BEARING BURDENS
Gal. 6:1-5
INTRO.- ILL.- An airline company was disturbed over a high percentage of accidents so they decided to eliminate human errors by building a completely computerized plane. "Ladies and gentlemen," came a voice over the PA during the initial flight, "It may interest you to know that you are traveling in the world’s first completely automated and computerized plane. Now just back and relax because nothing can go wrong....go wrong....go wrong....go wrong....."
Wanna bet? THINGS DO GO WRONG IN LIFE! And you don’t have to live very long in this world to find this out. And for some people, things seem to go wrong more often than not.
LIFE SUCKS! At least that’s what many people think about life. They’ve had so much junk happen to them that life sucks to them! Meaning, I guess, that life stinks! And I admit that sometimes life does stink! BAD THINGS DO HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE! Bad things happen to Christian people.
Rom. 8:18 "I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us."
Paul talked about the sufferings of this present time. Many times we have to suffer in life. We may have to suffer physically, emotionally or mentally.
ILL.- A college boy said to his mother one day, "I decided that I want to be a political science major and that I want to clean up the mess in the world." "That’s very nice," said his mother, "YOU CAN GO UPSTAIRS AND START WITH YOUR ROOM."
For some people, a part of their suffering deals with their children.
ILL.- A man once told me that his two boys (ages 16 & 14) wouldn’t keep their rooms cleaned up. THAT’S NOT SURPRISING, IS IT? It bothered that father to the point that he told them, "If you can’t keep your room clean then at least keep your door shut."
I think we all know that there is something far worse than a young person not keeping their room clean. AND THAT’S NOT KEEPING THEIR LIFE CLEAN! And that is a real problem for some parents; a real burden to them! Prodigal or problem children a real burden to their parents!
Of course, I also realize that life can be a real burden or a royal pain to our young people.
ILL.- A schoolteacher sent this note home to all parents on the first day of school: "If you promise not to believe everything your child says happens at school, I’ll promise not to believe everything he says happens at home."
Sometimes young people catch it both at home and at school. Kids are people too! THEY GET BURDENED TOO!
ILL.- A little over two years ago my son’s best friend, Thomas Fuller, was killed in a car accident. He was only 16 years old and Shane was one of the pall bearers. And all Shane talked about for over a year was his best friend, Thomas. HIS DEATH HURT SHANE DEEPLY! His death pained him to the depths of his soul! And naturally, I felt badly for him.
I realize that what happened to Shane is probably rare for most young people. MOST OF THE TIME THEIR SUFFERING COMES FROM OTHER THINGS OR OTHER SOURCES. And, of course, because I’m a parent I tend to think the suffering of most young people comes from their own making.
AND ISN’T THAT TRUE FOR MOST OF US? Our suffering often comes because we make bad choices in life.
ILL.- For example, a friend of mine 30 years ago got drunk in a bar and some guy punched him out. He came to work the next day all beaten and bruised. HIS SUFFERING WAS THE RESULT OF HIS OWN MAKING.
People have said, "When you play with fire, you’re going to get burnt."
ILL.- Old preacher Billy Sunday used to say, "I know the devil is real for two reasons:
1- Because the Bible says so
2- Because I’ve done business with him."
Any time you do business with the devil you’re going to get burnt, you’re going to suffer! Of course, you don’t even have to do business with the devil for him to cause you to suffer.
ILL.- REMEMBER THE STORY OF JOB? Satan appeared before God and asked Him if he could put Job to the test and God allowed him to do that. And God allows Satan to put us to the test too! Satan likes to cause us trouble in life just because of who we are! Because we are Christians! He likes to trip us up anyway he can.
We also sometimes suffer in life because of others. We’ve all heard stories about those stories about some drunk driving down the street and hits some person and kills them. THAT’S SUFFERING BECAUSE OF SOMEONE ELSES’ SIN!
Brethren, everybody suffers in some form or another in this life or for some reason or another! Life is rough!
We may experience rotten or broken marriages, problem or prodigal children, painful and abusive parents, bad working conditions, financial hardships, poor or failing health, boredom, depression, loneliness, loss of loved ones...... and the list goes on and on.
The point is: What we can do about our suffering? Or how can we endure our suffering? WE NEED HELP! Where can we get it?
PROP.- I want to share three different areas of help for our burdens in life.
1- Help from within
2- Help from without
3- Help from above
I. HELP FROM WITHIN
Gal. 6:5 "For each one should carry his own load." KJV "For every man shall bear his own burden." The idea of Gal. 6:1-5 is that of bearing one another’s burdens, but Paul is also saying there are some burdens that we have to bear ourselves.
ILL.- A man in a supermarket was pushing a shopping cart which contained, besides groceries, a screaming baby boy. As the man proceeded down the aisles, he kept saying, "Keep calm, George. Don’t get excited, George. Don’t yell, George."
A lady watched with great admiration and finally spoke up and said, "You are certainly to be commended for your patience in trying to quiet little George." "Lady," he said, "I’M GEORGE!"
Raising kids can be a real burden at times and IT IS A BURDEN THAT BASICALLY WE HAVE TO BEAR BY OURSELVES. Our parents can’t do it for us. They may give us adivce, they may babysit occasionally, but overall, raising our children is a burden that we have to bear ourselves!
The same thing is true of many things in lfie: our work. We may get some help for our work, but overall, it is a burden that we personally have to bear! Some help in life must come from our own brains or perhaps our own intestinal fortitude!
ILL.- Over the years, the Nike shoe company has produced some great commercials. One that I particularly liked appeared over 10 years ago and of course, it involved a runner and it was a commercial for their running shoes.
English runner, Priscilla Welch was 42 years-old and had just won the New York City Marathon which was a pretty big accomplishment for a 42-year-old. In the commerical, Priscilla was shown running up a hill on some city sidewalk. While running, she says, "A few years ago I would have had trouble walking up this hill. I smoked. I drank. I was fat and I hadn’t done a lick of exercise in my life. So I started jogging. WHO SAYS YOU CAN’T RUN AWAY FROM YOUR PROBLEMS?"
And at the end of the commercial a sign appears on the screen with those famous words, "JUST DO IT!"
Brethren, there are times when we just have to suck it up and just do it! We can’t lean on anybody else! We have toroll up our sleeves and go to work!
ILL.- Lou Gehrig never heard of the Nike Shoe Company, but he just did it! He played 15 years at first base for the New York Yankees. He played 2130 consecutive games! He has been called the "the iron man of baseball" for a good reason. After he retired they X-rayed both of his hands and found that every finger had been broken at least one time, YET HE NEVER MISSED A GAME! He played even though he was hurt! He didn’t make any excuses! He bore his own burdens!
ILL.- Last year, 27-year-old Lance Armstrong did something nearly impossible. He won the cycling world’s most famous event, the 3-week, 2700 mile Tour de France race. THAT’S 2700 MILES ON A BICYCLE!
But what makes his win even more impressive is the fact that he did it after a three-year bout with cancer! In 1996 he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. By the fall, he was not racing his bike, he was trying to survive his cancer which had spread to his abdomen, lungs and brain! He had two operations, including brain surgery. He endured 12-weeks of chemotherapy.
WITH SUCH A BURDEN WHO COULD BELIEVE HE WOULD EVDER COMPETE AGAIN? Well, he did. Lance Armstrong believed in something, either in himself or someone else. So he rode 30 to 50 miles every day between chemotherapy treatments. He did everything he could to regain his health and his strength - with the idea of becoming a winning cyclist again. AND DID HE EVER SUCCEED!
Nike shoe company has run a series of ads making the point that Lance Armstrong is the "first dead man" to win the Tour de France!
Brethren, Lance Armstrong bore his own burden!
Honestly, there are times when we act like a bunch of wimps or weinies or something like that. We have a stuffy nose, a little headache, we didn’t sleep well last night and we want to stay home from work.
ILL.- One man said, "I like people who crawl in sick rather than those who call in sick."
ILL.- Fanny Crosby, blind from birth, wrote over a thousand hymns. SHE DIDN’T GIVE IN TO HER CONDITION OR CIRCUMSTANCES! She just did it!
Sometimes we have to ignore the pain, the hurt, the negative feelings and bear our own burdens!
Ps. 139:14 "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made..."
I happen to believe that we are a lot stronger than we think we are. WE ARE THE WONDFUL CREATION OF GOD! We can do more than we think we can! We can endure more than we think we can! We can bear our own burdens!
1- Help from within
II. HELP FROM WITHOUT
Gal. 6:2 KJV "Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ."
ILL.- Many years ago preacher Henry Ward Beecher went to pulpit to preach and found a letter containing one word, "Fool." He calmly, quietly announced the contents of the letter to the congregation, saying, "I have known of people writing a letter and forgetting to sign their name to it. BUT THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I HAVE EVER SEEN SOMEONE SIGN THEIR NAME AND FORGET TO WRITE THE LETTER!"
Brethren, Christians should be in the business of helping one another, bearing one another’s burdens. BUT SOME CHRISTIANS ARE MORE CRITICAL THAN THEY ARE CARING! They are more of a hindrance than a help!
Gal. 6:1 "Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently."
We Christians are supposed to be in the restoring business, the healing business, the putting-back-together business, the bearing-burdens business!
Everybody makes mistakes in life. Some appear to be more serious than others, BUT THE POINT IS: When a fellow Christians makes a mistake, is found in a sin, etc. how do we respond to them or how do we feel about them?
Let me say, I am not a Charistmatic in the sense of endorsing "speaking in tongues," as some believe. BUT I HAPPEN TO BELIEVE THAT "speaking in tongues" HAS LONG BEEN A PROBLEM IN MANY CHURCHES! Know what I mean?
I mean that when someone does something wrong, all some people do is gossip about it. They don’t try to cure the cancer, just spread the disease! Legalistic Christians are not interested in helping or healing hurting people, only hammering them!
ILL.- A friend of mine attended an Assembly of God church in the Paducah, KY, area for a period of time. He has since moved. At one of their services an old man went forward to their altar, apparently to pray. He had the appearance of a street person; shabby clothes, etc. While kneeling at the altar, a whiskey bottle fell out of his coat pocket. THE NEWS OF THAT HAPPENING SPREAD THROUGHOUT THE CHURCH THE NEXT WEEK. Everybody was talking about what had happened at church.
The next Sunday, the minister stood and told the congregation that heâd heard all the talk about the man who came forward the last week and his whiskey bottle.
The elderly minister then said, "I don’t want to hear anymore about this. God didnât put us here to criticize people. HE PUT US HERE TO LOVE PEOPLE!" Amen?!
Brothers and sisters, we’re all guilty! We’re guilty of sin! None of us have the right to criticize others, condemn others or judge others!
James 4:11-12 "Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks againt the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. BUT YOU - WHO ARE YOU TO JUDGE YOUR NEIGHBOR?"
Instead of judging one another or criticizing one another, we should be in the blessing business! The restoring business! The healing business! The forgiving business! The burden-bearing business!
Matt. 6:7 "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy."
Gal. 6:2 "Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ."
I Thess. 5:14 "And we exhort you, brethren, admonish the idlers, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all."
Did you hear those words? Encourage, help, be patient.
ILL.- Lee Shapiro is a retired judge. His colleagues call "the hugging judge" as opposed to "the hanging judge." (I think "the hanging judge is known as JUDGE JUDY!)
Judge Shapiro has a bumper sticker on his car which reads, "DON’T BUG ME! HUG ME!" Some years he created what he called his HUGGER KIT. On the outside it reads, "A heart for a hug." It contains 30 little red embroideredhearts with stickum on the back. Judge Shapiro will take out his HUGGER KIT and go around offering people a little red heart for a hug.
One time he was challenged to give away some hearts for hugs on the streets of San Francisco. First, he stopped a woman walking down the street and said, "Hi, I’m Lee Shapiro, the hugging judge. I’m giving out these hearts in exchange for a hug." "Sure," she replied and gave him a big hug.
Next, he saw a meter maid and offered her a heart for a hug. And again, he got another hug.
A TV commentator said, "Look, here comes a bus. San Francisco bus drivers are the toughest, crabbiest, meanest people in the whole town. Let’s see if you get him to hug you."
As the bus pulled to the curb, Judge Shaprio said, "Hi, I’m Lee Shapiro, the hugging judge. Yours has to be one of the most stressful jobs in the world. I’m offering hugs to people today to lighten the load a little. Would you like one?"
The big 6’ 2", 230-lb. bus driver stepped out of his bus and said, "SURE, WHY NOT?"
Brethren, I’ve heard it said that everyone needs 4 hugs a day just for survival. Anything less and you won’t survive(and a lot of people aren’t). We need 8 hugs a day for maintenance. AND WE NEED 12 HUGS A DAY FOR GROWTH.
So let’s all stand and start growing! Don’t stop until you give or get 12 hugs!
Brethren, it is said that hugging is healthy. It improves the immune system, it helps to cure depression, it reduces stress, it induces sleep (Oh no! I’m not through with my sermon yet), it’s invigorating, it’s rejuvenating, and it has no unpleasant side effects.
More than that, when hugging is given from a heart of love, it heals hurts and bears burdens! And that’s exactly what we’re supposed to do. BE A HUGGER! BE A HEALER! BE A BURDEN-BEARER!
1- Help from within
2- Help from without
III. HELP FROM ABOVE
Ps. 55:22 "Cast your burden on the Lord, and He will sustain you."
Matt. 11:28 Jesus said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."
I Pet. 5:7 "Cast all your cares on Him because He cares for you."
Heb. 4:16 "Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need."
Generally, there comes a time in nearly every person’s life that they find they must look up to the Lord for help with their burdens!
A person may not be able to help themselves and other human help may be good, BUT IT IS NOT ENOUGH! Thatâs when we must turn to the Lord and ask for mercy and grace for our burdens.
ILL.- Abraham Lincoln once said, "I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go." HAVE YOU BEEN THERE? AND HAVE YOU DONE THAT? Got down on your knees before the Lord?
The problem with some people is that they only turn to the Lord in emergencies. They think they don’t need the Lord at other times. THEY TREAT GOD LIKE HE IS SOME SORT OF "SPARE TIRE" TO BE USED ONLY IN TIMES OF TROUBLE.
ILL.- At one time we had three men in our church in Anna, IL, who were regular customers at a certain restaurant in town called the SOUTHERN BBQ. Those three men went to that restaurant every day and often at least twice a day. And when they walked in they got waited on quickly! Why? BECAUSE THEY WERE REGULAR, FAITHFUL CUSTOMERS!
Could it be the same with the Lord? Could it be that if we’re a regular, faithful customer that He’ll be quicker to hear our prayers than those who just come out of desperation?
ILL.- It’s like the little girl who said, "I go to church every Sunday so that when they carry me in one day, the Lord won’t ask, ’WHO IS IT?’"
I Pet. 3: 12 "For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous (or faithful), AND HIS EARS ARE ATTENTIVE TO THEIR PRAYER..."
ILL.- A boy and his dad were hiking together on a familiar path. As they made a sharp turn in a narrow section of the path they came across a big rock blocking their path. The little boy asked his father, "Do you think I can move it?" His dad said, "Why, of course, if you use all your strength. I’m sure you can move it."
The little boy chose an angle of attack on the big rock and began pushing with everything he had. He grunted and growned. Summoning all the strength he had, he pushed and pushed but to no avail. Finally, in desperation he said, "You were wrong, Dad, I just can’t do it."
His dad looked him in the eyes, smiled and said, "NO, SON, YOU HAVEN’T USED ALL YOUR STRENGTH YET. I’M RIGHT HERE AND YOU HAVEN’T ASKED ME TO HELP YOU!"
Matt 7:11 "If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, HOW MUCH MORE WILL YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER GIVE GOOD GIFTS TO THOSE WHO ASK HIM."
Brethren, in the midst of all our heartaches and burdens, our Father in heaven is saying to us, "I’m right here. All you have to do is ask me to help you with your burden."
Ps. 46:1
CONCLUSION------------------------------------
ILL.- In a Christian testimony meeting in the South, a lady said she was always blessed by the words in the Bible, "AND IT CAME TO PASS."
She said, "When I have upset by troubles in my life I have always gone to the Bible and I didn’t get very far until I read the words ’IT CAME TO PASS.’ And I say, ’BLESS THE LORD, IT DIDN’T COME TO STAY, IT CAME TO PASS!’"
Brethren, our burdens in life did not come to stay with us and they will not stay with us, forever on and on. THEY HAVE COME, BUT THEY WILL PASS! With the strength God gives us, with the strength of our Christian brothers and sisters, and most importantly, WITH THE LORD’S HELP, OUR TROUBLES WILL PASS AWAY!
Give your life to the Lord. If you don’t need Him now, you will someday! WHY NOT NOW?
