The 3 Y's

Yoke,  Yield, Yes

This study is called the 3 Y’s  Yoke ,Yield and Yes. I'll be looking at the yoke of sin ,yielding over to the Holy Spirit and,yes to Christ.

1st Y

Yoke

What is a yoke ? It’s a device used to tie   2 oxen or any beast of burden of the same size to be able to work together in the pulling of a cart or plow ,whatever the task may be.Symbolically, a yoke in the Bible can suggest merely hard work (Lamentations 3:27), but more often it indicates bondage or servitude, as we see in the slavery of the children of Israel in Egypt (Leviticus 26:13). In Isaac's "blessing" of Esau, the yoke of servitude was placed on his elder son because he became subject to Jacob, the holder of both birthright and blessing (Genesis 27:40). We all placed ourselves under the yoke of bondage to sin(Lamentations 1:14). The yoke is also used to indicate joining of two together in union (II Corinthians 6:14).

In sin we are under that yoke of  bondage to sin . The yoke of sin is strong and burdensome.  it leads us astray ,away from Christ. The yoke of sin stunts our growth. In our continual disobedience to God that yoke we carry does becomes  a yoke of slavery to sin. We cannot shrug off the yoke , we cannot loosen the straps .

We can’t do anything on our own to remove the yoke of sin ,slavery to sin .  John 8:34 34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave ( or bondservant ) to sin.

What is your yoke of sin that keeps you from moving forward in your relationship with Christ?

How do we break the yoke of sin?

2nd Y

Yield

Have you ever thought “ I just need more willpower to stop sinning ?

Hows that work ? It doesn’t.You may succeed for a period of time , yet  you will fail .Some sins are stronger that our willpower.  So how do we overcome sin ? By yielding control of our lives to the Holy spirit. Let the holy Spirit who dwells in every Christian 2 Timothy 1:14 By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.

What is the good deposit?  

Answer :The Gospel message

Guard The word phylassō means “to protect from loss or damage.” Timothy must protect the church from false teachers and their instruction. Paul reminds Timothy that the Holy Spirit will help him fulfill his ministry duties

Dwells in you means he make his residence ,his home in you.  By yielding control over to the Holy Spirit What  will he do?,:

John 14:26:But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

Answer:  teach you /help you

John 16:13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.

Answer: He will guide you

Tit 3:4-6 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,

Answer:He regenerates us and renews us  

What do  theses verses tell us about the Holy Spirit ?

How do we receive the Holy Spirit?

3rd Y

Yes

Saying yes to Christ,and believe in the finished work of Christ.

What did Christ do for us?

Titus 2:11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

 Redeem:verb

to release on receipt of ransom to redeem, liberate by payment of ransom to liberate to cause to be released to one's self by payment of a ransom to redeem to deliver: from evils of every kind, internal and external

Christ paid the sin contract off  with his life on the cross  so we are no longer bound by the contract of sin. 1 Peter 2: 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree that is the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. ( healed of our transgressions our sins)

When Christ gave his life on the cross ,when he bore our sins,when he redeemed us  What happened to God's wrath .?

1 John 2 1-2

My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.

1 John 4:10

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

What's It mean Christ is our propitiation  ?

By Christ being our propitiation he turned God's wrath away ,

2 Cor 5: 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Thru Christ death on the cross we are what to God? Answer Reconciled

John 14:15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth,whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be  in you.

John 16:7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.

All through the Holy Spirit  has been active on earth from the beginning as many scripture seem to show   I’m not sure he made his dwelling with people until after Christ death and resurrection and then his departure to sit at the right hand of God, Then the Holy Spirit was sent to dwell with those who have Christ as their Lord and Savior .

By saying yes to Christ and yielding over to the Holy Spirit control of our lives  we have the ability to break the yoke that bonds us to sinful life.