-July 22, 2023-
Good morning, happy Saturday,
“Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.”
Peter was a godly saint, leader, elder, and servant of Christ. The Lord Jesus forgave him for denying Him three times. Our Savior told him to “feed My lambs, tend My sheep, and feed My sheep” (See John 21:15-17). Peter carried out our Savior’s directives so well. His two letters, 1st and 2nd Peter are both challenging and encouraging.
Here in our text today we have secret sauce as it were: place your burdens on the Lord and leave them there. The word care can be translated anxiety. God never intended us to carry our own burdens, troubles, problems, concerns, cares, or stresses on ourselves. There are three things we take from this verse: first, casting our cares on Jesus is a command as well as recipe for peace, comfort, and rest. Second, Jesus wants us to lay all our anxieties on Him, and third, He cares for us.
• Casting our cares – It is hard to cast our cares on Him and even harder to leave there with Him. Our flesh wants to take over and try to handle things on our own. We only makes things worse, much worse. Psalm 55:22 says, “Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.” When we follow His command, He will take over, and makes right.
• On Him – There are some burdens that others can share in, others that are loads to bear. Paul makes the distinction in Galatians 6:2, it says, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” He also wrote, “Let each one bear his own load” Galatians 6:5). God can use others to help and encourage us. We still need to cast our worries on the Lord. He wants our cares, He can handle them, knowing that we can’t.
• For He cares for you – There is no better reason to cast our anxieties on Jesus than to know how much He cares for us. Jesus showed His disciples how much He cared for them as individuals and as a group. He cares for us in the same way. It says of our Savior in John 13:1, “Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that He should depart from this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.” No one cares for us like Jesus!
May the Lord help us to cast our cares on Him, for He cares for us. He knows our need, our circumstances, our burdens, and our concerns. Anything that concerns us, concerns Him. Have a stress free, worry free, and carefree day. Stay safe and healthy.
Letting go and letting God be our burden bearer,
Dean
Dean Allen's Daily Devotional 