LESSON 6
LIVING AS A CHRISTIAN SHOULD…UNDER GRACE
Galatians 6:1-18
Memory Verse: 6:2
Introduction:
Just because we are saved by Grace and not by works of the Law, does not mean that we should live irresponsible lives. Grace is not a license to do evil. Those who look upon it in that manner, knowing nothing of Christian responsibility, doubtless know nothing of the Grace of God!
In this chapter the apostle exhorts to the exercise of various things, which greatly become professors of religion, such as meekness towards backsliders, love to the saints, modesty in themselves, and beneficence to others; exposes the hypocrisy and ambition of the false teachers, in order that the Galatians might beware of them, and not be ensnared by them. —John Gill’s Expositor.
I. BEARING BURDENS vv. 1-5
(See the fruit of the Spirit in chapter 5:22-23, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.)
A. Our Duty in Regard to a Brother in Error, vv. 1-2.
1. What are OUR OBLIGATIONS to others? v. 1.
a. “Love one another” mentioned OVER 10 TIMES in New Testament.
1) The Lord gave us this “new” commandment, John 13:34, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.”
2) The Lord reminded His Church about this GREAT NEED of love for one another, John 15:12, 17, “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. 17 These things I command you, that ye love one another.
3) The Apostle Paul taught the churches to love one another:
01. The Church at Rome, Romans 13:8, “Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.”
02. The Church at Thessalonica, 1 Thessalonians 4:9, “But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another.”
b. “PRAY for one another,” James 5:16, “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
c. “EDIFY [to BUILD UP OR PROMOTE growth in Christian wisdom, affection, grace, virtue, holiness, blessedness] one another,” 1 Thessalonians 5:11, “Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.”
d. “PREFERRING [to go before and show the way] one another,” Romans 12:10, “Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another;”
“Saints should think honorably of one another, and entertain an honorable esteem of each other; yea, should esteem each other better thou themselves; and not indulge evil surmises, and groundless jealousies of one another, which is contrary to that love that thinks no evil.” —John Gill’s Expositor.
e. “Use HOSPITALITY one to another,” 1 Peter 4:9, “Use hospitality one to another WITHOUT grudging.”
f. “BEAR ye one another’s BURDENS [load],” Galatians 6:2, “Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.”
“It is when one’s load (verse 5) is about to press one down. Then give help in carrying it.” A. T. Robertson’s NT Word Pictures.
g. “By LOVE SERVE one another,” Galatians 5:13, “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.”
1) Here Paul hints at their unloving contentions springing out of LUST OF POWER, 1 Corinthians 9:19, “For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more.”
2) There is a sad and dangerous tendency of a behavior CONTRARY to the attitude of Christian love, Galatians 5:15, “But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.”
2. Only the “SPIRITUAL” can “RESTORE [ to make, fit, to equip thoroughly], v. 1; Matthew 4:21, “And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them.”
Note Paul is not endorsing the restoration of a willing religious heretic but of a “brother” who has been overtaken.
3. The goal is RESTORATION, NOT CONDEMNATION, Matthew 23:4, “For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.”
4. Meekness and NOT SELF-IGHTEOUSNESS should be the attitude. To the woman taken in adultery Christ said in John 8:11, “Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more.”
5. Bear the burdens of others, v. 2.
a. This is the same Greek word used here in John 19:17, “And he bearing his cross went forth into a place called the place of a skull, which is called in the Hebrew Golgotha:”
b. By bearing the burdens of our brethren we fulfill the law of Christ, John 13:34-35, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. 35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”
B. Our Duty in Regard to OUR OWN ATTITUDE, vv. 3-5.
1. We are NOT to manifest PRIDE and CONCEIT, v. 3; 1 Corinthians 10:12, “Wherefore let him that THINKETH HE STANDETH take heed LEST HE FALL.”
2. Each person should TEST HIS OWN WORK, v. 4; Galatians 5:26, “Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.”
3. Do NOT EXPECT others to bear YOUR BURDENS, v. 5; Jeremiah 17:10, “I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.”
Note: In chapter 6:2 the word for burden is “BáROS,” but in chapter 6:5 the word for burden is “PHORTíON.” “The difference between ‘phortion’ and ‘baros’ is that ‘phortion’ is simply something to be borne, without reference to its weight, but ‘báros’ always suggests what is heavy or burdensome. Thus Christ speaks of His burden (phortíon) as ‘light’; here ‘báros’ would be inappropriate, but the burden of a transgressor is ‘báros,’ ‘heavy.’” —W. E. Vine, Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words.
II. SHARING BLESSINGS vv. 6-10
A. They Had a Duty to Return to the True Teachers, v. 6. These Galatians, having been led astray by false teachers are here exhorted to return to fellowship with those who had taught them the truth, Malachi 3:7, “Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts….”
B. The Irrevocable Law of Sowing and Reaping, vv. 7-10.
1. God establishes this principle in His Word.
a. Job 4:8, “Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.”
b. Proverbs 22:8, “He that soweth iniquity shall reap vanity: and the rod of his anger shall fail.”
c. Hosea 8:7, “For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind:”
d. Hosea 10:12-13, “Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain righteousness upon you. 13 Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have eaten the fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way, in the multitude of thy mighty men.”
e. 2 Corinthians 9:6, “But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.”
f. Proverbs 11:18, “The wicked worketh a deceitful work: but to him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward.”
2. The sowing to the flesh and the bitter harvest, vv. 7-8. See Gal. 5:15-21. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, 10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.”
3. The sowing to the spirit and the WONDERFUL harvest, v.8. See Galatians 5:16, 22-25.
a. Be filled with the Spirit, Ephesians 5:18, “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;”
b. These are the sons of God, Romans 8:14, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.”
4. Failure to keep on causes many to fail at harvest, v. 9; 1 Corinthians 15:58, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”
5. Our duty to do good, v. 10; 1 Thessalonians 5:15, “See that none render evil for evil unto any man; but ever follow that which is good, both among yourselves, and to all men.”
III. THE MARKS OF FREEDOM vv. 11-18
A. A Call to Sacrificial Love, vv. 11-13.
1. Paul wrote the letter with his own hand, v. 11. There is reason to believe that Paul’s thorn in the flesh was eye trouble. See 2 Corinthians 12:7, “And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.”
2. The Judaizers (the false prophets) compromised rather than suffer, v. 12; 2 Corinthians 11:13, “For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.”
3. Their adherence to the Law was for selfish reasons, v.13.
a. Being circumcised the Judaizers were OBLIGATED TO KEEP the Law, but they DID NOT, Romans 2:17-23.
“It is probable that these persons did not pretend even to keep the whole law of Moses. Paul insists on it, that if they were circumcised, and depended on that for salvation, they were under obligation to keep the whole law. But they did not.” —Barnes Notes.
b. Their PRETENSE was for their OWN glory.
“In having you as converts, and in persuading you, to be circumcised, that they may show their zeal for the law, and thus escape persecution.” —Barnes Notes
B. A Call to Return to the Cross of Christ, vv. 14-15.
1. Glorying in the Cross and NOT in the flesh, v. 14. Note that there are three crucifixions in this verse:
a. Christ crucified, i.e., His actual death on the cross, v. 14, “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.”
b. The world crucified, Philippians 3:7-8, “But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. 8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,”
The world and its pleasures are convicted felons, therefore, the believer should see the world convicted and dying. It is not actually something desirable, but something dead and decaying. ELB
c. The believer crucified unto the world.
1) The cross of Christ is OFFENSIVE to the world, Matthew 11:6, “And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.”
2) When the believer lives a crucified life, the world wants NOTHING TO DO with him. Galatians 2:20, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”
2. In Christ it is NOT RITUAL that counts but the NEW BIRTH that makes us NEW CREATURES, v. 15; 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
C. A Call to RECOGNIZE the RESULTS of the Spiritual Walk, vv. 16-18.
1. The spiritual WALK [according to this “STRAIGHT” RULE, i.e., the SCRIPTURES] brings PEACE and MERCY, v. 16; Ephesians 2:14-17, “For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; 15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; 16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: 17 And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.”
2. Paul’s body was MARKED by persecution, but he CONTINUED TO STAND for the faith, v. 17; 2 Corinthians 11:23-25, “Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft. 24 Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. 25 Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;”
3. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and our spirit, v. 18.
REVIEW OF GALATIANS
Chapters 1 & 2 –Christian Experience–Personal
Chapters 3 & 4 –Christian Doctrine–Doctrinal
Chapters 5 & 6 –Christian Character–Practical
I. Warnings of another gospel–Chapter 1: 6-8, “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.”
II. Paul’s defense of the gospel–Chapter 2
A. Before the council.
1. He had been sent to the Gentiles.
2. His was the gospel of the uncircumcision.
B. Before Peter.
1. He was to be blamed.
2. Paul was dead to the law, vv. 19-20, “For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”
III. The Law cannot save; it can only curse–Chapter 3
A. They were bewitched into leaving the true gospel.
B. “The law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ.”
IV. We are no more servants, but sons–Chapter 4
A. We were in bondage.
B. Now we are free in Christ.
C. Now we are sons.
D. Now we are heirs.
V. The flesh and the Spirit–Chapter 5
A. To return to the law is to fall from grace.
B. We have liberty in Christ.
C. We are to serve one another.
D. We are to be under the Spirit’s control
1. To walk in Him.
2. To be led by Him.
3. To live in Him.
VI. Bear ye one another’s burdens–Chapter 6
–Lesson by E. L. Bynum / Russ Brown; Revision by Art Davison