The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
"One Shoulder"
"The government will be upon His shoulder" (Isaiah 9:6).
It does not require both shoulders of the Lord Jesus Christ to govern. Just one.
This will be true in the future, when "The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign forever and ever" (Revelation 11:15). It is also presently true as we submit to our Savior's Lordship as He governs us in our present lives and walk with God. Under the authority of His Father, the Lord Jesus knows how to motivate, guide, and enable a faithful life of trust and obedience in those who trust Him.
"Come unto Me, all ye that labor 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).
First we come. Then He gives rest. This leads to our sharing His yoke, that is, His submission to His Father as administered in us by the Holy Spirit. Such meekness and lowliness imparts even greater rest as we increasingly discover we were made to be stewards of our humanity rather than owners and masters. Thereby, the easy yoke and light burden of the Lord Jesus becomes our portion of grace. "Let us have grace, that we may serve God acceptably, with reverence and godly fear" (Hebrews 12:28).
Our temptation involves focus. Do we emphasize His Lordship, or our response thereunto? Certainly, we play a vital role as believers in our walk with God through Christ. Godliness does not just happen, and we are not programmed machines. The Apostle Paul clearly calls us to "work out" that which God "works in" (Philippians 2:12-13). This being said, however, we will not get far in the Christian life if our perception of how well or poorly we serve overshadows what an absolutely glorious and wonderful Master we find in the Lord Jesus. The more we direct our attention to who He is and how He performs His role, the more we will find our response motivated, guided, and empowered by the Holy Spirit. "Beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, we are changed into the same image, from glory to glory even as by the Spirit of the Lord" (II Corinthians 3:18).
Again, our Master requires but one shoulder to exercise His blessed leadership. And what a shoulder it is! A shoulder upon which to lean, a shoulder that provides strength, a shoulder in which we find protection, a shoulder that embraces our hearts when we require comfort and encouragement. He is indeed the Lord Jesus, the One we were made to trust and follow in the wake of His trust and His following the Father of Heaven. Let us gaze upon His role, glance at our own, and find the Spirit of God increasingly granting rest, meekness, lowliness, and then, more rest. An easy yoke and light burden results because one Shoulder bears so much in our journey of faith and devotion to God.
"Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might."
(Ephesians 6:10)
"Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith."
(Hebrews 12:2)
Weekly Memory Verse
"But Thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering."
(Psalm 86:15)
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