Real Rest
Jesus offers us a glimpse into a place where burdens grow weightless.
Remember the commercial for that glow-in-the-dark neon-green soft drink "Mountain Dew"? It's exhausting. The television screen is filled with frenetic action. Young men spend 60 seconds catapulting out of airplanes on snowboards, leaping off cliffs while wearing parachutes, hurtling down rugged mountains on mostly airborne bicycles, and rollerblading through complete loop-the-loops.
In between each adrenaline-pumping activity, though, the screen quickly shifts to a picture of four bored guys standing around doing nothing. Their response to each of these wild scenes is a monotone "been there" or "done that" ... "been there" ... "done that ...." Only when these seen-it, heard-it, done-it-all kids are offered a Mountain Dew to drink are they finally revved up to rush headlong into new death-defying activities, "Dewing it with Mountain Dew."
"Been there, done that" is a phrase that works both negatively and positively. On the one hand, it can act as a dismissal --"been there, done that, worn that T-shirt." So why do it again? Give us something new to try. On the other hand, this phrase can also signal affirmation. Kids sharing common experiences – good or bad – shake their heads and testify that they, too, have been there and have done that.
“Been there, done that" has become a stock phrase that can either be a sincere affirmation or a flip dismissal. Likewise, Jesus’ words "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest" was an idiomatic phrase in Jesus' day. He was not the first sage/teacher/preacher to offer that comforting invitation.
--In a time when human beings were beasts of burden just as often as animals, this image had real power.
--In an age with no concept of "the weekend," the mandates of traditional Jewish Sabbath laws of "rest" had always been exceedingly inviting.
--In a culture swarming with a pantheon of quarrelsome, unpredictable gods, the notion of a safe and secure "rest" from such divine whims was the answer to previously unfocused prayers.
Jesus' words, then, sounded familiar--but to a few who had seen Jesus' miracles and heard Jesus' message, this "come to me" phrase had an unmatched depth and resonance. For those who had caught the vision of Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah, this promise of "rest" was real. As Messiah, Jesus offered a glimpse into the kingdom, into a place where burdens grew weightless.
What does our culture offer all who are "weary and heavy laden"--all who have "been there, done that"?
--"gadget" catalogs offer us a million kinds of merchandise guaranteed to make our lives easier.
--computer software programs offer us new ways to pay monthly bills, organize our taxes, keep track of expenses and plan our calendars.
--health clubs offer us personalized fitness programs designed to make us thinner, firmer and friskier.
--cable television offers us mindless entertainment, endless sports events, a few educational opportunities and perpetual infomercials.
But do any of these really offer us rest? How many catalogs can you look at before you've seen it all? How long can you cruise the Internet before the chatlines all start to sound the same? How many times can you climb the Stairmaster before your body reminds you--you've "been there, done that"? How long can you keep your finger on the remote control, only to conclude after 99 stations have flipped past that--you've "been there, done that"?
Jesus' invitation to rest is more than skin-deep. It is peace for the soul. Christ is our real rest. Christ is our real peace.
One of the modern day fantasies that feeds our inherent weariness, our perpetually overburdened souls, is the notion that we must all be "self-made." We expend as much energy trying to decide what image we will make ourselves into this year, this week, this day, this job, this marriage, this friendship--as we do actually inhabiting that image.
When Jesus offers to share our burdens by becoming our "yoke-mate," the weight of all this "image-production" baggage quietly slips off our shoulders. Jesus' yoke--though "easy" and the burden "light"--nonetheless gives us direction and purpose for our lives. We no longer need to create and re-create ourselves--we are now being gently re-sculpted into Christ's likeness. By Christ himself.
There is freedom in being yoked to a single focus and direction through Christ. Ever notice how those who have genuinely yoked their lives to Jesus don't seem to think they are "missing out" on anything? The perfect freedom and fulfillment that come from a life lived in Jesus' "rest" allow disciples of Christ to look down all life's other torturously twisting side roads, speed traps and dead-end routes and affirm with a shake of our heads--"no thanks--been there, done that.”
That’s real rest. It’s relaxing from the burden of being self-made, and enjoying the blessing of being created by our Heavenly Father, unburdened from our guilt by Jesus Christ, and reshaped into a holy image by the Holy Spirit. Have a restful weekend.
PRAYER: Sometimes I drag through the day, Lord – burdened by worry, shackled by responsibility, harassed by deadlines. Set me free from these, actually from my own self-appointed need to handle them alone, and release me to rest. When you take my burdens away, give me the faith to trust you to handle it your way, and the joy to be satisfied with your Almighty help. Then, I will do more and do it better because I’ll do it with you. Amen.