“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” (Matt. 11:29-30 KJV).
Jesus invites us to take His yoke upon us. The word yoke refers to a master teacher and his student. In the days of Jesus, a student would follow the Rabbi, thereby taking upon himself the yoke or the teachings of the Rabbi. Jesus, our Great Teacher, is inviting us to take upon ourselves His teachings…to follow Him.
He wants us to take upon ourselves His teachings because He is meek and lowly in heart, and we shall find ease, relief, and refreshment for our souls. His teaching is easy and His service is light. The word easy means that His teachings are useful and good. His burden is the service He has called you to. He said that His service is light. We can conclude then that doing the Master’s service will bring us ease, relief and refreshment.
In meditating on this you will find that it is not in our hands to take our own life, nor to take the life of another through abortion or any other means. God has called every human being on the face of this planet to serve Him in a particular capacity. He has a purpose for you, and that purpose only results in blessings.
Your life is valuable. Jeremiah tells us that before we were formed in our mother’s womb God called us and ordained us. So, before you think about ending that which God has begun, find out what your purpose is and then get busy fulfilling that purpose.
The way you find out your purpose, and the way you cause all things to work out for your good is by praying in the Spirit. The Scripture says, “Whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate…” (Rom. 8:29). Predestinate means to limit in advance. He has limited you in advance to be conformed to the image of His Son. Before you were born, God decided to limit you to nothing but blessings. That is the same thing He did for Jesus.
In looking at all that God has done for us, we are blessed. By praying in the Spirit, in the eyes of God, we look just like Jesus. We are changed into His image. Be are blessed right along with Jesus. And we have a service that God has called us to. We should feel privileged to do it.
Scripture References: Jeremiah 1:5; Isaiah 49:1; Romans 8:28
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Keith Butler has been an ordained minister since 1974. He is a graduate of the University of Michigan and holds diplomas from Canada Christian College and Rhema Bible Training Center.
He serves in ministry with the support of his lovely wife, Pastor Deborah L. Butler, and their children: Pastor Andre Butler (granddaughters Alexis, Angela, and April), Pastor MiChelle Ferguson and husband Pastor Lee (grandson Lucas), and Minister Kristina Jenkins and husband Pastor Joel (grandsons Andrew and Austin, and granddaughter Alyssa).