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Then Jesus"); document.writeln("said, \'��Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will"); document.writeln("give you rest.\'��¹

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I was reading"); document.writeln("in the book of Isaiah the other day and read some verses that seemed very"); document.writeln("familiar yet completely different. Isaiah 43:22-24 caught my attention, as it says:"); document.writeln("\'��But, dear family of Jacob, you refuse to ask for my help. You have grown tired"); document.writeln("of me, O Israel! You have not brought me sheep or goats for burnt offerings."); document.writeln("You have not honored me with sacrifices, though I have not burdened and wearied"); document.writeln("you with requests for grain offerings and frankincense. You have not brought me"); document.writeln("fragrant calamus or pleased me with the fat from sacrifices. Instead, you have"); document.writeln("burdened me with your sins and wearied me with your faults.\'�� Verse 24 says that"); document.writeln("they had burdened God with their sins and wearied him with their faults; those"); document.writeln("words are used again in Matthew 11:28, but now telling those who are weary and"); document.writeln("who carry heavy burdens to come to Him. So what changed that allowed us to go"); document.writeln("from negatively burdening God to being told to go to Him and give Him our"); document.writeln("burdens?

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In the time of"); document.writeln("Isaiah, the Israelites continuously disobeyed God and offered empty sacrifices"); document.writeln("with the wrong motives, burdening God. They did not have direct access to Him without"); document.writeln("making a sacrifice first; sacrifices were required for them to seek forgiveness"); document.writeln("and approach the presence of God. However, in the New Testament, Jesus came into"); document.writeln("the picture as the human form of God and sacrificed himself for the sins of the"); document.writeln("world; that is what changed. Jesus was the perfect sacrifice that wiped all of"); document.writeln("our sins away and allows us to have a close, personal relationship with the"); document.writeln("Lord. Now, because of what He did for us, we can come boldly to His throne"); document.writeln("(Hebrews 4:16) and give Him our burdens, and in return, we will receive rest,"); document.writeln("mercy, and grace.

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Suggested"); document.writeln("prayer: Dear God, thank you for Jesus, who came to Earth and became perfect the"); document.writeln("sacrifice that allowed me to come before you freely and confidently. Thank you"); document.writeln("for being my place of rest when I am burdened by the cares of this world. In the"); document.writeln("precious name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

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1. "); document.writeln("Matthew"); document.writeln("11:28 (NLT)

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Today\'��s Encounter"); document.writeln("was written by: Gianna B.

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