Don’t Give Up!
On Sunday August 3, PUMC was the host church for the Pitman Camp Meeting service in the Pitman Grove Auditorium. Our Men’s praise Team provided the music and our pastor, Rev. Jim Bolton delivered the sermon.
Click below to listen to a recording of the sermon and follow along by reading this post…
Pastor Jim’s message was on Matthew 11:28-30.
Matt 11:28-30
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 for your souls.
For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
NKJV
Ever had a Bad Day???
Jesus understood that bad days would come in our lives. And yet, He said “come to Me!” “I have overcome.” But how often do we forget about God or how often do we even fail to doubt in his promises? Instead of trusting in God, we frequently turn to self help books instead.
How is it that Christians could ever have a bad day? God always shows up, God always breaks through, God always helps us make it to another day.
And yet, Sometimes We Have to Ask “Why God?”
In John 16, Jesus said that “in this world you will have trouble. But don’t fear, I have overcome the world.”
For the people listening to Jesus, things were pretty rough. First they had the burden of all of the rules that the Jewish Leaders had put on them. These rules went way beyond the Laws that God gave to them. These were rules that nobody could ever obey… not even the priests and scribes who enforced them.
And of course, you also had the burden of the Romans and crooked tax collectors. There was widespread crime; like the traveler in the story of the “Good Samaritan,” traveling was dangerous.
But in the midst of the burdens, Jesus says “Come unto Me.” People need rest from the burdens. People need relief from the question of “Why?” We don’t have to listen to the voices of worry and fear. God wants us to enjoy the freedom of simply worshiping Him without having to worry about how we’re dressed, or if we stand or sit at the right time, or if we say the right things, or if we look like we belong in church.
Jesus says, “Come Unto Me!”
Against a backdrop of a bad economy, of crime, of religious oppression- Jesus comes and says “Come unto me. I will give you rest.” Jesus is playing it so radically different. He’s coming to set us free from all of those burdens. We don’t have to be worn down by the fear, if we choose to come to Jesus.
There are two profound truths in these verses..
- Come to Jesus and find rest.
- Come to Jesus and take upon ourselves His yoke.
Come Unto Me…
We suffer in may ways. We carry burdens and cry out “Why?” But God doesn’t always give an answer. And yet, later on, we figure out what we learned from the experience. It’s OK to ask “Why?” Even Jesus did, but He was able to look beyond His immediate situation and to be looking for God’s plan. We need to lay down our burdens, and in faith, look for God’s will.
During Jesus’ ministry on earth, there are many examples of people who took Him up on His offer. They came to Jesus in humility and faith and He relieved their burdens.
Zacchaeus
Zacchaeus was more than just a short dude who wanted a better look at Jesus. He was a TAX COLLECTOR. He collected what he was supposed to collect… and then some. He overcharged the people and lined his pockets at their expense. People weren’t too crazy about that (to say the least).
Even though the people tried to prevent it him from calling to Jesus, Zacchaeus persisted. In faith he came to Jesus. In Luke 19:1-10 this evil tax collector comes to Jesus and unloads his burden of guilt. He became a new man. Jesus gave him rest.
The Bleeding Woman
For years she was sick. But she crawled to Jesus through the crowd and in faith touched the hem of His garment. The story is in Mark 5:25-34. After reaching out to Jesus, Jesus told her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”
Blind Bartimaeus
Like Zacchaeus, Bartimaeus knew that Jesus was approaching so he grabbed a spot along the roadside. Bartimaeus was blind. He had been carrying heavy burdens throughout his life, so he came to Jesus. The story is told in Mark 10:46-52. He cried out to Jesus and Jesus said, “your faith has healed you.”
The crowd tried to shut him up, but he ignored the crowd. He was persistent. In the covenant with God, God calls us to “come.”
What an offer! Come to Jesus, and He has to power to give you rest!
I Am the Measuring Rod…
It’s so easy for us to make comparisons to someone else. “I’m not as bad as him!” or to make excuses, “Well if they hadn’t left that money laying out in the open I wouldn’t have stolen it.” But Jesus tells us to come to Him in faith. But if we fall into the trap of comparing ourselves to others and of making excuses for our sins, we can’t be forgiven, we can’t come to Jesus in faith, and our burdens will not be lifted.
But if we come to Him in faith, He sees us “just as if I never sinned.” We come to Him because we’re going to find a God who will be there for us and give us exactly what we need. He will give us His yoke; not the one we make for ourselves.
Salvation = Jesus + 0…
In Luke 23:40-43 the thief crucified alongside Jesus admits his sin. He realizes that he doesn’t measure up the the true measuring stick (Jesus). And so he “comes” to Jesus and asks Him to “remember me when You come into Your kingdom.”
But Jesus doesn’t say, “hey- you are REALLY sinful; you’ve got to be baptized first. You have to repent. You have to ___…” He simply forgives him and says “today you will be with Me in paradise.”
Jesus knows your heart. Come to Him. Trust Him. God will be there for you.
He Was Always There…
We may not always sense it, but God is always there, ready for us to come to Him. He’s always there. Don’t give up. Whatever we’re facing, He is always going to be there.
A familiar poem drives this home (click below to open it up):
Footprints
Footprints in the Sand
One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord. Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.
In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were two sets of footprints, other times there was one only.
This bothered me because I noticed that during the low periods of my life, when I was suffering from anguish, sorrow or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints, so I said to the Lord,
“You promised me Lord, that if I followed you, you would walk with me always. But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life there has only been one set of footprints in the sand. Why, when I needed you most, have you not been there for me?”
The Lord replied, “The years when you have seen only one set of footprints, my child, is when I carried you.”
Mary Stevenson, 1936
We might be carrying the package. The burden may be in our hands. But God promises to carry us!
Don’t Give Up!!!
Quiz Time!
Just for the fun of it, try out these True/False questions. Don’t Worry- there’s no gradebook!
When you’re done, click the “Review” button to see the right answers. If you missed any questions, re-read the scripture and try it again. If you’re stuck (or disagree with the answer!), feel free to post a comment.
