How strange it is that Jesus offers us rest and then tells us to put on a yoke! The yoke was the symbol of hard work. Yokes were used to control working animals, and sometimes they were put on the necks of slaves or prisoners. Could Jesus not find a better example for finding rest by following him? Maybe he should have said, "Take my bed …" or "Lay your head on my chest and forget all your troubles."
If Jesus worked in wood as a profession, then it is possible that he had made yokes, possible even that he knew how to make one that would be comfortable for the plowing ox or donkey. But clearly that is not what he is talking about here.
A yoke could be made for one animal pulling a plow or threshing board alone, but it was often made to link two animals together as they worked. When the farmer wanted to train a young ox to pull a plow, he did not put two strong, untrained oxen together in the same yoke. It would be too hard to manage them, and the farmer's field would not be plowed straight. Instead, he yoked the young ox together with an old, experienced ox. The older ox had long experience serving the farmer and knew how to hear and obey the voice of his master. Through the yoke the young ox could feel the authority of the older animal and learn how to obey the commands of the master.
Too often we try to serve God in our own strength, doing things our way. We need to learn them from Jesus, letting him teach us what it means to obey our master. Only then will the yoke be easy and the load light. Then will our soul be able to rest even while we work for God.
- 1 NOVEMBER -