I Have A Burden
I have a burden - actually two of them.
One is for the “sheep.” And the other is for the “shepherds.”
Isaiah 53:6 says, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
On Christ lay the sin of each of us; He took it, He bore it and He buried it… but many still carry it - sometimes shamefully, sometimes arrogantly, and sometimes ignorantly - but carry it, nonetheless.
And I am burdened by that. I don’t know which burdens me more, those that don’t seem able to surrender, those who feel they have nothing to surrender, or those who don’t know they have anything to surrender - those who just think “everything’s a-ok!”
Someone mentioned the passing of an individual who’d been sick a long time and said, “Well, they’re better off now…” to which I thought, “Are you right sure about that?” Of course, I don’t know the person’s heart, so I can’t say, but I certainly saw no evidence of Christ’s Lordship in their life, nor ever heard a confession of faith… All I know is, there was no fruit…
And then, there are the “shepherds;” those who have been entrusted with teaching the truth. What if they have neglected to do that - or worse - taught untruth…
James 3:1 says, “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.”
What about all those preachers and teachers who’ve failed to ask the hard questions, and give the hard exhortations? And what about the ones who’ve led others astray?
There’s an old song which says, “If I have wounded any soul today, if I have caused one foot to go astray, if I have walked in my own sinful way - dear Lord, forgive.”
And every time I hear it I think, “Yes, He will forgive, but what about that wounded soul, and that foot gone astray? They are still wounded, and they are still led astray. Where’s the prayer for them?”
And today, my heart is heavy for these…
Betty
One is for the “sheep.” And the other is for the “shepherds.”
Isaiah 53:6 says, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
On Christ lay the sin of each of us; He took it, He bore it and He buried it… but many still carry it - sometimes shamefully, sometimes arrogantly, and sometimes ignorantly - but carry it, nonetheless.
And I am burdened by that. I don’t know which burdens me more, those that don’t seem able to surrender, those who feel they have nothing to surrender, or those who don’t know they have anything to surrender - those who just think “everything’s a-ok!”
Someone mentioned the passing of an individual who’d been sick a long time and said, “Well, they’re better off now…” to which I thought, “Are you right sure about that?” Of course, I don’t know the person’s heart, so I can’t say, but I certainly saw no evidence of Christ’s Lordship in their life, nor ever heard a confession of faith… All I know is, there was no fruit…
And then, there are the “shepherds;” those who have been entrusted with teaching the truth. What if they have neglected to do that - or worse - taught untruth…
James 3:1 says, “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.”
What about all those preachers and teachers who’ve failed to ask the hard questions, and give the hard exhortations? And what about the ones who’ve led others astray?
There’s an old song which says, “If I have wounded any soul today, if I have caused one foot to go astray, if I have walked in my own sinful way - dear Lord, forgive.”
And every time I hear it I think, “Yes, He will forgive, but what about that wounded soul, and that foot gone astray? They are still wounded, and they are still led astray. Where’s the prayer for them?”
And today, my heart is heavy for these…
Betty
posted by Betty Newman at 12:00 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home