus is without process and carelessly, but because of Jesus Himself bore the yoke with us.

His love enables us to do His commandments with joy.

Come, accept His invitation and His promise, for only in Him do we find peace and rest for our souls, in the midst of whatever we are going through.

Amen.

By: Sella Irene – Beautiful Words

Photo Credit: Google Images ( wallpapersafari.com ) edited with pixlr apps

LEAVE YOUR “BIG BAG” (Guest Post)

I really love big size bag. Hand bag, tote bag, sling bag, or whatever it is I really love it as long they are big and have pouch “everywhere”. Well, I don’t even know when and how this fashion formed. Also don’t know the reason why! Maybe because of big size so I could bring much stuff or even I think I need to carry many things so need a big bag. I really just don’t know! The fact is this is a habit that very hard to be left.

A few weeks ago I suddenly really want to buy a new bag. Captured in my mind a formal, elegant and medium-sized bag would be very cool! But you know what happened? Ah…Again..! It’s not big enough, couldn’t, and I am afraid it would not be enough! Though initially I am interested with a medium bag my mind always filled with couldn’t, not big enough, and so on! And guys you could guess what happen next! Back to the habit! Big size bag stick on my hand!

Well, I really know carrying big bag with lots of stuff is the same like carrying a heavy load on the shoulder.  So often my shoulders feel so sore, stiff, and finally made my head dizzy! Friends, I always try hard to reduce the stuff to carry but I always difficult to decide which one I shouldn’t take it in the bag. It seems all stuff is important! But you know, in fact I scarcely didn’t need that damn stuffs.

 

UNNECESSARY BURDENS

Through the simple experience, the Holy Spirit teaches me an allegory, that quite often we bear unnecessarily burdens.  Sometimes unconsciously we did it for years. We become very familiar so that the burden stick strong in our soul, they shape our character and the way we thinking. It is so difficult to let it go. Increasingly the burden pressing and ensnare us. Make us unable to fully enjoy the joy and freedom in Christ, and make our steps become so hard and slow.

Burden could be anything. Could come in from life problems, but also could be made by ourselves. Examples:

-Pursuing achievement just for the sake of recognition of others

-Desire wants to get rich very quick

-Over perfectionist for the sake people couldn’t see our shortcomings.

-Trying hard to buy something far beyond the ability in order could be welcome in the certain social community.

-Manipulate our real situation because of shame or prestige

-Fear, anxiety, trauma, revenge, anger, disappointment, etc

-And the kinds of thing that do not grow our spiritual maturity, doesn’t bear the fruit of Spirit, doesn’t build godly character, doesn’t arouse hope and faith, and not make us dependent on God.

Whatever it is, all the things that hinder our walk with Christ are burden. Burden made us tired and weak. But there is good news.

 

INVITATION FROM JESUS

Jesus invites us through His Word:

“COME TO ME, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I WILL GIVE YOU REST.” (Matthew 11:28 NKJV)

HOW THE WAY?

“TAKE MY YOKE upon youand 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 11:29-30 NKJV)

Come to Jesus! Let Him take our burdens and replace it with the God’s yoke. What is that? Willingness to life along and in tune with God by always aligning ourselves with God’s word. As long as we always live in obedience to God’s word and doing His call, it means the same we bear the God’s yoke.

Jesus promised that His yoke is easy and light. It is true! Because the fact is, we would not bear the yoke alone. Jesus carries it together with us.

But as light as any, bear the Lord’s yoke isn’t automatically change us as easy as blinking our eyes become immune to the pressures of life. We still have problems. We could still worry, disappoint, fear, arrogant, greedy, and the other negative emotional. That is why Jesus the Lord not only says “Take My yoke” but He also says: “LEARN FROM ME”

We must learn from Jesus. But there is no instant learning. Every learning is always takes the process, and every process always takes time. Learning always involves two parties, teacher and student. We are as students need to open ourselves to be taught by Jesus as our Master. All that will be successful if we always obey and have the willingness to not give up in any God’s shaping. Then, what should we learn??

 

GENTLENESS AND HUMILITY

Jesus specifically said about “for I am gentle and lowly in heart”.Jesus is the perfect example in gentleness and humility. He who is the King of kings had to let Himself be born in the flesh even to death on the Cross. In Hebrews 2:5-9 we read that to immediately Jesus made a little lower than the angels, which incidentally are His creatures.

In the three times of temptation in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11), Jesus actually had the opportunity to prove His power but He was not provoked by the Devil. Jesus chose to submit to the Word of the Father, then He said, “It is written …”.Jesus put the word of God above all else.

Similarly, when the Lord Jesus on the Cross. Indeed, He has the power to liberate Himself and repay those who persecute Him. But Jesus knew the Father’s will that He should die on the Cross and He chose to be obedient and faithful in fulfilling the Father’s will. That’s all the evidence gentleness and humility of Jesus.

Gentleness and humility will take us on walks toward the fulfillment of God’s plan.

Only the gentle and humble man that can submit and obey, so it can be more easily shaped and transformed by God.

But again, all of them require obedience and continuous processes. Don’t give up, the Holy Spirit will enable us to go through all the processes.

 

LEAVE YOUR BURDEN AND SIN

“Therefore then, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses , let us strip off and throw aside every encumbrance (unnecessary weight) and that sin which so readily (deftly and cleverly) clings to and entangles us, and let us run with patient endurance and steady and active persistence the appointed course of the race that is set before us.” (Hebrews 12:1 AMP)

There are many things could be a burden: health, financial, family relationships, spouse, career, and even ideals, all can be a problem and burden! It is normal we think about life problem. It means we are not indifferent. It is indicate we have responsibility. But do not let the thought drag us to the negative feelings that actually makes our soul depressed.

Leave our burdens by bring all the problems in prayer with faith and surrender all to God. The power of God is real and God’s help is always on time, even in ways that never occurred to us. There is a way out for all the problems in God.

On the other hand, don’t carry the “big size bag” filled with unnecessary things that could be a burden. Don’t fill our lives with self-desires, envy, angry, bitterness, worry, arrogance, and many useless things and sin. Do not open the door for sin because sin will ensnare us so we can’t run to reach the goals from the Lord.

If we always keep our steps day by day in harmony with God’s Word and faithful in the process to be meek and humble like Jesus, so we are freed from unnecessary burden.

Let us allow the Holy Spirit to change and shape our hearts, so that we are increasingly able to give the true response in all circumstances. Thus our souls will get joy and peace and we could more focus on doing God’s will.

God who commands us to do His will is God who have full of responsibility. He provides help, the certainty future with full of hope, and give assurance will be always going fine. The Holy Spirit will enable us to bear everything.

I pray this song lyric of HE WILL CARRY YOU could be a blessing for all of us. Amen.

 HE WILL CARRY YOU

There is no problem too big God cannot solve it

There is no mountain too tall God cannot move it

There is no storm too dark God cannot calm it

There is no sorrow too deep He cannot soothe it

 

Oh, if He carried the weight of the world upon His shoulders

I know my brother that He will carry you

Oh, if He carried the weight of the world upon His shoulders

I know my sister that He will carry you

 

He said, “Come on to me all who are weary

And I will give you rest”

 

By: Sella Irene – Beautiful Words

Photo Credit: Google Images (edit with pixlr)

Living in The Meekness

 

Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways. He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way. All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful toward those who keep the demands of his covenant. Psalm 25:8-10

Today one of my friends asked me to write an article with topic of meekness. Interesting!  And as long as I am active in the blog, I rarely write about it. I think meekness is one of the aspects which are quite important in our lives, especially in our Christian lives. And here’s a bit of my thoughts about meekness.

From an early age in our society we are taught from many media such as television, books, news and well-meaning relatives that we must always have the upper hand or we will be seen as weak. We may have been told that we cannot be seen as an effective worker, parent, teen or whatever if we do not express ourselves with pride and forcefulness.

The bible teaches something entirely different. God says that one of the characteristics we should have is meekness. What does it mean to be meek? Meekness is a gentleness or kindness seen in a person’s character. It can be shown through humility, patience, and restraint. A meek man has greater strength than the prideful man. God tells us that Moses was a meek man and that he was above all men that were upon the face of the earth. Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth. (Number 12:3)

Christians develop a different attitude towards others and circumstances. There is an understanding of God’s view of the lost and a Godly sorrow for their state. When we exercise patience with others and treat them with kindness, God is pleased. God does not approve of pride in the life or a believer and there are consequences to pride. Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. (Proverb 16:18)

Through Bible reading or study and prayer we are as a Christian develops a stronger foundation to use a guideline for our lives. As we grow in our Christian life we seek humility and gentleness when dealing with the world. God has clearly stated that He will guide the meek and teach them.

When we are talking to our peers at the office or where ever we are, do we boast of our own accomplishments? Do we put all our faith in our knowledge and little in God’s wisdom? Be honest with ourselves about whether pride is in the forefront of our actions. Ask to God to help us to be humble and meek. Paul many times talks about meekness.

 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. (Ephesians 4:2)

 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. (Colossians 3:12)

 But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. (1Timothy 6:11)

Gentleness and patience, it was repeated by the apostle who formerly known as the butcher of believers but then transformed so radically in a very short time.Even Jesus himself said: “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you”. (Luke 6:27-28)

My dear lovely readers, if we already have a character of meekness? When we see someone suffering do we offer our support or pray for them? If someone tries to make us angry, criticizes us or picks on us, do we show restraint and avoid further confrontation? When we are witnessing to the lost, do we talk to them with a gentle spirit and kindness? As a Christian, it is time for us to continually improving our meekness. So through our meekness others will see and feel God’s love and wisdom. Ask to the Lord continuously to give us the strength to continue to be humble, gentle, and kind. Amen.

Karina – Living in the meekness.

Photo credit: Sue Nash.  http://heavenlyraindrops.wordpress.com