Encouragement for Your Weary Soul.

“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters, and you who have no money, come, buy, and eat…come to me; hear me, that your soul may live” Isaiah 55:1-3. 

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest”(Matthew 11:28). 

“If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink” (John 7:37).

 

The first step towards rest is to accept His invitation to come before Him with a surrendered heart and allow the Holy Spirit to teach you.

The Lord has given us an open invitation to lay down all that we have done, and rest in all He has done and shall do.

He wants us to trade our heavy yoke for His yoke, which is easy and light.

When we surrender to Jesus’ invitation what will we experience? What does He have in-store for us? What does He have to offer?

 

“All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me, because I am gently and humble in heart, and you will find rest” (Matthew 11:29).

 

After Jesus invites us to come to Him with our burdens, we can see that He wants us to learn from Him.

 

This word “learn” draws my attention. In the Greek it means, “instructed.” What can Jesus instruct us about resting?

When we read verse 27 He gives us insight into His heart and what He wants to reveal to us as we surrender to His leading.

 

… no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him (Matt 11:27).

 

Jesus will reveal the Father to us. Jesus bared the Cross and conquered death “so, you too consider yourself dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:11).

“Since by the one man’s trespass, death resigned through that one man, how much more will those receive the overflow of grace and the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:17).

The only way to the Father is through Jesus. When we come to Jesus with our burdens He gives us rest by revealing the Father.

 

What can we experience from the Father?

Identity:  “By God’s grace I am what I am, and his grace towards me was not ineffective (1 Corinthians 15:10). We “work” from a place of acceptance.

 

Adoption: “And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit into our hearts, crying, Abba Father” (Galatians 4:6).

 

 Inheritance: “So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God” (Galatians 4:7). “…enabled you to share in the saints inheritance” (Colossians 1:12). We receive all rights and privileges, and responsibilities as Jesus.

 

Favor: “For whoever finds me finds life and receives favor from the Lord” (Proverbs 8:35). “For You, Lord, bless the righteous one; You surround him with favor like a shield” (Psalm 5:12).

 

Covered/Protected: “He will cover you with his feathers. He will shelter you with his wings. His faithful promises are your armor and protection” (Psalm 91:4).

 

Love: “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him” (1 John 4:16).

 

Forgiveness: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

 

Beauty: “You are altogether beautiful, my love; there is no flaw in you” (Song of Solomon 4:7).

 

Joy: “I have spoken these things to you so that My joy may be in you and your joy may be complete” (John 14:11).

 

Peace: “the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6). “You will keep the mind that is dependent on You in perfect peace” (Isaiah 26:4).

 

Value “ Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me“ (Isaiah 49:15-16).

 

Strength: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10). “Trust in the Lord forever, for in Yah, the Lord is everlasting strength” (Isaiah 26:4).

 

Knowledge and Wisdom: “…you may be filled with the knowledge and wisdom of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, so you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God (Colossians 1:9-10).

 

Trust: “but those who trust in the Lord will renew their strength; they will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not faint (Isaiah 40:31).

 

No matter how we feel or what life throws at us, God never changes. His promises stand till the end of time. He is the same, yesterday, today, and forever. He is the Great I Am, the spring of living water that never runs dry.