Listen for God’s word to you from Galatians 5:26-6:5…
Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.
Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, for each one should carry their own load.
Last week, in our examination of Galatians 5, we saw how all of us are engaged in a spiritual battle between the flesh and the Spirit. Now in Galatians 6, Paul gets down to brass tacks. He shows us how Christians should and should not treat each other if they are keeping in step with the Spirit.
How Christians Are Not To Treat Each Other
In Galatians 5:26, Paul tells us how we are not to treat one another. He says, “Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.” Then he elaborates on this idea in Galatians 6:3-5.
The Greek word translated as “conceited” literally means “empty praise”. The word is sometimes translated as “vainglory”. But it occurs to me that there are really two types of conceit, two types of vainglory, or maybe even three. Usually, we only think of one type, where someone views themselves as better than everyone else. This is the type of conceit Paul is talking about when he refers to someone thinking they are something when they are not. We say that such a person goes around with their nose in the air, or they are looking down on everyone.
But what about the person who is always putting themselves below everyone else? I am thinking of the person who always says, “I am nothing. Don’t pay any attention to me.” That person has not tested their actions to have a proper sense of pride in themselves as Paul says we should. This type of person often puts themselves down so loudly, in word and in deed, that they end up draw attention to themselves all the time.
Then there is the person who is always going around saying, “I’m as good as you!” This person is always trying to level the playing field. They do it so much that they sometimes fail to recognize the uniqueness of each human person. When you come down to it, while equality in law is always important, no one is truly equal to another person in all other ways. We each have different physical abilities and disabilities. The same is true mentally, emotionally, socially. We all have different upbringings and experiences. No one is truly equal to others in all ways.
Do you see what all three of these types of people are always doing? They are always comparing themselves to others. When they try to make themselves better than everybody else, they provoke others. When they think that others are better than them, they envy others. When they try to make everyone equal, they end up trying to fit everyone into the same mold. How much better to just be yourself and forget yourself!
Did you know that aerodynamically speaking the bumble bee should not be able to fly? That’s what scientists say.[1] But I like what my friend Tim Hansel used to say. He said he thought the reason bumble bees could fly is because they take themselves so lightly. Maybe if we took ourselves more lightly, we could fly too.
Taking yourself lightly, having self-forgetfulness, that is what the Bible calls humility. Children often have it in abundance, at least before they go to school. Young children tend not to compare themselves to anyone else. But once they get into school, the comparison game begins.
To give up comparing yourself to others is true humility. That’s why I like to say, “Humility is the belief that you are incomparable.” That statement always stops people in their tracks because they think such a belief is the opposite of humility. But it is not. To believe that you are incomparable is to accept the unique human being God has created and redeemed you to be. To believe that you are incomparable is to recognize that you are incapable of being compared to anyone else. And the same is true for every human being. Every single person is an incomparable, unique, creation of God.
When you recognize that and have that sort of attitude of incomparability toward yourself then you can develop a healthy self-love. Remember what Jesus said is the second most important commandment? “Love your neighbor as yourself.” That command implies that you really can’t love your neighbor until you love yourself. And you really can’t love yourself until you accept God’s love for you in Christ. Then, your attitude toward yourself really will determine how you treat others.
How Christians Are To Treat Each Other
So, how are Christians to treat each other? Paul spells out the answer beginning in Galatians 6:1. Paul tackles the most difficult situation in human relationships first. How should we treat someone else when we think they are doing something wrong? Paul says,
Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.
Paul tells us three things here. He tells us what to do, who should do it, and how to do it.
What to do…
The first thing Paul tells us is what to do when we become aware of a fellow Christian caught in a sin. Paul tells us we should restore that person. This is a very positive action that Paul recommends. Instead of talking about the person or their sin to someone else, we should seek to restore our brother or sister in Christ. Restoration includes restoring a proper relationship with God and good relationships in the body of Christ, the church. Paul does not spell out exactly how to go about this. But Jesus gets more specific in Matthew 18:15-17 where we read…
If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
Notice, the goal in Jesus’ instruction to his disciples is to keep the circle of communication small. When your brother or sister sins (presumably against you, but other people may be involved too) you should go to that brother or sister and talk to them directly.
The first time I really became aware of the practical nature of this instruction was in the first church I served out of seminary. I was an intern in a 1100-member church in Charlotte, North Carolina. My focus was on youth ministry and as you might guess that ministry often involved food. So, I was using the church kitchen a lot. Now, the church kitchen was run by a volunteer in the church who could be a bit, shall we say, prickly. And so, I was complaining a bit about her in the earshot of our church administrator, Bob Dyar. Bob immediately said to me, “Matthew 18.”
And I said, “What?”
And Bob said, “Matthew 18. Go read it and follow it.”
So, I read Matthew 18 and quickly caught Bob’s drift. If I had a problem with the kitchen Nazi, I needed to go and talk to her directly. I don’t remember if I ever did that, but I do remember that I never complained about her again.
On another occasion, when I was working on an evangelistic campaign for Luis Palau in Southern California, I had trouble getting along with one of the volunteers I had recruited; his name was Lyn. David, the chairman of the volunteer committee, saw the problem I was having with Lyn, and he sat us down together until we worked everything out.
Most of the time, if we would follow Jesus’ first two steps in Matthew 18, we won’t need the third step, where you bring the matter to the whole church to solve. The bottom line is this: the Bible gives us some very practical advice about how to handle relationships in the church and life generally goes well when we follow that advice.
Who is to do it…
Paul also tells us in Galatians who is to do the restoring. Paul says, “you who live by the Spirit should restore that person…” Some translations simply say, “you who are spiritual”. But in the context, it is clear what Paul means by spiritual. These days, the word “spiritual” gets used very loosely. But Paul uses the word in a very specific sense to mean someone who is indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God, someone who is walking in the Spirit, and who is keeping in step with the Spirit. We might call this person “a mature Christian”. But I don’t think Paul is suggesting that we waste time bothering about whether we are mature enough to restore someone else. I think Paul simply wants us to know that restoration requires the help of the Holy Spirit. So, the best thing we can do before we try to restore someone else is to ask for the help of the Spirit.
How it is to be done…
Thirdly, Paul tells us how this work should be done. He says it should be done gently. I have seen churches get rough and tough in the administration of what is sometimes called “church discipline”. Unfortunately, as a pastor, I have found myself embroiled in such situations in the past. Gentleness is one of the things most needed in such a situation. So, perhaps it is no accident that Paul mentions gentleness as part of the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5.
And Paul adds a warning here in Galatians 6:1, “But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.” Whenever we see someone else caught in a sin, and especially when we try to restore such a person, we need, once again, to be humble. We need to approach the other person with the inner attitude that says, “There but for the grace of God go I.” And if we can’t approach other people with gentleness and humility, we ought not to get involved in the act of restoration at all. Because if we don’t have gentleness and humility then it is a sign that we are the person who really needs to be restored to a right relationship with God and others.
Thankfully, Paul does not tell us simply how to treat other Christians when they are doing something wrong, he also tells us how to treat other Christians when they are burdened.
Paul says in Galatians 6:2, “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”
It has been said that everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about. It is also true that everyone you meet is carrying a burden you may know nothing about. Our job as Christians is to get to know one another well enough so that we know each other’s burdens. How can we carry one another’s burdens if we know nothing about them?
So, once we get to know what someone else’s burden is, how do we help them bear it? One way we help them bear it is through prayer. Knowing what someone else’s burden is helps us to pray for them more effectively.
A friend of mine used to say, “We gossip so that we can pray more intelligently.” He was kidding, I think.
Gossip is one thing we shouldn’t do if we are going to help others bear their burdens. The last thing a burdened person needs is someone talking about their problem to a third person. Rather than talk to other people about someone’s burden, why not talk to God?
Another way that we bear each other’s burdens is by spending time together. It’s called the ministry of presence. Sometimes we help burdened people the most just by listening and not even trying to solve their problem.
Of course, there may come a time when we can help solve a problem too, by providing physical, emotional, mental, or financial help. Such help really does lift burdens off the shoulders of others. But we need to make sure what kind of help others are asking us to provide.
When someone comes to me with a need, I usually try to pause and ask myself two questions…
- What is this person asking me to do? (I may need to ask some clarifying questions to be certain what someone else is asking of me.)
- And then I ask myself: Is what this person needs something that I have to give?
In other words: can I meet the need? If I can, I try to do that with God’s help. If I can’t, I try to refer the needy person to someone who can help them. Following such a mental process in our church relationships might help us bear one another’s burdens more effectively.
Paul says that if we carry one another’s burdens, we will fulfill the law of Christ. What law is Paul thinking about? Paul may be thinking about Christ’s teachings in their entirety. In the same way, the word “law” in the Bible can refer to all the teachings of the Torah, the first five books of the Bible. Matthew presents the teachings of Jesus in a five-fold form to draw a comparison, a link, to the Torah.
Alternatively, Paul may be thinking of the law of love that Jesus especially emphasized: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Mark 12:31; Leviticus 19:18) When we bear one another’s burdens we truly do fulfill the law of love.
John Stott has written…
When we see a woman, or a child, or an elderly person carrying a heavy case, do we not offer to carry it for them? So, when we see somebody with a heavy burden on his heart or mind, we must be ready to get alongside him and share his burden. Similarly, we must be humble enough to let others share ours.
Many years ago, when I was going through a difficult time, Becky and I met with a pastoral counselor at the church we were attending. In one of those counseling sessions, the pastor reminded me of the story in the Gospels where four men bring their friend on a mat to be healed by Jesus. The pastor said to me, “Sometimes we get to be one of the friends bringing our friend to Jesus for healing. Other times, we are the one on the mat and we need to let others carry us.”
Whether you are on the mat now, or one of the friends carrying your friend on the mat to Jesus, the Lord can work in you and through you to bless others. One clear sign of being filled with the Holy Spirit is that when you are filled with the Spirit you will treat others right.
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