Week 8, Day 3: Bear One Another’s Burdens
Today’s Reading: Ephesians 1:1-2:22
Some thoughts from yesterday’s reading…
It appears that I got ahead of myself yesterday, and posted much from Galatians chapter 5, instead of sticking with chapters 3 and 4 like I was supposed to. Oh well, I guess that means I will be able to narrow down the subject matter a bit easier today!
In Galatians 6:1-3, Paul discusses the relationships that we should have with our brethren, especially in times when they are caught up in some transgression of God’s law. He gives instructions for how we are to act, and what our responsibility (if we are indeed among the “spiritual”) is to our brother or sister who is sin. Consider some of the points that we find in these verses.
First, Paul instructs that we are to attempt to restore such a person with in a “spirit of gentleness.” How often do we have have problems when it comes to helping a brother or sister in sin because we start out with the wrong attitude? We think we have to set them straight, and we are going to do that, no matter the cost. So, instead of being gentle, we are harsh and perhaps even caustic. I am afraid that we often will lose those that could have been restored simply because we start out with the wrong attitude. Now, lest I be misunderstood, we do need to tell people the right things when they are transgressing God’s will. That will not be very acceptable to many people, simply because they do not want anyone to tell them that they must change. However, each one of us must be on guard with our attitude, to make sure that we are not guilty of driving someone away from the Lord because we have not shown the proper attitude.
Secondly, Paul says that we must look out for ourselves so that we will not be tempted. Sin is tempting–that is its very nature. Each one of us can be tempted by various things. But, when we see one of our brethren in sin, approaching them to help them with their problem may lead to us being tempted to commit the same sin. We should be constantly vigilant, making sure that we are aware of the dangers that sin, and dealing with it, can introduce to us. Sometimes, I am afraid that we think of ourselves as being much stronger than we really are. We convince ourselves that we can put ourselves into situations that would be problematic for others, but certainly not for us. It is not until it is too late (i.e., we give in to temptation and sin) that we realize that we were mistaken. Paul’s words in Galatians 6:3 stand as a reminder that we cannot become puffed up in ourselves!
Finally, in Galatians 6:2, Paul tells us that we have the responsibility to “bear one another’s burdens.” I do not know how often I have heard someone say that the struggles that others are facing are “not my problem.” Or how often I have heard Christians say that they don’t want to burden their brethren with their problems. Both of these attitudes stand in direct conflict with this context! For us to be able to bear one another’s burdens, we have to be able to share our burdens with others. Again, we often think that we are strong enough to be able to bear our burdens alone–we don’t need anybody’s help! But that simply is not the case. Every one of us has a need for the support and encouragement of our brethren. If we think otherwise, then we need to take another look at Galatians 6:3!
There is never a time when we need our brethren more than when we are struggling with sin. Often, we tend to shut our brethren out during this time. We isolate ourselves from them, so that we don’t have to give an answer for what we know we are doing wrong. But, this passage shows us that we can, and should, use our brethren to help us to overcome sin in our lives. We need to let those who care about us, help us so that we can overcome whatever we might be struggling with. When we are the one struggling, we need to learn to trust and rely upon our brethren so that they will be able to help us. If we are among “those who are spiritual” we need to make sure that we have and maintain the proper spirit of gentleness so that we can truly help the one struggling in sin. And, we should all remember that sometimes we will be the one struggling, and sometimes we will be the one in a position to restore the struggling. Whichever side of the aisle we might be on, we should remember how to act appropriately for the good of all!
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Week 8, Day 2: Severed from Christ
Today’s Reading: Galatians 5:1-6:18
Some thoughts from yesterday’s reading…
It is evident from our readings that Paul is dealing with a problem in the book of Galatians that was prevalent in the first century. There was an issue between the Christians of a Jewish background and Christians converted from paganism concerning the practice of circumcision. Of course, circumcision was the human act that represented man’s side of the covenant made between God and Abraham. However, with the coming of the new covenant, the practice of circumcision meant nothing spiritually. Problems arose when the false doctrine began to circulate teaching the Gentiles that they had to be circumcised to be pleasing to God. Throughout this letter, Paul explains why this was not true, and teaches the Gentile brethren that they did not need to follow the Old Testament covenant. He also is teaching the Jewish brethren that they were not revert back to their practices under the law of Moses.
This point becomes evident in chapters 4 and 5, where Paul clearly condemns the Jewish Christians for returning back to the Old Law that they were supposed to have left behind. They wanted to return themselves to slavery, rather than enjoying the freedoms that came to them through Jesus Christ. In their desire to turn back, they had overlooked some important things. First, they had overlooked the fact that they simply could not keep the Law. They had tried, and they had failed. Consider what Paul says in Galatians 5:3. Those who demanded that circumcision was necessary for salvation did not realize that all of the Law had to be kept! They were not wanting to go back to the sacrificial system, or any of the other tenants of the Old Testament Law. In other words, they wanted to pick and choose what parts they wanted to do, leaving the rest undone. But, Paul shows them that if they were going to keep the Law, they had to keep it all. This verse, by the way, also applies to those today who would try to cite the Old Testament for their authority in various practices. If we are going to call upon the Old Law for our authority, then we must keep all of that law!
Secondly, by turning to the Old Testament Law, they had severed themselves from Christ. Paul tells them in Galatians 5:4 that they had “fallen from grace.” That may seem like harsh consequences for returning to the Law of Moses. However, when we consider that God had specifically instructed that Christ and His word were to be heeded (Matthew 17:5), we can understand why such harshness was necessary. This is also a passage that should be of particular interest to us when talking with those in the denominational world. Remember, many believe the doctrine of “once saved, always saved.” However, Paul is clear in this passage that they had fallen from grace because of the fact that they turned away from the teachings of Christ, and returned to a different doctrine. The language used by Paul (emblematic of the topic under discussion) was that they had been “severed from Christ” because of their actions. Hearing this should make us want to remain faithful to all that we find in the word of God. We do not want to risk being “severed from Christ” because of our actions.
For one final thought, consider what Paul has to say in Galatians 5:10. We recently discussed another passage that had to do with Paul’s confidence in his brethren. Here, Paul is confident that these brethren will heed his teaching, and that they will return to the truth. There were those who would not listen, primarily those who were troubling them with the false doctrine in the first place. But, those who were receiving his letter would have “no other mind.” Sometimes it is hard to have confidence in people, as we look around and see so many deceived by false doctrines. It is certainly refreshing when we see those who are willing to make the changes to their lives that they find necessary from studying the word of God, whether it be correcting sinful actions, or correcting false doctrines that are believed!
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Week 8, Day 1: The Source of the Gospel
Today’s Reading: Galatians 3:1-4:31
Some thoughts from Friday’s reading…
There are many self proclaimed modern critics of the Bible which attribute the source of its writing to various men. They make the decision that the prophecies and miracles recorded in the Bible cannot possibly be true, so they have determined that it is the work of various men who have pulled what must be the ultimate hoax upon mankind. If they are correct, then the Book of Mormon has nothing on the deception laid forth in the Bible!
I will not take the time to lay forth an in depth defense of the validity of the Bible, and the information that is contained therein, as that is beyond the scope of this blog. However, I would like to take a brief look at what Paul had to say about the information that he was revealing as a part of book of Galatians.
Paul, if you will recall, was one of the greatest persecutors of the Way, going beyond the city of Jerusalem to Damascus. He was convinced that he was doing what God wanted him to do in destroying those who were Christians. After getting that ball rolling, Paul would never have been converted to Christianity unless he was fully convinced of the message that was delivered to him by Ananias (Acts 9:17-19). Once converted, God sent Paul on a mission–he was going to be the apostle to the Gentiles. Paul, in the beginning of the book of Galatians, defends his apostleship, as well as the message that he was delivering to churches of Galatia. In Galatians 1:11-12, Paul shows the Galatian brethren, as well as us, the manner by which he received the message that he delivered to the saints.
Paul’s method of receiving the gospel was through a revelation of Jesus Christ. He didn’t hear it from men. He didn’t have to go to Jerusalem to be taught by those that were already apostles. He was taught (just as the other apostles had been) by Jesus Himself. This was, and is, a very important point because there were many who questioned whether Paul had the authority to command them as the other apostles did. In fact, there are many instances in Paul’s writing where he finds the need to defend his apostleship (or rather the Holy Spirit defends Paul’s authorship through the inspired writing). Paul tells us in this context (Galatians 1:18) that he didn’t go to associate with the other apostles for 3 years after he was converted! He learned this message from Jesus, and was brought to remembrance, just as the others were, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. He didn’t make it up. He didn’t learn it from others. He learned it from Christ.
What might support Paul’s claims in this? First, realize that he had no interaction with the other apostles until he went up to Jerusalem. There, he was initially rejected by the Christians. However, when we see the teaching that is done by Paul, he was able to teach the exact same doctrine that the others were teaching. If he had not learned it from them, then how did he learn it? Just as he claimed, through the revelation of Jesus Christ.
I realize that nothing contained in this brief article will change the mind of the un-believer. There is plenty of evidence available about the legitimacy of the Bible, and the authors of each of the books found therein, which can be found elsewhere. However, I think it is important to see the claims that the apostles (specifically Paul in this case) make for themselves. If we do not believe what Paul claims here, then he has no authority. If he has no authority, then all of his works recorded for us are of any value. If he does not speak authoritatively through the revelation of Christ and of the Holy Spirit, then we have no reason to listen to him. But, since his writing is given credibility by the other writers, then they too lose importance. Essentially, we must discard the whole Bible text if we reject the claims made by Paul in this passage! Perhaps when we get to the book of Ephesians in a few days, we can revisit this subject, as Paul more thoroughly explains the revelation process.
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