Before begnning chapter six, step back and see the overview from above. If you step back away from the beginning of chapter six we can see that Paul has been writing about the implications of Christian living. This may well have been because those who opposed him argued that Christian liberty would lead to abuse. They wanted the law (or at least parts of it) added to the gospel. Paul's argument is that the gospel changes the heart; from this we seek to please the Lord and act in obedience to Him.
Paul shows the fruit of the spirit in contrast to the works of the flesh. There is no law that can bring fruit from the flesh; let alone the fruit of the Spirit. The biting and devouring of verse fifteen seemed to be result of the works being imposed on this church. The inistence to add circumcision to the gospel was stealing the liberty bought by Christ.
At the beginning of chapter five Paul encouraged them to 'stand fast' in their liberty; then at the end of the chapter he enourages them to 'walk in the spirit'. Christians shouldn't become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. This perversion of the gospel that had infiltrated this church was destroying them from the inside out, one person at a time. Paul saw that this had to stop.
As we move into chapter six, look for the encouragement to heal, to restore fellowship and be characterized by love.
Galatians 6:1
Whether they felt conviction of compassion from Paul's letter, it didn't change the fact that if they were saved in Christ, they were brethren. Paul is speaking directly to his brothers and sisters in Christ. This bring unity, healing and builds bridges; it serves to remind the Christians they were of the family of God.
The Galatian believers had been exposed to the teachings of the legalists and some were lured into believing and following them, while others weren't. While this was going on some were producing the works of the flesh, while others were producing fruit of the Spirit. This was bound to cause some division within this body of believers. Those producing fruit couldn't become arrogant and conceited. Those in the flesh couldn't become envious and bitter. Paul wanted them to know there had to be an avenue of restoration.
We are the body of Christ. We should support each other, love each other, and correct each other if needed. The implication of a brother 'overtaken in a trespass' is this man was actually seen committing the sin. The Christian brother who is filled with the Spirit, walking in the Spirit and showing evidence of the fruit of the Spirit should restore this person. The word used for restoration is also used in the mending of a broken bone or dislocated joint. Something is out of place that must be restored to its former position. Just as we would want a gentle doctor to set our broken bone, this restoration must be handled gently. To do this can be painful and difficult. It can be offensive to the one that needs restored. However, in the end, things will be as they should. You do this in a spirit of gentleness but you can't be so gentle and so understanding as to be compromising. Paul warns that a Christian must not ignore the fact that you can also be tempted in that same sin. 'Considering yourself' is to be on the lookout that you aren't deceived and fall into the trap you're trying to help another escape from.
How does this work practically? This is outlined in Matthew 18:15-20. You approach a brother or sister in Christ privately with a genuine concern regarding their sin. This takes extreme gentleness and tact to bring a sin out in the open without appearing self righteous or appearing as a prosecutor and judge. To bring a sin before one is not a debate and it's not making a case before the judge. It's simply stating a concern regarding a sin and how it is not consistent with the Christian life. If the person hears you he is restored and all is well. If the person doesn't hear you, you return a 2nd time with one or two witnesses. If the person doesn't respond, then you take it to the church. If the person doesn't hear the church, then you treat him as a heathen and a tax collector. All of this is done in love with a concern for this person. The end goal is restoration.
Galatians 6:2-5
To 'bear' another's burden is to endure the unpleasant or difficult part of life of another. These burdens are specific to those which are most strenuous, oppressively burdensome and demanding. In contrast to fulfilling the law the agitators would impose, Paul said this bearing of another's burden fulfills the law of Christ. This law is to love your neighbor as yourself. As we bear our own load, we have a responsibility, of which we are accountable to the Lord, to bear the load of our neighbor.
We are called to bear our own burden while we share our neighbors burden in love. There is no conflict between 'bearing each others burdens' and 'each person bearing their own load'. Our load is our responsibility, this is carrying your own backpack on your path. Part of walking your
own path and carrying your own backpack is to deal with the people and things you come across. Because we share the same path, we have a responsibility to share the load. Love for our neighber causes and overlap of duty creating more 'load bearers' than loads to bear.
Walking (or running 5:7) with our neighbor, bearing their load with them as we travel this road together is quite a contrast to the hindered walk (roadblock) spoke of in 5:7 As we walk, carrying our own load, we encounter others along the way. Some are overloaded, some have been hindered by agitators, some have been decieved or just plain beat down. Our Chrisitan maturity and character are revealed by our response to others. We are empowered, equiped and called to help those we cross paths with. It's our job to help bear their burden, to move the roadblock, to move the heavy load that has come before them. This bearing of another's burden is in the context of restoring this person from sin. This has to be done in humility. This can't be done in a condescending way.
It's easy to examine another's walk in the Spirit and spot areas where they've fallen short. We can easily figure out who should help us bear our burden. However, the Christian brother should boast only in the lord and bear his own load with no expectation that others should bear their burden. Remembering what the Lord did for us helps us to operate in humility. A humble heart is the heart of a servant. Arrogance, aloofness or pride temps us to ignore our neighbor. We can't be deceived into thinking we are somehow special and beyond sin or beyond humbling our self to help another.
As the legalists examined their works of the law seeking righteousness, the Christian is called to examine himself in the work of the gospel. We should examine our own fruit of the Spirit and make sure our works are the works of the Lord. The pride that can so easily sneak in will rot the fruit of the Spirit. If you are proud of your love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control there is a problem
We have two burdens to bear. Each bears the burden of the work of the gospel in your life. This is your personal ministry. Then, within the body of Christ, we should persevere through hardships. Have you been bearing your burdens?
Galatians 6:6
This could mean the congregations should share their wealth with the teacher. It may apply and make sense from a monetary standpoint. It could quite possibly be an encouragement to those who are being taught to live out their faith in the fellowship in the presence of the entire body. This probably fits the context of the statement better.
Galatians 6:7-10
God cannot be mocked. He knows our heart and intentions. There are so many examples of 'religious' people playing religion and using the name of Christ and language of Christians but they are a strictly operating in the flesh. That's what these legalists were doing in Galatia; bending the truth, deceiving people, not concerned at all about the spiritual health of the people there, but strictly gathering people to their side to strengthen their position. No matter how many people they gathered, though, their position didn't change. They weren't fooling God.
A person reaps what he sows. If we sow for our sinful nature we will reap destruction. If we sow in the Spirit we will reap by the Spirit eternal things. The genuine act of love towards another human being will reap an eternal reward. The same act done selfishly out of pride to appear spiritual or righteous is a mockery and will in the end reap corruption. Some of these works of the legalists may appear to be good works, but they were leading to bad things.
There's a sense of Paul offering encouragement to those who were standing in their faith. They were watching all of this junk happen before them and they were probably taking some heat, feeling some persecution for standing fast. Paul just said, we shouldn't grow tired of doing good. Don't get frustrated by all you see with your eyes. Stay on your path, keep walking in the Spirit. Bear your burden of gospel work; share the burden of those those you encounter, stumbling in sin and deception. A time will come when you will reap the harvest in eternity.
Galatians 6:11
Paul made note that he wrote the large letters in his own hand. This was kind of like a post script. While the main letter was penned by a secretary, Paul wrote the last section in his own hand. This was to authenticate the letter. As for the letters being large, some believe this was because Paul had an eyesight problem. It is a possibility that this eye problem was the thorn in Paul's flesh. We really don't know. The other possibility is that he changed his writing in the original letter to big block letters like a public announcement to make his point. So, you might imagine these last verses in big block letters written by the hand of Paul to drive home his point before he closed his letter. This is like switching to all caps when you are texting or emailing someone. It's like someone yelling at you on paper.
Galatians 6:12
Paul's point is that these people who brought these false teachings were just trying to make a showing. They were building a following, strengthening their position. They were probably Jews who had become Christians, yet they held onto the law so as not to make the Jews mad; or possibly to avoid Christian persecution. They were trying to have it both ways, one foot in the law and the other in grace. In doing so they were compelling these gentiles to be circumcised, telling them they couldn't have Christ until they were met certain criteria of the law of Moses.
You have to wonder if these men truly believed anything; were they just looking out for themselves?
It's worth remembering that this letter was sent to several churches in the region of Galatia, not just one church. So these guys had caused big problems. For Paul to write the churches was an indication that this was no small problem. It's stunning that they would use God and His people and yet care so little for them. What a great price these men would pay for preserving themselves at the cost of other's faith.
Galatians 6:13
The Judaizers kept pushing the circumcision even when they didn't follow the law. They told the gentiles they had to keep the law but they weren't keeping it themselves. They just picked their favorite laws that they hung their own self righteousness on. That's what they preached to the gentiles. Paul said they didn't preach anything because they believed it or were concerned about the people. They merely wanted to add gentiles to their numbers so they could boast and draw others into their deception.
Galatians 6:14-16
The Judaizers were boasting in the wrong things and for the wrong reasons. Paul was only willing to boast in the cross and Jesus Christ. The world had been crucified to him and he to the world by Jesus Christ. Paul was dead to the things of the world; pride, selfishness, ambition. He had new desires born in him when he was born again. He had a new heart that came from being raised again in Christ. The world no longer had any power over him. To be in Christ has nothing to do with being circumcised, what counts is a new creation.
This rule is what men are measured against. It's like the surveyor's mark, it's a benchmark. It's a place of reference from which everything is set. When we walk in this new creation, we will experience the peace that comes from it and mercy of God from His forgiveness of our sins. is a blessing to those who stand fast in grace; who gave no time to the legalists. They are the Israel of God. They are the sons of Abraham. We are the real sons of promise; the people who stand fast by faith; those who don't fall from grace. These people, Paul said, will experience peace and mercy.
Galatians 6:17
The trouble these guys caused Paul was really nothing in the grand scheme of things. They had brought trouble to these churches that Paul had planted. Paul was acting as a spiritual father to them in trying to bring sound teaching and common sense to their thinking. When Paul said 'from now on let no one trouble me' he was letting them know he had made his case, given the facts and made known the all the arguments and reasons to reject these guys. He had done all he could do. He couldn't force people to change their mind. There was no reason to trouble him again regarding these men and the ones following them.
Paul makes a connection between them leaving him alone and the marks he bore on his body. This is an interesting comment that Paul bears the marks of Jesus. These legalists were all caught up in a physical mark of the flesh by circumcision. From that mark they tried to declare righteousness. Which only amounted to self righteousness. Paul's body was marked with the scars or wounds that he received because of his walk with the Lord. If these guys wanted to talk about physical marks, they could come talk to Paul when they too bore the marks of persecution. They sat on their self righteous thrones giving laws for others to keep. Paul was giving his life and flesh for the gospel message of Christ. If they wanted to bother him again, they needed to come bearing the scars of persecution, then he would listen to their arguments.
Galatians 6:18
Paul started this letter speaking of grace. He talked about establishing and standing fast in that grace and he ends the letter offering a blessing of Grace. It couldn't be any more clear. To receive grace, you have to know you have no righteousness of your own. You only discover your lack of righteousness through the examination of the law or by the conviction of your conscious when it reminds you of how you once again fell short of God's requirement. Then when you come to that place of realizing you can't keep the law; you can't be good enough; your work is nothing in the eyes of God, then you realize you need help. You need a savior because you can't save yourself. Its then that a person can fall on their face before the cross, trust in the work of Jesus and turn from our sins. Then, we are saved by grace. At that point everything changes. God does a supernatural work in your life and in your heart. Nothing will ever be the same again. Something lasting and eternal happens, even though it doesn't always feel that way. Your very identity is forever linked to Jesus Christ. Because of that, a person no longer stands in the law, or is judged by their works. We are no longer judged by our actions because we died to ourselves, we now live in Christ. We are in grace and judged by the work or Jesus Christ.
D.L. Moody said, "The law tells me how crooked I am and grace alone straightens me out."
Paul wanted to make sure the Galatains were standing firm in their grace0; justified by fatih alone with Christ at the center of their very existence.
The victories of Christianity, wherever they have been won, have been won by distinct doctrinal theology; by telling men roundly of Christ's vicarious death and sacrifice; by showing them Christ's substitution on the cross, and His precious blood; by teaching them justification by faith, and bidding them believe on a crucified Saviour; by peaching ruin by sin, redemption by Christ, regeneration by the Spirit; by lifting up the brazen serpent; by telling men to look and live – to believe, repent, and be converted. This – this is the only teaching which for eighteen centuries God has honoured with success, and is honouring at the present day both at home and abroad. (Doctrinal Preaching - The Need of the Hour by J.C. Ryle)
We'll encounter all kinds of folks during the course of our walk of faith. Some will bring us a new religious fad; some bring strange thoughts mixed with old traditions. Some ignore the 'little leaven' with which they season the gospel. We must know there's a war going on! It's a battle over the hearts and souls of men and women in a sin-fallen world that is getting darker by the day. Have we studied to show our selves approved? Do we have our armor in place; equipped for a battle for such a time as this?
The enemy seeks to steal, kill and destroy. He is a merciless warrior that doesn't fight fair. He will attempt strip you of any weapons. If that can't be done, he will attempt to shame you for fighting. If that doesn't work he will dull them and attempt to convince you they are old, worn out and unneeded. And all along the way, he will try to bend your doctrine, preach compromise, cast doubt on the Word; while accusing, condemning and shaming a child of God.
By the power and authority of Jesus Christ, we are washed clean; justified by faith alone in Christ alone. It is the gift of God, not by works. We are heirs of God Most High; equipped as servants and saints; a kingdom or priests to stand fast on, and preach the eternal gospel truth.
Let's hold each other up; standing fast together as one body. Let's bear fruit together; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness and self control. As we sow to the Spirit we can know we will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.
©2017 Doug Ford
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