What does it mean to bear one another's burdens? It means being a cup of cold water to a parched soul in their desert. It means being the food that relieves a hungry soul in their famine. It means being a sympathetic or empathetic ear and the handkerchief that dries the tears to one in trouble, distress, or sorrow.

Bearing one another's burdens shows love for one another, a concern for each other's welfare, a more than passing interest in how one's need or needs can be met. This falls well within Christ's command for us to love one another as He loves us (John 13:34-35), which is a vital part of living in accordance to the Gospel.

Caring for one another as God cares for us, through the inner working of the Holy Spirit, brings us into obedience to the law of Christ. It brings us into conformity with the will of God that we love one another and consider each other's burdens as our own.

How many of us have been a needed friend to someone who was lonely, or provided words of encouragement to those discouraged, or saw to the material or psychological needs of someone in dire straits? To do so is to fulfill the law of Christ. To do so shows that we are His disciples. To do so allows Christ's light to shine through us to draw others to Him, just as a moth in the dark of night is drawn to a bright porch light.