You Are Christ's - 3:18-23
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Introduction
Introduction
A sense of belonging is a powerful feeling.
When I was around 12 years old I was on a baseball team.
Through no fault of my own we were actually pretty good.
It felt very good to be on a team that won pretty much every game we played.
We ended up beating everyone in our league and being entered into what was called the tournament of champions.
At the tournament we won one of our games but lost two putting us in third place overall.
What I will never forget is how cool, how fun it was to be part of that team.
There have been a few times in my life where something like that has happened.
The identity that we carry is powerful.
Being a part of something begins to define who we are.
Paul has been dealing with a false identity that those in the Corinthian church had taken on.
They were followers of men.
I am of Paul, I am of Apollos, I am of Peter.
In verses 16-17 Paul revealed that dividing the church in they way they have been doing could be inviting the destruction of God.
Paul has torn down their false identity. He has exposed just how dangerous it is to find your identity in the wrong thing.
All throughout Scripture there is a principle that we find.
I call it the principle of replacement.
When we are told to put off the old man, we are also told to replace it with the new.
When we are told to put off the works of darkness, we are told to put on the armor of light.
Paul has stripped them of their false identity, now he gives them the replacement.
We are not to be identified as followers of men.
We are followers of Christ.
Paul reminds the Corinthian church of their identity.
We must find our identity in Christ.
Paul challenges the Corinthians with two results of belonging to Christ.
The deepest longing of our heart can only be satisfied in Christ.
Two results of belonging to Christ.
Result #1…
1. Because You Are Christ’s, Be A Fool vv. 18-20
1. Because You Are Christ’s, Be A Fool vv. 18-20
Something that has always been true has become more evident and obvious in recent months.
That something is the deep and wide chasm that exists between the wisdom found in God’s Word, and the wisdom found in the human mind.
Every believer needs to embrace the reality that following Christ is going to look foolish to other people.
Let me give you an example.
I personally know people, led by God to be missionaries, we were told by friends and family that it was foolish and stupid to go.
I know people who have given up careers to follow God’s leading and were told how ridiculous they were being.
At the end of the day, our concern must not be what those outside of Christ think of us.
Our first consideration must be obedience to the Word of God and the Spirit of God.
When we are led to a decision, no matter how foolish it may seem, we act as the Lord commands.
We understand that doing so may lead some to mock us.
It may lead some to unfriend us and unfollow us because our choices make them uncomfortable.
That is okay.
As followers of Jesus Christ, our eternity is in His hands. We can trust Him with our reputations as well.
Paul has already laid out how the things of God are foolishness to the world, and yet that foolishness is wiser than anything men can devise.
This idea lies at the heart of verse 18.
We are to be fools for Christ.
There are two reasons to be a fool.
Reason #1…
a. A fool is wise v. 18
a. A fool is wise v. 18
18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise.
This first line is so very important when it comes to matters of identity.
Our world wants you to find your identity in the color of your skin, in your ethnicity, in your sexuality, or any number of things.
Those identities are a self-deception.
Our identity is in Christ alone.
My value and worth come from knowing that God Himself came in human flesh, lived a perfect sinless life, died on the Cross for my sin, and rose again three days later.
I have value not because of who I think I am but because of who God says I am.
I am made in the image of God.
I am a purchased possession of the King of kings.
With that as my identity, the ups and downs of life have less of an impact.
We must be on our guard against self-deception.
Too often as followers of Christ we reason from our experience instead of the Word of God.
Experience is not primary. Experience must always be viewed through the lens of Scripture.
We guard against self-deception through having the right kind of wisdom.
Paul reveals to us here how we can become wise.
Wisdom is not found in education or in capitulation to the pressures of society.
Wisdom is not doing what our culture demands.
We are wise when we know the things of God and act in obedience to them.
The cure for self-deception is accurate knowledge.
That knowledge can only be found within the pages of Scripture.
The idea of being wise in this age is that of having worldly wisdom.
To avoid worldly wisdom, we must become fools.
The call to become a fool is not the call to act without thought or discretion.
The call to become a fool is a call to embrace the wisdom of God.
As Paul revealed earlier, the wisdom of God is foolishness to men.
The wisdom of God is foolish to men, yet that is the wisdom we are called to have.
We are foolish because we don’t reason by the wisdom of men.
We belong to Christ, we need to embrace this idea that we are fools to the world.
There is a push from many for pastors and churches to be cool. To be trendy and acceptable.
Paul is calling us to be fools in the eyes of the world.
Why?
Because what is foolish to the world is where Biblical wisdom is found.
Let’s give an example, okay? Money.
Our world says that money is everything.
If you want to be happy, money. If you want security, money. If you want love, money.
Scripture reveals that money is a gift from God and we are stewards of it.
We have been entrusted by God with money.
Therefore, when He commands us to give, that is part of being a wise steward of God’s money.
Our world says it is foolish to give money away unless it is a cause you believe in.
Scripture says we give because God has given to us.
We are fools to this world, but wise in the things of God.
True wisdom requires that we think and reason Biblically.
When we stand before Christ our popularity isn’t going to matter.
Only what we have done in His service.
Reason #1 to be a fool. Be a fool because a fool is wise.
Reason #2.
Be a fool because…
b. A fool is warned vv. 19-20
b. A fool is warned vv. 19-20
19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, “He catches the wise in their own craftiness”;
What’s the warning here?
Be warned that the world’s wisdom is foolishness.
Here is the choice that lies before us.
Be considered wise by the world, the people we can see and know, and a fool to God.
That’s option 1.
Option 2.
Be considered wise by the Lord, who we cannot see yet we know, and a fool to this world.
Which one we choose determines the course of our life.
What influences this choice is our understanding of eternity.
The opinion of those who buy into the beliefs, values, and morals of this world will not matter in eternity.
If the most famous person in existence today thinks I am a cool guy, that will not earn me eternal rewards!
What matters in eternity is what God thinks of us.
Have I lived in obedience to Him? Have I pointed others to Him?
The wisdom of this world is foolishness to God.
This word “foolishness” has the idea of a ridiculous thought.
The wisdom of this world is a ridiculous thought to God.
We dare not spend our lives in pursuit of something God sees as ridiculous!
Paul quotes Job here.
Those who are wise in this worlds eyes are often deceptive and devious.
That’s the idea of this word “craftiness.”
They think they are being clever, but God catches them.
No amount of trickery or cunning can take God by surprise.
The wisdom of this world is mere trickery and deceit.
Paul goes on in v. 20.
20 and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.”
This time Paul quotes Psalm 94.
What is the warning here?
Be warned that those who appear wise are really not.
“Thoughts” here is the idea of reasoning.
God knows the reasoning of those considered wise and it is futile.
Futile – μάταιος (mataios) useless; empty; fruitless. Devoid of significance, point, or benefit.
Futile – μάταιος (mataios)
This may sound a little harsh.
However, we must embrace the reality that all reasoning apart from Christ is ultimately fruitless.
We are to be spending our lives focused on things of eternal value.
What Paul is doing here is warning the Corinthian church about the wisdom of this world.
If we want to be wise, we must be fools in the eyes of the world.
This is challenging in an age filled with celebrity pastors and Christian influencers.
I want us to be very careful here.
I am not saying that you cannot be a Christian and a celebrity.
I am not saying that it is wrong for Christian’s to be popular.
My point is this.
Whenever we compromise clear Biblical values in pursuit of popularity, we sin.
The wisdom of this world is empty and vain.
It cannot satisfy, it cannot bring peace, joy and hope.
Only the truth of God’s Word can do that.
We need to heed the warnings given here.
The world’s wisdom is foolishness.
Therefore, those who appear wise really aren’t.
Will I be a fool for Christ?
True wisdom guards against all forms of foolishness.
Foolishness will come at us cleverly disguised as wisdom.
Just like our enemy, Satan, can appear as an angel of light, the wisdom of this world comes in a shiny package but is foolishness.
Two reasons to be a fool.
Be a fool because a fool is wise.
Be a fool because a fool is warned.
That’s result #1. Because you are Christ’s be a fool.
Result #2…
2. Because You Are Christ’s, Be Full vv. 21-23
2. Because You Are Christ’s, Be Full vv. 21-23
When I was probably 12 or 13 years old my dad’s mom came to our house for a visit.
For those of you who don’t know I am from a family of 9 children.
This means several things, one of them is that going out to eat at a restaurant was pretty much never possible.
Grandma came down for a visit and she took us out to eat.
This was a big deal.
Now, when you take 11 people out to eat and 4 of them are growing teenagers, there is really only one type of restaurant to go to.
A buffet.
Grandma took us to hometown buffet for an all-you-can-eat dinner.
For a growing 13 year old boy, this felt pretty close to heaven.
I believe it was after my third plate of dinner that we discovered the dessert was also all you can eat.
Did you know that ice cream fills in the empty stomach spaces left behind from dinner?
That’s not true at all, but that was my hope.
Folks. I don’t think I’ve ever had a stomach ache like I did that night.
I didn’t realize that you could be in physical pain from eating too much!
I learned a very valuable lesson.
Moderation is important.
As I reflect back on that incident, another lesson emerges.
The purpose of a buffet is to enable you to eat until you are full.
The goal is to leave having your need for food fully satisfied.
Yet some people go into a place like that and leave hungry because they didn’t like some of the food.
Christ has come to fully satisfy you and me.
If we are following Him as we have been called to, we will be spiritually full.
Yet some of us are walking around hungry because we don’t like the food.
The Corinthian church had a problem.
They wanted to follow men.
They wanted to temporary fame or prestige that came with identifying yourself by a popular teacher.
This was leaving them spiritually hungry.
Paul reminds them here of the spiritual fullness all believers can have.
There are three reasons every believer can be full.
We must choose to eat the spiritual food we are given.
Reason #1…
a. You are supplied v. 21
a. You are supplied v. 21
21 Therefore let no one boast in men. For all things are yours:
This was the problem in the Corinthian church. This is what was dividing them.
They were boasting in men.
Paul, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, issues an imperative command here.
Do not boast in men.
Why not?
The wisdom of men is empty and useless.
In contrast to that, we have all things.
We have all things.
Don’t boast in men, they have nothing.
It is ridiculous to boast in men when men have nothing!
All things are yours.
Yours is a possessive genitive. Meaning that Paul is saying this is something we possess.
“Are” is present tense.
All means exactly what it says. In context it is referring to godly wisdom.
Right now we currently possess all things.
Paul is going to flesh that out a little bit more in the next two verses.
Before we look at those I want to take us to a couple of passages.
Look with me at Ephesians 1:3-6.
Ephesians 1:3-6
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,
6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
This is past tense. We have already been blessed with every Spiritual blessing in Christ.
How did that happen?
Because we were chosen in Him. Chosen for what? To be holy and blameless.
We were predestined. For what? To be adopted as sons.
How? Through Jesus Christ.
Why? The good pleasure of His will and praise of His glorious grace!
We are accepted in the beloved!
We have already been blessed with every Spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus!
We have been chosen, predestined, and adopted all because it pleased God to do so!
We now exist to the praise of His glorious grace!
All the things that matter are already ours!
We have already been blessed above what we could ask or think.
Contentment comes as we take our eyes off of all that others have and put them on all we have been given.
Philippians 4:19 explains that all our needs are supplied.
Philippians 4:19
19 And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
If we believe God, this has already happened.
All we have needed His hand has provided. Great is His faithfulness.
We need to take our eyes off of men, and put them back on Christ.
Knowing we are already full is the source of true satisfaction.
Every need has been supplied.
Every believer can be full for three reasons.
Reason #1. You are supplied.
We already have every blessing in Christ!
Reason #2. You can be full because…
b. You are secure v. 22
b. You are secure v. 22
22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas, or the world or life or death, or things present or things to come—all are yours.
This is a sample of all the things that are ours.
This verse speaks of security.
In one brief verse we have listed for us 6 benefits that are ours in Christ.
Paul says all things are ours and the first things listed are three men.
In context, Paul is not contradicting himself.
He has emphasized that all these men are merely servants of Christ.
Remember that what Paul is doing is emphasizing what we have.
Here’s what Paul is saying by listing these men.
We have the best teaching.
We have the best teaching.
Paul - Theologically technical and highly trained.
Apollos - A charismatic figure and a fantastic public speaker.
Peter - The down to earth, easy to understand, communicator.
All pastors and teachers in the church fall into one of these categories or a combination of them.
God has given these gifted men to the church.
We have the best teaching.
Next.
We have the world.
We have the world.
What does this mean?
In John 16:33 this is what Jesus says.
John 16:33
33 These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
Then John writes this in 1 John 5:4.
1 John 5:4
4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.
We have no reason to fear the world. We have overcome it through faith in Jesus Christ!
We have the best teaching. We have the world.
We have life.
We have life.
John 10:10.
John 10:10
10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
Abundant life is our present possession!
Scripture also reveals that we have eternal life.
We have the best teaching. We have the world. We have life.
We have victory over death.
We have victory over death.
We will get to 1 Corinthians 15 eventually, but look with me at what it says in verses 55-57.
1 Corinthians 15:55-57
55 “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?”
56 The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.
57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Death is ours! The final enemy was defeated in the resurrection of Jesus Christ!
We have the victory over death because of Jesus Christ.
Death is not a thing to be feared.
Yes, it is to be mourned, yes it is to be hated as an enemy, as an intruder into God’s perfection.
Yet we do not fear it because it has been defeated!
We have the best teaching. We have the world. We have life. We have victory over death.
We have the present.
We have the present.
Three quick verses.
1 Corinthians 15:58; Galatians 6:9; Hebrews 6:10
1 Corinthians 15:58; Galatians 6:9; Hebrews 6:10
58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.
10 For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister.
Our labor is not in vain! We will reap! God will remember our work and our labor!
We have the present. The Holy Spirit who lives inside of us is at work helping us to take advantage of gospel and ministry opportunities.
We have the best teaching. We have the world. We have life. We have victory over death. We have the present.
We have the future.
We have the future.
2 Timothy 4:8.
2 Timothy 4:8
8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.
Isn’t that what we are working for?
We labor now for that future day when we will stand before the throne of grace.
Each and every one of us desires to hear “well done good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of the Lord.”
Beloved. We. Are. Secure.
We have all of these things!
Confidence in our security grows with awareness of our blessing.
We know we are secure because of what God reveals in His Word.
However, our experience of His blessings strengthens our confidence in that security.
Every believer can be full for three reasons.
Reason #1. You are supplied.
We already have every blessing in Christ!
Reason #2. You are secure.
We have the best of everything.
Reason #3. You can be full because…
c. You are Christ’s v. 23
c. You are Christ’s v. 23
This is THE reason for our fullness.
23 And you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.
How do we have everything we have talked about already?
Because we are Christ’s!
Think of the verses we have already looked at today.
Chosen to be holy and blameless, predestined to the adoption as sons, blessed with every spiritual blessing, accepted in the beloved, every need is supplied, death is overcome, abundant life is ours, our labor is not in vain, we will reap, we will stand before the throne complete in Christ!
Look at 1 Peter 1:18-19.
1 Peter 1:18-19
18 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,
19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
We are purchased possessions!
We belong to Christ!
Christ is God’s.
In this lies our security. In this lies our blessing. In this lies everything.
We are in Christ and He is in God.
What does this mean for us?
Listen to how Jesus put it in John 10:27-30.
John 10:27-30
27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.
29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.
30 I and My Father are one.”
We are in the grip of Christ and in the grip of the Father.
No one can take us from Christ and no one can take us from the Father!
We are secure.
There is a passage that we have read probably dozens of times of the years of my ministry here.
We read it over and over again because it is so powerful.
Today I want to read it again.
As I do I want us to stand.
I want us to really hear this today.
What does it mean to be Christ’s?
Look with me at Romans 8:31-39.
Romans 8:31-39
31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?
33 Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.
34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
36 As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”
37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,
39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
This is what it means to belong to Christ!
When we walk in His will and in obedience to His Word…
It means nothing and no one can stand against us.
It means we have all things.
It means we have been declared righteous by God.
It means we will never face condemnation.
It means nothing can separate us from the love of Christ!
It means we conquer through Christ!
To belong to Christ means that we are His when the heavens melt and the earth is destroyed!
We are His when enemies come against us!
We are His when friends forsake us!
We are His when others degrade us!
We are His when the sea is calm, and we are His when the storm is raging!
In darkness and light, in sickness and death, in every situation and in every circumstance,
WE BELONG TO CHRIST!
Because we belong to Christ, we live to exalt His name.
Conclusion
Conclusion
You are Christ’s.
Live in that identity.
Be a fool to those who reason with worldly wisdom.
Be full, possessing every blessing in Christ.
In our personal lives this means we build everything on the foundation of Jesus. That demands that we know who Jesus is and what He taught. Get into the Word.
In our relationships this means that while we don’t shove Christ down people’s throats, we also never compromise. You are Christ’s, so love your neighbor. You are Christ’s so be kind to your brother or sister. You are Christ’s so obey your parents. You are Christ’s so respect and honor your boyfriend or girlfriend. Spend time contemplating what it means to be Christ’s in every relationship you have.
In our parenting this means our goal and desire is to shepherd the hearts of our children toward Christ. We don’t parent out of fear, or anger, or exhaustion. We parent with the desire to lead our children ever closer to Christ. Reset or reaffirm your parenting goals.
In our marriages this means my goal is not to please my spouse. My goal is to please Christ. Therefore, when my spouse upsets me, my first concern is how I can please Christ in that situation. Change the mission of your marriage from happiness to the exaltation of Christ.
COMMITMENT: ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The deepest longing of our heart can only be satisfied in Christ.
Who are we trying to please?
A Christ rejecting world? Or the one whose blood was shed to redeem us?
The pleasures of this world are temporary and empty.
The joy Christ offers is eternal.
We have every blessing, every need will be supplied.
When we find our identity in Christ, no earthly power can threaten it.
We are Christ’s.
May our true identity be clear to everyone we meet.