Galatians Notes

God's Principle of Sowing and Reaping

[Instruct erring believers] for the "common good" (Gal. )

  • Who is the one who is taught the Word? The context gives us the answer: it is the one who is caught in a trespass and is being restored to the truth (Gal. ). Here Paul gives the proper response of the "one who is taught" to the ministry of "those who are spiritual" on his behalf.
  • "share (koinoneo) = to hold in common with others, to participate with, to have fellowship with. This word does not imply that the restored believer is to "impart something to" those who restored him, as if paying them for services rendered. Rather, Paul is encouraging the restored believer to join the community of good conduct along with those who are spiritual. (Regarding the meaning of all good things, see Gal. = "doing good")
  • This verse tells us how those who are spiritual are to restore erring believers: By teaching the truth (being "truth-teachers" rather than "false teachers"). Teaching (katecheo) = to inform by word of mouth, to instruct. The content of the instruction is "The Word" - the truths of the Scriptures.
  • The fellowship of believers is to be a community of moral goodness through mutual encouragement and instruction.

God's Law of the Harvest cannot be violated: You reap the same kind of plant that you sow (Gal. )

  • Deceived = being led astray. God is not mocked (mukterizo) = from mukter (nose), meaning to turn up the nose at God. It is absolutely useless for man to sneer at God's universal laws - they simply cannot be violated.
  • Whatever you sow, that very thing is what will grow. You cannot plant wheat and expect to reap a harvest of corn. In the same way, you cannot invest your energy in the FLESH and expect to avoid the fleshly consequences of corruption, decay, and ruin.
  • But if you invest your energy in the SPIRIT, you can expect to reap a godly quality of life. "Sowing to the Spirit" is equivalent to walking by the Spirit (Gal. ).
  • Our behavior does not always reflect the righteousness we have in God's sight, but there is a quality of life that should progressively characterize a believer. "Eternal life" is that godly quality of life that we should be experiencing.

You reap much later than you sow (Gal. )

  • Let us not lose heart in doing good (enkakomen) = to become exhausted as a result of giving in to evil - literally, "let us not keep on giving in to evil while doing the good." This is related to "growing weary" (become tired, grow feeble through exhaustion). We all have a predisposition toward the flesh, and giving in to evil is exhausting.
  • But in due time (at its proper season) we will reap. The law of the harvest requires patience on our part! We must patiently do what is right and good, and we will see godly results.

Sow "good" all the time to all people (Gal. )

  • So then... Paul's logical conclusion. Just as there is a proper season for reaping, there is a proper time for sowing. That time is NOW!
  • Do good (ergazomai) = literally, let us keep on working the good. We should do this for all people around us, but especially to our fellow believers (see John ). The context especially emphasizes our behavior toward believers who have slipped into error. The restoration of an erring believer can be a powerful witness to the watching world.
God's laws of cause and effect will always apply, so we should always expect to reap the consequences of our actions and attitudes. Let's learn the lesson that giving in to the flesh is exhausting, so we should "keep on working the good" for ourselves and others. We should also be willing to be "truth-speakers" who invest in the lives of our fellow believers.

High Peaks Bible Fellowship
Our primary purpose is to uphold the truths of God's Word.
"I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God,
which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth." (1 Timothy )

Our primary responsibility is to equip the saints for the work of ministry.
"And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,
for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ." (Ephesians )

We meet regularly for verse-by verse teaching from the Word of God;
for encouragement and support as we grow in faith;
for prayer and service to advance God's work in our own time.