Restoring, Sowing, Boasting in the cross Galatians 6 · Join the Journey

Restoring, Sowing, Boasting in the cross

Galatians 6

Growing up, one of my neighbors was a commercial fisherman. He would go out fishing all night with these big drag nets, and the next day he would bring those nets home and stretch them out along his driveway.

Every once in a while, he would pay my brother and me to help him repair them. We would walk up and down that net looking for the tears. When we found one, we would sit down and begin tying the net back together.

That net was important because the next night he was going back out to fish. If there was a tear, you couldn't ignore it. That small tear could become a bigger tear, and eventually the fish would simply swim through the hole. So we would find the tear, repair it, and strengthen it so the net could go back to doing what it was designed to do.

As I thought about Galatians 6, I couldn't help but think about those nets. For the last several weeks, Paul has shown us what it looks like to walk by the flesh versus the Spirit. Now, in chapter 6, he shows us what that Spirit-filled life looks like when we live it together. We are a family. And because we are connected to one another, when one of us is hurting, struggling, or caught in sin, it affects all of us.

So as we finish Galatians today, Paul gives us three pictures of what a Spirit-filled life looks like: We restore one another. We sow to the Spirit. And we boast in the cross.”

If you have your Bibles, turn with me to Galatians 6. 2 Corinthians, Ephesians

Restore One Another

Galatians 6:1-6

Galatians 6:1–6

Paul has spent five chapters telling us that we aren't justified by keeping the law. But now he tells us there is a law we willingly live under—not a law that earns our salvation, but the law of Christ: love one another, carry one another's burdens, restore one another.

Paul says that if someone is caught in sin, those of us who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. Notice what Paul doesn't say.

He doesn't say, "If someone annoys you, go confront them." People are going to annoy you. People are going to do things differently than you would do them. Sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do is pray about it and let it go.

Paul isn't talking about being annoyed. He's talking about someone who has been caught by sin. The picture is someone who is running the race, but they have become entangled.

Hebrews 12:1 says that we are to "throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles."

Hebrews 12:1

Have you ever seen a runner get something wrapped around their feet? They don't want it there. They didn't wake up that morning saying, "I hope something trips me up today." But they get caught. And when you're caught, you need somebody to help you get untangled. That's what Paul is talking about.

The goal isn't to stand over somebody and say, "Look what you did." The goal is to help them get back up and start running again. That's why Paul uses the word restore. The word carries the idea of putting something back into proper condition—like setting a broken bone so that it can heal properly. Think about that.

If you break a bone, the doctor doesn't take the broken bone and throw it away. They set it. They stabilize it. They care for it. And they give it time to heal. That's restoration.

And that's how the family of God is supposed to respond when someone is caught in sin. Not with pride. Not with gossip. Not with condemnation. Not with, "I knew they weren't really a Christian."

But with gentleness. "How can I help you get back up?" "How can I walk with you through this?"

That's why relationships matter so much. You can't restore somebody you don't know. You can't carry somebody's burden if you don't know they're carrying one. You can't encourage somebody if you're never walking beside them.

That's why relationships matter at Journey Church. We walk side by side through the messiness of life—praying for one another, encouraging one another, and holding one another accountable.

And sometimes, because we love one another, we have difficult conversations with one another. Because love doesn't just tell people what they want to hear. Love tells people what they need to hear.

But before Paul tells us to restore someone else, he gives us a warning.

"Watch yourself." Test your own heart. Why are you confronting this person? Is it because you're angry? Is it because you want everybody else to know what they did? Is it because you want to feel superior?

Or is it because you love them and you want to see them restored? There is a huge difference between confronting someone because you want to prove them wrong and confronting someone because you want to help them become right with God.

Jesus gives us the same principle in Matthew 18.

Matthew 18:15

“If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over.

If your brother or sister sins, go to them privately.

Notice the order. You don't go tell everybody else first. You don't turn it into a prayer request that is really gossip. You don't put it on Facebook. You go to them. And you speak the truth in love.

If they listen and repent, praise God!

That's the goal.

Restoration.

But if they don't listen, Jesus gives additional steps for bringing others into the conversation. And even when church discipline eventually becomes necessary, the goal isn't revenge. The goal is restoration.

Paul gives us an example of this in 1 Corinthians 5 when he tells the church to remove an unrepentant man from their fellowship.

1 Corinthians 5:5

hand this man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh,, so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord.

Even church discipline isn't ultimately about punishment. Paul says the goal is ‘so that his spirit may be saved.’ The goal is still restoration. So when we live by the Spirit, we don't look for opportunities to destroy people because of their sin. We look for opportunities to restore people from their sin.

Restoration isn't usually a one-conversation event. If someone has been caught by a sin, they may need somebody walking beside them for a long time.

That's what the family of God does.

We don't just point out the hole in the net.

We help repair it.

We help carry one another's burdens.

We help one another get untangled.

We help one another get back up and keep running.

Sow to the Spirit

Then Paul moves from restoring one another to something every one of us needs to ask: What are you sowing?

Galatians 6:7-10

Galatians 6:7–10

Paul says, "A man reaps what he sows." That's an agricultural principle.

A farmer understands that you reap what you sow—you don't plant corn and expect to harvest soybeans. And Paul says the same thing is true spiritually. If you continually sow to the flesh, you will eventually reap destruction. But if you sow to please the Spirit, you will reap eternal life.

So let me ask you: What are you sowing? Because every day, whether you realize it or not, you're planting something. And eventually, we're going to reap what we've been planting.

If I spend all my time feeding anger, bitterness, lust, greed, jealousy, and selfishness, I shouldn't be surprised when those things start showing up in my life.

But when I sow to the Spirit—when I spend time in God's Word, when I pray, when I worship, when I serve, when I forgive, when I encourage, when I give, when I love people who are difficult to love—I'm planting seeds that the Spirit can use to produce something beautiful.

Paul isn't promising that if you make good choices, you'll automatically have an easy life. He's talking about the direction of your life.

Then Paul gets very practical. He says, "As we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers."

In other words: Look for opportunities to do good.

Don't just wait for somebody to ask. Look around. Who needs encouragement? Who needs prayer? Who needs practical help? Who needs your time, your talent, or your treasure?

Here at Journey Church We follow the example of Jesus who sacrificed self for the needy, hurting and lost. We put our faith into action by mobilizing to help our community and world, even when called to sacrifice and suffer to care for their needs over our own.

That's what sowing to the Spirit looks like. And we don't only do good when it's convenient. Because Paul says something else that is important.

Don't grow weary in doing good.

And that's hard. Because sometimes you do good and nobody says thank you. Sometimes you invest in someone and they don't change. Sometimes you pray and God doesn't answer when you want Him to. And eventually you can start thinking, "What's the point?"

Paul says: Don't give up. Because the harvest is coming.

It may not come on your timetable. It may not come in the way you expected. It may not even come in this lifetime. But God is not wasting your obedience. Every act of love. Every sacrifice. Every prayer. Every time you choose forgiveness over bitterness, generosity over selfishness, and obedience over temptation—you are sowing. And in God's proper time, there will be a harvest.

So don't stop doing good. Keep sowing. Keep serving. Keep loving. Keep giving. Keep praying. Keep showing up. Because you may not see the harvest today, but God sees the seed.

So let me give you 4 questions for you to ask yourself this week to find out what you’re sowing.

What are you sowing into your relationship with God?

• Scripture

• Prayer

• Obedience

What are you sowing into your family?

• Time

• Encouragement

• Forgiveness

What are you sowing into your church family?

• Serving

• Encouragement

• Generosity

What are you sowing into the lost and hurting?

• Relationships

• Gospel conversations

• Practical help

But Paul isn't finished. Because there is one more question we need to ask. After we've restored one another and after we've spent our lives sowing into others, what are we going to boast about?

Boast in the Cross

Now Paul brings us to the end of the letter.

Galatians 6:11–18

As Paul closes this letter, he exposes the motivation behind the false teachers. They wanted to boast. They wanted to look good, gain people's approval, and avoid persecution. But Paul says, "Not me." Look at verse 14: "May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Think about that. Paul could have boasted in his ministry, his accomplishments, or his religious credentials. But none of that was his source of glory. He boasted in the cross.

Why? Because the cross reminds me that I couldn't save myself. The cross reminds me that I wasn't good enough. The cross reminds me that my religious accomplishments couldn't make me right with God. The cross reminds me that Jesus did for me what I could never do for myself. The cross takes away my pride.

But at the same time, the cross gives me incredible freedom. Because if my salvation depended on how good I am, I'd have to spend every day wondering if I've done enough. But if my salvation depends on what Jesus has already done, I can rest in His finished work.

That's why Paul doesn't boast in himself. He boasts in Jesus. And notice something else. Paul says he bears the marks of Jesus on his body. Paul's ministry wasn't easy. He was beaten. He was persecuted. He was rejected. He suffered because of the gospel. And yet he doesn't look at those scars and say, "Look how tough I am."

He says, in effect, "These are the marks of belonging to Jesus." The very thing the false teachers were trying to avoid—persecution because of the cross—was the very thing Paul was willing to endure because he knew Jesus was worth it.

So let me ask you the question: What are you boasting in?

What makes you feel valuable? What makes you feel successful? What makes you feel like you're somebody?

Is it your job? Your family? Your accomplishments? Your morality? Your ministry? What is the thing that, if God took it away, would make you feel like you weren't somebody anymore?

Paul says all of those things pale in comparison to one thing: The cross.

Because at the cross, I am reminded that I am more sinful than I want to admit—but I am more loved than I could ever imagine.

At the cross, I don't have to prove myself.

At the cross, I don't have to impress God.

At the cross, I don't have to compare myself to anybody else.

At the cross, I can lay down my pride.

I can lay down my failures.

I can lay down my shame.

Because Jesus has already done what I could never do. So Paul says: "May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ."

I want to bring this back to the fishing nets I told you about at the beginning.

My brother and I would walk up and down that driveway looking for the tears in the net. And when we found one, we didn't stand over it and say, “Look at this hole.” We didn't throw the net away because it was damaged. We got down beside it and repaired it. And I think that's a picture of what Paul is calling us to do for one another.

When our brother or sister is caught by sin, we don't stand back and point at the hole. We get close. We speak the truth in love. We pray with them. We walk with them. We help carry their burden. We help restore them.

But Paul also reminds us that every day, we're sowing something.

The question is, what are you sowing?

What are you planting in your relationship with God?

What are you planting in your marriage and your family?

What are you planting in your church?

What are you planting in the lives of people who don't know Jesus?

Paul says, “Do not become weary in doing good.” Keep sowing. Keep serving. Keep loving. Keep praying. Because even when you can't see the harvest, God sees the seed.

But there's one more thing we have to remember. We can hear a message like this and walk away thinking, “I just need to try harder. I need to do more. I need to be a better Christian.” But that's not the gospel.

The only reason we can restore others is because Jesus restored us.

The only reason we can sow to the Spirit is because Jesus gave us new life.

And the only reason we have hope is because Jesus went to the cross, died for our sins, and rose again.

That's why Paul ends this letter by saying:

“May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

So what are you boasting in?

Maybe you've never trusted Jesus. Maybe you've spent your life trying to be good enough, trying to earn God's approval, trying to prove your worth.

You don't have to earn what Jesus has already purchased for you.

You simply need to come to Jesus. Stop trusting yourself and trust Jesus. Turn from you sins, repent. Surrender to Jesus in baptism. Come today.

So as we close Galatians, let me leave you with three questions:

Who needs you to help restore them?

What are you sowing?

And what are you boasting in?

Because at the end of the day, there is only one thing worth boasting in:

The cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.