Christ’s Yoke
30 October 2022 AM – Matthew 11:28-30 – Salvation – Scott Childs
Introduction: Today, farmers use tractors to pull wagons, ploughs, cultivators, and other farm implements. Manufacturers rate the power of a tractor in horsepower. When I was a boy, our small farm tractor had 25 hp. Its pulling power was about the same as 25 horses.
In Bible days, oxen and asses (donkeys) pulled the farm tools of the farmers. They were the “tractor”. To attach the animal to the wagon or plough, the farmer used a strong rope or chain that hooked to a wooden collar called a yoke. The yoke fastened around the animal’s neck. While a yoke can be made for a single animal, a yoke usually went across the necks of two oxen or two asses, fastening them together, enabling them to share the load being pulled.
Some yokes fit comfortably, while others were painful for the beast to wear. Some farmers were harsh and cruel to their oxen and asses, overloading them and beating them to get them to pull. Other farmers were kind and gentle, being careful not to overwork their beasts nor to harm them. Farmers did use an ox goad, which was a long, pointed stick to poke the stubborn beast in the bum when he refused to pull.
While these facts were common knowledge to people in Jesus’ day, they may be foreign to us today. Therefore, we must comprehend them before we can accurately understand Jesus’ message in our text this morning. Read Matthew 11:28-30.
In this text, Jesus compares each listener to an ox or ass wearing an uncomfortable yoke, pulling a heavy load and working for a harsh farmer. He portrays Himself as a kind farmer, with a pleasant yoke, who treats his beasts well.
Transition: As we examine these verses, I want each of us to note Christ’s invitation, instruction and explanation to us.
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Christ gives us an invitation (v.28).