Your Role Is To Bear Burdens...Not To Carry Loads

"Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you may also be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens (baros) and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself without comparing himself to somebody else. For each one should carry his own load (phortion)." Galatians 6:1-5

If we understand the "law of Christ" referring to our call to "love one another as I (Christ) have loved you", then we need to see the distinction between the Greek word for "burden" (baros) and "load" (phortion) used in the New International Version.

This passage tells us that we are to bear one another’s burdens (sufferings). That is, we should come alongside and support a person emotionally. We can do this by listening to, encouraging, and praying with people who are experiencing pain or testing.

However, this same passage indicates that each person is responsible for carrying his or her own load of problems. When we take responsibility for another’s problems, we do it at the expense of their self-respect, their self-esteem, and their sense of self-responsibility.

Small group leaders are responsible to:
• Love (John 13:34)
• Be devoted to and honor (Romans 12:10)
• Live in harmony with (Romans 12:16)
• Serve (Galatians 5:13)
• Submit to (Ephesians 5:21)
• Bear with and forgive (Colossians 3:13)

They are not responsible for:
• Making people happy
• Fixing people’s problems
• The way a person responds or behaves

Taken from Small Group Dynamics ezine article: "Biblical Principles for Pastoral Care in Small Groups" by Brian Pierce