How to Live as Brothers In Christ
Brothers In Christ

In Galatians 6:1 Paul begins by addressing his audience as “Brothers” and then in 6:2 Paul writes, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”
Here Paul is teaching that, as Christians, we must be willing to come alongside other believers and help them in times of need. Note that Paul does not specify what burdens he’s thinking of, so most likely, he means burdens of all sorts. We all have burdens to bear, and God does not intend for us to carry them alone. The Christian life is not meant to be lived in isolation, but I suspect most of us most struggle to make our burdens known to others, whether out of pride, insecurity, embarrassment, or whatever. Insisting on bearing our burdens without assistance deprives brothers of the opportunity to “fulfill the law of Christ”. This is the only instance in which Paul uses this exact phrase, so it’s hard to know exactly what he means; however, “the law of Christ” certainly includes the words Jesus spoke to his disciples as captured in John 13:34, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love another.”
I would suggest that, as brothers in Christ, we’re called to live out both sides of this teaching – we all must be willing not only to bear the burdens of others, but also to share our own burdens to allow a brother to fulfill the law of Christ. Neither option may be easy, but the Christian life is not a call to ease, but rather to obedience – all under the watchful and loving eye of our Lord and Savior.
The Huddle


