Ain't No One Taking It Away

While it is necessary to confront sin in our lives and in the lives of those around us, it is also necessary to smile and remember what God has done in our lives and what we want him to do in the lives of those around us.

Let’s read the whole text. We will be focusing on the last few verses.

1 Corinthians 6:1–11 NIV

If any of you has a dispute with another, do you dare to take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the Lord’s people? Or do you not know that the Lord’s people will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, do you ask for a ruling from those whose way of life is scorned in the church? I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers? But instead, one brother takes another to court—and this in front of unbelievers! The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers and sisters. Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. 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.

I love that last verse!

Pray

Paul is holding a mirror up to the Corinthians. The first part of this passage is a mirror, showing the Corinthians who they are in their sin.

The last few verses are a mirror showing the Corinthians who they are in Christ.

Let’s explore our identity. Who are we in Christ?

Who we were

Well, before we can appreciate who we are in Christ. We have to remember who we were.

Wrongdoers

Paul says that we were wrongdoers.

1 Corinthians 6:9–10 NIV

Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

Paul gives clear examples of what it means that we are wrongdoers. The word refers to someone who lives contrary to what is right.

God has a standard of what is right. He is that standard. Humanity took that standard, crumbled it up in a ball, spit on it, and threw it back in God’s face.

We say: yes, we acknowledge that you have a specific standard. But, we know better, and we are going to live according to what we know as better. Whatever we feel is right, we will do.

So, the one who likes to get drunk will toast his health and drink himself to oblivion.

The one who is not content with what they have will want more and more stuff, to the point of stealing and swindling.

The verbally abusive will destroy home after home.

And everyone will fill their sexual appetite, no matter the consequences.

God has a standard. And we refused to follow it.

Not only did we refuse to follow it, but we glory in those sins, as well as so many others.

Paul talks about those without Christ, and unfortunately, so many of us.

Romans 1:32 NIV

Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.

There are churches today who exult sins. The United Methodist Church is going through a horrible split. Our Methodist church is actually leaving the denomination, because the UMC denomination is exulting sin.

Some of us might look at some of the sins of the Bible and wonder what is so wrong with them.

Some people even go so far as to say: God made me this way, so why should I not live as I am made.

Every single one of us has a rutted path in life, a sin that is so easy for us to dive back into, whether it is drunkeness, polygamy, homosexuality, lying, gossip, pride, etc. We each have a path that we can so easily go on.

We are this way because of the brokenness of the world, because of the Fall in Genesis 3. When we follow that sinful path, we are living according to the Fall, not according to how we are created.

God, the creator, has clearly stated what is right and what is wrong. We find it in the Bible. There are some people who want to add to or subtract from that list. God has given us his word so that we can study it for ourselves and know what he has revealed to us.

He has made clear what brings blessing and what brings destruction. So, why do we refuse to believe the standard that he calls us to.

Even in that, we are wrongdoers, because we have the pride to say we know better than God.

We were wrongdoers.

Doomed to an eternity apart from God

Paul gives us the result of our wrongdoing. And it is pretty clear. We are doomed to an eternity apart from God.

1 Corinthians 6:9–10 NIV

Why should we plead with those who do these actions to stop: because they bring destruction.

Those who live in a way that is contrary to what is right will not inherit the kingdom of God.

John clearly heard Jesus say in Revelation 22 14-15

Revelation 22:14–15 NIV

“Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.

More graphically, John reports:

Revelation 21:6–8 NIV

He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”

When we say that our way is the best, and that we know better than the righteous standards of the holy creator of the universe. We will reap the result of our action.

God has given so many warnings signs on the highway of life. If we refuse to heed those warnings, we will fall off the ledge to destruction.

And that was our fate, an eternity in the Lake of Fire, where we will be separated from God forever.

That is the meaning of death. Physical death is a separation in ourselves, where our spirit is separated from our body. Spiritual death is a separation from God, which is even worse.

The terror, the hopelessness, the utter lonesomeness, the lack of love, lack of peace, an eternity of anxiety, terror, and constant pain.

That is who we were: wrongdoers, doomed to an eternity apart from God.

Who we are

Okay, now who are we.

Paul says simply:

1 Corinthians 6:11 NIV

And that is what some of you were. 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.

The Corinthians had people in their church that were sexually immoral, they were idolators, they were adulterers, they were homosexuals, they were thieves, they were greedy, they were drunkards, they were verbally abusive, they were swindlers.

But that is what they were, not what they are now. God took their wrongdoing and changed them.

Paul said it this way

Ephesians 2:1–5 NIV

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.

When God comes into our life, we are changed. We are not defined by it. We don’t have to continue in it. We are a new creation.

In our text, Paul uses three descriptions of that change, each unique, and each important.

Washed

He says that we are washed. My goal is to get you to memorize this verse by the end.

1 Corinthians 6:11 NIV

And that is what some of you were. 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.

Washed. This is your normal ordinary word for washing something.

Every evening, I gather the mountain of dishes in the sink, and I place them carefully into the dishwasher. I add soap. I press a button, and the dishwasher washes the dishes.

Except when it doesn’t. Our dishwasher is getting finicky. Sometimes it is it’s fault. Sometimes, it is my fault. Sometimes it is the dishes fault.

Have you ever put spaghetti in a white plastic dish. And now, that white is orange. It has been stained, and no matter what you do, unless you have a miracle option that I don’t, that stain isn’t coming off.

The Bible says that our lives are stained by sin.

Isaiah 1:18 NIV

“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.

I like the NET translation here:

Isaiah 1:18 NET

Come, let’s consider your options,” says the Lord. “Though your sins have stained you like the color red, you can become white like snow; though they are as easy to see as the color scarlet, you can become white like wool.

Jeremiah 2:22 NIV

Although you wash yourself with soap and use an abundance of cleansing powder, the stain of your guilt is still before me,” declares the Sovereign Lord.

Have you ever done something and you felt filthy afterwards. Spiritually, I mean. I have. It is a horrible feeling.

You feel like you need to take a shower, but you know no amount of washing is going to cut.

That was our life before Christ.

He comes in, and he washes that sin away. Not only does he take the sin away, but he takes away the stain of sin. That which we thought couldn’t be clean.

We thought our reputation would always be there. We thought that we would continually be reminded of that action. We thought our future would always be colored by our sin.

In Christ, it is washed clean. And though my dishwasher doesn’t always clean the dishes.

Jesus always cleans our lives. There is no sin that is missed by his magic eraser.

Who are we? We are washed.

Sanctified

We are sanctified.

1 Corinthians 6:11 NIV

And that is what some of you were. 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.

I love this word. It simply means that we are brought into the circle of what is holy.

That is a big deal for a wrongdoer.

We were those who were outside, doomed to an eternity apart from God. But, now we are brought close, into his circle.

Hebrews speaks of this action through Jesus Christ:

Hebrews 10:8–10 NIV

First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them”—though they were offered in accordance with the law. Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

No amount of sacrifices could cover our sins. No amount of good works could make us pleasing to God. No amount of religious rituals.

I appreciate what Mike Massat said at his baptism. He said that when he was baptized as a baby, it just made him wet. That action does not bring us into the circle of holiness.

No matter what we do, we are still sinners doomed to an eternity apart from God.

Until we are sanctified through Jesus Christ.

The imagery of Hebrew 13:12 is amazing.

Hebrews 13:12 NIV

And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood.

Jesus left the circle of holiness: he went outside. Experienced our separation, and died the death of a wrongdoer, so that we could be brought inside, brought into the realm of holiness.

This sanctification comes with perks. Not only do we have all the blessings of those who can commune with God, but we are able to do other things rather than wrongdoing. Each person in Corinth who was defined by their sin, who couldn’t escape it, were sanctified.

Their chains of sin were broken, and as a result of their sanctification, they are able to do good works.

Paul writes:

2 Timothy 2:20–21 NIV

In a large house there are articles not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for special purposes and some for common use. Those who cleanse themselves from the latter will be instruments for special purposes, made holy, useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work.

When we are sanctified, brought into the circle of holiness, we are prepared for any good work.

It is impossible for us to look at ourselves and say: I am a horrible sinner. I can’t do anything right.

Because we are sanctified, we can.

Who are we? We are washed. We are sanctified.

Justified

We are justified.

Oh, the words just keep getting better and better.

1 Corinthians 6:11 NIV

And that is what some of you were. 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.

Some people describe justification as: Just as if I had never sinned. Which works, but it completely guts the word.

There are two sides to justification.

I need some volunteers. Judge. Prosecutor. Defendant.

You killed someone. You deserve the death penalty.

The prosecutor hauls you before the judge, and the judge says: guilty. Death penalty.

Everyone says: that is a just sentence. We are not going into the death penalty debate today. Just follow the illustration.

We are the defendant. We have done something worthy of judgment.

Well, suddenly, just as the gavel is about to fall, someone runs into the room. “Wait, Wait, Wait!”

That person’s punishment has been paid. Someone has just died instead of him.

Judge what do you do? Prosecutor what do you do?

We set him free. But, not only do we set him free, but we wipe all record of that action, even though he did kill someone. The record is clean. Just as if I had never sinned.

In addition, the one who ran into the room says: the person who died, gave millions to charity, volunteered at food banks and suicide hotlines. He is a doctor, and has saved countless people who were dying of strange diseases. He traveled to Africa and started medical clinics.

We want the record to show that the murderer did these things.

Where is the justice in that? The crowd would start rioting at that point, probably.

But, we are the murdered. God looks at us, at our sin, and wipes it clean. We are innocent. Then, he declares us righteous. All the good that Jesus has done is applied to our account.

That never happens. I think through my life, and I don’t deserve this amazing gift. The icing on the cake is that it is a gift.

We cannot do anything to earn this justification, it is freely given to us.

When I Survey the Wondrous Cross

on which the Prince of glory died

My richest gain I count but loss

And pour contempt on all my pride

Were the whole realm of nature mine,

That were a present far too small;

Love so amazing, so divine,

Demands my soul, my life, my all.

God looks at us and doesn’t see a sinner, but sees a completely righteous person. No matter what other people say. This is who we are. We are washed. We are sanctified. We are justified.

Who we owe

So, we have seen who we were: wrongdoers doomed to an eternity apart from God. We have seen who we are: washed, sanctified, and justified.

Let’s look at who we owe.

Paul says in the verse we have almost memorized:

1 Corinthians 6:11 NIV

And that is what some of you were. 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.

The change happened in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ

We owe everything to Jesus.

There are many people who stand up and preach a different Gospel, saying that we owe our salvation to a church or a priest or another religious leader. They might say that we owe our salvation to words that we recite, or prayers we repeat. Perhaps it is rituals like baptism, confirmation, communion, confession, or any other sacrament. Perhaps our salvation is due to our good works or our families devotion. Maybe it is how much money we pay into the coffers.

Anyone who says that salvation is from anything other than Jesus Christ is preaching a different Gospel.

Paul bluntly says:

Galatians 1:6–9 NIV

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!

We owe everything to Jesus.

Our responsibility is to turn to him in faith.

John says:

1 John 3:23 NIV

And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.

There are many people who have never turned to Jesus in belief. They are content with their religious lives. But, unfortunately, having never made the decision to believe in Jesus, those three words don’t describe them.

There are many people who thought that attending church or doing those rituals would cleanse them, but that thinking is false. It is only a conscious decision to trust in Jesus and his sacrifice on the cross that will save.

Have you made that decision? It only needs to happen once. Before that decision, we are wrongdoers doomed to an eternity apart from God. After that decision, we are washed, sanctified, justified.

If you haven’t made the decision to believe in the name of Jesus for your salvation, what is stopping you? Talk to someone today, so that this could be you.

We owe everything to Jesus.

The Spirit of our God

Not only due we owe everything to Jesus, but we owe everything to the Spirit of our God, which we call the Holy Spirit.

Okay, the last time I will read this passage.

1 Corinthians 6:11 NIV

And that is what some of you were. 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.

We have salvation through Jesus Christ. Once we place our faith in him, the Holy Spirit comes in and starts cleaning. He works in us what is pleasing to Jesus. He equips us for the good works that we can now do. And he seals us for eternity.

Ephesians 1:13–14 NIV

And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.

So, when we believe in the name of Jesus for our salvation, we are washed, sanctified, and justified, and that is what we will always be, because of the Holy Spirit. He is a seal, a guarantee that who we are in Jesus Christ will never change.

I am sure you have heard the phrase “once a farmer, always a farmer.” People add different descriptions to that: “once a mobster, always a mobster.” The phrase says that someone cannot change their fundamental nature.

Well, Christ can change our fundamental nature. However, once he changes it, no one else can. The Holy Spirit is in us and no one is kicking him out.

Romans 8:31–38 NIV

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,

Have you made the conscious decision to believe in Jesus for your salvation? If you have, all these promises are yours. I urge you to be thinking how you can share what Jesus has done for you next week for our testimony Sunday.