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“A Particularly Heavy Load”
Psalm 32
Matthew 4:1-11
February 10, 2008
A particularly heavy load to carry is the one which we have not yet identified as a heavy load. The physical loads are rather obvious. The emotional loads are not always so obvious. The emotional and spiritual loads are often carried for long distances and long periods of time before our eyes are open to them. Hopefully, we come to realize that the load is not just a burden of life, but is a weight that has been taken on unnecessarily.
And such it is with the very nature of sin. There is the obvious sin which we know about immediately — the obvious ones are usually in the “top ten.” Murder, Stealing, Adultery, Lust, Covetousness – although in today’s world there are quite a number of people who apparently believe that there is nothing wrong with coveting, and of course, they believe it to their own spiritual demise, but I digress.
There are those two huge sins which are rarely recognized for what they are. Even though they are not in the top ten, they tend to cause us the most trouble.
The first is casting blame in order to avoid taking responsibility. We are continually and overly concerned about the correct dissemination of blame. God,
on the other hand, is only concerned with your situation – not your opinion of others’ wrong doing. Remember that God held Eve fully responsible for her choice to be disobedient in spite of the suggestive power of the snake. God held Adam fully responsible for his choice in spite of his rationale that it was Eve’s fault.
Every parent who has more than one child has heard the “He hit me first” excuse. But it’s not just a child’s ploy. Nearly everybody, regardless of age, gender, religion, or whatever, has—just like Adam and Eve—tried to avoid responsibility by blaming his or her sins on somebody or something else. Alcohol, prescription drugs, genes, peer pressure, bad choices, mistakes, bad childhoods or even the snake in the garden – all take their share of the blame.
In pushing the blame onto someone else, we turn the first sin into the greater sin of excusing ourselves and assigning blame and evil to someone else. In doing so we build up heavy spiritual and emotional burdens that slowly, but assuredly add unnecessary weight to our daily living.
Once we think we have justified ourselves, we attempt to go on putting the whole thing behind us – or so we think. Oh,
it may go behind us alright, but
it plants itself firmly on our backs and on our shoulders to create an unnecessary burden weighing us down in an already complicated society.
We are held fully responsible as individuals even if others appear equally involved. [Principal’s office story] God does not ask us, “Who do you think shares in the blame?” Rather, God asks us, “What do you have to say for yourself?”
The second most troubling sin is a false apology. This type of wishy-washy apologetic maneuver takes the place of sincere repentance. Many of today’s apologies are so questionable that instead of saying, “I’m sorry I did it,” we say “I’m sorry it happened,” and instead of saying, “I’m sorry I offended you,” we say, “I’m sorry you were offended.”
Both of these types of apologies continue to place at least a part of the blame on the other person which is, again, self-justification and this continues to solidify the growth of your already heavy burden.
Casting blame and false apologies eat away at our moral core. These two sins are destroying our ability to draw close to God or enhance our spirituality because they are the type of sin which causes spiritual blindness. We easily become oblivious to the reality of it.
We must use our God-given wisdom and common sense to deal with our excuses and self-justification before they permanently attach themselves to our soul. Why wait? Why hesitate? Why not receive this gift of God ASAP?
Such a big part of the Good News message of Jesus Christ is that one can be forgiven – one can have the burden and weight of sin and error lifted from one’s shoulders. When this happens, it is Jesus who justifies us before God in heaven which is the true lifting of the burden.
In order for sin to be forgiven, it must be acknowledged and confessed. Casting blame nullifies its effect. Confession is the religious term for “getting something off your shoulders.” When we speak it, we confess it, and when we confess it, we experience relief from its burden.
In our scripture from the Psalms this morning, the writer David declares,
3 While I kept silence, my body wasted away,
4 For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;
5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you,
and I did not hide my iniquity;
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,”
and the Lord forgave the guilt of my sin.
1 Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven.
David discovers that the soul can be released from the bondage of sin through the confession of our sins to God. Confession that takes on the full responsibility of the need for forgiveness is effective confession.
This Lent, ask God to break down the barriers which prevent you from seeing your need and hinder you from speaking your confession.
This Lent, open your hearts and minds to God’s willingness to forgive you completely, thus relieving you of a particularly heavy load. And always remember, Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven.
Let us pray…
Lord God, in the silence of these moments, be powerfully real to us. Help us to confess our transgression to you without adulteration. Help us to receive the full gift of your forgiveness either in these moments as we come to you, or at some point in our Lenten journey. Amen.
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