Restoring Your Brother

RIVERSIDE INDONESIAN FELLOWSHIP
Go to content

Restoring Your Brother

Riverside Indonesian Fellowship
Published by Stanley Pouw in 2020 · 17 May 2020

We are finishing up Galatians now after Easter. Paul has been defending his apostleship, he has been defending the gospel, and he has been defining what it is to live a Christian life, freedom in Christ rather than legalism. In Galatians 1 and 2 Paul defends his apostleship, in Galatians 3 and 4 he defends the gospel. And in Galatians 4 and 5 he deals with issues of the Christian life.

Paul writes about spiritual life and how to walk in the Holy Spirit, how to live a life of freedom in Christ that is still obedient. Galatians 5:16, “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.”

But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus, they have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, 26 let us also walk by the Spirit. Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.

Galatians 6:1-6, “Brethren, even if anyone is caught in a 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. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ. 3 For if anyone thinks he’s something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 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. 5 For each one will bear his own load. 6 The one who is taught the word is to share all good things with the one who teaches him.” The church has to face this reality. As much as we want unity, purity, virtue and holiness, the church will always be divided between those who walk in the Spirit and those who walk in the flesh.

At any given time in the life of the church we have both of these side by side. We are struggling in ourselves with this conflict. Look at Romans 7:14-25, “We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. 15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good.”

“17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. 18 For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.”

“21 So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25 Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ!”

So that is true in the life of every believer. There is a battle going on between the power of the Spirit energizing the new creation and the power of the flesh in remaining humanness. Since that is every Christian’s struggle, it is also the struggle of every church. There are always some who at any point in time are walking in the Spirit, and others who are walking in the flesh.

Now how does sanctification relate to this? Sanctification or our progressive holiness is the decreasing frequency of sin. It is the decreasing intensity of those episodes where we walk in the flesh. What happens is, as you are sanctified and more conformed to the person of Jesus Christ, you have fewer times when you walk in the flesh, and they are not as powerful as they once were.

The New Testament has a lot to say about this. In 1 Corinthians 5, Paul was writing to a church that was like any other church struggling with sin. There were those walking in the Spirit and they apparently were not doing anything about those walking in the flesh. Paul tells them, “You’ve got to deal with this immoral person openly, and you’ve got to deliver him, if necessary, over to Satan.

There may be some fleshly destruction, but his soul will be saved,” which indicates that this is a believer walking in the flesh. They hadn’t done that. “Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough? Throw out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump. For Christ offered a sacrifice to redeem sins, so you need then to confront sin and deal with it.”

Paul talks about an occasion where sin was confronted, and there was a positive response in the life of this individual. So in 2 Corinthians 2:6-8 Paul says, “This punishment which was inflicted by the majority is sufficient for such a man, 7 so that, on the contrary, you ought rather to forgive and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one be swallowed up with too much sorrow. 8 Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love to him.”

Verse 9-11, “For to this end I also wrote, that I might put you to the test, whether you are obedient in all things. 10 Now whom you forgive anything, I also forgive. For if indeed I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven that one for your sakes in the presence of Christ, 11 lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.” Satan wants to use division in the church.

This is a person who has repented, he’s come back for restoration. You need to forgive this person, you need to love this person, you need to comfort this person, you need to fully embrace this person so that Satan doesn’t use this situation to perpetuate division in the church. Paul is concerned that the people there are being led away from purity and devotion to Christ.

So now back to Galatians, what is the church to do in dealing with this kind of sin? Where there is sin in the church, what is our objective? Galatians 6:1 says, “Restore such a one.” Now that’s the heart of this passage. The objective of spiritual discipline and church discipline is not to put people out; that’s a last resort for people who won’t repent. The point of all of this confrontation of sin is restoration.

Now what is the pattern that we are to use in approaching sin, dealing with it, and coming to a point of restoration? In Matthew 18 we have the first instruction ever given to the church by our Lord in the New Testament. Verse 15, “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother.”

Verse 16-18, “But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ 17 And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector. 18 “Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

In other words, put him/her out of the church if he/she will not repent. You’ve gone to the person, you’ve taken two or three witnesses, the whole church has gone and he/she still does not repent, treat him like an outsider, because, as we’ve read in 1 Corinthians 5, “A little leaven leavens the whole lump.” You can’t just leave them there in a constant perpetual state of sin, he will affect others.

And now if they repent, look at Matthew 18:21, “Peter came and said, ‘Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?’” Peter knows the pattern. “Well, if you do this, people are going to sin again. How often do you keep doing this? Do you do it seven times?” The rabbis said three times. Peter thought he’d double it and add one because he was felt noble.

Verse 22, “Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven times.” You just keep forgiving and forgiving. At the end of everything, forgiveness is what sustains and restores all relationships. So where there is sin and repentance, how do we deal with the restoration process; because Galatians 6:1 says, “Restore such a one.”

What does the church do? Galatians 5:26 says, “Let us not become boastful, provoking one another, envying one another.” Provoking literally means “to create a conflict.” So there’s a potential here for severe conflict between the boastful and the envious. The boastful would tend to be the spiritual ones, “thinking you have a rightful claim to honor.” That is conceit, empty vanity.

In Galatians 5:13, Paul said, “For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” But if you bite and devour one another, take care that you’re not consumed by one another.” And then he says, “Walk in the Spirit and not the flesh. If you don’t come together, you’re going to have conflict in the church.”

In Galatians 6:1-2 we see the remedy for this, “Brethren, if a man is caught in a trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” There are three steps when you find someone walking in the flesh. Number One: Pick them up. “Brethren, if anyone is caught in a trespass.”

Your attitude should be “in a spirit of gentleness.” It’s humility. It’s the kind of humble, gentle, sweet-spirited, loving care over someone who has stumbled; and you’re there to pick that person up. So you basically follow the pattern of the meekness and gentleness of Christ. James 4 it tells us not to judge. It means “to speak against someone in a derogatory way, in a way of accusation and defamation.”

Now sometimes they don’t want that and they don’t respond. 2 Thessalonians 3:6, “We command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that you stay away from every brother who leads an unruly life.” You want to stay away, because a little leaven is very corrupting. At the end of verse 1, “each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.” In other words, you’re no better than they are.

Secondly, hold them up. Now you’ve got the responsibility, verse 2 says, to bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.” You shoulder the load as they try to come out from under the sin that has beset them; you get under the burden with them. Whatever oppresses that believer, whatever has defeated that believer, you get under the affliction, you get under the burden.

And when you do that, thirdly, you fulfill the law of Christ. What is the law of Christ? The law of Christ is the law of love. James 2:8 says it’s the royal law. What is the perfect law and the royal law? “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” You fulfill the law of love by holding up a believer who has stumbled. You come alongside with them, you walk with them, you care for them, and you pray with them.

Verse 3, “If anyone thinks he’s something when he’s nothing, he deceives himself.” If you think you’re too good to do this, you don’t know the truth about yourself. If you think this is beneath you, you are self-deceived. Conceit is vain glory. You are nothing when you think you’re something. And then how do you get self-deceived? By comparing yourselves to others.

That’s not acceptable for believers. Verse 4 makes it clear. Rather than compare yourselves with others, “Each one must examine his own work,” in an absolute way, not compared to somebody else. You look at your own life. Am I what Christ wants me to be? You need to do that, because, verse 5 says, “Each one will bear his own load.” Our own baggage. Compare it to the Word of God and Christ Himself.

2 Corinthians 5:10, “We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ so that each may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he’s done, good or bad.” Whether it’s gold, silver, precious stones or wood, hay, and stubble; you’re going to show up at the bema judgment, the judgment of believers in the presence of the Lord. You’re going to be judged on your own baggage.

Then, lastly, there’s a final duty in verse 6, “The one who is taught the word is to share all good things with the one who teaches him.” What this implies is you now have a teaching relationship with this believer who will respond to your instruction by sharing good things back with you, so it is not a short-term enterprise. Now you have become the instructor, “The one who taught how to share.”

That’s the word “fellowship,” To fellowship with the teacher in all good things. And that will happen if you build the believer up in the Word, he will share back with you all good things. Paul is saying, you will be there receiving all the spiritual benefits that flow out of your investment in that person’s life. This is how the church sustains and maintains its unity of love. Let’s bow in prayer.



JOIN OUR MAILING LIST:

© 2017 Ferdy Gunawan
ADDRESS:

2401 Alcott St.
Denver, CO 80211
WEEKLY PROGRAMS

Service 5:00 - 6:30 PM
Children 5:30 - 6:30 PM
Fellowship 6:30 - 8:00 PM
Bible Study (Fridays) 7:00 PM
Phone (720) 338-2434
Email Address: Click here
Back to content