the Word of God. Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not thyself from my supplication. Attend unto me and hear me. I mourn in my complaint and make a noise. Because of the voice of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked, For they cast iniquity upon me, and in wrath they hate me. My heart is so repained within me, and the terrors of death are fallen upon me. Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me. And I said, O that I had wings like a dove, for then would I fly away and be at rest. Lo, then would I wander far off and remain in the wilderness, Selah. I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest, destroy, O Lord, and divide their tongues. For I have seen violence and strife in the city day and night, they go about it upon the walls thereof. Mischief also and sorrow are in the midst of it. Wickedness is in the midst thereof. Deceit and guile depart not from her streets. For it was not an enemy that reproached me, then I could have borne it. Neither was it he that hated me, that did magnify himself against me. Then I would have hid myself from him. But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide and mine acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together and walked unto the house of God in company. Let death seize upon them and let them go down quick into hell. For wickedness is in their dwellings and among them. As for me, I will call upon God, and the Lord shall save me. Evening and morning and at noon will I pray and cry aloud, and he shall hear my voice. He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me. for there were many with me. God shall hear and afflict them, even he that abideth of old, Selah. Because they have no changes, therefore they fear not God. He hath put forth his hands against such as be at peace with him. He hath broken his covenant The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart. His words were softer than oil, yet were they drawn swords. Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee. He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved, but thou, O God, shall bring them down into the pit of destruction. Bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days, but I will trust in thee." Ending the reading just there, at the close of the psalm, and we'll read our text in Psalm 55, and it's the words of verse 22. Psalm 55, and the words of verse 22. It says, Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee. Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee. The subject this morning is that of the burdens of the believer. And the fact, brethren and sisters, is Christians do have There's not a doubt about it. And I'm sure there are those in this meeting, and you've come to God's house this morning, and there's a burden, a very heavy burden weighing upon your heart. The reality is, this world in which we live is a world of burden bearing. And those burdens come from all aspects of life. The burdens that we have to carry come from home and family life, difficulties in the home, difficulties and fallouts even among the family. The burdens that we have to carry come from business life, perhaps things not going well, reversals in business, difficulties, not getting the business that we need to carry things on and to carry things forward. The burdens can come from sickness, an unexpected announcement from the doctor about our physical health, about our medical condition, news that perhaps we'll have to go to the hospital for some operation or to pass through a severe period of treatment. Burdens come from bereavements. We've heard this morning in the announcement of a family that has lost a loved one, and how difficult, how bitter those bereavements can be. They even come from broken relationships, families breaking up, friendships being lost, and the pain that those things can cause to our hearts. And even the work of God. There's burdens. Those of you in places of leadership, those who are office bearers in the church will know that there are heavy burdens to carry at times. as you seek to give direction to the cause of Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul spoke about the care of all the churches. So, these burdens, they come from all aspects of life. And maybe some of these areas is where you fit in today. And let me point out to you, brethren and sisters, that David had a burden. And that's something that should encourage us Sometimes we think of David and the others that we read of in the scriptures, that they didn't live the life that we lived, that they didn't have the experiences that we have. And that is certainly not the case. David had a burden, and we should be encouraged by that. If a man like David, a man after God's own heart, had burdens in his life, then we ought not to be surprised when they come our way and when they cross our path. Where did David's burden come from? It came from the fact that his own son, think of it, his own son had rebelled against him and his closest friend, his closest counsellor and advisor had betrayed him. And that's what this psalm is all about. It's about that part of David's life. You think, just for a moment, Think of what you're tempted to do when those burdens come. There are many temptations that cross your mind and come upon your heart. You're tempted, for one thing, to carry the burden yourself. Do you remember when Solomon was building the temple, that it talks about the bearers of burden? And that's one of the things we're tempted to do when there's a heavy weight on our shoulders. The temptation is, well, I'll carry this. I'll just go on in my own strength. But you'll be like those in the days of Nehemiah if you try that. It says that the strength of the bearers of burden was decayed. And your strength will soon be used up and you'll stumble and you'll fall. Another temptation is to quit, to just give up. There's no point going on in the Christian life. There's no point going on in the cause of God when there's all these problems, when there's all of these difficulties. Isn't that what Peter did? Peter decided, I'll go a fishing. I'll go away back to my old occupation. I'll not go on with this preaching anymore. There's a temptation to quit. There's a temptation to complain. And doesn't that temptation come upon us so often? Do you remember what you read about the children of Israel whenever they were in the wilderness? It says they murmured. There's a murmuring spirit that can arise even in the congregation of God. We can murmur against the Lord. That's what they did in the wilderness. It's not a fearful thing. They murmured against the Lord and against his servant Moses. And when there's burdens, there's difficulties, there's trials, when there's tribulations, we point the finger of blame in all sorts of directions, and we lash out with criticism. That's one thing we're tempted to do. Another thing you're tempted to do when the burdens come is to run away. Remember Jonah, the runaway prophet? He didn't like what God had asked him to do, He packed his bags and he set off in the opposite direction. You know, it's amazing just how relevant this psalm is. It says in verse 6, just look at the words carefully. He said, Oh, that I had wings like a dove, for then would I fly away and be at rest. Lo, then would I wander far off and remain in the wilderness. Selah. I would hasten my escape from the windy storm. and tempest. Is that how you feel today? You wish your wings like a dove, you just can't face it anymore and you'd like to fly away off just to some quiet secluded place. Another thing we're tempted to do when the burdens come is just die. Lord, I've had enough. Just take me home. Do you remember Elijah's sitting under the juniper tree. He wished for himself that he might die. He just thought, Lord, I want you to take me home to heaven. That's one of the great unanswered prayers of the Bible. Isn't it good the Lord doesn't always answer the prayers that we offer? There's times we just think, I've had enough of this life, and I want to go home to glory. But that's not always the Lord's time. or the Lord's will. And there's one other thing I'll suggest to you that we do when burdens come. That is, we wish evil on the people that we think are the cause of them. Do you see what he says there in verse 9? He says, destroy, O Lord. And then down in verse 15, he says, let death seize upon them. We wish evil. We're thinking, Lord, if you'd only judge these people, that would give me a wee bit of satisfaction. You see, there's all sorts of things you're tempted to do. And, brethren and sisters, I'm sure if you're honest this morning, the temptation has crossed your heart and upon your heart to do one or maybe more of these things. And I want to stress to you this morning that this is what not to do with your burdens. That's not the road the Christian ought to go when the burdens weigh upon us. What I want to do today is tell you what you should do with those burdens. In actual fact, what you're commanded to do in God's Word. If you have a heavy burden and if you have been crushed today under the weight of that burden, then our text gives you the answer. It tells you how to cope, and it tells you what you should do as a child of God. Let me just show you what we should do with our burdens. The first thing that the text teaches us is that we should consider the burden as from the Lord. I'd like you to think about that. The burden you have, whatever it is, consider that burden as from the Lord. You look at the words of the text. Cast thy burden upon the Lord. And that word burden, if you have a Bible with a margin, you'll see for yourself, it literally means gift. Cast thy gift, or that which he has given thee. That's the literal rendering of the word. Isn't that interesting? You might even think of today as something that is strange. The burden you have, it's a gift from the Lord. Did you ever see that truth before? The trial, the disappointment, the loss that you've sustained, it's from the Lord. His hand is in it. He is the one that has permitted it. It's not fate. It's not bad luck. It's not a curse. that has come upon you or upon your family, it's something that the Lord Himself has bestowed upon you. And when you see it in that light, doesn't it change the situation completely? The Lord's hand has done this. Now, automatically, you will ask why. Well, remember this, brethren and sisters, we don't have all the answers. Always keep that in mind. The Lord doesn't always tell us the reason why He does certain things. The Bible says the secret things, God has secrets that He does not reveal even to us as people. The secret things belong unto the Lord our God. The New Testament says now we see through a glass darkly. We don't always have a full and a clear vision and a clear understanding of what is happening. The Puritans had a great saying, we can't always trace the Lord. You can't always follow Him, follow what He's doing. We can't always trace the Lord, but we can always trust Him. And I'd like you to think of that. Take it to heart. You can trust the Lord and what He's doing. We don't have all the answers to the question why. But let me suggest to you some reasons why the Lord would give you a burden. One has to do with our walk. Maybe you're not walking with the Lord as you should. Maybe you're not as close to the Lord as once you were, and the Lord wants to bring you back to Himself. That burden that you've been carrying, it has caused you to cast yourself upon the Lord. It's caused you to pray more than you've done for a long time. Mr. Spurgeon said, anything that causes you to pray more is a blessing. Isn't that right? Anything, even if it's a trial, if it causes you to pray more, it's a blessing. Didn't David say, before I was afflicted, I went astray? But now I have kept thy word, and perhaps you were going astray. Perhaps you were wandering away. Perhaps you were growing cold. And that's why the Lord gave you the burden, because he wanted to bring you back again to himself. Another reason why the Lord gives us a burden has to do with our worth, our worth in his sight. I had a younger brother who was diagnosed at a very early age with muscular dystrophy. It's an illness that affects the muscles. They waste away. From when he was about seven years of age, he couldn't walk, confined to a wheelchair, and he died before he reached his 18th birthday. That was generally the case with those with that disease. They didn't live beyond 18 years of age. Someone told my mother on one occasion The Lord only gives handicapped children to special people. That's an interesting statement. There might be a wee bit of sentimentality attached to it. But I can tell you this, brethren and sisters, the Lord only gives burdens to special people. That burden that you have, it indicates your worth. It indicates how much the Lord values you. Remember, this burden you have is a gift. And the Lord is like us. He only gives His gifts to special people. It's not what you did at Christmas. Those who were special, those who were precious to you, you had a gift for them. Well, the Lord only gives His gifts to those who are special in His sight. You think of Job. Why did the devil afflict Job? Because he was special. Because the Lord could trust him in those circumstances. The New Testament says, it's whom the Lord loveth that he chasteneth. And the things that you're passing through, they're an evidence of his love for you. These are some suggested reasons. why the Lord would give us a burden. But remember this, brethren and sisters, remember that all things, not some things, not the good things, not just the best things, the blessings in life, all things work together for good. Whatever the reason the Lord has for doing it, you can be sure of this. It's for your good. He has your good in mind. Paul said, our light affliction Surely you got it wrong, Paul. If you knew the burden that I was carrying today, it's not light. Our light affliction, you see, in contrast with the weight of glory that we're going to receive in eternity, what you're carrying today is light. Our light affliction, he says it's but for a moment in comparison with the eons of eternity. It's only for a moment. And he says it's working for you. Don't have the mindset of Jacob when he said, all these things are against me. That is not the case. Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, it's working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. Consider the burden as from the Lord. The second thing you should do with your burden is cast that burden upon the Lord Now, what the text says, cast thy burden upon the Lord. I was brought up on a farm just a little bit south of Belfast. And even as a child, we had a lot of burdens to carry on the farm. We had buckets and barrels. We had milk cans and bags. And at some times of the year, we had a lot of bales to carry as well. And you know, there were times those things were too heavy for me. As a young fellow, you wanted to show off, show off your strength, and you thought you could just lift anything. But there were times you had to acknowledge you were beat. And maybe that's what you're saying today, Lord, I'm beat. I just can't carry this burden anymore. And you know, whenever that happened on the farm, I needed somebody else to help me. I needed somebody else to come and carry the burden for me. And more often than not, that person was my father, my dad. Big, strong man. And, brethren and sisters, the lesson is this. We can't, but He can. We can't carry the burdens ourselves. You need to acknowledge that today. But the good news is, He can carry the burden for you. Our heavenly Father, can carry the burdens. Isn't he the one that the Bible describes as the Almighty? Doesn't the book of the Revelation describe him as the Lord God omnipotent, no limits to his power? And the message of the psalmist here is, take your burden to the Lord. That's what you need to do with that burden that you're carrying. He's the great burden bearer. He's the one that upholds all things. Doesn't he uphold this great universe today? And I ask you, what's your burden in comparison with the universe that he's upholding at this very moment? The Bible says, come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. And that promise is a promise for the saint as well as the sinner. Believer, come to the Lord today with your burden and cast it upon Him. Mr. Moody, in his Bible, the note that he had written beside this verse, Psalm 55, verse 22, the note he had written was literally, roll your burden on the Lord. That's the literal rendering of that word cast. You're to roll it. Is that not what you do with something? When it's too heavy? When it's too heavy to lift? Too heavy to carry? You roll it to the place you want it to go. When we were on the farm, my father would often send us out when he had ploughed a field or two. He sent us out to gather stones. It wasn't a very pleasant job. It was the last thing you wanted to do. Some of the stones were very big. Some of the stones were too heavy, you could hardly even get your arms round them, let alone lift them. And what we would do with those stones is we would roll them. We would roll them where we wanted them to go, roll them into the ditch or roll them into the link box. And, brethren and sisters, I say to you today, the message of this verse is, roll your burden, that heavy weight that you're carrying, just roll it onto the Lord, and He'll carry it for you. You ask, how do I do that? By prayer. You need to pray about that burden. Do you know the reason why so many Christians are weighed down onto the weight of their cares? Do you know why that is? Because they never pray about them. They don't come to the prayer meeting and lay those things out before the Lord. Think of Scriven's words. Are we weak and heavy laden? Cumbered with a load of care? Jesus knows our every weakness. Take it to the Lord. That's what you do with your burdens. You cast that burden upon the Lord. And the last thing that this psalm teaches you to do with your burden is to carry the burden with the Lord. Remember, consider the burden is from the Lord. Cast the burden upon the Lord. But it also tells us here we have to carry the burden with the Lord. The text says, He will sustain thee. Isn't that interesting? You see, the message is this. The Lord doesn't always take the burden away. I'd like you to see that this morning. The Lord doesn't always take our burdens away. Isn't that what we would want? Isn't that what we expect Him to do? But you learn in this verse that there are times that we still have to carry the burden. And let me say that maybe that's what the Lord wants you to do. But you've no need to be afraid. You've no need to despair because you're not going to have to do it on your own. You're not going to have to do it in your own strength. You've maybe tried that already and you feel it. Notice what the text says. He will sustain thee. Doesn't that make all the difference, my friend? He's the one that's going to give you the strength. He'll give you the power that is needed for the days that lie ahead. There's a great promise that is given in the prophecy of Isaiah. Fear thou not, for I am with thee. Be not dismayed. For I am thy God, I will strengthen thee, yea, I will help thee, yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. You asked this morning, how can I go on? You asked me, how can I face tomorrow? How can I face the future? How can I face the hospital and the treatment or the operation or whatever lies before you? Well, here's the answer. The Lord's going to strengthen you. The Lord's going to help you. The Lord Himself is going to sustain you and He's going to uphold you with the right hand of His righteousness. Did you know that the blessings that are given to the tribes are given twice in the Bible, given twice in the Old Testament. The second of those times is in the book of Deuteronomy. And whenever the blessing is given to Asher there, it says, as thy days, so shall thy strength be. And the meaning of those words is this. The meaning is that God will give you the strength that you need. to match the type of days that you're passing through. He'll give you the strength you need to bear the cross that you have to carry. He'll give you all the power that you require. And let me say this, let me take it even a step further. The Lord himself may even come and carry you. Wouldn't that be a great blessing? Henry Moorhouse, the very famous evangelist. He was a friend and a contemporary of D. L. Moody. Henry Moorhouse, a little daughter who was handicapped. And one day he came home and he had bought a little present for his wife. And he came in through the front door and he saw his little girl and he said, where's mommy? And she said, mommy's upstairs. He says, that's good. I want to take up this little package. It contains a present. and bought for your mum. And the little girl said, "'Daddy, let me carry the package to mamma.'" And he looked at her in amazement, and he said, "'Daughter, you can't even carry yourself. How are you going to carry this package?' But she had the answer. She knew exactly. She said, "'Daddy, you give me the package and I'll carry it, and then you can carry me.'" And, brethren and sisters, there's times we carry the burden, but then the Lord comes along and He carries us. And that makes all the difference. You think of what the Lord says, And even to your old age I am He, and even to whores' hairs will I carry you. I have made, and I will bear, even I will carry, and deliver you." What a promise that is. And I pray you'll take it to heart this morning. The Lord sustains you. The Lord carries you through the times of trial. You know the little poem, the little story, Footprints of Faith, where they'd been making the journey of life as if it were footprints on the sand at the seashore. And when they'd come to the end of the journey and they were looking back, the Christian just saw at times, through the difficult times, the most difficult times, just one set of footprints, and said to the Lord, why was that, Lord? That when I was going through the fires of trial, there's only one set of footprints. And you know the answer? The Lord said, because at those times, I carried you. And that's what happens, brethren and sisters. carries his people through the tribulation. And I'd like you to see that from this passage, even this morning. And let me say this just by way of conclusion. The heaviest burden anybody can ever bear is the burden of sin. I wonder, is that the burden that you have brought on your shoulders to the house of God today? You've come into this place and you're weighed down under the weight of your sin. Well, remember Pilgrim and Pilgrim's progress. He had a burden of sin. But do you remember where he lost it? He lost it at the cross. And men and women, I urge you today to get to the cross of Christ. It's the way of the cross that leads home. Get to the cross and cast the burden of your sin upon the Lord and be saved today. What a difference that would make to your life. Here's what to do with your burdens. Cast thy burden upon the Lord and he will sustain thee. May the Lord bless His Word to every heart for Jesus' sake. 474, please. Days are filled with sorrow and care. Hearts are lonely and drear.