Faultbearing
I.
Other
people’s “faults,” is one of the biggest things that we’ve allowed to stand in
our way of loving them and it’s been one of the biggest hindrances to us loving
other people
A. What’s
happened is we saw what we perceived to be a fault and then we allowed what we
saw about them to affect our love for them
B. *The
problem with people is they are like you: They are imperfect, they have faults,
they have flesh, they say wrong things sometimes, they do wrong things
sometimes, they have moments – JUST LIKE YOU
C. *When
it comes to loving people you have to know what to do with their faults –
What do I do with other peoples faults?
II.
Galatians
6:1-2
A. Are
people going to deviate from the truth? Are believers going to deviate from the
word and miss it and fall? Or is everybody going to be perfect all the time?
People are imperfect and you’re going to see their imperfections and when you
do what should you do?
1.
Fault-A
lapse or deviation from the truth and uprightness (A deviation from the Word of
God); False step, blunder, a misdeed, trespass, a slip, offence, sin, fault,
fall
a. Burdens (AMP)-Troublesome moral FAULTS
2.
These
faults, these deviations from the Word are burdens that weigh people done (whether
they know it’s weighing them down or not)
a. Burdens-Depress, weigh down, being
pressed down by a crushing weight, heavy, weighty, grievous; a weight that is
heavy or crushing; a heavy load that causes a person to feel that his burdened
or weighed down
b. Hebrews
12:1-These faults, these “sins” weigh people down and hinder them from running
their race
B. We are
to restore the person that’s in a fault and bear one another’s burdens
1.
Restore-Mend,
repair; They are broken in someway, “incomplete” in some way, something is
missing and you are to help them get fixed, be complete, be what they ought to
be
2.
Bear-To
bear another’s burdens is to pick it up with your hands and carry it and even
though it may be burdensome you are to endure and uphold that person and
sustain them and support them and do it in a calm and understanding way
a. To
bear, carry-Matthew 3:11-Whose shoes I am
not worthy to bear; Luke 7:14-They that bare him stood still (In reference to
carrying a casket); Mark 14:13-Bearing a pitcher of water; Acts 3:2-A certain
man lame from his mother’s womb was carried
b. To take
up with the hands-John 10:31-The Jews
took up stones again to stone him
c. To
carry on one’s person-Luke 10:4-Carry
neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes
d. To bear
away, to carry off-Matthew 8:17-He bare
our sicknesses (Take away or remove by curing)
e. To put
upon one’s self (something to be carried); to bear what is burdensome-John19:17-Bearing
his cross went forth to place of a skull
f.
To
bear, to endure-Matthew 20:12-You have
made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day
1)
Acts
15:10-Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the
disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear
g. To
Sustain, Uphold, Support-Romans 11:18-You
bear not the root, but the root thee
h. To be
equal to understanding a matter and receiving it calmly-John 16:12-I have yet many things to say to you but you cannot bear
them
C. Love
restores the person found in fault and bears the burdens of others (One of the
major ways you love people is you bear their burdens)
1.
The
law of Christ is fulfilled when you bear another persons burdens or faults; The
law of Christ is the law of love
a. I don’t
have the law written on tablets, I got the love of God shed abroad in my heart
and written on my heart and it exerts restraint over me and I am governed by
that law-2 Corinthians 5:14, Romans 5:5
2.
1
Corinthians 13:7-Love bears all things, endures all things, you can’t break me,
you can’t change me, no matter what comes
a. AMP-Love
bears up under anything and everything that comes and it endures everything
without weakening
3.
When
a fellow believer is under a crushing weight it is our responsibility to help
bear his burden; Each believer should feel some level of responsibility for the
spiritual welfare of his fellow-saints and to some extent the sinner-1
Corinthians 12:26
a. When
someone is burdened by crushing cares and faults, crawl up under that burden and help that person carry it
b. You
should do it in a willing, helpful, sympathetic way
c. Sympathize,
show mercy and love, and do not brow-beat a fallen brother, and so fulfill the
law of Christ
4.
It’s
always easier to condemn rather than to assist, to push a person down than to
lift him up
III.
Bear
their burdens and faults NOT find them, NOT talk about the, NOT judge them for
having them, NOT get mad because they have them
A. You
bear other peoples burdens with your faith in God; You use your faith in God to
help them and aid them in overcoming whatever their fault or burden may be
1.
You’re
not carrying their burden in the sense of now it’s weighing you down; you’re
carrying in the sense of you’re going to take part and be responsible for
helping them get free by exercising your faith in God help them
a. You
don’t carry their burden anymore than you carry your own; you cast yours on the
Lord, you cast theirs on the Lord
b. If you
don’t pick up their faults and burdens then you have no way of casting the care
of it upon
c. You
have to pick it up first and you have to “care” to even pick it up
2.
Faith
in God is in one of it’s purest forms when it’s being used to help your brother
a. Being
critical goes crosswise to that because when you speak critical words about
that person you are not using your faith to help them and bear their faults,
you are actually using your faith to reinforce their fault and burden and keep
it in their life
b. It’s
impossible to bear somebody’s fault if you’re being critical of them because
they have it so rather than being critical of them because they have it, I’m
going to use my faith to help them overcome it
B. People
are going to miss it and you’re going to see it, you’re going to see peoples
faults and when you do there’s going to be a pull, a temptation to judge them,
to be critical of them, to talk negative about them
1.
MSG-If
someone falls into sin, forgivingly restore him, saving your critical
comments for yourself. You
might need forgiveness before the days out. Stoop down and reach out to those who
are oppressed. Share their burdens and so complete Christ’s law.
a. If
you’re going to judge somebody, judge yourself
2.
CEV-You
obey the law of Christ when you offer each other a helping hand
a. What
you said, is that going to help them or hurt them?
b. It is
easy to fall in the trap of talking bad about people and being critical of
them, but that’s not helping them
C. You which
are spiritual or non-carnal-1 Corinthians 3:1-3
1.
A
sign that you’re carnal is that rather than restoring people and bearing their
faults you judge, condemn and cast them down
a. Carnal
people can’t restore others, can’t bear the fault of others
b. Carnality
looks at people and their faults and judges and cast them down, but a spiritual
person sees another persons faults and seeks God for how they can use their
faith and help that person out of that fault
2.
Romans
8:6-When you’re fault finding and judging and condemning it gives way to the
death force, but when you’re spiritually minded and fault-bearing it gives way
to live and peace (zoe-life and prosperity)
3.
If
you don’t go fault seeking, you want be fault finding
D. This
fault bearing should be done in a hard, harsh, sharp manner, but rather with
the spirit of meekness-Ephesians 6:4
1.
Meekness
is required in the walk of love; you can’t be strong in your love walk and weak
in meekness
a. Colossians
3:13, Ephesians 4:2-We got three witnesses that reveal to us the importance of
meekness in regards to walking in love
2.
Meekness-The
disposition to be gentle, kind, indulgent, even balanced in tempers and passions,
and patient in suffering; Mildness of disposition, gentleness of spirit; Softness
of temper; Mild of temper; Soft; Gentle; Not easily provoked or irritated;
Yielding; Give to forbearance under injuries
a. Gentle-Mild, meek; soft; bland; not
rough, harsh or severe; as a gentle nature, temper or disposition; a gentle
manner, a gentle address; Tame; peaceable; not wild, soothing; treating with
mildness; not violent; Softness of manners; Mildness of temper; Sweetness of
disposition; Kindness, benevolence
b. Mildness-Softness, Tenderness, Mercy;
Clemency; The quality that affects the senses pleasantly; Not violent, Gently
and pleasantly, Kind, Compassionate, Merciful, Not severe or cruel; Not fierce,
rough or angry; Not fierce, not stern, not frowning; Not sharp, tart, sour, or
bitter; Moderately sweet or pleasant to the taste; Calm, tranquil
3.
ERV-Brothers and sisters, someone in your group
might do something wrong. You who are following the Spirit should go to the one
who is sinning. Help make that person right again, and do it in a gentle way.
But be careful, because you might be tempted to sin too. 2 Help each other with your troubles.
E. Considering
yourself-Considering yourself and how you’ve missed it and how you lapsed from
the Word at times
1.
TLB-If
a Christian is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly
help him back onto the right path, remembering that next time it might be one
of you who is in the wrong. Share each others’ troubles and problems
and so obey out Lord’s command
IV.
One
reason people don’t bear one another’s burdens is they think too much of
themselves-Galatians 6:1,3
A. This
idea that you are somehow superior to other people will make you unwilling bear
the burden of another person
1.
Galatians
6:3 AMP-For if any person thinks himself to be somebody [too important to
condescend to shoulder another’s load] when he is nobody [of superiority except
in his own estimation], he deceives and deludes and cheats himself
2.
It’s
this idea that I’d never do something like that and how dumb can they be and when
you talk like that and think like that the insulation is that you wouldn’t do
what they did because you wouldn’t you are somehow superior to them
B. When
you think your superior you deceive yourself; when you think you’re something
superior and you’re not you’re deceiving yourself
1.
Pride
always deals in fantasy, lies, untruths, non-reality
a. Obadiah
3-The pride of your heart deceives you
b. Jeremiah
49:16-Your terribleness has deceived you and the pride of your heart
2.
Humility
always deals in reality, in truth-2 Corinthians 12:6
a. Voice-My
spiritual brothers and sisters, if one of our faithful has fallen into a trap and is snared by
sin, don’t stand idle and watch
his demise. Gently restore him, being careful not to step into your own
snare. 2 Shoulder each other’s burdens, and then you
will live as the law of the Anointed teaches us. Don’t take this opportunity to think that
you are better than those who slip because you aren’t. Then you become the fool and deceive
yourself.
C. When it
comes bearing another’s burdens you need to humble yourself and deal in reality
1.
When
you are judging people and being hard on them and being critical, and giving
them no mercy you’re acting like you’ve never done anything like that
a. Humility
deals in reality and the reality is you’ve done stuff just like that and worse
than that; Be real; you’ve been where they’ve been, you’ve acted like they’ve
acted, you’ve missed it like they’ve missed it; I’d never do anything like that
– You’ve done stuff just like that and worse
b. Now
look you’re the righteousness of God in Christ and a Son of the most high, but
don’t act like you haven’t been where they’ve been and done stuff like they’ve
done
2.
The
reality is you’ve had faults just like that if not worse and still have some
and you’re not superior to that person, you’re not better than them, but in a
lot of ways you’re just like them and if you did get free God is the one who set
you free and had it not been for him you’d still be in the same place they’re
in right now
D. If you
want to carefully scrutinize and examine someone then do it to yourself not
other people
1.
Examine
yourself, judge yourself, ask the Lord to help you see your own faults and make
the changes you need to make and then you can have something to rejoice about
2.
NOT
IN ANOTHER-Your rejoicing shouldn’t be in the fact that you are “superior” to
your fallen brother
a. He’s
boasting and feeling superior b/c he’s comparing himself with his fallen
brother and it increases self-value in his own eyes
b. He’s
needs to prove is own work not compare himself to his brother and prove it in
regards to the law of Christ rather than doing it by comparing himself with
others
c. If you
are as spiritual as you think you are then prove it by the work of bearing
another’s burdens and fulfilling the law of Christ
V.
Romans
15:1
A. If
you’re so strong then you should be bearing the infirmities of the weak
1.
Strength
is for service, for helping others
2.
Romans
15:1 (MSG)-Those of
us who are strong and able in the faith need to step in and lend a hand to
those who falter, and not just do what is most convenient for us. Strength is for service, not status.
Each one of us needs to look after the
good of the people around us, asking ourselves, “How can I help?” 3-6 That’s
exactly what Jesus did. He didn’t make it easy for himself by avoiding people’s
troubles, but waded right in and helped out. “I took on the troubles of the
troubled,” is the way Scripture puts it. Even if it was written in Scripture
long ago, you can be sure it’s written for us. God
wants the combination of his steady, constant calling and warm, personal
counsel in Scripture to come to characterize us,
keeping us alert for whatever he will do next. May our dependably steady and
warmly personal God develop maturity in you so that you get along with each
other as well as Jesus gets along with us all. Then we’ll be a choir—not
our voices only, but our very lives singing in harmony in a stunning anthem to
the God and Father of our Master Jesus!
B. The
fact that you are not bearing the infirmities of the weak should reveal to you
that you are not as strong as you may of thought
1.
What
major sign and token and evidence that you are strong is that you bear the
infirmities of the weak
C. You
don’t bear the weaknesses of others for self-gratification
1.
You
find fault with them and talk about their faults with others and judge them and
be critical for self-gratification
D. We are
striving for mutual harmony and full sympathy (verse 5 amplified)