The Corinthian Correspondence, Part 17: 1 Corinthians 9: 1 - 27; "Free In Christ"

The Corinthian Correspondence, Part 17; 1 Corinthians 9:1-27 "Free in Christ" Today I want us to zero in on the word "freedom." According to Webster, it means the absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action. It's no secret that today, all over the world, there is an increasing desire for people to not experience coercion or constraint in their choices or actions. The word "lockdown" is used quite often in relationship to covid. The ideas of "contact tracing", quarantine--of the healthy and even tracking devices implanted in children have offended many people's sense of freedom. Regardless of where a person stands on the issues, whether from a sense of safety for themselves and others, or a fear of one's rights being taken away, I think we can all agree that we desire to be free, to not being coerced into doing something we don't want to do. Kids experience this all the time, true? When mom or dad says, "do this or else", does that not give you, if you fit this category a little incentive to "do this" or maybe experience a little resentment? This idea of freedom has also affected church teachings. I have heard, and I know you have as well those who seem to love the Lord on one hand and say, "I have freedom in Christ, I can do what I want" on the other. These folks may understand freedom, but misunderstand the other side of the coin, that true freedom carries with it responsibility, lest it turns into again, as Webster says, license -- an abuse of freedom. And may I just say one small political thing here. For any governor to threaten people with house arrest for failing to submit themselves to a covid test is guilty of abuse of freedom. Governors who do these kinds of things exercise their freedom to govern but they seemingly have lost sight of their responsibility to abide by the Constitution they swore to uphold and defend. Enough said. Now, why am I having us zero in on "freedom" today? Because Paul does. He begins the passage we're going to look at today, 1 Corinthians 9:1-27 with a simple, but vitally important question: "Am I not free?" It is this rhetorical question that not only sets the tone for this chapter, but even ties chapters 8 and 9 together. So it is very important we understand why Paul asks this question and what he means by it. And my prayer is that by the time we finish today that we will join with Paul in absolute, single-minded devotion to the Lord. For we too need to rightly ask the question of ourselves, "Am I not free?" In our passage for today, we will see that Paul is not speaking of his personal salvation experience, though the fact he is saved is the foundation upon which he can proclaim his freedom. He passionately speaks about freedom in this chapter and Paul will be telling the Corinthians that he does what he wishes, but not to satisfy sinful desires. He boldly tells his friends in Corinth, "I would rather die" than be deprived of doing what he loves and at times even compelled to do, grounded on the rock solid commitment he has to his Lord and Savior. What was it that Paul would desire to die over rather than be deprived of? Why, it was the accomplishment of his mission and his declaration before the Lord that he completed it! There's something freeing in one's spirit when a person puts all the eggs of his or her life's purpose in one basket and then pours their life into pursuing it. When everything in one's life is pared down to one thing. Where a man, a woman, a young person has 1 focus. Spurgeon commented on Paul's single-mindedness, saying, "This one thing I do, not these many things I dabble in." What was Paul's mission? What made him free in his spirit? That is what we will explore today in 1 Corinthians 9:1-27. So we don't forget where we are in the Corinthian correspondence, Paul continues to drive home his point about giving up his rights. For those of you who were with us last week, either Facebook Live or were here live and in person, or in the Fellowship Hall, you remember that Paul began to answer a question the Corinthian church asked him: what about eating meat offered to idols? Speaking of meat, isn't it great we can meet together today? Some of us are a little cautious and are taking personal precautions, like wearing a mask--that's OK. Some of us are participating in worship at home, thanks to Facebook Live. Some of us are a bit more free about this issue. But we can all trust the Lord in this. Let's all give one another a lot of grace about this issue. No snarky talk. Grace United is a snark free zone! No judgment about or directed toward your brother or sister, regardless of which side of the issue you are on. And it's not just for our own sake. How the world needs to see that even with this covid issue, we as followers of Jesus can still have love for one another, centered around our unity in Christ. These things are what is most important and what we are after in this fellowship. By way of review, Paul's counsel about eating meat offered to idols was to exercise humility. It's the attitude that Paul masterfully expressed in another letter, Philippians 2:3-4: "Some Christians in Corinth believed strongly that idols were nothing, so much so that they had no qualms of buying and eating meat even though it was used in pagan religious rituals. Others believed that if they ate the meat, their very soul was in danger, for to them eating meat offered to idols meant returning to the pagan religion they came away from. So, how to handle this very touchy issue? Paul's principle is summed up this way: "limit your liberty for the sake of your brother." Here's Paul's testimony in 1 Corinthians 8:13: "if meat causes my brother to stumble, I will never eat it again." That's pretty drastic, Paul! Why would you do that? His answer is found in what he hears the Lord say in Matthew 25:40: "As you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me." Paul was willing to give up his rights--and we are to as well. Paul expressed his willingness to limit his liberty for the sake of his spiritual siblings, regardless of what issue presents itself in the church. It comes down to the all- important things of attitude and motive. If I detect in myself, or the Holy Spirit convicts me, that I'm selfishly putting my own interests ahead of others' then I need to limit my liberty, for it is the Lord Christ I serve. I am not to guilt others into doing what I want them to do. This is ultimately a matter of serving Jesus. And that is what I'm doing when I serve my brother or sister, considering him or her more significant than me. So, the bottom line is: "limit your liberty for the sake of your brother or sister, to the glory of God." With that by way of introduction, let me outline for you where we are going in our passage today, discovering what made Paul's heart so free. In 1 Corinthians 9:1-18, we will find Paul asking a number of questions to verbally paint a backdrop in order to share his heart and what he is willing to die over. What is this backdrop? The right he has to expect the Corinthians to meet his material needs as their minister of the gospel. It may appear to be an unusual thing for Paul to bring this up right here but, I think we will see his brilliance as we go through it. Then in vv.19-23, we will see exactly what made Paul so free, and why. We will discover Paul's very heartbeat when it comes to his mission in life. Finally, in vv.24-27, Paul invites the Corinthians to join him in the same kind of like-mindedness he had. The great thing about the Christian life is that any Christian can do it. Now, don't mishear me. I'm not saying that the Christian life is easy. Without his empowerment, it is impossible. What I am saying is that regardless of our station in life, we can all be like Paul. We can put the eggs of our life's purpose in one basket and spend the rest of our days pursuing it. It doesn't require having a certain job or even a certain kind of ministry. It doesn't require living in a certain place. But we can all be focused on the purpose for which God has for each of us. So, let's read vv.1-18 and take a look at Paul's unusual setting for the stage in order to hear his heart. Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are not you my workmanship in the Lord? If to others I am not an apostle, at least I am to you, for you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord. This is my defense to those who would examine me. Do we not have the right to eat and drink? Do we not have the right to take along a believing wife, as do the other apostles and the brothers of the Lord and Cephas? Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working for a living? Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard without eating any of its fruit? Or who tends a flock without getting some of the milk? Do I say these things on human authority? Does not the Law say the same? For it is written in the Law of Moses, "You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain." Is it for oxen that God is concerned? Does he not certainly speak for our sake? It was written for our sake, because the plowman should plow in hope and the thresher thresh in hope of sharing in the crop. If we have sown spiritual things among you, is it too much if we reap material things from you? If others share this rightful claim on you, do not we even more? Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right, but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. Do you not know that those who are employed in the temple service get their food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar share in the sacrificial offerings? In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel. But I have made no use of any of these rights, nor am I writing these things to secure any such provision. For I would rather die than have anyone deprive me of my ground for boasting. For if I preach the gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting. For necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! For if I do this of my own will, I have a reward, but if not of my own will, I am still entrusted with a stewardship. What then is my reward? That in my preaching I may present the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel. So, how did Paul set things up? What we in our way of saying it as, "paying the preacher." Paul had the right to expect the Corinthian church to support him in his ministry. In our hypercyincal times, when we see corruption among high profile people or in the world of politics, what do we often say? "Follow the money." Indeed, what issue is pretty much at the top when it comes to that which produces tension in the congregation? Talking money from the pulpit. As we know, money can be a sensitive issue. But Paul plainly says not only does he have a right to the Corinthians' support, he is on solid biblical footing. God commanded in his word that God's people are to support their spiritual leaders. And this principle goes all the way back to the earliest days in Israel's history. Remember reading the book of Joshua? We love the first part of this book. It is action packed. How many of us have not heard of Israel's first battle upon entering the land of promise: Jericho was destroyed. Then with the help of the Lord they went on a military campaign and by the time they were done, the land of promise was subdued. Though there were pockets of resistance, for the most part, the children of Israel were able to settle. God kept his promise that he gave to Abraham centuries earlier, to give this land to his descendants. When they settled, every tribe except 1 received land. Only Levi was left out getting a region of tera firma in the promised land. What was their inheritance? God was. The Lord told Aaron, the high priest in Numbers 18:20-21, even before they entered the land: "You shall have no inheritance in their land, neither shall you have any portion among them. I am your portion and your inheritance among the people of Israel. "To the Levites I have given every tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their service that they do, their service in the tent of meeting." In other words, God set aside the priests from the rest of the people to serve Him. They were to spend their time offering sacrifices and making sure the spiritual relationship between God and his people was maintained. They were not to be taken up with providing for what they needed to live. So, God set things up that the Levites were to live among the people and spiritually serve them. In return, the people were to meet their material needs. So, in vv.1-3, Paul poses several rhetorical questions to remind the Corinthians of his position as God's spiritual servant, sent to give them eternal, truth. Remember when he entered Corinth with the gospel, worked among them, and the Lord was pleased to save some of them? And the church of Jesus Christ was established, humanly speaking, through the one God sent to them--the Apostle Paul. And the pivot point of this chapter--the foundation upon which this passage rests is found in the very first question Paul asks them, "Am I not free?" The obvious answer is "yes, Paul you are free." But free in regards to what? Paul spends the rest of the chapter laying out exactly what that is. In vv.4-11, Paul continues to pepper them with questions and principles from Scripture to show them that since Paul gave them eternal, things, he has the right to expect his brothers and sisters to help him out and supply his temporal needs. In v.11 we see him asking this in a straight forward way: "If we have sown spiritual things among you, is it too much if we reap material things from you?" Now notice v.12: If others share this rightful claim on you, do not we even more? Traveling philosophers and teachers of religious things expected and even demanded that they receive financial payment. Just like in our culture. When people offer a service to enrich our lives, or even entertain us they expect to be paid. And handsomely too, I might add! So what is Paul driving at here? He has the right, both from a practical standpoint and divine wisdom, to expect the Corinthian Christians to meet his needs. But Paul was talking about his needs here. Necessities of life like food and drink. There were in Paul's day as in ours those who take advantage of people and play it to the hilt. It's no secret that the prosperity gospel heresy exists. It's prosperity alright-but for whom? Who is becoming prosperous in this racket? Primarily the preachers of the heresy. But why is it that so many get taken in by it? Could it be prosperity is what those who follow their teaching want? "Sow your seed money and you can have what I have," is often the subtle and not so subtle message. But Jesus never preached prosperity. He preached the kingdom of God and his righteousness. Paul said, "I have a right to expect you to meet my needs," not "God has given me a vision of acquiring a Gulfstream Jet, and he wants you to pay for it." And in the second part of v.12 and 13, Paul makes clear what his intentions are in addressing his right to ask for support from the Corinthian believers: Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right, but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. In essence, Paul says, "though others teach you and receive financial benefit from it, and though they, and I have right to your support, I will put myself out rather than demand anything from you. I work with my own hands--you remember Corinthians, how I made tents by day and preached the gospel and spiritually served you at night. I don't want to be a burden to you or in any way give you a false impression that I'm in this apostle gig to turn a profit." And to drive things home, in v.14, Paul actually ratchets things up, elevating this issue of paying the preacher from that of a biblical principle to a divine command: In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel. And that simply means, God commands his people to take care of their spiritual leaders. This is not a suggestion. But if you read carefully you will be surprised to know that ultimately this has nothing to do even with supporting a church ministry. Paul said the command was to take care of the pastor, not even so much the building and programs. With that said, though, I continue to be amazed at how you so freely give of your financial resources, especially since this covid thing began. From a financial standpoint, your generosity is the reason why we can meet here and keep the lights on. But even more importantly, your generosity helps to establish a witness on this corner and provide a place where we can train one another in how to be more like Jesus. And to gather on a regular basis showing the world what it means for a group of people, so very different from one another, to demonstrate love and unity -- based on our common faith in Jesus -- that is literally out of this world. And that they can have that as well. Then in vv.15-18, we encounter Paul's vision--what makes him tic. In v.15 we find Paul repeating himself from v.12--"I have not made use of my rights to demand that you support me"--even though it is the Lord's commandment. In essence, he says, "even if you gave it to me I would not accept it. There is no way that I would substitute mere money for the Lord's reward. Though others may be money motivated, my incentive is simply the reward from the Lord in the life to come and the satisfaction of preaching the gospel free of charge in the here and now." Paul just cannot help it--he must preach the gospel. Whether he does it because he wants to or is compelled to by the Lord, either way, he must preach! We'll see more of this in a minute. But again, notice v.18. Paul's desire, his commitment, was that he was not going to, as he said, "make full use of my right in the gospel." Rare indeed it was then and even rarer still do we find people today committed to the service of the Lord without a financial string attached. Many of us remember the King's Players. They did an awesome job of transforming the sanctuary into a stage, and giving us a challenge to more faithfully live for the Lord. But what struck me was in our initial conversations was me trying to convince brother David to not come because we could not commit to paying him anything. But in our conversations, David had to convince me that he was not looking for money. He told me he would trust the Lord through a love offering, as King's Players have done for decades. And he was blown away by your generosity! But what was Paul's motive? He refused to be paid to preach the gospel because he had given up his rights long before he wrote this letter. Paul was indeed free in Christ. For Paul, being free means he was not tied to anything of this world. The only thing, the only One he was tied to, was the Lord. He was totally and absolutely free to serve Him, regardless of what people did or did not do to or with him. Because he was free from all, except Christ, he was then free to be a servant to all. Let's look at v.19-23: For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings. Do you notice the absolute liberty Paul has here? In v.19, "I have made myself a servant to all." Why? "That I might win more of them." Did Paul really write what it looks like he wrote? What does he mean that HE might win more of them? Simply this: When a person has only God to please, he goes all out. He of his own will puts all his energies into pleasing the Lord. This is not legalism. This is all-out love for the one who saved him, spelled e-n-e-r-g-y. Paul put all his eggs in his basket of his life's purpose and used all of his energy to pursue what the Lord had given him to do. It was as though his will and God's will were tied as tightly together as possible. Paul had no other goal in this life. And regardless of what kind of person Paul encountered, he was willing to serve that person, if only that he might win that person to Christ, whether the person be a Jew in name only or devout, a gentile, a person with a sensitive conscience or even a strong person with knowledge, this sold out man of God knew what he was about--winning souls to Jesus. Of course, Paul did not have in view that he by his own power or charisma could turn a non-Christian into a Christian. Paul knew only too well what it took for him to come to Christ and be transformed by his spirit. But Paul's conviction was that he was going to do everything required to invest his life into gaining people for Christ. Paul's mission was to fish for men, and God was going to do the cleaning. So, what does this have to do with Paul's being free in Christ? In a nutshell, he was free to serve others because Christ has set him free. Free from the crippling fear of people. Remember how in 1 Corinthians 2, Paul said that he came to the Corinthians in weakness, fear and much trembling. But his fear did not cripple him into inaction. He preached the gospel even in his fear. Second, Paul was free from trying to achieve success. Again, when he came into Corinth, he preached Jesus Christ and him crucified--foolishness to the gentiles and a stumbling block to the Jews. Christ sent Paul on mission with a message that was unpopular at best and dangerous at worst. He knew that if anybody was going to embrace it, it would not be because of his efforts, but because of the Spirit's power. Third, Paul was free to be a servant to his brothers and sisters. And that means in this context, he would be willing to go any distance to serve even those whom he described as having a weak conscience. That's why he said in 1 Corinthians 8:13: Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble. See a man, a woman, a young person can make himself or herself a servant to all if he or she has only one person to please. The bottom line here is that if Paul gave up his right to demand they support him in providing the necessities of life, surely the Corinthian believers could follow his example and give up their rights to serve their brothers and sisters. Let me apply this to the covid thing. Because of how volatile this issue has become in our country, even among Christians, and I would say especially here--because Grace United is who I care most about--I would venture to say that the lines are drawn. I would say in this matter, no one is weak in his conscience. Whether we need to continue with a lot of restrictions and for Virginia to not come out of phase zero until everybody is vaccinated, or we all jump to having no restrictions at all, every one of us can be labeled as a strong brother. So, my question for all of us is this, how do we compare with the apostle Paul who had only 1 person to please? How many of us have put our eggs in our basket of life's purpose and use all of our energy to pursue what the Lord has given you to do in this life until you see him? In short, are you free like Paul to serve your brother, your sister who happens to be on the opposite side of the issue but is still in the same kingdom? How many of us have committed ourselves to seeing our Christian brother, our Christian sister as people for whom Christ died, and therefore have laid down our rights regarding the covid issue in order to treat each other as the spiritual siblings we are? The bottom line is that we are to erase any line that divides us, and draw a circle to surround us, and showing one another, and especially the world that Jesus lives. He lives through us and we need to demonstrate love and unity in front of them now more than ever. And right now I think it is good to take a minute and pray through this. We know that hard times are on us as human beings world-wide. For our brothers and sisters in places hostile to the gospel, extremely difficult times have been on them for a long time simply because they are Christians. I have been warning us for some time that it is going to get much more difficult for us as Christians here in the states. If this covid thing threatens to deeply divide us, what is going to happen when society really turns on us? Let's consider this covid issue as an opportunity for love and unity training among us, regardless of which position we take. Finally let's lightly touch on vv.24-27. Here, Paul invites us to be like him in being free in Christ. But it's a paradox, for the key ingredient to live free in Christ is discipline. Hard work. Single hearted devotion. It doesn't just happen. Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified. Paul uses a very familiar picture that illustrates what single heartedness and discipline looks like: an athlete. The city of Corinth had the Isthmian games every 2 years, second only to the Olympic games in size and scope. Paul in this section invites the Corinthian believers to join him in living the sold out Christian life. Christian runner-get after it to get the prize, the imperishable laurel wreath to be placed on the head-this was the gold medal of the day. Christian, discipline your body, keep it under control. This is how a person continues to put all his eggs in his basket of purpose and pursues it with all his energy. Don't miss out! Go for it! A.W. Tozer writes: We must face the fact that many today are notoriously careless in their living. This attitude finds its way into the church. We have liberty, we have money, we live in comparative luxury. As a result, discipline practically has disappeared. What would a violin solo sound like if the strings on the musician's instrument were all hanging loose, not stretched tight, not "disciplined"? It is in the tight stretch of the strings, not the hanging loose is where the potential for incredible music is derived from the violin. May we be useful to the Master by applying all of our energies in pursuit of him, out of gratitude for his saving us, that we might give up our rights for the sake of our brothers and sisters to the glory of God and pleasure of Christ.