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.
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
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.