Galatians 6:1-3

Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ. If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself. You are not that important. - Galatians 6:1-3

I find these verses very interesting. We usually separate verse 1 from 2 and 3. “Share each other’s burdens” actually means helping one another out in their sins, not just lending a helping hand. And “importance” is said with the same backdrop.

What stops us from helping others, particularly those who have been struggling with the same sin for a long time? The same things Paul points to in verses 2 and 3, we don’t want to share the burden. They fell, it’s their job to get back up is the general sentiment. However, Paul is exhorting us; that is not how the body of Christ should work. We need to come alongside and raise them up. It’s not just their struggle; it’s ours. This is particularly important in dealing with believers with long-term addiction. If you’ve been using drugs for 15 years, you will rarely be changed overnight. Yes, it happens, but we should expect a long, dedicated fight for this person’s soul.

Verse 3 can be much more subtle. We don’t want to associate with "that kind of person;" we feel like it’s beneath us to do so; all the other members of the church don’t have this kind of problem, etc. What if the sins they have been overcome by is anger or gossip - social sins? Do we still have the same grace for them as other sins?

I can still remember one small group meeting where one of the guys admitted he was lazy. We had talked about sexual struggles and all these other problems but it felt like a whole new level when he confessed that. Because of the work ethic in Rolla, that was deeper and harder to deal with than sexual temptation! God still wanted to deal with it.