Have you ever heard a really good musician play or sing? I mean reaallly good. We marvel at the freedom they have to pick up their instrument and play whatever music they like. Do they feel like playing classical music? Well, OK then! Jazz? No worries. Rock? Pop? Easy. Fast, slow, high, low… doesn’t matter, they’re up for it. And it’s like they don’t even have to think about it, like they could, if they felt so inclined, be playing a game of chess and reading a book on the side! What wouldn’t you give to have that kind of freedom?

What did they give for that freedom? In most cases, that freedom has come at the cost of long hours of practice, tuition, practice, performance, practice, theory, practice and study. Oh, and did I mention practice? Many of us will have started down the path of learning an instrument, a language, a sport, or some other skill. Sometimes this is at the prompting of our parents, part of our schooling, or simply following a fad (yo-yos anyone?). But unless that skill finds a resonance within us, unless we come to a place where the discipline to continue flows from within us, we will never be truly free.

In the same way, the freedom of the Christian life must spring from the Holy Spirit within us; it cannot be imposed from without by the law, or by anything else. Yet that does not mean that we will not do what the law commands. Both the musician who enjoys her music and the one learning at the behest of her parents go through the same routines – practising and performing – but for the one this is freedom and for the other a kind of bondage. So, too, Christians will naturally do the things that the law requires; but for them it is an exercise of freedom rather than bondage. They are not freed from the law, but freed to fulfil the law.¹

But what does that look like? In Galatians 5:13, which we looked at last week, the Apostle Paul wrote:

You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.

In these two sentences, Paul describes the Christian life both negatively and positively: do not indulge the sinful nature, but do serve one another in love. We looked at the first part of this last week, from Galatians 5. This week, in chapter 6, we return to the idea of serving one another in love.

Serving one another in love (Gal 5:14; 6:1-6)

When Paul says ‘serve one another in love’, the verb means ‘to perform the duties of a slave’.² What a paradox: we Christians are called to be free… to be slaves to one another.³ This doesn’t seem to fit easily into our category of ‘freedom’; but, then, neither would practising scales, or kicking goals, or memorising verbs. Yet all of these contribute to freedom in their own way.

In Galatians 6, Paul gives us examples of serving one another in love. In verse 1 he describes a Christian being ‘caught in a sin’. Sad to say, Christians do fall into temptation and sin. But we, as a loving Christian community, are called to ‘restore’ them, a word used for setting a fractured bone,⁴ or mending broken nets (Matt 4:21 // Mark 1:19). This action is both positive and active.⁵ Our response should not be to condemn them, saying, ‘It serves them right.’ Nor should we stand aside with the excuse, ‘It’s none of my business.’ We should not gossip to others, ‘Did you hear what Frank did?’ We are not even called to report them to the pastors or elders.⁶ No, we are instructed to ‘restore’ him or her, to assist them in getting back on the right path. When a bone is broken, it must be set, bound up and reinforced with splints and casts; so too when a Christian is engulfed in the brokenness that sin brings, they will need to be set right and offered support.

Who is responsible for this restoration? Paul addresses the command to ‘you who are spiritual’ (Gal 6:1). Given that Paul has just finished instructing the Galatians to ‘keep in step with the [Holy] Spirit’ (Gal 5:25), the ones who are ‘spiritual’ are the Galatian Christians and, by extension, all Christians.⁷ That means you and me. And we are to do this ‘gently’; in fact, only Christians are characteristically gentle, for gentleness is one of the fruits of the Spirit described in the previous chapter.⁸

We are also instructed to do this watchfully, lest we also be tempted (Gal 6:1). I do not think Paul is only referring to us being tempted to sin in the same way as the one we are restoring, though this is also possible. If we are helping someone to repent of unfaithfulness, or greed, or violence, or pornography then the folly of these things is clearly before us in the brokenness of the one we are helping. More insidious is the temptation to be judgmental, or self-congratulatory that you have not failed in the same way (or, perhaps, you’ve just hidden it better?). Paul jumps on these things straight away:

If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, for each one should carry his own load. Gal 6:2-5.

Christians can be self-deceived about their own work and worth in two ways. The first is comparison, where we find someone who is ‘worse’ than us, and say, ‘Gee, aren’t I doing well by comparison – I must be a wonderful Christian’; or we find someone doing ‘better’, and say, ‘They’re doing so much better than me – I must be a terrible Christian.’ Either way, we deceive ourselves, because God does not assign worth in such ways.

The second way Christians deceive themselves is by failing to test their own work. I am a software engineer, and it is a well known maxim amongst engineers that, ‘If it’s not tested, it’s broken.’ Testing is how we find out when something is defective or broken. This is not a new concept. In fact, the Greek word used here for ‘test’ was often applied to the purification of gold. The gold is melted, and any impurities within it simply burn away. Thus the testing is both the means and the proof of quality and purification.

But what is the standard for such testing, if not comparison with others? Paul offered us a number of useful markers of a high-quality Christian life – that is, a spiritual life – in Galatians 5: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Ask yourself honestly, do you see these things in your life? Are you growing in them? Do they characterise your relationships with others? Test your life and works against this standard, and see how they fare.

It is vital that we do this testing, otherwise we will either neglect to bear one another’s burdens or to bear our own load.⁹ Note that there is no contradiction here, for two different words are used, translated ‘burden’ and ‘load’ respectively. The context here suggests that the first is a load too big to be borne alone, whereas the second is rightfully the responsibility of the person who carries it. In fact, the latter is often used of a soldier’s pack or knapsack. We are to bear one another’s ‘burdens’, which are too heavy to be carried by one person alone, but there is one burden that we cannot share, and that is responsibility for our own actions.¹⁰ Even when we are receiving help from the believing community, we are still responsible for what we do or don’t do. We cannot rely upon other members of the church to read the Bible for us, to pray for our families, to teach our children, or to steward our resources. Though we may receive help in all of these areas, the responsibility is upon us to do it.

The same may be said of the church as a community. If we spend our time comparing ourselves to other churches (‘They have more people,’ or ‘We are more involved in mission,’ or ‘Wouldn’t it be nice to have their resources,’ or ‘They teach some rubbish there,’ or whatever) then we may fail to partner with them in burdens that should be borne together, or fail in carrying the load we ought to be responsible for. We cannot leave the work of global or local mission to other churches, just because they have more people, or more money. We must contribute to the work of Scripture teachers in our schools, we must participate in things like Operation Christmas Child, Live Below the Line, 40 Hour Famine and so on. These are burdens that are too big for one church to bear alone. But we must also meet our own responsibilities. We cannot sit back and wait for someone else to disciple and teach us, or to care for the needs of our congregation. If our ministry depends on us employing pastoral staff (Gal 6:6), having a church building, and sending out missionaries, then we must take ownership of those things. When someone in our church is sick, or grieving, or suffering, we as a church are to be at the forefront of meeting that need for it is our responsibility. These things are our ‘load’ to carry as a church.

Life in the Spirit is community life: we are called to care for others, to serve one another in love, to bear one another’s burdens. But we are also instructed to carry our own loads.

Growing in service: sowing and reaping (Gal 6:7-10)

But how do we become individuals and a community that does these things? Paul says that what you sow determines what you reap. ‘It is not the reapers who decide what the harvest is going to be like, but the sowers.’¹¹ If we want to become people who are spiritual, who live life in the Spirit, we must sow the things that are of the Spirit. If, however, we sow the things of the sinful nature, we should expect to reap a life and a community of the same kind, one where people are ‘conceited, provoking and envying each other’ (Gal 5:26).
How do we know which are which? Back in chapter 5, Paul gave us some examples of both acts of the sinful nature and fruits of the Spirit. Every time we wallow in self-pity, or nurse a grudge, indulge in impure fantasies, envy our neighbour, lash out in anger or snipe about someone behind their back we are sowing to the flesh. Rather than a good harvest, such a farmer should expect only a harvest of weeds, good only for the fire (Matt 13:24-30).¹²

This lines up with our own experience doesn’t it? When we think and act in sinful ways, the consequences tend to be sinful as well. Speaking harsh words produces enmities. Gossiping results in ill will. Lust grows sexual impurities. Worse still, ancient farmers would use a portion of their crop as seed for the next year’s crop. But if we keep planting weeds, pretty soon we will have nothing but weeds to plant!

I read a book some years ago that describes the same problem from a different angle. Speaking of doing battle with sexual temptation, this book describes our sex drive as a sumo wrestler. In one corner is Mr Sex Drive – fed up on ‘a billion meals of lust and fantasy’.¹³ In the other corner… you. Things don’t look good – he’s many times bigger than you, and consistently, effortlessly, sends you flying out of the ring. The book goes on to explain that the only way to overcome is to ‘Starve the sumo’. By cutting out the sumo’s food – sexy movies, TV, music, websites etc. – you can reduce his power over you, and even the odds in those contests in the ring.¹⁴

What is true of one appetite is true of others as well. The more you ‘feed’ them, the stronger they become; you must learn to deny them their desires. Starve that sumo! Work out what it is feeding on, and do whatever you need to to eliminate or avoid those things. Is it drunkenness? Don’t hang out in pubs. Is it pornography? Don’t use the computer in your bedroom, or leave the door open. Do you struggle with negativity or gossip? Choose carefully who you spend your time with. Remember from last week Paul’s declaration and promise: ‘Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.’ Crucifixion may be a slow death, but it is a certain one. Stop sowing thoughts and acts of the sinful nature into your life, because what you sow controls what you reap.

But it is not enough just to stop sowing bad things. We must also start to sow the good things, the things that please the Spirit. Again, Paul gave us a list of examples in Galatians 5:22-23: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Sow these things into your life. Do you have the opportunity to make peace with someone you’ve quarrelled with? Do it! Is your neighbour struggling with their children, groceries or housework? Give them a hand! Forgive those who have wronged you, and seek forgiveness from those you have wronged. When you sow the things of the Spirit, you can expect a harvest in kind. And just as farmers use one harvest as seed for the next crop, so you will be able to replant this harvest. It has been truly said, ‘Sow a thought, reap an act; sow an act, reap a habit; sow a habit, reap a character; sow a character, reap a destiny’.¹⁵

For these reasons, Paul’s command is to sow, and keep on sowing. The only thing that can threaten the one who sows Spiritual things is ‘weariness’ that causes us to lose hope and ‘give up’ (Gal 6:9).¹⁶ Crops do not spring up overnight, sumos are not starved in a day; and an instrument is not mastered in an instant; neither does Christian character magically appear straight away. But if you are tired of sowing, and leave half your field unsown you will only reap half a crop.¹⁷ We must be patient, knowing that the fruit of our harvest lies in the future rather than immediate gratification, yet is no less valuable for that. Sow the word of God (Gal 6:6). Sow into your own life, sowing to please the Spirit (Gal 6:7-8). Sow into the lives of all people, and particularly fellow believers (Gal 6:10).

Friends, ‘as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people’ (Gal 6:10), not as a way of earning salvation but in response to the salvation and promise already received, the hope of a ‘harvest if we do not give up’ (Gal 6:9).

Boast in Christ (Gal 6:11-18)

As he comes to the conclusion of this Epistle, Paul leaves off dictation and takes up the pen to write the final paragraphs in his own hand (Gal 6:11). In so doing, he returns to the topic of circumcision, exposing the motives of those who are promoting it. These motives are: (1) making a good impression; (2) avoiding persecution; and (3) having grounds for boasting. Let’s examine these in turn.

As already noted, the desire to compare ourselves to others stops us from loving one another and bearing one another’s burdens. Well, so does the need to ‘make a good impression’. When caught up in this way of life, we get so focused on how we can impress our ‘audience’ that we don’t stop to consider whether our actions are loving or not. We may bear someone else’s burdens, but only if it makes us look good, if we think we might get credit for it. In the case of the Galatians, the circumcision party were clearly looking to impress other Jews: ‘Look how many have converted to Judaism because of our preaching.’ Possibly the ones tempted to agree to being circumcised wanted to show off their devotion and piety. In both cases, the result was alienation from Christ (Gal 5:4) and slavery imposed and received respectively. Modern day equivalents might be those who exult in the number of baptisms or church members they have, their association with other famous Christians or churches, participation in certain conferences or singing certain music.

Who are you trying to impress? Do you want your Christian friends to notice how you’re always talking about Jesus, how you go to church twice on Sundays, you know all the words to all the songs, how well you know your Bible and so on? Or perhaps it is your non-Christian friends who are on your radar. Is it important that they know you give to charity and that you care about the environment? To my shame, when I was in uni, I used to try and distinguish myself from the ‘super-Christians’ on campus by being almost aggressively non-evangelistic, in order to convince my non-Christian friends that though I was a Christian I was alright to hang out with. I invite you to stop and think about the way you relate to others: what is it that drives your behaviour? Is it the fruit of the Spirit growing within your life? Or is it just you trying to make a good impression?

The circumcisers were also trying to avoid persecution. Paul himself had been an avid persecutor of the church, as he relates in Galatians 1:13-14, 24, and there were doubtless many other Jews out doing the same. Perhaps there was also security in being part of a recognised religion, protected under Roman law. Whatever the case, Paul himself was evidence that persecution was a normal part of the Christian life (Gal 6:17). It is to be expected. As we learned last week, the Christian life is one of conflict between the forces of the sinful nature and those of the Spirit.

It also seems likely the circumcision party were attempting to minimise or make up for the ‘offense of the cross’ (Gal 5:11). The cross is the ultimate symbol of human failure, man’s inability to meet God’s requirements on his own. This is still an unpopular message today, and proclaiming it is likely to result in both offense and persecution. Try telling a non-Christian that they do not, indeed cannot, match up to God’s standards. Try explaining to them that any attempts on their own part at closing the gap actually make it worse. In most cases, the initial reaction is one of offense, often followed by persecution. Yet we must not try to ‘tone down’ the cross in an effort to make it more palatable and less offensive. We cannot afford to compromise, for to compromise is to be alienated from Christ (Gal 5:4).

The third motive for law-keeping is a desire to boast. Not all boasting is bad. In fact, Paul contrasts two different types of boasting in these closing verses. ‘Once more, at the end of his letter, he returns to the antithesis of cross and circumcision, setting them forth this time as representing respectively the true and false ground of boasting’.¹⁸ Negatively, Paul says that the circumcisers are looking to boast about the Galatians’ flesh, much as David offered up 100 Philistine foreskins in order to become King Saul’s son-in-law (1 Sam 18:25-27).¹⁹ Yet they are hypocrites, who for all their enthusiasm about others obeying the law, fail to keep it themselves!

Over against this example, Paul set himself. Where the Judaisers boasted about the law and the benefits of circumcision, Paul boasts about the cross of Christ. The circumcisers claim a wound in their flesh as their badge of honour; Paul, though he bore that same wound, boasts in the far more profound wounds of crucifixion (Gal 6:17).²⁰ Back in chapter 5 Paul said:

In Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. Gal 5:6

Here he reiterates:

Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is new creation. Gal 6:15

The cross of Jesus Christ was the means by which God has brought about new creation.²¹ The cross marks an absolute break between the old and the new world, and the distinction between circumcision and uncircumcision belongs to the old world. What matters is that you belong to the new creation.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, if you are looking for something to boast about, make sure it is this:

• Jesus Christ lived the life we could not live, in complete fulfilment of the law, and nothing we can do can compare to that.
• Jesus Christ died on a Roman cross to pay the penalty for our sins we could not pay, and nothing we can do can add to that.
• Jesus Christ rose from death, bringing new creation and new life to all who believe in him, and nothing we or anyone else can do will take away from that.

The Christian life is not about boasting in what we have, can or will do; it is boasting about what Jesus has done!

Bibliography

Arterburn, Stephen, Fred Stoeker, and Mike Yorkey. Every Young Man’s Battle: Strategies for Victory in the Real World of Sexual Temptation. 1st ed, The Every Man Series. Colorado Springs: WaterBrook Press, 2002.

Boice, James Montgomery. Galatians. Edited by Frank E. Gaebelein and J. D. Douglas. Accordance electronic ed, Expositor’s Bible Commentary. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1977.

Bruce, F. F. The Epistle to the Galatians: A Commentary on the Greek Text. Accordance electronic ed, New International Greek Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1982.

Cole, R. A. The Letter of Paul to the Galatians : An Introduction and Commentary. 2nd ed, The Tyndale New Testament Commentaries. Nottingham: Inter-Varsity Press, 1989.

Fung, Ronald Y. K. The Epistle to the Galatians, The New International Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1988.

Keener, Craig S. The Ivp Bible Background Commentary: New Testament. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1993.

Longenecker, Richard N. Galatians. Accordance/Thomas Nelson electronic ed, Word Biblical Commentary. Waco: Word Books, 1990.

Schreiner, Thomas R. Paul, Apostle of God’s Glory in Christ : A Pauline Theology. Leicester: Inter-Varsity, 2001.

Stott, John R. W. The Message of Galatians. Accordance electronic ed, The Bible Speaks Today. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1984.

Endnotes

1. ‘Freedom in Christ does not entail freedom from ought (Gal 5:1, 13); it provides freedom to carry out what ought to be done.’ Thomas R. Schreiner, Paul, Apostle of God’s Glory in Christ : A Pauline Theology (Leicester: Inter-Varsity, 2001), 231.
2. BDAG, s.v. δουλεύω.
3. John R. W. Stott, The Message of Galatians, Accordance electronic ed., The Bible Speaks Today (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1984), 142. R. A. Cole, The Letter of Paul to the Galatians : An Introduction and Commentary, 2nd ed., The Tyndale New Testament Commentaries (Nottingham: Inter-Varsity Press, 1989), 206.
4. James Montgomery Boice, Galatians, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein and J. D. Douglas, Accordance electronic ed., Expositor’s Bible Commentary (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1977), n. p.
5. Stott, Galatians, 160.
6. Though this would clearly be appropriate in the event of criminal wrongdoing, as would notifying the relevant secular authorities.
7. Richard N. Longenecker, Galatians, Accordance/Thomas Nelson electronic ed., Word Biblical Commentary (Waco: Word Books, 1990), 273.
8. Stott, Galatians, 161-2.
9. Boice, Galatians, n. p.
10. Stott, Galatians, 159-60.
11. Ibid., 166.
12. F. F. Bruce, The Epistle to the Galatians: A Commentary on the Greek Text, Accordance electronic ed., New International Greek Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1982), 265.
13. Stephen Arterburn, Fred Stoeker, and Mike Yorkey, Every Young Man’s Battle: Strategies for Victory in the Real World of Sexual Temptation, 1st ed., The Every Man Series (Colorado Springs: WaterBrook Press, 2002), 132.
14. Ibid., 132-4.
15. We should also note in passing that it is also true that the more you sow, the more you reap. If you sow generously, you will get a large crop; if you sow sparingly, your crop will be small (2 Cor 9:6).
16. Cole, Galatians, 230.
17. Stott, Galatians, 171-2.
18. Ronald Y. K. Fung, The Epistle to the Galatians, The New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1988), 300.
19. Boice, Galatians, ad loc.
20. Craig S. Keener, The Ivp Bible Background Commentary: New Testament (Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1993), ad loc.
21. Fung, Galatians, 308-9.