Time to Unpack!

Based on Matthew 11-13

"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28‭-‬30.

We've been diligently digesting the parables of Jesus & we've allowed Him to "clean house." Now it's time to unpack & unload the personal belongings we carry with us every day. There's always stuff in our house, but how much of that stuff is in our purse or travel bag? What do we dwell on most and carry with us ALL the time? Yes, we've talked about weaknesses, insecurities, and all those negative things which can exist in our human home...but what's the root of it all? What makes these things stick? The answer is offense!

Let's take a look at John the Baptist. He was one of the greatest men of his time, doing the will of God. But even he was subject to offense:

"And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me." Matthew 11:3‭-‬6.

John started questioning in prison, which is a likely place to question if Jesus really had the best intentions for him. But in all that offense and questioning, he was really questioning his purpose & what he was meant to do. John was born to prepare the way of The Lord, and the WAY isn't always the easy road. But as Jesus reminds him, it's the road of hope. He reminds him of all the miracles, and that He can do things no ordinary man could do. We will be blessed if we are not offended!

Remember, He will give us rest! But it's only if we are willing to unpack our backpack of offense & take on His yoke which is easy & His burden which is light!

"And, behold, there was a man which had his hand withered. And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse him. And he said unto them, What man shall there be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out? How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days." Matthew 12:10‭-‬12.

Offense can really warp our sense of judgment, or even just common sense! These Pharisees wanted to accuse Jesus so badly, they went so far as to ask if it was ok to heal someone. Of course it would be! When we heal, we do well. And it was lawful to do on the sabbath. But did the Pharisees respond to His answer kindly? No:

"Then the Pharisees went out, and held a council against him, how they might destroy him." Matthew 12:14. The Pharisees sought to destroy Him, but offense was just destroying THEM!

Jesus even healed a demoniac in the sight of the Pharisees, and they said: "...This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils." Matthew 12:24. Their offense caused them to perceive good as evil. But in reality, it was THEIR motives which were rooted in evil, not the works of Jesus!

Later on we come to the parable of the wheat & tates in Matthew 13. In paraphrasing the parable, the wheat is the desired crop, and the tares are like weeds. If we carry offense with us, we will be like tares. But, if we carry Christ with us, we will be like wheat! In the gathering of the harvest at the end of time, the wheat has a heavenly home, while the tares are burned. Don't forget to have the right stuff in your travel bag!

At the end of this passage, the people of Jesus' own country question Him, and this is the result:

"Is not this the carpenter's son? is not his mother called Mary? and his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? And his sisters, are they not all with us? Whence then hath this man all these things? And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house. And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief." Matthew 13:55‭-‬58.

We can't perceive the amazing work of Jesus if we have offense & unbelief! Even doing miracles in their midst, they were too blind to see it. Let's clean out & unpack to make room for God's best in our lives & in eternity! In questioning Jesus, we are really questioning our identity as John did temporarily. Know who you are in Christ, and you'll find true rest!