As Jesus looks over the religions of the world--including the Judaism of his day--he sees people who are laboring heavy loads to earn the favor of whatever deity they believe in. He did not come to replace that God-appeasing load with another one. He came to carry that load and call us to himself for rest. "Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest in your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (Matt. 11:28-30). Make no mistake, there is a yoke and a burden when we come to Jesus (there would be no demands if this were not true), but the yoke is easy, and the burden is light.
But perhaps it's note easy and light the way we think it is. Jesus also said, "The gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life" (Matt. 7:14). The reason it is hard it not because Jesus is a hard taskmaster. It's hard because the world is a hard place to enjoy Jesus above all.
John Piper, What Jesus Demands from the World, pg. 45
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