God's Will for the Church
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Introduction
Introduction
God often reveals His plans for us through His church.
God often reveals His plans for us through His church.
I guess you guys have been going through a series on God’s Will, and now this morning we are going to discuss God’s Will and the church. We will be in , and the discussion we are going to have this morning is the importance the gathering of believers is for the Christian life.
Have you ever had moments where you wanted to do something and everyone around you is saying no. You do it anyway, and it ends up being a disaster. Then those people look at you and is like, “I told you so.”
The men in here are too prideful to say yes, and the women in here are smiling because we both know its true.
In a same sense, God uses people in the church to teach us truth from one another.
Life can be crazy. It can be fun, sad, joyful, evil, and everything in between. We will have a mix of emotions and desires. Sometimes we are so focused on what we want that we block out God, His Word, and those around us. Its a dangerous place for us and God uses other people to speak truth into our lives.
And that is where today’s lesson comes in. God’s Will for the church. If you were to say the entirety of today in one sentence.
God often reveals His plans for us through His church.
God often reveals His plans for us through His church.
So we look at the first three verses of
1 Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans you were led astray to mute idols, however you were led. 3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit.
What does these verses tell us about God? What does it tell us about those whom we should get advice from?
Let’s quickly talk about gifts.
Preaching the Word: 1 Corinthians—The Word of the Cross The Givenness of Gifts
“Gifts” are given to people to mark out their achievements. Children receive “gifts” at Christmastime for being nice as opposed to being naughty. Graduating seniors get “gifts” to mark their success in completing a program. “Gifts” are given to mark occasions of cultural advancement (wedding, promotion, retirement). Acts of kindness that are not attached to achievement are rare and strikingly beautiful. Meaning is found in what is achieved, won, and earned, and achievement gives individuals a sense of accomplishment, and winning assures them that they are special. What earning does for individuals is that it assures them they have rights and entitlements. Because lives are filtered through an achievement-centered culture, even encounters with gifts are marred by performance-ism. “Gifts” are seen as things that can be achieved or earned. Wish lists are elaborately created for loved ones to consult. When one receives a “gift” that he or she does not like, he or she returns it or regifts it. Individuals believe they have earned the right to pick and choose even the gifts that they receive. Have you ever felt cheated when you bought a nicer gift for your spouse than he or she bought for you? Doesn’t your act of “gifting” earn for you the right to receive an equally valuable and desirable gift?
These Corinthian believers loved the praise of men. They thought they were people who had great achievements, but the Christian life is not that. Becoming a Christian is not an achievement or something we earned, or something we arrived at by self-exertion.
The confession of faith can only be in the Spirit.
These Corinthian believers once believed in pagan gods. And when their gods could not speak they could believe whatever they wanted.
These Corinthian believers once believed in pagan gods. And when their gods could not speak they could believe whatever they wanted.
I doubt people in here have a carved out wooden god in their living room, but we all probably have enough entertainment in our lives to drown out the things of god.
So we know that those who does not profess Jesus as Lord is someone we should get advice from. We know God speaks through his Word, through his Holy Spirit, and through those who live out the truth “Jesus is Lord”
There’s that qualification, “No one in the Spirit of God” as Paul is referring that the one who has the spirit in them is professing Jesus is Lord.
So we know that those who does not profess Jesus as Lord is someone we should get advice from. We know God speaks through his Word, through his Holy Spirit, and through those who live out the truth “Jesus is Lord”
So when we talk about who should we get advice from about how to live a godly life. We should not go to people who do not confess Jesus as Lord. We should not go to people for advice who are not wholeheartedly pursuing the Lord themselves.
Lets look at
4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone.
Let’s put this into picture. There are ____ so many people here this morning, and each person is different. Each person has different hobbies, things they like, dislike. Foods we all may like to eat but we eat differently.
We each have our unique sin struggles. The sin we struggle with is not the same with the person next to you, and it may be the same general kind of sin but a different temptation. Each person is unique and yet we all have the same Spirit.
The Spirit can work in each of us uniquely and differently.
Let’s talk about this from our own church’s perspective, and then lets go more broad but
How have you seen these verses lived out in a body of believers?
Let’s look at the end of this chapter to make more sense of the church.
14 For the body does not consist of one member but of many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? 18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single member, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.
21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, 24 which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, 25 that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 26 If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.
We can all minister to one another because we have the same spirit. A person from freeway who has struggled with drugs from someone who has never done drugs in their life. It is not the sin that unites us together but it is the gospel.
We all can have blind spots in our life. As the nose would be dumb to think that it knows its surroundings by just smell, the nose needs the eyes. The body needs the big toes to balance properly.
Followers of Jesus need to be reliant upon one another to encourage one another to grow.
24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
A passage where we talk about why it is important to be apart of a local community. And verse 25 we read it again
25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
Is there a good time to not be at church?
Here’s a chance for the class to get real with one another.
Has their been a time in your life where the Spirit was leading you to do something, and a friend or another church member affirmed that?
Lets look at our final passage
7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.
When you were saved, you didn’t receive just a gift. You recieved the Spirit himself. He equips me, and he’s equipped you each uniquely and differently.
Where have you seen different spiritual gifts at work within your congregation?
We can split up the gifts of giving in four different categories.
Gifts that support.
Gifts that share.
Gifts that speak.
Gifts that supplement.
The categories here are not important.
7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.
Each one of us, Christ-followers, have been giving the Spirit with whatever gifts we may have for the common good.
*go through verses 8,9,10