On Sunday at church, a wonderful young lady shared a great children’s story. She passed around two dumbbells, one weighing 2 pounds and one weighing 3 pounds. She asked the kids which one was heavier. (To the hilarity of the congregation, several kids stated emphatically that the 2 pound weight was heavier. We love our children, but boy, are they chaotic sometimes!)
She took the weights back from the kids and told them that it doesn’t matter if you’re bringing a 2 pound weight sin, a 3 pound weight sin, or a hundred pound weight sin to the foot of the cross. Jesus went to the cross for the ‘little’ sins as well as the ‘big’ sins.
“So even if it’s tiny, or a bit bigger, or huge, God can take all the pounds.”
~J
Today is Wednesday of Holy Week. The triumphant entry has taken place. Jesus is teaching the people and sparring with the Pharisees. Tomorrow is Maundy Thursday, when He will eat the Passover with His disciples before being arrested and treading the terrible path to the cross.
At every stage of His journey during this week, the shadow of the cross must have been heavy in Jesus’s mind. And yet He did not shy away from it. He asked for another way out, as several gospels tell:
Going a little farther, He fell with His face to the ground and prayed, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as You will.”
Matthew 26:39 NIV
Yet when no way out was found, He submitted Himself to the will of the Father and accepted the path laid before Him: the path to the cross.
Friends, without the cross, there would be no place to lay down our burdens, whether 2 pound burdens, 3 pound burdens, or ones that weigh even more than that. And we all have them. None of us are without. Yet since sin entered the world in the Garden of Eden, God’s plan of redemption was tracking steadily toward this pivotal moment, when Jesus would become the spotless, sacrificial Lamb who would willingly lay down His life for the freedom of His beloved–us.
Because He died, we have a covering for our sins for eternity. Because He rose from the grave, we have the assurance that death is not the end for us, that we too will live again one day in paradise with our Maker.
Because of Jesus’s obedience, His invitation stands the test of time:
Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.
Matthew 11:28-30 NIV
This Easter, I pray that you would look toward the cross anew and take the time to lay down your burdens at His feet, so that you can walk in the freedom God desires for all His children.
Blessings,
~Lynne
Leave a Reply