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.”
Jn. 14:11—Jesus said,—“Believe Me that I am in the Father & the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves.”
The Corinthian church’s “enrichment” “in everything” “in Christ”(:5), became manifested, in the fact that their Christian “testimony” “was confirmed.”
•“Confirmed”(See :8)—bebaiow—Verb—1) To make firm, establish, confirm, make sure. Strong—To stabilitate(figuratively). Used 8X.?From—bebaiov—Adj.—Stable(literally or figuratively).
*We are NOT told exactly ‘HOW’ “the Testimony of Christ” was “confirmed” among the Corinthian church. But it definitely involved the expansion of their “utterance” & “knowledge”(:5) to include godly spiritual matters.
*?Is the “testimony of Christ” “confirmed” “in YOU”?...
And if it is, then the “testimony of Christ” will be “confirmed” in that same way as it was in the Corinthian church.
The proof of “confirmation” CANNOT be by ‘speaking in tongues’, because that is easily counterfeited! And besides that fact, ‘speaking in tongues’ is gifted to the church at God’s will, so that it is NOT gifted to everyone(12:7-11).
*1Cor. 12:7-11—“But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one & the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.”
*Now let’s take up a discussion about: HOW exactly the “testimony of Christ” is “confirmed” “in YOU”...
Guarantee / Certainty of the Holy Spirit's presence in the believer:
2Cor. 1:21-22—“Now He who establishes us with you in Christ & has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us & given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.”
2Cor. 5:1-7—“For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed with our habitation which is from heaven, if indeed, having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. For we who are in this tent groan, being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed, that mortality may be swallowed up by life. Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight.”
Eph. 4:29--5:1—“Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, & evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God in Christ forgave you. Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.”
Eph. 1:11-21—“In Him[Christ Jesus] also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus & your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom & revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, & what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead & seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality & power & might & dominion, & every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.”
*Every church where I have had the privilege of serving as pastor, has maintained an ‘Inactive Church Membership’ list, along with an ‘Active Church Membership’ list. Usually the ‘Inactive’ list is about MUCH LONGER than the list of ‘Active Members.’ And Salem is no different!
•Salem’s ‘inactive’ membership(224) vs. ‘active’ membership(31) is ~7X longer! That number, no doubt, is actually lower but only slightly, due to the fact that some become physically incapacitated.
*An ‘inactive list’ can & should eventually become an ‘active PROSPECT’ list for the church!
Ironically it seems that some, holding a recognized church membership, find ‘other things’ more important than maintaining & extending the Church’s ministry outreach!...
And it seems that some do not think it’s important, to faithfully administer the giftedness that God has blessed them with!
*?What ‘confirming proof’ is there, of God’s ‘presence’ in YOU?...
*?What ‘confirming evidence’ is there, of God’s ‘leading’ YOU?...
*?What ‘confirming authentication’ is there, of God’s ‘direction’ for YOUR life?
•?Can others see/experience/receive “the testimony of Christ” from YOU?
•Is YOUR Christianity tangible & inviting for others?....
If NOT, THEN you might just be a ‘fake’ Christian!
*As the apostle James said, in Js. 2:18—“But someone will say, “You have faith, & I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, & I will show you my faith by my works.”
Illustration:
•Wonder Bread—'Thru Wonder Bread’ commercials, mothers were told to “Serve nutritious Wonder Enriched Bread.” In those commercials, ‘Wonder Bread’ was touted as the bread that “Helps build strong bodies 12 ways.” And that the bread was “Carefully enriched with foods for body & mind.” “Each slice of Wonder Bread supplies protein for muscles, Minerals for strong bones & teeth, Carbohydrates for energy, Vitamins for nerves” “All vital elements for growing minds & bodies.” Personally, I don’t believe that ‘Wonder Bread’ lives up to the talk! However, GOD’s ENRICHMENT Does! In fact, there's no hypocrisy at all with GOD'S ENRICHMENT!!
Application:
?Is GOD’s ENRICHMENT an Asset for YOU?
?Do YOU live by GOD’s ENRICHMENT?
?Are YOU an Asset to the Christian Church?
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
Pizza Hut’s ‘Pan Pizza’ is a Principle Asset, that has kept me going back to Pizza Hut restaurants.
The Church has Eternally Significant Assets that benefit the Church & all people! God wants you to put those Assets to use, & not merely hear about it & talk about it!
Action:
A Principle Asset of the Christian Church is...
4-B. GOD’s ENRICHMENT--B(:6)
As well as:
1. APPROPRIATE APOSTLES(:1-2a)
2. SANCTIFIED SAINTS(:2)
3. GOD’s GRACE & PEACE(:3)
4-A. GOD’s ENRICHMENT--A(:4-5)
Pt# 4, verse :6 only! presented 08/06/2023am to:
Salem Baptist Church
1618 Salem Rd.
Bennettsville, SC, 29512
Pts. 1-5 presented 07/21/2013pm to:
FBC C’belle
206 Storrs Ave.
Carrabelle, FL 32322
Pts. 1-5 Presented 03/01/1998pm to:
Penia Baptist Church
3738 Old Penia Rd.
Cordele, GA 31015
