Fulfilling the Law of Christ

Christian Standard Bible Chapter 6

6 Brothers and sisters, if someone is overtaken in any wrongdoing, you who are spiritual, restore such a person with a gentle spirit,, watching out for yourselves so that you also won’t be tempted. 2 Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3 For if anyone considers himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 Let each person examine his own work, and then he can take pride in himself alone, and not compare himself with someone else. 5 For each person will have to carry his own load.

6 Let the one who is taught the word share all his good things with the teacher. 7 Don’t be deceived: God is not mocked. For whatever a person sows he will also reap, 8 because the one who sows to his flesh will reap destruction from the flesh, but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit. 9 Let us not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us work for the good of all, especially for those who belong to the household of faith.

Key Verse

Christian Standard Bible (Chapter 6)

2 Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

Big Idea: Caring for Souls Leads to Converted Souls.

Does anyone know a fair weather fan? A fair-weather fan is a fan who is enthusiastic about a sports team when that team is doing well. In essence, they become a “fan” when the team has success, but it seems like they go into hibernation when the them isn’t doing so well. This happens a lot with teams who win championships (Tampa Bay jersey sales increased greatly this last year.)

May we as Christians never be fair weather friends.

Fair-weather friends are present for the good times in life. When things are going well, they’re present. When things are going bad, they’re nowhere to be found.

The Gospel compels us to pursue relationships with each other no matter what life brings our way. A fair-weather friend can’t carry someone else’s burdens.

The Christian life isn’t meant to be done in isolation. Its meant to be done together! god created us to be in community with one another. This involves the good, the bad, and the ugly. Paul exhorts the Galatians (and us) to be carrying one another’s burdens.

In order to do this, we need to be willing to roll up our sleeves and gt messy. It’s time to start moving towards each other, not away from each other.

Proverbs 17:17 says A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a difficult time.

The Christian walk is not meant to be spent in isolation. It is meant to be done together. God creates us to be in COMMUNITY with one another. This involves the good, the bad, and the ugly. Paul exhorts the Galatians (and us) to be carrying one another’s burdens.

In order to do this, we need to be willing to roll up our sleeves and get messy! It means meeting people where they are with the knowledge that we serve a God who is ready to lift them up!

Sometimes, they just need someone willing to take the roof off of a house in order to help get them to God!

So what does it mean to carry one another’s burdens?

Lets look.

I. Carrying one another’s burdens means we’re present.

a moment ago, I made mention to some friends taking off a roof for their friend. That is of course a reference to Luke 5. If you look to verse 18 lets see what we find.

Christian Standard Bible Chapter 5

18 Just then some men came, carrying on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed. They tried to bring him in and set him down before him. 19 Since they could not find a way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on the stretcher through the roof tiles into the middle of the crowd before Jesus.

What you find is a man who is helpless and would have had no hope if his friends had not been there. This man was incapable of carrying his own burden!

Had his friends not helped, he would have simply continued to lay in his lost and broken state.

But thank God that this man had some friends who where present! He had some friends who were willing to stand in the gap for him.

When we are not present, then even when it is someone we love, we CANT help them carry their burden.

MANY TIMES WE UNDERESTIMATE THE VALUE OF SIMPLY BEING PRESENT IN THE LIVES OF THOSE AROUND US.

When there are no more words left to say, stay and wait. Simply being there for someone has the power to speak louder than words. When we are present in these moments, it provides the person in need with security and comfort.

George Bell once said, “You can pretend to care, but you cant pretend to show up.

When you don’t know what to do for someone who is struggling but you want to help them, just be there!

II. Carrying one another’s burdens shows our true colors

It shows how serious we are about our desire to serve God!

There is a story told about a pastor in New York. A women in the congregation said to him, “Pastor, we need more signs and wonders. We just haven’t seen enough signs and wonders.” The pastor responded, “Ma’am, over there sits a lady who has been evicted from her apartment with her children. I would consider this a sign and wonder if you would take her into your house to live for 3 months.”

It is easy to say you want to serve God, but what does your walk say?

If you were to stand before God and He was to ask you, what have you done for me in the last 6 weeks, what would you have to show him? Most of us would have something we have done around the church and we would lay that before His feet.

Is that enough? What we have really done is we have served the church, and that is a good work but what have we as individuals done for God! THE CHURCH IS NOT GOD!!!

The best ways for us to serve God is through things that lead to or at least work toward seeing the Lost come to know him and seeing the wayward return to Him.

Prayer

Evangelism

Presence.

It is easy to say we love God and to say that we serve him but friend, as we looked at last week, the fruit that flows out of us speaks volumes to what our character is.

What we need is a deeper level of commitment from Christians to pray and seek the lost. To be present in the life of their friends, ready to tear off a roof if that is what it takes!

III. Carrying one another’s burdens is especially for believers.

Application

Paul ends chapter by saying “let us not get tired of doing good for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up and then he said this in vs. 10

Christian Standard Bible (Chapter 6)

10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us work for the good of all, especially for those who belong to the household of faith.

Caring for the broken people around us is the simplest way to fulfill the 2 greatest commandments as laid out by Jesus.

Love the Lord with all our heart soul and mind and love your neighbor as yourself.

Paul said in vs. 2 that when we carry one another’s burden, we fulfill the law of Christ. That is a reference to 1 Cor. 9:21

Christian Standard Bible Chapter 9

To those who are without the law, like one without the law—though I am not without God’s law but under the law of Christ—to win those without the law.

When you and I come along side the broken people in our community, we are able to show them the love of Christ. We are able to share with them, How Christ loved them so much that he died for them!

Caring for Souls, leads to converted souls.