Take My yoke upon you, says the Lord, and learn from Me, for I am meek and humble of heart.
It's easy to misunderstand this beautiful command from our Lord, especially when our modern perspective fails to grasp the depths of its meaning. We may automatically cringe at the word “yoke,” for instance, associating it with a burden and a loss of freedom. But here it actually refers to a partnership and to support. Our Lord joins us to Him, and He bears our burdens with us. The weight becomes significantly lighter when Jesus is carrying it, too, supporting us and keeping us going when we might otherwise have sat down and given in to despair.
When we are yoked to our Lord, we can truly learn from Him. He sets an example for us that we may model our lives after His own. He is meek. Here is another word that is often misinterpreted these days. We might think it refers to weakness and the inability to influence others. This is not true, though. A preacher once said that meekness is simply strength under control. Jesus' power is beyond our understanding and imagination, yet He humbles Himself to reach down to us. He even gives Himself to us in the Eucharist, hiding Himself there that He may come to us in a way we can accept.
Why, then, should we ever hesitate to take Jesus' yoke upon our shoulders? Why should we not allow Him to walk with us, carry our burdens with us, and give us true freedom? Why should we fail to imitate His meekness and humility by which Jesus reaches down to us to bring us up to Him?
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