Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. (Gal 6:2)And, of course, we ought to do that. But barely three verses later he adds in the thoughts about verse 2:
Each will have to bear his own load. (Gal 6:5)Um, okay, uh, Paul? Which is it? Do we bear one another's burdens or do we bear our own?
Now, lots of people have entered into interesting efforts to clear up this problem. They've pointed out that the two words for "burden" (v 2) and "load" (v 5) are different, so they're talking about different things, right? The second verse comes after an explanation that we each need to test our own work. Maybe that's the "load" we each have to bear and not the same as "another's burdens." In context, in fact, this makes some sense. Paul warned, in seeking to restore the sinning brother (or sister), that we should "Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted" (Gal 6:1). His words in verses 3 and 4 talk of the problem of us trying to help someone else when our own view of ourselves is too high. "If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself" (Gal 6:3). So Paul is calling us to attention about the sin for which we are, indeed, responsible. Or, the load of sin we need to bear is our own.
I think this all misses the point. I mean, it's true, I think, but if our own sin is the load we bear and Paul was trying to urge us to bear one another's "transgression," it seems as if we're back at the original point. We're supposed to help others bear their burden of sin and we're responsible for our own load of sin. Aren't we back at that same contradiction?
Maybe. I don't think so.
Paul has written from your perspective, so to speak. His commands are to you (and me). He isn't speaking from the view of the sinning Christian; he's talking about what "you who are spiritual" (Gal 6:1) should do. And he's talking to the same ones who are going to have to bear their own load. To me, then, he's quite clear. If I read this from my perspective -- from my outlook -- I'm supposed to bear those burdens of others and I'm supposed to see myself as responsible for my own. I don't expect others to carry their own, but I do expect me to carry my own. But, you see, if the Christian next to me is seeing things this way, too, then I won't be bearing my own burden. This other believer will be reaching out to bear my burden with me. And the next will be reaching out to bear his burden with him. And so on. The positive part is I will be grateful for the help because I was expecting to bear my own load. I am not owed the help; it's a gift from an obedient brother in Christ.
I've seen too many times where "godly" husbands look in Scripture and read, "Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord" (Eph 5:22), for instance, and then demand that their wives submit to them. Notice, however, that the command is to wives, not to husbands. There is no command that says, "Husbands, make sure your wife submits to you." It's not in there. And they miss entirely "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her" (Eph 5:25). The spiritual man (the one following the Spirit) will see the command to husbands long before he looks for a command to wives because that one is addressed to him. In the same way, the command to "Bear one another's burdens" is directed to me and I'm told to bear my own load. That should about cover everything. Others are helped. My load is covered. I'm good to go. Oh, and look! Someone else is doing the same and my load has twice as many people helping. Even better! But as long as I'm requiring of others that they bear my burdens, I will never be as grateful as I should be when they do because, "Hey, I got it coming!" And that's just not the way it's supposed to be.
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