(Read Galatians 6)
Last year, our close friend confided that her breast cancer had returned. It was a bit of a shock because as long as we had known her, it was just something from her past. She was admittedly fearful but trusted that God would be with her to guide her through this journey. We occasionally stopped by to bring them dinner and watched over their house when they traveled. Her husband was physically active, always on his bike or jogging in our community. When we would get together, we would invariably compare our Garmin “fitness age” with each other and laugh about how wrong it was.
That December, they came for a short visit to our Christmas party. They shared how they were dealing with her cancer treatments and well-being, but I also wanted to know how he was doing. I hadn’t seen him on the streets or anywhere else for months. He said, “I dropped everything to take care of (P).” Opening up to me, he continued, “I want to be there for every single thing. Every step. I have put my life on hold for the time being. I can’t take a chance with an accident on my bike or injuring myself on a run, because I need be there for her every need.” (J) works from home, so his work routines remain intact, but “Work comes second. I don’t care what they think,” he added.
Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
Galatians 6:2
Paul’s letter to the Galatian church was a message of spiritual guidance and encouragement to the Galatian Christians (and all believers). He emphasized the importance of supporting and helping one another, encouraging all Christians to carry each other’s burdens. Bearing another’s burdens goes way beyond merely offering words of sympathy or encouragement; it’s about actively getting involved in each other’s lives to help shoulder the difficulties and challenges we face. When we do this, we fulfill Christ’s law, to love one another as taught (John 13:34-35). Bearing one another’s burdens expresses selfless love and unity within the Christian community.
On October 3, 2009, a force of 400 Taliban assaulted the American Combat Outpost (“COP”) Keating in eastern Afghanistan. Army Staff Sgt. Clinton Romesha recently received the distinguished Medal of Honor award for his extraordinary heroism and selflessness during the 13-hour-long battle. Romesha and 52 other soldiers were able to hold off the Taliban attack.
Romesha was one of the first soldiers to respond. He repeatedly exposed himself to enemy fire to engage the Taliban and provide cover for his fellow soldiers. At one point, Romesha was wounded by a rocket-propelled grenade but refused to be evacuated. He continued to fight and lead his men in repelling the attack.
During the battle (known as Kamdesh), eight U.S. soldiers were killed, and more than 20 others were wounded. Romesha sacrificed his life on several occasions to rescue his fellow soldiers and defend the outpost. He also provided critical medical care to the wounded.
The phrase “bear one another’s burdens” is a translation of the Greek word symmartyreō, which means “to co-martyr” or “to suffer with.” This suggests that when we bear one another’s burdens, we are not just offering sympathy or support but actually sharing in the other person’s pain.
How do we bear one another’s burdens? We don’t have to lay down our life in battle for someone; we can pray for each other, offer emotional support, or lend a listening ear. We can also help each other with practical things, such as providing food, clothing, or shelter. God wants us to help His children, our brothers and sisters. He made us for this selflessness, and through this, we also learn to be more compassionate and understanding.
Galatians 6:2 reminds us that we are not meant to walk through life alone. We are all part of the body of Christ, and we are called to help each other. When we bear one another’s burdens, we also make God’s world better for His children.
We bear various burdens in our lives, and there are moments when these loads become too heavy for us to carry alone. While God’s Spirit empowers us to face these challenges, He also intends to support us through one another. As believers in Christ, we are not meant to navigate life’s difficulties in isolation. Instead, God grants us the capacity to lend a helping hand to our fellow brothers and sisters in faith, creating a linked network of support and loving care within the community of believers.
For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. For each will have to bear his own load.
Galatians 2:3-5
Are we listening? If we are, then we know God is clear about what He wants us to do in this world – to love Him and to love each other. During our moments of behaving ourselves when we’re refraining from sin, we are so proud of ourselves, but God is telling us that we’re not seeing the whole picture. In Galatians 6, Paul points out that while we love to judge other people’s sins, God is telling us rather than boasting about not sinning, we should be helping a friend out of that sin.
Paul also warns against pride and self-deception. He cautions believers not to become conceited. Selfless, not self-reliant. We are all dependent on God’s grace and mercy, and our spiritual accomplishments are due to His work in us. So, arrogance and self-importance are deceptive and harmful attitudes that hinder our genuine spiritual growth and unity within the body of Christ.
Pride is a powerful illusion that blinds us to our true selves. It skews our vision to see ourselves as better than others when we are all flawed and in need of God’s grace. Pride blinds us to the good in others. When we are proud, we cannot see the world clearly and make poor decisions that hurt ourselves and others. We are quick to anger when others deceive us, but we often fail to see the danger of deceiving ourselves.
For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
Romans 12:3
My wife says I have this annoying habit of telling her everything I’ve checked off the “honey-do list.” It’s so subconscious that I don’t even realize I’m doing it. But in a way, it’s me saying, “Look at me! Look at what I just did. Aren’t I great!” I never believed I had a big ego, but this is how the deceiver gets us to take our eyes off Jesus.
Bearing someone else’s burdens is not about acclaim or accolades. It mirrors the sacrifices of our Savior, Jesus Christ. By sharing the burden of a loved one, friend, or stranger, we are emulating what Jesus did for us and giving more meaning to His bloody cross. Propitiation. Jesus paid for our sins by bearing burdens we could never bear on our own.
Another close friend of mine suffered from a brain tumor several years back. His wife put her life on hold. Her full-time career and service as director of worship at our church came second. Her husband’s care and life was her cross to bear. She didn’t boast about this; we just knew she was doing it. Now, 30 years after her own episode with cancer, it has returned. We don’t know how aggressive it is, but we know for a fact that her husband (D) is now bearing her burdens for her.
That’s what Christians do. We do our best to do as Jesus did. Bearing another’s burden is and should never be about us; it’s about others. We are supposed to be doers of the word, not just hearers. Our pride put Jesus on the cross, and His sacrifice is the world’s most tremendous burden ever lifted. Bearing one’s burden is the most precise picture of that sacrifice.
“But you know the Medal of Honor is not often given when things went well on the battlefield. It tends to
come at a price, and heroes are often revealed. Some say I am a hero. But it doesn’t make sense, because I got to come home with few scars. Eight of my friends did not have that fortune. Eight of my brothers fought to survive for a place we had called home. And more importantly, they fought for their comrades. And in the end they gave their lives in their defense. Those eight amazing men, they are the real heroes.”
Staff Sgt. Clinton Romesha
Key Application:
- By bearing one another’s burdens for followers of Christ, demonstrates love in action, fulfilling the “law of Christ.” Take inventory of the lives you’re bearing.
- (Pray about this passage below)
Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and nights. No one said a word to Job, for they saw that his suffering was too great for words.
—Job 2:13
Where else in your life can you live out the teachings of Christ? Look for next week’s Devotion.