Being a Do-gooder
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· 34 viewsPractical Christianity means that believers should go about doing good to other — especially brothers and sisters in Christ.
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Text: Galatians 6:1-10
Theme: Practical Christianity means that believers should go about doing good to other — especially brothers and sisters in Christ.
When I was growing up, one of the more popular cartoon shows was the Rocky and Bullwinkle Show. One of the characters on that show was a Canadian Mounty named Duddly Do-Wright. His arch enemy was Snidly Whiplash. Duddly was a bumbling Mounty, but he was pure as the driven snow. He always went about doing right. Snidly Whip-lash's chief complaint was that Duddly was a "do-gooder."
Christians need to like Duddly Do-Wright. We need to be "do-gooders."
I. CHRISTIANS DO GOOD WHEN WE ENCOURAGE ONE ANOTHER AND BEAR EACH OTHERS BURDENS
I. CHRISTIANS DO GOOD WHEN WE ENCOURAGE ONE ANOTHER AND BEAR EACH OTHERS BURDENS
“Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22, NIV84)
1. the Bible is big on "practical" Christianity
2. it's not enough to "know the right answers" in Sunday School and have "the right theology"
a. true Christianity takes those practical truths we discover in the Scriptures and puts them into practice in daily life
3. some of those practical truths are discovered here in the sixth chapter of Galatians
A. CHRISTIANS NEED ENCOURAGEMENT WHEN THEY FAIL
A. CHRISTIANS NEED ENCOURAGEMENT WHEN THEY FAIL
“Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. 2 Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:1–2, KJV)
1. what is to be done when a brother or sister in Christ is overtaken in a fault?
a. the word "overtaken" in this verse literally means to "“a falling aside or mishap” and often is translated “to stumble”
ILLUS. From the human perspective it may not refer to a great sin but to an awful blunder. It’s the idea that the person who sets out on a certain course of action did not deliberately plan to sin, but during the course of events did sin. He was “overtaken” by circumstances and finds himself sinning in some way. The question then arises, “How must such a case be handled?” When that happens, we to seek to restore them, and not beat them over the head with a baseball bat because they’ve done something wrong.
2. believers will often fail in their Christian walk
a. when that happens we need love and forgiveness and encouragement to live for Christ, not condemnation
3. those who have achieved a measure of spiritual maturity have the responsibility to help restore a brother or sister who has been overtaken by temptation
a. the word "restore" means to "repair" or "mend" something
1) in Matthew 4:21 the word is used of mending nets
2) Dr. Luke, Paul’s missionary companion and author of a gospel and Acts would have recognized the word — it referred to setting a bone break
a) it's the process of taking something that has become useless because of some kind of incident and making it useful again by repairing the problem
3) in 2 Corinthians 13:11 the same word is used of bringing someone back to his or her former position of wholeness or soundness
4. this process of repairing brothers or sisters who have stumbled is something that should be done in a spirit of meekness and gentleness
a. few things are more harmful to the immature believer than to be carped at by some self-righteous saint who believes that he or she has achieved a plain of spiritual maturity few others in the church have achieved
b. we are to approach the other person while "considering our self"
1) the word "considering" means "to watch" as a scout or sentry would watch over a city
2) in other words, if we are not careful in how we approach a brother or sister in Christ who has erred in some way, we may find ourselves rather embarrassed when we are overtaken by the same sin
5. practical Christianity means encouraging each other when we fail to be totally Christ-like
B. CHRISTIANS NEED TO BEAR EACH OTHERS BURDENS
B. CHRISTIANS NEED TO BEAR EACH OTHERS BURDENS
1. burdens come in all shapes and sizes
a. sometimes our burdens can be a physical affliction
1) the Apostle Paul himself had a physical adversity which plagued him most of his adult life
a) in 2 Cor. 12:7 Paul refers to his "thorn in the flesh"
b) in Gal. 4:13 he writes, "Ye know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel unto you at the first."
b. sometimes our burdens are emotional distress or anxiety
1) a wayward son or daughter can be an emotional burden
2) a relationship which has gone awry can cause emotional distress
3) loneliness, stress, apprehension or fear can all bring about emotional burdens
c. burdens can even be spiritual in nature
1) it may be concern over a lost loved one
2) it may be anguish over a back-slidden spouse or friend
3) it may be trepidation about God's call to ministry or service in your life
ILLUS. In 2 Corinthians 11:23-29 the Apostle Paul listed all the hardships he has experienced for the sake of Christ. Most of them are physical, but vs. 28 has always been of particular interest to me — perhaps because I’m a pastor and his words resonate. “Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.” (2 Corinthians 11:28, NIV84).
d. my point is that it’s often the spiritual or emotional burdens that are more burdensome to us than our physical afflictions
2. "bearing one another's burdens" means more than mere condolences
a. it means assisting another regardless of the oppressing affliction that has come their way
3. sharing the burdens that come to fellow believers is fulfilling the law of Christ
a. what is the "law of Christ"
1) it is the principle that Christ both preached and practiced
2) the principle was espoused by Jesus to his disciple when he said, "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” (John 13:34-35)
b. our Lord constantly put this principle into concrete action in the way he dealt with individuals
c. we see it in the tenderness with which he dealt wit ...
1) the sinful woman of Luke 7:36-50
2) the penitent thief at the cross in Luke 23:43
3) the woman taken in adultery in John 8:11
4) Simon Peter after he had denied him in Luke 22:61
4. let me share with you my understanding of what Paul is saying in vs. 2: "Lift up and help endure the loads carried by one another which weight us down, in order to bring to completion the principles expouse by the anointed one — the Messiah."
5. practical Christianity means bearing each others burdens when we find our ourselves weighted down by adversity
II. CHRISTIANS DO GOOD WHEN WE PUT OTHERS ABOVE OURSELVES vv. 3-5
II. CHRISTIANS DO GOOD WHEN WE PUT OTHERS ABOVE OURSELVES vv. 3-5
1. what makes it possible for believers to bear each other's burdens?
2. the answer — a proper attitude about one's self
“If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, 5 for each one should carry his own load.” (Galatians 6:3–5, NIV84)
A. NO BELIEVER IS SO IMPORTANT OR SO SELF-SUFFICIENT THAT THEY CAN MAKE IT WITHOUT THE PRAYERS AND SUPPORT OF THOSE WITH WHOM THEY HAVE A COMMON BOND IN JESUS CHRIST
A. NO BELIEVER IS SO IMPORTANT OR SO SELF-SUFFICIENT THAT THEY CAN MAKE IT WITHOUT THE PRAYERS AND SUPPORT OF THOSE WITH WHOM THEY HAVE A COMMON BOND IN JESUS CHRIST
1. in other words, we need each other
ILLUS. It's like the farmer who was out plowing his field one spring morning. The spring thaw had made the fields a muddy mess camouflaged by the brown crust of the warming days. In one particularly wet place his tractor became stuck in the mud. The harder he tried, the deeper he became stuck. Finally, he walked over to his neighbor's to ask for help. The neighbor came over and looked at the situation. He shook his head, and then said, "It doesn't look good, but I tell you what. I'll give it a try pulling you out. But if we don't get it out, I'll come sit in the mud with ya!"
2. all of us sometimes get "stuck in the mud" when the rains of affliction come and what seems to be a firm foundation gives way underneath us
a. when that happens we need someone to help pull us out
b. when they can't it's nice to know they'll come sit in the mud with us
3. Christians do good when we put the interests of others ahead of our own
III. CHRISTIANS DO GOOD WHEN WE LOOK FOR UNEXPECTED OPPORTUNITIES TO DO GOOD vv. 7-10
III. CHRISTIANS DO GOOD WHEN WE LOOK FOR UNEXPECTED OPPORTUNITIES TO DO GOOD vv. 7-10
“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” (Galatians 6:7–10, NIV84)
1. in the context of Paul's letter to the Galatians, it is obvious that if we sow brotherly love and compassion that is what we will in turn reap
a. you cannot mock God
1) the word mock literally means "to make mouth at"
ILLUS. Have you ever seen a child contort and mock with their mouth someone with whom they have just had an argument or disagreement?
b. we consider such actions childish and juvenile
2. our actions are childish and juvenile when we assume we can sow hatred and dissension and disinterest in the Body of Christ and not reap hatred and dissension and disinterest
A. CHRISTIANS NEED TO SEARCH OUT OPPORTUNITIES TO DO GOOD
A. CHRISTIANS NEED TO SEARCH OUT OPPORTUNITIES TO DO GOOD
“Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” (Galatians 6:10, NIV84)
1. every day that you live, you have the opportunity to express your Christianity in a positive way
2. often it is the seemingly little things in life that we think are insignificant that are the true tests of how well our life is associated with the life of our Savior, Jesus Christ
a. doing good means finding opportunities to praise rather than to criticize
b. doing good means looking for opportunities to encourage rather than discourage
c. doing good means counting your blessings rather than your misfortunes
d. doing good means looking on a difficult situation as an opportunity rather than as a disaster
3. we must never grow tired in searching for opportunities to do good
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” (Galatians 6:9, NIV84)
a. Paul puts his finger on a well-known problem in our natures
b. the temptation is to get discouraged and burned-out when we are constantly trying to do good and never see any real results or reap any personal rewards from doing so
ILLUS. Some months ago one of the news magazine carried an article entitled, "Compassion Fatigue." It is a new malady afflicting the upwardly mobile and affluent of our society.It's suffered by those who feel repeatedly called upon to do good.
c. well-doing requires continued effort, and constant toil
1) therefore we are not to "grow weary"
2) the word "weary" means to "fail of heart"
d. if we continue to "do good" we shall reap a harvest if we do not relax our efforts
4. Christians do good when they continually look for opportunities to do good
Will you commit yourself to be a do-gooder? Will you commit your self to encouraging other Christians and helping to bear their burdens? Will you do good by putting others about yourself? Will you do good by looking for opportunities to do good?