Check Your Baggage Here

We all carry baggage that we don’t need to carry.  We’re going to look at four common bags we lug around that we don’t need to carry. 

* The Baggage of Worry: Leaves us paralyzed as we strain under the weight of it             

* The Baggage of Past Mistakes: They haunt us and leave us with guilt.

* The Baggage of Unforgiveness: It rides on our backs and makes us bitter.

* The Baggage of Insecurity: We struggle beneath the weight of not being good enough.

The Baggage of Worry

1. Read Matthew 6:25-34. What did Jesus say about “worry” in these verses? Take it verse by verse and list what He says not to worry about.

2. According to Jesus, why shouldn’t we worry?

Jesus isn’t simply asking us not to worry in this passage. According to the grammatical codes used in the original Greek, He is commanding the reader or listener to stop worrying right now. What is so brilliant about Jesus is He doesn’t just command us to stop doing something, He also tells us why. When we worry, we take the control out of God’s hands and take control ourselves. God already has a plan, purpose and provision for each believer. All we have to do is trust Him.

3.  Read Matthew 11:28-30. What is Jesus inviting us to do? 

     What does He say He will give us? 

     What does He mean by taking on His “yoke”? 

     Why should we take on His “yoke”? 

     How does He describe Himself? 

     What is the result of being obedient to this command Jesus gives us?

Jesus reminds us of the benefits of laying down life’s “yoke” and picking up His “yoke.” A yoke is control. It directs the path of the one wearing it. The yokes we place on ourselves are heavy and burdensome.  His yoke allows us to rest and be revived by our Creator.  His direction is always right.

Jesus commands us to lay our control aside and allow Him to take control. He knows what He’s doing. Because His ways are right, the inward burden we place on ourselves is lifted. He takes the load. We can rest as we trust that His ways are correct. When we leave the driving up to Him, we’re able to rest in the backseat. 

The Baggage of Past Mistakes

4. Read Romans 8:1. What does it say about those who are in Christ Jesus? How is this comforting?

5. Read Philippians 3:12-14. What does the Apostle Paul say to do? (Verse 13) What should we press on toward? What is the goal he speaks about?

When we give our lives over to the Leadership of Jesus, we are no longer condemned to spiritual death as a result of our past sins. We are free to live under His control and rest in the knowledge we are forgiven for our past. Once we have received Jesus’ forgiveness our job is to keep pressing forward and not to hang on to what tripped us up and made us fall before we knew Him. Satan wants us to believe we don’t have hope and we can never be free from our past. The truth is found in Christ. 

“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” (John 8:36) 

6. What from your past keeps holding you back and weighing you down? What does  the Bible tell you to do about your past? 

The Baggage of Unforgiveness

There are two kinds of unforgiveness we can have: 1.) Unforgiveness of others. 2.) Unforgiveness of ourselves. We may have one or both as baggage. Both weigh heavily on a person and can cause undue stress that can result in depression, physical illness, bitterness, etc. 

7. Read Matthew 6:14-15. What do these verses say about forgiveness? Take time to ask God if there is any unforgiveness you are holding onto. Are you willing to forgive? Why or why not?

8. Read  1 John 3:19-20. Who is greater than our condemnation of ourselves? Why is His opinion more valuable than ours.

1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Who are we to say His forgiveness is not enough? What He did on the cross for us to be made right with God should remind us we must forgive ourselves. If we don’t forgive ourselves it’s like saying to Jesus, “What you did on the cross isn’t enough.” Holding on to the baggage of unforgiveness is pointless and harmful. We have already been forgiven in the eyes of the One who knows us best and loves us most. Who are we to hang on to unforgiveness?

The Baggage of Insecurity

We may struggle beneath the weight of insecurity. "Am I smart enough? Do I fit in? Am I attractive?".... On and on and on the questions and doubt plague us. First of all, God made us and that should be enough. Our identity is found in Him if He is our Lord. Our insecurities stem from looking for our value and purpose in other’s opinions and in our accomplishments rather than in Jesus.

9. Read 1 Peter 2:9-10. How are we, as believers in Jesus, viewed by God? Who do we belong to? What has God called us out of? What have we received from Him?

We find our value in knowing we belong to God. He has set us apart as His bride, pure and clean in His eyes. There is no greater value than to be called a child of the Great King. Our God created us in love and when we give our lives to Him we become His. The world’s value standard can never compare to God’s. 

10. Read 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17. “May our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal encouragement and good hope by grace,  encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good work and word.”

      What has Jesus Himself and God our Father given you?

      What does “eternal encouragement and good hope by grace” mean to you? What’s         

       the benefit of believing this?

We get our eternal encouragement and good hope by grace from our Lord Jesus and God our Father. Their approval is all that matters. We were created to live in relationship with Him and to delight in this relationship. We have been given the task of doing good works through Jesus Christ to bring glory to God. Our value is found in Him and in nothing else. When we get discouraged, the right place to go is to Jesus and rest in knowing He loves us and wants to encourage us in His perfect love.

“ Our temporary minor problems are producing an eternal stockpile of glory for us that is beyond all comparison. We don’t focus on the things that can be seen but on the things that can’t be seen. The things that can be seen don’t last, but the things that can’t be seen are eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:17-18

If we have baggage weighing us down, we should put it down and focus on the fact we are loved beyond all reason by God through Christ Jesus. Instead of focusing on the temporary things of earthly value, our focus must be on our eternal value. Our focus must be on Jesus and the wonderful love He has for us. 

He wants to lift us up and set us beside Him. Why should we hold on to the temporal when we own the eternal because we are children dearly loved by God? Instead, we should lay all our baggage down and find peace, rest, comfort, value, identity, focus, purpose and all He has for His children.

I pray we feel God’s presence deeply this week and allow Him to help us put down all the baggage we may be carrying.