Galatians 5:25-6:10

So, I wonder what it is that you think makes a Christian a really spiritual Christian.

! Or a really spiritual person.

You look at this person and you think the spirit is really with them.

! They are really spiritual.

Maybe you imagine a monk style Christian who floats around on a cloud of holiness

and no problems touch them.

Maybe someone with unusual spiritual gifts.

Speaking in tongues or something like that.

Well, Paul actually has a different kind of a vision of a spiritual person here.

Remember, if you were here last week, Paul contrasts the work of the flesh

and the work of the spirit in a person.

And Christians are people who are no longer relying on themselves, the flesh, to be right with God.

But they are taken over and empowered by the Holy Spirit who joins them to Jesus Christ.

And so Christians are spiritual people.

In verse 25 there, he says we are to walk in step with the spirit.

So we are to be the people that we are, spiritual people.

But Paul wants to now show us what the spiritual life looks like.

But what does a spiritual Christian look like?

And it's more run of the mill than we expect.

And if you notice the main theme now in our passage,

it is all about how our spiritual life is seen in our relational life.

The main theme here is how relationships are changed and conducted by spiritual people.

If you just scan over the bookends of this passage, you can see that.

See the mention of the word us.

Let us keep in step with the spirit.

Let us not become conceited.

The repetition of the phrase, one another.

Not provoking one another.

Envying one another.

Bearing one another's burdens.

And then at the bottom in verse 10,

Let us do good to everyone, especially the household of faith.

You see, you can see how spiritual I am when I am with us.

Spirituality, for Paul, is gauged on how you relate to other people, one another.

And it's about here dealing with each other's mess,

each other's failures and sins in real world relationships.

A couple of things about this here.

He says spiritual people, first of all, have a sense of corporate empathy.

Number one, spiritual people deal with each other charitably.

Spiritual people deal with each other charitably.

So if you look at chapter 6 verse 1 there,

what Paul does there, he pictures a situation

where someone has transgressed.

They've sinned against God.

If anyone is caught in a transgression.

So that's the scenario.

And the spiritual person should respond in a certain way.

To restore that person in a spirit of gentleness.

So the response of a spiritual person should be

to agree with Paul here

in how he describes what this sinner has done.

He describes it actually with great charity

and understanding.

This person in the scenario,

they've sinned against God in a serious way.

But the emphasis in the way that Paul describes it

is on them falling into this transgression.

The emphasis is on the unwitting folly of a transgression

that they've been caught in, he says.

Like a bird caught in a trap.

It's something that a person has done

and it's been really, really stupid.

But he emphasises this sin as a mistake

rather than a deliberate, remorseless act.

Now it doesn't take away the responsibility

of this person's transgression or sin.

But the spiritual person is to view

other people's sins in that way.

The spiritual person is to give other people

the benefit of the doubt.

Not to sweep wrongdoing under the carpet.

No.

He says that things must be restored.

That person must be restored.

The wrongs done must be straightened out.

Wrong things must be set in order.

That person is to be brought back from sinning.

Stop doing it.

But there's to be a sympathy about it.

Sympathy about other people's failings

and empathy.

And the truly spiritual person,

the one who walks in step with the spirit,

is like that.

They empathise with other people's failings.

And just in the wider context,

I think the reason for this,

this emphasis,

it comes from a corporate understanding

amongst spiritual people

of the battles that truly spiritual people face

against sin and against temptation.

And only a person who has the Holy Spirit dwelling within them

will get that.

And will sympathise with that.

If you remember in our passage last week,

he's just been talking about the war that goes on

in every Christian life

between the flesh,

Paul's way of describing

the kind of leftovers of ourselves

after we've trusted in Jesus Christ.

The flesh that opposes the Holy Spirit's work

in your life.

And there is this battle going on

within a Christian.

The Apostle Peter,

he writes,

I urge you to keep yourself

from the passions of the flesh

that wage war on your souls.

The enemy within

is the flesh

who fights against the Holy Spirit's

guiding and leading

to keep you from doing the things you want to do,

remember Paul said.

And the noise of that war

in every Christian life

is there for everyone.

None of us,

if we've trusted in Jesus Christ

and have his Spirit,

are immune to that battle.

Actually,

the war is a sign that you do belong

if that battle is going on.

So each truly spiritual Christian

is in the trenches.

We're all brothers and sisters in arms.

In arms against

the passions of the flesh

which wage war against our souls.

Against the temptations

of the people that we used to be

and who we were.

The old me and the old you.

I don't know if you saw any of the commemorations

from D-Day on the TV last week.

What was it that kept those veterans

heading up the beach

towards the German lines?

Well,

in the kind of stories

and the interviews,

one of the kind of common thing

that came out across all of them

was that most of them

were not thinking about themselves.

They were thinking about the man next to them.

That was what got them up the beach.

It wasn't a question of me,

but it was a question of us.

And there was this sense of corporate progress

being together

that got them through it.

And thinking like that

is heading towards

what Paul is on about here.

Especially when it comes to

other people's failures.

A church father

once said about the sins of a close friend,

he fell yesterday

but I may fall today.

Because when we're engaged in this battle,

as we walk

in step with the Spirit,

at times the man or woman next to us

might fall.

And the battle that goes on

in our own hearts

is so fierce

and so scary

that we can't help sympathise with others.

And hold our hands out

and grab

the fallen Christian next to us.

It is to our shame, isn't it,

that we glory

in the failure of others at times.

I do that to my shame.

In my heart

I rewrite Galatians chapter 6.

Galatians 6 · chapter mention

If anyone is caught in a transgression

I should feel smug about that.

And I can say

I could have done so much better.

I'm like the Pharisee

in the story told by Jesus.

Thank you Lord

that I'm not like them.

But do you know

that lack of empathy

that we often display

really comes from

an immaturity

and an inexperience

in the war

that goes on

in the Christian life.

And the most spiritual people

Paul is arguing here

are the veterans

who can sympathise

with other people's failures.

failures.

Since they are the veterans

of failure

after failure

after failure

restored by God's grace

each time.

Paul is saying

that that is

the sign of a spiritual person

who has this empathy.

Because the spiritual person

by definition

knows what it feels like

to be at war

with the flesh.

And when you fail

my first response

should be

brother

sister

I've been there.

I've also fallen.

I've heard

the noise of war

as well.

And so if we

lack sympathy

we're just

acting like civilians

with no

understanding

and no experience

of the battle.

And a person

who lacks

empathy

and seeks

to restore

another

fallen believer

but in a spirit

of harshness

I'd suggest

knows little

of the war

with the flesh.

Little

of the opposition

that he poses

because actually

he runs

riots within them

with no opposition

whatsoever.

The unsympathetic

person

knows nothing

of the malice

of the flesh

because actually

they've made him

their best friend.

Paul adds

in verse 2

bear one

another's burdens.

It is the sense

of struggling

together against

the weight

and the pressure

of temptation.

So there should

be this corporate

sense of empathy

amongst truly

spiritual people

those who are

walking in step

of the spirit

to deal with

others charitably.

Secondly

though

there should be

an individual

sense of

honesty.

deal with

others charitably.

Number 2

deal with

yourself

humbly.

Deal with

yourself humbly.

We shouldn't

misunderstand

Paul here

because as

he emphasizes

relationships

that us

Paul is

not saying

that the

truly spiritual

person has

no thoughts

about themselves

actually to be

charitable to

others and to

know how to

relate to

others properly

we do need

to think about

ourselves and

have the right

view of

ourselves.

And a lack

of empathy

Paul goes on

to say is the

symptom of an

elevated view

of yourself.

Let's look at

verse 3

Now do you

see the logic

here?

He says the

stuff about

relating to

others gently

verse 3

4

there's the

linking words

if anyone

thinks he is

something

when he is

nothing he

deceives himself.

So how you

are with others

springs from

how you are

with yourself.

There are some

stories going

around of

people who've

lied on their

CVs for

job applications

and they got

into a situation

where the

truth has

finally had to

come out.

One candidate

was applying

for a position

as an academic

in the field

of philosophy

at a top

university

and in his

CV he claimed

that he'd

studied under

the German

philosopher

Friedrich

Nietzsche

who the only

problem with

that was that

Nietzsche died

over a hundred

years ago

and that came

out in the

interview and

the truth

came out.

another

lied on his

CV that he

mastered the

piano by the

age of seven

but at a

kind of board

of directors

launch event

they brought

in a grand

piano without

warning him

and told him

to play

for the whole

group.

The truth

had to come

out at that

point.

Now they're

silly stories

aren't they

but they

illustrate a

point here

that these

bad relationships

and harshness

and envy

and conceit

amongst the

Galatians

is due

to an

overblown

sense of

self-importance

and that

leads to

this lack

of empathy

and of

deceiving

yourself

about yourself

it's like

fudging the

spiritual CV

so the

original

Greek of

verse 3

if anyone

thinks he's

something when

he's nothing

he deceives

himself

is probably

a bit stronger

than how it

seems in the

English.

Paul is

saying there

don't think of

yourself as

something because

actually on

your own

you're nothing

it's really

strong.

apart from

what God

has given

you and

made you

to be

you are

nothing

and he's

not just

talking here

about your

skills and

your gifts

and your

abilities but

your very

being

who you

are

what you

are

and he's

saying who

do you

think you

are

when without

God you

are nothing

you are

nobody

so the

antidote to

unspiritual

unsympathetic

harshness with

others is to

view yourself

humbly to

admit that

all anyone

is is by

the grace of

God alone

and it's

really a

question isn't

it of which

standards you

use to

assess yourself

and that is

really important

because we

are to assess

ourselves and

to think of

ourselves and

judge ourselves

verse 4

let each

one test

his own

work

we are to

judge and

assess ourselves

but the

question is by

which standard

because the

very easy

thing is

to compare

ourselves with

others isn't

it

verse 4

that's the

concern

that your

boast will

be or his

boast will be

in himself

alone and not

in his

neighbour

but the

standards of

our lives

and the

way that we

view ourselves

is so often

based on the

failures of

others isn't

it

other people's

faults

kind of become

our norms

the sort of

line of

acceptable behaviour

we make it

too easy for

ourselves

as long as

I'm better

than them

and I haven't

sinned in that

way I'm good

I'm okay

that's one of

the ways that

we deceive

ourselves

because I

haven't done

that sin

well that

makes me

someone

but if

there's a

reason to

boast it

should be in

yourself alone

and not in

your neighbour

and those

sort of

comparisons really

don't matter

what matters

is what you

do yourself

and there is

another standard

that Paul gives

us not

other people

it's there in

verse 2

bear one

another's

burdens and

so fulfil

the law

of Christ

we're told

here use

God's

measures

on yourself

not your

measures

that you've

cooked up

in comparison

with someone

else

so someone

else's

failure is

neither a

reason for

me to boast

because I've

been there

in the war

in the battle

and neither

are they a

reason to

slacken off

as we see

others fail

their sin

does not

excuse me

or become

the standard

of my

conduct

no we are

to bear

our own

load

verse 5

so let me

try and wrap

up a little

bit

Paul is

saying isn't

he here

that you

cannot be

truly spiritual

you cannot

walk in

step with

the Holy

Spirit

and do

what agrees

with him

and merely

keep yourself

to yourself

that the

flesh asks

what about

me

but the

spirit

saying here

what about

us

what about

your brother

and sister

you can't

be a

Holy

Spirit

walking

stepping

with the

spirit

kind of

Christian

and not

commit to

other

brothers and

sisters

you can't

belong to

Jesus

and walk

in step

with his

spirit

if you

don't have

an interest

in Jesus

people

there is

no such

thing as

an independent

stay at home

Christian

unless your

circumstances

are really

extreme

Jesus

teaches us

to pray

our

father

not my

father

if you've

got no

interest in

that

or you're

only interested

in picking

open the

wounds of

fallen

brothers and

sisters

and loving

that

and sort

of revelling

in their

failures

and rebuking

in a spirit

of harshness

Paul is

saying look

you are

acting like

a civilian

who knows

little of

the war

between

flesh

and spirit

if your

first

response is

to someone

else's

failure

I could

have done

better

you are

deceiving

yourself

no you

couldn't

you are

only what

you are

by God's

grace

without

God

you are

nothing

St.

Augustine

says there

is no

sin which

one person

has committed

that another

person may

not commit

also

Luther adds

we all

stand in

slippery

places

and so

we've got

a great

sympathy

haven't we

for

brothers and

sisters

that we

know

for folk

who find

themselves

caught in

some sin

or other

and they

are really

sorry

and it's

been a

stupid

thing

and we

aim to

help restore

them in

gentleness

and empathy

and that

kind of

response

that is

what true

spiritual

Christianity

looks like

never mind

all the

razzmatazz

it is about

messy

one to

one relationships

between

brothers and

sisters

and only

people who

have the

spirit

of God

have been

there

and can

sympathise

because of

the battle

and can say

there but for

the grace of

God go I

he or she

fell yesterday

but I may

fall today

and the

mature

spiritual

veteran

comes alongside

the fallen

and says

stand up

brother

stand up

sister in

arms

together we

stand

against our

common enemy

the flesh

and I've

been there

let's pray

brothers and

Thank you.