I sat down to write this week’s devotional trying to think of something that might be worth saying. It was sort of a gloomy day and I was feeling a little tired. Ideas generally don’t pop out of thin air on the best of occasions, let alone when it’s difficult to concentrate.
Looking for inspiration, I opened the web browser and went to esv.org, cruised a couple of devotional guides, and checked for a verse of the day. One of them caught my interest was Matthew 11:25-30. One of my favorite passages. A great place to start.
The part I love and remember is the section that says, “come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” Very few verses summarize the Gospel for me more than that verse and the ones following. The good news of Jesus is that we can rest in his grace towards us. Following Jesus can be a way of living lightly; a way to unburden ourselves from the expectations that we or others have placed upon us. That said, this wasn’t the line that stuck out to me as I read the passage again.
The verse that struck me this time, particularly given the context, was
“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.”
This section of scripture, and Jesus’ entire prayer and quotation, takes place immediately after Jesus’ condemnation of several cities filled with supposedly “wise” people who had rejected his message; instead he thanks God that the message has been revealed to those who don’t have wisdom and are like little children. Then he says that the only people who can know the Father are the ones to whom Jesus reveals it.
So why didn’t Jesus reveal the Father to the wise people?
Because they didn’t think they needed Him.
How often do we wait to run to Jesus until we absolutely need it? Even if we know that his way is better, even if we know that his burden is lighter, our tendency is to think, “I’ve got this.” Jesus is standing there with an offer of rest, and we ignore him, because…well…because we don’t think we need it.
When we recognize our own need, however, suddenly that offer of rest becomes a lifeline. We run to Jesus, and what we discover is not just a friend, but we discover God the Father. Behind the Savior’s offer of rest is a Father who will accept us unconditionally and never place more of a burden on us than we can bear.
This is what Jesus wants to reveal to us, and this is the good news of the Gospel.