This comic emerged from a conversation I had with a friend. We wrestled with the idea of the easy yoke and the light burden that the Lord promised to those who come to Him. Both of us felt like the Christian yoke is very, very burdensome, so what was the Lord talking about? This led me to study the passage more carefully, and the ideas found in this comic are my conclusions.
We all know that the Christian life isn't easy, I don't think anyone who understands the Bible will think otherwise. I mean, life itself is not easy. Yet the Christian burden is easier in another sense, and this is explained in the comics. Looking at reality, it seems like a contradiction. A lot of non-Christians live a perfectly fine life. It's not like what many Christians say: "Oh, people without God are all depressed, they cannot find happiness, happiness is only found in God". This is just not true, many non-Christians live happier lives than a lot of Christians. It's not impossible to live a simple life and be happy without God. But of course, happiness is not the be all end all.
Ignorance is bliss. Anyone can cruise through life just by living in the moment. However, "the moment" is just one small piece of the ultimate reality. Anyone who fully understands the weight of reality will find it to be crushing. This is explained in the comic, so I won't go into more detail. One day we will all find out that the happiness we chased/found really does not mean much. It made us feel good for a time, and one day that time will come to an end. What then? Even if you live life happy and satisfied until your last breath, you have to account for what happens next.
The reality is, almost no one will be happy until the last breath. And for many, happiness will never be felt again in this life. I pull no punches, sometimes things never get better, and that's just the reality. Who in their right mind would suffer through that for no reason? The Lord Jesus gives us a reason. Will you hear Him out? One day, He will give those who went to him ultimate rest. Rest without needing to worry about what to do once you wake up. Rest in knowing that you have chosen the right path. Rest in knowing that there IS a right path.
As an extra sidenote: the "yoke" talked about in this passage is more likely referring to a human yoke. A human yoke is used by one person only, so the interpretation of Jesus being yoked together with you (like an animal yoke) is unlikely. Taking His yoke upon yourself probably doesn't mean that Jesus is alongside you pulling. But I still think there is beauty in that interpretation, after all, we CAN cast our burdens upon Him, and He has sent His Holy Spirit to be a helper for us.
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