Chapter 2: The Burdens of Life and Sin: Christ's Call to the Weary
Chapter 2 The Burdens of Life and Sin: Christ's Call to the Weary Containing a description of those whom Christ invites to come unto
Him, which is laid down in this doctrine: That those whom Christ calls to come unto Him are such as labour and are heavy laden, whether:
1. Under the burden of the righteousness of the Law, or 2. Under the weight of their sins, or 3. Under the power of any corruption, or 4. Under any outward trouble or affliction.
You that labour and are heavy laden. So, then the point is:
DOCTRINE: That those that labour and are heavy laden are called to Christ. Such as Christ calls are those who labour and are heavy laden.
1. Those who labour and are heavy laden under the burden of the righteousness of the Law. Chrysostom interprets the text this way: Those that heretofore have sought righteousness by the Law and find it very burdensome to them; those that are toiling and labouring to obtain peace and rest for their souls by the works of the Law, but find themselves weary; they find that peace and rest do not come that way. They are even toiled and tired, and (as it were) stuck in the mire, but still find no peace or rest that way. Now Christ says to them, "Come unto me"; as if He should say: "This is not the right way to get true peace and rest for your souls, to think you can bring it about by the works of the Law; you may toil, labour, and perform duties, not daring
to act against your consciences, being very strict in your lives, striving to do more and more. And yet this will not bring true rest and peace to your souls; you will never have peace and rest through the righteousness of the Law; you must have it through me."
There are many whose consciences God has begun to enlighten, to see that there is evil in sin, that sin will bring death, and that it endangers their souls to eternal damnation. They are convinced of this, and to have peace with God is the thing their souls much desire.
Oh! That they might have the pardon of sin and peace with God! Oh!
That their consciences might be quieted! God does awaken the consciences of many men and women who yet have no saving grace, and they spend much time in labouring and taking great pains to quiet their consciences. Many have spent years labouring and toiling to get their consciences quiet, and cannot, for their consciences ever and again fly in their faces, troubling them. Yet they dare not commit any known sin, nor neglect any known duty. They are constant in secret prayer, they attend upon the Word, and whenever they hear of a duty they should perform, they labour to set about it with all their might. But alas! They feel little sweetness and comfort in their duty; only conscience compels them to it, telling them they must do it. And if they neglect it, conscience flies in their faces, telling them they must perish eternally. Therefore, they seek to pacify their consciences only by the performance of duties and by their obedience to the Law, thus seeking peace through the righteousness of the Law.
This is the only way they attempt to pacify their consciences and find rest for their souls. Alas, all the while, they are labouring and toiling, but cannot achieve it. For while men seek righteousness by the Law, it must needs be a toiling labour that will not bring rest.
The First Burden of the Law First, the Law gives no strength at all to enable one to perform duties, and therefore the children of it must needs be under bondage.
As Pharaoh's taskmasters commanded bricks to be made but would afford no straw or means to do it, so some describe the bondage and servitude of the Law, commanding such things as it gives no strength to perform.
Question: But you will say, is this the Law of God? Is God so harsh to His creature as to command what He gives no ability to perform?
Answer: We must know that God once gave strength to perform duties, but certainly, now the Law of God commands duties but gives no strength to perform them. There is no strength enabling us to perform duties until the Spirit of Jesus Christ comes into the soul.
We may perform the outward part of them, but not in such a spiritual manner that they should be suitable to our hearts or bring ease and quiet to our souls. And though the soul seeks to get rest and ease for itself, it will not come that way.
The Second Burden of the Law Secondly, the Law requires perfect obedience in everything, and it denounces a curse against anyone who does not continue in everything that is written in the Law to do it. Now, when men and women seek rest for their souls by the works of the Law, they cannot perform duties as they ought, and therefore they find no rest.
Instead, they see that the Law condemns them because they do not perform duties in a perfect manner. Yet they think they must go on and do as well as they can. But still, conscience accuses them: "You have not done enough; you still fall short, and though you do some duties, you neglect others." So conscience gains the upper hand every day, and they are continually under the bondage of an accusing
and condemning conscience, and so they find no rest for their souls.
They perform duties but question with themselves, "How can I know that the infinite, holy God will accept what I do?" Although they may find quiet for a little while, yet conscience comes upon them again, disquieting them and casting fears and doubts into their souls. So much so, that many poor creatures have gone seven, or even twice seven, years under trouble of conscience and never had any rest or peace. And yet still, they have continued to be conscientious in their ways, but with their hearts full of fears and doubts, lest all should not be well with them in the end.
The Third Burden of the Law And besides, while the soul continues to seek quiet and rest by the works of the Law, there is an unsuitableness between the duties performed and the heart of such a man or woman; so much so that the very works they do and the duties they perform become grievous and tedious to them. "Yes," says Christ, "Oh! Come to me, such as these are. Is there anyone among you who has had their conscience troubled and has desired, 'Oh! That there might be peace between God and my soul, that I might have assurance of God's love!' What course have you taken to get it? Have you not sought to bring it about by the works of the Law and thought to gain rest and peace for your souls that way? Indeed, it is better to go on that way than in the ways of sin, but to think to find rest and peace in that way is far more harmful than you are aware of. If men think to quiet themselves that way, and thereby put off the righteousness that comes by faith, they may become hardened before they are aware."
"But is there anyone among you seeking rest and peace for your souls in such a way, by the righteousness of the Law?" says Christ. "Know this: This is not the way for you to find rest for your souls. It's true, you must abstain from sin and perform duties, but if you would have
rest for your souls, you must come to me. It is by the soul's resting upon the perfect righteousness that is in Jesus Christ alone that true rest comes to the soul. Many a poor sinner has been seeking rest for many years and has not found it, but when the Lord has been pleased to come in with one promise of the Gospel, setting it home upon their soul, they have found more rest and quiet in one day, yes, in one hour, than they did before in many years. There is a great deal of art and skill required to find rest and quiet for the troubled soul. The Gospel is a mystery in this matter, and when God acquaints the soul with the mystery of the Gospel, rest comes in a sweet and gracious manner."
"It is true that it is the hardest thing in the world to close with Christ and to gain true ease and rest for the soul. It is hard in itself until
God makes known the mystery of faith to the soul. But once that is done, the soul finds abundant ease and rest, and that in a short time.
It is like a man who thinks he can complete a task by sheer strength, which indeed can only be done with skill and art. He may toil, labour, and tire himself out, but he cannot do it. Whereas another man, who understands the mystery of it, comes in and, with skill and art, can accomplish easily in a short time what the first man laboured over for a long time without success. As you know, in all trades that have a mystery to them, those of you who are navigators, who understand the mystery of that art—if an unskilled man came and thought he could do some of your work by sheer strength, he might labour and toil his heart out, and still not achieve what you can do with ease in a short time."
"So, too, many poor souls are labouring and toiling, striving to quiet their troubled souls. They labour, they perform duties, they fast, they pray many times a day, going on in a wearisome manner. Yet, when the soul comes to be acquainted with the mystery of the Gospel,
when it hears the voice behind it, as it were, saying, 'Come to me,' and the soul is enabled to answer the call and come to Christ, it still performs its duties as much as before and remains conscientious of them. However, now they are performed in a different manner than before, and they come to be easier than before, bringing rest to their souls despite the imperfections in their duties."
"When you went to prayer, at times, when your hearts were much enlarged in prayer, and your thoughts were entirely taken up with the duties you were performing, then you thought you had some comfort. But when you experienced wandering thoughts and distractions in prayer, you rose up with a deeply troubled spirit, finding no rest all day long. Now, when you come to be acquainted with the mystery of God in Christ, though there may be many imperfections in your duties, yet you shall find rest for your souls despite all your imperfections. But that will be more clearly opened when we come to the part, 'And I will give you rest.' Those who have laboured under the righteousness of the Law and find it toilsome and burdensome to them—Christ calls them to come to Him that they may have rest."
The Burden Under Sin Secondly, those that labour and are heavy laden under the weight and burden of their sins—the trouble of conscience that is upon them for their sins—this is another thing, besides the righteousness of the Law. The former labour arose from performing duties, but this labour comes from the sense of the weight and burden of sin, and we are to know that this is a great labour and burden. Oh! When the soul is under the burden of sin, it labours earnestly. The thoughts gather together, and conscience, being awakened, causes great disturbance, bringing fears and trembling to the soul. The heart of a man or woman, once sluggish, dull, heavy, and dead, becomes quickened,