Galatians 18-Day Reading PlanSample

The people of Galatia have been set free from the law but were living with this tension of others trying to impose rules onto them. Throughout the book of Galatians Paul keeps driving the point home we are set free by faith in Jesus (2:16). It’s not what you do that brings you into right standing with God, but what you believe that Jesus has done for you. 

As followers of Jesus, we have this command to be “filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18). Paul is teaching us to transfer the control of our lives from ourselves over to God. Being filled with the Spirit isn’t just a personal experience that happens once but a daily choice that has an impact on us and the people around us. 

Our personal relationship with Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit, allows us to live an abundant life where that relationship impacts interactions with our loved ones, church family, co-workers, and even total strangers.  Paul spent most of the book of Galatians convincing people to not live under the law, but to live in freedom. Here in this section of Galatians,  Paul teaches us 3 ways to live guided by the Spirit with each other.

1. Live a life of restoration (6:1)

As a follower of Jesus, we know the power of forgiveness and being restored: Living free of an unforgivable debt, paid by Jesus. To live guided by the Spirit model is to understand the power of sin and know how easy it can entrap someone. When someone has been caught up, tricked, or trapped by temptation, circumstances, or lies of the enemy, it is our assignment to walk with that person back to the right path gently and humbly, not with condemnation or judgment but with spiritual gentleness.

2. Be Responsible for each other (6:2)

Paul warns us in vs 3, “If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself.”

No one is meant to go through this life alone. This life has so much that can weigh a person down: stress, our jobs, grief, loss, pressures of a relationship, loneliness, addiction, and the list goes on. In Matthew 6, Jesus gives us permission to bring our burdens to him, that we may find rest. Being empowered by the Spirit also allows us the strength to help others with their burdens. Often while caring for others we can find the Holy Spirit healing and helping us. Jesus said we will be known as his followers by how we care for others. (John 13:34-35)

3. Be Respectful of others (6:4)

The trap of comparison isn’t anything new. When we allow ourselves to look down on others and make assumptions about people’s motives or abilities, it can become a place of pride or condemnation. What may seem like a simple task to you could be an overwhelming challenge to another person. Remembering that we are accountable not to the standard of man-made laws, but to “love your neighbor as yourself”(5:14) calls us to be gracious to each other. 

Living in freedom comes with responsibility.  As we find freedom in Jesus, we are called to help others find freedom by leading them to restoration, sharing their burdens, and treating them with respect and dignity.  We must rely on the Holy Spirit to guide our interactions with others; this will give us the strength and wisdom to love others in a way that will “not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good.” (v.9)

Question

In what areas can you ask the Holy Spirit for guidance in your daily interactions with others?