Text: Matthew 11:25-30   

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Amen.  “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”  I bet that most of us here really like these words of Jesus.  This is probably one of those passages in the Scriptures that sticks out in your mind and reminds you of just how comforting the Good News really is—at least it is for me.

But I think this passage about “rest” probably also sounds so great to us because we love rest so much.  And when I say we, I mean Americans—although I have a hard time imagining that most other peoples prefer work over rest.  But Americans in particular just seem to love any rest they can get.  For instance, we have entire TV channels dedicated to it—like those shows that tell you how to build that perfect home which provides you with all the rest and relaxation you could ever need.  Or perhaps some of you watch those travel and vacation channels from time to time, allowing your mind to wander off to some distant place with all the amenities you don’t normally have.  Some Americans take the notion of rest so serious that they have honorably or perhaps dishonorably received the title of “Couch Potato”.

Now all of this cultural hype surrounding our rest kind of begs the question, why are we so obsessed with it?  I suppose if we are to put the best construction on things, maybe it is because Americans work so hard.  I know we hear a lot today about how much some Americans don’t work, but I suspect that most of us do labor very hard both at work and at home.  And perhaps all of this labor makes us a little crazy for some rest and relaxation.

But what about Jesus and his words today?  What is he really getting at?  I mean, here is a guy who works really hard—teaching and preaching, healing the sick, raising the dead, constantly walking from one place to another, and of course ruling the world.  Perhaps he is trying to tell us that he has his favorite vacation spots too?  Maybe this why he likes to hang out around the Jordan River and the Sea of Galilee so much.  I haven’t really thought about it like this before, but those places are about as much a vacation spot as your going to find in the first century.  So maybe Jesus is just trying to tell us to kick back and take break from all of our labors.

Well, that sure is an entertaining idea, but it just doesn’t seem to fit exactly with what Jesus is talking about.  The rest to which he refers is not some vacation destination or ideal home suited to our every desire.  Instead it’s a return to the paradise Adam and Eve had in the garden of Eden.  And I don’t mean the garden itself, but rather their relationship with God.

You see, Jesus knows that there is one thing that all people are looking for—and it is rest.  But it’s the kind of spiritual rest that man only has when he is in a right relationship with God—when man can stand before the Almighty without fear and guilt.  And this only happens when we appear just and holy in the sight of God.  So Jesus’ point is this—that all people are seeking true rest, but they are not always looking in right place even though they are often times convinced they have found it.

Just look around!  Many Americans are convinced that their value before neighbor and God is to be found in the things they possess.  They believe that if you have the latest and greatest tv, phone, or car, that you are with the times, that you are relevant and important.  Then there are some people who don’t find value before neighbor and God in the things which they possess but rather in the things they do.  These people believe in hard work and that it if done well it can earn points with God.  Maybe we even tell ourselves something like this, “I work hard, I’m good at my job, I deserve what I have, and therefore God appreciates what I do.” 

Or maybe you’re more of a family oriented person.  Perhaps possessions and occupations don’t really do it for you.  You seek your rest, your value and justification before the Lord in your family and friends.  It’s not too hard to do if your children love you, or if you are respected by your spouse and friends.  If they think highly of you, it can be pretty easy to think of highly of yourselves and how great you must appear in the sight of God. 

And here is just one last example of how you might try to find rest and peace with God.  Perhaps you think that you are one really smart, educated person.  It’s not hard to do when so few people across the globe have little to no education.  Many of you probably even hold advanced degrees and it might be tempting from time to time to think that God sees you as one pretty sharp person.

Now I am not trying to destroy the importance of the things, whatever they may be, that are most important to us and give us shape and meaning.  Family, friends, our occupations and education can all be important things for which we are responsible before God and in service to our neighbor.

But all too often these things which we all treasure become the means by which we want to justify ourselves before God, and give ourselves rest.  Honestly, who among us has never thought “I am are a good person, who works hard, has decent family, and contributes positively to society, and surely some of this is going to count for me on the last day.”

Well, Jesus just doesn’t see it this way.  He doesn’t count those things which we value and love so much in this life as merits of worthiness toward eternal rest.  Instead he tells us that if we look for our salvation in those things, we will labor under them until our death because they cannot give eternal rest and salvation.  They cannot set right what sin has set so wrong, in fact all these things I have mentioned are themselves besieged with sin.  And while we may see ourselves as wise when we look at our accomplishments and consider them meritorious, Jesus really tells us that we are fools.

Yet Christ does not send us away empty handed like so many of the things we falsely trust in for salvation.  He is not like one of those vacations which promises to be full of rest and relaxation, but only seems to leave us more tired than when we started.  Jesus doesn’t do this because as he tells us, “My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”  What Jesus means is that when it comes to salvation, we don’t need to labor for it.  Its not about how smart we are or how hard we work.  It’s all about Jesus and what he has done for us.

And what Jesus has done for us is to stand guilty of our sins before the Father so we don’t have to.  The judgment that we deserve according to our works, now rests on Christ.  So whatever we think we can earn by all of our good works is nothing in comparison to the salvation Christ has won for us.  The burden of our sin has been lifted from our own shoulders and placed on Christ himself.  And in return for our load, Jesus gives us his yoke, which is true righteousness and sinlessness before God.  This is exactly how Christ delivers to us true rest in the midst of our daily lives and makes our burdens light.

We may persist, as our Old Adam tells us, to look at our own good works for rest before God, but we will not find it there and we have absolutely no reason to.  For the peace and rest which surpasses all understanding has already been given to you in Christ Jesus.  So enjoy your rest, Jesus has earned it for you.

In Jesus Name.

Amen.

Vicar Mark Taylor