THE BURDENS OF THE TESTIMONY
Matthew 11:20, 25-30; 2 Corinthians 11:28
In this scripture in Matthew’s gospel, the Lord Jesus was feeling that there was so little response to His service in the different places which are mentioned. “Then began he to reproach the cities in which most of his works of power had taken place, because they had not repented”. It is clear that He felt the lack of response to His service, to the works of power which He had carried out, and He immediately turned to the Father. “At that time, Jesus answering said, I praise thee, Father, Lord of the heaven and of the earth”. When there was no answer from these cities, He provided an answer in Himself according to the Father’s mind. “I praise thee, Father, Lord of the heaven and of the earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them to babes”. The Lord Jesus recognised the Father in His sovereign operations and He said, “Yea, Father, for thus has it been well-pleasing in thy sight”. He recognised what the Father was pleased to do and He spoke of the way in which “All things have been delivered to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son but the Father, nor does any one know the Father, but the Son, and he to whom the Son may be pleased to reveal him”. That is, the revelation of the Father is by the Son; He is pleased to reveal the Father’s name to persons.
Then we get this appeal, and this was what was particularly in my heart tonight, “Come to me, all ye who labour and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest to your souls; for my yoke is easy, and my burden is light”. I know that this appeal has been used in the preaching of the glad tidings and many souls have found blessing in coming to the Lord Jesus with their burdens and soul needs. He would not turn such persons away. But I wondered if we might view it in the light of the burdens which are being carried in the testimony and in relation to the Lord’s interests. The Lord had already expressed Himself as to the burden that He carried; He had spoken to the Father about it. He was concerned that there should be those who labour and are burdened in regard to His interests and in regard to His testimony. So He says “Come to me, all ye who labour and are burdened, and I will give you rest”. It is a great thing to realise that we can feel with the Lord Jesus in how He feels in regard to what is happening to His testimony and in relation to His interests. “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am meek and lowly in heart”.
What an encouragement that is, to take His yoke upon us and learn from Him, the One who is meek and lowly in heart. That is the kind of Person He is. How beautiful, dear brethren, to think of the Lord Jesus in this way. Then He says “and ye shall find rest to your souls; for my yoke is easy, and my burden is light”. He is looking for persons who are prepared to feel along with Himself what is happening in His testimony and in relation to His interests. “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me”. We can learn from Him how He is carrying these things. He carries all the saints on His breast and on His shoulders1. We were helped on Lord’s day to see His service as our great High Priest and what He would do in sustaining His people in relation to God. So we are to take His yoke upon us and learn from Him; it says “for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest to your souls; for my yoke is easy, and my burden is light”. We find that it is easy and light as He shares it with us, for we share with Him in what is upon His heart and His mind. Then “ye shall find rest to your souls” saves us from becoming obsessed with things that may be happening. We can be restful in the sense that the Lord is over all. He took account of the Father as being over all and as all things are given into His hands, we can take account of the Lord Jesus being over all.
In the chapter of Corinthians from which we read, Paul wrote about a long list of the things which he had suffered. I did not read them; I do not think Paul really wanted to speak about them but he was compelled to do so. After that, he wrote “Besides those things that are without” – these would be the things which he had listed, which he had borne in suffering and the dangers he had gone through – “Besides those things that are without, the crowd of cares pressing on me daily”. Think of how much Paul carried in his spirit, these matters pressing on him daily, “the burden of all the assemblies”. I think he carried them in the sense of being yoked with the Lord Jesus, carrying “the crowd of cares” feelingly with Him. The “burden of all the assemblies” would be in relation to the saints. How much Paul was engaged in, “the burden of all the assemblies”. We get certain examples given to us. For example, in Paul’s work at Corinth, how much he evidently felt the strife and divisions which had come in there, and how people were following the wrong man in principle. Paul had only one Man before him, “Jesus Christ, and him crucified” (1 Cor.2:2), which would mean the end of every other man. Then we get an example of what pressed on Paul’s spirit in relation to the assemblies in Galatia. How much he felt the wrong teaching which had come in there and the effect of it on the saints, and he brought out his concern about them, his feelings about them. I think that these are just two examples to show us the kind of burdens which Paul carried in his spirit. It would show us that he was someone who had taken on the Lord’s appeal to come to Him and to take His yoke upon him. Paul had responded to that; he was very near to the Lord Jesus in the matters which he carried, “the burden of all the assemblies”. How extensive were Paul’s feelings and thoughts in relation to them, and I am sure that the Lord Jesus valued that because He would feel these things too.
I thought the Lord might encourage us. There are many things burdening the dear brethren and it would help us to realise that the Lord values persons who are prepared to take on His yoke and learn from Him. May the Lord bless the word.
Word in a meeting for ministry, Dundee
17 March 2015
J. Strachan