He Carries Our Burdens

Are you facing a situation that is beyond hope? Perhaps it is a relationship that you know will never get any better. Perhaps it is a physical condition. Jesus is the only one who can take these burdens for us. When our strength and wisdom have no answers there is still a place to turn. The Bible tells us, “He took up our pain, and bore our suffering.” (Isaiah 53:4, NIV) John in his account of Jesus’ life tells of an incident where a friend of His died. A dead person would seem to be about as far beyond hope as it gets. In the case of this friend, Lazarus, Jesus chose to bring him back from the dead. There are not a lot of cases where Jesus chooses to do this, but He does promise to be with us. He does help us carry the load. He took up our pain, and bore our suffering. God gives us hope even when things seem beyond hope.

Bad Things Happen

John tells the story of walking one day and seeing a blind man. Everyone knew that this man had been born blind. The question came up as to why this person had been born blind. The assumption of John's day was that either the person with the problem or the parents of the person had done something bad. When asked why this had happened to the man, Jesus said it was not that the parents or the person born blind had done anything wrong. But, it was rather an opportunity for God's work to be displayed and then Jesus healed the man. God wants a relationship with beings that like Him can make their own choices. Because of this, He has allowed us to make our own choices even though He is all powerful and could have made us differently. We all make bad choices at times, and and when selfishness and hate take over someone's heart evil choices are made. As a result, there are evil and tragedies in our world. In these there is opportunity for God's work to be displayed. We see God's work in people reaching out to offer healing and help to those struck by tragedy. And, we see His work ultimately in the fact that He has reached out to us to offer healing and help to each of us through His Son.

Mary Magdalene

We meet Mary early in the ministry of Jesus. Luke mentions her in chapter 2 verses 1& 2: “After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out.” Jesus had traveled about from town to town with the twelve and with these women. We know that Mary the mother of Jesus and this Mary stayed by the cross as Jesus suffered. There is an account in the New Testament of a man afflicted by a legion of demons. However, 7 demons is a large enough problem. The number is given to us to indicate that her affliction was severe. Therefore, her gratitude was great. She was first to the tomb, the most persistent in seeking His body, and the first to see Him alive. Perhaps her great deliverance explains the depth of her devotion, and perhaps it is a credit to her gender. It was because of such devotion that she was there to be the first one to see that the stone had been removed from the tomb. Mary was the first to see the risen Lord, and it was because she was pursuing the right thing. She wanted Jesus. She needed Jesus. She stayed there at the tomb until she knew what had become of Jesus. She found out He was not in the tomb because He was alive. He is the way the truth and the life. We have evidence. We have facts. But, what we need is Jesus. All of our hope is in Him. What are you pursuing?