Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, for each one should carry their own load.
Galatians 6:1-5
Scripture Notes
Our calling to walk in the spirit is not something we are expected to do in isolation. God designed us to be a part of a supportive community, the Church. As a community, we are to walk in the Spirit, evidenced by the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Paul acknowledges that Christians still struggle with sin and need one another to help them get back on the right path.
The imagery in Galatians 6:1 is of a person who is walking in step with the Spirit, as Paul describes in Galatians 5:22-25, and then transgresses. The word for transgression literally means to take a false step and lose your footing. In this context, the sin is something that might even take the person by surprise, as the word for “caught” can imply.
In Galatians 6:1-5, we see how a supportive community of believers should respond when a Christian brother or sister strays from the path by being caught up in sin. We are to gently restore the person who sins, while also not neglecting to pay attention to our own lives so we don’t fall into sin ourselves. I find it interesting that Paul spends more time focusing on how the community is to respond than on the sin itself or the person who committed the sin. We must be cautious that, in our attempt to restore someone, we do not become entangled in the sin of spiritual pride. As we walk in the Spirit, the fruit of the Spirit will be evident in the way we restore someone who is struggling with sin.
The manner in which we approach restoration is with gentleness, a characteristic of the fruit of the Spirit. Gentleness is humility and kindness. It’s the opposite of the attitude of comparison and spiritual pride described in Gal 6:3-4. If we approach someone struggling with sin and start to think better of ourselves because we don’t have that same struggle, we ourselves become caught up in the sin of pride. Paul says we deceive ourselves when we think we are something when we are nothing, and warns us to examine our own work. When we remember that we are sinners saved by grace, it helps keep us humble. From that stance of humility, we can help restore others who have lost their footing. If I do not have a firm footing myself and I reach down to try to help you up, we may both fall over. The beautiful thing about this picture of restoration is that it is the community, working together, that helps restore someone. The Greek uses the plural form to say those of you who are spiritual, meaning those of you who are walking in the Spirit. It is not just one person but a supportive community that restores the person who has been caught in transgression. It is the community of people together who are called to carry one another’s burdens.
It is interesting to note that when Paul tells us to watch out for ourselves, he is clearly saying that each person must individually pay attention to themselves so that they are not tempted and do not become prideful. We are a community that needs one another, but even within that community, each person carries a sense of individual responsibility.
What does the apostle Paul mean when he says we are to bear one another’s burdens, and then a few verses later tells us to carry our own loads? The word for “burden” in verse two conveys the idea of hardship or an oppressive burden. There are things in life that are too heavy for us to bear alone. Picture this as a boulder that you cannot move alone. When the burden is too much for one person, their community comes around them and helps to carry the burden. Later in verse five, when Paul says to “carry your own load,” he is referring to personal responsibilities and reminding us that we are accountable to God for our own actions. Picture this more as a backpack. A backpack is a burden in that it involves carrying some weight, and depending on what is in it, the load can become heavy. If you are going on a hike, your backpack might even start to feel really heavy! But unlike the burden in verse two, it is not the same degree of oppressiveness and is something you are responsible for carrying yourself.
It is clear from this passage that we have a responsibility and are accountable for our own lives, but we also are called to help carry the hardships and oppressive burdens of others. There will be times when we help carry other people’s burdens, and there will be times when we need others to help carry our own. For some of us, we might need God to give us the humility to receive the help of others when the burden is too much to handle alone. Receiving help can be just as hard as offering help. At the same time, when someone in our community has a burden that is too much for them, we need humility to come alongside them and support them. Without humility and gentleness, we may lack the compassion God calls us to have for those in need. If we aren’t part of a community of believers, we miss out on the opportunity to experience the joy of carrying others’ burdens, and we may not have people around to help us in our times of need. Walking in the Spirit involves being part of a community of Christ followers, spurring one another on, and supporting one another. We aren’t meant to do this life alone!
By Vanessa Vannoy
MEMORY VERse
Edward S. Curtis. Puget Sound Baskets, 1912. The Art Institute of Chicago
Related Verses
More verses about bearing the burdens of others:
Prayer Invitation
Application Questions
- How can you approach a fellow believer caught in sin with a spirit of gentleness rather than judgment?
- How do you balance bearing one another’s burdens with the call to carry your own load?
- How does the instruction to test one’s own work help you avoid comparing yourself with others?
- In what ways can you be sure not to unload all your problems on others or try to carry everything alone?
MANÁ 
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