Come to Me

Jesus said, “Come to Me.”

“Come to Me”

Have words been more beautifully spoken?

Have words ever been more beautifully spoken?  Has there ever been an invitation like this?

Not on this side of a door, in every life, that opens to eternity.  And all who answer this call, when they come to the end of life, will find themselves crossing a threshold into the very presence of the One who gave the invitation.  Indeed.  They will find themselves on the threshold of a dream as they pass from this world into His presence.

Yes.  If we believe in Jesus, we are going to heaven.

We love to sing and talk about going to heaven, don’t we?  “Shall We Gather at the River” is as good a reason as any to bang on the piano!  And joyfully widen those flat vocal cords!  And rightfully so.  But heaven is not our destination.  Jesus is.  After all.  What is heaven without Jesus?  In fact, you could say, heaven will be wherever He is.  As He prayed: “Father, I will that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am” (John 17:24).

Needless to say, no one will be going to heaven who is not looking for Jesus.

A preface to the words, “Come to Me”

In a day when words mean everything and they mean nothing, these are some you can “take to the bank.”  (However, that assertion is less reliable than it used to be.)

So, let’s look at these wonderful words which were given to us by Jesus two thousand years ago.

Unfortunately.  There will surely be someone who reads this, who will ask themselves, “How does he know these words were spoken two thousand years ago?”

Funny, isn’t it?  “Scientific” minds can tell us precisely, what happened 3,550,000 years ago, but they have a problem when someone claims to know what happened two thousand years ago.

Preparing for an analysis of “Come to Me”

Let us examine the words of Jesus in Matthew 11:28 and 29.

As every good minister would say. . .  Open your Bibles, please.

It makes sense, right?

After all.  The astronomer has his telescope, the doctor his stethoscope, the biologist his microscope, the carpenter his hammer, and the politician his Smartmatic “secure election technology.”

But we, brothers and sisters, have the Word of God.  The Bible is our roadmap.  And it’s a good thing, too.  Never underestimate the power of the truth we hold within the covers of the Good Book.  Besides.  You must admit: we are in good company, standing with theologians who carry around a prominent Bible.  At least, in the past, Christians felt this way.  Some still do.

For, as the story goes. . .  As the scientist makes the final ascent and drops a boot on the summit of his Everest in search of the truth, he discovers a theologian waiting for him there.

Class begins

Matthew 11:28 opens with “Come.”  Simple enough.  But huge!  It’s like Neil Armstrong stepping on the moon.  Or, just as big: the first step a child takes toward his daddy.

Remember.  It is Jesus who is giving the invitation.  When we think of it that way, it seems reasonable to see it as an invitation to take a journey.

Why not?

It is a journey.  He says, “Take My yoke. . .and learn from Me” (v.29).  Those who come to Jesus are about to embark on something great!  Some great voyage!  A great adventure!  A new life.  But, sadly, many today will turn back when they realize it is not an invitation to find or discover yourself but Someone beyond you, and to see life through His eyes.  It is, indeed, a journey you will share with Someone else.

Yet, somehow, we have always known, haven’t we, that the answers are not found in ourselves.  The pursuit for answers within ourselves took us down a dead-end road: a road that led to disappointment, frustration, and depression.  Still.  Some like to wander on roads like that and are determined to find answers there, like a mouse looking for a way out of his cage.

The beginning of a journey

So, in response to this “Come,” we are given a destination that marks the beginning of a journey.

A beautiful destination: “Come to Me”

Why would the most beautiful Person in heaven and earth and all the universe ask us to come to Him (Heb. 2:6)?  And whose bosom could be a more wonderful place to rest our heads, and lay our broken hearts, than His (John 13:23; Ps. 91:1,2; Ruth 2:12; Deut. 33:12,27)?

And what could possibly be a more wonderful place to find our joy and peace?

Remember.  This is Jesus speaking!  It’s not someone’s secretary taking calls, an answering machine, an angel, or Mary, or a “Saint” standing in for Jesus who can’t seem to find the time for you in His busy schedule.

Nor is this a generic invitation to “Come to God.”  Jesus is saying, “Come to Me“!  You need to make sure you have the right Extension if you want to connect with God.  Right? Otherwise, you might end up on “a slow boat to China” when you were intending to fly to Dallas!

Taking His yoke

And how easily we forget, as we flap around town, carrying out our pious “religious” endeavors: His invitation is not for us to be “acquainted” with Him and touch base now and then, but to draw near and know Him intimately (John 10:14; Rev. 3:20; Phil. 3:7-10; II Pet. 3:18).  As you know, that takes time.  And we are so busy, aren’t we, “serving” Him?  But He’s not looking so much, for us to be like Martha.  But more like Mary (Luke 10:38-42).  He wants us to get into a yoke with Him: side by side, like Simon, who carried the cross with Him.

But once you stick your head in His yoke, you’re going where He goes!  It’s pretty simple.  There’s no turning back when your head is in a yoke.  And there is no one, and nothing, that comes between you and Him.  (I’m afraid there will not be a groundswell of agreement on that one.  Certainly no applause.  But, in reality, there’s only room for two in a yoke.)

Furthermore.  It is His yoke and He is the One who shows you the “ropes,” you might say, once you’ve stuck your head in it.  He is the lead Person in the yoke.  So.  It’s not the time to decide who is Lord, once you’re in the yoke.  But that right there, makes some Christians squirm.  And yet, it’s really not that complicated.  The simple act of taking His yoke is an acknowledgment of His Lordship.

Taking His burden

Besides.  It’s His “burden” you bear once you’re in the yoke (Matt. 11:30).  Your burdens are no longer the primary focus.  From now on, you cast them all upon Him!  Perhaps you could look at this as trading burdens.  It’s a self-denial sort of thing.  The heavy loads you came to Him with, are now His, and from here on out, you seek His interests and His glory in all you do.

And, surprisingly, you will discover: His burden is rather light!

Because burdens are easier when you’re a team.  (Ask any mule, and they will tell you.)  And you can accomplish so much more that way!  In fact.  Without Him, you won’t accomplish anything (John 15:5).

Traveling with the “meek and lowly”

Jesus says, “Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me” (Matt. 11:29).  And you will find: “I am meek and lowly in heart,” which correlates with “My yoke is easy” (Matt. 11:30).  What does that mean?  Basically: you will enjoy the journey with Someone like that.  Even in the face of throaty thunderheads and a cascading dragon, with talons slumped forward and eyes locked on you (Ps. 23:4)!  For, this is the promise He gives: “I will never leave you, nor forsake you” (Heb. 13:5,6); and, “I am with you always” (Matt. 28:20).

You feel safe, don’t you, when you’re with Someone who loves you and is big enough to protect you.  Not only that; He can talk to you, and His presence can fill you with happiness and joy.  I can hear someone say, “Happiness?  God forbid!  Jesus only gives joy.”  Yes, of course.  The trouble is, the “blesseds” He gives in Matthew 5 mean “Happy,” plain and simple.

Likewise, you can fellowship with Him, as well.  He loves your fellowship with Him.  Journeys are always fun and exciting if you can share them with Someone like that!  Someone who is closer than a brother!  You can laugh together, or whatever else you like.

By the way.  It’s okay to talk to Jesus, even though it is seldom done in church when people pray publicly.

But that is one time you will not want to follow the example of what people do in church.

Anyway.  Have you ever wondered how someone can say they know Jesus personally if they don’t talk to Him?

I’ve never had a close friend I didn’t talk to.  Have you?

No easy road

But that’s not to say, walking with Jesus is easy.  Especially in places like Nigeria.  More than 52,250 followers of Jesus have been barbarically killed and more than 18,000 churches and 2,200 schools burned down by Boko Haram and Fulani militants since 2009.  And more than 700 of our Nigerian brothers and sisters have been abducted.

It’s not an easy road, but our fellowship with Jesus is a wonderful gift from God.

This is Jesus!

Again.  Who is this who invites us to “Come to Me”?

It is Jesus!  He is the Creator of all that is (John 1:3).  He is your Creator and my Creator!  We all know what that means.  He knows everything about us (Ps.139; John 2:24,25; 21:17; Heb. 4:12,13; Rev. 1:14).  (That may seem scary.)  And He still loves us!  He loves all of His sheep with an everlasting love (Jer. 31:3; Rom. 8:35-39; Eph. 2:4; Rev. 1:5,6).  There’s no beginning to that!  Nor is there an end!  As they used to say, not so long ago: “Can you dig it?”  Well, we try.  But, so often it just kind of flaps right over our heads like a magpie on his way to our neighbor’s woodpile.

But it is something we need to meditate deeply upon.

“Come to Me, all you who labor. . .”

Jesus goes on. . .  “Come to Me, all you who labor and bear heavy burdens” (Matt. 11:28).  You would think, given an invitation like that, the whole world would be “banging on His door”!  Right?  Not so.  Not even close.  Though there are few in our world who fail to fit this description, there are also only a “few” who find the eternal life He offers.  In other words, there are only a few who come to Him.  But all is not lost.  As it turns out, we find the “all,” who are invited here, in John 6:37 and 45.  And they will come to Him.  The Father will see to that.

And, you will notice, please. . .  There is a strong “family resemblance” here.  Like His father David, Jesus gathers to Himself a “band” of the weary and despondent (I Sam. 22:1,2).  You could say, He, like David, hangs a shingle over His door, which says, “All are welcome!”

And they will find rest in Him.  Jesus says to all the laboring and heavy laden who come to Him: “And I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28), “and you will find rest unto your souls” (Matt. 11:29).

Finding rest

Is this what we need or what?

Yes, it is.

I think most of us are looking for rest and peace.  That is, rest and peace that are real and lasting.  Especially in a culture where most things are “fake.”

Jesus gives the real thing because He is the real thing!  He gives rest “in your souls”: a deep, settled rest; rest at the very core of your being.  It’s like a ship’s anchor secured in the rocks at the bottom of the sea.  And it is unlike anything you have ever experienced prior to coming to Him.  You will say with the Samaritan woman, “Lord, give me this water [You give], that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw” (John 4:15).

What Jesus gives is satisfying.

Can you hear His invitation – “Come to Me”?

Come to Jesus, my friend, and walk with Him.  Take His yoke upon you and learn from Him.  He is the Mentor Par Excellence!  Besides.  What could be more wonderful than to know Jesus (II Pet. 3:18; John 17:3)?  For, to know Him personally and intimately, is not only the beginning of a great journey; it is also a beautiful beginning to forever!

In all the confusion and noise around you, can you hear His voice?  It has no problem penetrating echo chambers, which amount to little more than tons of tinsel in everyone’s ears.  Or, just the opposite: cotton candy that vanishes every time you take a mouthful.  When you hear His voice, it will surprise you!  It will be so different.  It will be unlike any voice you have ever heard before!  And it doesn’t matter if it’s Little Richard, Frank Sinatra or Shakespeare, or anyone else you can think of.  You will say, “No man has ever spoken like this Man!”

So.  Listen. . .

Free Download:  Run

(Run was written and recorded by Kathy Unruh)

For,

He is calling, “Come to Me.”

And you can know this about that. . .

From the very moment Jesus first spoke these words, they are always fresh, like the morning dew; and they rise like the morning sun over all of Earth’s history.

In light of this, please take a look at:

Communion with Jesus: A Lost Practice in the Church?

 

© James Unruh 2023 and beyond

© Run by Kathy Unruh 2014