Our Principle Assets(2023)-5

Our PRINCIPLE ASSETS-V—1Corinthians 1:6-7(:1-9)

ATTENTION:

Pizza Hut’s ‘Pan Pizza’—I haven’t eaten at a Pizza Hut in years. Like most pizza places, Pizza Hut has a few different types of crust. But for me, the ‘Pan Pizza’ crust used to be, or possibly still is, hands down, unbeatable! It is a Principle Asset that kept me going back to Pizza Hut restaurants.

In my limited opinion(subjectively), Pizza Hut’s Principle Asset is their ‘Pan Pizza’ Crust. It’s a major reason Pizza Hut was successful early on.

*In similar fashion, the Church has Principle Assets, that are essential for it’ to be successful in matters of eternal significance!

NEED:

God’s church must administer ‘The Good News’/‘The Gospel’ to each other, & to a world that is lost in sin!

IF we ‘forget’ or ‘neglect’ or ‘discard’ our Assets, which God has provided for us, then we will fail our God-ordained mission!

An ASSET— ‘A useful or valuable thing, person, or quality’; ‘An advantage or A resource.’

Paul & Sosthenes opened their letter to the Corinthian church by informing them of their most important spiritual assets.

The local(our) church has important spiritual assets.

We will attempt to answer the question:

‘?What are some of our church’s most important spiritual assets?’

In previous weeks we found that some principle assets of the Christian church are...

1. APPROPRIATE APOSTLES(:1)

2. SANCTIFIED SAINTS(:2)...

&

3. GOD’s GRACE & PEACE(:3)

4. GOD’s ENRICHMENT--part A(:4-5)

Thru Christ--Importance of Prayer, The reception of God’s Grace, Enriched in Everything, particularly--Utterance, & Knowledge

Today we’ll look further into the fact that...

4—A Principle Asset of the Christian church is...

GOD’s ENRICHMENT--B(:6)

Explanation:(:6)

:6—“even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you,”

“Testimony”—marturion—Noun Neuter—1) Testimony. Strong—Something evidential, i.e. genitive case--Evidence given OR specifically--The Decalogue(in the sacred Tabernacle). Used 20X.?Neuter of a presumed derivative of—martuv—A witness(literally[judicially] or figuratively[genitive case]); by analogy--A “martyr.”

“The Testimony of Christ”—is the truth concerning the resurrected & ascended “Christ.”(1Pet. 2:24; Gal. 3:13-14; 2Cor. 5:21)...

1)Jesus is the only-begotten divine Son of God & Son of Man.

2)Jesus was bodily born of the virgin, thru the working of the Holy Spirit(Lk. 1:35; Lk. 2:6-7);

1a)—Lk. 1:35—“And the angel[Gabriel] answered & said to her[Mary], “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, & the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.”

3) Jesus ministered on earth among men for 3-yrs.;

4)Jesus was crucified(Mk. 15:25) AS a criminal(Lk. 23:33), even though He was not a criminal;.....

5)Jesus died(Jn. 19:30, 33-34)—becoming the payment for the sins of all mankind(2Cor. 5:21; 1Pet. 2:24);

•2Cor. 5:21—“For He[God] made Him[Jesus] who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

•1Pet. 2:24—who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness--by whose stripes you were healed.”

6) Jesus was buried;

7)Jesus was raised from the dead(Rom. 4:25);

•(#4-6)—1Cor. 15:3-4—“For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, & that He was buried, & that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,”

8)Jesus ascended into heaven....JESUS LIVES!!

•Rom. 4:25—“who was delivered up because of our offenses, & was raised because of our justification.”

*“The Testimony of Christ” ‘no doubt’ ALSO refers to that which Christ Jesus taught during His ‘earthy’ ministry!

•The major part of Jesus’ ministry was to ‘correct’ ‘popular’ belief regarding God & his plan...To reveal how throughout history, God’s plan HAD, HAS, & WILL, always involve His promised Anointed One--the Messiah/Christ of God.

•A ‘portion’ of “the Testimony of Christ” was to disclose the fact of who He was.

•And THAT involved Jesus proving Himself to be the Messiah/Christ...Not merely thru what He said, but also thru actions that supported His verbal revelation.

Jn. 5:31-40—Jesus said,—“If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true. There is another who bears witness of Me, & I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true. You have sent to John, & he has borne witness to the truth. Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved. He was the burning & shining lamp, & you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light. But I have a greater witness than John’s; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish--the very works that I do--bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me. And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form. But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe. You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; & these are they which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.”