Bear Ye One Another’s Burdens…

‘Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.’

How do we bear one another’s burdens? Primarily in prayer and then in practical ways if we’re able.

In this we fulfill the law of Christ.

What law?…

‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.’

How?

Through Christ who is IN you if you have been born again.

We see this exemplified when Aaron and Hur held up Moses’ hands as they fought against Amelek…

‘when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.

But Moses’ hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.’

This is a beautiful example of God’s children helping one another to bear their burden.

Friends, we too can hold up each other in prayer but we can’t do it alone, the devil is always busy trying to distract us and without God’s help we won’t be able to follow through when we say or resolve to pray for others.

This verse about bearing one another’s burdens follows on from these words…

‘Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.’

Temptation to sin is a burden that every true child of God has to bear and at times, we or others will fall.

One of the most well known examples is David. David who is described as a man after God’s own heart, lusted after Bathsheba, committed adultery with her and then to cover his sin, murdered her husband.

Friends, we all fail and fall…

‘Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall,’

…and we need to show the love of Christ to others when they fall, not to trample them while they’re down with harsh, judgemental words, or destroy them with gossip…

‘For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.

For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.’…

but instead, while they’re down to pray for them and gently, kindly, humbly encourage them to flee to Christ in repentance and find new strength for the battle in greater dependence upon Christ, so helping them to bear the burden of living in a fallen sinful world.

‘We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves.

Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification,

For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me.’

So Friends, let’s be building one another up, in prayer and in any other way we can.

‘Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.’

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Gal 6:2, Ex 17:11,12, Luke 10:27, Gal 6:1, 1 Cor 10:12, Gal 5:13,14, Rom 15:1-3, 1 Cor 15:57.