Participants: Mark Howard & Jim Howard
Series Code: GBOTB
Program Code: GBOTB00012B
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00:05 Welcome back, before the break we were talking about
00:09 Galatians 6 and the apostle Paul's ammunition to bear 00:12 one another's burdens. 00:14 He talks about hearing one another's burdens and 00:16 fulfilling the law of Christ. 00:18 What we have been discussing Mark, is that we can't fulfill 00:22 the law of Christ and be indifferent to the needs of our 00:26 fellow brothers at the same time. 00:28 If we are going to be like Christ we can't have that 00:31 indifference, we have to a have compassion 00:33 for those who are in need. 00:35 - That's right person is converted, Paul says Christ 00:37 lives in me and we know how Christ lives. 00:40 Christ does not live with that indifference towards 00:42 people, so if we had that indifference that should tell 00:45 us we need a deeper experience. 00:47 Well Jim we are going to jump into chapter 6:3 and 00:51 it says here in Galatians 6:3, "for if anyone thinks 00:56 "himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives 01:00 "himself. But let each one examine his own work, and then 01:04 "he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in 01:07 "another. 5. For each one shall bear his own load. " 01:10 Now it is interesting, he is going to make this point 01:13 again more fully by talking about repeat and sowing. 01:16 In essence he is saying, we need to be careful, it's a 01:19 what do I want to say, it's a characteristic of the fallen 01:24 human condition to compare ourselves with one another. 01:29 In fact 2 Corinthians 10 it has a piece of counsel we are 01:34 going to look at, 2 Corinthians 10:12. 01:39 Look at what the apostle Paul says here, "for we dare not 01:46 "class ourselves or compare ourselves with those who 01:49 "commended themselves, but they measuring themselves by 01:53 "themselves and comparing themselves among themselves 01:57 "are not wise. " Notice they commend themselves, why? 02:00 When you compare yourself you can always find somebody 02:04 that you appear to be better than. 02:06 The fact of the matter is our standard is Christ. 02:09 If we always look to Christ it produces a total different 02:13 realization of who we are. 02:16 That is exactly right and comparing ourselves to Christ is 02:18 exactly where I believe he is going. 02:20 In verse 4 because he says, "let each one," I am back in 02:25 Galatians 6:4, "but let each one examine his own work. " 02:29 You know in 2 Corinthians 13:5 he also talks about how 02:33 we should examine ourselves whether we be in the faith. 02:36 Well certainly we don't want to spend all of our time 02:39 looking at ourselves, looking at our own faults. 02:42 If we spend all of our time doing that we will become 02:45 discouraged and we will forget that Christ is there to 02:48 help us in our time of need. 02:50 However, to ignore ourselves and what is going on in 02:54 terms of our own life and how it compares to the life 02:59 of Christ, it's definitely not what the apostle 03:01 Paul would have us to do. 03:03 The idea here is to focus on Christ. 03:05 As we come close to Christ, His goodness, pierces our soul 03:10 and we are able then to evaluate our life in light of the 03:15 example of Christ. 03:17 One of my favorite statements is from a book called 03:21 'Steps To Christ' where it says that the closer we come 03:25 to Christ, the more unworthy we appear in our own eyes. 03:29 So if we come close to Christ, then we will be able to see 03:33 our own need and we won't think ourselves to be something. 03:37 We won't be lifting ourselves up above others, we are 03:40 going to be able to see ourselves the way we truly are. 03:42 What truly is interesting about that statement, and I am 03:45 familiar with the one you are bringing up in the book 03:48 'Steps To Christ' it goes on to say that the closer we 03:51 come to Christ the more faulty we appear in our own eyes 03:56 and this is evidence of the vivifying power, life-giving 04:00 power of the Holy Spirit has come upon us. 04:02 We couldn't see our true condition if it weren't for the 04:07 Holy Spirit, so one minister that I know made this point. 04:11 When we begin to see our sinful- ness we should take courage 04:15 that we have enough of the Holy Spirit to be able to see 04:19 that amount of sinfulness and that must be evidence to us 04:22 that the Spirit is willing and ready to do a work in our 04:25 hearts that we can't do for ourselves. 04:27 That's right, when we begin to sense the Holy Spirit 04:29 pointing out those areas of need, that is nothing less 04:32 then the voice of Jesus Christ Himself speaking to our 04:35 souls, that is a powerful thought. 04:37 The reality is that when I feel comfortable and feel 04:42 good about how things are going in my life, 04:43 sometimes that is the most dangerous position to be in. 04:47 It is one I feel uncomfortable, when I know that I am not 04:51 exactly where I need to be that the Lord Jesus is far more 04:54 beautiful and gracious, and far more principled than 04:57 compassionate, all the things that He is when I am 05:00 looking at Him, I am drawn out after Him. 05:03 I'm at a certain level of uncomfortableness and 05:06 yet I know the voice of Jesus is the One in my heart 05:09 making me sense that. 05:11 So it gives me communion with Him. 05:12 That's right, a Christian life is a life of growth. 05:16 A parent would be very alarmed if they had a child that 05:21 was born and at one year of age stopped growing. 05:24 Here six months later and he is a year and a half and he 05:26 hasn't grown from a time he was a year old and then he is 05:29 two years old and hasn't grown at all the parent would 05:31 have been to every doctor in town and everything else. 05:34 Too often as Christians we are satisfied when we are in 05:36 the same place we have been for 5, 10, 20 years. 05:40 - right! - so the Lord is wanting us to do is see our 05:44 weaknesses and examine our own work, not that we would go 05:48 around discouraged but to prompt us to continue to reach 05:51 out after Him so we can continue to 05:53 grow into Christ likeness. 05:55 And we will be unable to relate to others in the right way 05:58 because rather than holding ourselves above them we will 06:01 be empathize with them because we truly are 06:03 no better then than they. 06:04 Right, you know the other thing is that this is not just 06:08 good advice, this is essential for us. 06:10 This is what Paul makes a point of in verse 5 when he 06:12 says, "for each one shall bear his own load. " 06:14 In essence what he is saying is, there is an 06:16 accountability factor here and ultimately as we bear 06:19 one another's burdens we seek to help others. 06:21 We can't make, you can't give a Christian experience 06:25 to somebody else as much as you can seek to bear their 06:29 burdens, but we have to answer for own choices. 06:32 We have to answer our own decisions and our own 06:35 experience, or lack there of. 06:37 So he says each one in essence, is going to bear his own load. 06:41 As he says that, he leads into a very challenging few 06:44 verses where he tries to describe for them the 06:47 difficulties they are going to have if they accept this gospel 06:50 of circumcision, or the works of the law that is being 06:53 presented to them by these Judaizers Christians. 06:56 If you look in verse 6, we will pick up there and just 06:59 read a few more verses. 07:01 It says, "let him who is taught the word share in all 07:04 "good things with him who teaches. " 07:06 The idea here is the apostle Paul, he himself is helping 07:10 to bear the burdens of these Galatians, seeking to reach 07:13 those who have fallen themselves which is this church. 07:17 Many of these Gentile believers have begun to go the way 07:20 of these Judaizers teachers. 07:22 He is saying that I am trying to bear your burdens and 07:25 share in the same and have a burden for others. 07:27 We need to be bearing each other's burdens. 07:30 Then he says in verse 7, "Do not be deceived," 07:33 that's important! "God is not mocked; for whatever a man 07:36 "sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his 07:40 "flash will also flesh reap corruption, but he who sows 07:43 "to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. " 07:47 The idea here is that the apostle Paul is saying, 07:49 you know this gospel of circumcision, works of the law, 07:54 it leaves you in the flesh. 07:56 When you don't believe in justification by faith in 07:59 Christ, you don't see the need for that union with Christ 08:02 you don't receive the Spirit and all that is left is the flesh. 08:06 If you sow to your flesh you will reap corruption. 08:09 This is a very clear warning that he is giving. 08:12 You know I want to add to that something that is very 08:15 important here, he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh 08:19 reap corruption, this is not an arbitrary decree 08:22 from a God who is angry because you chose something 08:24 different than what He asked you to do. 08:26 God is trying to communicate to us that the flesh brings 08:29 corruption, sin has its own penalty built-into it. 08:32 God is not trying to keep us from the fun things in life. 08:35 God is trying to shield us from things that would destroy 08:37 us. - that's right you are going to reap what you sow. 08:40 That's why he says don't be deceived, these people are 08:43 trying to deceive him. 08:44 There is a couple other passages within Scripture that use 08:46 those words, do not be deceived. 08:49 One of them is when John writes in 1 John 3:8, not to be 08:52 deceived, he who practices righteousness, 08:55 he says, it is righteous. 08:57 No one can claim righteousness by circumcision and yet 09:00 be practicing the works of the flesh. 09:02 He says if they do, they are not righteous. 09:04 He who practices righteousness is righteous. 09:07 Don't be deceived by that. 09:09 And in another place James says, don't be just hearers 09:12 of the law, but doers, or hearers of the words but doers. 09:16 Then he says if you are just hearers of law you would be 09:20 deceiving yourself, so the ideas don't be deceived by the 09:24 idea that you can just hear the law, claim righteousness 09:28 through circumcision or anything else, and yet be living 09:32 a life that is not a righteous life. 09:34 If you sow to the flesh you are going to reap corruption. 09:37 You are going to reap what you sow, 09:39 it very clearly says that. 09:41 But right after this he says, if you sow to the Spirit, 09:44 you're going to reap everlasting life. 09:47 Then he encourages them in verse 9, "and let's not grow 09:51 "weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap 09:54 "if we do not lose heart. " 09:56 Here he is helping these Galatians to understand what 09:59 they have done is that they got weary in doing good. 10:03 Back in Chapter 5:7 he said, "you ran well, who hindered 10:08 "you from obeying the truth?" 10:09 That is exactly what he is saying here, let's not grow 10:12 weary in doing good, we are on the right track. 10:15 Don't grow weary and go the easy route with these 10:18 false deceptions and the idea is don't, if you stay with 10:23 the Lord Jesus you will reap everlasting life. 10:26 There is a verse that I would like to look at on this 10:29 point in Hebrews 10 that is really powerfully illustrating 10:33 this, it's in verse 23. 10:34 He says, Hebrews 10:23, "let us hold fast the confession 10:40 "of our hope without wavering for He who promised is 10:44 "faithful. " That is the same thing he is saying in 10:48 Galatians, we will reap if we don't lose heart. 10:52 He who promised is faithful, if we keep with the Lord Jesus 10:56 and if we don't give up because of the flesh's 11:00 temptations we can be sure that we are going to be 11:04 reaping everlasting life. 11:05 You know Jim, it is interesting because the next verse 11:08 there in Hebrews says, "let us consider one another 11:10 "in order to stir up love and good works. " 11:12 The idea again is bearing one another's burdens and that 11:16 takes us to the verse 10 in Galatians 6:10 where he says, 11:20 "therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to 11:25 "all, especially to those who are of the household of faith. " 11:30 One thing that there is heavy on my heart is how 11:33 Christians can be the meanest to Christians. 11:37 We like to pick on each other, I hear all the time 11:40 Christians getting on all the bad Christians verses 11:44 giving them the benefit of the doubt. 11:47 In seeking to guard one another's reputations, 11:50 you can see a person on the street and witness to them. 11:53 We are going to share with them, we are going to talk 11:57 to them about Jesus. 11:58 We see somebody in church and we hold a grudge with them 12:01 for 30 years, where does this come from? 12:03 Certainly not from the Spirit, it comes from a flesh. 12:07 The apostle urges us here to do good to all especially 12:10 those of the household of faith. 12:11 Even Jesus said, that in our worship if you come to the 12:14 altar and there remember you have, someone has something 12:17 against you go and make that right. 12:20 Have a burden for reconciliation with one another. 12:23 Jesus said people will know you are My disciples by the 12:27 love you have for one another. 12:29 So let us seek to bear one another's burdens, to restore 12:32 others in the spirit of gentleness, to love others as 12:36 Christ loved us. |
Revised 2014-12-17