Come Unto Me

Matthew 11:28-30

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. 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. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

I'm tired. I'm tired when I wake up. I'm tired through out the day. I'm tired when I go to bed at night. I'm tired physically. I'm also tired mentally and Spiritually. Physically, I ache all over ( I don't know if that is old age or I'm out of shape, probably both ). Mentally, I have to remember and deal with everything at work, worry and take care of five kids, love and see to the needs of my wife and on top of all that, I have to manipulate and stretch every dollar to meet the monthly bills. It may sound like I'm complaining, but I'm not. I like my life and I'm content with what God has given me. But, my life is busy and at the end of the day, I am very tired. But what I want to talk about is Spiritual fatigue. I'm tired Spiritually. I'm tired of constantly being bombarded with all the sin that is being thrown my way. Everywhere you turn it's there. "You need to drink beer or wine to have a good time." ( Have you ever noticed that they never show the alcoholic lying in his own vomit in some back alley? It kind of makes the stuff seem less attractive doesn't it? ). They want you to try the beer and wine. But they don't want you to see the families that are torn apart because of it. I am so tired of seeing sex being so explicit and exploited on television and the movies. I'm tired of sin being made to look good and right living being made to look bad and out of date. I'm tired of being tempted to sin. I'm tired of saying things I shouldn't say; thinking things I shouldn't think; and doing things I shouldn't do. I guess what I'm trying to say is, " I'm tired of sin! " That is why it was so comforting to me when I first read these words of Jesus, " Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.". Sin is such a heavy burden to carry. It will wear you out, drag you down, and drain the life out of you. It won't leave you alone until there is nothing left but a memory; a memory of who you used to be or who you could have been. Sin will destroy you unless you do something to get it out of your life. People have tried many things to rid themselves of the sin nature. But there is only one way to take care of sin, that is through forgiveness. Forgiveness of our sin that comes through accepting Jesus Christ as our savior. But, as some people have asked, " Why through Jesus? Why should we choose Jesus? ". Why should anyone choose Jesus to take their problems to? Why should anyone come to Jesus? That is what I want us to look at. I want to give you three reasons to come to Jesus.

1) Come to Jesus for Rest - ( Matthew 11:28-30 ) - Jesus said, " Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 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. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

As I said before, sin is a heavy burden to carry. Look at what the Bible has to say about sin. ( Proverbs 13:15b ) - The way of transgressors is hard. Take a look at someone who has lived a sinful life. Their face has a hardened look to it. They look older than they really are. I once knew a man that I thought was about 50 years old. It turned out he was only 32. The years of drinking and drug abuse, plus a couple of years in prison for selling drugs, made him look much older than he was. Also look at the attitudes of people that have lived a long time in sin. Their attitudes are cynical and pessimistic. Their laughter only comes from someone else getting hurt or someone else's trouble. The way of the sinner is hard. The heart of a sinner is hard. ( Isaiah 57:20&21 ) - But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. " There is no peace, " says my God, " for the wicked." Have you ever seen an ocean or large body of water like Lake Erie? The waves never stop, they're always moving. There is no rest; no peace. That is the way of the sinner: no peace, no rest for their souls. They're constantly looking for peace, but they can never find it. They look for it in drugs, sex, alcohol and money, but it's not there.

What is the answer to our troubled soul? Jesus. Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 11:28? Let's look again. "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." That is such a comforting verse. I know from experience that Jesus is the One that can calm the troubled soul. Look at Psalm 55:22. Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved. When we cast our burdens on the Lord, He will give us peace (or rest) in our soul. Look at Philippians 4:6&7. Be anxious ( worried ) for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

2) Come to Jesus for Safety - (Psalm 46:1-3 - 1) God is our refuge and strength,

a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, Even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though its waters roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling. Look at what verse one says. God is our refuge, or fortress, or wall of protection. ( Proverbs 18:10 ) - The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe. He is our protection, our safe haven. Look also at the rest of the verse. He is a "very present " help in times of trouble. He doesn't come after it is all over. He doesn't show up late. He is always there to help, comfort and protect us. He is a "very present" or "always present" help because he never leaves us. ( Psalm 34:4&19 ) - I sought the Lord, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the Lord delivers him out of them all.

Does this mean that when we become Christians that we will never see troubles or that we will never experience pain or heartache? Not at all. Remember Noah? God didn't take Noah out of the flood, but He did see him safely through it. God doesn't always take us out of trouble, but He will help us through it. ( Psalm 37:23-24 ) - The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, And He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; For the Lord upholds him with His hand. ( Psalm 37:39-40) - But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in the time of trouble. And the Lord shall help them and deliver them; He shall deliver them from the wicked, And save them, Because they trust in Him. When a person trusts in Jesus, even though he might stumble and fall; even though he might go through terrible times; even though it might seem like his whole world is crushing in around him; he will not be utterly cast down, because Jesus is there to hold him up during the times when he cannot stand on his own. There is safety in the arms of Jesus. He is our refuge and strength, a very present help in the time of trouble.

3) Come to Jesus for Salvation - This is the most important reason of all to come to Jesus. Why? Because He is the only way to Heaven. Look at what the Bible says: ( John 14:6 ) - Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. ( Acts 4:12 ) - "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under Heaven given among men by which we must be saved." He is our only way to Heaven. Many people believe there are other ways to get there, but the Bible says there is only one way, through Jesus. How do we do this? The Bible says we must be born again. ( John 3:3 ) - Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." How does a person become "born again"? Through faith in the saving work of Jesus Christ. ( Romans 5:1 ) - Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

1. We are all sinners - ( Romans 3:10,23 ) - As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one; (23) for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

2. There is a price to be paid for sin. - ( Romans 6:23 ) - For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

3. Jesus died to pay the price. - ( Romans 5:6 ) - For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. ( 5:8 ) - But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

4. All we have to do is confess to God we are a sinner and believe. - (Romans 10:9,10,13 ) - ( 9 ) that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. (10) For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. (13) For "whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved."

We must come to Jesus if we are to find peace and rest for our souls, if we are to find safety in a crazy mixed up world. But most of all, we must come to Jesus for salvation, because no matter what anyone else says, He is the only way to Heaven.