Chapter five ended with some frank statements about those who justify a life identified by the fruit of the flesh, that is, who live a life testified by sin rather than by the effort of knowing and following Christ.  Paul says these people are not saved (Galatians 5:19-21)!  However, Paul also did not say that we who are saved are incapable of walking in the flesh and bearing its sinful fruit; as a matter of fact, Romans 7 shows us that we are not only capable, but likely!  When we find ourselves bearing sinful fruit, we are testifying that even though we might be living a religious life, we are certainly not presently living in an abiding relationship with God, and as such, we need to repent from trusting our religious practice or whatever other way we are surrendering to ourselves instead of God, and turn back to the simplicity of knowing and fellowshipping with Him trusting the work of Christ has done all to give us that right!

However, all too often, when we see sin’s ugly fruit in our lives, we cover it up instead of coming to grips with it and repenting.  We all do it.  We try to cover up the reality of our lack of a relationship with the Lord; we try to cover up our refusal to listen and follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit in our life because we want to pursue the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life instead!  We cover it up to try and convince ourselves that what’s happening isn’t, and we cover it up to ensure everybody around us thinks we are in a healthy relationship with God as well!

Inevitably, however, we will get caught!  Silva notes,

“Having presented a lofty picture of the Christian life, Paul now addresses the very real possibility of sin (1). Although the principle of living by the Spirit is no mere idealism, the apostle knew perfectly well that believers will falter, and he may have feared that the Galatians would respond harshly to one of their own if he or she failed to meet the high standards just described.” ¹Silva, M. (1994). Galatians. In D. A. Carson, R. T. France, J. A. Motyer, & G. J. Wenham (Eds.), New Bible commentary: 21st century edition (4th ed., p. 1219). Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press.

Eventually, somebody is going to see the fruit of our rebellious hearts!  It may be nonbelievers, or it may be believers, but eventually we can’t keep up the game of trying to act like we are not rebelling against God, all while we are!  So, what should happen at that point?  How should the church respond?  How should Christians respond to those in our lives living a lie?  Well, Paul tells us in Galatians 6:1.

1 Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. 

There are four parts to the instructions in Galatians 6:1 for how the church is to respond to brothers and sisters in Christ who are caught rebelling against God.

 The first part clarifies the situation.

Paul’s instructions are for what believers in Christ should do when it becomes clear that another believer in Christ is living in sin.

 “1 Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression,”

First, notice that he’s speaking to the entire church so that everyone knows they need to understand this instruction. No one is an exception!

He’s also setting a tone of patience and love, not policing and punishing.He says, “Brothers.”  One commentary noted that it is of itself, “an expression of kindness to conciliate attention.”²Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (Vol. 2, p. 338). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.  The subject matter is not justification for the self-righteous hypocrites who seem to live their lives looking to expose sin in others.  This is not telling us to have an investigative team to try and find out if somebody is covering up sin in their life, but rather when it becomes self-evident to people who are not looking that somebody is caught in sin, not caught by the church, but caught by sin!  Sin is what caught this person, not the religious police!   This is not a command to go catch anybody, it’s about people who have been caught by sin—more on that in a second.

Before we move forward, we also need to note that this applies to any Christian, in the sense that nobody who gets caught by transgression is an exception to how spiritual brothers should respond to this person.We don’t earn the right to live in sin by our position, respect in the community, talents, wealth, difficulties, or anything else.

However, the big point Paul is making in the first part of this verse is the situation of the sinner.He uses the word “caught”.  Being caught in transgressions means being chased down and overcome by it, as a cheetah catches a gazelle to kill and eat it.  Another image is of Absalom in 2 Samuel 18.  Known for his long hair, Absalom was ironically riding on his mule in an oak thicket, and his hair got so entangled in the branches that when the mule kept walking, it pulled him off the mule and left him hanging by his hair!  When Joab found out, he and some of his men quickly went and killed him, ending Absalom’s bid to overthrow his father, David, as king.  This is a perfect illustration of what Paul is writing about in Galatians.

Absalom believed himself to be doing the will of God in overthrowing his father as king, even though he was clearly driven by selfish ambition.He’s been confidently plotting his ascent to the throne for years, all while truly feeling justified in his actions.  Absalom seemed so convinced that his father was a terrible man that he never bothered to seek the Lord to find out what God actually wanted; he just assumed it must be himself!

But let me explain the imagery in this story a little more.Absalom was not at all a man of war, but he decided to go out with his army against David and his men, apparently with no intention to actually fight, but rather to make an appearance.  When you read the story, you realize that he's by himself when he gets stuck in the tree!  How is that possible, given he has just set himself up as the King of Israel?  Absalom had a full-time group of bodyguards, yet not one was there to cut him out of the tree.  The most likely reason Absalom is by himself is because everybody else, including his bodyguards, was in the battle; the battle Absalom, as the coward he was, appears to have snuck out of while everybody else was fighting!  My point is that Absalom thinks he’s escaped danger.  He’s quietly sneaking away, likely plotting what he will do when his army wins the battle, and possibly even what to do if his army doesn’t win.  But then suddenly, as he and his mule try to carefully and quietly slip away in the cover of an oak thicket, he feels his head begin to be pulled up backwards.  He tries to get his mule to stop, but the mule knows what they are doing; they are running from a fight, a fight the mule is glad to leave as well; so the mule pauses for a second or to sensing Absalom pulling back on the reigns but then, as a mule will do, determines he’s not interested in where Absalom wants him to go, he want to get away from the battle and get out of this oak thicket that scratching and clawing at him!  The next thing Absalom knows, he’s hanging from an oak tree by his robust flowing locks of hair and can’t get out!

Now, this is precisely what happens to us on so many occasions. We turn our hearts from God to religion or whatever it is we desire and trust in more than Him, but somehow tell ourselves it’s all about Him or that He’s okay with it. We confidently move forward in life, only to suddenly find ourselves dangling from an oak tree!

Ironically, in the story of Absalom, David had given very specific instructions to his army not to kill him, but Joab did it anyway. Interestingly, that’s exactly how the church responds to people caught in sin as well. All too often, the church runs out to kill the person caught in the tree rather than to rescue them. Clearly, Paul is calling us to rescue the person, not execute them!

 This leads to the second part of Paul’s instructions.

Only people living in an actual abiding relationship with Christ should be involved.  – “you who are spiritual”

Notice it’s written to the brothers, but not all should be involved in the process of restoring the person; rather, those who are “spiritual.”

 In 2 Samuel 18, Joab grabs ten young men, presumably young fighters, and takes them with him to kill Absalom.Joab jabbed three javelins into him, and then all ten men struck him with whatever it was they had in their hands.  Absalom was thoroughly killed!

 However, here, Paul doesn’t tell us to get some spiritual killers who know how to expose a person’s sin and punish them for it.Instead, when somebody is caught in their sin, the people who should respond are those who are actually spiritual, and Paul has already told us what true spirituality is.  True spirituality is walking in step with the Holy Spirit of God in our life, and it’s made evident by the following fruit:  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. (5:23)

 So, the people who should respond to somebody caught in their sin are those whose lives are described by God’s “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control,” which is distinctly different from the religious counterfeit versions of “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.”

“This should not be misconstrued to mean “you who are sinless.” Spiritual maturity has already been discussed in 5:16–18 & 22–25. Spiritual maturity is: (1) having the mind of Christ; (2) living out the fruit of the Spirit; (3) having a servant’s heart; and (4) serving fellow Christians.” ³Utley, R. J. (1997). Paul’s First Letters: Galatians and I & II Thessalonians (Vol. Volume 11, p. 64). Marshall, TX: Bible Lessons International.

“The task of restoration is not to be undertaken by fledglings in the faith but by those who are spiritual, that is, believers who walk by the Spirit (cf. Gal. 5:16), and who are mature in the faith (cf. 1 Cor. 2:15; Heb. 5:13–14).” ⁴Campbell, D. K. (1985). Galatians. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 609). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books

 The third part of Paul’s instructions identifies the goal.

 The goal is to help the person return to a joyful abiding relationship with Christ and walking in step with the Spirit.  – “should restore him in a spirit of gentleness.”

The keyword of this entire verse is “restore.” This is what they are trying to do.  The following two commentators offer some helpful clarity:

“The word restore is from katartizō (καταρτιζω). This word has the following meanings: “to repair, to restore to a former good condition, to prepare, to fit out, to equip.” It is used of reconciling factions, of setting bones, of putting a dislocated limb into place, of mending nets, of manning a fleet, of supplying an army with provisions. It is used by Paul usually in a metaphorical sense of setting a person to rights, of bringing him into line. Those Galatians who had not abandoned their dependence upon the Holy Spirit, now are asked by Paul to set those Galatians right who had been seized unawares by sin because they had deprived themselves of the ministry of the Spirit. The primary thing that they needed to be set right about was not the act of sin which they committed, but that they had wandered off the right road of grace and were stumbling in the quagmire of self-dependence and legalism. To set the sinning brother right with reference to his act of sin would be helpful, but that would still leave him on the wrong road with the result that he would go on being surprised at the entrance of sin into his life. Thus, the Galatians who had not become infatuated with legalism, were exhorted to bring back those who had, into the grace way of living the Christian life. That would repair the damage caused by the Judaizers in his life, and equip him to go on living his life in the right way.”⁵Wuest, K. S. (1997). Wuest’s word studies from the Greek New Testament: for the English reader (Vol. 3, pp. 165–166). Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.

“This word restore means to mend, to bring something or someone back to its or his former position of wholeness or soundness. Thus, it is used with respect to mending nets (Matt. 4:21; Mark 1:19), and perfecting human character (2 Cor. 13:11: “Be perfected”). Cf. Luke 6:40; 1 Thess. 3:10. The main idea certainly is this: “Follow a positive, not a negative course with respect to the trespasser. Do not hurt him but help him. Treat him as you yourselves would wish to be treated if you were in his place.” ⁶Hendriksen, W., & Kistemaker, S. J. (1953–2001). Exposition of Galatians (Vol. 8, p. 232). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.

This goal is further clarified by the instructions on how the goal is to be accomplished.Paul wrote, “restore him in a spirit of gentleness.” 

The word “spirit” means “an attitude or disposition reflecting the way in which a person thinks about or deals with some matter.”⁷Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). In Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 349). United Bible Societies.

The word “gentleness” can also be translated as “humility” or meekness. “In a number of languages, ‘gentleness’ is often expressed as a negation of harshness, so that ‘gentleness’ may often be rendered as ‘not being harsh with people.” ⁸Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). In Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 748). United Bible Societies

Therefore, to confront a person in “a spirit of gentleness” necessarily means the methods involved in restoring a person, as well as the attitude and motivation of those who are trying to restore a person should genuinely reflect people who know their righteousness is a gift, that the only reason they haven’t been overcome by sin is the grace of God, and that they are not the judge the person in sin must give an account to but rather brothers and sisters trying to help a person back into joyful abiding relationship with Christ!The goal isn’t to issue consequences that make them not want to repeat their failure, but rather to help them back into the relationship that, if they had been living in, would have kept them from ending up overcome by sin.

As we saw in Galatians 5:19-21, a person who trusts in religious practices and traditions as the means to receive and grow in the righteousness of Christ, who finds their spiritual identity and life in those things, inevitably produces the same kind of fruit as a life that is obviously submitted to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, or the boastful pride of life.However, no matter their pathway into sin, the point is to restore them into an abiding relationship with Christ where they are walking in step with the Spirit, not trusting in or surrendering their life to religion or any other desire of the flesh, but instead trusting in the work of Christ and living in the relationship with God Christ’s work has fully provided.

The goal is to restore a person to a genuine, loving relationship with God based on a confident faith in the work of Christ rather than their own works. But you can’t punish people into loving a relationship; you love them into a loving relationship. This in no way implies overlooking sin; rather, it governs the attitude and actions of how the sin is confronted and what’s done to encourage the person to repent and turn back to Jesus.

The fourth part of Paul’s instructions for addressing the sins of others concerns what can happen in our lives.

 Remember to make your spiritual health your first priority while you help others with their sins. “Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.”

 As a teenager, I successfully completed a class that taught me how to rescue people from drowning.We were taught all kinds of different techniques.  Some applied to any scenario, while others applied to the specific conditions created when a person is drowning in a pool, lake, river, or even an ocean.  However, no matter the scenario or unique conditions of where a person is drowning or at what severity (too exhausted to swim any further but they are still somewhat calm and keeping their head above water, completely panicked and unable to think or respond rationally, or unconscious and near death), there is one uncompressing constant to rescue a person.  The one doing the rescuing needs to make sure they themselves don’t end up drowning while they do it.  I can’t rescue anybody if I end up drowning in the process of rescuing them!  As a matter of fact, I could end up drowning the person I’m trying to save if I myself drown in the process of helping them!

This is exactly what Paul is getting at here.As we minister to somebody else, we need to understand the need for us to ensure the focus of our lives is never the spiritual needs of others, but the relationship with Christ that produces the kind of fruit that helps others experience that same relationship.  It can happen to anybody, but pastors of churches are particularly susceptible.  The shepherd, who does not make sure he himself is getting the food, water, and sleep he needs to be healthy, will soon find himself spiritually dead and useless to the sheep!

Furthermore, Pastors and spiritual leaders must remember they are not the Shepherd!Although a person may be assigned to shepherding, they do so as sheep, not the shepherd!  Jesus is the only Shepherd, and the rest of us are sheep, some of which are assigned the task of laboring with the Shepherd to help our fellow sheep follow the Shepherd as we follow the Shepherd.  The moment we confuse ourselves as the actual Shepherd rather than a sheep laboring with the Shepherd will be the moment we will likely begin to wander from the shepherd and likely lead others with us as we do it.

It’s why Peter wrote,

1 So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: 2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. (1 Peter 5:1-4)

Likewise, Paul wrote,

1 For I want you to know, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, 3 and all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. 5 Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness. 6 Now these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did. 7 Do not be idolaters as some of them were; as it is written, "The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play." 8 We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. 9 We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did and were destroyed by serpents, 10 nor grumble, as some of them did and were destroyed by the Destroyer. 11 Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come. 12 Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. 13 No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. 14 Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. 15 I speak as to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. (1 Corinthians 10:1-15)

12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you. 16 Only let us hold true to what we have attained. 17 Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. 18 For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. 20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself. (Philippians 3:12-21)

 Challenge

How are you responding to the sinful behavior you see in others?  Do you recognize the fruit of the flesh as sin?  Do you passively ignore it because you fear confrontation, or don’t feel you can help?  Are you so consumed with other people’s sins that you no longer see your own?

 How we deal with other people’s sins should be a fruit of how we properly deal with our own—repenting and turning back to an abiding relationship with Christ!  The people who have made the most significant spiritual impact in my life are fully aware of their own need for God’s grace and, as such, are consumed with knowing and following Him!  When we are genuinely committed to knowing and following Him, He will use us to influence others to do the same, and as such, we will lead people to follow Him as well.  However, if we get consumed with making sure other people are following Jesus, the irony is they will likely end up following us in our prideful, self-absorb mission that we are attempting to say is for Christ, but in reality is for ourselves, and as such, we will do nothing but lead people further into flesh and sin!

We can only lead people to where we ourselves are going!

Discussion Guide For This Sermon