Ch 5-6: New Life in the Spirit A. 5:1-6:10Call to Christian Living 1. 5:1-5:15Call to Christian Liberty 2. 5:16-5:26Call to True Spirituality 3. 6:1-6:10Call to Christian Service B. 6:11-18Conclusion 1. 6:11-16Final Challenge 2. 6:17-18Benediction

“gentleness” prau,thj (PRAUTĒS) inner restraint through a settled assurance of ultimate justice and victory in the Lord

Gal 6:1 – “restore such a one” Howard R. VosGalatians: A Call to Christian Liberty pg. 110 “Restore is a beautiful word, used for the setting of a dislocated or broken bone and making it useful to the whole body once more; of course this must be done with much care. Here the spiritual are exhorted to bring the brother back into his rightful place of fellowship in the body. This is to be done in a spirit of meekness, one of the fruit of the Spirit, not in an attitude of vainglory or a ‘better than thou” attitude on the part of those who have not fallen into sin. ‘Considering yourself’ marks a shift from the plural to the singular, indicating that restoration belongs to the church corporately, but there is individual responsibility in treatment of others in the proper spirit; and none of us is immune to falling into sin. Therefore we should be very gentle in dealing with others who have capitulated to temptation.”

Gal 6:2//6:5 KJV6:2“Bear ye one another's burdens…” 6:5“…every man shall bear his own burden.” NKJV6:2“Bear one another’s burdens…” 6:5“…each one shall bear his own load.” NASB6:2“Bear one another’s burdens…” 6:5“…each one will bear his own load.” NIV6:2“Carry each other’s burdens…” 6:5“…each one should carry their own load.”

“burden” vs “load” “burden” ba,roj (BAROS) “heaviness, weight, burden, trouble” Vine: “anything pressing on one physically…or that makes a demand on one’s resources, whether material…or spiritual.” “load” forti,on (PHORTION) “a burden, a load; …metaph. …of the obligations Christ lays upon His followers, and styles a ‘burden’ by way of contrast to the precepts of the Pharisees, the observance of which was most oppressive ”

“burden” vs “load” Vine “The difference between phortion and baros is, that phortion is simply something to be borne, without reference to its weight, but baros always suggests what is heavy or burdensome. Thus Christ speaks of His burden (phortion) as ‘light;’ here baros would be inappropriate; but the burden of a transgressor is baros, ‘heavy.’ Contrast baros in Gal. 6:2 with phortion in ver. 5.”

Gal 6:2 – “burden” Ron MerrymanGalatians: God’s Antidote to Legalism pg. 111 “Burdens here must refer to responsibilities that are overwhelming and not normative. Many commentators in an effort to make the word fit the context spiritualize it and conclude that it refers to sins, weaknesses or faults (as of 6:1). But viewing the context as a series of commands that relate to constructive use of liberty among believers, the word can well be taken in its literal sense, ‘overwhelming burdens of responsibility,’ ‘burdens of extreme weight,’ that is, unusually heavy burdens of real-life situations such as sudden family deaths, extreme financial crises, critical illnesses, etc. We are to help relieve our brethren when such burdens fall upon them.”

Gal 6:2 Howard F. VosGalatians: A Call to Christian Liberty pp “‘Restore’ of verse 1 must be connected with ‘bear’ of verse 2. If we are to restore others to full usefulness in the body of Christ, we shall have to help bear their burdens. Verse 2 makes a generalization based on the specific situation of verse 1 and certainly includes more than the aid to the erring. Burdens are weights too heavy for individuals to shoulder and capable of being shared with other brethren in the fellowship of believers. Here is a charge to those who have sought to carry the wrong kind of burdens (law-keeping) to assume another burden of the right sort. ‘Fulfill the law of Christ’ is to fill up completely the law of Christ the burden of which is love (Gal 5:14; Jn 13:34; 15:12). The law of Christ may also be viewed as including all the self-sacrifice of Christ. At any rate, there is a very real sense in which the believer is in law to Christ …, and thus is subject to a person rather than a series of commands.”