Jesus Shoulders Our Burdens (May 21, 2024)

 Life is a rich blessing from a gracious God of love! Yet, as we all know, it can be quite burdensome. There are many contributors to the loads we bear. As much as we love them, our families and friends can place some rather weighty burdens upon us as well as demands upon our time and energy. Adding to the encumbrances of life are the loads imposed by our professions, the pursuit of our dreams, putting food on the table, paying the bills, and handling the pressures of life’s many other responsibilities. As if that’s not enough, sometimes we impose burdens upon ourselves. Among those needless self-imposed burdens is the baggage we often lug around from the past, refusing to let go of feelings of guilt for confessed sins that God has already forgiven and forgotten.

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” (Psalm 46:1)

For Christians, there is divine relief! We don’t have to bear life’s burdens on our own frail shoulders. Jesus welcomes believers to release this heavy freight and tap into His divine power. The greatest burden that Christ shouldered for everyone was suffered for our sake on a rugged old cross erected on a hill outside Jerusalem two-thousand years ago. Our Almighty Burden Bearer, Jesus took on the crushing weight of the sins of all of humanity and died by crucifixion to relieve us of a crushing debt that we could not humanly pay. Jesus’ perfect sacrifice allows everyone who trusts in Him for salvation to receive God’s grace and His gift of abundant, everlasting life. Today, Jesus is asking us to humbly and trustingly let go of our burdens and rest in Him, eternally secure!

“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.” (1 Peter 5:6-7)