Sermon Tone Analysis

ME

I find one of the toughest things to do is preach the first message at the beginning of the year.

I mean, there’s a lot of pressure to get it right.

And I had to confess, I was still worried and at times even dreading to stand up here this morning, I mean, what have I got to say which you haven’t already heard of?

I even at times last night before what I can only describe as a breakthrough from God through a very dear friend praying with me and setting my eyes right on what it means to be a minister of the gospel and what is the passion or burden I have, what is God saying to me which I MUST say to everyone here this morning, that I got my bearings right.

And January 2018 does that to a lot of us, doesn’t it?

WE

For some of us, it means we are not going to write 8 as the last digit every time we have to write the year at least for the first 3 months.

For some of us, it means looking ahead and start planning our vacations and 180 days cruise trips.

For some of us, it’s preparing for our first exams, or our second last exams, or to begin a new semester right and leaving home once again.

For some of us, it means the year we buy the ring, have to prepare for our wedding, or consider family planning.

For some of us, it’s once again hitting the gym again, dusting off the L.A. Fitness membership and promising that THIS will be the year which I will achieve my health goals.

For some of us, it means closing 2017’s chapter of personal losses, financial losses, family losses and heartbreaks, and turn the page of 2018 with hope and expectation.

For most of us, it means a fresh new start.

A time to pursue new dreams, vision and passion.

Yet with all these personal dreams and goals, and pursuit of passions, do we sometimes forget that we are everything we said just now yes, but we are more than that.

We are MCBC.

We are a church which God has established with our head as Jesus and our commission is to go and make disciples of all nations, love our God, our neighbours as ourselves.

What might 2018 be like for MCBC?

What has God wanted us to focus on so that we would be more than the sum of the earthly things (even though they are important and God blesses us with it), but also we are actively pursuing what God wants us to join him in partnership in 2018?

For that, let’s go back about 1900 years to a letter written to a group of followers somewhat similar and yet also different from us in the city of Corinth.

GOD

Apostle Paul was writing to the church of Corinth which he planted himself.

Corinth would be the equivalent today of Toronto.

Huge metropolitan city but with all the vices you would expect: There’s some suggestion by scholars 4 letters in total were written and we only have 2, 1 Corinthians and this one.

Suffice to say the relationship Paul, who almost like a father to the Corinthians had become strained because as we shall see and there are some hints even within this chapter but even more apparent in the ones before and after some apostles who are strong, charismatic and charming have won over the Corinthians.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, they also won over at the expense of Paul, so much so the Corinthians are starting to doubt Paul’s credibility as a legitimate Apostle.

Why? His letter are bold enough, but when he comes to preach….

ehhh.. not much power there.

Simple and sincere, not charismatic for sure.

Can’t speak in tongue.

Well claims he did, but never shown it to us.

And man, he gets imprisoned and beaten a lot, doesn’t he?

He doesn’t have the poise we would except from THE apostle.

So that was Paul’s reason to write this letter to Corinth, again.

In chapter 4’s latter half, he had

just mentioned judgment and heavenly dwelling before, away from the body, being with the LORD.

Paul now turns on the offense at the heart of the issue: if Paul is not a legitimate Apostle, and these opponents are, then his gospel can be put into question.

Paul needs to set his record straight, not just for him, but more importantly for the sake of the gospel entrusted by Jesus to him on Damascus road.

And not only that, for those in Corinth who has thrown mud into his face by turning their backs on him to some super-Apostles, yet Paul, despite all this betrayal and belittling, LOVES this church and its people.

11 Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others.

But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience.

12 We are not commending ourselves to you again (stickling point for Paul) but giving you cause to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not what is in the heart.

13 For if we care beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you.

Elsewhere these outward appearance boasters have been identified subsequently as earthly wisdom (1:12), peddlers of God's word (2:17), disgraceful, underhanded way...practice cunning or tamper with God's word (4:2) If we end the discussion there, it would basically be nice to know and maybe feel bad for Paul for us today.

After all, it’s a quarrel two thousand years ago.

We would have some sympathy.

Except notice Paul says here you know who I am, and what I stand for, and that I am in the right, i.e. through your conscience, but if logic is not going to get us to the point of agreement, I am going to appeal to your heart!

That should gives us pause as to what Paul is about to say.

And with that brief context, let’s dive deep into the heart of the matter, and again, the vision we need to have in 2018 God is reminder each and everyone of us.

14 For the love of Christ controls us, presses on

The word control sounds strange enough, when has love ever been controlling… except love hones us in and locks us on the target we love, and Paul is saying I could just throw up the white flag and abandon the Corinth church to other churches say in Philippi or Ephesus where I am loved, and that would be fine!

But Jesus doesn’t allow me to love only those who love me back!

His love controls, dictates, the orientation and direction of my love.

In other words, who Jesus loves, I am compelled to love.

The other image the word conveys in it’s original language is the idea of pressing on or making an impression.

Have you ever seen two people who love one another so much that they become imprints of one another?

Like my brother and my niece, they already look alike, but they also talk alike, when they stare at you, or certain demeanours, you can put them at opposite ends of the food court and if you know one, you will know the other.

So we too are impressions of Jesus.

How has Christ and his love rubbed off on you?

So what is the content of this love?

a) that one has died for all, (that is Jesus)

b) therefore all have died; (we have surrendered our control because of what? the love of Christ controls us!)

c) 15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

He died for all.

Let that sink in, because it’s going to be important later.

Jesus died on the cross for ALL, so that what?

we can continue to live our selfish ways and ignore what’s going on around us? NO!

But no longer for ourselves.

His gospel, his salvation does that.

It makes us selfless.

It brings us to a point of surrender, to say, not my will, but your will be done.

From now on, it’s no longer going to be just what I want or need.

It’s all for you Jesus, and who does he love?

Those who do AND DON’T love me back!

In other words, everyone!

Seems like a wide target, doesn’t it?

But would we expect a God who so love the world that he gave his one and only begotten son not also have followers who are willing to deny themselves for the love of all those HE loves IN the world!

Paul continues,

16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh.

Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer.

(Just want to insert here that this phrasing of according to the flesh is the strength of this particular ESV bible translation, because it is a very literal translation.

But what does it mean?

I like the NIV translation, “So from now on we regard no one from a worldlyl point of view.”

After all, this is Paul we are talking about.

Paul who used to see Jesus as public enemy #1.

Who went and arrested Christians and as if he hadn’t had enough, went to the high priest to get more search and arrest warrants to travel to other cities.

Paul of Damascus.

Why was he in Damascus?

He intended to continue his arresting spree in Damascus.

Paul who was so feared by the disciples when he had encounter Jesus on the Damascus road and a bright light shine on him asking him why he is persecuting me (and it turns out to be Jesus) which led to his repentance and yet the disciples still didn’t believe his story and accepted him.

He was that notorious as a Christian persecutor, which by extension, meant that he was a Jesus-persectuor!

When he changes, his view of Jesus changed, his view of himself changed, and now by extension, his view of anyone, friend or foe has changed.

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.

The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

This is the principle of Damascus road.

If anyone, and I mean, anyone, is IN Christ, that is belongs to Christ, surrendered to his love, imprinted with his image, he is a new creation.

In the original language, the words “he is a” doesn’t even exist!

It’s saying, so you belong to, follow, obey, trust and love Jesus?

NEW CREATION!