Galatians 6:1-5
HOW TO HEAL A BROKEN BODY
Intro: Our bodies are amazing creations. When we
have a problem in one part of our body, the rest of the
body suffers along with it. Have you ever been injured?
It may have been something as small as an eyelash
getting into your eye, or it may have been much more
traumatic like having some kind of major surgery. Or,
it may have been any of the vast amount of injuries that
we humans are susceptible to. Whatever the injury,
there was a problem in your body and it affected your
whole body, didn't it?
Folks, the body of Christ is no different! The Bible
tells us that every saved individual is part of the Body of
Christ, 1 Cor. 12:12-14. So, since that is true, when
there is an injury to one of our members, it effects the
whole body of Christ. Now, I know that a problem in my
life does not touch the entire body of Christ located
throughout the world. What we need to understand is
that this church is a body of Christ in miniature. While
a problem in your life or mine does not touch the whole
church around the world, it sure does have an effect on
this local church.
My duty today is to take this passage of Scripture
and share with you how to heal a broken body.
Please note that the first word of our text is the word
"Brethren". Paul is writing to and is talking to Christians.
He is telling us how to go about the process of setting
things right within the Body of Christ, when a member
of that body is injured. Please give me your attention
this morning as we look together at How To Heal A
Broken Body. As we do, those who are broken will find
hope. Those who are in the body will find help in
dealing with a problem in that body. My desire this
morning is simply to let this passage speak to our
hearts.
I. V. 1a THE BODY INJURED
A. A Stumble - Fault - "A false step." This word
refers to a transgression of the limitations God
has placed on our lives. Literally, this word
means "To stumble." The picture is of a
believer who stumbles, or makes a false step in
his or her walk with the Lord. It is the idea of
taking a step beyond the boundaries established
by God and of going off into sin.
(Ill. This is a situation that is far too common in
the modern church. You see, we are well aware
of the boundaries God has set for us! We have
the Word of God and the Spirit of God and these
teach us the will of God for our lives. Our
problems arise when we choose to step over
God's boundaries and go off into sin. The fact
is, we all stumble, but none of us have to. We
do it our of personal choice, James 1:13-16; 1
Cor. 10:13.)
B. A Surprise - Overtaken - "To overtake by
surprise; to overpower before one and make
their escape." This word was used of a criminal
being caught red-handed in the commission of a
crime. The picture in this word is of a believer
who finds himself in a situation that simply gets
out of hand. He falls into sin and somehow, the
cat gets out of the bag. He is caught and there
is no denying his guilt.
(Ill. Sin is a progressive thing! It nearly always
starts small, but it never stays small! It always
grows like some awful cancer until it consumes
your life. And, when there is the cancer of sin in
the life of the believer, Satan will not rest until he
exposes that Christian to the world so that the
cause of Christ is harmed and the testimony of
that believer is ruined.)
(Ill. This word Overtaken carries with it the
element of surprise. This surprise for the
believer is on two levels:
1. There is always surprise that they were
caught. Somehow, people believe that they
are smart enough to get away with sin.
Folk, that never happens! Not all sinners
get caught in a public fashion, but all are
already caught by the eye of God - Pro.
15:3; Heb. 4:13.
2. There is surprise at their condition - As I
said, sin has a way of starting small and
then growing. Most people are amazed that
they could have allowed their walk with the
lord to deteriorate to the point they did. No
one just gets up on day and decides to
throw everything away for a few minutes of
sin. It is always a downward progression in
the life of that individual that produces the
circumstances where sin can be produced in
their life.
C. A Sorrow - Restore - "To set a broken bone or
a dislocated joint." This is a medical term that
tells us specifically that there is a problem within
the body.
(Ill. When any child of God falls into sin, it creates
problems for the whole body of Christ. Sin in the
body, like any injury, hinders the body.
Remember Achan from the book of Joshua? His
surely thought that his sin was a private matter, or
so he thought. But, in truth, his sin brought
defeat and death to the nation of Israel. What he
thought was a private matter had major public
repercussion, Joshua 7:1-26.)
(Ill. The same thing is true today! When a
believer gets out of step with the Lord and falls
into sin, they may feel like it is their private
business, but that sin hinders the work of God for
the whole body of Christ! Unconfessed and
unforgiven sin in the life of the child of God
hinders and quenches the Holy Spirit and causes
the power and conviction of God to be muted. As
a result, the church is not as effective as it could
be if all the members were in their proper
relationship to the Head: The Lord Jesus Christ!)
(Ill. Therefore, like an acute condition in the
physical body, a sin problem in the body of Christ
must be handled quickly and decisively. Ill. An
appendectomy. A ruptured appendix can poison
the entire body and it must be surgically removed
so the body can heal. That is a painful but
necessary procedure! So it is in the spiritual
body, when there is sin in the camp, it must be
addressed and dealt with in a proper manner if
the body is to heal and function as it should.)
(Ill. What is the best way to handle sin in the body
of Christ? God's way, of course! God's method
for handling sin is diametrically opposed to the
method preferred by men. Men want to try to
conceal their sin and to pretend that it did not
happen. God method is to expose sin to the light!
God's method is clearly spelled out in Proverbs
28:13, "He that covereth his sins shall not
prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh
them shall have mercy." When sin is
confessed, and it should be, just as widely as it is
known, it accomplishes several things.
1. It puts the believer back into a right fellowship
with the Lord! (1 John 1:9)
2. It begins the process of healing in the body of
Christ. The other members of the body come
to the aid of the injured part. (Until confession
is made, healing cannot begin, because the
rest of the body feels betrayed by the erring
member, until that member show remorse and
sorrow over the injury.)
(Ill. The only way my physical body knows that
there is a problem with a certain member is for
that member to send out the right signals. If
it doesn't then the rest of the body in the dark
concerning the problem with that one
member.)
3. It shuts up the gossips and talebearers - Pro.
26:20, there are some people who love
nothing better than to tell the latest story of sin
and woe. What these people fail to realize is
that they are just a guilty as the poor sinner
they are talking about. When sin is confessed
and handled God's way, the gossips have no
more ammunition and are forced into silence.
(Ill. The problem is this, if we do not bring our sin
to light, but attempt to hide it a pretend that it
does not exist, God will do the honor of bringing
it to light all by Himself, Numbers 32:23, "...and
be sure your sin will find you out.")
I. The Body Injured
II. V. 1b-2 THE BODY INVOLVED
(Ill. When there is an injury in the body, the body
responds to that injury. Ill. A backache - it effects every
member of the body. Ill. Slamming your fingers in a car
door. When this happens, every member of the body
instantly gets involved! So it is in the Body of Christ.
When one member is injured, the rest of the body is to
respond to that member. Romans 12:15, "Rejoice
with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that
weep."; 1 Corinthians 12:26, "And whether one
member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or
one member be honoured, all the members rejoice
with it."
It is the way respond to an injury in the body that
is the focus of Paul's writing. He tells us exactly how
the body ids to respond to an injured member. Of
course, this assumes that the member has fulfilled its
obligation to make things right with the Lord and with
the rest of the body.)
A. A Condition - Spiritual - this word refers to those
individuals within the body of Christ who are living
their lives under the control of the Holy Spirit. It
does not mean that they are perfect, it does mean
that they are exhibiting the Fruit of the Spirit in
their walk with the Lord - Gal. 5:22-23, "But the
fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
meekness, temperance: against such there is
no law."
(Ill. Let me just clarify for you the fact that Paul is
not referring to the gossiping busybody who has
thrown the matter to the wind. You, my friend,
may be saved, but you are certainly not a spiritual
person. You are carnal and need to get right with
the Lord yourself!)
(Ill. So, the rest of this section of the message is
for those who would be called "spiritual believers."
That is, those who possess a spirit of love,
meekness, gentleness, goodness, etc. To those
member of the body, Paul issues a direct
command.)
B. A Command - Restore - "To set a broken bone
or a dislocated joint". This word carries with it
many word picture. Some of which are:
1. To strengthen worn down people.
2. To mix medicines to produce a healing balm.
3. To outfit a boat, or put things in order.
4. To mend a broken fishing net.
5. To act as a politician, by bringing warring
parties together. That is, to be a peacemaker.
(Ill. This idea is that the spiritual believer will help
the fallen believer to be restored to the place they
once were with Christ. We are to help them get
their life back in order! This can only be
accomplished as the life of Christ, through the
Fruit of the Spirit is lived out by the spiritual
believers.)
(Ill. The idea of setting a bone carries with it
images of pain. However, it is far better to
endure the short time of suffering related to
setting that broken bone than it is to endure the
lifetime of problems that will arise if the bone is
not properly set. So it is in the church! It is hard
to forgive sins and forget the past, but it is a trial
that is worth enduring. It is far better to set things
right than it is to see lives ruined because
believers refused to act like Jesus.)
C. A Challenge - The spiritual believer is to restore
the erring brother in a "spirit of meekness". We
are to look well to ourselves and remember that
"today it is my brother, tomorrow it may be
me!" My friends, none of us are in a position to
gloat this morning. There isn't a one of us in this
room who is not capable of the worst sin
imaginable. Therefore, we reach out to our fallen
fellow believers, we must do so with our eyes, not
on their sins, but on ourselves because it is just
the grace of God that we are not the one in
trouble!
(Ill. In truth, it is just the mercy of God that the
rest of us haven't been caught in our sins.
Imagine for a moment that the Lord allowed every
thought you have ever had to be played in full
color and stereo for the world to see and hear.
You say, but thoughts are different! Are they?
To think it is a sin! To do it is merely another sin.
Consider yourself as you deal with the sin in your
brother's life.)
D. A Christlikeness - v. 2 - In this verses, the
spiritual Christians are commanded to "bear", or
to help carry the "burdens" of those who have
fallen. This word "Burdens" refers to a weight
that is too heavy to be carried by an
individual. The picture here is of an injured body
part being unable to bear the load it normally
would.
(Ill. When we are injured, the entire body helps to
compensate for the weakness of the injured part.
When this happens in the Body of Christ, we are
filling up the Law of Christ. What is the Law of
Christ? It is merely the Lord Jesus reproducing
His life through His spiritual body in the world.)
(Ill. In this life, we will never be more like Jesus
than we are when we are actively seeking to
restore fallen saints back to a place of well
being in the Lord. You may not believe this right
now, but a closer look at how Jesus confronted
sinners during His earthly ministry reveals much
about his heart and about how His children
should treat the fallen. Note:
1. The Woman at the well - John 4
2. The woman taken in adultery - John 8
3. The sinner who anointed His feet - Luke 7
4. Zaccheaus - Luke 19
When these events, and many others, are
considered by the student of the bible it becomes
clear that Jesus was consistent in His treatment
of the sinner. First, it should be noted that Jesus
was always honest with them. That is, He never
glossed over their sins. He did not pretend that
their sins did not exist. Second, He always loved
them and forgave them. Third, He always treated
them with respect and love.)
(Again, when a believer has fallen into sin, the
best that we can do for them is to love them and
reach out to them in the spirit of Christ. Our duty
to the sinner is clear. We owe them all the debt
of love! When we reach out to them and try to
restore them to a place of fellowship with the
Lord, we are doing the work of Jesus in our lives.
It pleases Him and it sends the right kind of
message to a watching world - John 13:15.)
I. The Body Injured
II. The Body Involved
III. V. 3-5 THE BODY INSTRUCTED
(Ill. Now Paul moves on in his discussion of these
matters, to talk to the church as a whole, He offers
some much needed instructions to those who are willing
to hear them.)
A. V. 3 About Personal Opinion - The idea of this
verses is this: Never look down on a fellow
believer just because he has fallen into sin.
When we look down on them, we are displaying
an attitude that says: "I am better than that! I
would never do what they have done!" The Word
of God tells us that that is a dangerous attitude to
possess! In fact, the person who thinks that they
are above committing some sins is in great
danger of doing just that! Notice: 1 Cor. 10:12;
Pro. 16:18.
(Ill. Simon Peter - Matt. 26:31-35, also Matt.
26:69-74)
B. V. 4 About Personal Obedience - The idea in
this verse is that every man should live his own
life in obedience to the Lord. When we do, we
will be able to rejoice in a life well lived. When we
live lives that are pleasing to the Lord, then we
won't have to look around to find someone who
lives worse than we do to compare ourselves to
so that we can feel good about ourselves!
(Ill. If I will please the Lord with my life, then I can
rejoice in that life. Then, I can exhibit the love of
Christ to others because I will not "rejoice in
iniquity", 1 Cor. 13:6.)
C. V. 5 About Personal Obligation - This verse
appears to contradict verse 2. However, a closer
look reveals that no such contradiction exists.
Paul is telling us that there are some weights that
are too heavy to be carried alone, v. 2. However,
there are some burdens that must be carried
alone. The word "burden" in this verse refers to
"a soldiers pack." Our duty before God is to live
for the Lord as individuals, making the most of
our lives here for His glory!
(Ill. The whole idea of this statement is that in the
end, it won't matter what kind of life your fellow
Christians lived, all that will matter, for you, is how
you lived your own life! When you are through
with this life, you will face God alone. He will not
ask you what you think about your neighbor's sin.
He will ask you how you responded to your
neighbor's sin! I will face God on the basis of
what I have or have not done. I will stand alone,
and so will you!)
Conc: As I try to bring these thoughts to a close this
morning, I realize that this message has hit pretty close
to home for many of you. With that in mind, let me
close by telling you what I believe the Lord would have
us do in response to this truth today.
1. Anyone who has not dealt with the sin in their life
needs to do so this morning. You need to make it
right with the Lord and with your fellow believers. It
must be brought into the open. Your sin should not
be allowed to hinder this church another minute!
2. Anyone who has responded wrongly to the sin of
another believer needs to make that right with the
Lord this morning. If you are guilty of gossiping and
of spreading the word about sin, you need to get
that thing right today. You might even need to go to
the sinner and apologize for sinning against them.
3. Every believer in this building needs to make a fresh
commitment to handle sin, both in our own lives and
in the lives of others, in a manner consistent with the
teachings of our Lord's inspired Word.
4. There are some here today who have never been
saved. Your greatest need today is for you to come
to the Lord Jesus today and get your sins taken care
of. You need to forget about everything you have
seen carnal Christians do in your life and you need
to give your heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ.
It is my opinion that we have a lot to learn about
handling sin, both in our own lives and in the lives of
others. I challenge you to get in this altar and do
business with God today. Let's do our part to heal the
breaks in the body.
