Don’t Waste Your Life

In I Corinthians, Paul is writing to rebuke the church at Corinth for divisions within the church, false doctrines, rampant and extreme sexual immorality, and a host of other problems. But it is not the individual problems of false doctrine, divisions, and immorality that we will address today. Instead, I want to examine the key to Paul’s argument. This “key,” Paul argues, is the key to unifying a divided church, squashing false doctrines, and purifying the church of immorality. What is this “magic bullet” which has the ability to fix so many problems? It’s the gospel of Christ.

1. What the Gospel is…

a. The Gospel is the “Good News” i. But, the Good News is preceded by some very bad news ii. God created us in his image, to govern and rule over his creation, for his glory and honor; we were created for the sole purpose of bringing glory to God. (Is. 43) iii. As our Creator, God has absolute and ultimate authority over us, and has given us commands to be obeyed, which are intended for our own good. iv. But every single one of us has sinned—that is, we have broken God’s commands. v. God, who is perfect and holy, cannot tolerate sin. As the righteous judge of the universe, he must punish sin. The punishment for sin is death. vi. Furthermore, since God is holy, sin cannot be allowed into heaven, thus all sinners are condemned to eternity in hell. vii. There is nothing you can do to earn your way into heaven or pay off your sin debt. b. The “Good News” i. God is perfect and holy, and he is also merciful and loving. ii. God does not want any to perish in hell iii. So, God sent his only Son, Jesus, to pay the penalty for our sins by dying on the cross. Jesus lived a life on the Earth in perfect conformity to God’s laws—he never sinned. Then, he died on the cross, bearing the penalty that we deserved for our sins. iv. Three days later, Jesus rose from the dead, demonstrating that the price for sin was paid in full. v. If anyone accepts that gift which Jesus purchased with his blood and they repent, believe, and surrender their life to Jesus Christ, God credits the righteousness of Jesus to their account, and they are saved.

2. If the Gospel is not true, then Christians have wasted their lives.

a. Deeply held Christian beliefs just don’t make sense if there’s no resurrection from the dead. i. What’s the point of baptism? (v. 29) 1. Paul is not teaching that we should be baptized on behalf of the dead. No other passage in scripture suggests that about baptism. 2. Many possible interpretations have been proposed. The one I find the most likely is “…baptized for [the resurrection of] the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized for it?” 3. Other passages teach clearly that baptism is symbolic of death, burial, and resurrection. (Rom. 6:3-5, Col. 2:12) 4. This interpretation fits with Paul’s argument—that if there is no resurrection, what’s the point in symbolizing the resurrection with baptism? ii. Why all this talk of “Daily dying to self,” taking up your cross, and martyrdom? (vv. 30-32) 1. The entire foundation of Christianity rests upon the resurrection of Christ and our future bodily resurrection. 2. If the gospel is a lie, then let’s eat, drink, and be merry! a. Paul isn’t saying he’d be a drunkard if he wasn’t a Christian—he’s just saying that he’d live in a way to maximize his pleasure here on earth. b. Our entire culture of “play” is fundamentally built upon the presupposition that the gospel is a lie—that there is no judgment and no life after death. c. Does your life visibly display the fact that you believe the best is yet to come? b. Some seem to think that believing in God is the “safe” choice; that they have nothing to loose by believing in God and everything to gain. i. Called “Pascal’s Wager”—If you believe in God and it turns out that God does not exist, you have lost nothing. But if you don’t believe in God and he does exist, you have lost your eternity. Thus, it’s safer to believe in God. ii. “One final problem is the conclusion of the argument, where a person decides to believe in a god because it is the choice that offers the most benefits and least dangers. This requires that the god in question not mind that you believe in it merely in order to gain entrance to heaven and/or to avoid punishment in hell. Such a god wouldn't be a just or fair god, since a person’s eternal fate is not being decided upon based on their actions, but merely on their decision to make a pragmatic and selfish choice. Does this sound like a god that's worth worshipping?” (http://atheism.about.com/od/atheismatheistsriskhell/a/AtheismRisk.htm) c. Paul did not agree with Pascal’s Wager. i. Paul said that a Christian’s faith was “worthless” if there was no resurrection. He even went so far as to say that Christians ought to be pitied if the gospel was a lie! ii. Paul seemed to think that the implications of Christ’s resurrection were so extensive and the change produced in a Christian’s life so radical, that faith in Christ would have been pitiable if the gospel were not true. iii. If you think that you have nothing to loose by trusting Christ, then you are not living the kind of life that Paul describes as Christian. d. If the Gospel is true, there is no room for marginal Christianity. i. A life of materialism is incompatible with the belief that true treasure awaits in heaven. ii. A life of sexual immorality is incompatible with the belief that the Holy Spirit resides in you and that you are the temple of God. iii. A life of play and leisure is incompatible with the belief that the world is destined for judgment. iv. Notice what Paul says in v. 2—“By [this gospel] you are saved, IF you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.” (NASB) 1. If you’re a good Baptist, that IF probably makes you uncomfortable. 2. Doesn’t Paul know “once saved always saved?” Doesn’t Paul know you can’t loose your salvation? 3. This concept of salvation that reduces salvation to a transaction by which an irrevocable one-way pass into heaven is purchased by walking and aisle, praying a prayer, and signing a card is completely foreign to Paul and to the Bible. 4. Salvation is the process by which a believer’s heart is so radically and fundamentally changed that an irreversible transformation occurs in their life. 5. Does the Bible teach that you can loose your salvation? No, it does not. But neither does it teach that once you’ve prayed a prayer you can go live as you please with no fear of eternal judgment. True faith—saving faith—ALWAYS produces a changed life. Not a perfect life, but a changed life. 6. That’s why Paul can say things like “…IF you stand fast…” in verse 2, and John can say things like: a. “Anyone who claims to be in the light but hates his brother is still in the darkness.” I John 2:9 b. “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God.” I John 3:9 7. Those who are truly saved will demonstrate that through a changed life. How do you know if the faith is genuine? Just wait and see…

Conclusion

Perhaps there are some in this room who have been trusting in a prayer that they prayed 20 years ago. But since that time, there’s been no real change in their life. No desire for the things of God, no love for the brethren, no passion for God’s glory displayed in their life. Heed Paul’s warning—you are saved by the gospel IF you stand fast in it. Understand that Paul viewed the gospel as so radically life-changing that you would have to be a fool to follow Christ if it weren’t true! What have you done recently in your life that could only be explained by an eternal perspective? Paul said, “Whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.” (Phil. 3:7-8) Is Christ worth so much to you that everything else is garbage in comparison? Are you living in the light of a heavenly, resurrection perspective? Can unbelievers tell that you don’t think of this world as your home? Have you so passionately pursued Christ that if you were to discover today that it’s all a lie you would truly feel that you’ve wasted your life? Or, are you wasting your life by denying the truth that’s staring you in the face?

While I’m here living man I gotta ask why,

What am I here for I gotta figure out,

Waste my life, no I gotta make it count,

If Christ is real then what am I gon do about,

Everything in Luke 12:15 down to 21 ya really gotta go and check it out,

Paul said if Christ aint resurrected we wasted our lives,

But that implies that all life’s built around is Jesus being alive…

Suffer, yea, do it for Christ,

You’re trying to figure out what to do with ya life,

Ya make a lot of money hope your doin it right,

Because the money is God’s you better steward it right,

And stay focused, you aint got no ride,

Your life ain’t wrapped up in what you drive,

The clothes you wear, the job your work,

The color your skin, nah you’re Christian first,

People get to living for a job,

Make a little money start living for a car,

Get em a wife, a house, kids and a dog,

Then they retire, they living high on the hog,

But guess what they didn’t ever really live at all,

To live is Christ, and that’s Paul I recall,

To die is gain so for Christ we give it all,

He is the treasure you’ll never find in a mall,

See your money, your singleness, marriage, talent, your time,

They’ve been loaned you to show the world that Christ is divine,

That’s why its Christ in my rhymes,

That’s why its Christ all the time,

See my whole world is built around Him,

He’s the life in my lines,

I refuse to waste my life,

He’s too true to chase that ice,

Here’s my gift to time,

Cuz im constantly tryin be used to praise the Christ,

If He’s truly raised to life,

Then this news should change your life,

And by His grace you can put your faith in the place that rules your days and nights