Week 8, Day 3: Bear One Another’s Burdens
Today’s Reading: Ephesians 1:1-2:22
Some thoughts from yesterday’s reading…
It appears that I got ahead of myself yesterday, and posted much from Galatians chapter 5, instead of sticking with chapters 3 and 4 like I was supposed to. Oh well, I guess that means I will be able to narrow down the subject matter a bit easier today!
In Galatians 6:1-3, Paul discusses the relationships that we should have with our brethren, especially in times when they are caught up in some transgression of God’s law. He gives instructions for how we are to act, and what our responsibility (if we are indeed among the “spiritual”) is to our brother or sister who is sin. Consider some of the points that we find in these verses.
First, Paul instructs that we are to attempt to restore such a person with in a “spirit of gentleness.” How often do we have have problems when it comes to helping a brother or sister in sin because we start out with the wrong attitude? We think we have to set them straight, and we are going to do that, no matter the cost. So, instead of being gentle, we are harsh and perhaps even caustic. I am afraid that we often will lose those that could have been restored simply because we start out with the wrong attitude. Now, lest I be misunderstood, we do need to tell people the right things when they are transgressing God’s will. That will not be very acceptable to many people, simply because they do not want anyone to tell them that they must change. However, each one of us must be on guard with our attitude, to make sure that we are not guilty of driving someone away from the Lord because we have not shown the proper attitude.
Secondly, Paul says that we must look out for ourselves so that we will not be tempted. Sin is tempting–that is its very nature. Each one of us can be tempted by various things. But, when we see one of our brethren in sin, approaching them to help them with their problem may lead to us being tempted to commit the same sin. We should be constantly vigilant, making sure that we are aware of the dangers that sin, and dealing with it, can introduce to us. Sometimes, I am afraid that we think of ourselves as being much stronger than we really are. We convince ourselves that we can put ourselves into situations that would be problematic for others, but certainly not for us. It is not until it is too late (i.e., we give in to temptation and sin) that we realize that we were mistaken. Paul’s words in Galatians 6:3 stand as a reminder that we cannot become puffed up in ourselves!
Finally, in Galatians 6:2, Paul tells us that we have the responsibility to “bear one another’s burdens.” I do not know how often I have heard someone say that the struggles that others are facing are “not my problem.” Or how often I have heard Christians say that they don’t want to burden their brethren with their problems. Both of these attitudes stand in direct conflict with this context! For us to be able to bear one another’s burdens, we have to be able to share our burdens with others. Again, we often think that we are strong enough to be able to bear our burdens alone–we don’t need anybody’s help! But that simply is not the case. Every one of us has a need for the support and encouragement of our brethren. If we think otherwise, then we need to take another look at Galatians 6:3!
There is never a time when we need our brethren more than when we are struggling with sin. Often, we tend to shut our brethren out during this time. We isolate ourselves from them, so that we don’t have to give an answer for what we know we are doing wrong. But, this passage shows us that we can, and should, use our brethren to help us to overcome sin in our lives. We need to let those who care about us, help us so that we can overcome whatever we might be struggling with. When we are the one struggling, we need to learn to trust and rely upon our brethren so that they will be able to help us. If we are among “those who are spiritual” we need to make sure that we have and maintain the proper spirit of gentleness so that we can truly help the one struggling in sin. And, we should all remember that sometimes we will be the one struggling, and sometimes we will be the one in a position to restore the struggling. Whichever side of the aisle we might be on, we should remember how to act appropriately for the good of all!
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