1 Corinthians 16:5-9

Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented
0 ratings
· 1 view
Notes
Transcript
1 Corinthians 16:5–9 KJV (WS)
5 Now I will come unto you, when I shall pass through Macedonia: for I do pass through Macedonia. 6 And it may be that I will abide, yea, and winter with you, that ye may bring me on my journey whithersoever I go. 7 For I will not see you now by the way; but I trust to tarry a while with you, if the Lord permit. 8 But I will tarry at Ephesus until Pentecost. 9 For a great door and effectual is opened unto me, and there are many adversaries.

Introduction

I’m just so busy here lately.
Life feels nonstop lately—so much so that even taking a moment to enjoy a meal feels like a luxury.
I know you’re all busy and you probably don’t really care.
I feel like my responsibilities are just mounting, and there are fewer and fewer free moments in my day.
I have so much that I want to get done, i don’t know if there’s room for anything else.
Yet, amidst the chaos, there’s one person who can immediately get my undivided attention.
It’s my wife.
If she calls me with a need or even just an invite to lunch, I will drop everything else that I’m working on to go with her.
You know why?
I love her.
I want to be with her.
She has done the same for me.
Now, she doesn’t ask for or demand very much, so when she does ask for something, I want to do it.
Anybody else feel that way about their spouse?
Anybody else ready to set aside what their doing for what their spouse wants to do?
What about God?
Anybody here ready to stop what their doing to do what God wants us to do?
I think this should be a pretty normal thing for us as Christians.
Paul certainly experienced this.

Paul had some personal initiatives that he wanted to get to.

We know that the book of 1 Corinthians deals with several lightning rod issues.
The Corinthian people were very talented, very wealthy, and yet they had a lot of issues.
Paul wrote several letters, more than what we have in the New Testament, to try and help straighten them out.
Letters can only accomplish so much.
Paul’s heartfelt desire was to be with the Corinthians face-to-face, not just in writing.
He can’t make that work right now, but he hope to make room for them in his schedule at a later time.
He knows that he has to go through Macedonia.
His plan is to visit them, when he makes that trip.
And, if all goes well, he will get to spend the whole winter with them.
Paul’s personal tone in this passage reveals his deep connection and care for the Corinthians
If you read the book of Corinthians, you can see the love and concern that he had for this church.
It is not surprising that he has a strong desire to be with them.
He wants to be there personally to help them with the struggles they are facing.
One thing about Paul’s situation, though, he was willing to submit his personal desires to God’s desires.
God had placed something in Paul’s life that would prevent him from going to Corinth at this time.
Paul shares that with the Corinthians.

Paul had to set aside his personal plans because God had opened a compelling door for ministry in Ephesus.

We know that Paul wrote the letter of 1 Corinthians from Ephesus.
Now he says that there is good reason for him to stay in Ephesus a while longer.
What was that reason, you may ask.
Well, he had an open door.
Here’s something that’s interesting.
Last week, John used the term open door.
Now we see that Paul used the term as well.
Corinthians was undoubtedly written before Revelation, 40+ years before.
Yet, both of these men used the same phrase to describe what God was doing in their ministries.
What this means for Paul is that he foresees great results coming from his work in Ephesus.
A couple of things that we know about Paul’s time in Ephesus.
He got to minister with Aquila and Priscilla.
He stayed in Ephesus for about three years.
He did many miracles.
Perhaps that’s why Paul refers to the door that was open to him as great and effectual.
The word Paul uses for ‘great’ is the Greek word mega—yes, like our word ‘mega,’ meaning huge and impossible to ignore.
It doesn’t just have to do with great size but also great noise.
The door that was open in Ephesus was screaming out to him.
It could not be ignored.
The greek word for effectual is energy.
This was an active door.
It wasn’t a door that he hoped would open.
It was currently open for him to walk through.
If he would walk through it Paul hoped that the results would be long lasting.
Indeed there was a thriving church established in Ephesus.
Paul’s later letter to the church at Ephesus details what a fantastic church this would become.
I have to wonder if Paul anticipated some objections to his decision to stay put and pursue this open door.
Corinth obviously had some messy issues.
Oh sure, you have an open door Paul, you just don’t want to have to deal with our issues.
It may have seemed like Paul was choosing the easy way out.
To dispel these feelings, Paul makes an admission to them.
This open door was not without obstacles.
These obstacles turned out to be personal rather than impersonal.
In Ephesus, Paul had to face a variety of different types of enemies.
You can read all about it in Acts 19.
He had Jewish exorcists that tried to copy him.
Demetrius the silversmith organized the guild against him.
The silversmiths, who made the statues of Diana, turned the city against him.
Corinth may have had church drama, but Ephesus had a legitimate threat to Paul’s life.
As much as Paul wanted to be with the Corinthians to help them through their issues, he could not abandon the door that was open to him in Ephesus even though it was dangerous.

Application

What would it take for you to put aside your personal plans and step boldly through the door God has opened for you?
We all have things that we hope to accomplish or do with our lives.
It’s obviously not bad to have wants and desires, so long as we are willing to submit what we want for what He wants.
God’s doors are opportunities for us to be used as his instruments.
God’s doors are there for us to have a part in glorifying Him through reaching others with the gospel.
Could it be that there is an active, screaming door that is opened to you, but you are hesitating to walk through it because it conflicts with your plans for life?
Your plans may not be bad.
Like Paul, they might even be plans for ministry.
When God places an open door before us, we must be ready to shift from our plans to His—even if it disrupts our carefully crafted goals.
Maybe you are already convinced that you are going to walk through the door God has given you to advance his kingdom.
The Bible warns us to count the cost of our decisions.
Walking through God’s open door comes with a cost—are you prepared to face it?
If you are going to walk through God’s open door, don’t ignore the possibilities for opposition.
Paul faced them in Ephesus.
The Philadelphians faced them too.
We are not immune or exempt from their threat either.
Did Jesus not set the example for us though?
Did he not step through heaven’s door to come to earth?
Did he not sacrifice his life so that we could be forgiven of our sins and become citizens of his kingdom?
Are we really going to say, thank you for doing so much for me, but don’t ask me to set aside what I want so that others can be saved?

Conclusion

Our community is desperate for the hope of the gospel—will you answer the call?
We are all busy with the things that are important to us.
Who here today is willing to set aside their personal ambitions to step through the door God has opened—a door that leads to life-changing impact?
Will you face whatever opposition may wait so that others can receive forgiveness of their sins?
Related Media
See more
Related Sermons
See more
Earn an accredited degree from Redemption Seminary with Logos.