STARTING RIGHT

1 Corinthians 3:5-17

God has called each of us to a wonderful position, to be members of a church. In being members of a church, we have the wonderful opportunity to be a part of something that is much bigger than ourselves. We actually get to be a part of something that Jesus Christ himself, started 20 centuries ago.

It is something that the Bible says he gave in Eph 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;

Jesus thought it was important enough to give himself for, we need to place in its proper perspective today.

We need to give ourselves to it as well. Blessing and encouraging each other.

Along with our ministering to each other and helping each other we are also to be reaching those that around us. We need to be doing it as a church. Devoted to a cause of trying to win the lost and care for the lost around us. Together and unified.

Notice some lessons that we learn from this passage concerning the Corinthians as we as a church seek to Battle the warfare, the work that God has called us to do here in Maineville.

By no means do I mean to imply here that the Corinthian church was model for us today, but we do learn some principles about reaching our generation

I. THEY DID IT TOGETHER

v. 9

In this church there were a lot of a different types of people.

It was multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, several major

Wealthy commercial center

- It was a center of travel and commerce, as it was crossroads of both North and South, and East and West

It was a port city, so it had a steady influx and outflow many diverse groups of people.

Port cities attract some of the worst types of people from every walk of life.

It was steeped in Idolatry. It was the home of the Temple of Aphrodite. A thousand prostitutes who also worked in the Corinth entertainment industry serviced the temple.

It was a center of philosophers and talebearers, and many schools of thought.

This is what the Corinthian church was made up of.

These people coming from many backgrounds, needed to come together with the common goal of serving Christ and pleasing Christ

A goal of unity must be upon the mind of each Christian in a church. The goal of pleasing Christ in every area, seeking to please him and reach the world.

II. SIMPLE MEN BEING USED OF GOD

vv.5-9

Paul used he and Apollos as examples in the passage previous, that God uses all of us and that we ought to continue together in the church.

A. Man is nothing

You may have been led to the Lord by some great preacher who has a great following, people will forever try to line you up in that camp.

You may come from an insignificant church in the worlds eyes

You might have been led to the Lord here, but we are all to continue to serve together, forget our camp we came from, we are here together, lets go reach our community for Christ.

That is what Paul was encouraging the Corinthians to do.

Coming from diverse backgrounds, cultures, religions, and traditions, they all came to Christ the same way, by repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, and therefore no one better than any others.

B. Our value is in being co-laborers with God

We work with God himself

We are his husbandry, his workers, his tillers, planters, waterers, tenders of the fruit; we do the farming.

We live in a generation that may take some extra farming, the ground is rocky here, there is

much debris here, there is much overgrowth of wild weeds or tares.

We must together as a church bind together to tend to the garden that has been given

C. We are God’s Building

You are part of his work, you are part of his heritage, you are part of what is to be left here by your testimony by your example, by your work.

When one Christian in a church doesn’t do their part, there is a glaring hole in God’s building.

When Craig is not here for his class, he is missed

If you are an encourager, a faithful friends, a lifter up of the preachers arms, what a difference you make.

III. PAUL ACKNOWLEDGES GLORY BELONGED TO GOD

v.10

We as Christians should be ready, especially in the church to shrug off praise given to us

We should by our actions, our conduct, our words, direct the glory to the Lor

IV. THE CHURCH WAS TO BE BUILT ON THE RIGHT FOUNDATION

Christ is that foundation

vv/10-11

1 Corinthians 2:2 AV

For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.

Matthew 16:18 AV

And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Psalm 118:22–23 (AV)

The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner. This is the LORD’S doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.

V. LET’S NOT CHEAPEN THE MATERIALS

They used the right materials v.12-17

Materials in building are chosen on how long the building will last

Quality materials – gold, silver, precious stones

A. Some Quality Materials:

1] Bible

the Word of God as our authority

2] Prayer

We don’t like to rely on it, but it is God’s way for our receiving power to

minister on his behalf.

3] Sacrifice

giving, laboring

4] Charity

B. Cheap materials

wood, hay, stubble

1] Gimmicks

2] Entertainment

3] Feel good preaching

4] Music of the world

Rock music has a few ‘associates’ of rock: drug addicts, revolutionaries, rioters, Satan worshippers, drop-outs, draft dodgers, homosexuals and other sex deviates, rebels, juvenile criminals, black Panthers and White supremacy, motorcycle gangs, blasphemers, suicides, heathenism, voodooism, ,

People argue, good people argue, if we use rock music to get kids in to and they get saved, isn’t hat good.

Remember God said you can build with Hay wood and stubble, but it won’t last and it won’t be rewarded.

5] Witnessing

You also never find a place in the Bible where God encourages uses things of the world to build the church, what does he want us to depend upon, he want us to depend on him and not a gimmick.

VI. LET’S SEEK HOLINESS

1 Cor 3:16-17

Churches that imitate the world will fail or simply go into apostasy.

During the down-grade controversy, Spurgeon fought against the decline of morals and standards in the protestant churches in England.

What is the right plan? Complete and utter surrender to the Lord and complete obedience to His Word.