When we love each other as Christ loved (and still loves) us, "carrying each others' burdens" (Galatians 6:1-10) is not sticking our oar into someone else's business. Love as defined in 1 Corinthians 13 is a great way to love others. When we love others in this manner we fulfill God's law. That love can be seen as caring about what happens to one of our brothers or sisters-in-Christ too. We all still have the sin nature in us and so can still be "caught in a sin". "Caught" as in "stuck" and perhaps unable to help ourselves to get out of it or even to recognize we have a problem. When we love that person and come humbly along side of them and try to help them get out of their "stuckness", this is seen as "carrying their burdens" until such a time as they can come to the Lord in repentance and confession and gain God's forgiveness and purification (1 John 1:9). This is helping, not being nosy!
We must of course, examine ourselves to be sure our hearts are right and not just trying to pick on someone. We need to get the plank out of our own eyes first before trying to get that "speck" out of someone else's. We need to consider that we too could be "caught" and so we need to be very careful that when we want to help another that we are not judging and being critical of them. This would not be love God's way.
However, when we are genuinely caring about another of God's family and want to do good to help them, it may take some doing. Certainly much prayer and supplication for them. And let us not be "weary in doing this good" for them. Let us see where we can connect with them. Help them to be accountable for their actions whether it be in their addictions of compulsion to drink, eat, slander, quickness to anger or of sexual immorality. Let us show love for others to help them overcome in such areas especially those who are of the household of God.
They may or may not respond positively but at least we can continue in prayer for them and encourage towards a better relationship with God and to live in the fear of God. That is "carrying each others' burdens".
Yet, there is another side to the coin, so to speak....Verse 5 tells us that "each one should carry his own burden"!! Is this contradiction? Well, as children of God we are responsible for our own actions before God. In the end, when we come before God we will have to answer to Him, not for what others have said or done, but what we, ourselves have said or done.
We are responsible for our own actions to walk according to the Spirit of God (verse 16-18). We have sinful, natural desires but when we are led by the Spirit, as seen in Galatians 5:16-26, we have little excuse to not behave in a Christ-like manner. We are to live a responsible, holy life. We are to "aim for perfection" (2 Corinthians 13:11); "be holy as God is holy" (1 Peter 1:15). We are God's children so we need to be characterized by being like Him; that is, the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 6:22-24).
Let us not give in to those evil human desires but exercise self-control which is one of those characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit. Self-control can help keep us from yielding to the wrong things. We have no excuses as we have: God's Word; the Holy Spirit's help; and
each others' help (see Galatians 6:1-10). So when we have opportunity to help, don't think you are being nosy, rather with God's love, help!
~ERC 2016~
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