Bearing Burdens

So, don’t you agree that everyone pretty much tries their best to avoid pain?   I mean, it’s a natural thing for humans to run from it.  Who wants to experience pain?  And yet in Galatians 6:2 Paul suggests the opposite for Christians.

“Bear one another’s burdens, and in this way fulfill and observe perfectly the law of Christ and complete what is lacking in your obedience to it.”

Bearing someone’s burden should be painful, don’t you agree?  I think sacrifice is required to bear it adequately.  But today I want to talk about the one experiencing the burden.  I’m thinking that, for most of us who have been in this position, we tend to “take on” more pain than is usual in bearing our burdens.  Why?  Because it just drives us mad to see a brother or sister in Christ carry or endure our burden on our behalf.  To observe them “sharing” our pain and suffering.  To see their sacrifice in order to ease our burden.  On top of the pain we’re already experiencing, we take on additional self-inflicted pain because of the suffering or sacrifice it causes others.

There could be a whole number of things going on in the brain/heart of the one suffering.  Perhaps she feels guilty or responsible for the burden she’s carrying?  Maybe she is embarrassed about her burden and she doesn’t want anyone to know about it?  She feels she has to “fix it” herself.  She feels she deserves it?  And, no one else should suffer because of her perceived mistakes?  Perhaps she’s a seasoned Christian and feels it is her responsibility to bear her own burden showing strong perseverance with Christian maturity…she finds it difficult to show weakness in allowing someone else to carry the burden as well.

You know, the word “bear” in Greek means to carry, to lift…(as you might suspect)…usually that translates into real life as lifting a friend up in prayer, checking up on them, sending cards of remembrance, bringing over a casserole, crying with them, etc.  But, did you know the word “bear” also means to receive, to endure?  These words definitely involve pain and sacrifice.

When a brother or sister in Christ is willing to do this…then for some reason it gets “icky” for the one bearing the burden.  They do not want to see their friend(s) suffer because of them.  They don’t want their friend(s) to have to sacrifice, to endure the pain personally…this is tough to accept on the part of the one experiencing the burden.

And yet, that is what The Word says we should do for one another.

So, if a friend is suffering from grief, you “bear” her burden by sacrificially giving your time to her, to sit with her and carry her grief in silence or through tears…whatever is appropriate and good.

If a friend is suffering from a financial burden, then you “bear” her burden by taking on that financial burden with her.  You “receive” it and “endure” it with her.

There are endless ways to creatively bear a fellow Christian’s burden.  But, it sometimes is difficult for the one suffering to receive the gift of sacrifice from those that want to “receive” and “endure” their burden with them.

It is so important in Kingdom living to learn how to sacrificially give AND to learn to sacrificially receive.  We are a proud lot, us humans.  We don’t want people to know we’re weak.  We don’t want people to know we screwed up.  We don’t want people to know we’re not perfect.

Good grief!   What has happened to us during our youth and along our life journey that we think we have to bear our sufferings alone?  That we can’t let anyone know about our failings or screw-up’s…that we have to preserve the facade of perfection. It totally goes against what Jesus teaches us. 

Another thought on this…often we think that it is pointless or futile for fellow Christ followers to want to help us.  They can’t take away the burden, so what’s the point…we just have to suffer through it...it is our lot in life…poor pitiful us.  

In Galatians Paul didn't say, “Take away one another burdens,” or “Fix one another’s problems.”  He said “bear” one another’s burdens.  Which is the Body of Christ carrying the load of suffering of a member, in a sacrificial manner, to ease the pain of the one suffering until the burden is lifted.

So those you who are currently doing the “carrying” and “enduring” on behalf of a brother or sister in Christ…do it sacrificially so that “in this way fulfill and observe perfectly the law of Christ and complete what is lacking in your obedience to it.”

And for those of you who are currently suffering a heavy burden, do it in humility and grace, not in secret, opening yourself up to receive God’s favor in your life through the sacrificial giving of Christians around you, and, in turn, learning the meaning of Christ’s sacrifice for all.