“I Want Out!”

Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30

July 3, 2005

St. Paul United Methodist Church

Rev. John A. Fleming

Tucked away, just waiting for the right opportunity to be used, is a story that I ran across a few years ago. It just might be perfect for our sermon this morning. It is the story of a young businessman who had a meeting in a city far from home. Because he wanted to be fresh and well rested for his meeting, he decided that he would arrive in the city the night before his meeting. He called and got a reservation on an airline, booked a motel room, and secured a rental car. He flew into the city’s airport without any problems. He picked up his rental car, drove to his hotel, and began to unpack his suitcase. It was getting late and he was nervous about the next day’s meeting. Since there was nothing on television, he decided that he would go down to the hotel’s lounge for a glass of wine. He was hoping that the wine would help calm his nerves. So he did that.

Not too long after that, the phone at the hotel’s front desk rang. The young night clerk reached for the receiver and answered it. On the other end of the line was this businessman. This is what he asked the clerk, “Could you please tell me what time the hotel’s lounge will be open in the morning?” The clerk thought that the question was a little strange, but still he answered it. He politely said, “Sir, our lounge opens at 9:00.” The businessman thanked the clerk and hung up the phone. An hour or so later, the phone at the front desk rang again. On the other end of the line was this same businessman. The clerk was pretty sure that he recognized the man’s voice as being the same one as before. The businessman, again, asked, “Could you please tell me what time the hotel’s lounge opens in the morning?” The clerk was trained to treat the hotel’s guests with the utmost respect. So he was polite and patient, even though he had already answered this man’s question. He answered, “Sir, our lounge opens at 9:00 a.m.”

Maybe you can see where this story is going! Every hour, on the hour, the businessman called the front desk, talked with the same clerk, and asked the same question. And every time, the clerk was polite and courteous and gently said, “Sir, our lounge opens at 9:00 in the morning.”

The next morning, the hotel’s manager came in and asked the night clerk how the evening had gone. The clerk said that there were no problems, but he did tell him about the hotel’s guest who had called every hour. The two of them were in the middle of that conversation when the phone rang. This time the hotel’s manager answered the phone. Would you like to guess who was on the other end of the line? The manager listened to the man’s question and then he politely said, “Sir, I am the manager of this hotel. My night clerk tells me that you have called every hour asking the same question. He has told me that he has been courteous and polite. Is that right?” The businessman said that the clerk had been very courteous. The manager continued, “I am going to be courteous, too, but this is the last time that we will answer your question. Our lounge opens at 9:00 a.m. It always opens then. No one works there until then. You cannot get in the lounge before then. Do you understand?” There was only silence on the other end of the line. Then the businessman said, “Sir, did you say that I cannot get in the lounge before 9:00 a.m.?” The manager said, “That is right.” The businessman quickly said, “Sir, I don’t want in the lounge, I want out!” I want out!

I shared that story with some preacher friends of mine the other day. One of them asked me why the man didn’t ask to be let out of the lounge the first time he called. I said, “Brother, that would have ruined the story!”

I want out! I am beginning my twelfth year as a pastor this conference year and in that time, I have talked with a lot of people who have wanted out. Not out of locked lounge doors, mind you, but out of a lot of other things. Some of them wanted out of relationships or marriages that they felt stuck in. Some wanted out of jobs that they felt trapped in. Still others were tired of the life that they were living and wanted something more, something better.

One man I talked with some years ago lived what you might call a colorful life, full of many and varied experiences. With all of that, life had been pretty tough on him. Maybe I shouldn’t have done this, but I asked him if he could live life over again would he. He looked up at me and said simply, “I don’t think so, at least not this one.”

If that is where you are, of if that is where you have ever been, or where you think that you might be some day, then you will get something great out of the words that are our scripture lesson for today. In the last words of Matthew’s eleventh chapter, Jesus says, "Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”

Most likely you know these words. We quote them when we are weary. Preachers use them to help the grieving, to encourage the struggling, and to give hope when there doesn’t seem to be any anywhere around. We have memorized these words. We have quoted these words. We have trusted these words when nothing else seemed trustworthy. And the truth is, that given the right mood, these words can bring tears to the strongest. “Come to me, all of you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens...”

I know that you know this. We are pulled in so many different directions these days. We live in a world of chiming beepers, vibrating cell phones, and palm pilot that help us to keep up. A young mother was talking to one of her best friends and she said this, “My life is too complicated. I am going in all different directions at the same time. There is too much to do, too many people to see, too many places to go. I have a schedule to keep, just to get my children to their appointments. My kids are so busy. You know, I don’t know what I will do when they get out of pre-school.” Yikes! Managing our schedules has become a huge headache. Someone wrote that the words time management is an oxymoron, two words that have no business being in the same sentence. Someone else said that time management is like trying to mud wrestle an alligator. You know in the end, there is no way that you can win.

Besides being busy, we are also weary. To all of us Jesus says, “Come to me all of you who are weary and carrying heavy burdens and I will give you rest. If anyone was weary and carrying a heavy burden at this point, it had to be Jesus.

Matthew’s eleventh chapter begins with a delegation sent from John the Baptizer. John is in prison. There was a time when he was sure who he was, what his role was, and who Jesus was.

Now the only thing that he is sure of is that he is not sure of anything any more. So he sends some of his disciples to find Jesus and to ask his burning question, “Are you the One? Are you the Messiah, or have I been spinning my wheels and wasting my time?” On the heels of that, Jesus has not had great success in his ministry. You can read about that in the verses that we skipped over in the lectionary. For sure his message is not being received and embraced, so Jesus

asked, “To what do I compare this generation?” He said, it’s like the children playing in the marketplace. Half of the kids on that side of the marketplace are wanting to play wedding and dance. The kids on the other side of the market don’t want to do that. They want to play funeral so that they can wail and moan. And so the children pull at each other hoping to bring the other to their side.

Jesus says that it’s not just the children. Adults do it, too. John came among you and he did not eat and drink and you said that he had a demon. The Son of Man came among you and ate and drank and associated with tax collectors and sinners and you called him a drunkard. You see, there is tension there. The religious folks on one side who say that there are certain rules that you have to follow. On the other side was the government that said that there were certain rules that you had to follow. And so there is the tension. Both sets of rules want you time and your attention and your energy. So what do you do? Do you just let the alligators win? Do you give up?

Jesus said, “Come to me all of you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest.” Here is what I want you to hear. The world is not all that different these days. Today we call the rules expectations. Here is the expectation. If you are going to be a good parent, then you have to do these things. If you are going to provide a good life for your family, then you need to do these things. If you want to make a name for yourself, then you have to do these things, put in these hours, hobnob with these people. It is the same thing. The expectations are still vying for our allegiance. So what do you do? Who do you become?

Jesus said to come to him when we are tired and burdened. He invites us to come and to find rest. He says to listen to his teachings. They are not too hard. Jesus wants to know how they fit us. He invites us to try them on for a while.

You will need to know this. What Jesus offers us is not a retirement plan. Jesus does not offer us a hammock. He offers us a yoke. There is a wonderful legend concerning the quiet years of Jesus, the years prior to his public ministry. The legend claims that Jesus, the carpenter, was one of the master yoke makers in the Nazareth area. People came from miles around for fittings for the hand carves yokes made by Jesus. When customers arrived with their teams of oxen, Jesus would spend considerable time measuring the team, their height, their width, the space between them, and the size of their shoulders. Within a week, the team would be brought back. When they were outside the shop, Jesus would carefully place the newly made yoke on the shoulders of the team, watching for the rough places, smoothing out the edges and fitting them perfectly for each team of oxen.

That is the yoke that Jesus invites us to have on us. Now, don’t be misled by the word easy here, as in, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.” The root word for easy comes from the Greek which really means well fitting. The yoke that Jesus invites us to take fits us well, it brings rest for our weary souls, it is one that is supposed to fit our lives perfectly. You see, in the end, in the very end, what satisfies us the most is a better relationship with God, a better spiritual life, and peace. Let us pray.