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Galatians 6:1
Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.
(sebuah) Brethren. “My brothers and sisters in Christ;” see masuk for Gal. 1:11.
(b) Trespass. Kata benda aslinya (paraptōma) means a fall or slip. A trespass is a slip up, a mistake, an error. If a transgression is stepping over a line (Gal. 3:19), a trespass is what happens when one is not standing firm (Gal. 5:1).
(c) You who are spiritual. You who are walking in the spirit and know the mind of Christ. Evidently there were some among the Galatians who had not bought into the law teachers’ message of mixture. Paul instructs these spiritual or mature believers to help those who have fallen from grace.
Lihat masuk for Spiritual
(d) Restore means repair or mend. It does not mean judge and condemn. Nor does it mean ignore and write off.
When someone stumbles into sin, the temptation is to lay down the law and punish the offender. But responding to sin with the law is like fighting fire with gasoline (see Rom. 7:5). It will only make matters worse. Real change only comes by the grace of God.
As an example of how to respond to sin, consider Paul’s response to the foolish Galatians. Instead of condemning them as reprobates or threatening them with divine punishment, he calls out their true identity as sons of God (Gal. 3:26, 4:5–7). He reminds them of their journey from darkness to light and how they are no longer slaves (Gal. 4:7–8). He urges them to fight for the freedom that is ours in Christ and resist those who would lead them back into bondage (Gal. 5:1–10, 6:7). Instead of pounding them with law, he asks questions to get them thinking (e.g., Gal. 3:1–5, 4:9, 21). Then he tells them that he believes in them, and he prays that they would know the grace of Jesus (Gal. 5:10, 6:18).
(e) Spirit of gentleness. Give grace to the fallen and hurting.
The law preacher doesn’t do gentleness. He may speak of “restoration,” but his remedy for sin is a course of condemnation washed down with warnings. Then when the “sinner” is ready for reform, he will prescribe an extensive program of dead works and self-flagellation followed by a period of probation and supervision. This harsh approach appeals to our sense of fairness – “since I messed up, I must pay the penalty” – but it is no more effective at overcoming sin than stitching clothes from fig leaves.
A better cure for those who fall is the gently administered grace of God. Gentleness is needed to overcome the feelings of guilt and shame that beset us when we stumble. And grace is needed because nothing else can help us rise up. It is by the grace of God we stand (Rom. 5:2).
(f) Each one looking to yourself. Guard your heart. Take care that their stumbling does not cause you to respond with pride or condemnation (1 Cor. 10:12).
We all stumble from time to time (see masuk for Jas. 3:2). None of us can stand for long on our own strength. We are all God’s monuments of grace.
(g) Not be tempted. When someone falls, our religious flesh responds, “I would never do that.” This boast is the first step towards disaster. If Peter and Barnabas can fall from grace (Gal. 2:11–13), anyone can. The way to resist this temptation is to acknowledge your own weakness and continue leaning on the Lord.
Galatians 6:2
Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.
(sebuah) Bear one another’s burdens. Show love for others by sharing their burdens and looking out for their interests (Php. 2:4).
(b) Burdens are a heavy weight or load. By implication, it can mean trials, troubles, or the heavy weight of sin. We come alongside people to lighten their burden and to help them bring their sins and sorrows to Jesus.
(c) The Law of Christ is the Lord’s command to “love one another as I have loved you” (John 13:34).
The Law of Christ is unlike the Law of Moses. It is both a baru commandment and a new kind of commandment (1 John 2:8, 2 John 1:5). Under the old covenant, you provided the love, but in the new covenant, we love others with the love we have received from God (1 John 4:7, 11). Love is not something to manufacture; it is Someone to receive. When we receive from the abundance of the Father’s love, we are able to love others.
Bacaan lebih lanjut: "What is the law of Christ?”
Galatians 6:3
For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.
(sebuah) Something. If anyone thinks he is too important to help others, he is fooling himself.
(b) Deceives himself. We all need help from time to time, and one day it will be your turn. Don’t be like the religious leaders who turned a deaf ear to the wounded man on the road to Jericho (Luke 10:30–32). Do unto others as you’d have them do unto you (Matt. 7:12).
Galatians 6:4
But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another.
(sebuah) Examine his own work. Attend to the work God has given you.
Whether you are a firefighter, school teacher, homemaker, or tradesman, every believer is in full time ministry. We work as unto the Lord (Col. 3:23).
(b) Boasting in regard to himself alone. As a servant-hearted son of God, find joy in what you do. God made you unique. He has given you gifts and opportunities that perfectly match your personality. He has given you revelation and a measure of grace (Eph. 4:7, 1 Pet. 4:10). Relish what he has given you and don’t waste energy comparing yourself to people who have different gifts.
Galatians 6:5
For each one will bear his own load.
(sebuah) Bear. Take responsibility for your life.
The Galatians’ failure began when they let the law teachers come in and tell them what to do. They acted like slaves instead of sons and ended up deceived. They abdicated their personal responsibility to continue in the faith and fell from grace.
(b) Load. Some older Bibles translate load as burden, which leads to confusion with Galatians 6:2. Are we supposed to bear our own burdens or the burdens of others? Any confusion is removed when we realize that Paul uses a different word in each verse. Here he is referring to a load (phortion) which is the responsibility we have to attend to our own faith walk and remain in the grace of God. In verse two a burden (baros) is a heavier weight (such as a trial or trouble) that is better shared. When we are carrying our own load (walking in grace) we are able to bear others’ burdens.
Galatians 6:6
The one who is taught the word is to share all good things with the one who teaches him.
(sebuah) Share. Support those who teach you. Feed those who feed you (Luke 10:7).
(b) All good things. The blessings of this earthly life (Luke 16:25). In context, food, clothing, housing, and money.
Paul sometimes finishes his letters with a gentle reminder that teachers need to be looked after and fed (Rom. 15:27, 1 Cor. 9:14, 1 Tim. 5:17–18). “If we sowed spiritual things in you, is it too much if we reap material things from you?” (1 Cor. 9:11). The Jews were taxed to fund the temple, but there are no taxes or levies in the new covenant. Rather, we bless those who have blessed us (Rom. 15:27, 1 Cor. 9:14, 1 Tim. 5:17–18). We cheerfully share with each other because we are one family in Christ.
Galatians 6:7
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.
(sebuah) Do not be deceived. Do not be misled any longer. Take responsibility for the mess you made and deal with it.
Paul gently and reasonably reminds the Galatians that they were reaping what they had sown. “If you support law teachers, as you have been doing, you will reap a curse.” The Galatians had allowed themselves to be deceived by the smooth-talking law preachers. It was time to wise up and stop sowing to the flesh.
(b) Not mocked. This is not a threat but a statement of fact. God created a world where choices have consequences, so choose wisely.
(c) Sows. What you get out depends on what you put in.
The wrong way to read this is “Give and God will bless you.” God’s blessings are not for sale. In the economy of grace, God blesses us first enabling us to give. He supplies seed to the sower, and then it is up to us whether we sow sparingly or generously (2 Cor. 9:10). Those who sow generously will reap a greater harvest (2 Cor. 9:6).
(d) Reap. If you support those who teach the gospel of Christ, you will reap a harvest of righteousness. But if you support those who teach law, you will reap a harvest of condemnation. In Galatia, Paul and Barnabas sowed the word and the result was churches. Then the law teachers came sowing religion, and the result was a harvest of discord and division.
Galatians 6:8
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.
(sebuah) Sows to his own flesh. To sow to the flesh atau walk according the flesh atau carry out the desires of the flesh is to live without regard for the things of God. It’s trusting in yourself (your abilities, your understanding) and living solely from the basis of your earthly experience (what you see, hear, touch, know, etc.).
Trusting in your law-keeping performance is one example of sowing to the flesh. Other examples include; making sacrifices in the hope of impressing God, pursuing spiritual disciplines to make yourself more holy, and serving to earn divine favor.
Bacaan lebih lanjut: "How to walk after the flesh in 20 easy lessons”
(b) The flesh; Lihat masuk for Gal. 5:17.
(c) Reap corruption. The self-focused life leads to self-destruction (Matt. 16:26, Rom. 8:6). (The original noun for corruption (phthora) is related to a verb (phtheiro) that means to wither or destroy.)
In the new covenant, we reap what Christ has sown, but there are still consequences to our actions. If we sow to the flesh, we will still be saved, but we will be fruitless and restless. Like the Galatians who cut themselves off from Christ, we will not enjoy the abundant life that God has for us.
(d) But. As he has done several times in his letter, Paul offers a choice. He reminds us that free people get to choose. You can sow to the flesh or the spirit. You can live by law or faith. You can be blessed or cursed. He is echoing the choice that has been offered to humanity since the very beginning: choose life!
(e) Sows to the Spirit. To sow to the spirit or walk by the spirit is to look to the Lord to supply our needs. It’s being mindful of spiritual things – what God has said and is now saying, what God has done is now doing. (Gal 5:25).
(f) Reap eternal life. Walking in step with the spirit releases the whole and shalom life that God intends for us. “The Spirit gives life” (2 Cor. 3:6). When we live out of our union with the Author of Life, the result is an everlasting life of righteousness, peace, and joy (Rom. 8:6).
(g) Eternal life is not merely endless life; eternal life is divine life. It is Christ’s glorious life as opposed to the broken short-lived life we inherited from Adam. Eternal life is Christ in you.
Galatians 6:9
Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.
(sebuah) Let us not lose heart. Some use this verse to preach conditional salvation as in “you must do good every day of your life to reap eternal life.” Such a message causes us to lose heart and be discouraged, which is the opposite of Paul’s intention. The apostle wants to encourage us, not frighten us.
(b) Doing good means walking by the spirit, sowing to the spirit, and living from our fellowship with the One who is good.
Doing good does not mean keeping all the rules or engaging in moral activities in the hope of impressing the Lord. That sort of doing good leads to Ishmaels. Doing good means revealing God’s love to others. It’s doing the work God has for you with the talents he has given you in the place he has planted you.
(c) In due time we will reap. Be patient. Harvests take time.
Is it possible the Galatians had become discouraged? When Paul preached the gospel among them, there were signs and wonders, and people came flooding into the kingdom (Acts 14:3, 9, 21). But after he left, maybe the excitement wore off, and the momentum was lost. The honeymoon period that often accompanies gifted ministries came to an end, and the Galatians lost heart. Perhaps they felt they needed to do something to recapture what they had lost. Enter the law teachers. “If you want to go to the next level with God, you need to follow these steps to success. Step one, get circumcised.”
When we are discouraged by our lack of progress, fruit, or results, we can be tempted to take matters into our own hands. “God is taking too long. I need to do something.” And another Ishmael is born. To walk in step with the Spirit means we must resist the temptation to run ahead in the flesh. We need to learn the unforced rhythms of grace and trust the Lord will bring about the harvest at the right time.
(d) Grow weary. Don’t lose heart if the results don’t come as soon as you expect.
When we don’t see results, the temptation is to give up and throw in the towel. Our prayers seem to go unanswered. Our labor in the Lord seems to bear no fruit. Our trials seem endless. Don’t quit, says Paul. Be patient. God’s word will not return empty (Is. 55:11). A good harvest is coming.
Galatians 6:10
So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.
(sebuah) Opportunity. Make the most of your time on earth (Eph. 5:16). Treat every day as a gift from God (Ps. 118:24). We can’t solve every problem and help every person, but we can bless those we encounter through work, school, and church.
(b) Do good. Invest, sow, build, give. God is the ultimate Do-Gooder. Everything he does is good. When he invites us to co-labor with him, the results are always beautiful and good.
(c) All people. Don’t be tribal. Love your enemies (Matt. 5:44). Be indiscriminately generous.
(d) The household of faith. Start by blessing your brothers and sisters in the family of God.
In the New Testament, believers are sometimes referred to as the family or household of God (Matt. 12:50, Mark 3:35, John 11:52, 2 Cor. 6:18, Gal. 3:26, Eph. 2:19, 1 Pet. 4:17).
(e) The faith. The family of believers; see masuk for Gal. 1:23.
Galatians 6:11
See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand.
(sebuah) See with what large letters I am writing could be read as “Look at my handwriting.” Perhaps Paul got excited while writing the end of his letter. Perhaps he wrote “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked” in large letters and underlined them for emphasis. We can only speculate.
(b) I am writing to you. Paul’s letters were usually written by an amanuensis or letter writer (Rom. 16:22) and then signed off by him (e.g., 1 Cor. 16:21, Col. 4:18, 2 Th. 3:17). For Paul to draw attention to his handwriting suggests the whole letter was penned by him. “I am writing to you” (Gal. 1:20).
(c) My own hand. Why did Paul write this letter himself and not rely on an amanuensis? Scholars have debated all sorts of reasons. Paul was in a hurry. He wanted to give the Galatians the personal touch. A simpler reason is that Galatians was one of the first letters Paul wrote, if not the very first. He had not gotten into the letter-writing groove. Dictation and lengthy greetings from friends and colleagues would all come later.
Galatians 6:12
Those who desire to make a good showing in the flesh try to compel you to be circumcised, simply so that they will not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.
(sebuah) A good showing in the flesh. Those who want to make a name for themselves.
Law teachers may claim to be doing the Lord’s work, but their real motivation is earning favor with God and men. They like to portray themselves as mature and pious, while saying nothing about their struggles and failures. They confuse numbers with fruit and mistake busy-ness for service. They brag about their achievements, but they are building with hay and straw. If they weren’t preaching cheap law, they’d realize they have nothing to boast about and that they need God’s grace every day, just like the rest of us.
(b) The flesh; Lihat masuk for Gal. 5:17.
(c) Compel. By insisting “you must be circumcised,” the law teachers were selling the Galatians what they already had, which was membership in the family of God. See also the masuk for Gal. 2:14.
(d) Disunat; Lihat masuk for Gal. 2:3.
(e) Persecuted. Those who preach law do so out of fear. If they preached the cross of Christ, they would be persecuted (Gal. 5:11). They would be marginalized, rejected, and lose opportunities to minister.
(f) The cross of Christ is a stumbling block to those who are trusting in themselves (Gal. 5:11), yet the crucifixion of Jesus Christ is central to the gospel of grace (Gal. 3:1). Because he loves us, Jesus gave himself for us (Gal. 2:20). When we are tempted into dead works, or law-keeping, the remedy is to remember that “I have been crucified with Christ” (Gal. 2:20). Since “those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh” (Gal. 5:24), you do not need to be re-crucified. Once was enough. Having died with Christ, we can live to God untempted by the inferior temptations of this world (Gal. 6:14).
Galatians 6:13
For those who are circumcised do not even keep the law themselves, but they desire to have you circumcised so that they may boast in your flesh.
(sebuah) Those who are circumcised. The law teachers a.k.a. the circumcision party (Gal. 2:12).
(b) Do not even keep the law. Every law teacher is a hypocrite because no law preacher keeps all the law. Like the law teachers rebuked by Jesus, they honor the law with their lips, but they do not practice what they preach (Matt. 23:3).
(c) Boast in your flesh. Law teachers keep score by counting converts and followers.
The scribes and Pharisees boosted their reputations by recruiting converts. They were known to travel far and wide in the pursuit of a single disciple (Matt. 23:15).
Galatians 6:14
But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.
(sebuah) May it never be. God forbid.
(b) That I would boast. Those who boast in their pedigree or performance find themselves opposed by God (1 Pet. 5:5).
(c) Except in the cross. Instead of boasting in ourselves and our accomplishments, let us boast in what Christ has done for us.
Under grace, the only work that matters is the finished work of the cross. A proper understanding of what Christ has done and why he did it keeps us from boasting in anything else (Rom. 3:27).
(d) World. Godless society; see masuk for Gal. 4:3.
(e) Crucified to me. The fallen world has no grip on those who have been crucified with Christ (Rom. 6:6). “This world is dead to me, and I am dead to the world for I have found something better in the kingdom of God.”
Galatians 6:15
For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.
(sebuah) Neither is circumcision anything. When it comes to salvation, it does not matter whether you are circumcised or not. “Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing” (1 Cor. 7:19). It does not matter whether you tithe, speak in tongues, or attend church twice on Sundays. What matters is that you have been born again and made new by the Spirit of God (John 1:12–13, 3:3). What matters is that you have passed out of Adam’s doomed family and have been adopted into Christ’s blessed family (Gal. 4:5). What matters is that you are no longer dead in your trespasses, but have been raised to new life with Christ (Eph. 2:1, 5).
(b) New. The original word for new (kainos) means new in kind. Christian, you are not an improved version of who you used to be; you are brand new. You were a child of Adam; now you are a child of God. You were a sinner; now you are a saint. One with the Lord, you are as righteous and holy as he is (1 John 4:17).
(c) A new creation. Those who are in Christ are a new kind of people (2 Cor. 5:17). They are a new species or a new kind of humanity (Eph. 2:15).
The old creature you once were was captive to sin and incapable of walking after the spirit. The new creature you now are is righteous, holy, and free as a consequence of being joined in spiritual union with the Lord. The indwelling Spirit is the defining characteristic of new creation people (Rom. 8:11, Gal. 3:5, 4:6).
Paul closes his letter like a preacher coming to his punchline. “What matters most is Christ in you.” If you have put your faith in Christ, you have been clothed with Christ. Everything else is scenery.
Galatians 6:16
And those who will walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God.
(sebuah) Walk by this rule. Walk in step with the Spirit (Gal. 5:16, 25).
After writing the most fiery and impassioned letter in the Bible, Paul is coming to a thunderous conclusion. Don’t put your faith in Moses; trust Christ (Gal. 6:2). Don’t put your faith in external rules that have no power to impart life or make you righteous; follow this rule. Renew your mind and reorient your thinking to line up with the truth of the gospel.
(b) Rule. Kata benda aslinya (kanōn) means a straight measuring rod such as a carpenter might use. This new covenant rule is not a principle or law or guideline. It is the straight and true plumb line of the new creation. It is Christ himself who is our truest expression of our new life.
(c) Peace. The law preachers had disturbed the peace (Gal. 5:10, 12), but Paul prayed that the Prince of Peace would prevail.
(d) Belas kasihan. The false teachers had introduced a merciless law, but Paul prayed that the Father of all mercies would bring comfort (2 Cor. 1:3).
(e) The Israel of God. All believers (Gal. 3:7, 9). The true descendants of Abraham who have been circumcised in the heart by the Spirit (Rom. 2:29, 4:11).
Galatians 6:17
From now on let no one cause trouble for me, for I bear on my body the brand-marks of Jesus.
(sebuah) Trouble me. The false brothers had accused Paul and undermined his good work, and the foolish Galatians had unquestioningly swallowed their lies. “Enough. This needs to stop.”
(b) Brand-marks atau stigma were marks burned into slaves’ flesh by their masters. Paul’s marks were the scars of persecution he received for preaching the gospel which the Galatians had already seen (Acts 14:19). More scars would come later (2 Cor. 11:23–25).
(c) Jesus. Paul emphasizes the humanity of our Lord by simply calling him Jesus. It was Jesus the Man who suffered and died. It is the Lord Jesus Christ who now sits enthroned above all.
Galatians 6:18
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brethren. Amen.
(sebuah) Berkah. Paul ends his letter the same way he starts it, with a gracious salutation (see Gal. 1:3). Everything Paul wrote was bracketed by the grace of Jesus. May his grace be upon you as you read these words.
(b) Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. To refer to the “grace of our Lord Jesus,” is to refer to the unconditional love and grace of God that comes to us through his Son (John 1:16–17).
(c) Spirit. The grace of God originates in the heavenly realm and is received in our spirits. Everything we need for life and godliness comes freely by grace and through our knowledge of Jesus Christ (2 Pet. 1:3). Our part is to receive and walk in the grace God gives us so that it reaches every part of our lives and touches the world.
(d) Brethren. “My brothers and sisters in Christ;” see masuk for Gal. 1:11.
(e) Amin or “so be it.” In the New Testament, the word amen typically concludes expressions of praise and prayers to God (Matt. 6:13, Rev. 7:12). See also the masuk for Matt. 6:13.
The letter of Galatians can be read as a three-act play about the life that has been embraced by grace. The first act traces the journey from darkness into light. It’s Paul the persecutor meeting Jesus and becoming a new man. It’s the pagan Galatians being freed from superstition and being filled with the Spirit of Christ.
The second act is about the challenges we face when our grasp of grace comes under attack. It’s Peter and Barnabas withdrawing from the Gentiles. It’s the Galatians being troubled by the law teachers and falling from grace.
The final act is about standing firm in the faith, restoring those who have fallen, and living as a new creation. The takeaway of the letter is walk by the spirit atau be led by the spirit atau sow to the spirit. Choose the new way of the spirit and you will enjoy the love, peace, and other spiritual fruit that will blossom from your union with the Lord.
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