Sowing

Greetings everyone. 

As we continue our expolration of Galatians 6, we will look at verses 7 and 8 today. Using an agricultural analogy, Paul compares life devoted to the flesh with life devoted to the Spirit. Here is what he says: 

7 Don’t be fooled.  God will not be ridiculed.  Each person will harvest what they plant.  8 Those who sow according to their own flesh, will, from that flesh, harvest destruction. On the other hand, those who sow to the Spirit, will by the Spirit, harvest life neverending. 

Paul returns to the discussion of the works of the flesh as compared to the fruits of the Spirit. He starts this comparison by saying “Don’t be fooled.  God will not be ridiculed.”  So, whatever Paul is about to talk about, we run the risk of fooling ourselves and ridiculing God.  I would not want to do either. 

Paul uses the Greek word Μυκτηρίζεται (mykterizetai) which is often translated “to be mocked.” The root word Μυκτήρ (mykter) means nose.  So μυκτηρίζεται literally means ‘to turn one’s nose up at.”  It can also be translated as ‘ridicule’ or ‘treat with contempt.’  God is not going to be ridiculed.  We fool ourselves if we think that we can ridicule God. 

Back to the agricultural analogy, Paul’s next statement is, “Each person will harvest what they plant.”  This is often translated as “A man reaps what he sows,” but this phrase has become so commonplace that I fear that we can miss its meaning.  Farmers don’t sow wheat and harvest beans.  We will harvest what we plant, or sow.  

Paul spent considerable time talking about the flesh vs. The Spirit in chapter 5.  We return to that comparison here in verse 8. We can sow to the flesh, or sow to the Spirit.  Each one harvests something different.  Those who sow to the flesh will ultimately harvest destruction, while those who sow to the Spirit will reap life neverending.

In his comparison Paul uses the word ἑαυτοῦ (heautou) meaning ‘his own’ in reference to the flesh.  We sow to our own flesh. (Even as disciples of Jesus, we are not free from the desires of our own flesh.) On the other side of the comparison, that word ἑαυτοῦ (heautou) is not there.  We do not sow to our own spirit, but to the Holy Spirit.   

Douglas Moo says this, “The contrast between the Spirit and the flesh is central to Paul’s presentation of the Christian life.  The Spirit has taken control of believers (5:18), both enabling and compelling them to an obedience not possible before.” (Moo, 385.) 

We cannot think that we can constantly sow to the flesh and yet reap the rewards of sowing to the Spirit, growing in the fruits of the Spirit and ultimately eternal life.  God will not be ridiculed.  We reap the benefits of the Holy Spirit by sowing to the Spirit.  

Many translations add the word “to please”  or “to satisfy” in verse 8.  “Sowing to please the flesh”, or “Sowing to please the Spirit.” This makes a lot of sense and helps to flesh out Paul’s meaning.  No pun intended.  

David deSilva says in his book on Galatians that the Greek word that we often translate “to sow” σπείρων (speirōn) is a present participle , those who sow, suggesting ‘habitual action, not sporadic deviations.’  (deSilva, 136.)  What does this mean?  We should ask ourselves, “What is my habit, is it sowing to the flesh, or sowing to the Spirit?” 

While sowing here refers to actions of our lives, the ‘reaping’ makes reference to consequences of what we have sown.  

The consequences of sowing to the flesh: φθοράν,(phthoran) possible meanings: deterioration, corruption, depravity, destruction. 

The consequences of sowing to the Spirit: ζωὴν αἰώνιον. (zōēn aiōnion)  ζωὴν means “life.”   αἰώνιον means “without end, eternal.” 

Those are the choices, corruption and destruction, or life neverending. Based on the consequneces that each come with, it seems that the obvious choice would be to sow to the Spirit.  

          David deSilva, Galatians: A Handbook on the Greek Text, Waco, Texas, Baylor University Press, 2014. 
            Douglas Moo, Galatians, Grand Rapids, Michigan, Baker Academic, 2013. 

What to Brag About

Hey.

We continue our examination of Galatians 6 today, looking at vrses 3-6:

3 If anyone thinks himself to be really something, while actually being nothing special, he deceives himself. 4 Each of you should examine your own work, so that then you can make boasts to yourself, without comparing yourself to other people.  5 So, each of you will carry your own burden.  
6 Those being taught should share all good things with their teacher.   

In verse 3, Paul says, “If anyone thinks himself to be really something, while actually being nothing special, he deceives himself.” Here, we are called to humility.  We must not think more highly of ourselves than we should.  We deceive ourselves if we do.  

So, Galatians 6:3 is a warning to the prideful.  We can start to think that we are really something special.  Paul warns against such thinking. We truly will never be more than hopeless sinners, in need of Jesus - a work in progress.  When we start to think of ourselves as something more than that, we become arrogant and are led astray.  

An inportant part of what Paul is saying here is that when we think of ourselves more highly than we should, we become self-deceived.  David Benner writes, “The human capacity for self-deception is astounding.  This is taught by Scripture (Jer. 17:9) and confirmed by psychology. Some people are highly skilled in deceiving others.  However, their duplicity pales in comparison with the endlessly creative ways in which each and every one of us deceives our self. (Benner, 58.)  

It is very easy for us to deceive ourselves and think of ourselves more highly than we should.  Better that we constantly see ourselves as flawed sinners who are still, nevertheless, deeply loved by God.  If we can hold on to that viewpoint, we will be able to help others. 

It might seem like a disconnect between this verse and one preceding, about carrying one another's burdens.  What does this have to do with carrying someone else’s burdens?  However, the connection is there.  In carrying one another’s burdens there should be no burden that is beneath us.  That would be true humility. (If we think more highly of ourselves than we should, when we are striving to carry another’s burdens, the temptation will be there to be judgmental.)

After being told that we are to keep a proper perspective on ourselves, Paul tells us next that we should take the time to examine our own work. Note that he doesn’t tell us to examine each other’s work.  In fact, we are to look at what we have done without making comparisons to others.  It is not a contest.  We are to look at ourselves and strive to get better each day. 

Paul says in the Greek,”τότε εἰς ἑαυτὸν μόνον τὸ καύχημα ἕξει” (tote eis heauton monon to kauchēma hexei). A word-for-word translation would be “then as to himself alone the something to boast about he will have.” 

Obviously the Greek doesn’t flow the same way that English does.  So what does this mean? It seems thaat the words ἑαυτὸν μόνον, or himself alone, are important here.  We are to examine ourselves, but not so that we can brag about how awesome we are, and any boasting that we may do goes to ourselves alone. 

Within the context of saying that we must not think more highly of ourselves than we should, boasting of any kind, even to ourselves, seems out of place.  That is why it seems to me that Paul is talking about self-comparison.  For example, I might ask myself, “Am I growing spiritually?”  If I can answer positively, then I can boast a little to myself about that, without comparing myself to others.  

Douglas Moo makes an important point here.  Paul is talking about self-assessment, and at this point in his letter, we have to understand that our self-assessment needs to come within the context of God’s standard and His grace. (Moo, 380.) 

Also, Paul has just told us that in carrying each other’s burdens we fulfill the Law of Christ.  Coupling that with verse 4, we see that we please Christ when we love each other, not when we judge each other. 

Verse five seems to go against what Paul has just said.  He has just told them that they should carry one another’s burdens.  Now, in verse 5, he tells them that each one of them should carry their own burdens.  Why would he say such seemingly contradictory statements, back to back? 

We have a responsibility to do both.  We carry our own burdens, and help carry the burdens of others.  Paul has commanded others to help me carry my own burdens, but that does not absolve me from the weight of my own.  I can’t just say, “The church will take care of me,” and then expect it to.

 

In 6:6, Paul says, “Those being taught should share all good things with their teacher.”  According to Moo, there are two trains of thought about what Paul means here.  It is unclear whether the good things to be shared are to be spiritual or physical in nature.  (Moo, 383.)  Moo states that most scholars tend to hold with the latter, that students should materially support their teacher.  All three commentaries that I have been reading took the ‘material support’ view.  While I do support the idea of financial support for ministers and Bible teachers. 

I tend to take a different view here. The Greek words πᾶσιν ἀγαθοῖς. (pasin agathois) mean ‘all good things.”  First, I don’t think that it has to be mutually exclusive, material or spiritual.  “All good things” can include both.  However, if I had to choose, I would think that he is talking about the spiritual.  

          David Benner. The Gift of Being Yourself, Downers Grove, Illinois, InterVarsity Press, 2004. 

          Douglas Moo, Galatians, Grand Rapids, Michigan, Baker Academic, 2013.