SLIDES

The Book of Galatians 6:2-5

(Part 26)

Introduction

The Marines have a motto based on the Latin phrase “Nemo Resideo” which means. “No man left behind.” The other military branches have similar phrases or mottoes related to the idea of "never leaving a man behind." While the exact wording may vary, the core principle of not abandoning comrades is a shared value.

World War II, soldiers often found themselves in life-or-death situations. One hero, a medic, refused to leave anyone behind, risking his own life multiple times to drag wounded comrades to safety. His actions epitomized the idea of bearing one another's burdens, as he would carry them on his back, sometimes while under enemy fire! Just like this medic’s selflessness, true friendships mean sharing not only in the good times but the challenging times too, carrying each other's burdens regardless of the risk involved.

During a team sport, a player might fall and get injured. The rest of the team doesn't abandon them; they rush to help, offering support and care. As we shall see today in our lesson, in our spiritual community, we are called to respond similarly when a fellow believer falters. We should gather around them with love and encouragement, illustrating the unity of the body of Christ. This active support is crucial to healing and restoration, as it mirrors Christ’s love for us. We must not shoot our wounded or throw people under the bus

After Paul finished listing the fruit of the Holy Spirit at the end of chapter 5 in verse 23, he began to give practical ways in which we as believers in Jesus can put the fruit of the Spirit into action that he continued through 6:10. As believers in Jesus, the Lord wants us to demonstrate all nine fruit of the Holy Spirit in our lives each day. The Lord wants us to give aide, comfort, and spiritual and physical help to others, beginning with the Body of Christ. Demonstrating the fruit of the Holy Spirit in our lives can take many forms. Some of the fruit of the Holy Spirit can be demonstrated as we help others in time of need. In this first section, verses 1-10, Paul gives five imperatives or commands to the believers in the five churches in the district of Galatia that are as valid and practical to us today as they were 1900 years ago. Each of the imperatives can be associated in some way with the supernatural fruit of the Spirit.

1. Believers Have a Responsibility to Come to the Aid of Others (1-10)

Last week from Galatians 6:1 we learned that Paul exhorted mature believers to restore those are fallen and entrapped in sin. In verse 2 Paul give another command concerning helping those who have burdens too heavy for the person the handle.

b. Believers Have the Responsibility for Helping believers with their physical and spiritual hardships (2)

2 Bear one another’s burdens and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.

This could certainly include those who have fallen and entrapped in sin, but it seems that Paul is expanding the need for believers to help other believers in areas beyond those who are burdened with spiritual sin.

In the physical sense the word bear refers to helping someone with something to heavy for them to carry or lift by themselves. If a man was building house and could not lift a heavy beam in place i.e., he could not bear it by himself, it would behoove someone to help him lift that beam. John 19:17 says that Jesus had to bear or carry His own cross to Golgotha. Along the way, after being flogged, Jesus was too weak to bear the cross by Himself so in Matthew 27:32 we find that the Romans soldiers made Simon of Cyrene carry or bear the cross for Him. 

In this verse Paul is not referring to helping another believer bear a physical burden like helping them lift a heavy beam in place, although one could do that if one needed help, but instead he is referring helping someone with a spiritual or a physical hardship. Some may need help with some type of addiction or having some type of problem with a spouse, a child, a boss, or even another believer. In Romans 15:1-2 Paul gives a little insight on how we can help others. 

1 Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just please ourselves. 2 Each of us is to please his neighbor for his good, to his edification (to build up).

Those who are strong or mature in the faith have a responsibility to help those who are weak or immature in different aspects of their faith that needs strengthening. Sometimes this requires for believers not to be selfish with their time, resources, or expertise. Keep in mind that Paul is pitting the deeds of the sin nature or flesh with the fruit of the Spirit. One of the deeds of the flesh stinginess or selfishness when it comes to helping others in need, however Paul is commanding that believers display goodness instead. The fruit of the Spirit, goodness, as we discussed several weeks ago has everything to do with generosity.

Believers who help bear the burdens or hardships of other believers in need are fulfilling the law of Christ. Being generous when there is a need is fulfilling the Law of Christ, whereas being stingy or selfish is not. As I said earlier, Paul is pitting the fruit of the Spirit against the deeds of the flesh. By doing this he is also pitting the Law of Christ against the Mosaic Law. The Law of Christ is the laws, or better, the instructions found in the New Covenant for a believer in Jesus to follow and obey. The Judaizers of Paul’s day and the legalists of today want to follow the Mosaic Law that produces the deeds of the flesh but the New Covenant produces the fruit of the Spirit. New Covenant believers should never be concerned with keeping the Mosaic Law, but only the Law of Christ. 

In our class from time to time, there are individuals who are carrying heavy burdens. I am sure there are those who are maybe carrying a heavy burden right now. As each week and month passes, the frequency of this among our classmates will increase. Our care groups should be the first to help with these burdens. The leader and members of each care group should proactively reach out to those in need to see how they can help. We need to encourage them, help them, and pray for them. Helping others, as our class has shown many times, requires time and well as in helping others. One example of this is that men in our class are going to Don’s Smith house to spend some time with him to give Jane some non-pressure time that she needs.

3 For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.

It appears that verses 1 &2 are connected to verses 3-5. Paul has appealed to the believers in the five churches of Galatia, and indirectly to us, to help a believer who has gone astray spiritually and others who have spiritual and physics problems or heavy burdens. There are always those who like the immature believer who does not have any patience, the compassion, or the skill to help someone who has fallen into sin, they will usually hot help those in need spiritually or physically because they think they are better than those who are in sin or have a heavy burden to bear. They will spend any time helping those in need and will certainly not help them by being generous financially. Paul is clear that they are deceiving themselves because they think they are superior either spiritually or financially or both. When a believer gets in that position where he or she thinks they are better, smarter, more financially secure than others, it would be good to remember the words of the 16th century English reformer, John Bredford. He said, “There but the grace of God go I” We should always have the awareness and attitude that s aware that they could have been in a difficult situation themselves but were spared by God's grace or favorable circumstances. It's often used to express humility, acknowledging that their success or good fortune is not solely due to their own merit.

As we consider ministering to other believers, whether we like them or not, we must always remember what Jesus told His disciples in John 13:34-35.

34  A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

35 By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Paul’s words strike at the very heart of the Judaizers’ legalistic theology. Christianity does not center on the Law of Moses and its principle of strict justice but on the law of Christ and its principle of mercy and grace. The Spirit-bestowed fruit of love provides the supernatural ability to bear each other’s burdens with humility and gentleness.

4 But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting about himself alone, and not about another.

We know that people, even believers, love to compare themselves to others. Going back to verse 3, many think they are better, better, smarter, more financially secure than others and are doing a better job ministering to others than other people are. This is the flesh talking not the Holy Spirit. Instead of being conceited, Paul commands that each believer in Christ take a step back and take an objective and a biblical view of himself and his accomplishments. The word translated boasting NASB95, pride in other versions, is not a negative word in this contact but a positive word. Paul means that if we’re going to “boast,” we should boast in what God is doing through us by the power of the Holy Spirit, not in how much we think we’re surpassing other people in our spiritual lives. The problem is comparison to others and Paul dealt with this before 5:26. “Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.” Paul is saying something like this, “Instead of boasting about how much better you are than others—or envying others for how much better they are than you—recognize that you are personally accountable before God and don’t worry about everybody else around you.

5 For each one will bear his own load.

At first glance there seems to be a contradiction here. On one had Paul says

believers are to “bear one another’s burdens.  While, on the other hand, Paul

commands s believers “bear his own load.” This apparent contradiction is

resolved with the words translated burdens in verse 2 and load in verse 5. They

are translated from two Greek words. The Greek word translated burdens

refers to the need to come to the aid of others who cannot carry the crushing

burden physical and spiritual problems. The Greek word translated load means a weight or burden that an individual must suffer for himself or family must carry for themselves. It’s like an individual who has a disease such as cancer, flu, Covid, Parkinson’s, etc. alone or a woman carrying a baby alone that they can only deal with. It’s also some that is very difficult or problem that a family that must carry as a family alone such as a family death. I know a pastor who lost his wife and his children who just lost their mother unexpectedly.

Remember studying John Donne in English literature in high school?  He was  born in 1572 and became a poet and scholar. He was not celebrated as a writer until the 20th century. Donne converted to Anglicanism and became a priest in the Church of England. In his famous poem, “No Man is an Island,” he wrote this.

No man is an island,

Entire of itself;

Every man is a piece of the continent,

A part of the main.

Pope Francis had several inspiring quotes: One was "Rivers do not drink their own water; trees do not eat their own fruit. The sun does not shine on itself, and flowers do not spread their fragrance for themselves. Living for others is a rule of nature. We are all born to help each other."

Isn’t that exactly Paul’s point in 1 Corinthians 12 about the Body of Christ??

13   For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.

14   For the body is not one member, but many.

20   But now there are many members, but one body.

26   And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.

27   Now you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it.

John Donne ‘s expression that no man is an island, Pope Francis quote about helping each other, Paul’s point in 1 Corinthians 12, and the lessons we have learned in Galatians 6:1-5 stress we in the Body of Christ should show that we as believers are responsibility for coming to the aid of other believers in need with humility and compassion.

SELAH