15 What are You Sowing? (Galatians 6:6-18)

Krisan Marotta: Thank you for listening to the Wednesday in the Word podcast. I'm Krisan Marotta , and this is my podcast about what the Bible means and how we know. Today we're going to study Galatians chapter 6, verses 6 through 18. This is the 15th and final talk in my series on the book of Galatians. Lecture notes for today's talk are on the link below this podcast, or you can go to Wednesdayintheword.com slash Galatians 15. Thanks so much for listening. And let's just review what we've learned so far. Paul is writing this letter to believers in churches he founded on his first missionary journey. They were doing well, and then the Judaizers came to their towns and taught them that faith in Jesus is not enough to be saved. They must also keep the law, and Paul is writing to counter that, to correct that view. In the first two chapters, he defended his authority as an apostle, and he argued that the gospel he taught them was completely trustworthy. Then in chapters three and four, Paul made a series of five arguments for the fact that we are justified by faith alone. So unlike the teaching of the Judaizers, faith in Christ is enough. We do not also need to keep the law. In this final section, he gives a series of four exhortations. We looked at the first one, which began in 513, and that was don't use your freedom as an excuse to indulge in sin. Paul has argued we are free from the law, we are not obligated to keep it, we do not have to be worried about being found guilty under the law, but we cannot use that as an excuse for pursuing sin. Instead, we are to serve one another through love. Believers don't pursue good because they fear punishment or they fear the consequences of the law. Instead, believers pursue goodness because the Spirit is now our guardian. The Spirit is teaching us and making us the kind of person who wants to do good. If we're using freedom from the law as an excuse to sin, then it calls into question whether or not we are actually saved. The second exhortation began in 525, and in that one he exhorted the Galatians to humility and to loving each other. So he used this metaphor of a race, and that sin creates a metaphorical burden that we have to carry as we run this race toward the finish line. And he encouraged us when someone falls to carry each other's burdens. And we do that by speaking the truth in love, encouraging each other, forgiving and forbearing with each other, reminding each other what's true, reminding each other of the mercy of God, and so forth. And that we approach others in those situations from the position of humility, knowing that we are equal before God, we are equally sinner, and we are no better than our neighbors. Now we're going to look at the last two exhortations this week and then his final thoughts in the letter. We'll start with chapter six verses six through ten. Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. Do not be deceived. God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the spirit will from the spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith. Let's start with verse six. Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. I think this translation is a little misleading. Some people see this as an exhortation to financially support all those who teach. And to me, that doesn't make sense in the context of Galatians. And I also don't think that fits with what Paul says about support in his other letters. Paul hasn't been talking about support, he hasn't even raised the issue of finances, and he doesn't go on to talk about finances and what's left of the letter. Financial support doesn't seem to be an issue in the Galatian churches. If that's truly what he means, then this verse really is coming out of the blue. Instead, I think the idea is if someone comes to you and teaches you the good things of the gospel, embrace those good things, embrace those truths and make them your own. Believe the same truths along with the teacher who taught them. So my rough translation would be something like the one who is taught the gospel that consists of all good things is to hold those good things in common with the one who teaches the gospel. The basic idea is to share the same gospel with them. Have fellowship with them in the gospel. And that has been the issue of the letter because the Galatians are turning away from the gospel Paul taught them and turning to a false gospel. And he's saying, when someone teaches you the truth, share that truth, hold that truth in common with them. And that fits with what he says next. Notice the next statement in 6.7 is do not be deceived. God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that he will reap. I think these two verses work together. Embrace the gospel when a good teacher teaches it to you, and don't be deceived by a false gospel. Paul's not the only person that can teach them the gospel. Others who have accurately understood and embraced it can teach them. And if someone in their group explains the truth to them, Amen, that's wonderful. But don't be deceived by false teachers. Now, before we go on with the God is not mocked part, let me wander down a tangent for a minute. I think that is a really astonishing statement when you stop and think about it. This is the Apostle Paul. He wrote the vast majority of the New Testament. It would be very human and very understandable for him to take the attitude, no one should teach you but me. And in fact, he would have the right to do that because he's an apostle. He knows what he's talking about. He's one of the few people who could say, I know what I'm talking about because I'm an apostle by revelation from Jesus Christ. Other people might know what they're talking about, but they only have secondhand knowledge. You can't count on them like you can count on me because they might have misunderstood something. So don't listen to anyone but me, Paul. But we can see from this letter, that's not Paul's perspective. And when you read Acts, you can see that really isn't Paul's perspective. Most famously, there's Apollos, who by all accounts was a very impressive and articulate speaker. And yet, Paul is never jealous of Apollos. Even though the Corinthian church tried to pit them against each other and they took sides and said, Oh, I like Apollos best, and others said, Oh no, I like Paul best, Paul never gets jealous. Paul thinks it's wonderful that Apollos is preaching the same gospel and he sees them as working together on the same team. Bible teachers and pastors out there, follow Paul's example. It is so easy to be tempted to want to be the one up front, to want to be the person who seemed to have all the answers, and to want everyone to think well of you because, hey, you're the best teacher. And then someone new and perhaps younger comes along and they steal the limelight. They connect to your audience in a new sparkling way, and it's really easy to become jealous. But Paul's attitude would be if they're teaching the same gospel, rejoice and praise God, let them have the stage or share the stage. If even the Apostle Paul realizes God can use other teachers than me, then who are we teachers today to say, no, no, my pulpit, my ministry, I'm the only one God can use here? That is not the attitude we should have. We should rejoice and be glad when other teachers come along and embrace and share the gospel with them. Now let's go back to the passage. Paul's encouragement here is to listeners. I digressed to apply his attitude to Bible teachers and leaders and pastors, but his encouragement here is to listeners to embrace the gospel no matter who teaches it, and at the same time, don't be deceived by false teachers. If a teacher comes along mixing in a little error with the gospel, then don't follow him in that error. He's calling on his listeners to use discernment. I think Paul would be against any kind of authoritarianism in teachers, and by that I mean any teacher who stood up and said, Hey, I'm the teacher, I know best, be quiet and listen and don't ask questions. I'm right, you're wrong, after all, I went to seminary, you didn't. Something like that. The fact that Paul calls his listeners to evaluate and discern and be thoughtful about what they hear undercuts that kind of authoritative claim in a teacher. Several times in his letters, Paul warns people don't believe everything you hear taught in the name of Jesus. Here he exhorts his readers, sure, benefit from any teacher you can benefit from, but don't ever just take somebody's word for it without thought and reflection. Just because they have a platform or a degree after their name or they've written a book or something doesn't mean they have the market cornered on truth. Now we could speculate why he's saying this. The Judaizers came from Jerusalem and they probably came with an air of authority. After all, they were Jews, they were part of God's chosen people. They came from the city where Peter was teaching and preaching. They might even know James, the brother of Jesus. They might have spent years studying the Old Testament, maybe even learning from the best rabbis. Surely they must know what they're talking about. And they come along and they claim to know better than the Apostle Paul. They taught a different gospel than Paul. They tried to persuade the Galatians that belief in Christ is not enough. They also have to keep the law. And Paul is saying, don't be deceived by such teachers. Notice he doesn't say, don't even listen to them. He doesn't say don't be taught by anyone but me. He says, you can listen, but you need to be discerning. Both sides have a responsibility here. The teachers have a responsibility to teach the truth. We saw that back in chapter one when Paul says, Let anyone who teaches a false gospel be cursed by God. Teachers need to take very seriously the responsibility to handle the Word of God carefully. But listeners have a responsibility too. Every individual needs to be discerning. Every believer needs to understand the gospel well enough to recognize counterfeits. Everyone needs to know what the Bible says well enough to recognize when someone comes along and teaches something contrary. Well, how do you know the difference? Well, Paul explains one reason. Let's go on in seven and eight. Do not be deceived. God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the spirit will from the spirit reap eternal life. Now remember we defined flesh in this context as everything we are apart from God. Paul is using flesh here to mean our unredeemed humanity, people with broken choosers, as we talked about. People who have not yet had the Spirit of God work in them. Well, first let's look at the metaphor. If I decide I want to grow wheat, I don't plant corn in my field. Whatever I plant is what I will get in the harvest. If I want to grow wheat, I must plant wheat. The harvest comes a significant time after planting. I plant wheat and I wait and I wait and I wait and eventually the harvest comes. Well, in this metaphor, it's what are my teachers sowing and reaping, and what do I want from my teachers? Eventually, false teachers are going to give themselves away because they don't have the spirit working in them. They aren't teaching truth, and that is going to lead to lies and strife and corruption. But we could also ask, what do we listeners want from our teachers? Do we want wheat or do we want corn? Do we want them to gratify the desires of our flesh or teach us the words of eternal life? We will reap what we sow. If I seek out teachers who are planting the words of life, then that is what I will harvest in my own life. If I seek teachers who will entertain me and make me feel good about myself, and maybe give me an exciting worship experience, but fail to teach the truth, then that is what I will harvest. Those are all the kinds of things my flesh, my innate sinfulness, loves to hear. I love to hear that I'm special. I love to hear that God is my buddy who will give me everything I want when I want it. I love to hear that God can solve my every problem and make my life smooth and give me victory over every situation. But think about those statements. They sound true at first, but when you stop and think about them, they're not the complete gospel. There's something missing. We need to ask ourselves, what are we looking for? Are we looking for teachers who make us feel good and flatter our self-esteem and whip up a great emotional experience? Or are we listening to teachers who challenge us with the truth, even if that truth is hard or boring or mundane? We will reap what we sow. If I seek to gratify my own selfish desires, I can find teachers who will teach me, oh hey, sin is no big deal. God loves you anyway, Christ isn't Lord, he's just a good example, and then I will face destruction. On the other hand, if I seek to learn the truth of the gospel, even though that might be humbling or stretching, I will reap eternal life in the kingdom of heaven. God is not mocked, he knows what's really going on. No one's fooling him. He knows what we are truly seeking. Now we could flip the coin and look at teachers, teachers who seek fame and fortune and to be the rock star of their church or going to be powerfully tempted to teach only what it takes to be loved and admired by large numbers, which often devolves into some kind of health and wealth gospel. On the other hand, teachers who seek to serve Jesus and to humbly care for the souls of their congregation are going to teach the truth no matter how hard it is to hear, or how many people leave because they don't want to hear about the cross and sin. False teachers eventually give themselves away. Their lifestyle will reveal that they're not running toward God, and their teaching often eventually results in strife and contention and anger. False teachers usually teach us what our flesh wants to hear. They teach us to gratify the desires of our sinful selves. They teach us things like God will make you rich, pray this one prayer, and you're guaranteed the answer you want. God will make you successful in this life, and no tragedy will ever strike you. If you're just part of my church, follow my gospel, that kind of thing. False teachers often teach a kind of moralistic therapeutic deism. They tell us we're all special, not sinful. They tell us God is our buddy who will give us everything we want and make life easy, and he's not really gonna judge us. They tell us the gospel will make us feel good about ourselves and we can be shiny, happy people all the time, and that God loves us no matter what, therefore, our little mistakes, I mean, why even call them sin? They're no big deal. We don't need to talk about the cross, that's just too depressing. God loves you. And you can find that stuff all over the internet, all over the airwaves. I could go on and on with examples of distortions of the gospel. They can be really subtle sometimes. They're cloaked in poetry, they're often using biblical language, and they can be very hard to detect. But as Paul tells us here, the red flag is that false teachers will teach works of the flesh and they will reap works of the flesh. They tell us what our sinful selves want to hear, and that will eventually bring strife and discord in the church. So his exhortation is invest yourself in the truth, seek that, go after that. Now we come to the final exhortation. This is in 9 and 10, and let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith. Now remember what led up to this. Paul told us to bear each other's burdens, he told us to seek and embrace the truth, and now he tells us to pursue doing what is good. And the word he uses here is a word that's typically translated beauty. It has the idea of the good and the noble, the beautiful, the virtuous, so let us not lose heart pursuing that which is morally beautiful, for in due time, if we don't give up, we will reap the harvest of eternal life. We're on this journey of faith, we're running this race to continue his metaphor. The ones who persevere to the end and cross the finish line will reap the reward. If we grow weary and decide to abandon the race, we lose that reward. But the true children of God believe and continue to believe. They stay in the race through thick and thin, they don't give up when life throws them a curve or tragedy strikes, or they don't get the results they expect, they stay on their journey of faith to the end and they receive eternal life. And again, you can see how this fits in the context. The Judaizers are claiming Gentile believers must keep the law to be saved. They claim Paul's gospel is flawed because he removes the incentive of law keeping and therefore gives believers a license to sin. And Paul began these exhortations by saying, Don't use your freedom as an excuse to indulge in sin. Instead, follow the teaching of the Spirit. If you have saving faith, the Spirit will teach you what is true and right and good, and the Spirit will make your hearts desire what is true and right and good, so you'll pursue that. Yes, you're going to struggle with sin on this long journey, so bear each other's burdens, encourage each other, forgive each other, forbear with each other, speak the truth in love, seek out teachers who further your understanding of the truth, and by all means, don't give up. Don't be deceived. When your neighbor grows weary, encourage him to continue, carry his or her burden for a while to keep them on the path. Take every opportunity this life gives you to treat each other well, to do good by each other, especially those who believe with you. Those are the implications of Paul's gospel. The implication of his gospel is not that we will pursue sin, the implication of his gospel is that we will strive to take every opportunity we can to do good. And sometimes we grow weary of that race. Sometimes we get tired of being different, we get tired of being mocked or persecuted or taken advantage of. Sometimes the race seems too hard to put one more foot in front of the other. And Paul is saying, pray, keep standing firm, don't lose heart, seek out a friend to help and encourage you. And if you see someone else stumbling, lift them up. Saving faith makes a difference in our lives. This is what is behind James's language of faith without works is dead. If you claim to have faith, but your life Reflects a desire to pursue sin and selfishness, then you don't really have faith. But if you do genuinely have saving faith, then your lifestyle will begin to change. You will begin to seek the things of God, value the things of God, enjoy the fruit of the Spirit, and you will seek to love God and your neighbor. Faith is made visible by these lifestyle changes. That's the end result of the gospel. We don't need the incentive of the law anymore because we have the Spirit teaching us, guiding us, and changing us from the inside out. The Spirit gives us a hunger and thirst for holiness, and that changes our values, our choices, our words, and our lifestyles. Of course, we stumble and fall along the way. We will still carry that burden of sin until God releases us and takes us home. But now, when we stumble, we repent, we regret that sin and we long to be free from it. And the result of our perseverance in the faith is forgiveness and eternal life. So his final exhortation is while we have the opportunity, in other words, in this life, love each other, do good for each other, live out the golden rule, and especially among the household of faith. That's what he adds in 610. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone and especially to those who are of the household of faith. That's a really common theme in the Bible. We are to love and respect every human being simply because they are made in the image of God. But we have a special bond with those who also believe. These are the people we're going to share eternity with. These are our brothers and sisters in the family of God. We're going to share the grand adventure of life in the kingdom of God together. Right now we want the same things. We're being made more and more alike as we pursue the things of God. And we should look at other believers and think, these are my people. We're seeking truth together. And that gives us a special and unique bond. The way being part of a biological family gives you a bond. Now we get to Paul's final thoughts. Up till now, Paul has dictated the letter to a scribe who's actually doing the writing. Now Paul picks up the pen and writes with his own hand. Scholars speculate that Paul had some kind of trouble with his eyes. Perhaps they were never quite right after being blinded on the road to Damascus when he met the risen Lord, or perhaps he had cataracts or something of that sort. Whatever the reason, when he writes, he writes with larger letters. And he's going to make one point in this final section. Embrace the truth. Don't embrace what the false teachers are teaching you, instead embrace the truth. Let's read eleven through eighteen. See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand. It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. For even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised, that they may boast in your flesh. But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world. For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them and upon the Israel of God. From now on let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen. Let's go back to eleven and twelve. See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand. It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. This is a direct shot at the Judaizers. We talked about this earlier. Believing Jews who associated with Gentile believers were persecuted by other Jews. If they could convince the Gentile believers to live like Jews, then they could avoid that kind of persecution. Literally, he says they want to put a good face in the flesh, they want to look good among their fellow Jews. The sense of it is those who wish to look good among their fellow Jews would require you to be circumcised so that they aren't persecuted for believing in Christ. Think about Paul's own situation and what we read in Acts about how he founded these churches. Everywhere he goes, it's the Jews who try to kill him and drive him out of town. The Roman elites are kind of ignoring him at this point. The Gentiles are responding to him, but it's the Jews from the synagogue who get so angry that first they drive him out of the synagogue, then when he preaches to the Gentiles, they drive him out of town, and sometimes they even follow him to the next town and drive him out of that one. How are these people going to respond to the Jewish and Gentile believers Paul leaves behind? Well, they're going to persecute these new converts for associating with Gentiles. It would be very tempting for these Jewish believers to insist that the Gentiles at least get circumcised because that would take the pressure off of them. But Paul never does that. He gets beaten, he gets stoned, he gets harassed, they try to kill him. But in all of that, he never compromises the gospel. He goes on, for even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh. Paul accuses the Judaizers of a kind of hypocrisy. Why are they insisting that you Gentiles keep the covenant? Is it because they love the law so much that they want everyone to keep it? No, they don't even keep the covenant themselves. Now we don't know the details here. Perhaps the Judaizers were only insisting that Gentile believers get circumcised, but then told them, well, you can ignore the dietary laws or something like that. Paul goes on to mention circumcision, so it's something like that is likely to be the case, but we don't know in what way the Judaizers failed to keep the law. Paul and the Galatian churches must have known the details because they were living it. But we know that Paul says they want you to be circumcised so that they can boast in your physical body. They can boast in the fact that they've convinced you to be circumcised. And why would they do that? Because they can avoid some of the persecution that way. Now we could also speculate they might have thought it made the Gentiles more pleasing to God in some way. This is the mark of God's chosen people. God appears to be choosing the Gentiles, so they must take the mark. They're incomplete without it. Something like that could also be going on. Again, we don't know the details, but it's clear they see this as some kind of badge the Gentiles need. In contrast to Paul, notice he says, But far be it for me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world. The Judaizers want to boast in how many people they've circumcised. Paul says, I don't want to boast in anything like that. If I'm going to boast in anything, it will be the cross of Christ. My only boast will be explaining the cross of Christ to others such that they embrace the gospel and come to saving faith, because that's what really counts. That's what matters. I've left behind the things of this world. I've left behind old covenant law keeping. The cross of Christ metaphorically crucified all that for me. What do I want from you? What do I, Paul, want from you? I don't want to boast in how well you keep the law. I want to boast in how well you understand the cross of Christ and the gospel. That's his goal. And then he tells us why. For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision but a new creation. When it comes to salvation, it doesn't matter whether you're circumcised or not. You can be saved and be circumcised, you can be saved and not be circumcised. What matters is if you're a new creation, because God has given you saving faith and his spirit. The whole issue of this letter has been to be a faithful follower of Jesus, do you have to live like a Jew? Do you have to keep the law? So when Gentiles become believers in Christ, do they need now to start living like Jews? And Paul says, No, you can be Jewish and be a believer, you can be a Gentile and be a believer. Following the law is not what makes you a believer. What marks you as a believer is becoming a new creation by the gift of God's Spirit. When God gives you the gift of saving faith, God also gives you His Spirit. His Spirit fixes your selfish nature so that it's like you're a whole new person in a sense. You have a door open to you that was never opened to you before. Now there is a pathway to be freed from sin where before you were a slave to sin. It's like your old self has died and been crucified on the cross with Jesus, and a new person has been brought to life, because now you will seek good, you will start to choose wisely, because you have the incredible gift of the Spirit of God inside you, making that possible in a way it was not possible before. Then verse 16, and as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy upon them and upon the Israel of God. Peace and mercy upon all those who walk and step together with the Spirit. What's this rule? This precept? It's faith in Christ. It's being saved by grace through the cross of Christ, not by keeping the law. When he says, for all who walk by this rule, I think he just means all believers, both Jews and Gentiles, who embrace the cross of Christ. Everyone who has come to salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. That's the living by that rule, living in light of that truth. Elsewhere he calls this group the body of Christ. Here he calls them the Israel of God. God's project is to gather a people from every tribe and nation. The distinction between Jew and Gentile is meaningless, and that people, that people is the new creation. They are the new Israel of God. And he says, Peace and mercy be upon you. Peace is shalom, the security, prosperity, abundance, promise to God's people in his kingdom. And in this context, I think mercy is God's forgiveness to fulfill all his promises and bless his people because of the work of Jesus Christ. Then 617, from now on, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus. Basically, he's saying, I don't want to hear that you're running after false teachers anymore. From a distance, he feels helpless to protect them from the false teachers. And he's kind of this is kind of a plea. Please don't distress me with more news of you abandoning the gospel. I suffered to bring you the good news of the gospel. I was beaten and stoned and left for dead. His body is marked by all the physical harm that's been inflicted on him, and he's saying, Don't let that be in vain. And then he concludes, The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen. Paul ends by calling the Galatians his brothers. We don't know from history what happened to the Galatian churches. We don't know whether they took this letter to heart and rejected the teaching of the Judaizers, or whether they ignored this letter and continued in lawkeeping. Paul calls them brothers, implying that he was convinced that they really were his brothers and sisters, that they really had genuine faith and would turn from their error. I like to think that they did. I like to think they responded to this letter, especially since it appears Paul didn't need to write them a second letter, like he did the Corinthians. Paul began this letter with grace and peace from God the Father, and he closes it with the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Part of God's grace is to correct his strain children and bring them back to him. Paul was convinced that God would bring these wandering Galatians back into the fold, because once God gives the gift of genuine saving faith, he doesn't take it back. Now all of us have dark nights of the soul. We all have days where we doubt. Sometimes we wander down the wrong path, and when that happens, we can have confidence in the work of our Savior. God will bring us back through the work of His Spirit, eventually we'll repent and return to the flock. unknown: R. Krisan Marotta: C. Spurl used an analogy to explain it this way. He said, picture a father and a little child walking along a cliff, and they're holding hands, and the father has the child's hand very tightly grasped so he won't fall over the cliff. Now the child can let his fingers slip and can stumble, and his hand might start to slip, but the father will never let him go. He will never let him fall over the cliff. So we can have confidence that God is very tightly holding our hands, and if we stumble and fall, he will not let us fall to our destruction. He's holding our hands tightly and he will never let us go. You've been listening to the Wednesday in the Word podcast. My mission is to explain not only what a passage means, but how we figure it out. You can hear all previous episodes in this series on my website, Wednesdayintheword.com. There is no charge, no spam, and no ads. It's all free to help you improve your study skills and understanding of scripture. If you've been blessed by this podcast, please subscribe, leave a positive rating or review wherever you listen, and most importantly, tell a friend what you learned and where you learned it. Our theme music is provided by Reggie Coates of Heartfeltmusic.org. Thank you for joining me today. I'm Krisan Marotta, and I'll see you next week at Wednesday in the Word.