Thursday of the 15th Week in Ordinary Time. Bible Study: Isaiah 26:7-19, Psalm 102:13-21, Matthew 11:28-30
Jesus said: “Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)
Are you troubled? Is your heart restless? You can’t find sleep at night? There is a solution. Whenever your heart is not at rest or life gives you a bitter pill to swallow; the only thing you need is Jesus. Jesus says: “Come to me; come and see me, come let’s talk.” In other words, go down on your knees and pray! Seek Jesus because He is all you need.
This is where the Gospel of prosperity misses the way; it takes our attention away from Jesus to the material things of this world. Rather than telling us to come to Jesus, prosperity preachers tell us to imagine the gold, the mansion, the brand of car, the job, the money we are looking for etc. Jesus says: “come to me… seek first my kingdom.”
In today’s first reading, we hear the Prophet Isaiah: “The way of the righteous is level; you make smooth the path of the righteous… O Lord, you will ordain peace for us.” In fact, Isaiah prophetically repeats the words of Jesus when he concluded by saying: “O dwellers in the dust, awake and sing for joy!” Come to Jesus and you will find peace of mind, you will sing for joy.
Now, how do we come to Jesus? One, we must carry His Yoke. Like a farmer ties a yoke on oxen in order to use them to work on the farm, Jesus wants us to carry His Yoke; to be controlled by his teaching; to work in promoting God’s kingdom.
Jesus adds that this yoke is easy and the burden (sacrifices, commitments) that come with the yoke is very light. Never think that living a righteous life is hard or difficult. That is a lie of the devil. Jesus says “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:30).
Secondly, we must learn from Jesus’ gentleness and lowliness. If we approach God with the mind-set of entitlement, we become like the landlord asking his tenant for money instead of the lowly creature beseeching God for favours.
Let us pray: Lord Jesus, be my sole priority from today to my very last day. Amen.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you.