"Burden Bearing"
Overview
Burden Bearing: A Blessing That Stretches Our Comfort Zone
Paul writes to the Galatians against the backdrop of the Judaizers, who taught that salvation came by faith plus works—a teaching that obliterated the gospel of grace. Salvation is by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone, apart from our works. But within that gospel framework, Paul also delivers Spirit-inspired admonitions for how the family of believers is to live together. One of those admonitions presses right up against our comfort zone: "Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ" Galatians 6:2.
The word "burden" pictures something heavy and difficult to carry. Every person in the church carries them—grief, financial strain, broken relationships, struggles at work. Often the church bears these burdens beautifully through quiet presence, listening, encouragement from Scripture, a meal, or practical help. But the specific burden Paul has in view in Galatians 6:1 is harder still: "My brothers and sisters, if anyone is detected in a transgression, you who have received the Spirit should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness." The word "detected" carries the sense of being overtaken—caught like an animal tangled in brush. And the call to "restore" goes to every believer in whom the Spirit dwells, not to a special class of super-spiritual Christians. To restore is to help a brother or sister recognize their sin, repent, and receive forgiveness. Paul rebuked the Corinthian church for looking the other way at sin among them 1 Corinthians 5:1-2; love that turns a blind eye is not love at all.
This kind of burden bearing is not "putting up with" someone—it is loving them enough to move toward them gently, watchful of our own temptation, so that they might be restored. We can do this only because Christ first did it for us. He "redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us" Galatians 3:13, and "when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law" Galatians 4:4-5. He bore the burden of the law and its curse so that we might be restored to the Father. We do for others because Someone has done so much for us.
In doing so, we fulfill the law of Christ—the new commandment to love one another as he has loved us John 13:34—for the whole law is summed up in "you shall love your neighbor as yourself" Galatians 5:14. The church is more than a circle of friends; it is a family, brothers and sisters bound together in Christ. That family bond commits us to one another's welfare, even when love asks us to step beyond what feels comfortable. As we move gently toward a brother or sister caught in sin—praying, listening, speaking the truth in love—God repositions our comfort zone, and others are blessed.
Transcript
Would you open your Bible please with me today for our study in Galatians 6, chapter. 3s
Galatians 6 for our study today. 10s
Comfort zones. 16s
We all have them. 18s
Don't we? 19s
For example, if you were to say, say, how about today we go and we get an airplane and we put 20s
on a parachute and we jump out of an airplane. 28s
You'll love a parachute. 33s
If you were to say that to me, I can already tell you what my response is going to be. 36s
I don't have to think about it. 43s
I don't have to check my calendar. 45s
I don't have to ponder about it at all. 47s
My answer is going to be quickly. 50s
No. 54s
No. 55s
I've got a pastor, friend of mine that loves to jump out of airplanes, just loves to go 57s
parachuting and he's quite a few times invited me. 63s
And each time I have said, no. 69s
That is so out of my comfort zone. 74s
I have no inkling, no desire, not at all to do that. 77s
And I probably never will. 84s
It's just not in my comfort zone. 88s
What if God, however, calls us to do something that's outside of our comfort zone? 93s
What if God, as he speaks to us through his word, tells us, since what I want you to do, 103s
we read it right in holy scripture. 112s
And yet that's not in our comfort zone. 115s
What then? 121s
We continue our series today on blessing others, being those people that when we interact 123s
with them, we leave a blessing. 131s
We all know those people. 134s
We all have them in their lives that after a conversation and interaction with them, we know 136s
that they have left a blessing that they've blessed us. 143s
Well, today we're going to study about something that will might be a challenging blessing 148s
to leave because it comes right up against the comfort zone. 158s
We study today in the wonderful book of Galatians. 168s
When the Apostle Paul wrote this under the inspiration of the Spirit, he was addressing 173s
false teachers called the Judiizers. 178s
The Judiizers taught this that you were saved by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. 182s
Plus, your works. 189s
Well, obviously, the scriptural truth that we are saved by grace through faith in the Lord 194s
Jesus Christ apart from what we do, that we're not saved by our works. 199s
Well, once the Judiizers added works to it, that absolutely obliterated. 206s
The great doctrine of salvation by grace through faith. 211s
And so Paul was addressing that. 216s
He was teaching the people that the teaching of the Judiizers was absolutely wrong. 218s
It's not salvation by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. 228s
Plus what you do. 233s
Plus all of your good works. 235s
No, it is salvation by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone. 236s
But also as he taught with regard to these false teachers, the Judiizers. 247s
He also taught about these adminsions. 252s
Remember, he's writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. 257s
So these are adminsions that come right from God. 259s
Look at me, please, at verse 2 of our text. 267s
Bear one another's burdens. 272s
And in this way, you will fulfill the law of Christ. 276s
Verdeness such an interesting word. 284s
It's the Greek word, borrows. 285s
And the image is carrying something difficult, something that is heavy. 288s
Every single person carries burdens. 296s
The burden of losing a loved one, the burden of financial strain, the burden of a relationship 301s
that has been torn apart, the burden of difficulties that work on and on the list goes. 308s
And one of the beautiful things in the church is how we come around one another when the burdens 315s
are being carried. 325s
Sometimes that's a simple, a sitting with someone in silence just so they know that 328s
someone is there with them. 334s
Sometimes it's listening to others. 337s
Sometimes it's giving that encouraging word right from Scripture to them. 339s
Sometimes it's bringing a meal. 344s
Other times it's doing that which can help a situation. 347s
All beautiful expressions of how the church comes around each other amidst all of the burdens 353s
that people face. 364s
But here in our text, what is the burden that is being communicated? 367s
Looking at please, at verse 1. 379s
My friends, if anyone is detected in a transgression, you who ever received the spirit 383s
should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness. 391s
And what we have, but we have the admonition coming right up to the comfort zone. 402s
Don't we? 415s
Let's break this down. 418s
Verse 1 again. 420s
My friends, I would much prefer if this was translated brothers and sisters. 423s
My friends is an acceptable translation, but the brothers and sisters, I think is actually 430s
even better. 436s
And it's also a helpful reminder that the church, a church is a family that we are brothers 438s
and sisters. 447s
And so my brothers and sisters, if anyone is detected in a transgression, another 448s
interesting word there, that word detected means to be caught in. 459s
That's not really the sense of if you come upon someone and you overhear them and they're 467s
the ill of someone else and in a sense they're caught. 475s
No, this is the sense of being caught in the sense of being overtaken by a sin. 480s
Like an animal that is stuck in brush or caught in brush, they're overtaken by it. 488s
So Paul says, my brothers and sisters, if anyone is caught in a transgression, is 497s
overtaken in a transgression. 505s
And then he says, you who have received the spirit, you who have received the spirit. 508s
That's not using the term in the sense that you can so often hear it these days, that 522s
person is a very spiritual person who knows what that means. 528s
No, this is one who has the Holy Spirit in dwelling in them because God has brought 533s
So Paul then is addressing the entire church at Galatia. 543s
It's not that he's addressing some type of segment of super spiritual people here that 549s
are called to do this. 555s
No, he's addressing the entire church, entire body of believers because they all have 558s
the Holy Spirit dwelling in them because they have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. 566s
My brothers and sisters, as if anyone is caught in a transgression, is overtaken by a 574s
transgression. 581s
You who have received the spirit. 582s
In other words, you believers in the Lord Jesus Christ and whom the Holy Spirit dwells should 583s
restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness. 589s
Restore. 597s
It means to help that person recognize their sinfulness, to help them recognize that that 599s
they are caught in, that which has overtaken them is a sin, so that they might repent 608s
of that sin and receive forgiveness. 618s
Paul. 625s
In first Corinthians, the fifth chapter, he writes this, it's actually reported that there's 627s
a sexual immorality among you and the you here is the church. 637s
It's actually reported that there's sexual immorality among you and of a kind that's not even 642s
found among pagans for a man is living with his father's wife and you are arrogant. 647s
Should you not rather have mourned so that he who has done this would have been removed 656s
from among you? 661s
You see what was going on here is that the church was just looking the other way. 665s
Here they had one who was caught in this immorality. 671s
They were overtaken by it, but the church was looking the other way and Paul was calling 675s
them to love this person, to the extent of moving to restore that person, to reveal to that 681s
person that what they were doing was against the desires of God, to call them to repentants, 688s
to the point that even if there wasn't repentance to remove that person from the body, 698s
so they would understand the seriousness of the sin, so that by God's grace they might be 703s
led to repentance. 712s
You see where it calls to bear one another's burdens, that's not bearing in the sense 715s
of putting up with. 722s
No, that is bearing in the sense of loving the person enough to move to restore them. 725s
What a beautiful act of love. 733s
It's the image of the slave and ancient day that carried the heavy burdens. 737s
So here was the call for a fellow brother or sister in the church to come around one in a spirit of gentleness, 748s
so that they might be restored to carry the burden of the sin, as when enters into relationship. 756s
And understands that there's a responsibility with that person. 766s
You see, this is moving in love. 774s
This is caring for another that is on a whole other level, isn't it, of burden bearing? 780s
This is a profound and deep expression of love, and it also says in our text. 789s
Look at the second part of verse 1, take care that you yourselves are not tempted. 798s
We are to enter into this action out of concern for the other. 808s
But what can be our temptation? 817s
We can say, no, wait a minute, God. 821s
I can understand bearing one another's burdens in the sense of giving the encouraging word from scripture, 825s
or bringing the meal, or walking alongside someone who is in grief, or praying for them. 835s
I can understand burden bearing in that sense, but this call, this pushes my comfort zone. 842s
And what is God's response? 857s
If anyone is detected in a transgression, you who ever see the spirit should restore such a one in the spirit of gentleness. 861s
Bear one another's burdens. 871s
But God, and what's his response? 878s
Restore. 884s
Bear the burden. 886s
You see, that is part of our call as followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. 889s
And reminded of the missionary, he was giving pastries to refugees, and someone in the church, they criticized him for doing that. 903s
They said, why are you giving pastries to these people? 915s
They don't even believe in Jesus Christ. 920s
To which the missionary responded and said, but I believe in Jesus. 925s
I believe in Jesus. 935s
You see, his act of kindness, his act of caring, was born out of the who it was that he was following. 936s
It was born out of the fact that he was a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. 949s
Our call, our call to restore, our call to bear the burden, including the sinfulness of the other that is caught in the sin, where we bear the burden by coming around them. 960s
Gently moving by God's grace so that they might be restored so that they might understand their sinfulness so that they might repent and receive forgiveness. 984s
That action is born out of the one that we follow. 999s
The Lord Jesus Christ. 1006s
Who bore the burden of the law and its curse for us so that we might be restored to God Almighty. 1009s
Look with me, please, at Galatians, the third chapter. 1024s
All who rely on the works of the law are under a curse. 1032s
If you are relying that you can follow the law of God and that will earn you salvation, you're under a curse. 1036s
For it is written, cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the things written in the book of the law. 1046s
And then jump down to verse 13. 1057s
Christ redeemed us, remember that word means to buy us back, Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. 1062s
For it is written, cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree. 1072s
When the Lord Jesus Christ took all of our sin upon him and he hung on the cross. 1077s
The curse was he. 1087s
He was bearing the sin of the entire world upon him. 1090s
Pain are dead. 1098s
Now, jumped a chapter four, verse four. 1102s
But when the fullness of time had come, in other words, at the absolute perfect time. 1107s
But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his son, born of a woman, born under the law. 1111s
Jesus born a Jew. He was under the obligation of keeping the law. 1120s
In order to redeem, by back, those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. 1126s
We are followers of the one who bore the burden of the law and its curse in order to restore us. 1144s
And by God's grace, he empowers us to live out the very thing he calls us to do. 1152s
To bear one another's burdens, including the burden of one who's called in sin, to move to minister. 1165s
So that by God's grace, he might or she might be restored. 1183s
Restored. 1192s
Understand their sinfulness. 1194s
Repent of their sin. 1196s
Receive forgiveness. 1200s
It is such an amazing call. 1204s
Is it not? 1206s
We can't do that on our own power. 1208s
It's only God who can empower us to live out this calling. 1210s
But it's such an amazing thing to ponder. 1217s
How God places people in our lives. 1221s
And says now, there's responsibility here. 1226s
As you live out your faith. 1231s
That we are concerned for their welfare. 1234s
I like how one author puts it. 1241s
We are to do for someone else because someone else, the Lord Jesus Christ, has done so much for us, the cross, and the empty tomb. 1244s
And in so doing, take a look at the second part of verse 2. 1260s
In so doing, we fulfill the law of Christ. 1267s
What's the law of Christ? 1276s
Jesus said, in John the 13th chapter, he said, I give you a new commandment that you love one another. 1278s
Just as I've loved you, you also should love one another. 1286s
Jump over to chapter 5 of Galatians, verse 14. 1292s
For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment. 1297s
You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 1300s
When by God's grace, we move to restore. 1307s
When by God's grace, we move to bear that burden that's talked about here in Galatians 6, what a beautiful expression of being concerned for the welfare of the other. 1312s
What a beautiful expression of loving. 1331s
Loving. 1338s
Loving. 1341s
You know, one of my favorite parts of a baptismal service is the introduction of the one who has been baptized. 1344s
I still love that part of the liturgy because what we say is, I'd like to introduce you to your new, 1356s
your new brother, your new sister. 1366s
That's family language, isn't it? 1372s
It's family language. 1374s
There was such depth to the scriptural understanding of family, and that understanding of the church as a family. 1378s
Where we're bound to one another in the Lord Jesus Christ. 1389s
We care for one another, born out of the fact that we follow the Lord Jesus Christ. 1395s
See the church, we're not just friends, though we are. 1407s
We're not just friends. 1411s
We're family. 1415s
We're family. 1417s
And that is a whole other and deeper level of commitment to one another, isn't it? 1419s
When we look at the other, and we say, that's my brother, or that's my sister. 1433s
That's commitment, isn't it? 1446s
We're not just friends, we're family. 1451s
In this series, we continue to study ways that we can bless others. 1461s
We've studied how we can leave the blessing as we love. 1470s
Leave the blessing as we forgive. 1474s
Leave the blessing as we by God's grace live out the golden rule. 1477s
Leave the blessing as we build one another up as we encourage one another. 1482s
Leave the blessing as we studied last week by the words that we share and how we share them. 1488s
And today, a way to bless others by bearing their burden and specifically the Galatians 6 definition of that of being so concerned for the brother and the sister who's caught in the sin that burden. 1498s
That they're bearing. 1526s
As we come alongside them. 1530s
And God repositions our comfort zone doesn't it? 1538s
And people are blessed. 1550s