Matthew 11

How could he know for sure? Stacy Voss reminds us that John the Baptist asked a deep and important question of Jesus and Jesus answered with not only truth, but also words of honor and affirmation.

Is there any place to get some rest? Tom Norvell prays for the weary and the heavy burdened and tired, based on Jesus' promise to give us rest.

Jesus really could stire things up, couldn't he? Paul Faulkner reminds us that Jesus turned things upside down adn stirred things up to bring God's blessings to others.

"[Talking to the crowds, Jesus concluded the things he said about John the Baptist:] "To what can I compare this generation? It is like children..."

"[Continuing his denouncement of cities that hadn't repented, Jesus said:] "I tell you, Tyre and Sidon will be better off on judgment day than you. ..."

"Come to me, all who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest. Place my yoke over your shoulders, and learn from me, because I am..."

"[Talking to the crowds about John the Baptist, Jesus continued:] "For before John came, all the prophets and the law of Moses looked forward to this....."

"Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you,..."

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you...."

Don't you sense this need? Tom Norvell reminds us of our need for rest and to rest in Jesus, in God, and in the Spirit.

"[Talking to the crowds about John the Baptist, Jesus continued:] "John is the man to whom the Scriptures refer when they say, 'Look, I am sending...."

"John the Baptist, who was in prison, heard about all the things the Messiah was doing. So he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, "Are you the Messiah..."

"[Jesus continued:] "Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my..."

"At that time Jesus prayed this prayer: "O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and..."

""All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son..."

"[In answer to the question from John's disciples about whether he was the Messiah,] Jesus told them, "Go back to John and tell him what you have heard..."

"Then Jesus began to denounce the towns where he had done so many of his miracles, because they hadn't repented of their sins and turned to God. "What...."

"[After his condemnation of cities where people wouldn't believe,] Jesus prayed this prayer: "O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding...."

"As John's disciples were leaving, Jesus began talking about him to the crowds. "What kind of man did you go into the wilderness to see? Was he a weak...."

"Dear Child of God, The Father is holy and wholly given to doing what is right, just, holy, gracious, and merciful. What about you? What is your..."

Why do we begin so many weeks so tired? Tom Norvell reminds us of God's promises for those who are weary and tired: the Lord will renew us and restore us and cause us to ride on the wings of eagles and Jesus will give us rest.

Can you really find it? Tom Norvel reminds us of Jesus' promise to give us rest if we will come close to him and follow him and spend time with him and learn from him.

Where can we turn when we are worn out and discouraged? Tom Norvell reminds us and prays for us to find rest from our weariness in the Lord.

What do you do when there you find yourself in the Tom Norvell reminds us that there is simply too much, too many, and too little.

Why do we keep putting it back on our backs? Beyond weight loss, why do we keep picking up old burdens and carrying them, Ron Rose reminds us to set aside the past burdens and come to Jesus.

What are you carrying around unnecessarily in your hidden weight? Ron Rose shares with us about weight problems, not pounds, but hidden weight with regret, worries, burdens, resentments, failures, and those kinds of things that we need to leave behind after we have handed them over to Jesus.

Why does it seem to get farther away while we run faster to chase it? Bill Sherrill talks about our rush to rush into everything and how we need to read God's Book about life and how to experience it.

Is your faith lifting burdens or adding to them? Religion often addes burdens to people's backs, but Jesus came and relieved burdens.

"Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.""

"[Jesus continued his respond to John's question about whether he was the Messiah:] "God blesses those who do not fall away because of me.""

"[Talking to the crowds about John the Baptist, Jesus continued:] "And from the time John the Baptist began preaching until now, the Kingdom of Heaven...."

"[Jesus said,] "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.""

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

""The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.""

"[Talking to the crowds about John the Baptist, Jesus continued:] "Were you looking for a prophet? Yes, and he is more than a prophet.""

"When Jesus had finished giving these instructions to his twelve disciples, he went out to teach and preach in towns throughout the region."

"[Jesus said,] "My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the..."

"The cry of the Christian religion is the gentle word, "Come." The Jewish law harshly said, "Go, take heed unto thy steps as to the path in which thou...."

"This is a singular way in which to commence a verse-"At that time Jesus answered." If you will look at the context you will not perceive that any..."

Inspirational illustration of Matthew 11:28 -- Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Inspirational illustration of Matthew 11:5 -- The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.

My yoke is easy, my burden is light. - Matthew 11:30

What hope is left when life is shattered? Brian McCuthchen reminds us of the place of hope, refuge, and help when our world is broken.

How long are you going to keep carrying all that luggage? Alan Smith tells a story about a man who disappeared who was very, very tired and needed to lay down his burdens; and we've got to trust we can can lay down ours at the feet of Jesus.

Have you stopped longed enough to hear his voice? We must take time to pause and rest in the gracious presence of God.

Have you seen someone pass from death to life? Brian McCutchen talks about Connie, her cancer, and her coming to Jesus in faith and baptism and leading many of her family to join her.

Maybe the gospel isn't for all Jesus invited those who are tired to come to Him. If you are satisfied with the way things are, Jesus' message isn't for you.

What's got you in a fix? Life isn't easy; it's not for sissies, but for people who are determined to walk with Jesus.

Can I live up to my purpose? Teresa Bell Kindred shares some ideas about New Year's resolutions and living for others.

So there are actually rules for this? Rubel Shelly reminds us of the keys to following Jesus by pulling our leg about a bunch of rules for building a snowman.

How in the world will you ever catch up? So often we get behind and don't know how to catch up; how about listening to God and what he tells us?

Is it me, or has God changed his opinion on grace? Brian McCutchen talks about the night he was baptized and the fear he felt and his desire to know he was going to heaven and now he is assured of those things because he understands God's grace.

Will you accept this one, it's still valid! Bill talks about all sorts of invitations that have been made and how they have all been rescinded or taken away, but Jesus offered one that won't ever go away, come to me and I will give you rest.

If you haven't heard the bad news, can you really hear the good news? We can't really appreciate God's good news until we've had a taste of the bad news.

What are you expecting to get for your Christian commitment? Are we only interested in bargain basement Christianity, or are we willing to pay the price to be productive.

Can we really ever get over our losses? Loss of a dream, losing a loved one, is not fair and can often leave us confused and angry, so how do we cope with it, by turning it over to God and living for him.

How can we honor those who have meant so much to us in the past? One of the very best ways to honor the memory and life of someone we respect who has died is to use what they have taught us and shown us to bless the living.

Do you have a long face? Bill Sherrill reminds us that the Christian life should be a life of joy.

Can you keep running and not grow weary? Burn out seems to happen more and more frequently, but when see why it happens, we realize that folks are losing sight of the goal and are often motivated for the wrong reasons.

What can this old story powerfully say to our geopolitical messes of today? Phil Ware shares his series for December 2015 on welcoming Jesus and focuses on the Magi from the gospel of Matthew and lets that story remind us our need to reach out to the lost and foreigner and alien and refugee among us.