Galatians 5:26-6:5
Galatians – Fighting Conceit with Humility
Galatians 5:26-6:5
"Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.
Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, for each one should carry their own load."
If you want to know more about that passage in detail I’d recommend watching the sermon on the subjectbecause I want to focus us just on that verse 26 of chapter 5.
“Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other”
I want to focus us on that verse because I believe that it’s crucial for the rest of Paul’s message about how we can have grace for one another. We live in a world of conceit, our natural instinct as sinful humans is to be conceited and so if we want to be the family of God in the way that God has called us to be we have to be intentional in fighting against it.
And as hard as it is for me to admit, there is nothing I can do to convince you to have a true, humble view of yourself. There is no form of words that will make that lightbulb go off for you. Nor are there any life hacks that will do the job. I wish there were, I’d be a lot more humble myself! This is an internal battle that you must wage within yourself. The good news is that the Holy Spirit will give you everything you need to cast off conceit, but you’ll be better off doing that work with Him.
So what I’ve done is lay out a 5 day prayer and reflection plan to help you focus on humility. You might find you want to do each day more than once, you might want to repeat the whole thing, but I want to encourage you to come back and do this every day for 5 days and see what God wants to do.
Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, for each one should carry their own load."
If you want to know more about that passage in detail I’d recommend watching the sermon on the subjectbecause I want to focus us just on that verse 26 of chapter 5.
“Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other”
I want to focus us on that verse because I believe that it’s crucial for the rest of Paul’s message about how we can have grace for one another. We live in a world of conceit, our natural instinct as sinful humans is to be conceited and so if we want to be the family of God in the way that God has called us to be we have to be intentional in fighting against it.
And as hard as it is for me to admit, there is nothing I can do to convince you to have a true, humble view of yourself. There is no form of words that will make that lightbulb go off for you. Nor are there any life hacks that will do the job. I wish there were, I’d be a lot more humble myself! This is an internal battle that you must wage within yourself. The good news is that the Holy Spirit will give you everything you need to cast off conceit, but you’ll be better off doing that work with Him.
So what I’ve done is lay out a 5 day prayer and reflection plan to help you focus on humility. You might find you want to do each day more than once, you might want to repeat the whole thing, but I want to encourage you to come back and do this every day for 5 days and see what God wants to do.
Apply
Day 1: Read John 13 1:1-17. Imagine the most powerful, important person you can think of washing your feet. Reflect on what it means for Jesus to do that for His disciples. What does it say about Jesus? In what ways has Jesus done that for you? Take some time to thank God for how He has humbly served you. Take some time twice more today to think about how Jesus shows humility by serving us, and thanking him for it.
Day 2: Read John 13:34-35. Jesus calls this a command. This word could be translated as commandment, or law. It carries that level of weight. What would that look like in your life? Think practically, but think big. Write these ideas down. What’s stopping you from doing these things? Do you find yourself fighting against doing them? Do you find yourself weighed down by the weight of them? Why might that be? Ask the Holy Spirit to help you.
Day 3: “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less”. How do you respond to a quote like that? How does it make you feel? Read Phillipians 2:5-8. Read it again. What does it tell you about Christ’s humility? Ask the Holy Spirit to help you be more like Jesus in this way.
Day 4: Read John 13:34-35 again. Think again about how Jesus loves us. How did Jesus’ humility shape His love toward us? How is that different (if at all) from how you show love to others? Ask God to change your view of yourself so that you can you fulfil Jesus’ command.
Day 5: Read Galatians 6 v2. The law of Christ Paul is referring to is likely to be John 13:34-45. How can you carry the burdens of people around you? Do you let others share in yours? Ask God for specific, practical ways in which you could share your burdens or carry someone elses. Write them down. Commit to them. Thank God for what He is going to do.
Day 2: Read John 13:34-35. Jesus calls this a command. This word could be translated as commandment, or law. It carries that level of weight. What would that look like in your life? Think practically, but think big. Write these ideas down. What’s stopping you from doing these things? Do you find yourself fighting against doing them? Do you find yourself weighed down by the weight of them? Why might that be? Ask the Holy Spirit to help you.
Day 3: “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less”. How do you respond to a quote like that? How does it make you feel? Read Phillipians 2:5-8. Read it again. What does it tell you about Christ’s humility? Ask the Holy Spirit to help you be more like Jesus in this way.
Day 4: Read John 13:34-35 again. Think again about how Jesus loves us. How did Jesus’ humility shape His love toward us? How is that different (if at all) from how you show love to others? Ask God to change your view of yourself so that you can you fulfil Jesus’ command.
Day 5: Read Galatians 6 v2. The law of Christ Paul is referring to is likely to be John 13:34-45. How can you carry the burdens of people around you? Do you let others share in yours? Ask God for specific, practical ways in which you could share your burdens or carry someone elses. Write them down. Commit to them. Thank God for what He is going to do.
This Everyday Devotions was written by Freddie Ingle.
Freddie unpacks these themes in more detail in his sermon message this week on our website, YouTube Channel and at our Online Church Services.
This Everyday Devotions has also inspired a devotional video that you can watch on our YouTube Channel.
Freddie unpacks these themes in more detail in his sermon message this week on our website, YouTube Channel and at our Online Church Services.
This Everyday Devotions has also inspired a devotional video that you can watch on our YouTube Channel.