As we continue our series on the New Testament letter of Galatians, we have come to the final chapter. I hope this has been as much of an encouragement to you as it has been to me. It is good to study God’s Word as it was written and not always take pieces from here and there.

I have found myself more and more preaching through passages of Scripture rather than just taking one verse and going with it. But sometimes, you will come to a verse so packed that it has a whole message itself. What we are going to look at today is one of those verses.

¹ Brothers and sisters, if someone is overtaken in any wrongdoing, you who are spiritual, restore such a person with a gentle spirit, watching out for yourselves so that you also won’t be tempted.

Galatians 6:1 CSB

When I was in middle school, I had a friend who spent a great deal of time with his dad restoring a 1969 Camaro. It didn’t look like much when they first got the car, but with months and months of tender loving care, blood, sweat, and tears, they finished it up… and it was NICE!

We hear about restorations happening all the time. One of my youngest son’s favorite TV shows is Fixer Upper. He loves to watch Chip & Joanna Gaines take a worn-out house and turn it into something beautiful. We see things like that and admire the hard work that goes into restoring a house, vehicle, or something else.

What about people? Do we have the same admiration for when we see a person’s life change completely for the good? I think we all like to hear a good turnaround story. But restoring a person is much like restoring a house or vehicle; it takes careful work from a skilled craftsman.

As Paul begins to close his letter to the Galatians, he takes a moment to remind us about an important ministry of the local church: the restoration of people. That is what Galatians 6:1 is all about.

‌Context of Restoration

The first words of this verse talk about where this restoration of a person takes place. It happens within the family of God. Paul uses the term — brothers and sisters — to show the family dynamic of the local church.

One of the Bible’s great metaphors used for the local church is the family of God.

¹² But to all who did receive him, he gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in his name

John 1:12 CSB

¹⁹ So, then, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints, and members of God’s household

Ephesians 2:19 CSB

¹ See what great love the Father has given us that we should be called God’s children—and we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it didn’t know him. ² Dear friends, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when he appears, we will be like him because we will see him as he is.

1 John 3:1–2 CSB

Do we see our fellow church members as family, or are they just a group of acquaintances that we see once a week or so?

Paul wanted the Galatian churches to remember who they were and what one of the responsibilities they had was. You see, family looks after one another. Family doesn’t just let people fall through the cracks. Family lovingly cares for one another and stands up for one another.

The Need for Restoration

Paul writes a word of instruction to the church in verse 1. He talks about noticing when “someone is overtaken in any wrongdoing.” The term “overtaken” has the element of surprise to it. This means that there is an action we should take as church members when we notice a fellow church member going in a direction contrary to God’s desires.

There are times in our lives when we can fall into sin. What is interesting about these times is they often lead to times of separation. Sin will bring about a separation from God’s blessings but also a separation between us and where we should be.

Have you ever noticed that allowing sin to stay in your life unchecked causes you to not be around the things of God?

“The Bible will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from the Bible.”‌

Dwight L. Moody

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Sin will not only keep us away from the Bible but also from other important things like meeting together with the church.

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Paul is writing in the context of the local church. He is not talking about people who are just in the community. He is talking about fellow members of the church.

Do we notice when someone is not present in our church? Are we moved to the point of checking on them when they are not present? We should. There would be a strange atmosphere if a family member were suddenly missing from a family. The same is true with the local church.

There is the importance that we are a family and need one another. There will be times when one of us has a time of slipping up. The last thing we need in those moments is just to ignore it.

‌The Manner of Restoration

‌This leads us to the point of the manner of restoration or how restoration should be done. Paul commands the church to work to “restore such a person.”

The word “restore” is very interesting. It has its origins in the medical field. It carries the idea of setting a broken bone so that it can heal properly. This word is also used in other places in the New Testament, talking about when a fisherman would mend his nets after fishing so they could be used again.

Restoration is a practice that must be done delicately. Paul is not calling for a “spiritual police force” to be assembled that patrols around looking for any wrongs. Remember, Paul uses family language. How we help another will truly bring about the help that person needs.

Jesus gives us an example of what this looks like in John 8:1-11. The scribes and Pharisees caught a woman in adultery and brought before Jesus. They said the Law of Moses condemns this woman, and she should be stoned to death (Leviticus 20:10; Deuteronomy 22:22). They asked Jesus what He thought. Jesus replies,

⁷ When they persisted in questioning him, he stood up and said to them, “The one without sin among you should be the first to throw a stone at her.”

John 8:7 CSB

As the people began to drop their stones and walk away, the woman was left alone with Jesus. He then looks at her and says,

¹⁰ When Jesus stood up, he said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” ¹¹ “No one, Lord,” she answered. “Neither do I condemn you,” said Jesus. “Go, and from now on do not sin anymore.”

John 8:10–11 CSB

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Restoration happens when you care about the person being right as much as you do about the issue being right.

This is a point that has gotten a lot of people and churches in trouble throughout the ages. You have modern-day Pharisees who think they know the Word well enough to police it in others’ lives. They tend to care more about the issue than the person. Jesus shows us that we must be concerned for the issue and the person.

‌Qualities of a Gentle Restorer

In Galatians 6:1, Paul shows us three important qualities we must have to be the gentle restorer of our brothers and sisters that we should be.

Spiritual

‌Paul calls for “those who are spiritual” to step up to the plate for this. Remember, at the end of Galatians 5, Paul shared some of the fruit of the Spirit — love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. A person is considered spiritual by the Word of God when these things are evident and growing in their lives. When this fruit grows in our lives, it is evidence that the Holy Spirit is working in our lives.

One clear test of spiritual maturity in a person’s life is their willingness to help others properly. Do you realize that almost every part of the fruit of the Spirit Paul mentions has to do with other people?

‌Gentle

‌While gentleness is one part of the fruit of the Spirit mentioned in Galatians 5, Paul emphasizes this in Galatians 6:1. He says that restoration is to be done with a gentle spirit. It is not to be done in a judgmental, harsh, or condemning manner.

‌Watchful

¹² So, whoever thinks he stands must be careful not to fall.

1 Corinthians 10:12 CSB

‌At the end of Galatians 6:1, Paul warns that a person who wants to help others must be watchful because the temptation to fall into sin themselves is prevalent.

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Each of us has the ability to give in to sin in our lives. There is not one of us that can say that we are above falling ourselves. We need to make sure that we are in a solid place — fully depending on the Holy Spirit ourselves — to help others get to where they need to be, or we could very well end up in the muck and mire ourselves needing help.

‌Conclusion

‌Whether we want to admit it or not, the possibility of any of us falling into sin and getting off-track from where God wants us to be is present in our lives daily. One of the greatest gifts God has given to the Christian is a church family to be part of, especially for those times. The church is supposed to be reaching out with the gospel to those who haven’t trusted it yet and those who have.

There is a lot of talk about wanting to see revival in our churches. If we’re going to see God move in mighty ways in our churches, then we need to be the church He wants us to be — one that is reaching out to those who have never heard about Jesus and introducing them to Him, and we need to care for one another as the family of God. Yes, we have some crazy siblings in the family, but we are still one family under the name of Christ. When we see a fellow brother or sister going down a path contrary to God’s Word, we need to love them enough to go after them.

¹⁹ My brothers and sisters, if any among you strays from the truth, and someone turns him back, ²⁰ let that person know that whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.

James 5:19–20 CSB

May we be that church!