Promoting Brotherly Love

Title: Promoting Brotherly Love
Text: Galatians 6

Introduction
Paul just finished his distinction in chapter 5 between the fruits of the sinful nature and the fruits of the Spirit. In chapter 6 is the continuation of his discussion on things concerning the practical application of living by faith and not by the law.
He started chapter 6 discussing about being disciplined when someone is caught sinning. Take note that Paul is promoting brotherly love here. The discipline that he wants to impose is not intended to condemn someone but to restore the sinning brother to Christ.
Continuing our discussion, today, we will be learning things on how to promote brotherly love as enumerated in Galatians 6.

How to Promote Brotherly Love

1. Discipline for the purpose of restoration (v.1) – As we have discussed a couple of weeks ago, we have learned four things that we have to remember when disciplining a sin.
a. We have to correct the sin.
b. Those who are spiritual should do disciplining.
c. We have to discipline gently.
d. We have to watch ourselves.
The process of disciplining is not for an individual to be prohibited in coming to church, but a sinning individual to be restored to Christ. Many churches now, especially if the church is governed with a bunch of “policies” tends to forget the real meaning of discipline. Instead of restoration, some people were immediately cut off from the body of Christ without a warning.
Discipline is not an opportunity to spank someone, but it is an opportunity for us to show our love to our fellow brother in Christ. This is not the time for the sinning brother to pay for his mistakes, but it is a time to show him what he can do to correct and realign his relationship to God.

2. Carrying each others’ burdens (v.2) – This is more on helping each other, assisting each other, and being with each other. Just like a family, family members use to help each other whenever they face problems.
Paul is talking about discipline and therefore, we can conclude that there is a problem existing. When we are disciplining someone, most of the time, the sinning brother when corrected and repents, he has a burden in his heart. And this burden is something that we need to deal. We have to remember that disciplining is restoration.
On the other hand, what if a brother in Christ approached you and asked for a counsel for his problem? Are we going to help him or we will drive him away? We are familiar of the saying; “no man is an island”. Indeed, no one can say that he does not need anyone.
Well the fact is, everybody needs someone. Most of those people who committed suicide felt alone at the time they committed it. They have felt that they were alone. I was thinking, if only that there was someone who was with them the time they have felt that loneliness. They would not have committed that suicide. If only that there was someone who have told them that someone loved them so much, they would not have end their lives.
As a church, we have to learn how to help others.

3. Looking at his owns self before correcting others (v.3-5) – This is a common problem with many churches. There are people who just keep on correcting others while they themselves have not been a good example inside the church. Sometimes it’s funny but it is true. This is why there were many people who have not experienced the true joy being inside the church because what they see is always the negative side and all the wrong things inside the church.
Sometimes, these people seem to be holy, yet do not exemplify a good example outside the church. And we call these people, hypocrites.
On the other hand, what the Bible is saying to us right now is to stop this hypocrisy. Instead, let us examine ourselves first and be it in our mind that we are not to condemn but to restore someone.
Verse 4 says, “Each one should test his own actions”. This means that one should be more watchful on himself. The sentence then was followed by; “then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to someone else”. Take note of the word without. Sometimes, we like compare our self so much over others especially if we find our self better than them.

4. Sharing good things to discipler (v.6) – Could mean two things, material or spiritually and morally excellent things learned from the Word. The latter is more widely accepted.
This is true and a noble thing to be taught to the church. Meaning, when we are a disciple, the disciples should learn to share the good things in him with his instructor. And this is something to think about because sometimes, when the disciple learns, he goes on to the other way and forget all about his disciple even in praying. As people being discipled we have to learn to share good things to our disciple.
I myself have some discipler. I am discipling some of you. Therefore, no one is excuse to learn this.
The Bible is very direct to his point. It teaches us to value our disciplers, the people who are teaching us. And such is a form of promoting brotherly love.

5. Practicing “Sowing and Reaping” principle (v.7-10) – Our previous point actually introduced us to the famous agricultural cycle, sowing and reaping. This idea has been taught not less than 10 times in the Bible both in NT and in OT. Jesus himself quoted this teaching several times.
The harvest is not merely measured by how well we took care of the plants, of course, it definitely affects the harvest but the harvest is really measured on how much we planted. Farmers estimate their harvest based on the measurement of the land they planted. This also the same in spiritual realm, the more we sow the more we will reap.
In the passage, Paul stated it directly that the one who sows from his sinful nature will definitely reap destruction. Likewise, whoever sow to please the Spirit, then he will reap eternal life. Verse 9 emphasized the continuity of doing good. Not to become weary means not to be tired.
In our Christian life, sometimes its very tiring to do good. Sometimes it is very tiring to please people. However, our passage is very clear in saying not to become tired of doing good. A simple analysis of this mater can be taken from sowing and reaping principle, if we stop doing good which mans if we stop planting, then we cannot harvest.


6. Be careful not to be deceived (v.11-18)
Paul fervently reminded the Galatian churches not to be deceived by these false teachers. His life being a living testimony of what he preaches, he continuously encouraging us to do the same, to be careful and to hold on to the faith.
Take note as we have mentioned even before that false teaching causes division inside the church. Therefore, there is no excuse on this. If someone will be deceived, there will be a big possibility that we will cause division.
In here we can learn, that holding on to the faith that we have received and being careful against false teachings, is actually one way of maintaining and promoting brotherly love among believers.