“Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.” This statement is part of Paul’s closing instructions from his letter to the Churches in the region then known as Galatia.
The problem the Galatians had was that false teachers crept in and perverted the Gospel of Jesus Christ by subtlety changing doctrine on how salvation is obtained. These false teachers are playing upon mankind’s natural tendency to be self-sufficient. Therefore, they emphasize doing works according to the Law of Moses as necessary to earn salvation. Paul plainly instructs these Galatians that “a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ.”
Now the false teachers’ emphasis on personal works before faith beyond grace is the gist of the problem. But, not fully understanding what Paul means when he says “ye which are spiritual, can also lead to a grave misunderstanding of the relationship between faith, works and grace.” So, what does the word “spiritual” mean according to the Bible?
The word spiritual or its root word spirit is grounded in the first book of the Bible, called Genesis.
Genesis 1:1-2 KJV [1] In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. [2] And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
“And the Spirit of God moved…” So we see the “Spirit of God” moving across the water, which invokes the sense of the blowing wind. Next in Genesis 2:7, we find the Lord God “breathing” life into the man he formed and the man becomes a “living soul,” again breath indicating a sense of wind.
Please note after Jesus’ resurrection, when he appears to his disciples in the upper room that Jesus “breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost”—again another wind reference. However, let’s back up in the Gospel story to an earlier event, in which Jesus ties a sense of the wind to the Spirit.
John 3:5-8 KJV [5] Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. [6] That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. [7] Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. [8] The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
Now consider this: In the beginning the Lord God breathes the breath of life into his created man and the creature takes on the image of God. Therefore man (the creature) becomes a complete living soul, similar to his creator, in essence three-in-one (body, soul and Spirit).
A living soul is one incorporating the Spirit within a body. Remember the created man does not live, until the Lord God breathes the Spirit into His creation.
However, after man sinned, this Lord God breathed Spirit immediately departs or “dies,” sometime after which so does the physical body. Which leaves an incomplete or dead soul, so to speak.
By the way, this is why “ye must be born again” to see “the kingdom of God”. It is a new breathing or rebirth of the Spirit into the creature by the Lord God.
Now I realize all that seems like a lot to swallow and I still have not given a summarized phrase or definition for what Paul means by Spiritual, so let me do sohere:
Spiritual - means Lord God breathed or Christ like. Non-carnal. The people at Antioch understood this; Acts 11:26 KJV…And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.
So, those who live as Christ instructed (Holy, in humble daily repentance, walking the walk) are to help restore a man overtaken in a fault. However, only after humble acknowledgment that they are likewise forgiven Christian living by faith and not perfect apart from the Lord God.
Let me close with one more Spirit-wind reference:
Acts 2:1-4 KJV [1] And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. [2] And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. [3] And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. [4] And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
If you wish to study this yourself, reference the Hebrew word Ruah, pronounced Ruach. Also, see Greek word Pneuma, pronounced pnyoo'-mah