Good morning and welcome in everybody. Today, we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture, but before we do that I wanted to tell you a little story.
In Anchorage Alaska there’s a race that is tentatively scheduled to begin around March 3rd 2023. It is a sled dog race that runs from Anchorage to Nome Alaska, known as the Iditarod. Teams usually have to race through blizzards and Sub-Zero temperatures which at times can reach 100 below zero. They race through some of the roughest terrain that Alaska has to offer, eventually winding along the shore of the Bering Sea to the finish line in Nome, Alaska.
Now here’s a thought for you.
Can you imagine somebody showing up to the race with some sled dogs, two goats and a mule? What do you think the result is going to be if you yoke them all together? The dogs would make a strong attempt to run down the path, while the goats want to go in a different direction. The donkey would be the worst problem of all, because he would simply plop himself down on the ground, and rebelliously refuse to move.
This reminds me the Christian Life.
Sled dogs need to be yoked up with other sled dogs who are of the same mindset, and show distinct similarities. Likewise, Those who decide to run the Christian race are not supposed to be unequally yoked with people who don’t share our faith and our beliefs. We need to seperate ourselves from them, and join ourselves with others who desire to do the will of God from their heart.
2 Corinthians 6:14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?
When we think about the word yoke, we tend to think about the device that was used to join two draft animals together. It had a cross piece and two bow pieces that enclosed the head of the animals. They were joined together in a common interest, plowing a field. The yoke that we are talking about today is an invisible one, although you can see it’s results. Being yoked with others is to be joined with them in some common purpose. When you join something, it means to bring together so as to form a unit.
A carpenter might join two pieces of wood together in his shop. They are bonded together closely in a union. You might join a model airplane club. You might join a church. Join means to bring together so as to form a unit. It is to share a very close association and relationship, such as two people who are joined in marriage.
In the church we are supposed to be joined together with others who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. We are to join with people who believe the teachings of scripture, and who possess a desire to obey the will of God. Jesus is the center of our unity together. It is our faith in the teachings of Jesus that unites us and brings us into close fellowship with each other. In the world, people might join and hang out regularly at an athletic club. The members of that group are involved with taking care of their physical bodies. They all share the same goal and purpose, to encourage one another in ways to keep fit and trim. The church is no different. We are to join with others who share the same goal and purpose, which is conversion to the truth, and obedience to the will of God. We are to edify and encourage one another on the path of holiness, so that we can lovingly obey Jesus and keep away from sin.
So this entire passage has to do with being closely joined with others. This is what a yoke did between two animals. This is what fellowship is. Fellowship is joining together with others in a common purpose. It is sharing a friendly association with them, especially with people who share your interests. It is companionship, and a community of common interests and activities. With that being said, this passage teaches that we are not supposed to be joined with others who do not share our faith. If you take somebody to scripture and they adamantly refuse to believe it, they are in a state of unbelief. They can’t become converted to the truth with that mindset, because they don’t believe the teachings of Holy Writ. If they don’t believe in scripture, what possible benefit could you have by sharing a close relationship with them? Do you think something beneficial will somehow rub off on you? God fearing Christians need to hang out with those who are serving Christ, because to share close relationships with unbelievers is to make yourself God’s enemy.
James 4:4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
The unequal yoke is joining with others who don’t possess genuine faith. In that state they don’t truly love God and it’s impossible for them to please Him.
Hebrews 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
When it comes down to it, you will have to choose whose side you are going to be on. Ultimately the Lord Jesus will decide who were truly His friends at judgment Day, when He separates His sheep from the goats.
Matthew 25:31-33 When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
Poor associations can also corrupt good morals. An unbeliever is unconcerned about doing the will of God or converting from the way that they live. In that state, they don’t have what it takes to cross the finish line and obtain the prize of eternal life. We are supposed to join with others who are of the same mind and judgment.
1 Corinthians 1:10 Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
Granted everywhere we go we’re going to meet people at the gas station at the grocery store or going to the laundromat. Visiting or talking briefly with people is one thing. Developing a day-by-day close relationship with them is another.
Remember that the disciples went everywhere preaching God’s Word. When people rejected it, they would shake the dust off and move on. They didn’t yoke up in a close relationship with them. They didn’t hang out with them because they were an enemy of Christ. At the judgment, there will be many people cast away into a lake of fire. The reason why is they rejected the truth of the Gospel and were not focused on living an obedient life for Christ while here upon the Earth. They really didn’t believe the truth in their heart, because of which they will be eternally punished. You’re not supposed to share a close relationship with these people at all.
I have always taught my family that you need to be very careful about who you call your friend. A friend is much closer than an acquaintance. Will your friend be Jesus and others who serve Christ faithfully? Will it be Jesus, or will it be those who hate and deny Him by their faithless and disobedient lives. Those who are attempting to live the Christian Life can never join up with others who are outside the true faith.
It’s unwise to yoke a cow up with a horse, because they are different creatures. It’s unwise to yoke a sled dog with a donkey, because they are different creatures. As a Christian we are supposed to become new creatures in Christ, and not yoked up with people from the old life you used to live.
1 Peter 4:4-5 Wherein they think it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you: Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the quick and the dead.
Like sled dogs we must unite with others who are of the same mind, joined together, as one unit to achieve the final goal, crossing the finish line, and entering into heaven. We will need to yoke with others who share our faith in order to win……
……The Iditarod
Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by Google searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms, such as Amazon, Spotify or Google podcasts. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious groups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody. ❤️
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