Saturday September 5, 2020

Revelation 3:29
Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. (Jesus)

Matthew 11:28-29
Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls. (Jesus)

These verses are invitations, invitations from God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit to each of us, invitations that are deeply personal, invitations to a friendship, a partnership, life shared with Jesus Christ.

They both reveal to us what God is interested in, the way God works in our lives. God is invested in building a relationship with us that is deep, personal, trusting, and everlasting.

Often when we come to God, it is because we have a need. We hope God will answer it for us. It may just be we need peace or encouragement; it may be a search for direction or even a miracle. God is concerned about all these needs we have.

But we can overlook the overarching need of everyone. There is a deep-seated common need to be in a trusted relationship with the one who made us, our creator. Jesus, the messiah God sent into the world (Messiah means sent one) came to restore us to a relationship with God. We are incomplete without entering into this shared life with God through Jesus.

Here I am, I stand at the door and knock

In the season, Jesus said that there were few honors one could give another more than entering their home and eating a meal with them. This moment was often foundational and the beginning of a lifelong friendship. This is an amazing invitation of Jesus to enter our lives in this way; God inviting us to open our hearts to a lifelong relationship with Him. When I was a young man, I read this verse, heard Christ knocking and invited Him into my heart. Jesus has been in my life ever since.

Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden

I really love this invitation. There are no requirements, no specifications, no hoops to jump through, just the human condition (labor, weariness, burden, limitations, mortal, sinful), the common denominator of all of us as Jesus invites to find rest in Him. Here we see the heart and intent of God in the sending of Jesus, “I want to be in relationship with you, I want you be your father and you my child, I want to walk with you in your circumstances, situations, your life, I want to give you the rest that has been eluding you because it cannot be found apart from me”.

Yes God, I am weary and burdened. Life has been hard lately and too often I try to go it alone. I have nothing to offer you but me. I hear you knocking, and I invite you to come into my life. May you grant me the rest that only comes in Jesus Christ. Amen