“Privileges we didn’t know we had”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Tuesday, October 24, 2023
Matthew 11:25-30 (Forward, p. 87) CEV p. 996
In my wallets—yes, two of them—I have all sorts of pieces of plastic, mostly company loyalty cards for some hotel chain, business, restaurant or coffee shop. Most of them have not been used for years, and my guess is that many of them offer privileges or discounts that I am totally unaware of. I say this, because, with most of them, I have never read the fine print by dialing up their websites to see just what they might be offering.
I suspect that the same kind of thing can happen in terms of our spiritual lives. Indeed, I think that Jesus—in today’s passage from Matthew—has something to say on this very thing. Actually, Jesus speaks of three spiritual privileges that we may not even know that we have:
a) The first has to do with spiritual wisdom. Jesus says that we ordinary people have been privileged to be let in on secrets that even the wise
and educated people of our world have not been privy to. Indeed, as the apostle Paul points out in his first letter to the Corinthians (1:18-28), much of what we understand to be the wisdom of God is written off by the intelligentsia of our world as pure nonsense. Yes, the Cross of Christ is misunderstood and written off by many of them.
b) The second has to do with relationship. We are privileged to enjoy a relationship with none other than Almighty God, that is, to know God, just as Jesus knew God and had a relationship with Him. Indeed, that was one of Jesus’ purposes in coming to earth in the first place.
c) The third has to do with God’s loving care. God knows that we often bear heavy and untenable burdens and so He comes along side us and offers us some rest. But, that doesn’t mean that we somehow
magically or inexplicably ‘escape’ our burdens. No, it means that we have someone alongside us to help us bear them. Indeed, it is Jesus Himself who does this very thing for us, and what happens, in essence, is that He takes the heavier part of the burden, our burden, as we journey on together.
And here it is most interesting, and informative, as to how He describes it: He describes it as ‘His yoke’, rather than ours. He takes ownership of it and assumes its responsibility. And what is more: He, being the master carpenter that He is, crafts it so it fits us perfectly. No wonder it is so much easier carrying these burdens with Him alongside and with such a yoke as this.
However, as I say all this, I truly wonder whether we have actually been aware of all these privileges, and, actually accessed them for ourselves. Have we gone to God, to Jesus, and to His written word, and truly tried to take in, understand, and appropriate His wisdom? And, have we spent the time in prayer with God in such a way as to know Him and love Him more fully? And, have we gone to Him in prayer, specific and earnest prayer, when we are burdened down and anxious and wondering how we might ‘go on’? Have we truly allowed Him to share our burdens, and indeed, to take the larger part of them? All of these are privileges that are truly our own by virtue of what Jesus has done for us in His life, death and resurrection. These are the privileges that accrue to everyone who has given his or her life over to Christ Jesus. So, my question is this: have we really made us of them? They are ready and waiting for us, so it would be a great pity, and a loss, if we haven’t.
Forward notes: “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest” (verse 28).
“I preached on this passage in October 2020 on the feast of Saint Francis. The pandemic was in its early stages. Many churches had transitioned completely to online worship. People were still unsure how the pandemic was going to play out, and everyone was trying to figure out how they would stay connected with loved ones, even if they couldn’t physically be together. I knew that congregation members had been struggling, from losses of loved ones (both COVID and non-COVID related) and jobs to help children figure out online school and navigating work-from-home restrictions.
“Against this backdrop, I preached about the importance of rest and self-care. Jesus doesn’t want you to run yourself into the ground. Rest is important. Rest is sacred. And when you share your burdens with another person or God, it helps to make the load you carry lighter.”
Moving Forward: “Are you weary? Rest in Jesus.”