Every Good Endeavor—Tim Keller & Katherine AlsdorfSample

Rest

To get the deepest picture of what can happen to our work after we meet Christ, look at this passage (Matthew 11:28-30). When Jesus calls all people to himself, he says he knows we are “weary and burdened” and that we need “rest.” But Jesus’s cure for our weariness is a “burden” (verse 30) and even a “yoke” (verse 29)! The yoke or harness put on a beast of burden was a symbol of slavery and grinding toil. How could this be a solution to the problem of deep weariness? Jesus says that it is his yoke and burden—and it is the only one that is light. Why? “For I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (verse 29). He is the only boss who will not drive you into the ground, the only audience that does not need your best performance in order to be satisfied with you. Why is this? Because his work for you is finished.

We said before that many people are doing ”work under the work.” They are not merely doing the work that draws the salary—they are also working to chase away their sense of insignificance. But here in Jesus we find “the rest under the rest,” the REM of the soul. Without it, all other work will be unsatisfying. You won’t be able to relax, even when you are supposed to be resting…You won’t be able to enjoy the satisfaction that God intended when he called us to the work he prepared for us.

When your heart comes to hope in Christ and the future world he has guaranteed—when you are carrying his easy yoke—you finally have the power to work with a free heart. You can accept gladly whatever level of success and accomplishment God gives you in your vocation, because he has called you to it. You can work with passion and rest, knowing that ultimately the deepest desire of your heart—including your specific aspirations for your earthly work—will be fulfilled when you reach your true country, the new heavens and new earth. So at any time and place, you can work with joy, satisfaction, and no regrets.

Excerpt from Every Good Endeavor by Timothy Keller. Reprinted by arrangement with Penguin Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) LLC, A Penguin Random House Company. Copyright © 2012 by Timothy Keller

Reflection

What do the verses from Matthew 11:28-30 mean for your life?

Prayer

Jesus, thank you for calling me to yourself. Teach me what it means to carry your easy yoke.

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