Come and rest

METHODIST CHURCH NIGERIA

DIOCESE OF OSOGBO

FOURTEETH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME, 5TH JUNE, 2020.

GOD’S WORD TO GOD’S PEOPLE.

THEME: “Come and rest.”

   “Ewa ki e si sinmi.”

TEXT: Matthew 11:28.

“Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

“E wa sodo mi gbogbo eyin ti n sise ti a si di eru wuwo le lori, emi o si fi isinmi fun yin.”

Let us begin today’s message this way or rather with a question: What do you understand by the divine curses written in Genesis chapter 3 verses 17b and 19: “…Cursed is the ground for your sake; in toil you shall eat of it all the days of your life.” “In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground…” In my own view point, it is mis-use of free-will given to human beings at creation that led both Adam (man) and Eve (woman) to commit sin of disobedience which in turn led to their fall and later attracted divine curses and banishment from the Garden of Eden. The fall of the first human beings was indeed a great one. A fall from grace to grass, a fall from freedom into bondage, from rest to toil and from blessings to curses. It is therefore obvious that human beings are the architect of their own struggles, pains, sorrows sickness, pandemic, insurgency, robbery, political unrest and struggles, ceaseless labour, tiredness, failures, evil acts, restlessness and death. The moment Adam and Eve missed the mark set for them by God in Genesis Chapter 3, they became accursed and were driven out of the garden of peace and rest (Gen.3:23) into the world of unending labour and struggle, human beings were driven out into the world where the devil was already reigning as king (Rev.12:12). This is the beginning of restlessness and unending labour for us human beings in the world. But I have a goodnews for you today, a good news for the entire world, Jesus Christ is here giving an open invitation to all who labour and are heavy laden as he says; “COME TO ME… AND REST” (Matt.11:28). Come to Jesus and get rest from all your troubles and worries of life.

“Come to me and rest” is an open invitation issued by Jesus Christ to both his disciples and those who failed to believe him, especially the arrogant Jewish leaders of his generation. In our text for this 14th Sunday in ordinary time, Matthew Chapter 11 verse 16 to 19, and 25 - 30, Jesus Christ compared the people of his generation to a group of children sitting in the market places who could not be satisfied with anything or get rest within their minds. Like these restless and unsatisfied children, who refused the call of their mates to play or mourn, the Jewish leaders rejected both Jesus and John the Baptist. They were not pleased with John because he did not drink or eat with them. They were not as well satisfied with Jesus Christ who did eat and drink with common people called sinners and tax collectors. The Jewish leaders made the populace to see John the Baptist as someone who had a demon, and also convinced them to reject Jesus Christ, the author of peace, but rather made them to see him as a drunkard, glutton, and a friend of sinners. The Jewish leaders’ unbelief and hardness of heart did not help the populace at all. Rather, they became a big burden to the people they lead. The parable in Matthew chapter 11 verses 16 to 19 thus revealed the poor spiritual condition of these proud leaders of Jesus’ generation, and as well reveals the heart of unbelievers today. If I may ask, why did the religious leaders of Jesus’ time rebel against John the Baptist and Jesus Christ? The answer is not far-fetched. They rejected the duo (John and Jesus) simply because they were intellectually and spiritually proud. Instead of being childlike, honest, and humble in character, they were childish and stubborn, and thus heading toward destruction. But remember that God says in the scripture that “I, the Lord God, don’t like to see wicked people die I had much rather see them turn back from their sins and live” (Ezek.18:23 CEV) Jesus Christ as well affirmed this when he said, “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” (John 10:10b) Consequent upon this and the fact that Jesus would not want his disciples or followers to continue to suffer under great burden and anxiety of how to make ends meet, he issued great call to those who in faith will turn to him and find rest for their worried souls. 

Hoever in Matthew chapter 11 verse 25 to 30, Jesus declared that true discipleship can be enjoyed by those who come to him in childlike faith. He felt that only those who trust in him will know the Father and his salvific work. (John 6:37) Jesus’ invitation in the text (Matt.11:25-30) is thus a call to all who are weary, those who are tired of hard labour and bearing burden of life. The call has these 3 commands: 

(1) COME TO ME: The call is to all who are under heavy load like the law of Moses and traditions of men (Matt. 23:4; Acts 15:10) The call, therefore, is to come and trust Jesus, the only one who can save. The call, ‘come and rest’, is an open invitation to those who are exhausted, anxious about many things of life, and burdened down by sin and its consequences. Come, Jesus is calling you to come and rest.

(2) TAKE MY YOKE: Jesus knew that he has to touch the hearts of his followers before he could ask for their hands, so he promised to give them rest. The word “rest” here refers to an inner holiday and not cessation of work or activities, but a new energy and motive. No wonder, Jesus in verse 29 of Matthew Chapter 11 offers his yoke of faith and obedience to all who will answer his call. When we take his yoke upon ourselves, it means that we have surrendered ourselves to him and our will is now lost in his own will (Gal. 2:20). It means we are willing to trust and obey him in all things. For it is then that we will have deeper rest. That is “Peace with God” (Rom. 5:1) and “the Peace of God” (Phil. 4:6-8) will be our portion here now and hereafter. To take a yoke of Christ on us may mean to become a true disciple of him. So, when a man or a woman is yoked to Christ, it means he or she has agreed to be his disciple for life and be his tale bearer (1John 5:3).

(3) LEARN MORE OF HIM: Truly, when we come to Jesus Christ and totally yield to his will, the next step is to learn and know more about him. The more we get to know Christ, the more we trust him, and obviously, the deeper our peace and rest in him become. 

Men and brethren, how many of us are tired today, especially at this time of COVID-19 pandemic attack on the whole world? Are we not tired of much works but small pay? How about our daily schedule? We work from morning till late in the night. There are many things to do and yet we have no enough time to do them. Our minds are anxious about many things. I can say emphatically that tiredness of our souls is far more than that of our body. We have grown tired as a nation over many evils and Coronavirus pandemic in our land. Are we not tired of corruption and corrupt leaders in Nigeria? Are students and parents not wearied of strike actions at our tertiary institutions? How about the evils of BokoHaram insurgency, blood thirsty Fulani herdsmen, kidnappers, ritual killers, bandits and rapists? We are indeed tired of poverty, terminal diseases and brutality of law enforcement agents in our nation. This generation is nothing, but a tired generation living in both physical and spiritual exhaustion. Fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters in Christ, the good news today is that Jesus is inviting us from the tiredness of life, physical and spiritual, and from everything which brings weariness. He is calling on us to come to him, to take his own yoke of faith and obedience upon ourselves, learn more about him and have rest for our body and soul. Are you ready now to come out of the place you have gone to seek rest. I mean the places where you have gone for rest and peace, but never found any? Are you willing to leave the occult you belong? Can you quit the club which will not give you the needed rest? Do you know that nothing else can give you rest in life, except Jesus Christ. Come to him, accept him as your personal Lord and Saviour today and you shall find rest for your soul and body even here on earth and there in heaven on the last day. Do it now, tomorrow may be too late. 

Let us all sing together the hymn (MHB 328 YMHB 220) composed by William Chatterton Dix, (1837 - 1898) as we come to Jesus Christ with all our load, physical and spiritual and we will find rest for our soul and body:

1: COME unto Me, ye weary, 

And I will give you rest! 

O blessed voice of Jesus, 

Which comes to hearts oppressed! 

It tells of benediction, 

Of pardon, grace, and peace, 

Of joy that hath no ending, 

Of love which cannot cease.

2: Come unto Me, ye wanderers, 

And I will give you light! 

O loving voice of Jesus, 

Which comes to cheer the night! 

Our hearts were filled with sadness, 

And we had lost our way; 

But Thou hast brought us gladness, 

And songs at break of day.

3: Come unto Me, ye fainting, 

And I will give you life! 

O quickening voice of Jesus, 

Which comes to aid our strife! 

The foe is stern and eager; 

The fight is fierce and long; 

But Thou hast made us mighty, 

And stronger than the strong

4: And whosoever cometh 

I will not cast him out! 

O welcome voice of Jesus, 

Which drives away our doubt, 

Which calls us very sinners, 

Unworthy though we be 

Of love so free and boundless, 

To come, dear Lord, to Thee.

Let us pray

Rt. Rev. A.K.O. Ogunrinde, JP, FICT.

Bishop, Diocese of Osogbo.

OS-CAN Chairman.