Down to Earth But Heavenly Minded

What does Galatians Chapter 6 mean?

Galatians 6 expands on Paul’s teaching about living in God’s Spirit, which he gave at the end of Galatians chapter 5. It describes how Christians who live in God’s Spirit should use His power to treat each other.

To begin with, Paul shows that when a brother or sister in Christ gets caught by sin, other Christians should step in instead of looking away. Spiritually mature Christians should help to restore the one caught by sin with gentleness and humility. This is one of the ways those in Christ can help to carry each other’s burdens. When the load one of us is hauling around becomes too heavy, others should step in to help that person get through that season. In other words, life in Christ by the power of God’s Spirit is not meant to be lived alone (Galatians 6:1–2).

Having said that, Paul encourages Christians to take careful stock of the work they do in the Spirit without comparing themselves to each other. We should be honest with ourselves and take full responsibility to do what is ours to do in following Christ. One of those responsibilities is to share the good things God gives to us with those who teach us the Word (Galatians 6:3–5).

Next applies the comparison of planting and harvesting to living in the flesh and living in the Spirit. Those who insist on trying to be made righteous before God by the effort of their flesh in following the law will harvest “corruption” or death. In a similar way, those who plant only the seeds of their own sinful desires will also harvest death. Only those who plant God’s Spirit, by faith in Christ, will harvest eternal life (Galatians 6:6–8).

Paul encourages those who walk by the Spirit not to give up doing good. Don’t get tired of it, he writes. The harvest is coming! Use up all the planting time to do good to everyone, especially other Christian in this house of faith we live in as brothers and sisters with the same Father (Galatians 6:9–10).

Paul concludes his letter by, presumably, taking the pen from his scribe—something like a secretary who would write down his words—to write the ending with his own hand, and he writes with big letters! He immediately goes back to the issue of circumcision, revealing once more that the false teachers pressuring the Galatians to get circumcised are only interested in promoting themselves. The Galatians must not allow themselves to be used in that way (Galatians 6:11–13).

For his part, Paul will not brag about how many people he has led to faith in Christ. He will brag, though, about the cross of Christ. That’s where Paul was crucified to the world, and vice versa. Because he has been set free by faith in Christ, the world no longer has anything to offer him (Galatians 6:14–16).

Paul closes his letter with a plea and two blessings. Paul tells everyone to stop causing him trouble since he belongs to Jesus. He blesses all who follow the rule that circumcision doesn’t matter, but being a new creation in Christ does, and then he offers his standard closing blessing, referring to the Galatians as brothers (Galatians 6:17–18).

Chapter Context
Galatians 5 wrapped up with a focus on what it means to be led by God’s Spirit. Galatians 6 starts with describing how Spirit-led Christians serve each other by restoring those caught be sin and bearing each other’s burdens. Only those who plant God’s Spirit in this life, through faith in Christ, will harvest eternal life. Paul concludes the letter by writing in big letters that circumcision does not matter, only being made a new creation by faith in Christ matters.

Verse by Verse

Verse 1. Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.

At the end of the previous chapter, Paul described what it looks like for an individual Christian to walk by the Spirit (Galatians 5:22–25). Now he begins to describe how groups of Christians can live in Christ together.

He begins by describing someone who is a Christian being caught in a transgression. Better put, this is a person “caught by” sin. Notice that Paul’s instruction here reveals several assumptions about Christians and sin.

First, Christians can and do sin. By definition, trusting in Christ brings with it a commitment to stop living for the sins our human nature desires (Galatians 5:24). However, getting caught off-guard by those desires, failing to follow the Spirit away from them, does not mean we are no longer in Christ. Paul says it means we need help, in part from other Christians.

Second, Paul doesn’t assume we will fight our way out of sin entirely on our own. Instead, he instructs other, spiritually mature Christians to step in and restore us. It’s a delicate job, though. These helpers will need to be spiritually mature, people who are clearly walking by the Spirit themselves. They will need to be gentle, not harsh or condemning. And they will need to be humble to avoid being tempted by sin themselves.

But someone must step up and help restore in order for the body of Christians to continue to function well. The word translated “restore” here is katartizete, used in common Greek as a reference to resetting broken bones, and in the New Testament for mending fishing nets. To “restore” something is to make it whole and functional again. When it comes to sin, that involves repentance and a return to Spirit-powered living. We can help each other do that.

Context Summary
Galatians 6:1–10 focuses on how those in Christ should treat each other, through the power of God’s Spirit. We should restore those caught in sin with gentleness and humility, and we should help to carry each other’s burdens. Having said that, Christians should be honest with ourselves about what God is doing through us. We need to take responsibility for what He has asked us to carry. Because eternal life comes from planting God’s Spirit by faith in Christ, and not by works of the flesh, we must keep doing good. The harvest will show that we planted well.

Verse 2. Bear one another ‘s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

Paul is giving instructions to the Galatian Christians about how to live with each other as Spirit-powered people in Christ. In the previous verse, he told them that when one is caught by sin, others should step in to help restore that person to walking by the Spirit again.

Now he tells them, and by extension all Christians, to help carry each other’s burdens. Notice what this means: Being in Christ does not mean we won’t have burdens to carry in this earthly life. We will. One of those burdens is the weightiness of our temptation to give into sin, and the heaviness of trying to get out of it. Paul wanted us to share that burden and not battle sin and temptation on our own.

The term used here by Paul is instructive. He describes these weights using the Greek term barē, which in New Testament use applies to something excessive or extreme in its weight (Revelation 2:24; Matthew 20:12). Later, Paul will use a different term, phortion, which is used for more-manageable burdens (Matthew 11:30; Acts 27:10).

We carry other burdens, as well, and sometimes we go through seasons where those burdens are too much for us to haul around. Such burdens might include relationship issues, financial problems, illness, indecision, or emotional difficulties. God’s Spirit certainly gives us the power to deal with these issues, but another way God intends to provide for those in Christ is by giving us the ability to help each other.

One way we can fail in this area is by refusing to allow anyone to see the burdens we are carrying. We can mistakenly think that being a Christian means we should be self-reliant in every way, all the time. In a few verses, Paul will write that we do need to carry the weight of our responsibilities in Christ. But Christians are also meant to help each other with the loads we carry when they become overwhelming.

How does helping to carry each other’s loads fulfill the law of Christ? Paul earlier quoted Jesus in saying that the entire law is fulfilled in one word: love (Galatians 5:14). Love is the law of Christ.

Verse 3. For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.

Paul is explaining to Christians how to live together as people in Christ. He has just written that we must help carry each other’s burdens (Galatians 6:1–2). What causes us not to practice this? Pride. We see ourselves as self-reliant, not needing anyone else’s help to carry our load, even when it gets too heavy for us. Or perhaps we are simply too proud to do the work of carrying another’s burden.

The problem with that failure is that it makes ourselves the focus of our own love and attention. It means believing our own lie: that we are more significant or stronger than other believers. In truth, only Christ is strong enough to meet all of our needs, and all of our strength comes from God’s Spirit. We must not fall into the trap of seeing ourselves as the source of our own ability to follow Jesus. That will hurt us, as well as hurting the Christians around us.

Verse 4. But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor.

Paul has just given a warning to Christians, seemingly those who refuse to allow others to help carry their burdens or who refuse to help carry the burdens of others: If you think you are something when you are nothing, you’re only lying to yourself (Galatians 6:3).

Now Paul instructs us to test ourselves against ourselves, rather than in comparison to others. In other words, we should develop the habit of looking at our work in the power of the Holy Spirit and asking, “Was this effective? Was this meaningful? Was this truly helpful? Did I reflect Christ in this?”

We should take the time to make that honest analysis, instead of merely comparing ourselves to the people around us. Then, we can truly enjoy what we see God accomplishing through us, in real humility. Paul’s use of the word “boast” is not about bragging or a sinful pride in ourselves. It’s about honest measurement of what is true.

He put it this way in Romans 12:3, “…I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.”

Verse 5. For each will have to bear his own load.

Paul has just written in Galatians 6:2 that we are to bear each other’s burdens. Now, after saying that we should take honest stock of the effectiveness of our work in Christ, instead of merely comparing ourselves to each other, Paul writes that each of us will, in fact, have to bear our own load. Is Paul contradicting himself in this verse? No, in fact, he’s making a point that would have been clearer to those reading his original words than our English translations.

First of all, the Greek word for “loads” in Galatians 6:2 is barē, a word which seems to imply something unreasonable, extremely heavy, or otherwise too much for one person to carry. This is how the word is used in verses such as Matthew 20:12 and Revelation 2:24. In other words, when another believer is in a season of carrying such an overwhelming burden, we should step in to help each other. That is the meaning implied in earlier verses.

The Greek word for “load” in this verse is phortion. This was often used to refer to a soldier’s pack: the standard cargo borne by each person in the company. Other places in the New Testament use this term in reference to burdens which are more reasonable, or more manageable, than those implied by the word barē (Matthew 11:30; Acts 27:10).

In other words, those in Christ will carry some responsibilities and obligations not meant to be commonly shared by others. We are meant to shoulder those burdens in the power of God’s Spirit, because we are able.

Having said that, wisdom is required to know when a load is just the normal work of a Christian—i.e. a phortion kind of task—and when the load is a crushing weight meant to be shared—i.e. a barē load that is too much for one person. In any case, we must be willing to step in and share loads when the time comes to do so, while still willing to carry our own fair share on an everyday basis.

Verse 6. Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches.

Paul is providing a series of instructions to the Galatian Christians for how those in Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit, should live together.

This verse serves as part of the basis for the practice of Christian churches paying their pastors out of the voluntary giving of the people. One of the spiritual gifts mentioned in several passages in the New Testament is that of pastor/teacher. These are people given the unique ability by God to teach His Word to others. Sometimes, those with this gift make teaching in the church their full-time occupation.

Paul does not go into that level of detail here. Instead he simply says that those who are taught the Word, meaning the Scriptures, should share “all good things” with those who teach. Since this verse comes immediately after Paul’s instruction that each of us must bear our load, he may be implying that providing for those who teach the Word is part of the load each of us should carry.

Verse 7. Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.

Paul has been encouraging Christians to live a life marked by the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:19–25), and to support each other in the struggles of life (Galatians 6:1–5). Christianity is all about the grace of God. He gives us good things which we could never have earned on our own. In our sin, we deserve death and suffering. Instead, in Christ, God gives us life and purpose.

Still, as Paul states clearly in this verse, the grace of God does not eliminate the principles of choice and consequence. In this life, our decisions will bring with them natural results. We must not lie to ourselves, that because of God’s grace and forgiveness of our sins, we will not suffer any harm if we continue to choose sin. To believe such a thing is to mock God, to make light of Jesus’ sacrifice for our sin on the cross.

What we do in this life does matter, beyond even the question of whether or not we will see heaven. In eternity, our choices will be reflected in our heavenly rewards, for those who are saved (1 Corinthians 3:12–15; 2 Corinthians 5:10), or our eternal punishment, for those who are not (Revelation 20:11–14).

Until then, the “crop” we produce between now and the moment of our death is also determined by the “seeds” we plant along the way. God’s natural laws of cause and effect still apply, to believers and unbelievers alike. Paul will expand on this idea in the following verses.

Verse 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.

In the previous verse, Paul reinforced the universal principle that people reap what they sow in life. Job said something similar, “As I have seen, those who plow iniquity and sow trouble reap the same” (Job 4:8). The crops we get will be decided by the seed we put in the ground. In other words, natural cause and effect still applies, both to the Christian and to the unbeliever.

Paul now clarifies this principle of sowing and reaping, in the context of the Spirit of God. Paul has demonstrated in his letter that it is possible to “sow to the flesh,” meaning to invest our lives in serving ourselves, through two different mistakes.

One mistake is that of legalism. The Judaizers were urging the Galatians to trust their flesh in the sense that they wanted them to hope that their attempts to follow the law of Moses would make them justified before God (Galatians 2:4). Paul says to those who would trust their own effort in this way that what they will reap, instead, is corruption. That’s because the product of our “flesh,” our ability to do good in our own power with our bodies, is poisoned with sin. It can’t grow the good crop of righteousness and eternal life.

At the same time, some of the Galatian Christians were apparently “sowing to the flesh” by doing whatever felt good to their bodies. They were indulging in sin. The result would be the same for them as it was for the legalists: a harvest of corruption.

Eternal life is only available through the power of God’s Spirit. Those who “sow to the Spirit” in that they are trusting Christ for salvation and receiving God’s Spirit will receive eternal life. Then they will continue to live in the strength of God’s Spirit and bear the fruit described in Galatians 5:22–23.

Verse 9. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

Paul has just asked the Galatian Christians to be convinced, once again, that trusting their flesh in this life will only lead to corruption. Reliance on our own power only leads to decay and death. That is true whether we trust human effort to save us by following the rituals and sacraments of the law, or by following our own selfish, sinful desires. Salvation comes only by “planting” the Spirit. Through faith in Christ for the forgiveness of our sin, God gives to us His own Spirit. Only that Spirit will deliver eternal life in the end (Galatians 6:6–8).

Now Paul urges the Galatians not to grow tired of doing good. Doing good is hard work, especially if someone begins to doubt whether it matters. Paul is urging the Galatians to keep living in a way that is consistent with what they believe. They are free people in Christ, and God’s Spirit is with them. Eventually, the crop of eternal life will come up and they will see it for themselves.

In a more immediate sense, the good works the Galatians are doing in the power of the Spirit will also bear fruit. God will often allow His people to see how their investment of themselves to do good matters both in this life and in the life to come.

Verse 10. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.

Paul has urged the Galatian Christians not to grow tired of doing good, through the power of God’s Spirit. It will pay off when the “crops” come, he has assured them. The most obvious crop is their own eternal life in Christ. Paul perhaps also has other positive results in mind, including the eternal lives of others who will come to Christ. And, perhaps he has in mind the rewards given by God to those Christians who serve well in this life (Matthew 6:19–20).

In any case, a planting season only lasts so long. It must eventually come to an end. Paul says this, spiritually speaking, is the planting time. As long as we have the opportunity to do good, to invest our lives by the power of God’s Spirit in doing what is right, we should take it. This includes doing good to everyone but being especially intentional about doing good to and for other believers.

Paul describes all of us who are in Christ as belonging to the “household of faith.” In Christ, we are siblings, and God is our Father. Doing good to others in our household is an investment that will pay off for them and for us both now and for eternity.

Verse 11. See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand.

Paul is coming to the end of his letter to the Galatians. It was common in that day to use a scribe, called an amanuensis, to take dictation when writing a letter. This verse is one which seems to indicate this was Paul’s practice. As he did with at least three other biblical letters—1 Corinthians, Colossians, and 2 Thessalonians—he now takes the pen himself to write the last few lines.

Paul calls attention to how large the letters of these last lines are as compared with the presumably smaller handwriting of the rest of the letter. Some scholars speculate that this is because Paul’s eyesight was extremely poor. At the same time, Paul might simply have written the end of some of his letters in distinctive large handwriting as evidence that the letter was genuine. He understood himself to be writing with the authority of an apostle of Jesus Christ, and he wanted to minimize the ability of anyone to suggest the letter was a fake.

Context Summary
Galatians 6:11–18 is the conclusion of Paul’s letter to the Galatians. He apparently took the pen from his scribe and wrote these words, with his own hand, in oversized letters. This remark is one reason some scholars think Paul might have had a problem with his eyesight. Once again, Paul reveals the motives of false teachers pressuring the Galatians to be circumcised. They are only promoting themselves. Now that Christ has come, circumcision does nothing. The Galatians should trust Christ, instead, to be made into new creations.

Verse 12. 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.

Paul has taken the pen from his scribe to write the ending of his letter to the Galatians with his own hand. Writing in large letters, he begins to sum up his letter by repeating some of the big ideas he has covered.

First, he returns to the issue of circumcision. A group known as the Judaizers was trying to convince the Galatian Christians that they must believe in Jesus and be circumcised in order to truly be right with God. Paul has told them flatly that if they get circumcised for this reason, Christ will be useless to them (Galatians 5:2).

Now he says that those trying to force the Galatians to be circumcised are only doing so to make themselves look good “in the flesh.” They are trying to earn the approval of other Jewish religious leaders by the number of new Gentile Christians they can convince to be circumcised. Paul doesn’t want his readers to buy into that.

Also, these Judaizers insist on circumcision because they are afraid of being persecuted by other Jewish religious leaders. It’s one thing to agree that faith in Christ is necessary for salvation, but to teach that circumcision is not necessary will paint a target on their backs. Paul knew that from hard experience! So they take the easy way out and do both. Paul has taught clearly that the two cannot go together (Galatians 5:4).

Verse 13. 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 is wrapping up his letter to the Galatians by writing the ending personally, instead of dictating it to his scribe. He has returned to the issue of circumcision and the false-teaching Judaizers who insist that even believers in Jesus must be circumcised to be saved (Galatians 2:4). This was a major theme of the letter, before Paul turned to the issue of how those living according to the Spirit of God ought to act (Galatians 5:19–25).

Now Paul says that the Judaizers are also hypocrites. They do not—in fact are not able to—keep the law of Moses any more than anyone else is (Galatians 3:10–14). Their only reason to try to get others to be circumcised is so they can boast about their conversion numbers. In other words, the Galatian believers are just stats for the false teachers, as if they were salesmen working on commission.

Verse 14. 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.

Paul is once more denouncing the false-teaching Judaizers who are attempting to strong-arm the Galatian believers into getting circumcised in order to be truly right with God (Galatians 2:4). Paul has revealed part of their motive: boasting about conversion numbers. In other words, these false teachers are not truly concerned about the people of Galatia or even about serving God. They’re trying to earn bragging rights about their salesmanship.

Paul now implies that he could play that game, too, if he was like the Judaizers. After all, he has been instrumental in converting many, many people to faith in Christ. But Paul says clearly that he refuses to do such a thing. He will not boast about what God has accomplished through him. Paul says he will boast in just one thing: the cross of Christ. Everything that Paul has, that anyone in Christ has, is possible only because Jesus died on that cross for our sins to set us free.

It is by the cross of Jesus, Paul says, that the world has been crucified to him and him to the world. In other words, because he has been justified by faith in Christ and what He accomplished on the cross, Paul no longer needs the approval of the world. The world has nothing to offer to him, just as the world, at large, certainly does not want what he has to offer. Because of the cross, Paul is free from all of that while the Judaizers remain enslaved to their sinful worldliness (Galatians 3:23–29).

Verse 15. For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.

In the last few words of this letter, Paul repeats the point weighing most heavily on his mind: Now that Christ has come, it does not matter in any way in the eyes of God whether someone is circumcised or not. This is meant specifically to counter the poisonous false teachings of those who want to require rituals and sacraments for salvation (Galatians 2:4).

When he wrote that in Galatians 5:6, he stated that what truly matters is faith working through love. Now he has a bigger perspective of that same claim. What matters is that someone is a new creation. In other words, it’s not about an alteration to one part of the body, it’s about what God does in the heart to make a person brand new in Christ. This dovetails with Paul’s dismissal of race, gender, or wealth as meaningful to our relationship to God (Galatians 3:23–29).

His second letter to the Corinthians puts it this way: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Verse 16. And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God.

Coming to the end of his letter to the Galatians, Paul offers a benediction or a blessing to a specific group of people: “all who walk by this rule.” The rule he has in mind is what he has just said in the previous verses: It doesn’t matter if someone is circumcised; what matters is if someone is a new creation in Christ.

Paul has made the case, from the first words of this letter (Galatians 1:3–5), that being “in Christ” comes only by faith in Christ and His death for our sin on the cross. No component of works, rituals, or sacraments can obtain our salvation (Galatians 3:23–29). In fact, to rely on any aspect of works means not fully trusting in the finished work of Christ (Galatians 5:2–4). The “rule” we are to follow is that of faith in Christ, leading to submissive obedience through His Spirit.

To those in Galatia who follow that rule, Paul prays for peace and mercy. He also prays the same upon “the Israel of God.” In Greek, as well as in English, Paul separates these two groups in praying his blessing. The growing body of Christians—the church—does not replace Israel. Even Paul, as shown here, sees them as separate entities.

Verse 17. From now on let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.

Paul concludes his letter with one more combative statement to those who opposed him. He tells them to, in essence, leave him alone. He wants them to stop causing him trouble. Paul is not offering to change his message to achieve some truce with the Jewish religious leaders who have so often harassed him, though. He simply asserts that he belongs to Jesus.

What is the evidence that Paul belongs to Jesus? He carries the “marks of Jesus” on his body. The Greek word for marks is stigmata, often used to describe a brand applied on cattle, or on a slave. Paul’s marks, though, were not put there by Jesus directly. They were given to Paul by his persecutors because he preached about Jesus (2 Corinthians 11:24–25). He now wore the marks as signs of Jesus’ ownership of him.

Indeed, the Jewish religious leaders should have left a man belonging to the Son of God alone. They did not, however. Paul would continue to be persecuted for the sake of Jesus until his death, refusing to become weary in doing good (Galatians 6:9).

Verse 18. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen.

The last verse of Paul’s letter to the Galatians brings another benediction to the Galatians. It is somewhat standard in form, but it is meaningful. He prays that Christ’s grace would be with their spirit, and he calls them his brothers. It’s evident that the Galatian believers meant much to Paul. He cared about them deeply. He left them with one last reminder that God’s grace through faith in Christ is the way to be justified. It is the truth that makes all who trust in Christ brothers and sisters: part of the family of God.

Book Summary
Galatians is sometimes called “a short Romans” for its similar themes of justification and sanctification through faith. A group of Christians known as “Judaizers” were preaching a gospel of legalism, rather than grace. Paul’s main purpose in writing the letter to the Galatians was to reiterate the true nature of the gospel: we are justified (made righteous) and sanctified (made more Christlike) through our faith in Jesus Christ alone. This letter was probably written shortly before the church elders in Jerusalem issued their official refutation of the Judaizers, commonly called the Jerusalem Council.

End of Chapter 6 and the Book of Galatians.

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