Bike Crashes, Gravel In The Skin, And A Lack Of Being Spiritual (Galatians 6:1)

As you sit there bleeding beside the road how would you want a person to approach you? Would you want them to approach with a pointing finger and a lecture about how bad of a bicycle rider you are or how dumb you were for riding on that rocky road to begin with? If they cared enough to try and help clean and dress the wounds, how would you want them to do it? Would you want them to have no thought for the pain you are experiencing or would you want them to be very mindful of how much you are hurting so as to treat you with incredible gentleness? The answers are obvious.

Now, let's carry the road rash into everyday life and the times of tumbling that we all experience at one point or another. Take a look at how the Apostle Paul tells us to deal with one another.

"Brethren, if a man also may be overtaken in any trespass, ye who [are] spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of meekness, considering thyself -- lest thou also may be tempted." (Galatians 6:1)

The word translated as trespass means to fall down… to have a lapse from what is right… to deviate off course… to sin… to miss the mark…to not hit the target. In other words, it means to wipe out in the gravel beside the road.

Before we look at what Paul tells us to do when we learn that a brother or sister who has wiped out, let's first talk about what he doesn't tell us to do. He does not tell us to get the gossip chain going and he does not tell us to give the person a verbal or physical beating. He says, "Ye who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of meekness." In other words a man or woman of God who has grown in grace, one who is spiritual, is going to have a very different mindset when it comes to the wounded brother or sister. They will have restoration as the goal. The Greek word translated as restore in this verse means to mend, to repair, to complete, or to render fit.

Paul is saying, "If you are spiritual, you know that it's not your job to condemn or to put down. You are to be about the business of restoration, to help bring repair into the life of that person." That makes perfect sense doesn't it? After all, isn't that how you would want others deal with you? Wouldn't you want a little grace? Better yet, wouldn't you want a whole lot of grace?

Notice Paul tells us that as we work toward restoration and healing in the life of a hurting brother or sister, that we are to have a spirit of meekness. This Greek word translated as meekness means gentleness or mildness. This is the opposite of harshness or mean-spiritedness. An attitude or heart of meekness leaves no room for a feeling of superiority or self-righteousness, thinking that there is no way we would ever wipe out like that on a bike (or take a tumble in any other way) the way that person just did.

As we continue to think about helping a fallen brother or sister, let's stick to the bicycle crash illustration.

When a person has crashed on a bicycle, he doesn't need a dozen people coming by saying, "Hey, you crashed on a bicycle!" He already knows he crashed on a bicycle. He's feeling the pain! My friend, that is why the guy needs a truly kind, caring, compassionate person to lend him a helping hand. Not only to pick him up, but to brush off the dust, load the broken bike in the car, and give him a ride safely home (or to the hospital). What he needs is someone with a caring heart who is willing to enter into the hurt with him to clean and dress his bloody wounds! Paul says restore that person in meekness. Then he goes on and says "considering yourself."

As we deal with people who have wiped out, Paul tells us to be mindful of the fact that we have the exact same potential for crashing as they had before their crash. In other words, if it could happen to them, or anyone else, it could just as easily happen to you. Therefore, our friend the Apostle Paul is encouraging us to focus on staying humble and not getting prideful thinking that there is no possibility we could ever wipe out in that way.

Doesn't Scripture have something to say about pride coming before destruction and a haughty spirit before a great fall?

The same snare that was set for the person you have been called to help could very well be set for you in the future. The same tricky curve on the road that brought the other person down could very well bring you down. If it ever happens, how will you want people to treat you? My friend, that is exactly what the Apostle Paul is wanting us to consider. So let's consider it.

When we hear of someone falling, is our immediate response to be run to them or distance ourselves from them? Is our first inclination to gently pick them up? Is it to gently mend? Or is it something else?

When you and I hear about someone else doing something wrong and unthinkable, what are the first words that come from our mouths? Do we say, "I can't believe them! That dirty rotten so and so! How could she? I would never do that! And she called herself a Christian!"

Have you ever been there? Self-righteously pointing the finger of condemnation… I have.

What if, by the grace of God our response was something different. What if the first words out of our mouths were a prayer?

Maybe something like this. "Father, help me to help them. One thing I know for sure is that just as they go themselves in that mess, it could just as easily have been me. If the circumstances were exactly right, just like every other person on this planet, I have the full potential to mess up just as bad or worse than they just did. Father help me to pick them up with my words. Not just the words I say to them, but what I say about them. God help me to be an instrument of healing in their life. I know that if the shoe were on the other foot, the last thing I would want would be people talking about me or at me. I would want someone to come alongside and weep with me. I think I'm positive that I wouldn't need a single soul to enlighten me regarding how much of a mess I had made. I would already know. After all, after wiping out on a bike, no one needs to tell me I've wiped out. I feel the bruises! Father, help me to be mindful of the bruises in the lives of my brothers and sisters. Lord, whatever way You see fit, use me as an instrument of healing and restoration in the life of this person. I pray that by your grace you would work through me to help heal their wounds, wipe away their tears, and make them whole."

Let's read this verse one more time. "Brethren, if a man also may be overtaken in any trespass, ye who [are] spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of meekness, considering thyself -- lest thou also may be tempted."

If this is the spiritual response, I wonder if more often than not you and I demonstrate that we aren't very spiritual at all. God help us. Amen.

Audio blogger and guitar player James Flanders has experienced plenty of road rash throughout his life. As a result he has a passion for helping others to grow in the grace of God so that we can all begin to deal with one another more compassionately.After all, Christ himself did not come to condemn, but to save.

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