“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

 (Matthew 11:28)

What words would spring to mind if someone asked you how Jesus described His feelings?

It is amazing to me that if you read all four gospel narratives from beginning to end, you will only ever find two adjectives that Jesus used to describe His heart attitude. They are: “gentle” and “lowly”.   

These two words appear in the context of Jesus promising to give rest to all who are burdened. He said, “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:29).

It is more than striking that Jesus chose those two particular adjectives from among the dozens, if not hundreds, of others that would also accurately describe aspects of His nature.

Wouldn’t His unlimited power come high up on the list? For He is Yahweh Sabaoth, the Lord of hosts or armies, reigning with power over everything, both earthly and spiritual.

Yes, He could well have said “powerful”, reassuring us that all power and authority has been given to Him.

He could also have said “wise and knowledgeable” comforting us with the fact that He knows everything and will work “all things according to the counsel of His will” (Eph. 1:11).

He could have said “honest” or “truthful” or “pure” or “fair” or “strong” on our behalf – and so forth – but He said none of these things.

Instead, the words He actually chose to describe His heart are disarmingly humble: “gentle” and “lowly” (or “meek”). And it’s beautiful that He added “in heart” to assure us that this is how He feels – that it’s not just about a decision of His will; it is very much to do with the heart-felt emotions of Jesus. 

It is this quality of His heart that calls us into deep, intimate relationship with Him, isn’t it? It makes Almighty God accessible and utterly inviting, even though He is supremely majestic and altogether “other”. He is awesome in power, glory and holiness. But He is also supremely approachable and reassuring of His tender, yearning love for all people – without exception.

The paradox of being Son and God and also Son of Man is perfectly balanced in Jesus. His profound humility blends seamlessly with robust confidence in His identity. He does not hold back from affirming that He is indeed God. He says “I am He” to the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:26) and He reassures His disciples with the same words just before His crucifixion (John 13:19).

In the gospel of John, Jesus uses seven vivid metaphors – seven “I Am” declarations – to describe some of His sacred roles. (Please see the footnote for all seven of these declarations with their Scripture references.)

These resounding “I Am” declarations all describe aspects of who Jesus is. They illustrate key roles regarding His relationship with us, His people, and are given to us in the Bible as awesome and unfailing foundations for our faith and life in Christ.

They are not designed specifically to convey His emotions or feelings – but the more we get to know Jesus through these aspects of His Being, the more we see His overwhelming love, mercy and compassion for us.

However – without trying to split hairs here – I believe it is possible to know about the identity of Jesus as Son of God and Son of Man in our minds without drawing close to Him in intimate relationship. And it was for that intimacy of relationship with us that He died - to sweep us into union with God and into the secure embrace of inseparable fellowship. 

Hence, I believe, His choice of the words “gentle” and “lowly”, because they encourage us to believe that we can actually respond to His invitation and to join our little lives with the Life of the creator of 100 billion galaxies! It is astounding – but absolutely true. And in order to remove any hint of doubt from us, Jesus says, in the preceding verse: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest (Matt. 11:28; my italics). 

It is the only place in Scripture where He utters this specific invitation. Significantly, the only other occasion when He uses the words “come to me” was when His disciples were trying to prevent parents from bringing their children to Jesus for Him to lay His hands on them and to pray. He said: “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 19:14).

So let’s be as the little children and boldly go to Him! His arms are always open to receive us with tenderness and meekness, in whatever situation we find ourselves. His heart says: “Come to Me.”

How beautiful He is! 

By Ann Shakespeare   22 August 2022

Footnote:

The seven “I am” declarations of Jesus:

I am the Bread of Life (John 6:35)

I am the Light of the World (John 8:12)

I am the Door (John 10:9)

I am the Good Shepherd (John 10:11)

I am the resurrection and the life (John 11:25)

I am the Way and the Truth and the Life (John 14:6)

I am the Vine (John 15:1)

Photo credits:

The main image is reproduced courtesy of picturesofjesus.com.

The image within the text is a painting by James Tissot entitled "The Good Shepherd". Public domain.