1st Corinthians CH9

Paul Gives Up His Rights

Okay so Chapter 9

so a little context behind chapter 9

we probably wont finish it because we never have a ton of time on Wednesday Nights

So Lets get right into it

So Chapter 9 Here is Paul addressing More of the issues he was facing regarding Chapter 8

Chapter 9 Is Paul using His life, as an apostle to further prove His Point of The rights He had as an apostle

It is is an illustration of the very principles He talked about from chapter 8 and when we get there from chapter 10

His life as an apostle is a great illustration of the Mature use of Liberty that he Had as a believer

Paul was proving through his own life what it looked like to be a mature believer and to use the Liberty that he Had in a mature way

When we look back at chapter 8 Paul was asking the Corinthians to Let go of their rights based on knowledge to eat meat sacrificed to idols in a temple restaurant, and now in chapter 9 we see that He has rights as an apostle that he is willing to let go of

So the principles that he is trying to teach them, He Himself is actually practicing and here in chapter 9 He proves this to the Corinthian church

So lets dive into it,

1st Corinthians Chapter 9

1 Corinthians 9:1 “1 Am I not an apostle? Am I not free? Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?”

so in this first verse alone we see that the Apostle Paul is making His argument valid by pointing out some things that are proof that He is an apostle

1) Am I not an apostle,

2) Am I not free

3) Have I not seen Jesus our Lord

4) Are you “ the church of Corinth not proof of My apostleship”

so during these days in order for you to be considered a true apostle of the Lord you had to be free, not under the authority of anyone other than the Lord , you had to see Jesus ministry, specifically the resurrected Jesus, there had to be evidence of the Lord using you. You had to be a leader , and finally you had to be able to perform special signs and wonders .

Now Pauls signs and wonders were simply the fact that the church Of Corinth existed and that the Lord had blessed His ministry

If we were to back track to the Book of Acts , we see Pauls encounter with the resurrected Jesus on the road to Damascus

Acts 26:12–18 NKJV

12 “While thus occupied, as I journeyed to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests, 13 at midday, O king, along the road I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who journeyed with me. 14 And when we all had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ 15 So I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. 16 But rise and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you. 17 I will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now send you, 18 to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’

In this first verse alone Paul provides evidence that he in fact is a true apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ and He is under the Authority of Christ, no one else , Jesus is the one who commissioned Paul leaving no doubt for anyone to question His position

1 Corinthians 9:2 “2 If I am not an apostle to others, yet doubtless I am to you. For you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.”

the seal of Pauls apostleship was the church of Corinth, they were proof that He was this apostle that many of them had come to question

so again Paul is trying to get them to see that he was being used by God and that God was the one blessing the ministry

the people of Corinth were witnesses to the work that God was doing through Paul but were in denial, so Paul had to remind them that God used Him to build that church

so from here on out Paul is going to further prove His point starting in vs 3

Pauls Authority

1 Corinthians 9:3 “3 My defense to those who examine me is this:”

1 Corinthians 9:4 “4 Do we have no right to eat and drink?”

1 Corinthians 9:5 “5 Do we have no right to take along a believing wife, as do also the other apostles, the brothers of the Lord, and Cephas?”

1 Corinthians 9:6 “6 Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working?”

Okay so some would say that Paul is taking the lawyer approach to prove that God has made Him an apostle

when Paul is talking about the right to eat and drink, the right to have a wife with him like the other apostles, what he is saying is that as an apostle , He has rights . And part of those rights that he has is to benefit off of the people He is serving

Those people had an obligation to take care of Paul as an Apostle, it was His right to be compensated for the work that he was doing

Paul Had the right to eat and drink and to live amongst the people in their Homes

Paul Had the right to bring along His wife who was also taken care of like the other apostles

Paul and Barnabas should not have to work for the things that were their right as apostles !

Paul Had the right to be fully supported so he could focus on only doing ministry

So now he’s going to continue asking rhetorical questions

Ordinary Life

1 Corinthians 9:7 “7 Who ever goes to war at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit? Or who tends a flock and does not drink of the milk of the flock?”

what men go to war and pay for themselves to go to war ? No one does , you are paid to go to war and you don’t have to pay anything , you are doing a service therefore you are taken care of

Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit, you think farmers go and buy food off the shelf ? no way they eat from there own fruit

who raises animals that produce milk without drinking any themselves ?

Anybody who does any kind of work should deserve a reward for their Labor

nothing sucks more than people who expect things to be free , thats awkward, i know people like that and I wont help them out …….

Spiritual For the Material

1 Corinthians 9:8 “8 Do I say these things as a mere man? Or does not the law say the same also?”

1 Corinthians 9:9 “9 For it is written in the law of Moses, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain.” Is it oxen God is concerned about?”

Oxen can not read so of course this verse that Paul is referring to in the old testament is directly for believers

Oxen when they would tread out the grain, they would pull this big trailer like thing and it would be extremely heavy, but they would pull it over what is called a husk to separate the grain , it would crush the husk and separate the grian

if an oxen was muzzled it wouldn’t be able to eat while it was working

so the whole idea behind Paul Referencing this here is to give an illustration again, that worker’s are to benefit from their work

it was their right to take a piece of the pie

they were to be treated fairly

so again those who devote their life to ministry should be treated fairly and supported to do the work of ministry

Pauls rIght !!

1 Corinthians 9:10 “10 Or does He say it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written, that he who plows should plow in hope, and he who threshes in hope should be partaker of his hope.”

1 Corinthians 9:11 “11 If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it a great thing if we reap your material things?”

if the church of Corinth was receiving spiritual blessings because of the work Paul Was doing , it was only right that the church and its people come together to support the apostles that were making it happen!

if what Paul is supplying is greater than the thing he is receiving it shouldn’t be a problem to take care of Him , The spiritual is greater than the Material which is Lesser, Thats what Paul was saying.

1 Corinthians 9:12 “12 If others are partakers of this right over you, are we not even more? Nevertheless we have not used this right, but endure all things lest we hinder the gospel of Christ.”

Paul is referring to other christian Leaders , Peter, ( Cephas) , and Apollos, if you all remember early on the church was divided over the Leaders of the church

But Pauls referring to them as partakers of the rights that they had as leaders and apostles

Paul was no less deserving of the very rights that these men had

He was no different , after all he was actually the one who Started the church so why wouldn’t he be entitled to the very things these men were entitled to

At the end of the verse we see that even though Paul had these rights , He did not use them because He did not want to Hinder the response of any one to the gospel being preached

Now if Paul would have been a man to take and receive all that was his to take and receive, Some people may would have the right to assume he was only in ministry for the benefits !

So he relinquished his rights in order to avoid any stumbling blocks for bringing people to the Gospel

1 Corinthians 9:13 “13 Do you not know that those who minister the holy things eat of the things of the temple, and those who serve at the altar partake of the offerings of the altar?”

Okay so in this verse if we were to look back in the old testament , the book Numbers and Leviticus we would see that the Priests and Levites lived off of the sacrifices and offerings that were brought to the temple

so the application is clear, If the old testament ministers under law were supported by the People who they ministered to, shouldn’t Gods servants who minister under grace also be supported ?

1 Corinthians 9:14 “14 Even so the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel.”

If we were to look at

Luke 10:7–8 NKJV

7 And remain in the same house, eating and drinking such things as they give, for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not go from house to house. 8 Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you.

we see that Paul proved His point of being an apostle , falling under the authority of God , and having the right to be supported by the corinthian Believers

Now were going to see Paul Defend his right to refuse Support

Paul Balanced his authority with discipline, he did not have the right to give up his Liberty in christ, but he did have the liberty to give up his rights

the strong believers should have the ability to give up their rights for the sake of the weaker saints !

if what ever it is that we are doing is causing another believer to stumble, if we are mature, and knowledgable than we should be able to meet other believers where they are.

1 Corinthians 9:15 “15 But I have used none of these things, nor have I written these things that it should be done so to me; for it would be better for me to die than that anyone should make my boasting void.”

Paul Never used or abused any rights he had, His purpose for writing this to the believers was not to gain their support of material things

it would be better for Paul to die than for anyone to be able to say that he “used his rights”

1 Corinthians 9:16 “16 For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!”

1 Corinthians 9:17 “17 For if I do this willingly, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have been entrusted with a stewardship.”

Paul couldn’t Boast about preaching the Gospel because he had been called to do it !

Again in the book of Acts down the road to damascus , God commissioned Paul to be an apostle

1 Corinthians 9:18 “18 What is my reward then? That when I preach the gospel, I may present the gospel of Christ without charge, that I may not abuse my authority in the gospel.”

Paul again is saying that he had all the rights but gave them up as an apostle

He was Bound as it says in Romans 1:1 “1 Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God” , to preach the gospel.

Yes he was worthy of wages but Paul saw that there was more to the gospel than His wages and the examples that he has given us here until vs 18 is this example of a Good steward

So thats what we are going to talk about

Being a good Steward

If we were to look at the definition of Stewardship, It says this : the process of being responsible with someone else’s property while it is entrusted. In christian traditions, stewardship is the recognition and faithful management of Gods gifts, including time, talents , possessions, and resources, for the purpose of advancing Gods Kingdom and serving others

we can look at a ton of examples, Paul being one of them about being a good steward but Lets look at some other examples as well

Luke 16:10 “10 He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.”

when we are good stewards, We are faithful even with the little things. why wouldn’t we be faithful with bigger things ?

Matthew 25:14- 30 Go read this one on your own Its the parable of the talents. Laziness is not stewardship, Hard work and efficiency are. Are you faithful with what you have ? are you growing what you have,

we all have the gift of salvation… are we sharing the gift of salvation to help grow the kingdom of God?

sharing the Gospel is weird and uncomfortable but rejection is not something we should fear, if anything it should cause us to push and see the power of God through the work he calls us to do. SHARING THE GOSPEL

Titus 1:7 “7 For a bishop must be blameless, as a steward of God, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money,”

if you are a leader a good leader is a good steward. They are blameless, not selfish , not quick tempered, they don’t alter their minds , they aren’t violent, and they are not greedy for money

the apostle Paul was at one point those things, He was not a good steward of the Mysteries of God because he didn’t know God , but when he encountered the Lord on the Road to Damascus, he became on fire for the Lord and he became a good steward for the Lord

and when you go through the epistles that he wrote, you see just how much God entrusted Him with, simply because he was being a good Steward

Luke 12:42–46 NLT

42 And the Lord replied, “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. 43 If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. 44 I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. 45 But what if the servant thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? 46 The master will return unannounced and unexpected, and he will cut the servant in pieces and banish him with the unfaithful.

a good steward is faithful in managing what God has given Him and entrusted to Him

a faithful servant is someone who takes care of others and builds up others. Nothing is more refreshing than meeting people that are in Line with God that you can trust

the Last one ill Share with you guys since this is Just a quick reminder

Psalm 24:1 “1 The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein.”

this earth that we are passing through , its a gift to be here , its a gift to be alive every morning we wake up. God calls us to be good stewards

everything we have is a gift from God , we are called to be good stewards to His creation and the resources Given to us !

James 1:17 “17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.”

Be a good steward with the Things that God has given you, not just material things But spiritual things

Paul made his ministry about the spiritual things in hopes that he would never Hinder another believer with the Material things

Paul was again a good steward for the things the Lord entrusted Him with.

Make the Most of what God has given you.