Finding Rest in Jesus and Marking Rest on His Day

Matthew 11:20-30

The Lord’s Day or the Christian Sabbath is a wonderful day to rest in Christ. It’s a day where we focus on Christ. Christians worship God on the first day of the week. This is commanded by God - to keep one day out of seven holy and separate. On that day, according to the Heidelberg, we are to diligently attend the church of God to hear God’s Word and to use the Sacraments. We are to call publicly on Christ. We are to collect alms for the Christian poor. That’s the first requirement of God. But there’s a second requirement, the fourth commandment requires us to rest from all our evil works, to pursue after holiness, so that we might experience our eternal life here on earth before going to heaven. We often focus on the first requirement without focusing on the second.

Today, I want to speak about the second requirement - and how we find that rest in Christ who is our Sabbath. But I also want to make reference to the first. And I want to stress the reason why we ought to keep the first requirement - it’s not an end to itself; but it’s a means of marking the rest we have in Christ on a special day.

I will explore this passage in 4 points. Firstly, Jesus is the merciful rest-giver. Secondly, Jesus speaks to the restless. Thirdly, Jesus invites the restless to come. Fourthly, Jesus promises rest to the restless who come.

Firstly, Jesus is the merciful rest-giver. Jesus said these words at a very difficult time. He had just finished his first preaching tour in his Great Galilean ministry. He had preached in many cities around Galilee, performing miracles, and showing people that he was indeed the Christ. But they found his teaching too difficult to accept. Despite the many miracles, they showed amazing hardness of heart. Because of that willful unbelief, Jesus pronounced judgment on three cities. Chorazin and Bethsaida had experienced so many miracles. But the people didn’t repent of their sins. Capernaum was Christ’s headquarters, and they heard much of his teaching, and saw many miracles - but they also didn’t repent of their sins. Because of their hardness, they would have a greater judgment.

But Jesus was not shaken. He thanked God that the gospel was hidden from those who think they’re wise and clever. Those who think they’re strong. Those who feel they need no savior. But he thanked God for revealing this gospel to the childlike - those who are like babies - who cry for help, who cry for salvation from their sins. And that’s where he offers rest. To whom? To those who cry for help; to those who are tired and burdened. So we want to see Jesus as the merciful rest-giver. “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” He looks tenderly at those babes - those tired ones, not the hard-hearted ones - and he earnestly pleads with them. Jesus uses agricultural language - “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

The Jews were accustomed to cultivate the land with oxen, which were yoked together. Perhaps Jesus saw a pair of yoked oxen plowing the next field. They’d have heavy yokes, drawing the heavy plow, tired and nearly exhausted, but still having to toil beneath the whip of the farmer. And this was a picture of sinners, under a heavy yoke of sin - wearied and exhausted, but being mercilessly driven on by Satan. As Jesus saw the people - under their sins, his heart flowed with sympathy and he invited them to come to him for rest. To rest from a burdened conscience, troubled minds, aching and thirsting hearts, anxious souls, and weariness. So that they can rest from all their evil works, to pursue after holiness, and experience eternal life here on earth before going to heaven.

This is how Jesus spoke. He is the merciful rest-giver. No prophet of Israel spoke like this. Yes, the prophets spoke with authority. They said, “Thus saith the Lord!” But they spoke on behalf of God. They were not the Savior. They only pointed to the day the Savior and Rest-Giver would come. John Baptizer directed sinners to “Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world.” They only pointed to the savior God. The Apostles all proclaimed, “There is none other name under heaven, given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). They weren’t the ones doing the saving. Isaiah recorded that God alone saves. God said in Isaiah 45:22 - “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.”

None of the prophets could ever say those words. Only God could. And because Jesus said - “Come unto me…and I will give you rest,” it means that he’s the merciful God who saves. Come to me, all who sin, and I will save you. And because he’s God, he’s able to do what he promises. Jesus said all power in heaven and on earth has been given to him. He has the keys of death and hell. The Bible says he’ll judge all things at the end of time. And because he’s God, he’s faithful to do whatever he promises. He can’t lie, nor deceive, nor break his promise. God’s not a man that he should lie, nor the son of man, that he should change his mind. What he speaks, he will do. What he undertakes, he will perform. Heaven and earth may pass away, but his Word endures forever.

So that’s his ability and faithfulness to his Word. And when Jesus said “come unto me, and I will give you rest,” we see a willingness to do what he promises. He said - I will. Our Lord came to earth to be born, so that he would bleed and die at Calvary. He’s not willing that any should perish; he has no pleasure in the death of the wicked. He calls the wicked to turn from his ways and live. He offers rest. That’s why this faithful, willing, and powerful God can issue the command - come! Because he can give rest. He’s the merciful rest-giver.

But secondly, we see to whom he speaks. Jesus speaks to the restless. Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden. And he speaks to all the restless. All that labor and are heavy laden. Of course, we’re all restless because of sin. Yes, there are those who don’t see their need of a physician. But Jesus offers to all who labor and are heavy laden. All - this is a wide and embracing invitation. He’s able to give rest - he’s the powerful, faithful, and willing Savior. Now, this was necessary for the Lord to say because of what he had said in verses 25-27. Some may have heard the Lord’s words and concluded that “since God has revealed the gospel only to some and hidden it from others, there’s no hope and no invitation for me.” But the gospel is Christ offering it to all that labor and are heavy laden.

The verb translated “labor” means to grow weary through painful and laborious work. It suggests hard work and weariness with no prospect of rest. The picture given is of tired and weary oxen which are overworked by their wicked master. The phrase “heavy laden” means to load with a heavy burden. Perhaps on that hillside, Jesus saw a pair of oxen, who were tired because they were overworked the whole day - but the farmer was still piling sacks onto them. Jesus sees sinners in this same situation. Jesus may have had Matthew 23:4 in mind - “For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.” There are some people who are always trying to get things right. They can’t get anything wrong. They try to keep certain traditions and laws. According to the scribes and Pharisees, a sinner had to obey all these traditions and regulations in order to earn salvation and eternal life. The orthodox Jews have two kitchens to keep kosher. One kitchen is for dairy meals, and the other is for meals with meat. According to kosher rules, you can’t eat dairy and meat at the same time. So two kitchens ensure that meals are prepared without contamination. And also, the Rabbis decreed that one who wants to eat a dairy product must wait six hours after eating meat. This kind of life can make people tired.

Or Jesus may have been talking about the weight of guilt because of unconfessed and unforgiven sin. The Psalmist in Psalm 32 says, “Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer.” Unconfessed sin causes a heaviness. It comes from God. It’s guilt. Who are the restless? Those who are filled with guilt because of sin; and those who are tired of always trying to get things right, but they still do wrong.

This is why thirdly, the powerful, faithful, and willing merciful rest-giver invites the restless - those weighed down with sin - to come. What’s the invitation? Come unto me. And this word “come” is a gracious word. In Isaiah 1:18 God says to those who are sinful - “Come now, and let us reason together saith the Lord, though your sins be as scarlet , they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” God invites sinners to come to him to know that they can be cleansed from their sins. Even though their sins are as scarlet and crimson, they can be as white wool. “Come,” is also the word spoken by the King’s servant in the parable of the Great Supper, where he invites the people - “Come, for all is now ready; come unto the marriage.” And when the invited guests didn’t come, the invitation was indiscriminately given to all in the highways and hedges. Come is also the last word in the Bible to needy sinners. “The Spirit and the Bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” There’s an offer of salvation. In Matthew 11, it is rest. Rest from sin. In Revelation 22, it’s satisfaction. Jesus does not say “Go and get ready.” Jesus does not say “Do this and do that.” He says to those heavy laden, “Come!” They will receive rest without working for it.

And it’s a merciful invitation. Jesus would have sinners to escape the wrath to come. Jesus is not willing that you should perish in hell. He’s no pleasure in your death. He offers rest from sin. You must come. And it’s a gracious invitation. The fact that sinners can hear that invitation is gracious. It’s also encouraging. He says “Come unto me!” Approach me.

Fourthly, Jesus promises rest to the restless who come.“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” We see that it’s a twofold promise. First of all, there’s a rest which is given. I will give you rest. We come as guilty sinners burdened beneath a load of sin. He gives rest from the fear of sin, and from the effects of sin. And the reason is because he removes sin. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our iniquities. He also gives us rest from fear of the law. The law has no further claim on the man who has come to Christ. Its debts are all paid; its requirements are all satisfied. Christ is the end of the law for righteousness. Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law. “Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect?” He also gives rest from the fear of hell. Hell can’t touch the man who’s come to Christ. The punishment has been taken and placed on another - Christ - he bore our pain and suffering. He also gives us rest from the fear of the Devil. Yes, Satan is mighty - but he can’t touch the one who’s come to Christ. No man can pluck us out of the Father’s hands. Christ sets a hedge around us that Satan can’t overthrow. Yes, he can sift us like wheat, he can buffet us, and vex us; but he can’t destroy us who’ve come to Christ. He’ll also give us rest from the fear of death. To be with Christ is far better. He also gives us rest in the storms of affliction. He gives us a comfort that the world knows nothing of. It's a peace that passes understanding. His grace is sufficient for us as we go through even the most fiery of trials. In the Old Testament, there were cities of refuge. A man can run to those cities and find refuge behind their thick walls. And Christ gives that rest and refuge when we come to him, to hide behind him.

But second of all, there is a rest that is found. “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Remember, if we come to Christ, we will first be given rest; then we will find rest. It’s the rest of a person who’s already at rest. This is the rest of Mary who sat at the feet of Jesus and heard His Word. Mary chose the one thing needful (Luke 10:38-42). This is a rest in service. It’s a rest that’s linked with a yoke and burden. And the only way to find this rest, is to be actively engaged in His service. When the bullock has the yoke upon its shoulders, it begins to pull and to obey its master. We do not rest with the yoke off, but with the yoke on. The servant is never more at rest than when he is joyfully at work and happy in his service to his kind and merciful master who rewards him. And the way we also obtain this rest is by learning. “Learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” Mary sat at the feet of Christ - listening and learning. And then subsequently, she served lavishly. But that is where she found rest. And another thought. Christ said, “take my yoke upon you.” When oxen are yoked, they’re yoked in pairs. They’re yoked together and must work together. One cannot lie down and the other stand up! No, they must labour together when the yoke is upon their shoulders. And the Savior says, “Take my yoke upon you and learn of me.”

Christ bears one part of the yoke on His shoulders, and you place your neck under the other side of it; and you LEARN OF HIM - keeping in step with him and doing what He does. Christ says, “I am meek and lowly in heart” meaning therefore that your heart must be like mine, and then we will work together in blessed fellowship, and then you will find that working with me is a blessed and happy thing: for my yoke is easy to ME, and if you keep in step with ME, it will be easy to you also. In other words, the text calls us to be laborers together with Christ and bear His yoke, for without Christ we can do nothing. But when we take His yoke upon us and learn of Him, then it is we shall find rest unto our souls.

We must come to Jesus always to find that rest - to rest from our evil works by being saved, to pursue after holiness in Christ who makes us holy. And to have a peace that passes all understanding - a peace that God gives to his people. But how can we do that? We make use of the Lord’s Day. If we, like the Jews, view the Lord’s Day like some chore to keep, it becomes a burden that the taskmaster of legalism and religion places on us. But if we, see it as a symbol of rest in this life, where we can come to learn of Jesus, being yoked together with the rest of the saints, then we find greater rest. The Lord’s Day is when we commemorate the salvation and rest we have in Christ. We’re reminded that we’re saved to holiness. We’re reminded that in heaven, we’ll rest forevermore. We’re reminded that our lives don’t consist on things below. That’s why we come to worship. This is what we shall do forever. If this is the beginning of our eternal life, how can we not make use of the Lord’s Day to worship our Lord? How can we stay away from the evening service. Yes, all things considered, there are many constraints. But let us be encouraged to use the whole Lord’s Day. Indeed, when we keep the Lord’s Day rightly, how can we not grow in holiness?

And when we come to serve the Lord, we’re invigorated. We’re saved to worship and serve. And those of us who serve, we may be tired in body, but we experience great joy and rest don’t we? Despite the busyness! Why? Because we find rest in service, in works of piety, in the work that is done on the Christian Sabbath. And when we learn, attending worship and covenant instruction - our Sabbath school, we’re changed. But if we learn not, and have not the attitude of devotion, we will be like Martha, busy and cumbered, busy and not blessed. Life becomes a chore. Why do we keep the Lord’s Day, in coming to church, and serving God heartily? Because it’s restful. This is why we have an evening service - it is such a wondrous time to labor in worship. It’s that last opportunity we have on the Lord’s day to come together. You do well, who come here. Because you are finding rest for your souls. Because you are learning. Because you are serving.