In describing life in the Garden of Eden, John Piper put it most profoundly: “What is and what ought to be are the same.”
What ought to be? When we think of the Garden, our minds go to visions of amazing trees, beautiful flowers and ever-green grass. We envision lovely meadows, babbling brooks and crystal clear ponds. We wonder if we’ll actually see a lion and lamb napping together. That’s what we think ‘ought to be.’
We rarely connect our utmost desires with the Garden. We desire to freely love and to be loved. We desire a joy which can never be washed away. We desire to reside in perpetual peace with everything and everyone. We desire a world bathed in truth rather than deceit and lies. We desire a world clothed in absolute goodness.
If a person compares those qualities with his present world, he arrives at a sad conclusion: “I have as much chance of having all that as I have in growing an ice cream garden.” In his mind, what is and what ought to be can never be the same in this life.
Yet, when Jesus says His yoke is easy and His burden is light, He’s indicating those qualities are possible in this life, even on a planet poised to explode with unparalleled difficulties and evil.
In Matthew 11:28, He issues one simple command: “Come to me…” That’s all. The idea is to simply follow Him. In this life.
He goes on to describe us as ‘weary’ and ‘heavy-laden.’ We’re all trying to grow ice cream gardens under a blazing sun and we’re ending up with milky puddles. We’re frustrated, depressed and tired. But He says if we come to Him, He will give us rest. In this life.
We all wear yokes in this life. The yoke of being married and having a family. The yoke of making a living. The yokes of stress, tragedy and uncertainty. Temporarily, we step out of our yokes when we find a sunny beach somewhere. Yet we’re always forced to return to the yokes of our lives.
In verse 29, however, Jesus says if we take His yoke upon ourselves, we will find rest. Then He describes His yoke as easy. Imagine a life in which you’re able to step out of the heavy yokes which burden you and step into a yoke which is easy, in which your burdens are light.
Jesus isn’t promising He will keep our ice cream gardens from melting. He’s talking about providing a particular quality of life here in the midst of melting ice cream gardens. He’s offering His peace.
When Jesus tells us to come to Him, the foundational quality He’s offering is peace with Him. Without peace with God, there can be no other peace anywhere else in our lives. Absent peace with Him, we will never experience His brand of love, joy and goodness.
One grand example is God’s history with the Jews. He purposely chose the Jews to be His people. In Genesis 17:7, God promises an everlasting covenant to exist between Him and Abraham and all his descendants. God is extending an offer of His peace to the Jews.
Yet His chosen people constantly mess up. The mother of all mess-ups occurs in Exodus 32 when the Israelites construct a golden calf to worship as their god. What a colossal insult to God, who had delivered them from slavery in Egypt and who had displayed His omnipotence many times up to the golden calf incident. God is so angry He threatens to destroy all of them.
Sadly, from Moses onward, the Jews have never experienced any kind of lasting peace with God. They’ve only enjoyed temporary episodes.
It doesn’t have to be that way for them or for anyone else. Jesus says so. He says, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” He’s speaking of peace. Lasting peace. With Him. In this life. What is and what ought to be can be the same. Even in the midst of our melting ice cream gardens.