Matthew 11:28-30 says "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."
The Lord Jesus taught His disciples how to reach people, we can see that in Matthew 9. He returned to Capernaum and there were people living there who had faith and full confidence in His healing power. Meanwhile, the people who had authority and power over people were exposed by the Lord's presence- the truth He spoke and the sincerity with which he dealt with people exposed the unreality and hypocrisy of the religious.
Think about the paralyzed man who nobody could help, except for bringing him to the Lord Jesus. The Lord proved His authority to forgive sins by showing His authority over the physical condition of this man, forgiving his sins and healing him.
Who would have thought that a leader in the community would come and kneel before the Lord Jesus, asking that his daughter would be saved?
The final measurement of any work is based on the place that the Lord Jesus has in it. The joy of the Lord is our strength, not the numbers. There will always be people who criticize the work of God- some people may do so out of jealousy, others out of spite. Some have preconceived religion-based ideas about how God has to work and cannot accept the fact that they might be wrong.
We don't have the right to condemn them, but just to continue on and leave it with the Lord. The harvest is still there and the need is still great. We continue on in obedience to the instructions that the Lord had passed on to His disciples, on how they could be participants in the kingdom- how they could be involved, not just observers. We should intend to do the same.
Scriptures mentioned: The Gospel of Matthew
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The Listening & Learning podcast complements Listening & Learning, which is the collection of daily devotionals, written by Gaius Goff. To read more about this project visit https://www.GaiusGoff.com/
