When I go on a trip, it is usually my goal to pack as minimally as possible. I want to carry the things that I need and nothing extraneous. This tendency isn’t surprising since I also try to take as few trips as possible when bringing in groceries, and I suspect I am not the only one. Both of these actions are working towards the same goal; for the first, I am trying to reduce how much I will have to lug around; for the second, I am trying to eliminate the number of times I will have to traverse from the kitchen to the car. In both scenarios, I am seeking to reduce the burden placed on me for seemingly mundane activities.
Most of us live this way. We spend considerable time and energy trying to figure out ways to make things easier on ourselves. We tend to view difficulties as things to be avoided and we are talented at discovering how to eliminate or reduce them. We work hard at avoiding hard work.
So it may strike many people as odd that some individuals knowingly and willingly take on additional burdens to bear. They actively seek to carry someone else’s load and to lessen the weight on others’ shoulders. And while it may seem out of the ordinary, we should also recognize that it is biblical. Christ has called us to bear one another’s burdens (Gal. 6:2) and if we are His children, we should follow His commands. What may seem odd to the world, should be normal for Christians.
As Andrew Murray points out in his book Absolute Surrender this is an uniquely Christian endeavor. Most people approach life’s cares and concerns as I approach packing – let’s remove everything that we can and make the things we must carry as light as possible. The Christian, however, increases their load because they take on the cares and concerns of their brothers and sisters in Christ. They are intentionally and purposely taking the weight off the shoulders of others and putting it on their own.
We see a vivid example of this in Numbers 11:16-17. Moses was responsible for leading the people of Israel after they escaped from Egypt, however this job was too great for one person to do alone. When Moses expressed to God the extent of his burden, God commanded that other men be brought forward to help Moses carry the load. Noteworthily, these individuals had to be proven leaders – in other words they were to be men of character. Helping to bear Moses’s burden was an honor and only those who had demonstrated that they were worthy of this prestigious responsibility would be given the task.
While it may seem paradoxical to live this way, it is also a privilege to do so. There is blessing in loving others so well that their cares and concerns become your own. We experience a glimpse into the work of Jesus who took our burdens upon Himself. We understand more fully how we can cast our burdens upon Him, as we invite others to share their burdens with us. We celebrate and we weep with them, and we understand more deeply what it means to be part of the family of God.
The biggest blessing, however, is that as we bear the burdens of our brothers and sisters, we know that we don’t carry it alone. We, in turn, can cast those burdens upon God (I Pet. 5:7, Ps. 55:22) and intercede to Him on their behalf (Ro. 8:34). We take on His yoke (Mt. 11:28-30) and allow Him to lead and direct us on how we are to love those whose cares we bear. The weight of others’ difficulties doesn’t push us down, but instead draws us closer to Him. We may take on their burdens, but in doing so, we find ourselves blessed.
