Friday, July 01, 2005
Chapter 7
Bearing up Others
Galatians 6:2 says that we are to “Bear…one another's burdens…” The word used in this verse for burdens refers to the temporary overload that a friend may carry. This word is distinctly different from the word used in verse five of the same chapter which says, “For every man shall bear his own burden.” The word used in verse five for burdens refers to the everyday load that we or a friend may bear. Two verses, Galatians 6:2 & 5; one word, burdens; two different meanings, the first, a temporary overload, the second, an everyday load.
Bearing up others requires us to come along side the overburdened one, and to help by bearing up their temporary overload.
In the previous chapter of this book we looked at prayer as a way of casting our burdens, but did you know that prayer is also a way to bear the burdens of others?
We read in James 5:16 that we are to “…pray one for another that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man (or woman) availeth much.”
What does it mean “the effectual fervent prayer”? The word “effectual” means “producing or able to produce a desired effect” It comes from a Greek word meaning energy or work. To pray effectually for someone is going to take energy, it is going to be work, and it is going to have with it a desired effect – God’s will.
Now when we pray, we must have in our minds a desired effect; what we hope the outcome of our prayers will be. However, that outcome that we have in minds is not always going to be what God has in His plans; our desired effect is not always going to be God’s will. Isaiah 55:8 says, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the LORD.” We don’t always know God’s will; His will is not always revealed to us. He reveals to us only the things that we need to know at the time that we need to know them.
Psalm 18:30 says, “As for God, His way is perfect….” We must realize that although we have in our minds a desired effect, as we should, we at the same time should pray that the will of the Lord be done. His “desired effect” in the scheme of all things, is so much better than ours! After all, “His way is perfect.”
“Fervent” means “exhibiting or marked by great intensity of feeling”. How intense is my feeling for my friend? How deep is my knowledge of her burden? Is it a burden that I too bear or have born? Is my prayer for her marked by great intensity of feeling?
When we lift up a friend to Christ in prayer in order to bear her burden are we acting effectually, are we praying fervently? Ask yourself, is my prayer so specific to produce a desired effect, is it marked by great intensity? Or is it just “Lord, help Jane, she’s having a hard time right now”?
Our prayer should be effectual – to produce a desired effect,it must be fervent – marked by great intensity.
When I say that our prayers need to be effectual to produce a desired effect I mean that they need to be specific, with specific results in mind. A good example of how our prayers need to be specific would be in how we pray for missionaries. I have, on occasion, been in a church and heard someone pray, “Lord, bless all of the missionaries around the world”. Now I ask you, do we really want the Lord to bless ALL of the missionaries around the world? Certainly we do not. There are missionaries around the world for every cult imaginable; certainly our intent in our praying is not for the Lord to bless them all, not ALL the missionaries. Be careful when you pray, be specific. When you pray for missionaries call them by name, and list their individual needs. The same should be done when we lift up a friend to Christ. Be specific, call her by name, and list her specific needs. Pray effectually and pray fervently. Another reason to pray specifically is so that we can see specific answers to our prayers. If I pray, “Bless so and so…” how do I see that prayer being answered? I like to see evidence of answered prayer. So I get specific, I get detailed, I tell God exactly who it is I am praying for (although He already knows) I tell Him exactly what the need is in as much detail as I feel is necessary. Then, when the answer comes, I can recognize it as answered prayer.
A passage that we will discuss in-depth in a later chapter, but I feel is quite appropriate in this chapter as well is II Corinthians 1:3 & 4. The passage says, “Blessed be God…Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.”
Can you find in this passage the reason God comforts us? Read it again and see if it is not as clear and evident to you as it was to me.
“Blessed be God…Who comforteth us in all ourtribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.” II Corinthians 1:3 & 4
He comforts us that we may comfort them, that we may comfort others. How shall we comfort them or with what shall we comfort them? We comfort them by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. What a beautiful picture of God’s love being emulated through us to others. Can you imagine what a different world it would be if we all loved others like God loves us? Comforting others as He has comforted us, this is God being shed abroad in our hearts!
How long do we bear a burden for another? Shortly after Paul tells us that we are to bear one another’s burdens – the temporary overload - in Galatians 6:2, he writes in Galatians 6:9, “And let us not be weary in well doing…” Weary, wow, it’s easy for us to get weary, isn’t it? In this fast paced world of fast food, drive in dry cleaners, banking, and pharmacies we are almost born weary. But the Bible says “…let us not be weary…” Weariness should never hinder us from wanting to see restoration in a friend who is undergoing emotional pain.
Why should we not be weary in well doing? The verse goes on to say “…for in due season we shall reap…” We shall reap, that’s our desire, isn’t it? We want to reap, we want our prayers to be answered, we want that burden to be lifted, we want to be able to bear her burden, to give her relief. It says, “…we SHALL reap…” if we do these two things, first, If we are not “weary in well doing…” and second, “…if we faint not.” That’s all, don’t be weary and don’t faint; don’t get tired and don’t quit, and the Bible says that WE SHALL REAP!
We are to stay along side the one in need until we see restoration. We cannot be weary in well doing for in due season, the Bible says, we SHALL reap, if we faint not. “Until we see restoration”, how long is that going to be? For some, it may be a very long time – maybe even years. But if we desire to reap we cannot be weary in well doing, we cannot faint.
We read in the Word of God that Jesus was moved with compassion. Just as He feels our burden, and is moved with compassion towards us, we are to feel the burdens of other and to be moved with compassion towards them.
If we read all of Galatians 6:2, we find that it not only says, “Bear ye one another’s burdens…” but it goes on to say, “…and so fulfil the law of Christ.” The first time I read this I wondered as you probably did “what law?” What law of Christ will I fulfil by bearing another’s burden? I did some research on this and here is what I found. That law, “the law of Christ” is found back in John 13:34, where it says, “A new commandment I give unto you, (this is the law of Christ) that ye love one another;” That is the law of Christ that Galatians 6:2 is talking about “that ye love one another”. “Bear ye one another’s burdens and so fulfil the law of Christ (that ye love one another).” That is what is going to happen when I bear the burden of another. I am going to develop a love for that person, an even deeper love than I already have.
Do you know what is so wonderful about God’s Word? It not only tells us WHAT to do, it also tells us HOW to do it. Not only do we read in John 13:34 about the law of Christ that we are to love one another, but the verse also tells us how to love one another. Christ tells us in that verse that we are to love one another “as I have loved you…” He is the greatest example of how to love and He should be our example of how to love.
“…as I have loved you” He says. How has Christ loved us? Well in Jeremiah 31:3 it says, “Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love…” He has loved me with an EVERLASTING love. What an example! An everlasting love, a love that never gets weary in well doing, a love that doesn’t faint, doesn’t give up, doesn’t quit.
We see that we are to love one another as Christ loves us. We see that He loves us with an everlasting love, and in I Corinthians 13:7, we see that “charity” or love “Beareth all things…”
What does “Beareth” mean? It means to protect, to cover, or to support. To do this, to be able to bear all things, including the burdens of others, we must be sensitive to the needs of others. In order to be sensitive to the needs of others we must realize that we view the circumstances, the trials, the tests, and tribulations of life through the lens of our own emotions. All the things that we have endured in our life, should give us a greater compassion and love for those around us, and ultimately drive us to be more like Christ. The things we have endured color or tint the lens of our own emotions and they will also affect our response to burdens.
Galatians 6:2 says that we are to “Bear…one another's burdens…” The word used in this verse for burdens refers to the temporary overload that a friend may carry. This word is distinctly different from the word used in verse five of the same chapter which says, “For every man shall bear his own burden.” The word used in verse five for burdens refers to the everyday load that we or a friend may bear. Two verses, Galatians 6:2 & 5; one word, burdens; two different meanings, the first, a temporary overload, the second, an everyday load.
Bearing up others requires us to come along side the overburdened one, and to help by bearing up their temporary overload.
In the previous chapter of this book we looked at prayer as a way of casting our burdens, but did you know that prayer is also a way to bear the burdens of others?
We read in James 5:16 that we are to “…pray one for another that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man (or woman) availeth much.”
What does it mean “the effectual fervent prayer”? The word “effectual” means “producing or able to produce a desired effect” It comes from a Greek word meaning energy or work. To pray effectually for someone is going to take energy, it is going to be work, and it is going to have with it a desired effect – God’s will.
Now when we pray, we must have in our minds a desired effect; what we hope the outcome of our prayers will be. However, that outcome that we have in minds is not always going to be what God has in His plans; our desired effect is not always going to be God’s will. Isaiah 55:8 says, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the LORD.” We don’t always know God’s will; His will is not always revealed to us. He reveals to us only the things that we need to know at the time that we need to know them.
Psalm 18:30 says, “As for God, His way is perfect….” We must realize that although we have in our minds a desired effect, as we should, we at the same time should pray that the will of the Lord be done. His “desired effect” in the scheme of all things, is so much better than ours! After all, “His way is perfect.”
“Fervent” means “exhibiting or marked by great intensity of feeling”. How intense is my feeling for my friend? How deep is my knowledge of her burden? Is it a burden that I too bear or have born? Is my prayer for her marked by great intensity of feeling?
When we lift up a friend to Christ in prayer in order to bear her burden are we acting effectually, are we praying fervently? Ask yourself, is my prayer so specific to produce a desired effect, is it marked by great intensity? Or is it just “Lord, help Jane, she’s having a hard time right now”?
Our prayer should be effectual – to produce a desired effect,it must be fervent – marked by great intensity.
When I say that our prayers need to be effectual to produce a desired effect I mean that they need to be specific, with specific results in mind. A good example of how our prayers need to be specific would be in how we pray for missionaries. I have, on occasion, been in a church and heard someone pray, “Lord, bless all of the missionaries around the world”. Now I ask you, do we really want the Lord to bless ALL of the missionaries around the world? Certainly we do not. There are missionaries around the world for every cult imaginable; certainly our intent in our praying is not for the Lord to bless them all, not ALL the missionaries. Be careful when you pray, be specific. When you pray for missionaries call them by name, and list their individual needs. The same should be done when we lift up a friend to Christ. Be specific, call her by name, and list her specific needs. Pray effectually and pray fervently. Another reason to pray specifically is so that we can see specific answers to our prayers. If I pray, “Bless so and so…” how do I see that prayer being answered? I like to see evidence of answered prayer. So I get specific, I get detailed, I tell God exactly who it is I am praying for (although He already knows) I tell Him exactly what the need is in as much detail as I feel is necessary. Then, when the answer comes, I can recognize it as answered prayer.
A passage that we will discuss in-depth in a later chapter, but I feel is quite appropriate in this chapter as well is II Corinthians 1:3 & 4. The passage says, “Blessed be God…Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.”
Can you find in this passage the reason God comforts us? Read it again and see if it is not as clear and evident to you as it was to me.
“Blessed be God…Who comforteth us in all ourtribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.” II Corinthians 1:3 & 4
He comforts us that we may comfort them, that we may comfort others. How shall we comfort them or with what shall we comfort them? We comfort them by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. What a beautiful picture of God’s love being emulated through us to others. Can you imagine what a different world it would be if we all loved others like God loves us? Comforting others as He has comforted us, this is God being shed abroad in our hearts!
How long do we bear a burden for another? Shortly after Paul tells us that we are to bear one another’s burdens – the temporary overload - in Galatians 6:2, he writes in Galatians 6:9, “And let us not be weary in well doing…” Weary, wow, it’s easy for us to get weary, isn’t it? In this fast paced world of fast food, drive in dry cleaners, banking, and pharmacies we are almost born weary. But the Bible says “…let us not be weary…” Weariness should never hinder us from wanting to see restoration in a friend who is undergoing emotional pain.
Why should we not be weary in well doing? The verse goes on to say “…for in due season we shall reap…” We shall reap, that’s our desire, isn’t it? We want to reap, we want our prayers to be answered, we want that burden to be lifted, we want to be able to bear her burden, to give her relief. It says, “…we SHALL reap…” if we do these two things, first, If we are not “weary in well doing…” and second, “…if we faint not.” That’s all, don’t be weary and don’t faint; don’t get tired and don’t quit, and the Bible says that WE SHALL REAP!
We are to stay along side the one in need until we see restoration. We cannot be weary in well doing for in due season, the Bible says, we SHALL reap, if we faint not. “Until we see restoration”, how long is that going to be? For some, it may be a very long time – maybe even years. But if we desire to reap we cannot be weary in well doing, we cannot faint.
We read in the Word of God that Jesus was moved with compassion. Just as He feels our burden, and is moved with compassion towards us, we are to feel the burdens of other and to be moved with compassion towards them.
If we read all of Galatians 6:2, we find that it not only says, “Bear ye one another’s burdens…” but it goes on to say, “…and so fulfil the law of Christ.” The first time I read this I wondered as you probably did “what law?” What law of Christ will I fulfil by bearing another’s burden? I did some research on this and here is what I found. That law, “the law of Christ” is found back in John 13:34, where it says, “A new commandment I give unto you, (this is the law of Christ) that ye love one another;” That is the law of Christ that Galatians 6:2 is talking about “that ye love one another”. “Bear ye one another’s burdens and so fulfil the law of Christ (that ye love one another).” That is what is going to happen when I bear the burden of another. I am going to develop a love for that person, an even deeper love than I already have.
Do you know what is so wonderful about God’s Word? It not only tells us WHAT to do, it also tells us HOW to do it. Not only do we read in John 13:34 about the law of Christ that we are to love one another, but the verse also tells us how to love one another. Christ tells us in that verse that we are to love one another “as I have loved you…” He is the greatest example of how to love and He should be our example of how to love.
“…as I have loved you” He says. How has Christ loved us? Well in Jeremiah 31:3 it says, “Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love…” He has loved me with an EVERLASTING love. What an example! An everlasting love, a love that never gets weary in well doing, a love that doesn’t faint, doesn’t give up, doesn’t quit.
We see that we are to love one another as Christ loves us. We see that He loves us with an everlasting love, and in I Corinthians 13:7, we see that “charity” or love “Beareth all things…”
What does “Beareth” mean? It means to protect, to cover, or to support. To do this, to be able to bear all things, including the burdens of others, we must be sensitive to the needs of others. In order to be sensitive to the needs of others we must realize that we view the circumstances, the trials, the tests, and tribulations of life through the lens of our own emotions. All the things that we have endured in our life, should give us a greater compassion and love for those around us, and ultimately drive us to be more like Christ. The things we have endured color or tint the lens of our own emotions and they will also affect our response to burdens.
# posted by Patsy @ 8:00 AM 
