Sermon Text:
Galatians 6:1-10
Jesus calls his disciples to love one another. But what is that supposed to look like? In the church we are called to exercise our freedom in Christ, walking by the Spirit to look after one another both spiritually and practically. We hold one another accountable, care for our needs, while keeping a watch on our own life in the humility of the Spirit.
Sermon Transcript:
(transcribed with AI)
Well, it's good to be here with you all. For those who might not know me, my name is Jonathan, privileged to be the pastor here. Have you ever had a dream of just running away from it all? Have you ever thought to yourself on a particularly stressful week, you know what, what if I just picked up, found a cabin in the woods, and just ran away from everything? Or a bungalow on the beach, I'm just gonna go and run away, live in Costa Rica, and that's it, that's where I'm going to be?
Well, this morning I want to start by telling you about a man who did that. His name was John Chrysostom. Some of you, if you are familiar with church history, you probably know that name. He was a very famous preacher in the late 300s AD. And before he was a famous preacher, his life goal was to be a monk in the desert. All he wanted to do was run away, live in a cave, and be on his own.
Now he lived in the Roman Empire that had recently become very Christianized. Lots of people were pretending to be Christians because the emperor was a Christian, so if you want to be in politics, you kind of play along. And so if you wanted to show you were really serious, you went into the desert, you became a monk. And so Chrysostom wanted to do that, as a 20 year old, he said, this is what I'm gonna do with my life, and he went home and he told his mum, and his mum said. No. How dare you? Over my dead body you're going to do that. You're gonna stay here at home.
And to his credit, he did. He turned his own house into almost a monastery, you know, read the Bible, hardly went out, and for a few years, that's what he did until, well, his mum actually did pass away. And so now he was free. Finally, he can go, he can live his dream of being all on his own, and so he went into the desert, found a cave, and that's where he lived. For a couple of months. Because what happened is he started getting sick, we would call it malnutrition, he wasn't eating properly, he wasn't living properly, he couldn't actually even continue, eventually had to come back.
Now God I think had a hand in that sickness, cos he came back, entered into ministry, and years later, when he reflected on that time, this is what he realized. Not only was that foolhardy cos he had no idea what he was doing. It was foolhardy because it wasn't what God had called him to do. In fact, it was John 13 that really made him realize Jesus is talking to his disciples, he says.
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, so you also are to love one another. By this all people will know you are my disciples if you have love for one another.
And here was the problem. How could you do that if you had cut yourself off from everyone? I saws and realized actually this wasn't the issue, and now here we stand some 1700 years later, and I think we tend to have the same problem. Not so much that we're going to go live in a cave, though that fantasy exists at times, no, more likely we are to live with everyone and yet cut ourselves off. We say things like I can do this by myself, I don't need anyone else's help, no, I'm strong enough, I can figure this stuff out. I don't need anyone looking into my life, I don't need anything from anyone.
We cut ourselves off in a completely different way, and yet it's the same problem. Jesus calls us to love one another. In fact, let me be so bold and say you can't be a believer and cut yourself off. Not for long. You need to be in real relationships, and I don't just mean I said hi on a Sunday morning. That's being polite. It's good. I mean, you need to know people. People need to know you. And even be able to call you out on your own sin. On what's going on in our lives.
And so as we open our Bibles this morning, that's really what we're gonna see. If you have a Bible, please open to Galatians chapter 6. Final chapter in this book. The Christian life cannot be lived alone, we are called to love one another, caring for each other both spiritually and practically.
So if you have your Bibles open, please follow along with me. It's our tradition here, we stand as we read God's word, if you're able to, please stand with me. Galatians chapter 6, starting in verse 1.
Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. Let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. For each will have to bear his own load. One who is taught the word must share all good things with the one who teaches. Do not be deceived, God is not mocked. For whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh from the flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the spirit will. From the spirit reap eternal life. Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone and especially to those who are of the household of faith.
As far as the reading of God's word, you may be seated.
Well, we are nearly at the end of this book. We started all the way back in September, if you've been with us, you'll know that as Paul's been writing this book, he's been pretty direct. He has not really pulled his punches, he's not cut corners, no, he's told you exactly what he thinks. And this has also been a very theological book. Paul has spent a long time unpacking for us what is the core of the Christian faith. How is it that we are made right with God, it is by faith in Jesus. And Paul has spent a long time unpacking that for us, making sure we can understand what's going on, and so a lot of it has ended up being very what we would call sort of high theological kind of ideas.
But here, he's bringing us right down to reality, as practical as possible, in fact, uncomfortably practical at times, and so in one sense, my goal is that everyone would be just slightly uncomfortable. See, if you've been with us for the last number of weeks, you'll know in chapter 5, we started this new section. It says if we have been saved by faith in Jesus alone, that means we have freedom now. We are set free from our sins, set free from the loss, set free from having to work for our salvation. We have this freedom now in Christ. And so the question is, what do we do with it? What do we do with this freedom that we have?
Last week we looked, we're gonna follow the Holy Spirit, walk with the spirit, and today we find, actually we walk with the spirit in order to love one another. Now Paul here actually never uses the word love, but I'm gonna argue that's exactly what he is describing. He's describing what it looks like to practically show love to one another, to bear one another's burdens, even to watch your own life and so to the spirit. The freedom of the Christian life is to be used in the Holy Spirit to love one another.
So let's just start off here in verse one. We are called to bear one another's burdens. Verse one, he says, brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted, bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. Paul calls the church, take care of one another. And specifically here he has in mind their spiritual life, their spiritual well-being. He says if they're falling into sin, bring them out. This is part of what it looks like to actually love one another.
And just to show that I'm not making this idea up, look at verse two with me. He says all of this is to fulfill the law of Christ. Now this is not the first time that Paul has actually referred to this. This is not like the 10 Commandments, rather, he's talking about something else. Galatians chapter 5, he says, for you. You were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love, serve one another, for the whole law is fulfilled in one word. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Paul says, here's how we are to use our freedom. Use it to love one another, that fulfills the entire law.
In fact, that's exactly what Jesus said when he was asked, you know, how would you summarize the law, he says, love God and love one another. In fact, it's the commandment we just read in John of what Jesus gives, love one another. The law of Christ, love God, love one another. The question then becomes, well, how? How do I actually love one another? Well, that's what Paul's describing here for us. Bear one another's burdens. In this case, it is very specifically these spiritual burdens.
Go back to verse one, brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, I'll just pause there for a moment. Paul here is specifically addressing Christians, that's why he calls them brothers, brothers and sisters, believers who are caught in sin. I need you to know it's just two quick things here. First, in the Christian life, sin will try and ensnare you. It will try and overtake you. Being a Christian doesn't mean you'll never deal with sin again, far from it. In fact, it defines the battle lines, if anything else. We should be ready and ready and watching out for sin. But secondly, dealing with sin does not mean you are not a Christian. Fighting against sin is part of the Christian life. It's not the exception, it's the expectation. We expect that there will be a fight against our sin, so be ready for it and don't do it alone. Don't do it alone.
Verse one, he keeps going, he says, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Paul says, look, anyone who is spiritual, now, that's not a sort of like secondary level of the Christian life, as if, you know, well, over here you're the carnal Christian, then you get to be the spiritual Christian, now you're not dealing with sin. No. In fact, he's about to warn the spiritual Christian, don't fall into sin yourselves. Clearly that's not. No, in fact, actually if you just go back to the previous chapter, last week we talked about walking with the spirit, being filled with the Holy Spirit, bearing the fruits of the Spirit. One of them is gentleness. You who are relying on the Holy Spirit, in the fruit of the spirit of gentleness, restore one another.
This isn't some sort of second level of Christianity, rather this is every believer being led by the Holy Spirit, watch and restore your brothers and sisters in their fight with sin. Let me put this more bluntly. It's actually part of our job as Christians to watch out for one another. To actually look into one another's spiritual life, say, how are you doing? What's going on? Actually, we even bear some responsibility to do that well.
In fact, Jesus himself calls us to do this. Matthew 18, as Jesus talks about church discipline. We always get worried when it comes to church discipline, but what he just means is, talk to each other. Jesus says, Matthew 18, if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault. Between you and him alone, if he listens to you, you have gained your brother. You hear me? This is the vast majority of church discipline is this. I noticed something. Can we talk about that? I'm sorry. Help me. Amen. That's church discipline, caring and loving one another enough to say something when you see sin in their lives. But notice there, what is the goal? Restoration. The goal is redemption, the goal is seeking to see the best in the other.
So here, let me paint a very clear distinction. There is a big difference between being nosy. And being loving. Being nosy, being a gossip is trying to find out what's the problem, because gossip loves to revel in the wrong, loves to revel in all the problems, oh look at that, spill the tea, I'd love to hear it all. It's not the right way, that's not what love looks like. Love says, I don't want to know the problem, I wanna see you restored. I wanna see you encouraged, I wanna see you actually grow in your faith, that's my goal.
Gossip is talking to everyone else, hey, have you heard? And it's so easy in Christian circles to make it sound so spiritual. You know, I just need some wisdom in dealing with the situation, can I tell you about it? And then gossip. Actually, you know what, prayer request turns into gossip time, if we're not careful. Who are you talking to? Talk to, Jesus says, the other person. Don't talk to everyone else, talk to them. So what's the difference between being nosy and actually loving? What is your goal? Who are you talking to? Seek to restore them, seek to talk to them directly.
Because the truth is we have an obligation to one another. Paul writes in Romans, he says, we who are strong, have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. For Christ did not please himself, he goes on to say, but he went to the cross. Just as Jesus cared for us, so we are to care for one another. You don't get to say, oh, you know what, that's their problem. No, in the church, we wanna bear together. We have an obligation to act as Christ has acted to us. To love one another so much that we will willingly take on the burdens of their spiritual life, even as they bear ours.
So let me flip this around now. Because this means not only should I seek to help and restore others, but actually it means others should be able to see my life. And here's perhaps where we are now most uncomfortable with this. We're happy to know and try and help someone else, but when it comes to actually opening up and people hearing and knowing and coming to understand our own failures, suddenly we want to shut the door. No, actually it means we need help as well. We need people to be able to speak into our lives.
Look, we want to be private. I know. We want to keep things close to the chest. We don't want people to know how bad it really is, and it's killing us. For many of you, you've got sin issues in your life, no one knows about. It's not going well, is it? In fact, it's probably getting worse, isn't it? Been dealing with it for years, you've been saying to yourself, I can handle it, I can deal with this, no one needs to know. And it's not working As much as this is a command to help others, it's a call for us to be willing to share our lives as well. Don't wait until someone notices you, rather, what does the verse say, if anyone is caught. Say, hey, I actually need help.
And I'm not saying that you need to, you know, let everyone know all the worst parts of your life. No, you don't need to post it on social media, but does someone. Does anyone know? What you are going through. Is there anyone who can actually speak into your life and call you out on the sin that exists? Is there anyone holding you accountable? The church is made to operate that way. Do not shut that out.
I remember years ago I sat down with a friend. No surprise he's now a pastor. I sat down for coffee and he was a few years older than me and so. Just kind of listening to him and then he stopped and he said, all right, Jonathan. What's the biggest sin that you are struggling with in your life right now? I'll be honest, I was not expecting that question in any way whatsoever. I'm not even sure what I even said after that moment, I was paralyzed. But I needed someone to ask me. I desperately needed somebody to say, hey. What's going on? We need to actually open that up.
And in fact every time we met after that, he would ask me the same question, and I realized, oh, this is something I've been needing so much. I've needed somebody who would speak into my life. Do not close yourself off from this. Brothers, sisters, we can't live like that. Your brothers and sisters in this church need you to help them.
So let me ask, would you take that step? This week, go find someone and say, hey, we need to grab coffee. We need to go for a hike, we're gonna meet up at a park, we're gonna do whatever it is, and be honest with them. Look, it's gonna be really uncomfortable the first time. Yeah, it will be. And you will also probably leave and go, I can't believe I waited so long. Actually we're made to do that. We need the help of one another. Do not close yourself off. Brothers and sisters, bear one another's burdens.
Now even as Paul writes this, he also has a warning for us. Test your own life. He already introduced this, verse one, he says keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. There are issues. You may not be able to bear in someone else's life. There may be areas where they're struggling and you go, I'm actually struggling in the same area. Guess what, you might not be the best support for them because you also need help in the same place, but praise God, he's given us a body. Where you are weak, someone else will be strong. Where you are strong, someone else needs your strength. Doesn't mean that you are the savior of everyone. No, in fact, he continues, verse 3, for if anyone thinks he is something when he's nothing, he deceives himself. You actually do have to have a bit of an accurate look at your own life and faith. Don't get a big head, we actually need the humility of the Holy Spirit. You can't help when you are also failing at the same thing. Don't pretend that you've got everything together.
In fact, Jesus warns about this in Luke 6. He says, why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye? But do not notice the log that is in your own eye. How can you say to your brother, brother, let me take the speck out that is in your eye, when you yourself do not see the log that's in your own eye. You hypocrite, first take out the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck that is in your brother's eye. If we're going to help one another, we need to recognize we are still sinful too.
Even if you go to something like AA they recognize this. If you're currently struggling, you're not the sponsor for someone else who is also currently struggling. There is a humility required for us to do this well. We need to recognize when we can say actually someone else is gonna be able to help you even more than I can. So how do we recognize that? Verse 4 But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not his neighbor. For each will have to bear his own load.
And what an interesting little moment here that Paul has. He has just said, bear the burdens of one another, and then here he ends and says that each will have to bear his own load. He's not contradicting himself, rather his point is, yes, we are called to help one another, but we also need to recognize that ultimately the responsibility for our own spiritual life falls on me. I don't get to live a parasitic spiritual life. A parasite is something that just attaches on to something else and almost sucks the life out of it, and it's easy to do that as Christians, to say, you know what, actually, I don't really need to worry so much about between me and God, I'm just, I'm in a good church, I've got good people around me, and I can sort of kind of live in that area.
And oftentimes these are the people who are name dropping the most. Oh yeah, yeah, I did, I did this ministry and I worked with that person, and I went to that church and, and you know, you know, I'm, I'm pretty, I'm pretty good. You know, how, how are you in God? See, that's a different question. We can't simply rely on the faith of others around us. As we grow up, if you've grown up in the church, you come up under your parents. Under their house and praise God, that's a good thing, but there is a moment where you say, OK, but is this mine? Do I actually believe this? When we stand before God, I'll not be able to say, yeah, but I was close to them. Do you trust in Jesus? Do you trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins, and will you follow him?
Paul says, let each one test his own work. What does your spiritual life look like? Take an inventory, actually examine yourself. Paul says 2 Corinthians, examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith, test yourselves, or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you. Unless indeed you fail to meet the test. Take a look at your own life, accurately, inspect it.
Like I'm not saying we should do this all the time, you could probably go crazy on yourself. But there are moments where we should stop and take inventory. What does my life look like? Do I actually trust Jesus? Have I committed myself to follow after him? Do I place my trust for the forgiveness of my sins in the death and resurrection of Jesus alone? Is that where my faith lies? How's my spiritual life going? Am I growing in my faith? Am I actually taking steps to grow? How's my Bible reading? How's my prayer? How's my evangelism? Start looking through your life. What are the things that your heart really is wanting to do most? Does that reflect a heart that's following God?
Are the fruits of the spirit in my life, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Am I growing to be more like Christ? And again, I'd argue, don't do this in isolation. Ask others around you who know you, how is my spiritual life looking? Do you see evidence of God's work in my life?
Now, I don't know about you, but I always find that a challenging list. The challenge to look over that, to inspect my own life, to recognize, yes, there is still very much sin left in my life. So what do I do if I come up short? What if I do if I take this inventory and I go, I, man. I fail in a lot of areas I didn't want to fail in. Here's my answer. Run to the cross. Don't walk, don't wait, don't meander there. Run back to the cross, run to Jesus and say forgive me of my sins, forgive me of my own lack of belief, where my life has fallen short. Father, would you forgive me through Jesus Christ and would you transform my life, give me a new heart again and again, fill me over and over with your spirit that I might follow you.
See, the Christian life is not about hearing the gospel once and then moving beyond, but growing deeper and deeper into what Jesus has done. Run to the cross. Go there again and again. We're not perfect people. We'll always need the forgiveness of Jesus, so go there again and again. The Christian life is lived as it began, by wholly trusting Jesus, learning to walk in obedience to him. Test your own life. Because if we're gonna love one another, we're not trying to be parasites, we wanna bless. We wanna bless one another, not only spiritually, but now even practically as well.
See Paul, Paul care or calls them to care for one another spiritually, look after one another. When sin is there, call one another up, bear those burdens, but now he switches to the practical concerns. Paul even says, so to the spirit. Verse 6. That the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches.
Now if you wanna know the part of this sermon that makes me most uncomfortable, it's this one. Here's the point, Church. Here is to care practically for those in the church, and here he starts with the teachers. He says look after them, so that they can devote their time to studying the scripture, to prayer, so that they can preach. But he expands this to the rest of the congregation, he doesn't just stop there.
Let me be practical, this does not mean that you need to come up here and hand me a check afterwards. Please don't do that. That'll get me all kinds of trouble with the CRA. Please don't do that. Rather, when you give to the church, we do bless those who preach, not just myself, everyone who comes and preaches, we bless them. It's what God calls us to do. So, Give That's the point that Paul's getting to. Actually, we are to use, put our money where our faith is.
He's talking about money, but it's actually gonna be far more than that, as we're gonna see. Paul says here, verse 7, do not be deceived, God is not mocked. Now, what does he mean by that? I think this is what he means. See, you could come up and you could say to me, hey, pastor, I gave, I, I gave $10. It's, it's all that I had, and I will say, praise God. Thank you so much. I never see anybody who's giving, and I never will in this church. By intentionality. You can pull one over on me. It's not hard. So you, you could, you could tell me all kinds of things, and I wouldn't actually even know. But God will. You can't pull one over on God. He sees your heart and your bank account, both of them are fully within what God knows. Do not be deceived, God will not be mocked.
So you have to remember Paul's writing this not long after Ananias and Sepphira are literally, they drop dead because they are lying to God. Over exactly this. Do not be deceived, verse 7, God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. Paul here starts to use a farming analogy about planting seeds and harvest, you reap what you sow. We've all heard that saying, it's not a surprise. We live in Chilliwack, when you plant corn, corn grows up. You reap what you sow.
No farmer starts planting corn, and then goes, you know, but I'm really hoping for some apples. I'm really hoping I'll get some apples this year. No, of course not. Because you didn't sow apples, how could you expect to get them? And it's so obvious, we hear that and we go, of course, and yet we so have a trouble translating that into our spiritual life.
You see, pastor, you know, why, why don't I feel like I'm growing in my faith? I go home every day, and I take out my phone and I spend the next 6 hours scrolling through TikTok, Instagram and Facebook. I don't understand, why am I not growing in my spiritual life? I've been sowing into jealousy, lust and anger. It's weird, I keep getting angry all the time. You reap what you sow. What are you sowing into with your life?
Verse 8, Paul says, for the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption. But the one who sows to the spirit will from the spirit reap eternal life. Now Paul here, he's talking about not only our our money, yes, that's part of the discussion, but far more. All the resources we have at our disposal. And to be very clear, he's not saying if you give enough, you will get eternal life. No, that would be literally opposed to everything he has just said. No, the point of what he's saying is where your heart is, your money will follow. What you truly love is what you will spend your money on. What you truly desire is where your bank account will go, and here's the interesting thing, the opposite works as well. Where you start to spend your money, your heart begins to follow. It becomes a bit of a cycle, one following the other over and over again, either to help us desire more of God, or more of corruption.
So Where is your heart going? Where are you leading it to go? Perhaps one of the greatest threats to our church in North America is just how easy it is to satisfy the indulgence of our hearts. So to the spirit. In a very similar passage, 2 Corinthians Paul says, the point is this, whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. Whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. God is able to supply every one of our needs. Trust him.
This is not a call to be irresponsible with the money that God has entrusted into our hands. Rather, it is the call to invest it wisely. And do not miss the point, verse 9, let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap if we do not give up. Notice there, that's a promise. See, farmers, when they plant, they know that it is a risk. They put the seeds in the ground, and they get frost at the wrong time, rain at the wrong time, sun at the wrong time, and they can lose their crop, it's so easy for it to all go wrong. What Paul's saying here is, this is not a risk. Invest into the kingdom of heaven, this is a guaranteed return with the greatest return possible. Invest in the kingdom of God.
First Timothy Paul says to the rich, he says, they are to do good, to be rich in good works, and to be generous, ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life. Invest your money, your effort, your time into heaven. Again, far beyond just finances, this is every part of our lives. Do not grow weary of doing good. Look, we're not saved by good works, we're saved for good works. We're not saved by working for our salvation, rather in the freedom of the salvation of Jesus, we can then work for his glory. And don't give up. It is not meaningless.
1 Corinthians 15, therefore my brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. Your work, your good deeds, none of it will be meaningless, none of it will be lost. By the grace of God, our efforts here echo for all time of the supreme goodness of knowing our God. Every time we give, every time we serve, what we are saying is that my heart wants Christ more than anything else.
So then, verse 10. So then as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith. Be a blessing to everyone. We are called to bless by our good works, even as there is a priority to give to the church. The Bible does actually give us priorities for how we should use our resources. We're to take care of our family, we're to take care of our church family, we are to bless others. This isn't an exclusion, this is a priority.
And so I'm gonna be pretty direct here, cause Paul is being pretty direct here. If this is your home church, give, serve. If this isn't your home church, don't give, don't serve. You're under no compulsion. But the biblical command is, look after the household of faith, look after your brothers and sisters, and sow into what has eternal significance. Again, Paul doesn't say it's, it's for the good of the church, though it is. It's for the good of the reputation of Christ, though it is. He says it's for your good. So give, serve, so to the spirit.
The church is to be the place where the love of Jesus is made known. We are set free from the law, so that by the spirit, we can love one another, caring for one another, spiritually, lifting one another out of the mire of sin. Even as we recognize we are sinful, and we need the help of others. We demonstrate the love of God as we give, as we serve one another's practical needs. Will not be those who love in words only, but in action. Put on display God's love, getting ready for an eternal harvest of joy for us in heaven. Let us love one another. Let's pray together.
Oh heavenly Father, we are so grateful for the example that Christ has set for us. He has gone ahead of us and shown us what does it look like to love one another, to sacrifice for the good of one another. Father, as we trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of our sins, would we trust in you to follow his example. Lord, we pray, would this be a place known, marked by your love. Where we care for one another, where we look out for one another, where we support and encourage, rejoice with one another and weep with one another. Father, would you give us hearts that reflect you. In all that we do, Father, I pray, would we be glorifying to you. We ask this in your name. Amen.