Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Ok, if you have a Bible this morning, I’d like for you to turn with me to 1 Corinthians chapter 1.

Last week, we considered Paul’s introductory remarks in verses 1-3, and we also gave a brief overview of the whole letter.

We saw that Paul, in his introduction, is painting the target that he will continue to draw the Corinthians attention back to.

We said, that he is reminding them WHO they are in Christ, in order that they might fix WHAT they’ve become.

As we said, Paul will address problems within the church such as:

dis-unity

Poor understanding of what it means to be a church

Mis-guided worship

And an over-realized eschatology

This morning, we come to Paul’s “thanksgiving” portion.

It was typical to have a “praise” section in the beginning of letters....but notice, Paul’s praise is directed entirely to God, and not to the recipients of the letter.

When things are hard, when your problems are many, it’s hard to focus upon positive things.

Take for example, a child expecting a new toy to have arrived in the mail, while they were at school.

All day, the expectation would have built.

I can manage through school, because I have something I’m looking forward to.

Only to find out that the mail didn’t bring the toy…and now the child’s world comes crumbling down around them, as evidenced by the water works that flows from their eyes.

Whether you are a child and you’re expecting to receive a new toy to come on Thursday, and it doesn’t come....and your whole world crumbles.

What is a young child going to do at that moment?

They’ll become upset.

They’ll need to be consoled.

Life isn’t hard…but in their mind, THAT THING which would make them happy, has just been taken.

They see nothing positive…only the negative

And when the negatives overwhelm you…it’s hard to see the positives.

Or you’re on your job and everything that could go wrong with the project is seemingly going wrong.

- Whether you’re on a job that has A LOT of negative qualities.

- Or perhaps your house has A LOT of things wrong with it.

The same is true if they receive the toy, but it doesn’t measure up to the high status it had in the brain, prior to receiving it.

With excitement they open it, but soon lose interest, because it just doesn’t match the expectation.

Or everything you own breaks at the same time (washing machine; AC; car battery)

Or the car you drive, is held together by the rust that makes it have a unique aesthetic character

When the negatives seem to pile up, it’s hard to see the positives.

When the negatives are obvious…it’s hard to see the positives.

And then, when I’m frustrated over the many problems I’m seeing, and someone comes along and says, “Now, now....let’s focus on the positives here,” I confess, I do not like them at that moment.

“I don’t care that there are 15 things going right here.

Do you not see the 2 things going wrong?!”

In fact, if you’re like me, the people that try to point them out…annoy me.

I don’t care that these 15 things are going well…look at these 2 that aren’t!

However, in some ways, I’m going to be that guy today.....or really, Paul is.

Because…no where is this reality of focusing too much upon the problem more true…than in the church.

Paul is writing a letter to the church at Corinth.

The city where this group of believers are, is a wicked port city, on an isthmus, a thin strip of land between Greece and the Pelopponesian peninsula.

They have many cultures and many religions mixing and mingling

They have the Temple of Aphrodite and much sexual sin that is taking place

And we saw last week in our overview, that Paul writes to the ekklesia, the called out, assembled people of God....in Corinth.

And as he does, he addresses MANY problems within the church....as we’ve already noted.

Problems that show us that the gathered people of God in Corinth, had allowed too much of Corinth into their circle.

But as Paul begins his letter, he begins this way:

I give thanks to my God ALWAYS; at all times; in all circumstances.....FOR YOU

At all times, Paul gives God thanks, for the Corinthian believers

There are some commentators that believe Paul is expressing gratitude with a sense of irony and sarcasm…and I just don’t believe that’s the case.

I believe his thanksgiving is intentional…and I believe that it is presented in the manner it is, to begin the process of correcting the Corinthians’ thinking....

But…Paul offers an expression of REAL gratitude to God....not sarcastic

Thanksgiving that both thanked God, and taught the Corinthians.....but real thanksgiving

And that stands out to us, because of the contents of the remainder of the letter.

That in a letter filled with identifying and correcting very real, very clear, un-biblical, worldly problems within the church at Corinth....Paul is able to express such clear gratitude to God for His work in their midst.

And I think the central truth of this passage, teaches us a great deal as well....

....that Paul gives thanks to God, for His grace given in Christ, which has enriched the Corinthians with all things necessary, and will continue to be given until Christ’s return.....

We too are called to offer gratitude to God for the very same thing in our own life.

To sum that up more, my hope for us from this text this morning is: That we would always be thankful, for God’s trustworthy grace.

Now…Paul’s statement in verse 4, “I give thanks to my God always....” is really the main heading, underneath which, the rest of this long sentence (through verse 8) is found.

In other words, Paul expresses gratitude to God in the beginning of verse 4, and then through at least verse 8, with a concluding reflection in verse 9, Paul gives the BASIS for his gratitude....he tells us WHY he’s thankful for God’s grace

God’s unmerited favor....that is IN Christ....meaning His redeeming grace, and not His common grace (common grace being that which is given to wicked and righteous alike…rain, food, protection, etc.).

God is worthy of thanksgiving, because of what He’s done....we acknowledge this.

This is redeeming favor from God.

But here, Paul gets specific…Paul is thanking God for God’s grace.

Grace, is favor, which is unmerited by the recipient

And Paul says, the grace given to the Corinthians, is found IN CHRIST

So this is distinct from common grace....that favor of God which allows food, rain, clothing, shelter…to be given to both the wicked and the righteous

This is God’s REDEEMING grace…given to those IN CHRIST

And Paul thanks God…for this redeeming unmerited favor given to the Corinthians in Christ.

But this redeeming grace of God, given to the Corinthians, is traced out by Paul in an almost chronological fashion.

And I want to use that type of chronological reflection upon grace, as the basis for an outline this morning.

There are 4 points: Paul thanks God for: 1)Past grace; 2)Present grace; 3)Future grace; 4)The Faithful God of Grace

1. Past Grace

Notice how he phrases this in the past tense (was given)

Here, Paul speaks at least firstly, about the grace given to them, as the gospel came to them, and they believed.

(In that passage we read last week)

In other words, the grace of God in Christ....that is favor that is salvific; favor that saves them

We see that clearly in verse 6

One is, God’s grace was GIVEN TO THEM....in Christ Jesus…in that they were saved, and transformed by it

The testimony…the witness....here meaning the proclamation of the gospel (about Christ)…it was confirmed

That there was evidence it had been effective

It had effectually worked faith into their hearts…they had actually believed…and the primary evidence that this happened, confirming the preaching about Christ, is their radically transformed lives by the power of the Holy Spirit

That’s the evidence of the Gospel’s effectiveness

The demonstration of the Spirit and of power, is the impact it had on their lives

The fact that they went from pagan Corinthians with no desire to serve only the true God....to now having such a desire

"Have these people truly believed?

Well, let’s look at the fruit.”

But Paul here, is giving a secondary evidence of the grace of God that WAS given to THEM....and I say secondary because of the way Paul divides it into two distinct things....and because it is seen as the evidence of saving grace, not something separate.

Let me show you what I mean

Paul says in verse 6, “even as,” which tells us that God’s grace given to them in Christ (v.4), that enriched them in speech and knowledge (v.5), was at the same time, and in the same manner in which the gospel was confirmed among them (v.6)

But, because it was, “even as,” it was obviously distinct from such

So…we have primary evidence of God’s grace in Christ: “trusting in Christ resulting in transformed lives”

Secondary evidence of God’s grace....or secondary evidence that they had received unmerited favor, and were in Christ:

- You were made rich…God caused you to become wealthy

You were made rich…God caused you to become wealthy

IN CHRIST

In particular ways.....in speech and knowledge

In speech: probably referring to the gifts related to speech he will deal with later in the letter (tongues, prophecy, etc.)