In order for Thumper to venture outside safely, he had to wear a harness which was attached to a lead. (We were not at all sure it was a good idea simply to ‘let him loose’ without any means of getting him back inside!) However, the harness had to be fitted before he went outside and he was not at all happy about this, recognising it instantly as an unfamiliar item which restricted his movements and which, therefore, had to be resisted vigorously. Let to his own devices, he would probably have bitten through the harness relatively quickly!
Example of a rabbit harness
Jesus said, ‘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 will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.‘ (Matt 11:28-30) A yoke, or harness, is often necessary for animals, but that does not mean they like them. Thumper felt the harness was restrictive inside; once outside, however, he enjoyed the freedom and protection it gave him. There were no attempts to bite through the harness when he was outside! Instead, he could hop and jump as much as he liked and he relished being outside.
We can be like that with God’s rules, finding them restrictive and frustrating. We think we know best and chafe at His laws, pulling at them, tugging at them, trying to live our lives without them, believing somehow that anarchy would be better. Who is this God to tell us how to live?! What does He know about freedom and enjoyment, fulfilment and pleasure? How dare He imply that His way is better than ours? We pull and tug at His harness, His yoke, longing to run around doing exactly as we please.
And yet such a way does not lead to freedom, but to slavery (see Rom 6:15-16). It’s only when we come to Jesus, tired, worn out and burned out on religion, that we can find rest and freedom, learning the ‘unforced rhythms of grace’ as the Message version of Matt 11:28-30 puts it. Then His yoke is easy; His burden is light; His commands not burdensome (1 Jn 5:3) but freeing: ‘I run in the path of your commands, for you have broadened my understanding.’ (Ps 119:32) Thumper’s aversion to the harness was completely forgotten as he frolicked outdoors. God’s yoke is light and does not trouble us once we surrender to His ways. We save ourselves a lot of trouble and heartache when we understand this principle.