Galatians 6:1-16

See what large letters I make when I am writing in my own hand!

If you thought Font Size was a modern concept, I am happy to tell you today that you would be wrong. When we are excited about something and want it heavily emphasized, we will often write it big and bold. Keep in mind of course, in Paul’s day, this would be considered a waste of paper. Hence why writing big was considered important.

Paul thinks what he has to say is important! So he uses his “big and mighty” penmanship font!

Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow.

Every wonder what you’re sowing? I do and Paul was pretty serious about it too. In the wonderful world of Biblical farming analogies, I feel like we are given seeds throughout our lifespan. God gives us some at birth that take a long time to mature. For some… a really really really long time… but I think most of the seeds we sow in our lifetime are given to us by other human beings. They are given to us sometimes without our even realizing we have pocketed them and placed them in our garden.

The churches Paul established in Galatia, which is most likely somewhere near south east Anatolia, also known as Asia Minor, which is eastern Turkey. The churches Paul established in Galatia were sowing judgment when they thought they were sowing Christianity. They were planting the wrong seeds. Seeds that were not given to them by Paul, not given to them by God but seeds that they had just picked up along their way through life.

They thought they were being good and loyal Christians by upholding the law especially when it came to circumcision, something God had commanded of Abraham and all of Abraham’s offspring and army. They thought that by doing certain things, they could fulfill the law. What they failed to realize is that they were no longer bound by the laws of Moses but instead, the law of Christ. The things that the law of Moses declared to be transgressions, the law of Christ did not.

It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who try to compel you to be circumcised. This outward sign of inward grace they firmly believed was the only way to be accepted into the kingdom of God. And it wasn’t as if they Bible they were used to didn’t say that.

There were guards at the pearly gates checking foreskins, they were willing to swear by it! Genesis 17:9-14 ⁹ Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. ¹⁰ This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. ¹¹ You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. ¹² For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring. ¹³ Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. ¹⁴ Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”

I’m not sure how God could have been clearer to Abraham. Circumcision was important cut off the foreskin or be cut off from your people.

Jesus was Jewish, therefore, Jesus would have been circumcised at 8 days old. And yet… did Jesus ever say to anyone they needed to be circumcised? No, he did not. We have absolutely no record of Jesus either saying anyone had to be circumcised or circumcising anyone. The Galatians fear was not unfounded so Paul wrote a letter to reassure them it was okay.

Those who believe they are something are nothing. For if those who are nothing think they are something, they deceive themselves. WE ARE NOTHING. We are all nobodies.

I know some people struggle with this concept of human worthlessness. Either they think too much of themselves or they use it as an excuse to degrade themselves. It threw me a bit in a seminary class when a fellow student remarked they didn’t like how in Amazing Grace the singer refers to themselves as a wretch. I hope they didn’t see the look on my face because I felt like they were completely missing the point. But this was the tradition I was raised in and I don’t take offense to it, they obviously did and were likely raised in a tradition where they were taught you are perfect exactly as you are, therefore not wretched. Different perspectives.

God doesn’t see the outside of us. God doesn’t care if you’ve got long flowing locks of hair, pearly white teeth, or ten fingers and toes. God is going to love you just as much if you are bald, toothless, and lack phalanges. The physical world isn’t what God is paying attention to. That’s what Jesus was trying to convey. There is nothing that happens to the flesh that changes you in the eyes of God.

God is paying attention to what goes on inside of you. No, God doesn’t care if you are missing a lung or a kidney either. God cares what is inside your heart but not cholesterol. God doesn’t care about tattoos or body art but God does care if you are helping to bear others burdens or only focused on your own. God cares if you’re creating stumbling blocks for other people because you have a list of things people should and should not do in church, things they should and should not wear to church, who you should or should not bring to church, or boxes you must check in order to be eligible to be a part of God’s church.

This church is not YOURS! It’s GOD’s and sometimes we forget that. We refer to it as “my church” in a casual way, which is seemingly safe until suddenly it isn’t. Right now, this is my church, and it is your church but it is also not my church nor is it your church, nor is it our church, it is God’s church. God decides not us who God wants to bring and who God wants us to bring here. We don’t make the rules because even the circumcised themselves do not obey the law!

All must test their own work; then that work, rather than their neighbor’s work, will become a cause for pride. For all must carry their own loads. The Bible is full of contradictions, isn’t it? Matthew 11:28-29 states “²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Interesting how we lessen our weight by taking on more weight isn’t it? Earthly physics doesn’t seem to apply to God.

How are you personally taking on Jesus’ yoke? Contributing to “your” church and community? What are you sowing here?

Are you trying to act like you own the place and influence every decision that happens here? Not good. Sowing to reap your own flesh.

Are you sitting idly by griping about the one’s who make all the decisions around here but do nothing to influence or be a part of those decisions? Not good. God will not measure you by your neighbor’s work.

Are you hiding talents and gifts that others could benefit from in worship? Got a great voice for singing or speaking? Writing? Audio? Video? Decorating? Bear one another’s burdens. Right now, our primary functions as this church are worship and building maintenance. There’s nothing wrong with that; so long as we’re in the process of planting and sowing some seeds as we do so, so that maintenance is not our only function forever.

We have to not grow weary of doing what is right. We grow weary when we are doing things for ourselves rather than doing things for the greater good. We grow weary when we try to control everything and get frustrated with all those volunteers we chased off because they won’t do it our way or volunteers grow weary of whoever is leading a project because they are not given good direction, not being led well. The church, like every relationship in your life, must be about helping carry one another’s burdens. It’s a balancing act.

Helping, not doing. Helping means one person doesn’t steal the load from another nor does one person attempt to push everything off onto another. All must test their own work. All are nobody. All are wretched. We must not deceive ourselves as being someone important.

We are all just nobody, here to tell everybody about somebody. But, to do that, we can’t expect them to adhere to the laws of our ancestors. We can’t expect them to learn our language. We can’t even expect them to follow our rules and regulations or way of life.

Spreading the message of Jesus Christ is both the easiest thing and the hardest thing in the world to do. It’s easy because all you have to do is tell people why you know he exists in this world. It’s hard because you then… you leave the rest up to them. You have to let go of control. You have to let them find and largely practice their faith as they are called to do not as you think they should do.

You have to understand that it is not up to you how or where they worship Christ, you just tell them who he is and what he did for you and then you leave the rest up to their relationship with Christ. You have just given a burden to them, now you must also help them carry a burden they are carrying. If they are interested and want to learn more about how to develop a relationship with Christ, you invite them to church. You recommend a good Bible translation that will make sense to them and fit into their lifestyle. Your job is to give them good seeds to start planting in their own life.

Your goal isn’t to make them more like you. It is to help them grow their relationship with Christ who will change them in unforeseeable ways… that aren’t up to you. Your job is to extend the invitation.

May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. You are to boast about what Jesus Christ has done in your life. Tell people how Christ has changed you. You are not to boast about how holy you are because you’re not. You are to boast about how you are nobody but somebody changed your life by introducing you to Christ. That’s the story you tell. That’s the story that you write in the biggest words you can fit on the page in all capital letters.

See what large letters I am using to emphasize this! ¹¹ See what large letters I make when I am writing in my own hand! ¹² It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who try to compel you to be circumcised—only that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ.

Those who are telling you that to be saved you have to be this and you have to be that are trying to make a good showing in the flesh. They are boasting that they believe themselves to be in a better position than you to tell you how to be a good Christian. They have passed judgment upon you and they will be judged in the end but you, you can build your own relationship with Christ. You can wish peace upon them, show them mercy and walk your own path. You will reap what you sow and they shall reap what they sow. Don’t take their seeds. Plant only the seeds of love that Jesus Christ has given you.