BURDEN (def): 1. Something that is carried; 2a. Something that is emotionally difficult to bear; 2b. A source of great worry or stress; weight; 3. A responsibility or duty.*
We all have burdens that we carry. How much easier would our burdens be to carry if we had assistence. God provides assistance in the form of brothers and sisters in Christ. I also believe that He might send an angel to assist you depending on the situation you are in.
In the true spirit of WWJD, what do you think Jesus would do if He were confronted with an individual whose burden was too difficult for him/her to bear alone? Based on the Gospels, I’d say it was a no brainer that He would reach out and lend a hand to lighten that person’s load. We are called to do likewise. We are given the tools needed to accomplish this as well. God never leaves us out on a limb by our lonesome. He is always there to provide help when it is required.
Galatians may be referring to bearing the burdens of fellow believers, but in verse 1 of chapter 6 he is SPEAKING to brothers and sisters, yet refers to “a person” who is caught doing something wrong. The next sentence states that “you who are spiritual should restore them in a spirit of gentleness”. I think this instruction is for followers of Christ regarding the burdens of ANYONE they come across.
Some people we encounter are nice folks, some are gruff and unappreciative, but either way, we are to NOT judge by appearances or attitude, for God didn’t judge us that way. He overlooked our faults, failings and character flaws and chose to love us regardless of any of that. Is it not interesting that we have such a hard time doing the same for others.
We are a work in progress. When we stop reading scripture and seeking the face of God on a daily basis it is like a construction grew walking off a build site. The construction of the edifice stops. For us to grow spiritually, we MUST continue to feed our spirit man sustenance through the written and spoken word. Make wise choices regarding what we listen to and read. Make sure it glorifies God in every way. If not, we are feeding garbage into our brain. If we are truly to be more like Jesus, we must feast on the word of God. How else can our faith and trust in God increase?
Understand that carrying each other’s burdens is NOT getting to heaven by works. It is rather our living our lives as Christ would have … being His hand extended because it is the right thing to do, not so that we can earn a place in heaven. Nothing but the blood of Christ can purchase that for us. Other than receiving that precious gift of salvation, there is NOTHING we can do to get into heaven.
In the end, we are to do what we do for the glory of God because our relationship with Him and our understanding of what He has done for us compels us to do nothing less. All glory to God!
WALK WITH THE KING TODAY AND BE A BLESSING!
*definition courtesy of www.thefreedictionary.com
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