“Sow the Good Seed”

Scripture: Galatians 6:1-16

This portion of Paul’s letter to the church in Galatia is, in itself, about the church. He writes about what we are and what we aren’t, about what we are to do and what we must avoid doing. As we read these passages, we need to remember that the Body of Christ is two-fold in design.
First, we are to be one in Christ. In other words, the church is to be about unity. In Galatians 3:28, he tells us that “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” It isn’t that we all do the same things - rather we work for a common purpose, and that is to proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord. No one is better than another, no one is more important than another, no one is more precious to God than another. We are all loved deeply, and are welcomed into the Kingdom with the same rejoicing.
Second, even though we are one in Christ, we are also uniquely made. Each of us has our own responsibilities, our own gifts, and even our own failures and weaknesses. We respond to Christ in our own way, using the gifts that we have been given, and God touches each of us in a unique way. In Jeremiah 31, we discover that the laws of God have been written on our heart – not on a tablet of stone, not on some general informational bulletin board, not in some general way – but in a very personal way.

There is both unity and uniqueness in the Body of Christ.

Read Galatians 6:1-6

A Christian must be active, both in unity and in uniqueness! Verse 2 tells us to carry each others burdens, and verse 5 tells us to carry our own burdens. On the surface, this seems to create a conflict, but in reality, it is describing the fullness of being in Christ.
“Carry each other’s burdens ..” We have a responsibility to help each other to see the errors and failures of life. Many people tend to see the call to reveal the sinful acts of others as a mandate to be brutal! “Aha! I caught you, and you had better change your ways!!” is not what Paul would have us do! An attitude of superiority will never convince another person that you are acting as Christ’s representative to them! Paul tells us to be gentle in our demeanor, and loving in our correction. We have a calling from Jesus to challenge each other to live a holy life, and to leave the things of earth behind.
But we are also told that “.. each one should carry his own load.” While we are to be discerning of all sin in the world, we have the sole responsibility for our own sin. Don’t even try to play the “blame game”, even though people have been doing it since Adam blamed Eve, nd she tried to blame the serpent for the fruit thing in the Garden! It didn’t work then, and it doesn’t work now. Sin - our burdens – is our fault, not someone else’s. Dealing with our sin is a good seed. Dumping them on others is not.

Unity and uniqueness! Responsibility and compassion! These are “good seeds” of the Church.

And Paul makes one more point in this passage – if you think that you are “someone” when you are really “nothing”, you are deceiving yourself! And I might point out the converse – if you think you are worthless to God, you are also being deceitful! In other words, don’t be judgmental toward others, while ignoring the sin in your own life. Matthew 7:3 – “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?” We are all sinful and deserve condemnation, while at the same time, we have all been declared worthy of Christ’s great mercy.

And once we come to this reality, we can move on and truly work together as Christ’s Body in the world.

Read Galatians 6:7-10

We reap what we sow. If we are harsh in our judgment of others, then we will be judged harshly. If we are soft on sin, and condone the sin of others, we will receive judgment for the sins that others commit (Romans 1:32 – “Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.”) Not only will we reap what we sow, we also reap the sinful nature that we condone in others! Bad “seeds”!
But when our actions are pleasing to God, we reap eternal joy. Now be careful here – this does not mean that our good works will gain us salvation! It does not say that! On the contrary, the acts that are pleasing to the Spirit are those associated with claiming Christ as Redeemer and Savior, and sharing our witness to His salvation with others. The act of putting ourselves aside and putting Christ first - that is what gains eternal life and eternal joy!

But we can’t forget the “doing good” part, can we? That is also a part of the good harvest, and it brings a harvest of other souls, as well as the Lord’s great pleasure. It fulfills Matthew 25’s call to reach out to those who are in need; it fulfills the call of Matthew 28 – the Great Commission – to make disciples for Jesus, and to lead them into a closer relationship through baptism and teaching; it follows in the footsteps of the Acts of the Apostles in sharing the good new of Jesus Christ with every single person who will listen.
This is what sowing “good seed” is all about. It’s about going beyond what is comfortable, and safe, and easy. It’s about reaching out, not only to our friends, but also to the stranger. It’s about giving a helping hand to those who “aren’t our kind”! It’s about letting “the unloved” know that God loves them dearly, and that we do too! It’s about being Christ to the world, and not just each other! It’s about going to “them”, and not waiting until “they” come to us.
We are called to sow the good seeds of God’s law and love, and not the seed of humanity.

Read Galatians 6:11-16

Paul is talking about a fairly common theme of his – circumcision of the body. Jewish members of the new church were still holding fast to the old ways, and he is trying to tell them that the Jewish traditions have nothing to do with their salvation. But in Romans 2, he is a little more explicit than he is here.

Read Romans 2:28-29

When we combine these two passages, we see that circumcision of the flesh can only be a sign of faithfulness if our heart has been circumcised of worldliness. Otherwise, the removal of flesh is only that – a human excision, and not one of the Spirit, not one of God.

Galatians 6:15 – “Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation.”, or, if you will, a new seed! That is what comes from a heartfelt and spirit filled circumcision – we become a new creation that produces new fruit. And when we become new, the church becomes new.

1 Corinthians 13:11 – “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.” A familiar passage – is it about childhood? About the young? Actually, it’s not! It’s about childish attitudes and actions. “Childliness” is an immaturity, a self-centeredness, a life filled with fear of the unknown. “Adulthood”, on the other hand, sets all of those things aside, and allows us to take a huge leap into the arms of faith, knowing full well that our Lord will catch us and carry us.
Are you prepared to do that? Are you willing to do that? Will you provide food and a cool drink to Christ? Will you clothe His nakedness, care for Him in sickness, visit Him when He is lonely and imprisoned, even when He has the form of an ugly, sickly, repulsive human? Will you actively make committed disciples for Jesus, and then show them and teach them what that truly means?

Will you be Christ to the world, sowing good seed, and seeing a rich harvest of souls for the kingdom? Will you? If we don’t, who will?