One of the harshest environments for anything to live in is our stomachs. In fact,

The human stomach is a pear-shaped chamber filled with a highly noxious cocktail of hydrochloric acid and protein-cleaving digestive enzymes called peptidases. This gastric soup can have a pH of 1 to 3; the pH scale goes from 1 to 14 with a lower number indicating more acidity…the medical community long believed that pretty much nothing from the outside could survive in the stomach’s harsh environment. That view began to change in 1982, when two Australian scientists, Robin Warren and Barry Marshall, found spiral-shaped bacteria called Helicobacter pylori in human stomachs.[1]

However, in one study, scientists have found 128 bacteria types, 10 percent previously unknown to science.

One of the newly discovered bacteria types is a relative of Deinococcus radiodurans, one of the hardiest organisms alive.

D. radiodurans is a so-called extremophile because it thrives in extreme environments that would kill most organisms, such as radioactive waste dumps and hot springs. While a radiation dose of 10 grays (Gy) would kill a human, D. radiodurans can take up to 5,000 Gy with no visible effect. It can survive heat, cold, vacuum, and acid. It is so resilient scientists nicknamed it “Conan the Bacterium,” after the fictional barbarian warrior.[2]

This is not a Science class, but I share this interesting bit of trivia for a reason. Sometimes, our churches become one of the harshest environments for flourishing. We, in effect, become a toxic cocktail of sin and self-promoting practices that kill practically everything. Sometimes, the only thing that can thrive in our churches is Conan the Bacterium.

In Galatians 6, we have a snapshot of a different environment. The environment prescribed in Galatians 6 is the best environment for Christian growth. I call this environment a community of restoration. Communities of restoration engage in three activities:

Cooperation

These are not in order of the passage, so you perfectionists relax. Cooperation is not spelled out in this passage. It is implied in this passage. If you read this passage carefully, you quickly realize something. What does it take to accomplish what is commanded in this passage? What is required to restore someone who is caught in a sin? Cooperation is required. The one caught in the sin must cooperate with the one who wishes to restore them, and the one who is restoring must cooperate with the one who sinned. To bear each other’s burdens, what is required? Cooperation is required. If you want to bear someone else’s burden, they must be willing to share their burden with you. Cooperation is implicit in this passage.

            There is only one problem. Russell Moore identifies this problem:

One problem we have today when it comes to the issue of holiness is that we think of sanctification as primarily an individual thing. We ask ourselves, “How often am I reading the Bible and praying? How often am I singing praise to God and meditating upon the things of God?” And while all of these are indeed important, too often, we neglect the fact that we are holy and grow in holiness only because we are part of the body of Christ—in a  real and vital union with Christ in the body he has knit together. The question of sanctification, then, is not, what are you doing to promote your growth in godliness, but what are we doing?[3]

So what must one do to apply this to their life? One must agree to allow brothers and sisters in the church into their business, and one must agree to get into the business of their brothers and sisters. We’re not talking about drama here. We’re not talking about gossip. We’re not talking about tattletales. We are talking about cooperating for our spiritual growth and the growth of others. Change is indeed a community project. Let me ask you a question. Who did you meet within the last month for the express purpose of getting into their business and them getting into your business as it pertains to spiritual growth?

The following two cannot work without cooperation. Cooperation first, then:

Prevention

When I was in the Navy, we had a program called Maintenance and Material Management or 3M. A key element in the 3M program is the Preventative Maintenance System (PMS). It’s not the PMS you’re thinking. The program is designed to schedule periodic maintenance to prevent equipment failure. It’s like changing the oil in your car every 3000 or 5000 miles to prevent your engine from prematurely failing.

 As members of the body, we are to “have the same care for one another” (1 Cor. 12:25). This care extends to prevention. How can we prevent problems and sin before it happens? Look at the last part of verse 1, “Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.” What does that mean? Keep watch on yourself. It means knowing what pushes your buttons. Do you know what pushes your buttons? Now, take that a step further. How about purposely staying away from places where you know your buttons will be pushed? That is keeping a watch on yourself. Now, let’s expand on this principle. What if you see your brother or sister wandering into an area where their buttons are pushed? What should you do? How about saying something like this, “I love you and don’t want to see you get hurt. You don’t want to go there. Let me pray for you.” That’s prevention in action, and it’s a proactive and responsible way to care for one another.

In verse 2, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” Sometimes, we sin because of pressure. It is not an excuse to sin, but sometimes, the pressures of our burdens get to us, and we surrender to sin. To prevent this, we can bear each other’s burdens. If you feel like someone is with you, supporting you in your burden or crisis, you are not as likely to sin in response to the pressure. This is prevention in action. It is also fulfilling the law of Christ to love one another as Christ has loved us. He was the ultimate burden bearer, commanding us to do the same.

Imagine that you are enduring a great crisis, a significant burden that no one in the church knows about. It is getting to you. You are about to crack. When you are about to go out and do something you regret, one of your brothers or sisters shows up. They can tell something is troubling you. Then they rescue you from inevitable ruin when they say, “Hey, let’s get a cup of coffee and talk about it. You look like you need a friend right now.” I don’t know about you, but I need that. Every Christian needs it. So do it. Go and do likewise.

But alas, we do sin. Eventually, we are caught in a transgression, as this passage says. It doesn’t mean caught in that someone sneaks up on us and says, “Aha, I caught you!” It means we get trapped and stuck in a sin. This is where the third activity of a community of restoration comes in.

Correction

 In verse 1, “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness.” For you gender-sensitive people, brothers are used here to refer to male and female. It’s like the Old Testament use of the generic term “man” or “Adam” to refer to both males and females. We already mentioned what it means to be caught in a transgression. Who is Paul referring to when he says, “You who are spiritual?” He is not referring to an elite class of Christians. He refers to those with more maturity and experience in the Christian life who are, therefore, in a position to help their struggling brother or sister. It refers to someone walking and living according to the Holy Spirit.

Paul does not use the word correction; he uses the word “restore.” I used the word correction because restoration is the goal of correction. When we think of correction, we think of punishment. Paul does not have that in mind. He has in mind restoration. Why is restoration needed? It is necessary because sin damages our fellowship with other believers and our fellowship with God. We have grieved the Holy Spirit. Depending on the sin, we may have wounded other brothers and sisters. We need forgiveness, comfort, and assurance that our sins have been forgiven. We must be assured of our continued acceptance by God and his people.

 So, how is the correction to be done? Paul says, “in a spirit of gentleness.”  When I had a gallbladder full of stones, it needed to be removed. This problem required correction. I am so thankful the surgeon removed the bad gallbladder with a spirit of gentleness. He put me to sleep. He did the surgery in the least invasive manner, laparoscopically. He gave me pain medication during my recovery. I am grateful for his spirit of gentleness. Could you imagine what it would have been like if he just used a dull butcher knife, did not put me to sleep, strapped me to the table, and started cutting? No pain medicine, no nothing, just started hacking away and tearing the bad gallbladder out?

 When you are struggling with a sin, do you want someone to come in like a bull in a China shop and verbally beat you about the head and shoulders? Well, that’s what people need sometimes. That’s called tough love. That’s not tough love; that’s spiritual abuse. We do not have an option here. It is correction/restoration done gently. It is coming to someone and expressing genuine, heartfelt concern. “I love you. I’ve been down this road before. Let me help you. I want to walk with you. Let me pray for you. God will give you freedom in this area.” Humility is the idea here. In verse 3, “For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.” Don’t deceive yourself. Don’t fool yourself. We are all in this together. No one has bragging rights. We need each other.

So, what kind of church will we be from this day forward? Will we be a community of restoration? Will we cooperate? Will we take steps together to prevent sin? Will we correct those caught in sin with gentleness with a goal of restoration? Or will we be a toxic, simmering pool of acid where nothing but the multiple bacteria of sin can grow? The choice is yours.

---

     [1] Ker Than, “Bacteria Thrive in Human Bellies,” Live Science Trending, entry posted January 5, 2006, http://www.livescience.com/515-bacteria-thrive-hostile-human-bellies.html (accessed September 26, 2024).

      [2] Ibid.

     [3] Russell Moore, “Acting the Miracle Together,” in Acting the Miracle: God’s Work and Ours in the Mystery of Sanctification (Wheaton: Crossway, 2013), 109.