Cast All Your Burdens On Christ - Zac Poonen

I want to begin by singing a children's chorus so that we don't look gloomy anymore or burdened it's called I'm so happy and here's the reason why it's just two verses please sing with me and mean it because lord has done a great work for us and sometimes we don't think of it sufficiently because we are so taken up with either our failures or where we've slipped up or some other worry in this world and we forget about how much the Lord did for us so join with me I'm so happy and here's the reason why Jesus took my burns all away no I'm saying go by Jesus took my burdens all away if you know it and you believe it please sing with me I'm so happy and here's the reason why Jesus [Music] once my heart was heavy with the load of saying Jesus took that load and gave me peace with it now I'm singing as the days go by Jesus took my burdens all away good not only burden but burdens so which means not only the burden of sin but as we live in this world it's very easy to be taken up with so many other burdens and the burden is something that weighs on your heart and mind and sometimes you can't sleep at night because you're thinking and thinking and thinking about it could be a burden that somebody else put upon you some problem that somebody else caused for you and you think of why that person did it and what you're going to do to remove that burden it could be a financial burden because of difficult circumstances but whatever it is listen to this word in Matthew's Gospel chapter 11 Matthew 11 and verse 28 this verse is often quoted to unbelievers saying you're weary and heavy-laden the Lord says come to me all who are weary and heavy-laden and I will give you rest see it's an old only an unbeliever who's convicted of sin who would be weary and heavy-laden most of the unbelievers in the world are not we are in heavy-laden they're quite happy I mean they may be burdened with financial problems and poverty and other things but they're not burdened with sin they're not burdened because oh I'm such a sinner and I've dishonored God and displease God hardly anybody who feels like that so but when we are born again the Holy Spirit makes us sensitive to sin and then it's very easy for believers to become weary and heavy-laden you know I found that particularly in my earlier days where I tried to please the Lord and I couldn't and I was discouraged and when you're discouraged you become weary and heavy-laden and I want to say that that's not God's will for us and so we need that word frequently where Jesus says come to me and it's quite likely I mean if the Lord lay that on my heart there must be a number of people here who need to hear that word from Jesus to this morning saying come to me not to some verse which you're gonna quote sometimes we go to a verse okay I'm gonna quote that verse and keep quoting it till I come to rest no that's the spirit of the law it's good you know we memorize the promises and we memorize the commands it's all good but it's possible to memorize a promise without coming to the Lord himself and then as long as you remember that promise there's we have free from anxiety but then we can't remember it all the time and we forget it and the anxiety comes back so in the Old Testament they had to remember these things because there was no person they could come to I mean Moses didn't say come to me he just gave him the law and said keep it and there were promises in the law as well a wonderful promise in Isaiah for example and the sounds but you could remember them what about think of the days when the early Christians had no Bible it's no he's no use coding averse to them they didn't have a Bible and even after the Bible came it was not broken up into chapters and verses still many hundreds of years later so how did how did God Almighty expect Christians to live lives of rest and free from burden code Jesus said this 2,000 years ago he said in verse 29 take my yoke upon you learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will definitely find rest for your souls why is it we haven't found it my yoke is easy my burden is light why is it so many Christians feel it's a heavy burden God has placed on me whether it's a problem at home or a sickness or a financial burden or trying to keep the commandments all types of things can be burdens we say Lord is it true your burden is light it doesn't seem to be but he's not a liar he's burning his light I must be taking upon myself some burden which the Lord never gave me and I really believe many many Christians take on themselves I know from my own experience burdens the Lord never gave we I'm not saying the devil gave it to us I'm saying we take it on ourselves and we don't realize that the Lord who took away the burden of our sin wants to lift every other burden to come to me all you who are weary and heavy-laden I've said the story before of this poor man who was walking down the road with a heavy weight of he was a laborer having a huge heavy weight on his head and some truck passed by and stopped and had mercy on him and said climbing at the back and I can take you wherever you're gonna go and go in the same direction so he was very thankful and he got in there and sat at the back of that truck because it was empty and after a mile or two the driver looked back through the window and saw this man still sitting with the weight on his head he said why don't you put that weight down he said well you've been so kind to give me a lift I didn't want to add the burden by putting this also on the truck you think boy how stupid could he be whatever how stupid are these believers who feel that the Lord took my burden but this one I have to carry there is no different if he could take the burden of your sin which is the most difficult thing for even for Almighty God to do I say it was difficult because it it had to make him forsake his son for three hours on the cross that was nothing more difficult than that you think all the other burdens are gonna be difficult for God not at all no though you see you can try and remember that okay we heard on Sunday that if he took the burden of our sin he all the other burdens are lighter okay you got something in your mind but you'll forget it Jesus says come to me I really believe my dear brothers and sisters we have to get into the habit of coming to Jesus more than to just a verse or a promise which is good I'm not against it I myself claim promises in the scripture but it's always in relation to Jesus it's like if I can but get a check it's the person who wrote that check that makes that check valuable in a bank not the amount written on it is the person come to me so I want to say to all of you it's not God's will that we should be burdened and heavy laden and the Lord says if you want to carry something take my yoke and not this other yoke that the devil puts on you with all the burden of your sins or the burden of sometimes the guilt of past failure that can also burden many people I messed up my life so much in the past and even after coming to CFC and hearing these wonderful truths again and again I messed up messed up that can be a burden I'll tell you it can be up such a burden that weighs you down and it weighs you down because you think you're supposed to be so perfect how could a perfect man like me make those blunders well I want to say to you that you're not perfect and if you humble yourself and say Lord there's nothing good in my flesh so you knew that when you chose me it was not a surprise for you Lord when you discovered there's nothing good in my flesh I'm discovering it slowly but I believe there's nothing good in my flesh but I know one thing I hate it and I whenever I get light on it I want to crucify it I want to judge myself that the Lord sees so he says take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will find rest for your soul so I see there that this rest comes through learning the humility and gentleness of Jesus I mean that's pretty clear there take my yoke on you I am gentle learned from me here's a command and here's a promise learn from me how to be gentle and humble not externally which will give us a reputation we're not here to show others that oh I'm a very gentle person or I'm a very humble person I couldn't care less for the opinion of people that's garbage I want to be actually gentle and humble not on the outside in my heart I want to be humble in my heart which is before God and you can't see my heart so this has got nothing to do with appearing gentle before you or humble before you that's worth nothing I want God to see that I'm humble in my heart before him I don't have any high thoughts about myself that I don't think I'm somebody very important that if I manage to accomplish something I don't take any credit for it I'm quick to give glory to God for it and if I forget to give the glory as soon as I remember I want to give the glory to him and not never take any credit for it even for an answered prayer sometimes you know we pray for something and God wonderfully answers that prayer and I begin to think boy I'm somebody I am God answered remain humble brother sister remain humble it's the reason I see this from this verse that the reason for unrest is because I have not learned humility from Jesus in my heart maybe I'm trying to be humble before others I got to get rid of that that'll be a burden I'll tell you this in Jesus name it'll be a tremendous burden for you if you always try to appear humble before others it'll be a burden to try and get a reputation for humility it'll wear you out forget it just forget it and say Lord I want to be humble in heart and that's only before you because no people nobody can see my art and whatever other people think it doesn't matter you know Jesus was never bothered about what people thought whether he was humble or not he was humble he didn't look very humble when he called the Pharisees a generation of vipers he didn't look humble when he called Peter Satan and he didn't look humble when he took a whip and chased people out and looked angrily at those who didn't want a man with a withered hand to be healed there's so many things we do and say which people may think oh this guy's not very humble or gentle if you were free from their opinion and say Lord I want to be humble and gentle in my heart before you that's all so much of burden goes away when we are not trying to impress anybody we our humility or our holiness or our spiritual accomplishments or how God answered my prayer when I prayed for something God did something just forget it and if somebody else also prayed and give the credit to him not because you also prayed forget it we really need to steer away from this taking credit for things you know secretly we are taking credit for certain things and that's what brings burdens in our life it's a tremendous burden I'll tell you this to try and appear spiritual before others it's a very great burden to always appear humble before others and to a pure spiritual before others you'll wear yourself out just forget it just be free from the opinions of men and say Lord I want to be humble before you and gentleness that's another thing if you try to be gentle before people you won't do some things that God wants you to do especially if you're an elder I know as an elder of this church and responsibility others there are many things I've had to do and ask people to do and I had to write to people which did not appear gentle at all and if I was concerned about my reputation for gentleness I would never have written those letters I would never have taken those decisions I would have let that church go to corruption oh let it go to crumble let me not lose my reputation for gentleness you will never be an elder in a church if you're seeking for a reputation for Humanity or gentleness you gotta just forget it you gotta live before God I mean you I mean apply that in your own level you're not an elder in a church maybe you're a parent and if you are trying to get a reputation before your children for humility and gentleness they don't understand what humility and gentleness is your children will be wayward you've got to be strict with them so Jesus says it's in your heart that's what matters and learn from me Jesus never never what can I learn from him I can learn this from him that he never never sought to appear humble or gentle before people he didn't wash people's feet to get a reputation for humility not at all and we shouldn't be sweeping the floor to get a reputation for human not at all we shouldn't be cleaning the toilets to get a reputation from anybody lord I want to live before you this is the primary secret of being free from burdens because he says if you live before me you'll find in verse 30 my yoke is easy my burden is light the Lord never gives a heavy burden remember this all your life Jesus says my burden is light anything he tells us to do is light well when you compare the Sermon on the Mount with the 10 commandments 10 commandments are so easy I mean there are even non-christians who obey most of those Commandments but you come to the Sermon on the Mount from the very beginning it's so tough and you say Lord your burden is light it looks into the Lord's light and your commandments are so much heavier that's because we want to live before people if I'm seeing to live before the Lord and say Lord I want to be I want to concentrate on what purely in my heart that's all I want to make sure that I love you with all my heart and if I love the Lord with all my heart I may slip up it doesn't mean I don't love take the example of husband and wife see a husband may love is wife fervently and have no interest in any other woman and really cares and loves for his wife like anything but he will still make mistakes I mean haven't you husbands know that many of your husbands I believe love your wife more than anybody else on earth and yet you make mistakes yeah well the Lord understands that I can love him with all my heart and still make mistakes well he doesn't jump on me for that and I hope your wife doesn't jump on you when you make a mistake if she sees that deep down in your heart you love her or vice versa so remember the Lord looks at her heart and we have to slowly break away from living before people and very often burdens come because of that my yoke is easy and my burden is light of course Jesus are referring primarily to the law which is a very heavy burden for the Israelites to keep and they were burden and burdens here I can't keep it and I can't keep it like look what Paul said in Romans chapter 7 he's very honest there when he talks about how the law became a burden for him that which was meant to give life brought death Romans chapter 7 he says verse 15 what I'm doing I don't understand I'm not practicing what I'd like to do but I'm doing the very thing I hate haven't we all had that experience where very often I wanted to do the right thing I always want to do the right thing and I end up doing something which afterwards I said boy why in the world did I do that I hate it and yet I happen to do it why in the world did I say it like that I didn't want to say it like that I wanted to say it in a loving gentle way but I didn't turn out like that I ended up saying or doing things which I hate well if I acknowledged that I hate that then I'm acknowledging verse 16 that the law is good so then I recognize that is not me doing it it's this sin in my flesh that's doing it because I haven't got rid of my flesh yet and so verse 19 the good that I want I don't do when I practice the very evil that I hate so I find this principle verse 21 within me and all of us will acknowledge this that the one who wants to do good I joyfully concur verse 22 with the law of God in the inner man don't you I believe you do I believe you read the Bible and say it's absolutely right that's the way I want to live but I find a different law in my members which is making me a prisoner sometimes and making me do things which I don't want to do or which I regret as soon as I've done it as regret as soon as I've said it and it's from such a man that the cry comes out all wretched man that I am now I want to tell you to me that's that statement is one of the marks so the fact that a person is really born again a person who's not born again can say something and do something and never say all wretched man that I am wiring the world did I do that why in the world did I say it like that if you never say it'll never have that type of feeling I want to say you're probably not born again at all but if you had that feeling Oh wretched person why in the world did I do it like that why in the world did I respond like that that is one of the clearest indications that you are born again but that can be a burden where the devil fools you say see this proves that you are not saved no it proves that you are saved otherwise you wouldn't feel like that at all you're sensitive it means you don't have leprosy a pinprick fear you feel it people with leprosy they don't feel anything you can poke them with a nail they won't feel it but you are feeling a small thing and the one mark of growth in the Lord is this that even a small little thing one word makes you feel like that old wretched man that I am so don't let that burden you so he says well what am I gonna do I want to thank God through Jesus Christ because I realized that in my mind verse twenty-five it's very important to understand this verse in my mind I've decided I'm gonna serve the law of God wholeheartedly and that includes the Sermon on the Mount I have decided my life I want to be completely free from anger I want to be completely free from lusting I want to be completely free from any bitterness and complaining against anybody in the world I want to be totally free from hating those who hurt me from having an unforgiving spirit towards anybody in the world from wishing evil towards any human being I want to be completely free and if I had some of these times the other thoughts come up I'm gonna reject them because in my flesh first 25 I'm still loving serving the law of sins so these other thoughts and feelings sometimes come up so what shall I do then here my mind is determined to live for God and these other things come up and then I get bird and oh I'm such a rotten person you should not be burdened it says in the next verse it's unfortunate that there's a chapter division between that and to Romans 8 verse 1 you your mind you're serving God and with your flesh you're serving the law of sin fine but there's no condemnation you think there should be condemnation if your first is serving the law of sin no therefore therefore means because of the previous verse well how in the world can there be no condemnation when I'm serving the law of sin more than my flesh because with my mind I'm serving the law of God because God sees that deep down in my mind I only want to please him do you feel like that then there'll be no condemnation for you you should not condemn yourself a lot of burdens come through condemning yourself that's how only to free you from condemnation for you from self condemnation I pray that every single person sitting here if you're really born again and you love the Lord and you want to please him will never have condemnation self condemnation again for the rest of your life I lived with a lot of self condemnation for years after I was born again and I thought I was being spiritual because I felt so condemned about but it hindered me from growing because in all those years I never got any victory over sin and I'll tell you this you will not get victory over sin if you keep on condemning yourself you need to recognize that becoming like Christ is a matter of growth it's not sudden it's not that one day you're a sinner it's the next day you're like Christ you are not there's a progression as you judge yourself and all those years your flesh will serve the law of sin but your mind will serve the law of God your mind is set on pleasing God and in a sense you can say that wasn't me that is my flesh that made me do that but I hate it and one proof of it I hate it is I immediately confess it to God that's one proof that you hate it and if you hurt another person immediately go and ask forgiveness from that person that's a proof that you hated a person who's not born again doesn't feel like that he just continues oh well unlike that you know you can take this word like well my flesh will serve the law of sin and and completely ignore all the wrong things you do know a person whose mind is set on the law of God will immediately confess his sin to God and immediately ask forgiveness from the one he's hurt but he will not condemn himself he will say worse Romans 8:1 there is no condemnation because I'm in Christ and I'm not living after the flesh I'm seeking to please the law of God and if we live like this free from condemnation verse one which is very important then you can go to verse 2 which is the law of this holy spirit see this is in contrast to the law of Moses the law of Moses was a list of 613 commandments which is there in Exodus Leviticus numbers Deuteronomy but the law of the Spirit is not in written Commandments it says the law of the Spirit is a life a life in Christ Jesus that is this new law a law of life see it's let me give you an example I've used very often that is when people have leprosy which is a picture of sin even in Leviticus it's a picture of sin throughout the Bible one of the main things that happens in leprosy there may be other things as well is that they lose sensation that part of your skin that's got leprosy you can poke it to the nail you don't feel a thing sensation has gone and that's a picture of a conscience that is dead and you don't feel anything and if there was some way in which the leprosy could be healed one thing would happen is you'd feel a thing a feeling is coming back and means I'm being healed so that is mark of leprosy being healed so when you don't feel anything means you're dead you can put a 1 ton weight on a dead man he doesn't feel a thing but you can you can feel a weight even if somebody puts 5 kilos on you so it's a question of being alive so the lost spirit of life in Christ Jesus it's by the life in Christ Jesus that I live now not by a bunch of rules and what I will not allow myself to be condemned as I live by this law I'm gradually becoming free from this other law of sin and death and now verse 4 this requirement of the law will be fulfilled in us if we don't walk after the flesh but after the spirit and that means something very simple it doesn't mean I'm perfect it just means that when I feel the prompting of the Spirit to confess something to acknowledge something to set right something or to ask forgiveness from someone I do it that is walking according to the spirit the Spirit is prompting me to do it then gradually that perfect requirement of God's law will be fulfilled in us so that's the big difference between Old Covenant and New Covenant which we have spoken many times in the Old Covenant God just gave a commandment and said do it and for 1500 years Israel try to do it and they could not do it and then Jesus came and said learn from me learn how I lived keeping the law in tirely it is not by struggling and struggling and condemning myself no he lived before his father and simple dependence on his father acknowledging father without you I can do nothing I desire nothing on earth but to do your will that's all you got to start there I mean I believe 1 mark of being really born again is that you really want to do the will of God from now on for the rest of your life because you believe that no matter what plan you make for your life it can never be better than God's plan see that's why we choose the will of God some people think oh it's mean I've got to never do my own will but do the will of God always sure because that will is million times better than one anything you can plan for yourself why shouldn't I choose it why shouldn't I choose something which is far better than what I can plan if I can believe that God who sees the whole future has planned my life in such a perfect way because he knows all the pitfalls ahead and all the dangers and traps that Satan has for me it's like this you know these when you choose to drive using Google Maps this Google system is in touch with the satellite so it can even tell you hey there's a lot of traffic up there don't go this way take another way but it'll be a bit longer but you'll reach quicker because as part of your road is blocked with traffic you get that red red space on your google map saying that's not the way to go so it's something like that when the law and the holy spirit say not that we go this way it looks a bit longer and they're more difficult but it's because the Lord sees there are problems for you along this way I mean so many people trust Google Maps so much they blindly obey it but they can't trust the Lord and the Lord will show you the way and not this way but this way why can't we trust him all of you who have implicitly obeyed Google Maps well 1 how do you trust the Holy Spirit when he tells you not this way but this way he sees the whole future and he prompts you to go this way this is the way God wants us to live the Christian life when Jesus said learn from me for I am humble the primary mark of Jesus one of the marks of Jesus humility was he did not choose to run his own life he lived moment by moment by the prompting of the Holy Spirit the whole secret of the Christian life is to develop the habit of listening to the Holy Spirit that's why they just could not have this life in the Old Testament because the Holy Spirit had not come it's not because we are better than them no it's because now we have the Holy Spirit to prompt us and guide us we don't have to make the blunders that Old Testament great Saints made for example Abraham even told a lie that his wife was his sister to save his own life even though there was a danger that the king would rape his wife he said okay doesn't matter let me save my life can you imagine any husband doing that today there are husbands like that but her husband was led by the Holy Spirit never do it never see I'm not gonna put my wife's life in danger to save my own life never they couldn't do that and David the man after God's own heart when he looked at a naked woman he kept looking and today a man led by the Spirit will turn away immediately if we accidentally that happens that's the difference we have the Holy Spirit we're not better than David no we're not better than Abraham I'll tell you don't ever read the Old Testament and think that you're better than them I mean if you want to compare yourself with somebody in the Old Testament compare yourself with John the Baptist he was the best of the Lord and we're certainly not better than him but even many of these other people we are not better than them they were mighty men of God but they lacked the Holy Spirit to use an illustration one of the greatest scientists of the last one of the greatest mathematicians of the last century was Albert Einstein but do you know that today I can make calculations faster than Albert Einstein why is that it's not because I'm cleverer than him I've got a computer or I've got a calculator and I can calculate things in a few seconds which would have taken him many minutes to calculate you see the difference even though I'm far inferior to him I can do things quicker and better than him because I have access to something he did not have access to a computer same way today we can do things better the man after God's own heart and Abraham and Elijah and even John the Baptist the greatest prophet of all because we have access to the Holy Spirit which even John the Baptist did not have he had the Holy Spirit upon him but we have the Holy Spirit within David had the Holy Spirit upon him we have the Holy Spirit within so when the Holy Spirit is only a pawn they didn't clean up their heart that's why they all fell into sin so remember this if we live according to the spirit like it says in verse 4 this requirement of God's law will be fulfilled in our life so this is the meaning also of this may be elementary for some of you but some of you may it may be new so let me repeat it turn to Hebrews in chapter 8 this well-known passage that we often caught in relation to the new covenant Hebrews chapter 8 this new covenant verse 8 middle I will affect a new covenant it's referring to the church not like the covenant which I made with the old Jewish people when I had led them out of Egypt now this is the covenant I'll make I will put my law into their mind and write them on their hearts in the Old Covenant he wrote it on two tablets of stone with his finger ten commandments now the two tablets are inside us our mind and our heart God writes and in in the New Testament the finger of God is called the Holy Spirit of God Jesus said if I cast out demons by the finger of God how by the Spirit of God he used both expressions from which we know the finger of God is the Holy Spirit it's why the Holy Spirit that he wrote those Commandments on those rocks and he says now with that same finger the Holy Spirit he's gonna write God's law in my mind which means he's gonna give me a desire to do all of his will to fulfill his perfect plan for my life if any of you have a desire to do all of God's will don't ever try to take credit for that that you are better than somebody else no the Holy Spirit wrote that desire in your mind humble yourself and give God the credit for it sometimes we don't come into God's life because we take the credit for what God did we think I'm better than that guy I got a desire to do God's will he doesn't but who gave you that desire I hope it does not you yourself because you yourself decided something it won't last long a lot of people I've seen even in CFC churches there the holiness sense of where's out after some time in some situation they do something so utterly stupid that say where was all that holiness it's all disappeared because deep down in their heart they thought they are the ones who were having a passionate desire to follow the Lord they were not humble enough to acknowledge one simple thing even the desire to follow Jesus is not from me it's he has written it in my mind God gave me that desire none of us would for example take the credit for the forgiveness of our sins we will not say oh by my cleverness I got forgiveness of our sins no for that we understand clearly it was 100 percent what Jesus did on the cross I can't take credit for the forgiveness of my sins I want to tell you in the same way you cannot take credit for the desire to do God's will you gotta humble yourself and say lord I cannot take any credit that I am better than that other person who doesn't seem to have a great desire to do God's will but I do well God gave it to you brother keep it but always acknowledged God gave it you learn from Jesus who was humble of spirit humble in heart and depended on the father all the time and the second thing he says then I write it on your heart writing in the heart means God is going to give me the strength to do it first the desire and then the strength those are the two tablets on which God writes his laws today in my mind giving me the desire to do God's will and in my heart giving me the ability to do God's will so that's the difference between mind and heart in the mind I get a desire and in the heart I get the ability see Hebrews this is where grace where does grace come Hebrews 13 and verse 9 it says don't be carried away by strange teachings there's so many theories and doctrines and Christendom today with so many different groups don't get taken up with all those things it says don't be it's a really a word needed today there are so many messages and theories floating around and charismatic circles and different different groups each person coming up with some new theory don't get carried away with all that the main thing is verse 9 hebrews 13:9 your heart must become strong with grace strong for what to do God's will God writes his law into my mind gives me a desire and then it's good for grace to come and strengthen what strength in my heart to be able to do God's will so that sin has no power over me it's like God's grace comes to me that even if a Goliath of sin comes against me he's knocked down in a second David knock down Goliath in one second that wasn't in his power it's a picture of what grace can do when a mighty sin that's knocked you down for so many years there are many people who have been knocked down by a giant called pornography for years or a drinking habit or some other habit that's worn them down anger is like a huge giant like Goliath it's always frightened them knock them down and God says if your heart is strengthened by grace like David you can knock him down with one blow believe him come to the Lord with humility and say Lord you who gave me the desire in my mind will also give me the strength in my heart give me grace now to overcome that see that same truth is repeated in Philippians in chapter 2 I'm just showing it here in scripture so that you know this is not some theory I'm preaching but it's exactly what the Apostles preached which most Christians have not understood and this is why we have so many burdens Philippians 2 and verse 13 God is at work inside you and whenever it says God is at work inside you it's always referring to the Holy Spirit doing two things one in your mind to make you will his his will his good pleasure second in your heart to work his good pleasure the same thing here it's exactly what we read in Hebrews eight he works in my mind to choose it and then he works in my heart to do it and so what should i do then that said in my in verse twelve last part you work out your salvation from all sin with fear and trembling Lord you're working in me to desire it you're giving me the strength to do it but I'm not a robot programmed to automatically mover on and live a holy life no I have to agree with you I say that's all God says give you a will to me and say you agree with me I'll give you the desire and the ability dear brothers and sisters we preached on this for years but I find sometimes truth needs repetition so that we are gripped by it haven't you sometimes read a verse in scripture for years and years and years and one day it hits you I remember way back I think the first time I asked Jesus to come into my heart when I was probably 13 years old and I never knew whether he came I used to read the Bible as to pray every day but I never knew was I saved or not no no change and one day I just read worst probably which I read many times before John 6:37 him that come to me I'll never cast out and I remember that so vividly it was in July 1959 I remember where I was in my room in the Naval Base in Cochin morning reading the Bible him that commit to me I will never cast out and it's like a anchor you know ship drops an anchor and then it cannot move that's what happened I dropped an anchor that day and for 60 years now my ship has not moved assured I am a child of God I'm born again I didn't live perfect from that day no I mean a shipper tanker keeps swinging this way that way that way but it doesn't move from that spot so that was my life but it's something that God but I had to agree with it I said I accepted the same thing when I was seeking to be filled with the Holy Spirit years later defeated defeated frustrated praying nothing happening till one day I just believed that if God has called me to serve Him he will not refuse to give me his power it's not a great profound truth but one day just hit me and I believed it and I tell you like that first thing 60 years ago changed the direction of my life this other faith in this that simple promise change the direction of my life from a defeated Christian let me in the path of victory 45 years ago and led to planning churches and so many other things so I find it's that you know God I give the credit to God he put a desire in my heart and gave me the ability to do it come to Jesus there you will not and I remember the years before that before I had that experience of being filled with the Holy Spirit I used to be so frequently discouraged condemning myself because I was defeated condemning myself oh why can't I get victory I know these things but I'm not able to get victory I'm defeated if he did frustrated I feel there are people sitting here like that dear brother sister don't give up say lord please put faith in my heart help me to believe that you will make me will you've already done that that you will give me the grace to do it I want to learn from you I want to look at Jesus all the time and see how you did it and learn from you and I want to believe that none of your commandments are a burden that's important the devil will always tell you that God's commands are a burden you know what he told Eve in the Garden of Eden listen to this command of God you can't eat from this tree such a beautiful tree and makes your mouth water when you look at that fruit and God strict God says you can't eat it what a burden and he believed like a fool she believed it yeah that's a burden God's commands are a burden and that's how she fell and you begin to believe that God's commands are a burden you'll fall too and you'll keep on falling till you believe the word of Jesus my burden is light my yoke is easy and if you find something heavy that's not the burden of Jesus it's a counterfeit another Jesus the devil's put upon you the real Jesus his burden is light his yoke is easy he does not give us commands and torture us when we can't obey it he's there to help us learn from me and he's come right there to help us through the Holy Spirit very important dear brothers sisters seek for the help of the Holy Spirit continuously Lord give me that power I pray for that frequently Lord give me the power of your spirit now I need it every time see what John says in 1 John chapter 5 the first episode of John chapter 5 I'm often said this is what John said at the age of 95 60 years 65 years after the day of Pentecost having obeyed God suffered for the Lord tortured persecuted all types of things I've heard that they threw him in a pot of boiling oil and he came out without being hurt and then they exiled him to Patmos and there is all alone in Patmos with no human being and suffering for the Lord's sake you know what he says in 1 John 5 verse 3 his commands are not a burden I like that a man who suffered so much for the gospel 65 years he says I've obeyed the Lord and not one command of his is a burden I hope we'll have that testimony when we come to the end of our life for so many years you may testify your testimony should be like this for so many years I thought of God's commands as a burden and so many of my prayers he didn't seem to answer that was another burden and some other things it was a bird and a burden a burden but a day came in my life and I realized that's all a lie of the devil Jesus commands I liked his burdens are liked his yoke is easy and I'm not going to lose my joy worried over why can't do this or I can't do that you'll have a testimony also from that moment you will be able to say it till the end of my life I can now say his commands are not a burden I hope he'll begin that pathway now to learn that none of God's commands are a burden and no situation that he brings into your life will ever be too much for you it says in Psalm 55 this is a psalm of David I think where he's it says in verse 3 the voice of the enemy the pressure of the wicked they bring down trouble upon me they bear a grudge against me verse 4 my heart is in anguish that terrors of death have fallen upon me fear and trembling verse 5 have come upon me I'm overwhelmed and there are believers like this facing pressure and we will also say oh I had wings like a dove I could as fly away from here to someplace where I can be at rest lord please confuse these people verse 9 and and sometimes it's our friends who let us down if it wasn't worse 12 if there's an enemy who reproaches me I could bear it but if it is someone who hates me but this is a brother in the church a sister in the church who treated me like this you my companion verse 13 my friend we had such sweet fellowship when we went to church together and you deceived me you've let me down I will call on the Lord to save me and he verse 18 he redeemed my soul verse 19 God will hear and answer my prayer verse 22 this is the words I want to come to he says from my experience I'll tell you something David says cast your burden upon the Lord take that as a word he will sustain you what is your burden today the burden of sin is gone praise the Lord some other burden which you feel God God can't handle cos it on the Lord he will sustain you he will never he will never never allow the righteous to be shaken as imagine says daughter and you won't taught her on your feet you'll be rock steady he will not allow it what a wonderful world please remember some 55:22 cast your burden on the Lord it's been a verse that's been on my mind for many many years I say Lord I don't know what I don't know what burdens are gonna come in the future but I'm gonna follow that verse I'm not gonna carry do you know like that person I told you sitting in the truck carrying that burden on his head and the truck driver says listen I carried you I can carry that burden to put it down that's what the Lord says to us I took away your sin I saved you put that burden down I can handle that if I can handle you I can handle that burden don't carry that burden toss it up on the Lord see 1 Corinthians in chapter 10 1 Corinthians chapter 10 and verse 13 this is you know every promise is dependent on God's faithfulness we know that every promise in the Bible is depend on the fact that God is faithful but when it comes to this particular promise he particularly says in the middle God is faithful why does he emphasize that because in this temptation we can begin to wonder is God faithful or not he will not allow you to be tempted beyond your ability he will never never never allow a test to come to you which is beyond what you're able to bear think of a man who had one of my what I have think is one of the greatest tests any human being can face Joe in one single moment within about one minute after each other two messages came to him one your property is all gone that means you become bankrupt not you lost most of your money you lost all of your money okay that's enough to knock out most most even rose most believers but one minute later he gets a message all your children are dead and that man in the Old Testament there's only one thing he had he didn't have the Holy Spirit but he had a fear of God you know through the years as I've watched so many people who talk about I'm filled with the Holy Spirit and I speak in tongues and I do this I got so many people and they are defeated by sin I've come to see that the primary one of the primary marks of being filled with the Holy Spirit is you begin to fear God you read that nice I 11 the spirit of the fear of the Lord will be upon him upon Jesus the same spirit upon us that brings a tremendous of reverence for God and that reverence for God will say okay he decided to make me bankrupt not in one month but in one moment all my money is gone my property is burnt up and within a minute later I hear that all my children are dead now think of this in your own mind in a few moments you get the message that your bankrupt and all your children are dead can you picture that in your mind when I was a young Christian and I said Lord I want to be dedicated completely to you I pictured this in my mind I saw myself standing in a church service in CFC with five coffins and I pictured five coffins my wife and four sons and coffins and me standing there see we have used our imagination for all types of filthy things in the past why not use our imagination for some good things and I said Lord what will I do now I want to do what joke did I'll fall down before you and say the Lord gave and the Lord is taken away praise the Lord Lord give me the grace to say that it's because we are attached to so many things that they become a burden detach yourself from that and learn from Jesus who was detached from everything now just because you had your children over to the Lord doesn't mean he's gonna kill them tomorrow no they'll live according to God's plan but you will be detached and you'll become a better person your children won't die no God will take care of them but you'll be detached and you'll be at rest those burdens that you have will go or it could be a job see what do I do if I lose my job I'll tell you what God will provide some other way to care for you I mean think of that story that six sorry six hundred thousand men two million people including women and children wandering for 40 years in the desert what a story the Bible begins with an exodus onwards God taking care of 2 million people wandering in a desert where there were no shops no place where you could buy food and you had to wear the same clothes and wear the same sandals for 40 years I mean the Bible says that sandals never wore out and the amazing thing among all those 2 million people it says there was not one lame person among them it says in the Psalms because if there's a lame person there what a problem he would be go to walk in the wilderness and he can imagine walking in that hot Sun and God provided a cloud as a shadow for them and that's how the Bible begins the story of how God redeemed Israel from Egypt and say this God loved us less than that is he gonna leave us stranded when he's brought jesus promised that if you seek God's kingdom first everything you need for your life will be added to you I had a great desire when I left the Navy and I gave away all my income to God's work and started with zero in my bank account I said Lord I want to prove one thing I wasn't married then I said Lord I want to prove one thing in my life that I want to come to the end of my life I want to be able to say I never asked anybody for money and ever gotten to debt I never borrowed anything I never made my needs known but I really to the best of my abilities try to seek God's kingdom first and I want to say at the end of however long my life is and now it is more than 50 years since I quit my job those who seek God's kingdom first will find everything they need added to them even if they have no friends and a lot of enemies you know you don't have to leave your job to do that because many of you are in jobs and good jobs getting good salaries and you still have pressures your precious financially your precious with sickness in your children your precious with all types of things in the home and you should be able to say at the end of your life I sought God's kingdom first in every situation I put God first not my wife not my children not my home not my needs I always put God first I put Christ first in everything even if it meant lost for me and I want to say to it here at the end of my life after 50 years of being a believer he never let me down he was faithful 1 Corinthians 10:13 God is faithful he will never allow you to be tested beyond your ability like I've often said the class teacher will not give you an examination paper for a higher class you will get an examination paper only for your class your brother who's in a higher class will get a tougher examination paper but you are in a lower class you'll get an examination paper for your class God will not give you a test beyond your ability if you walk with the Lord few years from now you'll get a tougher test that means you're promoted but it's so true but and when the test comes he'll provide a way to escape you know this is amazing if you take the example of a written examination you're sitting in the third standard and you're absolutely sure you will not get a fourth standard question paper you get the question paper it is the third standard question paper but even that third standard which is your class question paper is tough for you so here's the other promise the teacher will come and sit beside you and give you the answer to all the questions what do you want that's the meaning of the rest of that verse first of all you won't get a question paper beyond your level and even if that is stuff he'll make a way of escape that you can endure it that means you'll be able to pass the exam because the teacher will come and sit next to you let me show you that promise in the Old Testament it's wonderful I like to see it like that then I pass through the different tears and I tell you I pass through a number of tests in my life and whenever I pass through those tests God has told me this is what God's told me this is to prepare you for your ministry your ministry doesn't come through Bible study alone your ministry will come through the trials of life that you have to face so that you'll know how the Lord sustains you and then you can help others see Isaiah and chapter Isaiah chapter 33 sorry not 33 30 I thought 30 in verse 20 Isaiah chapter 30 and verse 28 listen to this although the Lord has given you the bread of privation and the water oppression that means you went through a tough time your teacher let me paraphrase it will sit beside you and give you the answer to the questions he will see the teaching he will not hide himself your eyes will see your teacher and when you come to the next question verse 21 he will tell you this is the answer and you write something wrong he'll say no not that way this way that's the meaning of that verse don't turn to the right or left you're writing the wrong answer and the teacher say no no that's the wrong answer and he gives you the answer and at the end of it you get 100% in your examination can you take the credit for it no I studied hard but it still I found some of the questions tough but wonderful the teacher sat next to me and in this particular examination that's permitted it's not illegal God Himself allowed it what a wonderful thing your teacher will see your teacher and he'll tell you this way not that way right this not that what a wonderful life the Christian life is how the devil has fooled people that the Christian life is a burden and a burden to this business of victory over sin and all these things that are taught in CFC it's so heavy it's not brother it's because you have not believed that your eyes will see your teacher and then the Holy Spirit will whisper in you not this way this way do this and I'll give you the strength to do it whatever the situation he took away not only the burden of our sin but every burden he never wants us to be live with a burden take my yoke upon you all and then they listen to the word of Jesus this morning come to me all you and CFC who are burdened and heavy laden Jesus is in our midst right now this year talk to him he says come to me don't just listen to what brother Zack said Jesus has come to me I will give you rest it's not a message that's gonna give you the rest I will give you rest take my yoke upon you Jesus says learn from me let your daily habit not just reading the Bible but learn from me I read the Bible to learn from Jesus I don't just read the Bible learn from me and you will find rest he won't be restless at night with those burdens he won't be restless throughout the day in my presence the Lord says there'll be fullness of joy fullness of joy always it's not a once for all type of thing there'll be pressure that'll make you a better person pressure is like the gym where you go to work out any person who wants to build muscles go to the gym and God says I'm gonna put you into the gym and where you have to workout I'm not gonna make you butt fat flabby useless Christian I'm gonna make your muscular Christian and even if you don't want to be one I'll put you into the gym if you rebel against it then you can go what a wonderful life it is in his presence is fullness of joy so my brothers and sisters let's learn to live without burdens cost you burden and the Lord and He will sustain you whatever your burden is this morning whatever it is maybe something I didn't even mention something which is special for you your family I want to take it think of that man sitting in the truck whose heavy weight down sweating and the truck driver says put it down man if I can take you I can take that also and that's what Jesus Saint put that burden down I'm carrying you why can't I carry that burden leave it to me trust me I cannot do anything for you if you don't trust me remember that word in Matthew's Gospel 13 last words Jesus could not do many things in that town because of their unbelief don't let that verse be written about any of you here Jesus could not did many things for many brothers in CFC but he could not do something for that brother and that sister because they would not believe they heard the same message but they would not believe it and so Jesus could not do it for them can you imagine a statement saying Jesus could not do it that's what it says in the last verses Matthew 13 he could not do it because of their unbelief let that word never be written I prayed that many times I said Lord when I stand at the judgment seat of Christ one day and you show me the history of my life I don't want you to point out certain places in my life where you said you know I couldn't do something for you here because you wouldn't trust me you try to handle it all yourself when you try to claim promises and all that but you did not learn from me you did not come to me you came to a verse in the Bible you came to a printed ink what the printed ink said there come to me there's a lot of difference between going to the Bible and going to Jesus the Pharisees went to the Bible Jesus said come to me I hope you've learned that lesson and I believe it can change your life it can make your life completely different from today cast your burden on the Lord he will sustain you let's pray Heavenly Father we thank you for your word please help us to live according to it every day the cost our burden upon you and to be free from unrest turmoil pray in Jesus name Amen can we sing that chorus once again which we sang at the beginning I'm so happy and here's the reason not because I got all that I wanted not because I made money or I'm healthy everything's okay at home or everything's okay at work no no no Jesus took my burdens all away and let's make it burden this plural I'm so happy and here's the reason why Jesus took my burdens all away now I'm singing as the days go by Jesus took my burdens all away once my heart was heavy with a load of sin Jesus took that Lord and gave me peace within now I'm singing as the days go by Jesus took my burdens all away Jesus took my burdens all away

Channel: CFC India

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Length: 69min 1sec (4141 seconds)

Published: Tue Feb 04 2020