Matthew 11:29)

"Take my yoke upon you," (Matthew 11:29) by which Christ meant: surrender yourself to My Lordship, submit to My rule, let My will be yours.

The natural man is born "like a wild ass’s colt" (Job 11:12)—completely unmanageable, self-willed, determined to have his own way at all costs. Having lost his anchor by the fall, man is like a ship entirely at the mercy of winds and waves. His heart is unmoored and he runs wild to his own destruction. Thus he has a need for the yoke of Christ if he is to obtain rest for his soul.

In its larger sense, the yoke of Christ signifies complete dependence, unqualified obedience, unreserved submission to Him.

The believer owes this to Christ both as his rightful Lord and his gracious Redeemer. Christ has a double claim upon him: he is the creature of His hands, and gave him being, with all his capacities and faculties. He has redeemed him and acquired an additional claim on him. The saints are the purchased property of another; therefore the Holy Spirit says, "Ye are not your own, for ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s (1 Cor. 6:19-20)."

~ Arthur Pink, "The Nature of God - The Yoke of Christ" (formerly published as "Gleanings in the Godhead")