Text: Matthew 11:28-30
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” —Matthew 11:28
A friend of mine recently shared an illustration about plate spinners. Maybe you’re familiar with the act. If you are old enough, you might’ve seen the classic “plate spinners” performance on the Ed Sullivan show.
This is when a talented entertainer attempts to keep multiple plates spinning atop a row of sticks—for the sake of performance. As the number of spinning plates increases, the performer must be efficient in rushing back and forth, giving each rod a little wiggle at just the right time to keep them spinning for an impressive amount of time, thus wooing his audience. Just one mishap could send a plate, or all of them, crashing to the ground. Whenever one plate falls off a stick, there seems to be this subtle sigh of disappointment that comes from the crowd. Once they all fall, everyone applauds mercifully as to encourage the entertainer for his efforts to sustain the performance as long as he did.
Does this imagery relate with you? Have you ever felt like your life was about spinning multiple plates to please others, to find approval from an audience, or maybe just to keep up with certain religious duties in a way as to not let anyone down? Have you ever served the idol of “people-pleasing”? Does it scare you to imagine any of these plates you are working so hard to keep spinning could end up crashing to the floor at any time? That’s a big anxiety to drag around with you from day to day. Dare I say much of it could be a burden you were never meant to carry?
We can’t let the plates become our masters. The Gospel offers good news for those weary with the plate spinning. Jesus is a refuge for those heavy-laden and stressed trying to keep up with a performance you feel so responsible to maintain, or the need to control. We can surrender all that anxiety and seek Him first for our approval, our poise, our peace, and our rhythms of life. It may be that the best thing that could happen is that some of those plates fall off the sticks you might be manipulating or micromanaging!
In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus said, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and 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” (ESV). The word “yoke” here could refer symbolically to a Rabbi’s teaching as well as his rhythms of life. With that in mind, consider how one “commentary” renders this passage:
“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 Message
We don’t need to run around being anxious to keep it all together. We don’t have to keep up with a pace that Jesus himself is not going to keep up with. When we take time to abide in Him and His word, we can find His rhythm, His sufficiency, and His pace. We can even find His approval so that we don’t go looking for it in all the wrong places or performances.
God doesn’t want us to neglect important responsibilities. He isn’t saying that we should become lazy in our duties, complacent in our commitments, or apathetic in how we serve. Conversely, He does want to free us from unrealistic expectations put on us by others and by ourselves, performance driven agendas, people-pleasing idolatry, or cultural and societal life patterns that are contrary to the rhythms Jesus emulated for us in the gospels.
Does your life feel more like “forced patterns of religion” than “unforced rhythms of grace”? Think about that and consider how to abide in Jesus and take refuge in Him this week.
PRAYER
Jesus, teach us how to find refuge in you. Help us to take your yoke upon ourselves, and to learn of your rhythms of grace in our daily lives. We pray in your name, Amen.
Questions for Reflection and/or Group Discussion
- Why do you think so many Christians are frazzled and burned out today?
- How does the imagery of plate spinning resonate with you? What aspects of religious life do you find especially taxing, burdensome, or exasperating?
- What general invitation did Christ make at this time? (Matthew 11:28)What group of people was Jesus addressing and what promise did He make to those who would accept His offer? (v.28)
- How did Jesus describe Himself? (v.29) How is walking with Christ described in this passage? (v.30)
- In what ways do you feel worn out or burnt out right now? How can you bring that to Christ today?
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