Matthew 11:16-19
The Message
16-19 “How can I account for this generation? The people have been like spoiled children whining to their parents, ‘We wanted to skip rope, and you were always too tired; we wanted to talk, but you were always too busy.’ John came fasting and they called him crazy. I came feasting and they called me a boozer, a friend of the misfits. Opinion polls don’t count for much, do they? The proof of the pudding is in the eating.”
Matthew 11:25-30
25-26 Abruptly Jesus broke into prayer: “Thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth. You’ve concealed your ways from sophisticates and know-it-alls, but spelled them out clearly to ordinary people. Yes, Father, that’s the way you like to work.”
27 Jesus resumed talking to the people, but now tenderly. “The Father has given me all these things to do and say. This is a unique Father-Son operation, coming out of Father and Son intimacies and knowledge. No one knows the Son the way the Father does, nor the Father the way the Son does. But I’m not keeping it to myself; I’m ready to go over it line by line with anyone willing to listen.
28-30 “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
The Yoke is Easy
I begin by saying that I am not Jesus, yet in the scripture he says “No one knows the Son the way the Father does, nor the Father the way the Son does. But I’m not keeping it to myself; I’m ready to go over it line by line with anyone willing to listen.” So here I am listening to Jesus, and learning myself, as I do my best, with help from the Holy Spirit, to interpret.
Another translation of this passage is, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.” I think that he is saying that it is not the following of the rules set out by the Bible that brings you to God. Instead it is much easier than fasting and constantly praying, and eating correctly, to come to God’s peace and love. Let us begin together to find the way.
Jesus speaks all the time about the Kingdom of Heaven – he says it is “at hand” – meaning that it is near. Does that mean that it is close by? Or that it will happen soon? I believe he is saying both. He is saying that we do not have to wait for Heaven, because you can have it now. And you do not have to go somewhere else, because it is right here. So let’s go find Heaven, shall we?
It helps to find Heaven if we can define Hell first. Hell, of course, is elsewhere, somewhere other than Heaven. I define Hell as when we people, who have free will to do whatever we so desire, choose to do differently than God’s Will. We are allowed to exercise our free will anytime, anywhere. We do not HAVE to follow God’s Will. It is our own choice to do so.
So, we may wonder, how do we know what is God’s Will? This is tricky. Certainly scripture describes it for us, but few of us have the Bible memorized, and then we would have to be able to interpret it correctly. Many religious people interpret the Bible for their own means, however they feel it fits into their own beliefs. There are many places in the Bible where scripture contradicts itself.
The yoke is easy and my burden is light.
So, let’s get down to the most important lesson – the yolk – to determine what God’s Will is. In Matthew 22, verse 37, after a Pharisee asked Jesus what the most important commandment is, he replied, “[37] Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.” And then he continued with “This is the first and great commandment. [39] And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. [40] On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”
God’s Will, is simple, is easy, and light. Just do everything in your life with love. Love everyone! No matter who they are, where they live, or even if they hurt you. Even if they hurt you A LOT. Even if they are your enemy. This is a simple message, and Jesus says it is easy, but then again, many times in our individual lives, it is VERY challenging.
Hell, then, is anytime that we exert our own will, and when that will is opposed to God’s Will of loving everyone and everything. Hell is when we are angry and say something or do something that purposely hurts another person, an animal, or our earthly home. Heaven is right where we are when we instead, send love to that person, animal or place. Our will matches God’s Will. Heaven is here in this place, and God’s love can be found in our heart, ready to give away. Heaven can be found right now, and we do not have to wait for our reward.
So let’s practice right now. Get comfortable wherever you are sitting. Close your eyes or cast them down. Take in a deep breath, and when you exhale, let go of any tensions or concerns from today. Take in another deep breath, and as you exhale, let go of concerns from yesterday or before, sending them away for now. Finally, breathe in the love of God, deep into your heart, hold it there a few seconds, then gently release and share.
Staying here, scan your body for any tensions, any pains, or any discomfort. Identify it, and now let’s breathe God’s Love into that spot. Breathe in the light and healing of God’s Love, into your heart, and as you exhale, send that light and love to the place of discomfort. And again, breathing in light and healing, and send that healing to the spot. One more time, breathe in very deeply, hold a few seconds, and send it to that spot. Come back to normal breathing, still with your eyes shut or cast down. Scan your body once again. If you got some relief to the spot we just worked on, thank God for the healing.
Let’s do another healing together. This time, we will heal the group, all at once. Our prayers of healing are more powerful when we are together. Heaven comes closer and closer when we pray for each other with God’s Love in our hearts. Let’s begin.
With your eyes closed, imagine the group of us, from around the world. We are one group, one community, we are one in God’s Love. In your mind, voice your concern and your prayer for healing. If you so desire, you may say it out loud.
The group and God have heard your concern. It is placed at the feet of God, and although it may be a silent concern, it is known by All That Is. We begin. Breathe in the light and love and healing of God into your heart, and as you exhale, send that healing to the circle. Now, the same with the second breath. In, hold a second or two, and send to the circle. One more time, slowly in, hold, then sending it.
Let’s now sit here in silent prayer, breathing normally, sending love and healing to wherever you are called. Is there someone or something that makes you angry and puts you in Hell? Send love, if you can, to that circumstance. Perhaps you just need to sit and receive. Whatever comes up is perfect.
Pause
Slowly come back to this time and place. Wiggle your toes, your ankles, your legs. Wiggle your fingers, your elbows, your shoulders, your whole arms. Wiggle your torso, your neck. Stretch your body and slowly open your eyes as you are ready.
Notice that you and your body feel differently now than you did before we began. You feel more relaxed in your body because you have experienced Heaven. For that time, your will was matching God’s Will, which was to love your neighbor as yourself. You sent healing to your body, making your spirit, your soul, integrated with God and integrated with your body. You made yourself whole. You loved yourself.
Then, in this integrated loving state of Heaven, you sent love to the others in the circle. You loved your neighbors as yourself. And because you did this all with God’s love in your heart, you completed the most important commandment, of loving God with all of your heart, your mind, and your soul. You were truly in Heaven, my dear friends! Was it easy? Was it light? Was it enjoyable? And very importantly, can you do it again? I hope so!
And so we end this sermon today with the following from Jesus: “Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
May it be so. Amen.
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