Page 11 - October 2026 - Truth & Tidings

ohn Bunyan was a master of allegory. that today my sins are on the Lord Jesus.
To sink in the Slough of Despond, to Yes, He has borne them, but now they are
Jwander through Vanity Fair, or to con- gone, never to be called into remembrance
verse with Mr. Worldly Wiseman again.
within the pages of his prose causes the However, we would be naive to assume
reader to wonder at Mr. Bunyan’s grasp that beyond the cross the believer is en-
of the human experience. But perhaps, at tirely free of burdens. In His great call to
no point is his use of allegory so poignant discipleship, the Lord Himself declared,
as when Christian (named “Graceless” up “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of
to that point) reaches the foot of the cross. me; for I am meek and lowly in heart:
For it is at that precise instant that he is and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For
freed from his burden of sin and guilt. my yoke is easy, and my burden is light”
That burden which had so beleaguered (Mat 11:29-30). While the life of faith and
him throughout his journey rolls away, service is the best life and the life where
down the hill of Calvary, and disappears His tender care and provisions are made
into the open tomb, never to be seen again! known, it is not a life free from burdens,
The believer can truly sing the joyous at least not on this side of heaven.
refrain:
In this series of articles we will consider
At the cross, at the cross, where I first saw some of the unique burdens that believ-
the light, ers bear. The Apostle Paul was greatly
And the burden of my heart rolled away, concerned with the business of Christian
It was there by faith I received my sight, living. Across his epistles we find a fruitful
And now I am happy all the day. scattering of responsibilities that we have
one for another. He writes that we are to
The burden of judgment for sin has prefer, to admonish, to serve, to forbear,
passed. Christ has taken it out of the way to forgive, to comfort and to edify one
and it is gone. In a manner that is supe- another. But we would be remiss to leave
rior to Bunyan himself, the Scriptures use behind his imperative to the Galatians as
beautifully descriptive terms to narrate he stated, “Bear ye one another’s burdens,
our release from the burden of sin. Psalm and so fulfil the law of Christ. For if a man
103 declares, “As far as the east is from the think himself to be something, when he is
west, so far hath he removed our trans- nothing, he deceiveth himself” (Gal 6:2-3).
gressions from us” (v12). The prophet How can we help a believer bear a
1
Micah emphasizes, “He will subdue our burden that we do not see or know? The
iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins purpose of this series of articles is to seek
into the depths of the sea” (7:19). And the to open our eyes and sensitize our hearts
Lord Himself testifies, “And their sins and to such burdens. The account of Exodus
iniquities will I remember no more” (Heb provides us with a historical picture that
10:17). The work of the cross is so complete goes far beyond allegory. Consider Joshua
that it is not scripturally accurate to state
and the children of Israel in battle with the
1 Bible quotations in this article are from the Amalekites at Rephidim. Moses raised no
KJV. sword, but he looked on the battle and
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