Sermon Brief
Date Written: May 22, 2014
Date Preached: May 25, 2014
Where Preached: OPBC (AM)
Sermon Details:
Series Title: A Series in 1 Corinthians
Sermon Title: Do Christians have ‘rights’ to cling to?
Sermon Text: 1 Corinthians 6:1-11 [ESV]
TEXT:
Essence of the Text: Paul challenged the believers in Corinth to resist seeking worldly judgment for beleiver conflict.
Essence of the Sermon: We too are challenged to resist seeking worldly judgment for any beleiver conflict as well.
Applicable Objective of the Sermon: The hearers will:
Know the difference between worldly and Christian counsel
Know the godly manner in which to handle conflict between belivers
Know why Paul uses so many examples of sin to drive home his point
Introduction:
Before I begin this morning, I am going to apologize in advance for the length of my introduction, but I believe it is imperative that we understand the context of what Paul is speaking to here in these 11 verses, so bear with me for a few extra minutes…
“You are violating my rights!” This is the cry of so many people today over what many of us would see as the most trivial of matters. So many people in this country and in our world today see themselves as the victim of someone else taking advantage of them…
Today we live in a society obsessed with their own personal rights and the fear of other people violating those rights! I do not believe that there a day that goes by when I don’t read or hear a news story, news article, email, twitter post, or see something on Facebook where someone somewhere is screaming about his/her rights have been violated!
Somebody has ‘done me wrong!’ is the battle cry from these people and they are constantly disturbed and upset about what they percieve is a violation of their rights… Likewise always seem to be conspiring some sort of action because they feel that their personal rights have priority over any ‘greater’ good.
Now here is where I go from preaching to meddling… Do you know that this SAME attitude is alive and well IN the lives of believers within the church today?
We see it all the time, but I believe we DON’T pay attention to it because our senses have been ‘dulled’ to its presence in our lives! After all, is there anything ‘wrong’ about wanting what is ‘rightfully’ yours?
When we look at our nation and how it was founded we see a LOT of this focus… we see it in the Bill of Rights where as a nation we have stated that these things are RIGHTS that cannot be taken from us!
This “Bill of Rights” or what people interpret the Bill of Rights to means is what MANY people use when the cry out that their rights are being violated…
Now I want to go on record RIGHT now and let you ALL know that I am a red-blooded, dyed-in-the-wool, ‘don’t tread on me’ American!
I believe in the founding principles of our nation… I believe in the Constitution and Declaration of Independence… I believe that the ForeFathers of this nation were visionary and set up a gov’t that has been a wonderful blessing to millions of people here in the United States!
With that being said, I want us to ALSO understand another principle that MOST if not ALL of us want to ignore! When you become part of something bigger than you are, you are choosing to give up some of your ‘inalienable’ rights!
Let me explain… recently in the NFL a young man was drafted in the 7th round, but before the draft he had ‘come out of the closet’ and had proclaimed that he was a proud homosexual athlete.
Several players in the NFL were offended by all the media attention this young man received and some of them actually spoke out against what he stood for…
One player was fined and then ordered by his team to NOT return to the practice facility until he attended sensitivity training. Many believed this was wrong—that this man had every right to speak out in opposition.
However, here is the principle at play here… when you sign up to be a part of something LARGER than yourself, you give away some or all of who you are as an individual.
The same principle is true in our United States Military. We DO have freedom of speech in our country, but when you sign up to serve in the military, you set aside that right and you subject yourself to the orders of those appointed over you and you are expected to keep your opinions quiet!
Preacher…what does this have to do with the sermon? Well, I believe that we have come to the point in the church where we truly believe that it (serving God) is all about US! What WE want or desire! What WE believe to be the right thing or right way to do something! And when we don’t get things ‘our way’ we have a tendency to get upset and strike out!
People can strike out with something as simple as an ugly comment towards a brother or a sister in Christ or toward the pastor or staff of the church.
People can also react with something as complex and caustic as taking other brothers to court over issues that should be adjudicated within the fellowship!
We do this because WE don’t want to be told we are wrong...
We do this because WE want to have things our way…
We do this because WE don’t want to be taken advantage of…
We do this because WE don’t want to lose…
When He was here on earth. In Mark 8:34-35 Jesus said,
34And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it.
In other words, it is NOT about us… it is about following Christ! So turn to 1 Cor 6:1-11 & let’s read what Paul wrote!
1When one of you has a grievance against another, does he dare go to law before the unrighteous instead of the saints? 2Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you incompetent to try trivial cases? 3Do you not know that we are to judge angels? How much more, then, matters pertaining to this life! 4So if you have such cases, why do you lay them before those who have no standing in the church? 5I say this to your shame. Can it be that there is no one among you wise enough to settle a dispute between the brothers, 6but brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers? 7To have lawsuits at all with one another is already a defeat for you. Why not rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded? 8But you yourselves wrong and defraud—even your own brothers! 9Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, 10nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
Now in this passage for today we find Paul relating a spiritual problem by the use of a specific example AND the implementing of a general principle for believers.
The specific example he gave was about brothers sueing brothers in secular court instead of settling things within the boundaries of the church fellowship! The general principle he gives for believers…and this holds true to EVEN today… is basically asking the question, “who do you think you are?”
Who do you think you are that you can take another brother to court?
Who do you think you are that you can have a non-believer be a judge over a believer?
Who do you thing you are trying to serve under your own power and failing EVERY time?
For us today to look at what Paul said some 2000 yrs ago and it be applicable to our lives today, we need to answer those questions! The most important question for the believer is, “who do you think you are…”
We are believers who live in a country founded on certain ‘inalienable’ rights, but we are ALSO (and this is MORE important because this is ETERNAL) not citizens of this world but really we are just here for a while before we reach our eternal destination in Heaven.
So, we are NOT true citizens of this world, and we should not ascribe to any worldly view or practice about ‘who’ we are and what are our rights…
You see when you accepted Christ as your Savior, you also confessed and accepted Him as your Lord! He is Lord of your life and you are His servant… not His buddy…not His home boy… not His equal… you are His servant!
Paul tells us in v19-20 of this chapter that we are NOT our own but we have been purchased with a price…so we need to act like it! But what does Paul mean by this… and why does he write this chapter?
Well Paul addresses this issue because these believers had come to believe that they could possess or that they already DID possess a special knowledge or higher knowledge or wisdom than other believers!
Paul had chastised them about this… and even though they professed a special wisdom, Paul finds them not able to settle disputes among themselves, instead they are allowing non-beleivers to settle arguments between believers!
For us to understand what Paul is saying here in these verses AND for us to be able to take what Paul has said and put it into practice in our own lives…
I believe there are 3 truths Paul puts forward that we need to accept!
We need to:
Know there is a VAST difference between worldly and Christian counsel
Counsel can be defined as any guidance, direction or advice from one party to another. It is when one party gives their recommendation on how another party should act or react to a situation or circumstance.
For believers we MUST understand that there is wise counsel and then there is the counsel of fools… there is counsel from a godly perspective and then there is counsel from this world’s prospective…
There is counsel from the Creator God who made us and sent His Son to die for our sin… and then there is counsel from those who have been stained by the sin and curse of the Fall…
Scripture makes it very clear that we must seek WISE counsel. Solomon wrote volumes about seeking the counsel of the godly and avoiding the counsel of the wicked! David and the other Psalm writers wrote about seeking God’s wisdom and counsel!
In Psalms David wrote in Ps 1:1-2 [ESV] 1Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2but his delight is in the law of the Lord [godly wisdom], and on his law [God’s wisdom] he meditates day and night.
Paul himself had already spoken to this earlier in this letter as he wrote in 1 Cor 2:4-6 [ESV] 4and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of [human] wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power [wisdom] of God. 6Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away.
Scripture is very clear that we must seek out the wise counsel of God and those whom God places in our lives to bring us godly counsel!
With that being said Paul brings up a point that MANY believers (even today) don’t know about! Did you know that we will be judges in heaven? We will NOT be the judge, but we will be part of the judgment!
Here we find Paul giving the believers in Corinth a theological reasoning or basis for his answer to the issue of suing another brother in Christ…as was happening in the church at Corinth.
Good theology is a MUST to produce right action within our lives! BUT good theology fall short by itself, we must have the moral courage to ACT on the theology God brings into our lives! Here Paul is calling on those who profess Christ to step up in this very trying time within their fellowship!
He tells them to step up by reminding them in v2-3 that: “…the saints will judge the world…and… angels…” (Daniel 7:22; Lk 22:30; Rev 20:4) here Paul is essentially recognizing God’s plan of greater to lesser…
He is basically saying that, “Hey if you are called to judge the world… if God has called you to judge the serious matters of the end times and matters concerning heavenly angels, then SURELY you can deal with the trivial matters/cases that crop up within your fellowship!
With that in mind Paul admonishes the believers in Corinth to seek out WISE counsel in how they judge! Paul lays it on the line by calling the judges these believers have been allowing to judge their cases are actually of ‘no account’ or ‘no standing’ within the church! There is a latin phrase for this ‘personna NON-grata’ in other words, you have NO standing!
According to Paul, these outside judges should not be judging believers… really what Paul is saying is that the believers should not be turning to worldly counsel or judgment when they should be able to judge among themselves!
The truth of the matter is that this situation IS still prevelant in the church today! When a legal situation arises within a fellowship… between members of the body of Christ…even if it is with a member of ANOTHER fellowship… our FIRST step is to take it to a secular setting!
Even if we are dealing with Christian lawyers, we are dealing with a worldly system. What Paul is saying here is that if ANY situation requires intervention it should be handled within the body of the church… NOT from those outside of the church!
Paul’s implication here is that the parties should work together to settle this dispute among themselves, but IF they cannot reach an agreeable decision, it should be handled within the body…
Can you imagine how strong our fellowship could become if we began to handle situations like this? If we sought to lift up and bear up each other as Scripture has instructed us instead of seeking OUR own due…
The sad part about this is that even beleivers seek their own selfish desires when it comes to things they believe to be ‘business’ or ‘personal’ in nature…
Do you compartmentalize your faith? Do you think that there are situations that should not be handled within the fellowship? Do you believe you should place judgment in the hands of non-believers… in the hands of secular law, when it can and should be handled within the boundry of the fellowship?
Paul was VERY clear here… but I don’t want us to misunderstand what he is saying. He is NOT saying that ALL legal proceedings are evil or forbidden, after all we know that Paul utilized the Roman legal system to appeal his case to the highest human authority of his day… to Caesar!
However, what Paul is speaking about here really has little to do with the legal issue, but more to do with how the world sees us as a body of believers!
Do they see the love of Christ flowing from us even when it is NOT beneficial to us? Even when it may SEEM as if it is taking advantage of us? How does the witness of the church LOOK to the world around us?
Paul bases all of the first part of his argument by stressing that the church should ALWAYS seek godly counsel and judgment and NOT seek after the cousel of or judgment from those outside the body!
Godly counsel seeks to please God… Earthly or human counsel seeks to please itself…and God is an afterthought! Do you make God an afterthought in your life affairs?
We must ALWAYS seek to deal with the circumstances of our lives within the body of the fellowship of believers. However, Paul also said that when we do have a conflict that…
Know the godly manner on how to handle conflict between believers
So Paul points out that based on Scripture we are going to be judging others one day…we need to know how to handle conflict between believers…right?
Conflict is a NASTY word that most, if not all of us, absolutely HATE to face! We don’t like to be told we are wrong and we don’t like to tell those we love that they are wrong!
However, there is a godly template that was laid out by Christ on how to deal with conflict… Jesus laid it out in Matt 18. The context was for when one brother had sinned against another brother… but this process is applicable to any situation of conflict within the church body!
In v4-6 Paul calls these believers out and tells them that how they were dealing with conflict was WRONG… that God was not pleased. Reading from the NLT helps us to see where Paul is coming from…READ V4-6 NOW… follow me as I read
4If you have legal disputes about such matters, why go to outside judges who are not respected by the church? 5I am saying this to shame you. Isn’t there anyone in all the church who is wise enough to decide these issues? 6But instead, one believer sues another—right in front of unbelievers!
In these verses we can see that Paul does not mention Matt 18 but what we DO know about Paul was that he was a forceful advocate for the teachings of Jesus! So, what Paul says here is in TOTAL agreement with how Jesus instructs us to handle conflict within the church.
Basically here Paul is chastising these believers and hoping that shaming them in this way will wake them up to their folly of seeking worldly counsel for dealing with conflict within the church.
In v4 many believe Paul to be saying that even the ‘least’ wise among the church would be better than taking our conflict before unbelievers!
However the term he uses that is translated as ‘of little account’ is more accurately translated as ‘despised’ and I do NOT believe Paul despised or thought that lowly of any within the church in Corinth…after all he goes to such great lengths to tell them how much he loves them and that God is not done with them…
So this does not fit… what this points to is Paul shaming these believers for welcoming INTO the fellowship, those who were not part OF the fellowship… they were brought in to judge the situation and treated just like a brother…
Normally the Corinthians had despised the worldliness of Corinth, but here ironically they had enbraced the worldly counsel from ungodly judges so that they could gain financially from it…
It is NO WONDER that Paul SHAMES THEM in v5 and then uses their own words against them. Remember Paul was battling heresy within the church… a heresy that relied on human wisdom and a supposed special spiritual knowledge by many of the leaders/teachers in the church.
However these people are NOT relying on the wisdom they had been trumpeting…instead they turn to the world for ITS wisdom… can you see why Paul would be upset?
I believe Paul believed there were those within the body… who were ACTUAL believers who could handle these conflicts… in 1 Cor 2:6 Paul refers to mature believers and the wisdom of God.
I believe he was sure that there those among them capable of dealing with this situation, but that the church had become apathetic and lazy in keeping their lives pure…so they did NOT see the issue with going before ungodly counsel. Paul chastises them for this attitude!
I want you to know that what Paul is advocating here is NOT an easy task, but it takes vigilance and a lot of hard work to accomplish!
You cannot be the faithful body of Christ by sitting on your hands and turning your head when troubel arises… you must be willing to stand up and call a sin a sin and stand firm on God’s Word!
So, basically what Paul is stating is that they were turning against one another using the worldly justice system to validate their spiritual laziness! And he confirms this in v7-8
7To have lawsuits at all with one another is already a defeat for you. Why not rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded? 8But you yourselves wrong and defraud—even your own brothers!
In other words their actions revealed their defeated spirit and their lack of faith that the Holy Spirit would be a good enough judge… He warns them that this type of action and attitude actually hurts the believer who is pursuing ‘justice’ for himself!
Paul then says, “…why not suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded?” To our ears this sounds absolutely CRAZY… preacher do you mean I have to be a doormat and let EVERYONE take advantage of me?
Well this is not a modern day phenomenon… Jesus himself dealt with this as one of His teachings found in Matt 5:38-41 [ESV] Jesus says: 38“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.
The principle Jesus was that we should not put our worth in what we own or how people treat us, but in WHOSE we are… to WHOM we belong! Jesus taught that you would be mistreated, but we are still called to reveal the love of God thru the hard times!
When being beaten…Jesus remained silent! When on the Cross, Jesus cried out to the Father, NOT for vengence or retaliation, but for forgiveness for those who were hurting Him!
When we come to know Christ as Savior, we are baptized into that same attitude and life! We are crucified WITH Christ that NO longer do we live, but Christ who is IN us lives and is glorified!
It does NOT matter who ‘wins’ in this world… Christ has won the ultimate battle and we will celebrate victory one day… a day of HIS choosing… a victory of HIS hand!
Paul is revealing an attitude to these believers! This attitude is that we cannot afford to put so much stock in the things of this world that we lose sight of who we serve!
When protecting our ‘rights’ is damaging to the witness of Christ… we must understand what is MORE important!
When James was executed by the Jews… do you believe he thought that was fair treatment? When Peter was executed, do you think he cried out for his rights?
Likewise, when we face persecution and humiliation…even from a brother in Christ… our focus cannot be on what is RIGHT for us… it must be on what is RIGHT for God’s kingdom and our witness for Christ!
Do Christians have rights? Yes we do… the issue is NOT if we have rights, the issue is what priority do we place on those rights? Is our focus on our safety and comfort and profit OR is our focus on glorifying God with ALL of who we are regardless of where it takes us?
But preacher it is not fair when someone gets THEIR way and I cannot get mine! You are correct in that it is NOT fair… but life itself is not fair!
Paul sets an attitude for these believers and chastises them for not being focused on serving God, but that they were more interested in gaining things for themselves!
Paul has set the standard and in the final 3 verses we find Paul giving illustration on what happens when we rely on human wisdom and ungodly counsel… where it leads us and what the result will be!
Know the focus of this passage and why Paul uses so many examples of sin to drive home his point
9Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, 10nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
Now as we move forward in Paul’s letter we see he has set up the attitude we should have when we serve God… that God is first and has priority in our lives, even when it is inconvenient or harsh for us… even if it strips us of material wealth…even if it brings us to ruin at the hands of another believer! We are called to place God first!
With that attitude established Paul takes these next 3 verses and reveals what happens to those who do NOT place Christ as priority in their lives… to those who seek to place human wisdom above godly counsel…
Paul lists nine separate ways (and this is by NO means an exhaustive list) that we can place human wisdom above godly counsel… 9 different results to listening to our hearts vs clinging to God’s hand!
Let me name them for you:
The sexually immoral – Greek word – [pornoss], this term described a man who sold his body to women or men to satisfy their lust…God’s wisdom here is that man should leave his family and cleave to a wife and that relationship is sacred and lifelong.
Humanity’s wisdom says do what you want…whatever feels good! When we allow our base instincts to guide our feet, this is where we are going to land…
Idolotors – Greek word - [idoh-dola’t-race], this term describes one who worships material things, one who is willing to sell all for what he worships, his worship is NOT God, but things…
God’s 1st commandment is that we would have NO other gods before Him! To worship something MORE than God makes us Idolatrous…Godly wisdom would be to place our lives and praises at the feet of the Savior and not seek to place anything before Jesus.
Adulterers – Greek word - [moy-koss], this term describes who is unfaithful in marriage, but also unfaithful in serving God… his focus is always on pleasing his desire!
God calls us to sexual purity and spiritual fidelity to Him! This is not for HIS sake but for ours…when we place our desires over His calling, we will suffer!
Effeminate – (practicing homosexuality) – Greek word [mal-ah-koss] this term describes a man serving as a sexual partner for another man… one in submits to the homosexual lifestyle.
Thieves – Greek Word - [klep-tess] this term describes one who decieves to steal. This term was turned onto false teachers who misled others for their own private gain. This is the root word for our English word ‘cleptomaniac’…for one who steals! God has commanded that we respect the bondaries/homes of our neighbor and that we cannot take from other… that which does not belong to us!
Greedy(covetous) – Greek word - [play-oh-nek-tai] this term describes one who never has enough and is always wanting what others have… never satisfied, always seeking to gain more! Godly wisdom calls us to be content in Him, not seeking after our desires…
Drunkard – Greek word - [meth-u-soi] this term describes one who lives to drink and be drunk. All focus is about the next high/buzz…no thought to God. Godly widsom seeks to be filled with the Spirit and to NOT be drunk with wine, but rejoice in the Spirit!
Reviler – Greek word - [loi-do-ross] this term describes one who seeks to always stir things up, who wants discord and sows seeds of chaos wherever they go. They actually REVILE peace…finally
Swindler – Greek word – ‘[har-phaxx] this term describes one who is ravenous in their desire to steal and will do ANYTHING to get what they desire. The godly wisdom that prevents this is knowing that God will provide all our needs and that we don’t have to rely on theft or cheating others out of $$ to be provided for, but that God in his mercy will make a way!
Each one of these reprobate sins are tied to a lifestyle that reflects a reliance on human wisdom and earthly thinking. Paul tells us that those who feel, think and act out of their own human wisdom and earthly feelings are going to be led down these evil paths and these people, if they do not repent are destined for hell….
The redeeming message of hope that shines forward from this passage can be found in v11… Pauls wrote: 11And such were some of you…
In other words, many within the fellowship at Corinth had been saved out of lifestyles like Paul had just described… lifestyles that sought to follow human wisdom and earthly desires…
These are all lifestyles that insist on demanding THEIR rights… on having things THEIR way! For the believer it is NOT about getting our way or having God grant us our due or our rights… it is about seeing our sin wiped away and knowing we are eternally secure in Him!
You see these people who WERE in those lifestyles had been delivered… they had made the choice to abandon their need to be vindicated in their own choices and had submitted to the Lordship of Jesus in their lives…look what Paul says!
…But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
They were ‘washed’ which represents the forgivness of sin and the cleansing of their hearts. No longer stained with sin they are redeemed and saved by what Christ accomplished on the cross…
They were sanctificed… this represents a growth and maturing in the faith, God was seasoning them and molding them into what He desired them to be…
They were justified… to be justified means that your actions are NOT to be held against you. This means the consequences of your sin before you met God will NOT be held against you but you have been justified before God from that sin…
But it also means that you have been justified for any sin now in the present or any sin in the future… once you are justified before the Father, you are secure in your salvation… and the consequence of your sin is NOT held against you!
Do we have rights? Yes, we can cling to ‘our’ rights and our ‘desires’ but that leads us down paths that end in destruction! Are you seeking to be vindicated by having God grant you your right to do what you want? To live as you desire?
This morning you have seen what paths this leads us down and how awful it will end up… but the good news is that even if you are headed down that road right now… it is not a road of no return!
God is calling you today and if you will turn to His voice and respond to His calling in your life… he will deliver you from the path you are on! He will deliver you by washing you, sanctifying you and justifying you in His sight…
Today you can cling to your ‘right’ to live as you desire and face the destination it will lead you to OR you can submit to the Lordship of Jesus and experience the eternal life that comes with your surrender!
Which is it going to be this morning… as Jason comes and the staff comes forward… I call on you to step out as Jason leads us in our hymn of invitation…won’t you come…
