Sermon Number 14
The Characteristics of a Stable Congregation (6:1-10)
Part 1
Jim Bordwine, ThD
Introduction
We have come to the close of Paul's important letter to the Galatian churches. What have we learned? We've learned that these were congregations in turmoil because of false teaching, teaching which contradicted the true gospel, teaching which was being presented by men who challenged and maligned the apostle Paul. We've also learned the importance of the gospel of Jesus Christ. That gospel and that gospel alone reveals to sinners that salvation is by grace through faith alone. If that gospel is altered, if it is set aside, then there is no hope for a man ever to be made right with God. His good works, regardless of the character of his efforts, will not save him. Only Christ saves.
If you are writing such a letter, how do you close it? Paul has issued some strong warnings; he's given some stinging rebukes. He's exposed the false teaching and has reestablished the place of the gospel in the thinking of the Galatians. Should Paul simply say, “goodbye, I hope to visit soon”? Of course, Paul doesn't do this. In fact, the way this letter closes makes me think that Paul is looking toward the future and believes that these congregations will survive the false teaching and will prosper once again. What makes me think this is the fact that Paul closes with some exhortation regarding how solidarity is gained and maintained in a congregation.
As this letter comes to a close, Paul imparts information designed to stabilize the congregations in Galatia. They have been rocked by false teaching and the dissension and turmoil which accompany false teaching. These folks needed to be reminded of certain basic characteristics which they should strive to exemplify as they recovered from the assault of the Judaizers. How would they return to normalcy? How could they regain their footing in Christ's Kingdom and continue on as productive churches? What about the harsh words which, no doubt, had been spoken to one another? What about the mistakes which had been made and what about the misunderstandings regarding motives which must have been found in abundance in Galatia? How do you repair that and how do you survive to be churches which bring honor to the Lord?
The apostle tells the Galatians how to do this. These words were written to congregations which were on the verge of falling apart. Paul chooses to close his epistle by reminding the Galatians of a few fundamental principles which will, if they are quick to listen, bring them stability once again and guarantee them a prosperous future together as Christ's servants. I believe that what Paul has to say as this letter ends is of great importance to us, not because we are in the same condition as the Galatian congregations, but because he covers some basic material which we, I think, need to hear.
We are at a place in our history where we need to be reminded of what brings stability to a congregation. We've been together for eight years and it's easy to forget what motivated those families which formed the core group for this work; and it's easy to forget what motivated those families which have become part of this congregation over the years. Thanks to Paul's closing exhortation to the Galatians, we are going to be reminded of what really matters when it comes to maintaining stability in a church, stability which allows us to be effective, truly effective for our dear Savior who gave Himself for us and who calls us to serve Him and His Kingdom for as long as we walk this earth.
Gal. 6:1 Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. 2 Bear one another's burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ. 3 For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another. 5 For each one will bear his own load. 6 The one who is taught the word is to share all good things with the one who teaches him. 7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. 8 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. 9 Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary. 10 So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.
01. A Stable Congregation Is Characterized by an Obvious Patience (vv. 1-5)
The atmosphere of the Galatian churches was charged with emotions and people were probably quick to point accusing fingers, quick to jump to conclusions, quick to listen to negative reports and quick to see the worst in one another. As Paul gives this instruction, he does not have in mind those who had abandoned the gospel; when he talks about some being “caught in any trespass,” he has in mind a brother or sister who unintentionally-not through deliberate planning-commits a sin. In this context, a slight misstep might prove your undoing because of the tender condition of the church. At another time, your mistake might not cause much of a problem at all, but when folks around you are on edge, a minor lapse, even an imagined one, could easily be blown out of proportion and the result could be much more damage than would ordinarily be warranted.
In that phrase “if anyone is caught in any trespass…,” the word translated “caught” (prolambano) refers to something which comes by surprise. Paul is referring to the common offenses found in any congregation, offenses which arise from our imperfection as sinners who, although we are saved by grace, still are in the process of being sanctified. In a less volatile environment, such offenses would not cause a wide-spread response; but in the Galatian congregations, at this particular time in their history, minor offenses could quickly become major issues.
There would be, no doubt, a critical spirit lingering after the episode with the Judaizers. If not checked, this spirit could cause the Galatians to pounce on one another or take some perverted satisfaction is a brother's fall. Paul is looking toward the recovery period, as I said; he is anticipating how things might be once the Galatians get back on track with the gospel. There was a danger that the Galatians would not be able to maintain fellowship, which would be essential as they faced the future and tried to recover from the recent problems.
You'll notice that Paul doesn't identify specific infractions, which is all the more reason to believe that he has common shortcomings in mind. He is not concerned with the trespasses, but with the responses to the trespasses. Here we have revealed one of the keys to peace and prosperity in any congregation. Paul teaches these Christians that their main concern when someone stumbles is not the offense, but the restoration of the brother who has lapsed. This is a particular perspective which the apostle desires to impart.
So, while he does not concentrate on the offenses which might occur, Paul does give specific instruction regarding how the Galatians were to treat the brother or sister who stumbled. The Galatians must quickly gain control of themselves and be prepared to deal with trespasses in the most productive manner possible. This would be the key to their survival as congregations, as I mentioned. They would have to subdue their current tendencies to devour one another (cf. 5:15) and develop an attitude which focused on restoration and unity.
Therefore, Paul writes: “You who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.” (v. 1) The “spiritual” to whom Paul addresses these remarks, are those in the Galatian congregations who were mature and, therefore, desirous of maintaining unity. These were the folks who would listen to Paul and correct themselves, if necessary, instead of allowing their natural inclinations to dictate their responses to trespasses. The duty of those truly interested in maintaining peace and promoting spiritual health in these congregations was to “restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness…”
Notice that Paul is referring to one of those fruits of the Spirit mentioned previously. “Gentleness” was listed specifically. The Christian who is seeking to live a life influenced by the Holy Spirit will be gentle, as Paul taught before. Therefore, when the opportunity of a trespass arises, such a person will exhibit that particular quality and deal with the offender with gentleness. Paul is giving a practical application of what he taught regarding the leading of the Holy Spirit in the previous passage. Here is what a Spirit-led Christian does when confronted by a trespass committed by a brother or sister. You do not destroy the offender, Paul says, you gently restore the one who has lapsed.
The word “restore” (katarkizo) literally means “to mend” or “to repair.” Used in an ethical sense, as it is here, the word means “to strengthen, complete or make one what he ought to be.” I have to emphasize again the perspective which Paul wants the Galatians to have when it comes to dealing with one another's weaknesses. When a brother stumbles, Paul teaches, gently assist him and do what you can to “make him what he ought to be.” How different this instruction from the apostle is compared to what normally happens in a congregation! Normally, a trespass results in talk about the person, bad reports about the person and a secret sigh of relief because we are not the one who has fallen. But Paul teaches that the first concern of the one who sees his brother or sister stumble is restoration.
Then, Paul adds, “each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.” This is where the humility to restore instead of criticize comes from. The “spiritual” Christian recognizes that he, too, is susceptible to temptation. This time, it's his brother who made a mistake, but the next time, it could just as easily be him. The truth which keeps Christians from responding wrongly to the sins in a brother's life is what Paul identifies here-it is knowing that you, too, are a sinner and that you, too, are surely capable of falling short and that you, too, in fact, do have areas in your life which are less than perfect. When a whole congregation thinks this way, then everyone in the congregation is ready to help the one who stumbles instead of ready to boast of self while pointing to the fallen brother or sister.
This is why I'm calling this first characteristic of a stable congregation “an obvious patience.” You have patience, loving and gentle patience, with your brothers and your sisters when you realize that you are just as imperfect as your brother and no less susceptible to lapses than your brother. Congregations are not composed of the perfect faction and the imperfect faction; congregations are not made up of the super-spiritual and the sub-spiritual. Congregations are composed of sinners, all of whom are making their way to heaven, all of whom have faults, all of whom are going to let you down at one time or another, and all of whom would really appreciate a helping hand when they stumble instead of critical remarks, sighs of disgust and rapidly circulating reports to your friends.
Knowing the composition of a congregation causes us to have forbearance toward one another; knowing this causes us to sympathize with that brother or sister who has been caught in some trespass. If the Galatians could just manage to understand and implement what Paul is saying here, they would survive and prosper and rebound from their encounter with the Judaizers. Otherwise, if they let the critical spirit flourish, they would be destroyed in a short time. No congregation can survive and be healthy and bring honor to the LORD if the members stand by and watch a brother struggle instead of running to his aid. Recognition of mutual imperfections is what holds a church together.
To be just as clear as possible, Paul continues and says: “Bear one another's burdens...” (v. 2) This is what this characteristic of patience means; it means that you take on the struggle of your brother as your own. It means that when he stumbles, you are troubled with him, not about him. This is how a body functions. Each member looks for ways to help out every other member. Each member refrains from taking advantage of a brother's sin; instead, each one does what he can to get that brother back up on his feet knowing that this is what helps the whole body and it is the health of the whole body which is every member's primary concern. This is what it means to be spiritual, this is what it means to be gentle and this is what it means to be patient. This characteristic of patience is what allows a church to be composed of imperfect people and yet continue to function, continue to meet, continue to worship and continue to grow in the knowledge of God. So, patience, as Paul is describing it here, is vital.
And notice what he adds: “and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.” Bearing one another's burdens and having the kind of attitude which Paul has been describing is to be like Christ; it is to follow the example He left; it is to fulfill the demands He makes of us by His own holy example. If you want to know what Christ looks like when He is at work in a congregation, then this is it, Paul teaches. Christ is seen in the believer who recognizes the faults of others, but comes to their aid, nevertheless. Christ is seen in the believer who comforts the one who has fallen instead of criticizing them and making their experience more difficult to bear. Treat others as Christ treats you, Paul implies, and you will do well.
Paul's next statement is pointed: “For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.” (v. 3) The context tells us what Paul means. He means that the Christian who thinks he is above the trespass which has caught his brother or the Christian who sees a brother fall and thinks, “Ha! That could never happen to me!” is only deceiving himself. He doesn't understand his own nature; he doesn't understand his place in the body; he doesn't understand the concepts of mercy, love, gentleness, goodness or, above all, patience.
Instead of being concerned to catalog all the faults in others, instead of standing at the ready with pen in hand to record the trespasses and shortcomings of another Christian and then running to the phone to give a report to someone else, Paul says “examine your own work first!” (v. 4) That is, look at yourself before you look at a brother; take note of your life before you get too worked up about that brother who has a fault or that sister who has a weakness-they all have faults and weakness and so do you! If you want to worry about someone's progress in the faith, Paul teaches, then worry about your progress. That will be a full-time job.
Follow this advice, Paul says, and then, if you have something to “glory in” (which is the meaning of the word translated “boast”) or something to get excited about, the focus will be you and not your brother or sister. It seems obvious that Paul is being a little sarcastic here. If you want to boast about something, he says, don't let it be the faults of your fellow-believer; let your boasting be based on your life. Of course, after what Paul already has written, the implication is that there will be no cause for true boasting if the believer looks at his own life because he'll find that he is just as prone to error as others.
The final verse of our passage states: “For each one will bear his own load.” (v. 5) Did not Paul just say that we should bear one another's burdens? Why does he now say that “each one will bear his own load”? The answer is in the immediate context in which Paul is saying that Christians should concern themselves less with one another's shortcomings, and more with their personal problems. He just means, “mind your own business” when it comes to identifying weak spots or areas in need of work. He is not negating what was stated in v. 2. There, Paul is speaking of the duty believers have to help one another; here, he is talking about the duty believers have to put their own house in order before worrying about the condition of a brother's house.
We'll return to the next two characteristics of a stable congregation next week. For now, let's consider what Paul has said about having a patient attitude toward one another.
Conclusion
For this application, I want to return to the meaning of that word “restore,” which is found in v. 1: “Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness…” You'll recall that this word means “to make one what he ought to be.” This is a guiding philosophy for any congregation. This is a watchword which could define the way believers in a church treat one another, how they view trespasses, how they react to faults and weaknesses and mistakes. If everyone in a congregation had this attitude, this attitude of patience toward one another, this attitude of wanting to help when a trespass occurs instead of wanting to add to the offender's burden, then imagine what kind of blessed place that would be.
There is something which I recently noticed about Paul's epistles. Whenever he is dealing with disgruntled Christians, whenever he is writing about a situation in which there is likely to be some who are disappointed in their leadership or disturbed by the behavior of others or bothered by what they perceive to be misdirection for the church-whenever Paul writes regarding such circumstances, there is one thing which he never does. Do you know what that one thing is? The one thing which Paul never does is advise his readers to leave. And Paul covers some pretty difficult situations in his letters. But no matter what the problem is, no matter how serious the threats to fellowship may be, no matter what might have transpired, he never tells believers that the solution is for them to depart.
This doesn't mean that Paul expects Christians simply to live with problems or false teaching. He expects them to fix it; he expects them to make things right; he expects believers to count the unity of the body more important than their own level of comfort. This is the only attitude which will allow a congregation to be stable. Otherwise, if the members are touchy, if they hear this or that negative thing and just take off with it and don't bother to check the facts or if they know that a brother has stumbled and they don't pray for him or offer him counsel, then there is no way that such a congregation is going to be stable and no way that such a congregation is going to endure, year after year.
In Paul's mind, the operative word is “restore,” not “depart.” No matter how difficult the task, no matter how long it takes, Christians are called to bear one another's burdens and thus act like Christ. We do not act like Christ when we pass hurtful information around about a brother or sister instead of going to their aid. We do not act like Christ when we choose to criticize those in authority over us instead of praying for them and committing ourselves to help them.
There is an approach to living with imperfect people and Paul explains that approach in this passage. You simply realize that, yes, all these folks are imperfect and, yes, they are going to let me down from time to time and, yes, they are going to get on my main Reformed nerve every once in a while, but that is “ok,” because I am one with them and they are one with me and together, together, we will serve the Lord and we will help one another and we will pray for one another and we will live like brothers and sisters in the family of God. What a wonderful way to participate in the life of a church! What a testimony to the work of grace going on in all of our lives!
Folks, it is no honorable testimony when Christians talk about one another and assign impure motives to actions and put the worst spin on conversations. That's how the ungodly behave. That is not how Christians are supposed to behave. We are supposed to be dedicated to one another. When someone falls, Paul says that we should “restore him.” And remember that the kinds of things Paul is talking about in v. 1 of this chapter are not deliberate, calculated sins; they are imperfections, faults, weaknesses and mistakes in judgment. When you are dealing with these kinds of issues in a church, Paul teaches, the answer is not to get bothered and become cranky and spread hurtful information. The answer is to make the church what it ought to be, which is a community of grace, a community of forgiveness, tenderness, kindness and, as Paul said, gentleness. All of these things are found in the characteristic of patience.
Patient people realize that those around them are not perfect and are, therefore, going to stumble now and then. Patient people understand that just because it looks like an offense was intended doesn't mean it really was intended. Patient people give others the benefit of the doubt. Patient people are not quick to believe a bad report, but they are quick to put an end to rumors and unnecessary talk. Patient people want to see all of their brothers and sisters prosper in the Lord because they know that together they all are the body of Christ. Patient people are understanding people; they understand that we are all sinners in the process of being sanctified and they understand that they, too, are subject to faults.
If we do what Paul teaches, we will work for the unity of the church, not its division. If we do what Paul teaches, we will not be so sensitive that we cannot be talked to and we will not be willing to let our dear church suffer just because it is made up of people who are less than perfect. We will rejoice in our ongoing sanctification and we will have great joy in walking together on the road of life and we will count it a blessing to help a brother or sister with a fault and we will welcome the input of others into our lives. This is how a congregation maintains stability so that something truly marvelous can be accomplished through her. That truly marvelous accomplishment is the establishment of a community in which patience with one another leads to a unity not seen in this fallen world.