Help, I'm Down Here

Introduction

The mission of the church has to be one that has members that are willing and spiritual enough to restore one another. Restoration means to renew, rebuild and repair for the next entry. What prohibits restoration from being as effective as it is suppose to be is when the culture of the body does not represent Christ.

The church was in a state of confusion at the expense that salvation and the power of the Holy Spirit was being taught that circumcision was the prerequisite. Therefore in this text Paul teaches the basic fundamentals of Jesus, who we should strive to be like in the first place. It is explained in But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another! This culture of tearing each other will do nothing for the church except destroy it. Again Paul makes us aware of the importance of a loving culture in the church in verse 26 of the same chapter. Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.

Help, I’m down here. Have you ever been down and out and looking for help? Have you come to the church look for encouragement and left feeling discouraged? Let me tell you, you are not alone. The body of Christ has to be welcoming, loving, and ready to restore.

Only the Spiritually Healthy can Restore

Spiritual is defined in this text as someone who has lives as if the Holy Spirit dwells in them and lives in accordance with this relation to God.

If I am not in tune with God I cannot be a part of anyone’s restoration process.

Restoration has to be done in a gentle way. We have to restore one another the way we desire to be helped when we are broken and fragile. The worst thing we can do is treat our brother or sister harshly when they are need of restoration. It is important that we humble ourselves, and understand that everything that you have been blessed to avoid, everyone else has not had the same journey.

Understand that restoring someone or encouraging them to bounce back is difference than judgement. You restore because you know what God expects of them, and the brother or sister in a healthy spiritual state is beneficial to the body.

Judgement according to our preferences does nothing but condemn ourselves. states “You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgement on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things.

Instead of being encouraging the Judaizers were holding the gentiles to a gospel that was foreign from what Jesus taught.

Understand that restoration is spiritual surgery and you have to protect yourself from contamination. Or you must be careful because you may be walking into a trap that the person caught in it does not even realize they are in. “each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.

Transgression or “paraptoma” means to set a snare or trap, it comes from the word that means a trap set to catch animals.

Raccoons were caught in the trap in my backyard.

The Mother was caught first because of the overwhelming smell of tuna.

The baby raccoons thought it was okay to go inside the trap because their mother in it and she was unable to verbalize that it was something they needed to stay out of.

See, when we see others in a trap we have to make sure we are strong enough to help them, because we may get caught in the same trap. Simply because the force of the transgression is uncertain.

Whatever form of restoration it takes, the sinner must be rehabilitated and not meant to feel like an outcast. If we refuse to be gentle and love one another we will create victims who will in turn become outcast. It is similar to the pariah fish, which is outcast in water because of its instinctive habits, in which we get the word pariah to identity an outcast or the lowest member of society in the middle east.

The funny this is this is what we do to sinners, we treat them as outcast when in all actuality their restoration should be a top priority.

Even those who cause dissensions need restoration. Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned and turn away from them.

Pride Prohibits you from Restoration

“I’m alright I don’t need your help”.

In order to function well, or to be in the correct order with God we have to be humble enough to let our pride go. Going from Pride to allowing yourself to be restored is a maturation process that means that you allow others to help you mend your ways.

Restoration is a act of fruit bearing, Pride inhibits that process. Gentleness is a fruit of the spirit and typically the most prideful people are the most fragile.

When we are real with ourselves and understand that we are all vulnerable to temptation it should prevent us from being so prideful that we believe we can’t become spiritual week.

Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall.

Verse 3 states “for if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.

Pride causes loss of fruit, pride keeps you from fulfilling the law of Christ. Pride keeps you from asking for help or helping those who need help.

If anyone supposes that he knows anything, he has not yet known as he ought to know.

Accountability is a part of the Process

Verse two states “Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ” and then in verse 4 and 5 it states but each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another. For each one will bear his own load.

It seems to be a direct contrast with each verse. The idea seems far fetched but it is not. Even though people are willing to help you does not mean you are held accountable for mistakes.

Bearing burdens is a responsibility that lies in the hands of the spiritual healthy. The key is, we all should be working to become spiritually healthy enough to help with the process of restoring.

If you love your neighbor, bearing their burdens will not be a problem. Paul is encouraging them to move from physical rituals to imitating the character and conduct of Jesus.

Understand that everyone needs help, but because you need help does not negate the fact that you are held accountable for your sins. The goal is to help you become strong enough to bear your own load.

We all have a responsibility before God, but we must understand that I might be down here and yelling at me to get up instead of lending a hand or telling me why I ended up there is not helping me.

Basically what Paul is saying is that it is up to us to help people bear their burdens to a healthy place and allow them to carry them the rest of the way with the help of Jesus. The word burden in this text refers to a load for transport. Just because I help you does not mean I’m required to carry your burden forever.