The Burden of the Lord

 By:  Dale Weckbacher

 

Text:  Jeremiah 23:18-40

 

Jeremiah 23:33

“When one of this people, or a prophet or a priest asks you, ‘What is the burden of the Lord?’ you shall say to them, ‘You are the burden,[a] and I will cast you off, declares the Lord.’

(ESV)

 

In Galatians 6:2, the Bible says we are to bear one another’s burdens for in doing so, we fulfill the law of Christ. However, the burden of the Lord is not a burden any of us wants to bear for it comes with the consequences of the Lord casting them off (Jeremiah 23:33). Those in ministry must ensure they do not become a burden of the Lord but messengers of the Word of God.

 

Jeremiah 23:18-40 begins with Jeremiah asking a rhetorical question of who has stood in the council of the Lord to see and hear His word (Jeremiah 23:18). This question is rhetorical because Jeremiah knows he is the one who has stood in the council of the Lord. The lying prophets of Jeremiah’s time did not stand in the council of the Lord and did not speak His words but spoke their own visions and dreams. God did not send these so-called prophets and that is why they will suffer the wrath of God (Jeremiah 23:20).

 

Instead of prophets proclaiming the Word of the Lord, these lying prophets are a burden to the Lord because they lead God’s people astray into the duplicitous worship of God and Baal (Jeremiah 23:26-27). However, instead of sharing this burden like we are to share our burdens (Galatians 6:2), God does not want to share this burden for it will lead his people astray. Therefore, God has no choice but to cast this burden aside and why these false prophets are going to suffer the wrath of God. Instead of Scripture touting these prophets as great prophets of God like Jeremiah, their legacy is one of everlasting reproach and perpetual shame (Jeremiah 23:39-40).

 

The office of a prophet in the time of Jeremiah was an office with a high calling and responsibility (Jeremiah 1:5-10; Amos 7:14, 15; Isaiah 6:1-10). Prophets choosing not to speak the words of the Lord as Jeremiah did and instead their own dreams and aspirations carried the burden of the Lord (Deuteronomy 18:22). This burden came with the consequence of God casting them from His presence. The burden of the Lord also brings everlasting reproach and shame (Jeremiah 23:38-40).

 

The consequences of a prophet not speaking the words of the Lord have application in the Church for those serving in ministry. The calling to ministry is one with a high calling from God and not something one does for personal profit or gain. The role of a pastor is to shepherd his congregation through equipping, encouraging, and empowering them with the word of God under the leadership of the Holy Spirit (Acts 14:22; 1 Thessalonians 2:12). Unfortunately, some churches have become social clubs or self-help centers with little challenge to live a Christ-like life, these Churches are a place that tickles the ears of the congregants and does not challenge them (2 Timothy 4:3-4).

 

For revival to occur, the Church must be like the Church in the book of Acts and turn its world upside down (Acts 17:6). For this to occur, those in ministry must study the Word of God to show themselves approved (2 Timothy 2:15) and make sure they do not become a burden of the Lord but instead a Gospel spreader and disciple-maker. May God challenge and bless those reading this post.