JUSTIFIED FOOLS For CHRIST-VII—1Corinthians 4:1-21
Attention:
In the area of NC where I grew up, there seems to be at least one BBQ(pork) joint in every town(incorporated or not)! These are local ‘Mom & Pop’ businesses. These locals give every ounce of their energy to that business. It is the bread & butter of their family & oftentimes of their extended family. The owners & managers of these BBQ meccas usually don’t get holidays or vacations off. They serve the public & their business thrives when others are on vacation! Their lives are built around the patterns of those to whom their business caters. They generally serve only breakfast & lunch. They are passionate about their recipes, their offerings & they labor incessantly to present a consistent product(especially the BBQ!) & atmosphere. They are so tied to the ‘Q’ that they find no satisfaction outside of ‘the business.’
You could say that these are ‘Fools for BBQ.’
Likewise, ‘Fools for Christ’ are such because they know from experience with certainty, that there really is nothing worthwhile outside of Christ!
Paul admonished the Corinthian Church regarding his apostolic ministry.
The church must regard apostolic authority rightly...as those who are fools for Christ!
How/When are Fools for Christ Justified?
11 justifiers regarding Fools for Christ.
We discovered last time that
Fools for Christ are justified thru their...
1. STEWARDSHIP(:1)
2. FAITHFULNESS(:2)
3. DISCERNMENT(:3-5)
4. GROUNDING(:6)
5. RECEPTION(:7-8) “Without us”
6. FOOLISHNESS(:9-13)
7. WARNING(:14)
8. PARENTHOOD(:15-16)Birth
9—Fools for Christ are justified thru their...
REMINDINGs(:17)
Explanation:(:17)
:17—“For this reason I have sent Timothy to you, who is my beloved & faithful son in the Lord, who will remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach everywhere in every church.”
Given that Paul—as the Corinthian Christian’s father—cannot be there in flesh but only by word, he commissions Timothy to their aid. Timothy’s mission is to “remind the church of Paul’s “ways in Christ.”
It is pertinent to this church in particular that Paul’s “ways” are not different in different churches. His message is not swayed by personal preference or cultural baggage. There is therefore neither bias nor prejudice regarding Paul’s working with any church.
Though they may exhibit secular cultural autonomy the church is also autonomous—beyond yet subject to cultural boundary—being all one in Christ. The Corinthian Christians have already displayed a penchant for division based on personal preference & ‘deserving’ but Paul will not encourage such(1:10--4:5) & expends much energy discouraging such. Being ordained of God, Paul’s teaching & preaching consists of God’s message/teaching.
Thus his message is never culturally derived, but is culturally relevant because it is derived from God & is thereby universally applicable.
Likewise those whom Paul sent—here Timothy—also preach, teach & apply a universal message originating & emanating from God.
“For this Reason”—dia touto—Literally= ‘Through this’
“Sent”—pempw—1) To send—1a) To bid a thing to be carried to one, 1b) To send (thrust or insert) a thing into another. Pempw is the general term & may even imply accompaniment(as when sent from God). Strong—apparently a primary verb; To dispatch(from the subjective view or point of departure), (whereas ihmi[as a stronger form of eimi] refers rather to the objective point or terminus ad quem, & stellw[To set fast] denotes properly, the orderly motion involved), especially--On a temporary errand; also--To transmit, bestow, or wield.
“Timothy”—Timoyeov—= ‘Honoring God.’ 1) A resident of Lystra, apparently, whose father was a Greek & mother a Jewess; he was Paul's traveling companion & fellow laborer. Strong—‘Dear to God.’
“Beloved”(See :14)—agaphtov—
“Faithful”—pistov—1) Trusty, faithful; 2) Easily persuaded. Strong—objectively--Trustworthy; subjectively--Trustful.
“Son”(See :14—“Children”)—teknon—
“Lord”—kuriov—1) He to whom a person or thing belongs, about which he has power of deciding; master, lord. Kuriov has a wider meaning[than despothv], applicable to the various ranks & relations of life & not suggestive of either property or of absolutism. Strong—from kurov (supremacy); Supreme in authority, i.e. (as noun)--Controller; by implication--Mr.(as a respectful title).
“Remind”—anamimnhskw—1) To call to remembrance, to remind, to admonish; 2) To remember, to remember & weigh well & consider. Strong—from ana[Up/At/Severally] & mimnhskw[To remind, i.e. (middle voice)--To recall to mind]; To remind; reflexively--To recollect. Used 6X.
“Ways”—odov—1) properly—1a) A way—1a1) A traveled way, road, 1b) A travelers way, journey, traveling; 2) metaph.—2a) A course of conduct, 2b) A way (i.e. Manner) of thinking, feeling, deciding. Strong—apparently a primary word; A road; by implication--A progress(the route, act or distance); figuratively--A mode or means.
“Teach”—didaskw—1) To teach; 2) to teach one—2a) To impart instruction, 2b) Instill doctrine into one, 2c) The thing taught or enjoined, 2d) To explain or expound a thing, 2f) To teach one something. Strong—a prolonged(causative) form of a primary verb daw(to learn); To teach(in the same broad application).
“Everywhere”—pantacou—Adverb—1) Everywhere. Strong—genitive case(as adverb of place) of a presumed derivative of pav; Universally.
“Every”—pav—Adj.—
“Church”—ekklhsia—1) A gathering of citizens called out from their homes into some public place, an assembly. An assembly, but including only those specially called together out of a larger multitude, for the transaction of business. They were summoned out of the whole population... Strong—A calling out, i.e. concretely--A popular meeting, especially a religious congregation.
Argumentation:
**2Pet. 1:12-15; 3:1-2—“For this reason I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know & are established in the present truth. Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease.”.....“Beloved, I now write to you this second epistle (in both of which I stir up your pure minds by way of reminder), that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, & of the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord & Savior,”
**Jude 1:3-5—“Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness & deny the only Lord God & our Lord Jesus Christ. But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe.”
1Cor. 14:29-33—“Let two or three prophets speak, & let the others judge. But if anything is revealed to another who sits by, let the first keep silent. For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn & all may be encouraged. And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.”
**Gen. 31:44-55—“Now therefore, come, let us make a covenant, you & I, & let it be a witness between you & me.” So Jacob took a stone & set it up as a pillar. Then Jacob said to his brethren, “Gather stones.” And they took stones & made a heap, & they ate there on the heap. Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha[Aramaic="witness heap"], but Jacob called it Galeed[Hebrew="witness heap"]. And Laban said, “This heap is a witness between you & me this day.” Therefore its name was called Galeed, also Mizpah["watchtower"], because he said, “May the LORD watch between you & me when we are absent one from another. If you afflict my daughters, or if you take other wives besides my daughters, although no man is with us--see, God is witness between you & me!” Then Laban said to Jacob, “Here is this heap & here is this pillar, which I have placed between you & me. This heap is a witness, & this pillar is a witness, that I will not pass beyond this heap to you, & you will not pass beyond this heap & this pillar to me, for harm. The God of Abraham, the God of Nahor, & the God of their father judge between us.” And Jacob swore by the Fear of his father Isaac. Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain, & called his brethren to eat bread. And they ate bread & stayed all night on the mountain. And early in the morning Laban arose, & kissed his sons & daughters & blessed them. Then Laban departed & returned to his place.”
**Ezek. 20:11-12, 18-20—“And I gave them My statutes & showed them My judgments, ‘which, if a man does, he shall live by them.’ “Moreover I also gave them My Sabbaths, to be a sign between them & Me, that they might know that I am the LORD who sanctifies them.”.....“But I said to their children in the wilderness, ‘Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers, nor observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves with their idols. ‘I am the LORD your God: Walk in My statutes, keep My judgments, & do them; ‘hallow My Sabbaths, & they will be a sign between Me & you, that you may know that I am the LORD your God.’”
**Rom. 15:13-16—“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy & peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Now I myself am confident concerning you, my brethren, that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another. Nevertheless, brethren, I have written more boldly to you on some points, as reminding you, because of the grace given to me by God, that I might be a minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.”
**Heb. 10:23-25—“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love & good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, & so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”
**2Chron. 7:14—“if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, & pray & seek My face, & turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, & will forgive their sin & heal their land.”
Illustration:
Baptist Faith & Message(BF&M) @ sbc.net/Broken down into these 18 categories:
I-“The Scriptures”, II-“God”, III-“Man”, IV-“Salvation”,
V-“God's Purpose of Grace”, VI-“The Church”,
VII-“Baptism & the Lord's Supper”, VIII-“The Lord’s Day”,
IX-“The Kingdom”, X-“Last Things”, XI-“Evangelism & Missions”,
XII-“Education”, XIII-“Stewardship”, XIV-“Cooperation”,
XV-“The Christian & the Social Order”, XVI-“Peace & War”,
XVII-“Religious Liberty”, XVIII-“The Family”
All these are Reminders of our shared belief, condensed & codified from God’s revealed will/REMINDINGs
When we bought our last house, we had an ‘idea’ where our boundaries were/But as far as the precise sighting points was concerned, we were uncertain/We hired a surveying company to legalize & make plain the boundaries/Bring reminders of forgotten boundaries/REMINDINGs
**The entire Bible—God’s written word—is a reminder(among other things) of Reality...of Fact...of Truth...of God’s desire for mankind—Anything less is Fiction, Fallacy, Deceit/Lie, & Another Gospel/REMINDINGs
Application:
?Are You a Justified Fool for Christ thru your REMINDINGs?...
...OR...Are You just a Fool?
?Are You a Fool for Christ?
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
NC ‘Mom & Pop’ BBQ joints—‘Fools for ‘Q’
Action:
Fools for Christ are justified thru their...
9. REMINDINGs(:17)
1. STEWARDSHIP(:1)
2. FAITHFULNESS(:2)
3. DISCERNMENT(:3-5)
4. GROUNDING(:6)
5. RECEPTION(:7-8) “Without us”
6. FOOLISHNESS(:9-13)
7. WARNING(:14)
8. PARENTHOOD(:15-16)Birth
Pts. 9 only! Presented 09/27/2015am to:
FBC Cbelle
209 A Ave SE(Storrs Ave)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
