WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.379 I think you'll agree with the statement I'm about 00:00:02.379 --> 00:00:05.740 to make. Few things characterize our modern world 00:00:05.740 --> 00:00:09.980 more than anxiety. We are an anxious people. 00:00:10.199 --> 00:00:13.099 Everything today seems to make us anxious. You 00:00:13.099 --> 00:00:16.179 look at the political craziness, you look at 00:00:16.179 --> 00:00:19.559 the crime statistics, fights over immigration, 00:00:20.000 --> 00:00:24.039 race relations, perspectives on the war, financial 00:00:24.039 --> 00:00:27.260 troubles, the job market, housing affordability, 00:00:27.539 --> 00:00:30.969 health care costs. There's a lot going on, isn't 00:00:30.969 --> 00:00:34.409 there? And a lot of it makes us feel very unstable. 00:00:35.149 --> 00:00:38.250 And it causes us to worry about our place in 00:00:38.250 --> 00:00:40.789 the world and our role in the world. And then 00:00:40.789 --> 00:00:45.009 exacerbating all of these feelings are our failing 00:00:45.009 --> 00:00:48.929 media that is so biased and so awful, plus the 00:00:48.929 --> 00:00:52.490 social contagion of social media. both of which 00:00:52.490 --> 00:00:55.390 are designed to stir everything up, to pit us 00:00:55.390 --> 00:00:57.869 against each other, and literally to make us 00:00:57.869 --> 00:01:01.450 angry and fearful. That's what they do. Here 00:01:01.450 --> 00:01:04.010 we are, the human race, designed by God for belonging 00:01:04.010 --> 00:01:07.609 and purpose and communion with Him, yet because 00:01:07.609 --> 00:01:09.730 of the fall and because of our fallen nature, 00:01:09.870 --> 00:01:13.030 every day now feels like a constant battle with 00:01:13.030 --> 00:01:16.989 uncertainty and loss and hatred and fractured 00:01:16.989 --> 00:01:19.790 relationships. And in the midst of that kind 00:01:19.790 --> 00:01:23.609 of turmoil and anxiety and failing expectations, 00:01:23.689 --> 00:01:27.069 what most people do to try to cope with all of 00:01:27.069 --> 00:01:30.290 it is not turn to God, but to turn to all kinds 00:01:30.290 --> 00:01:33.769 of other forms of gratification, all the wrong 00:01:33.769 --> 00:01:36.810 things. The fact is the human heart has an almost 00:01:36.810 --> 00:01:40.250 unlimited number of idols that it can seek after 00:01:40.250 --> 00:01:44.510 when it feels threatened. And Jesus directly 00:01:44.510 --> 00:01:47.230 addressed this issue of anxiety in the Sermon 00:01:47.230 --> 00:01:49.950 on the Mount in Matthew 6. And in that sermon, 00:01:50.049 --> 00:01:52.349 he didn't deny that we need basic things, right? 00:01:52.430 --> 00:01:54.849 We need food and clothing and work and safety. 00:01:55.290 --> 00:01:57.870 But what he wanted to do was turn our attention 00:01:57.870 --> 00:02:02.450 from anxious self -preservation to the care of 00:02:02.450 --> 00:02:05.430 his Father and to give that to him. In fact, 00:02:05.430 --> 00:02:07.969 this is some of the things that he said in that 00:02:07.969 --> 00:02:10.050 sermon. He said, don't store up for yourselves 00:02:10.050 --> 00:02:14.659 treasures on earth. Why? Well, moth and rust 00:02:14.659 --> 00:02:18.580 destroy it. Thieves break in and steal it. And 00:02:18.580 --> 00:02:20.979 he said, don't be anxious about your life. Can 00:02:20.979 --> 00:02:24.319 any of you add a single hour to your life by 00:02:24.319 --> 00:02:27.180 worrying? Your heavenly father knows that you 00:02:27.180 --> 00:02:31.159 need all these basic things. So seek first his 00:02:31.159 --> 00:02:34.780 kingdom and his righteousness and all these things 00:02:34.780 --> 00:02:38.580 will be added unto you. Now, most of us know 00:02:38.580 --> 00:02:41.379 that passage. Are we? actually applying that 00:02:41.379 --> 00:02:44.139 in our lives. Here's the thing. When you and 00:02:44.139 --> 00:02:47.659 I start to believe lies, and we do this often, 00:02:47.719 --> 00:02:50.919 we believe lies. When we falsely come to the 00:02:50.919 --> 00:02:53.300 conclusion that we are sovereign over the outcomes 00:02:53.300 --> 00:02:56.240 of our life, that it's up to us to make sure 00:02:56.240 --> 00:02:58.979 that we have all these things, safety, security, 00:02:59.319 --> 00:03:03.500 our needs met, even our desires, we think it's 00:03:03.500 --> 00:03:06.379 up to us to make sure these things happen. That's 00:03:06.379 --> 00:03:10.139 when we... Allow anxiety and worry to set in. 00:03:10.199 --> 00:03:12.520 That's when we stop seeking first his kingdom 00:03:12.520 --> 00:03:15.360 and his righteousness. That's when we start to 00:03:15.360 --> 00:03:18.460 lose sight of basic Christian principles because 00:03:18.460 --> 00:03:21.020 we're so anxious about everything. We lose sight 00:03:21.020 --> 00:03:22.900 of the fact that we are known and loved by God, 00:03:22.939 --> 00:03:26.419 that we are secure in Christ. We forget that 00:03:26.419 --> 00:03:29.280 he's promised to provide all our needs. We forget 00:03:29.280 --> 00:03:31.960 that he's gifted us and called us into his service. 00:03:33.849 --> 00:03:36.189 We forget that we're really just pilgrims in 00:03:36.189 --> 00:03:37.889 this life, right? And that we have an eternal 00:03:37.889 --> 00:03:39.789 home that we're looking forward to, a future 00:03:39.789 --> 00:03:42.509 that is beyond our comprehension in terms of 00:03:42.509 --> 00:03:45.770 its glory. And as we saw just a few weeks ago, 00:03:45.810 --> 00:03:47.830 we then have the added layer of security and 00:03:47.830 --> 00:03:50.330 peace that comes with being a member of a local 00:03:50.330 --> 00:03:53.150 church. We are fellow members of God's household. 00:03:53.270 --> 00:03:56.090 We are members of one another. So we are never 00:03:56.090 --> 00:03:59.629 alone, never alone in this pilgrim journey that 00:03:59.629 --> 00:04:02.659 we're on. Yet we're called to walk through this 00:04:02.659 --> 00:04:05.319 life and we'll see that in today's passage. And 00:04:05.319 --> 00:04:07.800 as we walk, we are always tempted to worry about 00:04:07.800 --> 00:04:10.460 the world around us and the situation that we 00:04:10.460 --> 00:04:13.520 find ourselves in. We're tempted to become discontent 00:04:13.520 --> 00:04:17.240 about the condition that we live in. Always wondering, 00:04:17.319 --> 00:04:18.980 is there something better out there? Is there 00:04:18.980 --> 00:04:21.439 something that I need to be doing to fix things? 00:04:22.339 --> 00:04:25.560 And we get our eyes down on our circumstances 00:04:25.560 --> 00:04:27.920 rather than lifting our eyes and fixing them 00:04:27.920 --> 00:04:31.240 on Christ. we start to wonder if maybe we should 00:04:31.240 --> 00:04:34.779 seek to change our outward circumstances. Thinking 00:04:34.779 --> 00:04:37.959 again that if I do the work, I can control the 00:04:37.959 --> 00:04:40.860 outcome. And then there's all these choices then 00:04:40.860 --> 00:04:43.040 that pop up before us. Well, where should we 00:04:43.040 --> 00:04:46.180 live? Should we move? Right? And there's been 00:04:46.180 --> 00:04:48.379 a social contagion with that recently. We just 00:04:48.379 --> 00:04:50.480 got to get out of California, right? Because 00:04:50.480 --> 00:04:52.579 that's going to fix everything. So everybody 00:04:52.579 --> 00:04:55.970 else is going, should we go too? What career 00:04:55.970 --> 00:04:58.610 should I pick? Do I need to change jobs? Should 00:04:58.610 --> 00:05:01.310 I get married? Should we have kids? Can I ever 00:05:01.310 --> 00:05:05.350 afford to buy a house? And then it gets deeper. 00:05:05.410 --> 00:05:08.889 What if I make a mistake? What if I choose poorly? 00:05:08.990 --> 00:05:10.829 What if I'm outside of God's will? Will I ever 00:05:10.829 --> 00:05:14.410 feel settled and secure? And as we do that, we 00:05:14.410 --> 00:05:17.569 play those games and we allow lies to set in. 00:05:17.689 --> 00:05:20.290 We suddenly realize, there I go again. I'm worrying 00:05:20.290 --> 00:05:24.720 and I'm anxious and I'm fearful. And I'm trying 00:05:24.720 --> 00:05:27.819 to control everything. And then it hits us again. 00:05:27.879 --> 00:05:29.819 Wait, I'm supposed to seek first the kingdom 00:05:29.819 --> 00:05:33.639 of God. So while I'm worrying about so many things, 00:05:33.800 --> 00:05:37.220 am I being faithful in the place that God has 00:05:37.220 --> 00:05:39.759 placed me and in the role that he's called me 00:05:39.759 --> 00:05:42.779 to? These are important issues. So grab your 00:05:42.779 --> 00:05:44.540 Bibles. We're going to look at what Paul says 00:05:44.540 --> 00:05:47.019 about this today. Go to 1 Corinthians chapter 00:05:47.019 --> 00:05:57.639 7. Did that introduction sound about right for 00:05:57.639 --> 00:06:00.220 life today? As I was writing it last night, I 00:06:00.220 --> 00:06:02.100 was like, oh my gosh, I might just overwhelm 00:06:02.100 --> 00:06:06.379 everybody. Are you more anxious right now? Don't 00:06:06.379 --> 00:06:08.560 be. We're going to get the antidote for that. 00:06:09.180 --> 00:06:12.519 1 Corinthians 7. If you were with us last Sunday, 00:06:12.560 --> 00:06:14.279 we talked about moving from one uncomfortable 00:06:14.279 --> 00:06:17.379 sermon to another. A couple weeks ago, we talked 00:06:17.379 --> 00:06:19.699 about sexual sin. And then last Sunday, we looked 00:06:19.699 --> 00:06:22.810 at marriage and divorce. So this morning we had 00:06:22.810 --> 00:06:25.009 a bit of a break. Beginning in verse 17, Paul's 00:06:25.009 --> 00:06:27.209 going to take a break from those important topics 00:06:27.209 --> 00:06:31.290 and talk to us about our place in the world and 00:06:31.290 --> 00:06:34.310 the role that God has called us to. And I think 00:06:34.310 --> 00:06:36.029 it's going to be really practical and hopefully 00:06:36.029 --> 00:06:38.089 really helpful for everybody here this morning, 00:06:38.149 --> 00:06:40.389 but maybe most importantly for the younger people 00:06:40.389 --> 00:06:45.389 in the audience who I know these days feel just 00:06:45.389 --> 00:06:48.439 disenfranchised, just... set aside. You're all 00:06:48.439 --> 00:06:50.620 looking at boomers like us and going, you have 00:06:50.620 --> 00:06:53.420 no idea, Jeff. But I get it. It's hard out there 00:06:53.420 --> 00:06:55.920 today. So I want to empathize with you in that. 00:06:56.740 --> 00:07:00.300 Okay, verses 17 to 24. Let's read. Only as the 00:07:00.300 --> 00:07:03.920 Lord has assigned to each one, as God has called 00:07:03.920 --> 00:07:08.339 each in this manner, let him walk. And so I direct 00:07:08.339 --> 00:07:11.160 in all the churches. Was any man called when 00:07:11.160 --> 00:07:14.100 he was already circumcised? He's not to become 00:07:14.100 --> 00:07:17.819 uncircumcised. Has anyone been called in uncircumcision? 00:07:18.100 --> 00:07:21.740 He's not to be circumcised. Circumcision is nothing, 00:07:21.860 --> 00:07:24.920 and uncircumcision is nothing. What matters is 00:07:24.920 --> 00:07:27.399 the keeping of the commandments of God. Each 00:07:27.399 --> 00:07:30.100 man must remain in that condition which he was 00:07:30.100 --> 00:07:33.779 called. Verse 21, were you called while a slave? 00:07:34.180 --> 00:07:37.019 Do not worry about it, but if you're able to 00:07:37.019 --> 00:07:40.680 become free, rather do that. For he who was called 00:07:40.680 --> 00:07:43.500 in the Lord while a slave is the Lord's freedman. 00:07:43.879 --> 00:07:47.800 Likewise, he who was called while free is Christ's 00:07:47.800 --> 00:07:50.899 slave. You were bought with a price. Do not become 00:07:50.899 --> 00:07:54.720 slaves of men. Brothers, each one is to remain 00:07:54.720 --> 00:07:58.500 with God in that condition in which he was called. 00:07:58.959 --> 00:08:01.199 Okay, so the plan for this morning is to try 00:08:01.199 --> 00:08:04.100 to nail down Paul's big idea here and then to 00:08:04.100 --> 00:08:07.310 look at the two illustrations that he uses. to 00:08:07.310 --> 00:08:09.889 make his point. And we'll try to make some cultural 00:08:09.889 --> 00:08:12.670 connections between the first century and today. 00:08:12.790 --> 00:08:15.310 But first, let's start. Look at verse 17. Let's 00:08:15.310 --> 00:08:18.269 take note of a very basic biblical principle 00:08:18.269 --> 00:08:21.870 related to God's sovereign rule over all things. 00:08:21.990 --> 00:08:24.430 This is a foundational principle that we need 00:08:24.430 --> 00:08:26.970 to accept, receive and accept, if we're going 00:08:26.970 --> 00:08:29.629 to understand God's plan for our lives. Verse 00:08:29.629 --> 00:08:38.799 17 says, called each. Underline those two words. 00:08:39.720 --> 00:08:41.620 Highlight them. Whatever you do in your Bibles, 00:08:41.679 --> 00:08:46.700 assigned and called. Both are actions that the 00:08:46.700 --> 00:08:49.820 father has accomplished in the lives of his children, 00:08:49.960 --> 00:08:53.700 in you and I. He has assigned you a place and 00:08:53.700 --> 00:08:56.919 he has called you to a role within that place. 00:08:57.559 --> 00:09:01.019 And that means you are who you are and you're 00:09:01.019 --> 00:09:03.559 where you are and you're doing what you're doing 00:09:03.559 --> 00:09:08.820 by God's sovereign Design. Do you believe that? 00:09:09.860 --> 00:09:11.879 And when I say that, I mean that everything about 00:09:11.879 --> 00:09:14.220 your life, right up to this morning, has been 00:09:14.220 --> 00:09:17.259 assigned to you. The date of your physical birth. 00:09:17.440 --> 00:09:20.659 How many of you guys controlled that? No. God 00:09:20.659 --> 00:09:23.580 sovereignly gave you the date and time of your 00:09:23.580 --> 00:09:26.440 physical birth. Your particular heritage and 00:09:26.440 --> 00:09:30.059 cultural identity. Your social and economic status. 00:09:30.200 --> 00:09:33.870 The place where you were raised. Your marital 00:09:33.870 --> 00:09:36.450 status, your talents and skills, your current 00:09:36.450 --> 00:09:38.669 workplace, the date of your spiritual rebirth, 00:09:38.990 --> 00:09:42.049 even the church that you belong to right now. 00:09:42.230 --> 00:09:45.830 To all these things, God has called you. In fact, 00:09:45.889 --> 00:09:47.690 before the foundations of the world were laid, 00:09:47.769 --> 00:09:50.370 God knew you and loved you, and he marked you 00:09:50.370 --> 00:09:53.129 out for salvation. That's straight from Ephesians 00:09:53.129 --> 00:09:56.029 chapter 1. And of course, he knew that in this 00:09:56.029 --> 00:09:58.470 life, he would draw you to himself at a particular 00:09:58.470 --> 00:10:01.029 time, and he would justify you in his sight. 00:10:01.710 --> 00:10:04.250 And already at that point, he had the course 00:10:04.250 --> 00:10:08.529 of your life mapped out. And as to this situation 00:10:08.529 --> 00:10:10.830 or this condition that you've been assigned and 00:10:10.830 --> 00:10:14.629 called, it is not random. It is not by chance. 00:10:15.529 --> 00:10:18.169 Paul talked about this when he went to the city 00:10:18.169 --> 00:10:20.809 of Athens and spoke on Mars Hill. He spoke to 00:10:20.809 --> 00:10:22.509 these unbelievers about this. Here's what he 00:10:22.509 --> 00:10:24.809 said. He said, the God who made the world and 00:10:24.809 --> 00:10:28.070 all things in it, including us, he made from 00:10:28.070 --> 00:10:31.379 one man. every nation of mankind to live on the 00:10:31.379 --> 00:10:34.220 earth, the face of the earth, having determined 00:10:34.220 --> 00:10:37.559 their appointed times and the boundaries of their 00:10:37.559 --> 00:10:42.139 habitation. So he is Lord over the rise of kingdoms 00:10:42.139 --> 00:10:45.559 and nations and geographical boundaries and the 00:10:45.559 --> 00:10:48.240 people in those nations. And yes, that includes 00:10:48.240 --> 00:10:51.139 you and I in the United States of America. He's 00:10:51.139 --> 00:10:52.940 sovereign over all of it. The Bible repeatedly 00:10:52.940 --> 00:10:55.759 tells us that God is sovereign over both the 00:10:55.759 --> 00:10:58.919 breadth of human life Our times and places, but 00:10:58.919 --> 00:11:02.879 also the particular paths that we take. And yet 00:11:02.879 --> 00:11:05.559 it also consistently treats people as responsible 00:11:05.559 --> 00:11:09.399 agents who make very real choices and we make 00:11:09.399 --> 00:11:11.639 very real plans and we are accountable to God 00:11:11.639 --> 00:11:13.980 for all of it. Those two things work together, 00:11:14.039 --> 00:11:17.759 God's sovereignty and our responsibility. But 00:11:17.759 --> 00:11:19.399 here's the thing you have to understand. None 00:11:19.399 --> 00:11:23.779 of our plans are autonomous. None of our plans 00:11:23.779 --> 00:11:26.539 are autonomous. This is why we reject the commonly 00:11:26.539 --> 00:11:29.419 held position that man has this thing that everybody 00:11:29.419 --> 00:11:33.740 likes to talk about, free will. Is our will really 00:11:33.740 --> 00:11:39.799 free? Are we in bondage to sin? Human beings 00:11:39.799 --> 00:11:41.960 do make real choices. I'm not denying that. We 00:11:41.960 --> 00:11:45.120 do make genuine plans. But God governs the final 00:11:45.120 --> 00:11:48.100 course of all things, shaping everything that 00:11:48.100 --> 00:11:52.940 we do into his appointed purposes and ends. So 00:11:52.940 --> 00:11:55.100 our so -called free will is always subject to 00:11:55.100 --> 00:11:58.779 the divine will. Always. He has the sovereign 00:11:58.779 --> 00:12:03.059 right and power to direct us, to confirm our 00:12:03.059 --> 00:12:06.919 plans, to delay our plans, to say no, not now, 00:12:07.019 --> 00:12:10.919 or no, permanently. or to redirect our plans. 00:12:11.159 --> 00:12:13.940 He has that right and that power to do that. 00:12:14.019 --> 00:12:15.639 And we see this all over the pages of Scripture, 00:12:15.899 --> 00:12:17.759 especially when you look at the wisdom literature 00:12:17.759 --> 00:12:19.919 in the Old Testament. I'll give you a few examples 00:12:19.919 --> 00:12:23.019 here. Proverbs 20, 24 says, Man's steps are, 00:12:23.120 --> 00:12:27.220 great word, ordained by the Lord, superintended 00:12:27.220 --> 00:12:31.940 by God. All of your steps. Proverbs 69, the mind 00:12:31.940 --> 00:12:35.899 of man plans his way, but the Lord directs. His 00:12:35.899 --> 00:12:39.179 steps. Proverbs 19, 21. Many plans are in a man's 00:12:39.179 --> 00:12:41.740 heart, but it's the counsel of the Lord that 00:12:41.740 --> 00:12:45.320 will stand. Proverbs 21, 1. I love this one. 00:12:45.379 --> 00:12:47.919 The king's heart. So the most powerful man in 00:12:47.919 --> 00:12:50.200 the world, the king's heart is like channels 00:12:50.200 --> 00:12:53.279 of water in the hand of the Lord. He can turn 00:12:53.279 --> 00:12:56.919 the heart of the king wherever he wishes. If 00:12:56.919 --> 00:12:58.259 he can do it with the king, he can do it with 00:12:58.259 --> 00:13:01.519 me and you, right? Even in the New Testament, 00:13:01.539 --> 00:13:04.859 we see this laid out in the book of James. where 00:13:04.859 --> 00:13:08.440 he rebukes human presumption as if we're sovereign 00:13:08.440 --> 00:13:10.980 somehow, like we can control things and we're 00:13:10.980 --> 00:13:13.279 sovereign and God isn't. You probably know this 00:13:13.279 --> 00:13:16.419 passage in James. It says, come now, you who 00:13:16.419 --> 00:13:18.580 say, today or tomorrow, we'll go to such and 00:13:18.580 --> 00:13:21.120 such a city. We'll spend a year there and engage 00:13:21.120 --> 00:13:24.279 in business and make a profit. How many of us 00:13:24.279 --> 00:13:27.539 are guilty of doing that, right? Yet you do not 00:13:27.539 --> 00:13:31.720 know what your life will be like tomorrow. You 00:13:31.720 --> 00:13:33.620 are just a vapor that appears for a little while 00:13:33.620 --> 00:13:36.039 and then vanishes away. Instead, here's what 00:13:36.039 --> 00:13:38.960 you ought to say. If the Lord wills, because 00:13:38.960 --> 00:13:42.039 he is sovereign, if the Lord wills, we will live 00:13:42.039 --> 00:13:46.360 and also do this or that. God ordains them all. 00:13:47.279 --> 00:13:50.340 He is sovereign. The point that Paul is driving 00:13:50.340 --> 00:13:52.679 at is this. The Lord calls his elect out of the 00:13:52.679 --> 00:13:56.220 world into all kinds of places and in all kinds 00:13:56.220 --> 00:13:59.460 of walks of life. And he assigns us each a role 00:13:59.460 --> 00:14:03.320 to play in building his kingdom. That's the most 00:14:03.320 --> 00:14:05.419 important purpose of our lives, right? To build 00:14:05.419 --> 00:14:08.820 the kingdom of God. And we can serve God's kingdom 00:14:08.820 --> 00:14:12.220 in a wide variety of situations and places. And 00:14:12.220 --> 00:14:15.059 so Paul says, wherever you are, wherever God 00:14:15.059 --> 00:14:17.799 has placed you, rest in his calling and his purpose 00:14:17.799 --> 00:14:21.259 for you. Be at peace in it. Don't be anxious 00:14:21.259 --> 00:14:24.500 all the time about changing your outward circumstances. 00:14:25.629 --> 00:14:27.750 And that's the big idea that Paul's driving at 00:14:27.750 --> 00:14:29.330 here. In fact, he's going to make this point 00:14:29.330 --> 00:14:32.929 three times in this passage. Three times. So 00:14:32.929 --> 00:14:34.470 when you see things repeated in the scripture, 00:14:34.669 --> 00:14:37.289 it should stand out. It's important. Three times. 00:14:37.629 --> 00:14:42.230 Find contentment in your situation. That's the 00:14:42.230 --> 00:14:45.149 big idea. We see it in verse 17, where it says, 00:14:45.250 --> 00:14:47.470 Only as the Lord is assigned to each one, or 00:14:47.470 --> 00:14:50.470 God has called each, in this manner or in this 00:14:50.470 --> 00:14:53.970 situation, let him walk. Let him lead his life. 00:14:54.840 --> 00:14:58.320 In this condition. In verse 20, each man must 00:14:58.320 --> 00:15:00.779 remain in that condition in which he was called. 00:15:00.980 --> 00:15:04.120 Brethren, verse 24, each one is to remain with 00:15:04.120 --> 00:15:06.779 God in that condition in which he was called. 00:15:06.840 --> 00:15:11.059 Three times. Three times he lays this out. Now, 00:15:11.059 --> 00:15:14.299 that first word only in verse 17 obviously connects. 00:15:15.039 --> 00:15:17.059 to what Paul has just said about marriage and 00:15:17.059 --> 00:15:19.559 divorce in the previous passage. Remember, some 00:15:19.559 --> 00:15:21.779 of the Corinthians were under the wrong impression 00:15:21.779 --> 00:15:24.919 that now that they're saved, they're found in 00:15:24.919 --> 00:15:26.799 Christ, they should make all these radical changes 00:15:26.799 --> 00:15:30.559 in their life. This is the context here, right? 00:15:30.679 --> 00:15:33.299 So they now had all these questions for Paul 00:15:33.299 --> 00:15:36.480 that they asked. Should a Christian spouse divorce 00:15:36.480 --> 00:15:39.720 his or her unbelieving spouse? Should I make 00:15:39.720 --> 00:15:42.529 that change? And Paul says, no, no, no, no. Don't 00:15:42.529 --> 00:15:45.750 divorce him or her. That spouse is sanctified 00:15:45.750 --> 00:15:48.090 by your presence in the home. Don't do that. 00:15:48.629 --> 00:15:51.110 Well, should a Christian couple who wants to 00:15:51.110 --> 00:15:53.929 be more spiritual abstain from sex? No, no, no. 00:15:54.429 --> 00:15:56.570 Paul says, don't do that. You should fulfill 00:15:56.570 --> 00:15:59.669 your marital obligations to one another as a 00:15:59.669 --> 00:16:02.210 protective measure against falling into sexual 00:16:02.210 --> 00:16:06.029 sin. Okay, well, should an unmarried person who's 00:16:06.029 --> 00:16:09.529 feeling the heat of sexual temptation marry quickly 00:16:09.529 --> 00:16:12.580 just to get out from under it? Paul says, no, 00:16:12.700 --> 00:16:16.159 no, no, no, no, don't do that. Exercise self 00:16:16.159 --> 00:16:19.480 -control. Well, should a Christian spouse resist 00:16:19.480 --> 00:16:21.899 an unbelieving spouse who wants to leave and 00:16:21.899 --> 00:16:24.340 abandon the marriage? No. Paul says, you're called 00:16:24.340 --> 00:16:27.799 to peace. It's okay to let them leave. Paul's 00:16:27.799 --> 00:16:30.960 answer to all these questions is no. Now that 00:16:30.960 --> 00:16:33.779 you're found in Christ, don't seek to radically 00:16:33.779 --> 00:16:36.860 change your circumstances in a way that's only 00:16:36.860 --> 00:16:39.700 going to create more turmoil and more disorder. 00:16:41.210 --> 00:16:43.769 Instead, take stock of the condition or the situation 00:16:43.769 --> 00:16:46.450 that you find yourself in. Know that God has 00:16:46.450 --> 00:16:49.490 sovereignly ordained that place and seek to be 00:16:49.490 --> 00:16:52.470 content there. That's the context of what's being 00:16:52.470 --> 00:16:55.309 said in this passage. And be content, by the 00:16:55.309 --> 00:16:57.490 way, even if you've arrived in your current situation, 00:16:57.850 --> 00:17:00.049 because I know this may be a question that you 00:17:00.049 --> 00:17:02.669 have. What if I've arrived in my current situation 00:17:02.669 --> 00:17:06.410 because of a past sinful choice or some lack 00:17:06.410 --> 00:17:09.920 of wisdom? God would say, well, don't compound 00:17:09.920 --> 00:17:12.319 the problem by now rushing into another bad choice, 00:17:12.500 --> 00:17:16.960 right? Be content. Listen, God can even take, 00:17:17.099 --> 00:17:19.240 this is how sovereign God is, you ready? And 00:17:19.240 --> 00:17:21.640 I don't even understand how God can do this, 00:17:21.740 --> 00:17:26.119 but he has a permissive aspect to his will where 00:17:26.119 --> 00:17:30.420 we sin. He allows us to sin, to make poor choices, 00:17:30.440 --> 00:17:33.579 and still he shapes it into his purposes and 00:17:33.579 --> 00:17:36.220 plans. How does he do that? That's above my pay 00:17:36.220 --> 00:17:40.190 grade. I don't know. But he does. But if you've 00:17:40.190 --> 00:17:42.289 arrived in your situation because of a bad past 00:17:42.289 --> 00:17:45.410 choice, don't make it worse by rushing into some 00:17:45.410 --> 00:17:48.069 other radical change that's going to create more 00:17:48.069 --> 00:17:53.890 turmoil. Now, as I say all of this, one thing 00:17:53.890 --> 00:17:56.029 you can't get twisted. If you are in a lifestyle 00:17:56.029 --> 00:17:59.009 right now that is blatantly sinful or illegal, 00:17:59.329 --> 00:18:02.809 you need to stop that right away. That type of 00:18:02.809 --> 00:18:05.329 change has to be made. But what Paul's talking 00:18:05.329 --> 00:18:07.849 about in this passage is social, relational, 00:18:08.049 --> 00:18:11.309 and vocational situations. In those things, don't 00:18:11.309 --> 00:18:13.569 be a person who's always looking for the next 00:18:13.569 --> 00:18:17.250 new thing to run after. We do this, don't we? 00:18:17.750 --> 00:18:20.069 Social media, I think, stirs this up in us. Here's 00:18:20.069 --> 00:18:23.109 the newest thing. Run after this. And we make 00:18:23.109 --> 00:18:25.890 radical changes in our lives. Paul says, no, 00:18:25.950 --> 00:18:28.849 no, no, don't do that. Don't do that. God has 00:18:28.849 --> 00:18:31.849 you where you are for a reason. So take a deep 00:18:31.849 --> 00:18:35.619 breath. Sit tight. And get to work for the kingdom. 00:18:36.539 --> 00:18:39.400 Amen? This is one of the most beautiful things 00:18:39.400 --> 00:18:41.740 about the Christian faith. It can be lived out 00:18:41.740 --> 00:18:45.160 in any scenario or any situation and be incredibly 00:18:45.160 --> 00:18:47.339 fruitful. That's one of the things he's going 00:18:47.339 --> 00:18:50.180 to show us in this passage. Because the fruitfulness 00:18:50.180 --> 00:18:52.359 of our ministry for the kingdom isn't dependent 00:18:52.359 --> 00:18:56.400 on those outward circumstances. Therefore, Paul 00:18:56.400 --> 00:18:59.400 says, don't let those things drive your decision 00:18:59.400 --> 00:19:02.359 making. Your job, your apartment, your bank account, 00:19:02.519 --> 00:19:05.359 your family situation. Don't let those things 00:19:05.359 --> 00:19:08.039 drive your decisions. Don't let them cause anxiety 00:19:08.039 --> 00:19:10.859 in you and hold you back from faithful service 00:19:10.859 --> 00:19:15.039 to the king. Find contentment in your identity 00:19:15.039 --> 00:19:17.960 in Christ. Find your contentment in the condition 00:19:17.960 --> 00:19:22.140 he's called you to and serve Christ where you 00:19:22.140 --> 00:19:26.400 are. And listen. Many of you here today have 00:19:26.400 --> 00:19:29.039 faced this decision, even about the church you 00:19:29.039 --> 00:19:31.200 belong to. Have you ever asked yourself the question, 00:19:31.380 --> 00:19:34.240 why are Jeff and Tanya still here after 20 years? 00:19:35.240 --> 00:19:37.519 Because we love this place. We're content. This 00:19:37.519 --> 00:19:39.880 is where God assigned us. This is where he's 00:19:39.880 --> 00:19:42.380 called us. Why do our elders have they served 00:19:42.380 --> 00:19:45.960 for 12, 14, 16, 18 years in this one church? 00:19:46.700 --> 00:19:49.119 Because God has assigned us here. He's called 00:19:49.119 --> 00:19:56.119 us to this role. planted us, and this is where 00:19:56.119 --> 00:20:00.079 we need to bloom. This is, by the way, Paul's 00:20:00.079 --> 00:20:03.759 whole theory of contentment. And this was our 00:20:03.759 --> 00:20:05.279 call to worship from earlier, so I'm going to 00:20:05.279 --> 00:20:07.059 put it on the screen so we can look at it again. 00:20:07.359 --> 00:20:10.319 Paul lays out his thankfulness for the support 00:20:10.319 --> 00:20:13.099 he received from the church in Philippi. Listen 00:20:13.099 --> 00:20:14.900 to what he says, and I know you probably know 00:20:14.900 --> 00:20:17.279 this verse, but in light of what we've just read 00:20:17.279 --> 00:20:19.700 about in 1 Corinthians, think carefully about 00:20:19.700 --> 00:20:23.099 what he says here. Paul says, I rejoice in the 00:20:23.099 --> 00:20:25.200 Lord greatly that now at length you've revived 00:20:25.200 --> 00:20:27.819 your concern for me because they had come to 00:20:27.819 --> 00:20:30.819 his rescue to support him. You were indeed concerned 00:20:30.819 --> 00:20:33.299 for me. I don't doubt that, he says, but you 00:20:33.299 --> 00:20:35.400 didn't have the opportunity and now you do and 00:20:35.400 --> 00:20:37.839 you've come through. Well done. Well done, Philippian 00:20:37.839 --> 00:20:39.759 church, right? It's one of the best churches 00:20:39.759 --> 00:20:43.220 in the New Testament, right? Then he says, not 00:20:43.220 --> 00:20:47.440 that I'm speaking of being in need. I'm glad 00:20:47.440 --> 00:20:49.420 you're concerned for me. I'm glad you came through 00:20:49.420 --> 00:20:52.380 with this gift, but I, I didn't ask for it out 00:20:52.380 --> 00:20:55.480 of a sense of need. He says, because I've learned 00:20:55.480 --> 00:20:58.640 in whatever situation I am, I can be content. 00:20:59.640 --> 00:21:01.880 I know how to be brought low, and I know how 00:21:01.880 --> 00:21:04.720 to abound. Isn't that good news? Sometimes, some 00:21:04.720 --> 00:21:07.799 seasons are really fruitful and wonderful, but 00:21:07.799 --> 00:21:13.559 also some are low. In any, underline it, any 00:21:13.559 --> 00:21:18.059 and every circumstance, I have learned the secret 00:21:18.059 --> 00:21:21.079 of facing plenty and hunger. abundance and need. 00:21:21.940 --> 00:21:24.640 It all happens, this is why he can be content, 00:21:24.839 --> 00:21:29.380 because of the one who strengthens me. Because 00:21:29.380 --> 00:21:34.000 Christ strengthens me in all circumstances. What 00:21:34.000 --> 00:21:37.119 a beautiful passage. He also explained this principle 00:21:37.119 --> 00:21:39.740 in his first letter to Timothy. He talked about 00:21:39.740 --> 00:21:42.980 false teachers who, he says, suppose that godliness 00:21:42.980 --> 00:21:45.819 is a means of selfish gain. And here's what he 00:21:45.819 --> 00:21:48.730 says in return. He says, Godliness actually is 00:21:48.730 --> 00:21:53.170 a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. 00:21:55.069 --> 00:21:57.990 Right? For we brought nothing into the world, 00:21:58.089 --> 00:22:00.869 so we can't take anything out of it either. If 00:22:00.869 --> 00:22:02.809 we have food and covering with these, we shall 00:22:02.809 --> 00:22:07.150 be content. Man, that is not an American ideal, 00:22:07.309 --> 00:22:10.730 is it? I just need the basics, and I'm content 00:22:10.730 --> 00:22:13.730 because I can serve God and I can love my brothers 00:22:13.730 --> 00:22:18.160 and sisters. I don't need much. Contentment is 00:22:18.160 --> 00:22:20.660 the confidence and peace that comes with walking 00:22:20.660 --> 00:22:24.359 in the Spirit. It empowers us to be satisfied 00:22:24.359 --> 00:22:27.579 in our situation and to serve God in the midst 00:22:27.579 --> 00:22:29.619 of all of it, even when it's low, even when it's 00:22:29.619 --> 00:22:32.460 hard. Remember, we're not about the prosperity 00:22:32.460 --> 00:22:35.319 gospel, where everything's about comfort and 00:22:35.319 --> 00:22:38.759 worldly success and material upgrades. trying 00:22:38.759 --> 00:22:40.920 to find ways to avoid all kinds of hardship. 00:22:41.119 --> 00:22:43.839 That's not the way the Bible tells us the Christian 00:22:43.839 --> 00:22:46.440 life is. Those are false promises that are laid 00:22:46.440 --> 00:22:49.920 on unsuspecting people. Paul talks about this 00:22:49.920 --> 00:22:52.519 in 2 Corinthians 4. I'll just summarize it. He 00:22:52.519 --> 00:22:55.660 says, look, I know your outer man is decaying, 00:22:55.660 --> 00:22:59.220 right? Your outer man's decaying. And he says, 00:22:59.259 --> 00:23:01.119 look, in this life, you're suffering affliction. 00:23:01.900 --> 00:23:04.279 But he says it's momentary, so we don't lose 00:23:04.279 --> 00:23:07.779 heart. Why? Because he says our inner man is 00:23:07.779 --> 00:23:11.160 being renewed day by day. We're getting closer 00:23:11.160 --> 00:23:14.660 to heaven every single day. And because the affliction 00:23:14.660 --> 00:23:17.339 we experience in this life is actually producing 00:23:17.339 --> 00:23:20.619 for us an eternal weight of glory that's far 00:23:20.619 --> 00:23:23.480 beyond our comprehension. And so we're able to 00:23:23.480 --> 00:23:26.400 look beyond the vapor of this life and see the 00:23:26.400 --> 00:23:30.099 glory that awaits. See, the changes God desires 00:23:30.099 --> 00:23:33.019 in our lives aren't so much about outward things. 00:23:33.140 --> 00:23:36.250 They're about our character within, right? They're 00:23:36.250 --> 00:23:39.450 about our faithfulness, about our trust in him. 00:23:40.170 --> 00:23:42.089 That's what he wants to change. And so Paul's 00:23:42.089 --> 00:23:45.109 exhortation is focus on being content and being 00:23:45.109 --> 00:23:49.549 faithful wherever you currently are. Now, having 00:23:49.549 --> 00:23:52.130 laid that out, I'm going to anticipate the objection 00:23:52.130 --> 00:23:56.250 that you might have. Because, by the way, one 00:23:56.250 --> 00:23:57.690 of the first things I do when I write a sermon 00:23:57.690 --> 00:23:59.329 is I start underlining all the big principles 00:23:59.329 --> 00:24:01.250 and I go, okay, what are people going to object 00:24:01.250 --> 00:24:05.619 to? Right? Because if I see it, you see it, right? 00:24:05.819 --> 00:24:09.900 So let me address the objection. Does this mean 00:24:09.900 --> 00:24:15.279 I can't have any ambition at all? No ambition 00:24:15.279 --> 00:24:18.400 at all. I'm not allowed to better my life in 00:24:18.400 --> 00:24:21.839 any way. Some people will take that from this 00:24:21.839 --> 00:24:24.480 passage. I'm not allowed to look for a better 00:24:24.480 --> 00:24:27.059 job or a better car or a better housing situation. 00:24:27.819 --> 00:24:30.940 And this just kills my incentive to grow and 00:24:30.940 --> 00:24:34.980 improve my life or my family's life. So let me 00:24:34.980 --> 00:24:37.200 give you the right perspective on this, because 00:24:37.200 --> 00:24:39.519 this is important for us. And again, this is, 00:24:39.579 --> 00:24:41.319 I think, really important for the younger people 00:24:41.319 --> 00:24:43.599 in the room this morning. With the right heart 00:24:43.599 --> 00:24:46.940 and attitude, with the right heart and attitude, 00:24:47.039 --> 00:24:50.700 a Christian can be content in their current circumstances, 00:24:50.920 --> 00:24:53.619 wherever God has them, while at the same time 00:24:53.619 --> 00:24:56.759 working with energy. and optimism for growth 00:24:56.759 --> 00:25:01.200 and opportunity. Those things can coexist. As 00:25:01.200 --> 00:25:03.940 in all things, the key is what? Motivation of 00:25:03.940 --> 00:25:07.059 the heart. Why do we seek after the things that 00:25:07.059 --> 00:25:09.859 we seek after? Is the desire to improve your 00:25:09.859 --> 00:25:13.119 situation motivated by the right things? Is it 00:25:13.119 --> 00:25:16.019 motivated by biblical values? Is it motivated 00:25:16.019 --> 00:25:19.539 by glorifying Christ? Or is it about your personal 00:25:19.539 --> 00:25:23.019 needs and wants, your ego, or your personal achievement? 00:25:23.740 --> 00:25:27.480 that brings you attention. These are the really 00:25:27.480 --> 00:25:30.200 hard, hard questions we have to ask when we want 00:25:30.200 --> 00:25:32.299 to improve our lives and we look at our options, 00:25:32.500 --> 00:25:35.819 ask yourself the hard questions. What am I motivated 00:25:35.819 --> 00:25:40.880 by? Listen, Paul was an ambitious apostle, wasn't 00:25:40.880 --> 00:25:44.500 he? He was an ambitious missionary. He had a 00:25:44.500 --> 00:25:46.839 strong desire to advance Christ's work in the 00:25:46.839 --> 00:25:49.960 world, but his ambition was always superintended 00:25:49.960 --> 00:25:53.059 by two things, by God's will. And his love for 00:25:53.059 --> 00:25:58.460 other people. Not by personal gain. Certainly 00:25:58.460 --> 00:26:00.420 not for more comfort in life because he didn't 00:26:00.420 --> 00:26:03.319 have much. So his heart was motivated by the 00:26:03.319 --> 00:26:07.400 right things. But he was ambitious. See, contentment 00:26:07.400 --> 00:26:10.200 says this. It's on the screen. God is good and 00:26:10.200 --> 00:26:12.420 the condition I'm in right now is sufficient 00:26:12.420 --> 00:26:16.660 for my needs. Healthy ambition says, because 00:26:16.660 --> 00:26:19.740 I'm found in Christ, I will faithfully walk through 00:26:19.740 --> 00:26:23.000 the doors that he opens for me. in order to pursue 00:26:23.000 --> 00:26:26.380 wise opportunities for me and my family and so 00:26:26.380 --> 00:26:30.059 that I can serve him more fruitfully. Those two 00:26:30.059 --> 00:26:34.000 things can coexist. So don't get me wrong. Biblical 00:26:34.000 --> 00:26:37.559 contentment is not being apathetic or lazy or 00:26:37.559 --> 00:26:39.299 saying, please, Lord, give me more hardship. 00:26:41.099 --> 00:26:43.740 It's trusting God with outcomes that you cannot 00:26:43.740 --> 00:26:47.720 control. It's receiving your current circumstances 00:26:47.720 --> 00:26:51.809 with joy. Rather than making the desires of your 00:26:51.809 --> 00:26:55.589 heart a condition for your joy. Oh, if I just 00:26:55.589 --> 00:26:58.869 get this thing or if I just get that job, if 00:26:58.869 --> 00:27:01.390 I just, just, just, just, just, just, then I'll 00:27:01.390 --> 00:27:06.150 have joy. Now you've missed the mark. So it's 00:27:06.150 --> 00:27:09.690 possible to walk into this week saying this to 00:27:09.690 --> 00:27:12.730 the Lord in prayer. You ready? Lord, I would 00:27:12.730 --> 00:27:15.730 welcome any opportunity to pursue this change 00:27:15.730 --> 00:27:19.990 or that change. But I will not withhold my thankfulness, 00:27:20.009 --> 00:27:23.609 my service, or my joy if you, Lord, say no or 00:27:23.609 --> 00:27:29.869 redirect me. Does that make sense? That's important. 00:27:30.309 --> 00:27:32.930 That's a good prayer. That's a good, healthy 00:27:32.930 --> 00:27:36.789 prayer. And if a door does end up opening for 00:27:36.789 --> 00:27:39.150 you, then you have some choices to make and some 00:27:39.150 --> 00:27:41.630 questions to lay before the throne of grace and 00:27:41.630 --> 00:27:44.009 maybe bring to a trusted counselor to ask for 00:27:44.009 --> 00:27:47.920 advice. What you want to do is saying, gosh, 00:27:47.940 --> 00:27:49.779 I really want this thing. And when the door opens, 00:27:49.859 --> 00:27:52.460 go, yes, that's what I've always wanted. No, 00:27:52.579 --> 00:27:57.500 that's not the primary thing. The questions are, 00:27:57.700 --> 00:28:02.000 would this change help me live more faithfully 00:28:02.000 --> 00:28:04.079 in my walk with Christ and in my responsibilities? 00:28:06.079 --> 00:28:08.799 Can I pursue this change honestly, patiently, 00:28:08.799 --> 00:28:11.700 and without neglecting the responsibilities that 00:28:11.700 --> 00:28:14.119 God has entrusted to me in my current situation? 00:28:15.740 --> 00:28:18.519 Does it line up with scripture? Is it affirmed 00:28:18.519 --> 00:28:22.319 by wise counsel? Am I willing to rejoice and 00:28:22.319 --> 00:28:25.440 press on faithfully in my current situation if 00:28:25.440 --> 00:28:28.720 God ends up closing that door? This is how we 00:28:28.720 --> 00:28:31.099 test our heart when change and opportunities 00:28:31.099 --> 00:28:35.460 come our way. Amen? I know some of you guys are 00:28:35.460 --> 00:28:37.500 taking pictures of this. That's good. You can 00:28:37.500 --> 00:28:40.039 always text me or email me and say, send me those 00:28:40.039 --> 00:28:43.970 slides. Happy to do that. So bottom line, rather 00:28:43.970 --> 00:28:46.609 than spending fruitless amounts of energy complaining 00:28:46.609 --> 00:28:49.710 or agonizing over your current circumstances, 00:28:50.349 --> 00:28:55.069 Paul's advice is focus on contentment. Don't 00:28:55.069 --> 00:28:57.130 shut out opportunities. Welcome them with the 00:28:57.130 --> 00:29:00.289 right heart motivation. But focus on being content. 00:29:00.450 --> 00:29:02.569 Focus on all the blessings you already have. 00:29:04.190 --> 00:29:07.509 Right? We always want. But what about the blessings 00:29:07.509 --> 00:29:09.029 you already have? What about all the good gifts 00:29:09.029 --> 00:29:12.099 that you've received from God? Seek to be thankful 00:29:12.099 --> 00:29:15.200 and joyful in your current situation and serve 00:29:15.200 --> 00:29:17.980 the kingdom from that place and from that role 00:29:17.980 --> 00:29:20.880 that God has called you to. And if change is 00:29:20.880 --> 00:29:22.799 going to happen, if God's going to open those 00:29:22.799 --> 00:29:25.079 doors to better your life in some way, trust 00:29:25.079 --> 00:29:28.259 him to bring it about without you trying to break 00:29:28.259 --> 00:29:30.259 your way through that door and manipulate the 00:29:30.259 --> 00:29:33.640 situation for yourself. Trust that he'll open 00:29:33.640 --> 00:29:37.039 those doors. Is he sovereign? If he is, he can 00:29:37.039 --> 00:29:41.019 make that happen. Trust him. Be patient. in those 00:29:41.019 --> 00:29:43.880 things. Okay, that's the big idea that Paul wants 00:29:43.880 --> 00:29:46.180 to get through. What we need to do in the time 00:29:46.180 --> 00:29:49.279 we have left is now walk through these two illustrations 00:29:49.279 --> 00:29:53.599 that he gives us to prove his point. And they 00:29:53.599 --> 00:29:56.160 may seem strange to us living in the 21st century, 00:29:56.339 --> 00:29:58.880 but there's actually a ton of wisdom here. So 00:29:58.880 --> 00:30:03.299 before we look at verses 18 and 19, let me put 00:30:03.299 --> 00:30:05.220 up on the screen a very important verse. It's 00:30:05.220 --> 00:30:08.220 from Galatians 3 .28. And here you're going to 00:30:08.220 --> 00:30:11.400 see how Paul lays out three major distinctions 00:30:11.400 --> 00:30:15.160 that existed in the congregations of the first 00:30:15.160 --> 00:30:18.359 century church. And Paul takes great pains in 00:30:18.359 --> 00:30:22.140 Galatians 3 to show that being in Christ supersedes 00:30:22.140 --> 00:30:26.200 all physical and social distinctions. What matters 00:30:26.200 --> 00:30:29.900 most is the unity of the body in spite of our 00:30:29.900 --> 00:30:32.279 circumstances. So look what it says. He says, 00:30:40.039 --> 00:30:43.079 So those are the three human distinctions that 00:30:43.079 --> 00:30:46.200 the early church was dealing with. Jew and Gentile, 00:30:46.240 --> 00:30:48.799 slave and free, male and female. Now if you come 00:30:48.799 --> 00:30:51.500 back to the text in 1 Corinthians, the two illustrations 00:30:51.500 --> 00:30:55.000 that Paul uses are two of these three same things 00:30:55.000 --> 00:30:59.400 that he's going to show to us. So look at verse 00:30:59.400 --> 00:31:07.119 18. He says, So who's he referring to there? 00:31:08.319 --> 00:31:11.890 Jews. He's referring to any Christ follower in 00:31:11.890 --> 00:31:14.609 the Corinthian church who was drawn into salvation 00:31:14.609 --> 00:31:18.190 while being an ethnic Jew. Some of you have been 00:31:18.190 --> 00:31:20.490 circumcised according to the Old Testament law. 00:31:20.710 --> 00:31:23.230 And what does Paul instruct this Jewish Christian 00:31:23.230 --> 00:31:27.769 to do now that he's in Christ? Do not become 00:31:27.769 --> 00:31:30.910 uncircumcised, he writes. And a better way to 00:31:30.910 --> 00:31:33.930 understand that is don't seek to undo the marks 00:31:33.930 --> 00:31:40.359 of your circumcision. Now. As I say that, how 00:31:40.359 --> 00:31:42.579 many of you are thinking, how is that anatomically 00:31:42.579 --> 00:31:46.779 possible? It's okay. It's okay if that came to 00:31:46.779 --> 00:31:50.839 your mind. If you think that's impossible, I'm 00:31:50.839 --> 00:31:58.119 about to tell you a story. Sorry, Jason. Second 00:31:58.119 --> 00:32:01.299 row up here. I'm going to try not to be graphic. 00:32:02.000 --> 00:32:04.920 This is going to be a G -rated story. Actually, 00:32:04.960 --> 00:32:07.019 we're going to call this Jeff's Historical Corner. 00:32:07.599 --> 00:32:10.740 I need a theme song, Grant. We're just going 00:32:10.740 --> 00:32:12.519 to take a break from the text for a second. And 00:32:12.519 --> 00:32:15.400 you guys know how I love the intertestamental 00:32:15.400 --> 00:32:17.960 period, right? Okay, I'm going to tell you a 00:32:17.960 --> 00:32:20.720 story because this is a real thing. This is a 00:32:20.720 --> 00:32:23.500 real thing from history. Several hundred years, 00:32:23.579 --> 00:32:25.500 in fact, I'll put a picture up. Several hundred 00:32:25.500 --> 00:32:29.539 years before Paul wrote this letter to the Corinthian 00:32:29.539 --> 00:32:31.700 church during the intertestamental period around 00:32:31.700 --> 00:32:36.259 the year 175 BC. When the Holy Land was under 00:32:36.259 --> 00:32:41.339 the occupation of the Greeks, the Seleucid Empire 00:32:41.339 --> 00:32:45.440 ruling over the Jews, there was this powerful 00:32:45.440 --> 00:32:50.039 movement among ethnic Jews toward Hellenism, 00:32:50.180 --> 00:32:53.559 toward moving away from their Jewish identity 00:32:53.559 --> 00:32:57.799 and moving towards becoming more Greek. It was 00:32:57.799 --> 00:32:59.940 the popular thing to do in that day, especially 00:32:59.940 --> 00:33:03.420 among, not surprisingly, the young people. who 00:33:03.420 --> 00:33:06.440 saw this as the new and exciting thing. And by 00:33:06.440 --> 00:33:08.099 the way, we have multiple historical sources 00:33:08.099 --> 00:33:10.559 for this. You'll find this story in the book 00:33:10.559 --> 00:33:13.680 of 1 Maccabees. You'll also find it written about 00:33:13.680 --> 00:33:17.819 by Flavius Josephus, the Jewish historian. And 00:33:17.819 --> 00:33:20.380 it all takes place under the reign, shockingly, 00:33:20.380 --> 00:33:25.019 of a Jewish high priest whose given Hebrew name 00:33:25.019 --> 00:33:28.900 was Yeshua or Joshua, but he took upon himself 00:33:28.900 --> 00:33:35.839 the Greek name Jason. Sorry, man. Jason, Jason 00:33:35.839 --> 00:33:39.039 the high priest. Do the research later today. 00:33:39.759 --> 00:33:42.680 This Jason came to believe that being Greek was 00:33:42.680 --> 00:33:45.500 the pinnacle of human development. And he was 00:33:45.500 --> 00:33:48.759 entranced by the culture that the Greek Seleucids 00:33:48.759 --> 00:33:51.700 brought to the land of Judea. So he petitioned 00:33:51.700 --> 00:33:54.839 the king at the time, Antiochus IV, to give him 00:33:54.839 --> 00:33:57.700 permission, get this, to turn Jerusalem into 00:33:57.700 --> 00:34:01.880 a Hellenistic city. He actually wanted to rename 00:34:01.880 --> 00:34:05.390 it Antioch after the king. And he did for a time. 00:34:05.789 --> 00:34:09.730 And Jason did two things that shocked the traditional 00:34:09.730 --> 00:34:12.610 Jews of that day. First, he established something 00:34:12.610 --> 00:34:16.349 that we call an ephibion, which was a youth training 00:34:16.349 --> 00:34:19.710 institute where young Jewish men were recruited, 00:34:19.869 --> 00:34:25.110 raised, and trained to be Greeks. They'd be trained 00:34:25.110 --> 00:34:28.329 in Greek philosophy, civics, athletics, military 00:34:28.329 --> 00:34:32.050 tactics, basically replacing their Jewish identities 00:34:32.050 --> 00:34:35.239 and culture. By the way, that's not a new idea 00:34:35.239 --> 00:34:37.039 in the ancient world. Do we not see that in the 00:34:37.039 --> 00:34:40.780 book of Daniel? The Babylonians exiled the best 00:34:40.780 --> 00:34:43.099 of the young Judean men, and they bring them 00:34:43.099 --> 00:34:45.360 to Babylon, and what do they do? They train them. 00:34:45.579 --> 00:34:48.119 They change their names, their identities, and 00:34:48.119 --> 00:34:50.760 they train them to become good Babylonians, good 00:34:50.760 --> 00:34:53.519 servants of the Babylonian king. So this wasn't 00:34:53.519 --> 00:34:55.960 new, but this was happening to the Jews in the 00:34:55.960 --> 00:34:58.679 intertestamental period. So he established this 00:34:58.679 --> 00:35:02.139 institute, first of all. That was bad. The other 00:35:02.139 --> 00:35:04.679 thing he established was actually much worse 00:35:04.679 --> 00:35:08.159 and more shocking. He built a massive gymnasium 00:35:08.159 --> 00:35:12.219 on the south end of the citadel right up against 00:35:12.219 --> 00:35:15.300 the Temple Mount. And you're thinking, what's 00:35:15.300 --> 00:35:17.360 the big deal about building a gymnasium? I go 00:35:17.360 --> 00:35:22.699 to a gym. Oh, boy. In Greek culture, athletic 00:35:22.699 --> 00:35:28.980 contests were always done in the nude. Are you 00:35:28.980 --> 00:35:30.860 glad that doesn't happen in the Olympics anymore? 00:35:32.230 --> 00:35:36.110 In fact, the root word, Greek word for gymnasium 00:35:36.110 --> 00:35:41.409 is gumnos. And you know what it means? Scholars, 00:35:41.530 --> 00:35:46.369 it means naked. Try to think about that when 00:35:46.369 --> 00:35:47.969 you go to the gym this week. But that's what 00:35:47.969 --> 00:35:52.309 it means. And so Jason's gymnasium was where 00:35:52.309 --> 00:35:55.639 the elite men of society went to work out. and 00:35:55.639 --> 00:35:58.360 where they bathed naked right there in the shadow 00:35:58.360 --> 00:36:00.800 of the Temple Mount. And traditional Jews were 00:36:00.800 --> 00:36:03.900 appalled by this. But listen now, the young progressive 00:36:03.900 --> 00:36:07.960 Jews of that day, they were very much drawn to 00:36:07.960 --> 00:36:11.639 this idea of being more Greek. And here's why 00:36:11.639 --> 00:36:13.940 this matters for our text in 1 Corinthians 7. 00:36:14.340 --> 00:36:18.159 A young Jewish man participating in the activities 00:36:18.159 --> 00:36:22.500 at the gymnasium would physically stand out because 00:36:22.500 --> 00:36:27.300 of his circumcision. And so we're told by these 00:36:27.300 --> 00:36:31.300 sources that many of these young men underwent 00:36:31.300 --> 00:36:34.800 primitive surgeries to reverse their circumcision. 00:36:35.079 --> 00:36:38.619 In fact, Josephus gets very graphic in his description 00:36:38.619 --> 00:36:41.800 of this. I'll leave that alone. So for ambitious 00:36:41.800 --> 00:36:43.980 young Jewish men who wanted to advance in Greek 00:36:43.980 --> 00:36:46.619 society, they had to hide their Jewish identity, 00:36:46.900 --> 00:36:49.840 imbibe Greek culture, because that was socially 00:36:49.840 --> 00:36:54.559 advantageous, and many of them did it. So when 00:36:54.559 --> 00:36:59.079 Paul says don't become uncircumcised, that's 00:36:59.079 --> 00:37:02.460 a real thing, shockingly. By the way, this Hellenizing 00:37:02.460 --> 00:37:05.280 movement of Jerusalem and Judea by Jason, that's 00:37:05.280 --> 00:37:07.320 eventually the cause of the Maccabean Revolt. 00:37:08.380 --> 00:37:10.400 When the traditional Jews of the day finally 00:37:10.400 --> 00:37:13.179 stood up and said, nope, no more. And they took 00:37:13.179 --> 00:37:16.260 up arms against the Greeks and actually won their 00:37:16.260 --> 00:37:20.239 independence in a war. So, consequences. All 00:37:20.239 --> 00:37:22.079 right, so coming back, that was Jeff's historical 00:37:22.079 --> 00:37:28.480 corner. Any chance to talk about the intertestamental 00:37:28.480 --> 00:37:30.199 period, I'm going to do that. Okay, coming back 00:37:30.199 --> 00:37:32.840 to Corinth and Paul's day. To the ethnic Jews 00:37:32.840 --> 00:37:34.840 in the Corinthian church, don't seek to undo 00:37:34.840 --> 00:37:37.639 the marks of your circumcision. God is saying, 00:37:37.659 --> 00:37:40.360 don't change who you are. It doesn't matter. 00:37:42.360 --> 00:37:44.920 Don't try to be Greek. In God's eyes, you are 00:37:44.920 --> 00:37:48.139 beloved as an ethnic Jew who's trusted in Christ 00:37:48.139 --> 00:37:52.980 as Messiah and Lord. Now, it's likely that in 00:37:52.980 --> 00:37:54.619 the Corinthian church at this time, there were 00:37:54.619 --> 00:37:57.719 traditional Jews who had a traditional view of 00:37:57.719 --> 00:38:00.099 their identity. In fact, they might have boasted 00:38:00.099 --> 00:38:02.420 in their circumcision because they were physical 00:38:02.420 --> 00:38:04.699 descendants of Abraham. They were God's covenant 00:38:04.699 --> 00:38:06.940 people under the old covenant. There might have 00:38:06.940 --> 00:38:09.929 even been some Judaizers. In the Corinthian church 00:38:09.929 --> 00:38:12.309 at this time, Jewish men who were saying to the 00:38:12.309 --> 00:38:14.329 Gentiles, you guys should get circumcised. If 00:38:14.329 --> 00:38:16.710 you want to experience the fullness of the blessing 00:38:16.710 --> 00:38:19.289 of Christ, you should be circumcised. You should 00:38:19.289 --> 00:38:22.110 become Jewish before you become Christian. And 00:38:22.110 --> 00:38:24.389 we call those Judaizers. So there's all kinds 00:38:24.389 --> 00:38:26.849 of people in the Corinthian church. So Paul addresses 00:38:26.849 --> 00:38:30.250 that in verse 18. He writes, has anyone been 00:38:30.250 --> 00:38:33.949 called in uncircumcision? Meaning you were called 00:38:33.949 --> 00:38:37.619 as an ethnic Gentile. Paul's advice to them is 00:38:37.619 --> 00:38:40.039 straightforward. He is not to be circumcised. 00:38:40.320 --> 00:38:43.139 Don't let those Judaizers influence you. Do not 00:38:43.139 --> 00:38:46.119 become circumcised. You too are beloved as an 00:38:46.119 --> 00:38:49.820 ethnic Gentile by God. And in verse 19, he lays 00:38:49.820 --> 00:38:51.699 out the principle for both of them. Look at it. 00:38:52.599 --> 00:38:55.900 Circumcision is nothing. And uncircumcision is 00:38:55.900 --> 00:38:58.579 nothing. It just doesn't matter under the new 00:38:58.579 --> 00:39:02.260 covenant, whether you're Jew or Gentile. Paul 00:39:02.260 --> 00:39:03.980 wrote the same thing to the Galatian churches. 00:39:04.059 --> 00:39:06.719 He said, both circumcision and uncircumcision 00:39:06.719 --> 00:39:09.679 mean nothing. What matters, he says, is the new 00:39:09.679 --> 00:39:13.679 creation. Ah, that's what matters. Being born 00:39:13.679 --> 00:39:16.559 again by the Spirit, becoming new creations in 00:39:16.559 --> 00:39:19.380 Christ, that is what changes everything. That 00:39:19.380 --> 00:39:22.139 is what levels the playing field among all of 00:39:22.139 --> 00:39:25.500 mankind. And so outward ethnic distinctions no 00:39:25.500 --> 00:39:28.809 longer matter as they once did. It's not our 00:39:28.809 --> 00:39:32.030 identities as Jews or Gentiles or even male or 00:39:32.030 --> 00:39:35.369 female that are most relevant. By the way, those 00:39:35.369 --> 00:39:38.150 conditions still exist. Men are still men. Women 00:39:38.150 --> 00:39:40.110 are still women, despite what the culture says. 00:39:41.250 --> 00:39:43.510 Gentiles are still Gentiles. Ethnic Jews are 00:39:43.510 --> 00:39:46.210 still ethnic Jews. That's fine. It's just that 00:39:46.210 --> 00:39:48.969 those identities have been superseded by the 00:39:48.969 --> 00:39:52.489 shared identity we have in Christ. That's important. 00:39:53.230 --> 00:39:55.769 That was Paul's point in Galatians 3 .28, right? 00:39:55.929 --> 00:39:59.110 The oneness in Christ is what matters most. By 00:39:59.110 --> 00:40:00.869 the way, we should always remember that circumcision 00:40:00.869 --> 00:40:04.429 was a covenant sign given in the law, which pointed 00:40:04.429 --> 00:40:08.429 to a greater reality, right? It's not just about 00:40:08.429 --> 00:40:10.929 cutting the flesh, right? It's pointing to something, 00:40:11.070 --> 00:40:14.869 this great reality, a circumcision of what? Of 00:40:14.869 --> 00:40:18.150 the heart. which was promised to come to God's 00:40:18.150 --> 00:40:20.449 people through the promised seed and the blessing 00:40:20.449 --> 00:40:22.889 of all nations. And now, in the new covenant 00:40:22.889 --> 00:40:26.329 era, the significance of that sign has been replaced 00:40:26.329 --> 00:40:29.250 by the substance that it once pointed to. Who's 00:40:29.250 --> 00:40:32.190 that? It's the person of Christ, the Savior and 00:40:32.190 --> 00:40:35.750 the Son of God, right? And we take hold of him 00:40:35.750 --> 00:40:38.409 by faith, which, by the way, just as Abraham 00:40:38.409 --> 00:40:41.849 was counted righteous by faith prior to receiving 00:40:41.849 --> 00:40:46.280 circumcision. So the sign was given, but it always 00:40:46.280 --> 00:40:48.579 pointed to something far more important and far 00:40:48.579 --> 00:40:51.199 greater. The danger that Paul is warning about 00:40:51.199 --> 00:40:54.360 here in verses 18 and 19 is that Christians will 00:40:54.360 --> 00:40:56.860 become more committed to outward things than 00:40:56.860 --> 00:41:00.500 inner realities. Focus more on the outside of 00:41:00.500 --> 00:41:02.380 the cup rather than cleaning the inside of the 00:41:02.380 --> 00:41:05.179 cup. And so you see Paul adding in verse 19, 00:41:05.500 --> 00:41:08.960 what matters is not circumcision or uncircumcision, 00:41:09.039 --> 00:41:11.179 but what? The keeping of the commandments of 00:41:11.179 --> 00:41:14.139 God. Meaning what matters more than outward signs 00:41:14.139 --> 00:41:17.639 is internal faithfulness. A life lived for the 00:41:17.639 --> 00:41:21.079 glory of God in obedience to his will. That is 00:41:21.079 --> 00:41:24.239 ultimately what reveals who God's people are, 00:41:24.360 --> 00:41:28.900 whether we're Jew or Gentile. It's obeying the 00:41:28.900 --> 00:41:32.800 divine will. So that's illustration number one. 00:41:33.099 --> 00:41:36.340 I know it's a little confusing, but it's important 00:41:36.340 --> 00:41:38.280 for us. Let's look at the second example and 00:41:38.280 --> 00:41:40.960 we'll close with this. It's another distinction 00:41:40.960 --> 00:41:45.039 that was highlighted in Galatians 3 .28. Slaves 00:41:45.039 --> 00:41:51.500 versus freemen. Verse 21 says this. Were you 00:41:51.500 --> 00:41:55.480 called while a slave? Don't worry about it, Paul 00:41:55.480 --> 00:41:59.000 says. Don't be concerned about it. Easy for us 00:41:59.000 --> 00:42:02.920 to say, right? Does that statement shock you, 00:42:02.940 --> 00:42:05.860 by the way? Don't worry about being a slave. 00:42:06.880 --> 00:42:10.440 It's a pretty extreme example. And it's an interesting 00:42:10.440 --> 00:42:13.400 question. Could you be content as a Christian 00:42:13.400 --> 00:42:19.119 if you were a slave? Consider that. It certainly 00:42:19.119 --> 00:42:21.079 tells us something about the ease of our modern 00:42:21.079 --> 00:42:23.179 lives, right? Because we complain about all kinds 00:42:23.179 --> 00:42:27.179 of things, right? We complain about not having 00:42:27.179 --> 00:42:29.820 things or situations we're in today that would 00:42:29.820 --> 00:42:32.480 make an ancient Greco -Roman person shrug their 00:42:32.480 --> 00:42:34.420 shoulders at you in disbelief. Like, really? 00:42:34.500 --> 00:42:36.300 That's what you're complaining about? I'm a slave. 00:42:38.349 --> 00:42:41.050 The reason why we react so strongly to this, 00:42:41.170 --> 00:42:44.170 and I don't have time to unpack all of this, 00:42:44.210 --> 00:42:46.530 maybe a podcast at some point, but the reason 00:42:46.530 --> 00:42:49.170 why we react so strongly to this is because of 00:42:49.170 --> 00:42:51.150 the immediate connection that we make as Americans 00:42:51.150 --> 00:42:54.650 to our experience of slavery, right? The horrors 00:42:54.650 --> 00:42:57.940 of the transatlantic slave trade. that took place 00:42:57.940 --> 00:42:59.960 at the founding of our nation back in the 17th 00:42:59.960 --> 00:43:02.139 century. But here's what we have to do historically. 00:43:02.360 --> 00:43:04.820 We have to be careful not to apply our experience 00:43:04.820 --> 00:43:07.440 to other forms of slavery at different times 00:43:07.440 --> 00:43:09.139 and in different places, because they're not 00:43:09.139 --> 00:43:12.320 the same thing. Slavery in the Greco -Roman world, 00:43:12.420 --> 00:43:15.760 first of all, was not racially based, and it 00:43:15.760 --> 00:43:17.980 didn't look anything like slave plantations in 00:43:17.980 --> 00:43:20.980 the southern colonies in America. Slavery in 00:43:20.980 --> 00:43:22.980 the Roman world was much more common than it 00:43:22.980 --> 00:43:25.639 was in the colonies, much more prolific. In the 00:43:25.639 --> 00:43:28.289 city of Rome, and in Italy in general, about, 00:43:28.369 --> 00:43:32.090 get this, 30 to 35 % of the population were slaves. 00:43:32.750 --> 00:43:34.809 When you extend that out to other parts of the 00:43:34.809 --> 00:43:37.389 empire in places like Corinth, it drops a little 00:43:37.389 --> 00:43:39.809 bit down to about 20%, but we're still talking 00:43:39.809 --> 00:43:43.090 about 10 million people in the Roman world who 00:43:43.090 --> 00:43:46.309 lived in slavery. So it's a major part of Mediterranean 00:43:46.309 --> 00:43:49.349 life, and it's a part of the economic power that 00:43:49.349 --> 00:43:52.389 lies behind the city of Corinth. And back in 00:43:52.389 --> 00:43:54.469 that day, you could find yourself in slavery 00:43:54.469 --> 00:43:56.989 for all kinds of reasons. Yes, many people were 00:43:56.989 --> 00:43:58.809 born into slavery because their parents were 00:43:58.809 --> 00:44:02.070 slaves. But you might be a prisoner of war. The 00:44:02.070 --> 00:44:04.369 Romans took a lot of prisoners of war and shipped 00:44:04.369 --> 00:44:07.550 them right into slavery. You might have sold 00:44:07.550 --> 00:44:10.070 yourself into slavery to pay off a debt. Some 00:44:10.070 --> 00:44:12.949 people even volunteered to be slaves because 00:44:12.949 --> 00:44:15.030 they didn't think they could survive the harsh 00:44:15.030 --> 00:44:17.329 conditions of life back then. And it made more 00:44:17.329 --> 00:44:20.030 sense to go into a household that could help 00:44:20.030 --> 00:44:23.460 them to survive. So slaves came in every shade 00:44:23.460 --> 00:44:25.860 of skin color and from all nations across the 00:44:25.860 --> 00:44:29.739 world, from Gaul and Iberia, Germania, the Balkans, 00:44:29.900 --> 00:44:33.079 North Africa, Egypt, and more, from all over 00:44:33.079 --> 00:44:36.099 the world. And there were many types and conditions 00:44:36.099 --> 00:44:38.460 of slavery back then. At the bottom end of the 00:44:38.460 --> 00:44:41.719 spectrum were slaves who were really poorly treated 00:44:41.719 --> 00:44:44.400 and lived in deplorable conditions. They worked 00:44:44.400 --> 00:44:46.840 in the fields, they worked in quarries, some 00:44:46.840 --> 00:44:49.380 of them worked in mines, and that's where they 00:44:49.380 --> 00:44:53.269 died. as slaves. Then there was the middle layer. 00:44:53.369 --> 00:44:55.489 There were slaves who worked as household slaves 00:44:55.489 --> 00:44:58.570 and sometimes as artisans and shopkeepers, and 00:44:58.570 --> 00:45:00.730 they were treated better. And even some of those 00:45:00.730 --> 00:45:03.170 folks in that middle layer could actually win 00:45:03.170 --> 00:45:06.349 their freedom over time. And then, this was rare, 00:45:06.469 --> 00:45:09.429 but there's the elite side of slavery in the 00:45:09.429 --> 00:45:12.949 Roman world. where highly skilled slaves went 00:45:12.949 --> 00:45:15.690 to work for their master in a way that resembles 00:45:15.690 --> 00:45:18.250 more like our employer -employee situation today. 00:45:18.409 --> 00:45:21.329 So a wealthy Roman household would have a cook 00:45:21.329 --> 00:45:25.289 and a laundress and a tutor who taught the children 00:45:25.289 --> 00:45:28.329 and a secretary who handled correspondence and 00:45:28.329 --> 00:45:31.710 a steward who supervised the estate and an accountant 00:45:31.710 --> 00:45:34.349 who oversaw the books and workers to work the 00:45:34.349 --> 00:45:37.469 shops. So these were elite slaves that had really, 00:45:37.590 --> 00:45:40.820 really good lives. So regardless of what kind 00:45:40.820 --> 00:45:42.860 of slavery a Christian might find himself in, 00:45:42.960 --> 00:45:46.119 even that most brutal form of slavery, Paul's 00:45:46.119 --> 00:45:49.360 exhortation applies. Listen, it's still just 00:45:49.360 --> 00:45:54.440 an outward earthly condition. It's still just 00:45:54.440 --> 00:45:57.239 an outward earthly condition. And a change in 00:45:57.239 --> 00:46:00.460 status from slave to free isn't required to live 00:46:00.460 --> 00:46:04.219 out a fruitful Christian life. You can be a slave 00:46:04.219 --> 00:46:08.739 and be a fruitful Christian. Do you believe that? 00:46:09.929 --> 00:46:13.590 Any scenario, any situation, you can be a fruitful 00:46:13.590 --> 00:46:16.869 Christian. So Paul says, don't let your status 00:46:16.869 --> 00:46:20.269 as a slave consume you. You have Christ. He's 00:46:20.269 --> 00:46:22.929 sufficient for all things. Not just in this life, 00:46:22.989 --> 00:46:25.829 but in the life to come. Even more so in the 00:46:25.829 --> 00:46:29.170 life to come. And isn't your status in eternity 00:46:29.170 --> 00:46:32.250 far greater than your status of suffering during 00:46:32.250 --> 00:46:34.889 this vapor of life that we have on the earth? 00:46:35.030 --> 00:46:38.389 That's the perspective. And in that, even as 00:46:38.389 --> 00:46:42.889 a slave, You can be a fruitful Christian. And 00:46:42.889 --> 00:46:44.969 look, I know this is hard for us because we know 00:46:44.969 --> 00:46:48.010 that slavery is such an appalling evil, and Paul's 00:46:48.010 --> 00:46:51.389 not defending it here. He's not defending it. 00:46:51.409 --> 00:46:53.929 He's simply writing as a voice of wisdom in the 00:46:53.929 --> 00:46:56.110 midst of the harsh realities of the world that 00:46:56.110 --> 00:47:00.269 he lived in. In fact, in Ephesians 6 and Colossians 00:47:00.269 --> 00:47:02.829 3, he talks about how a Christian who's a slave 00:47:02.829 --> 00:47:06.269 can live with integrity and glorify Christ. Look 00:47:06.269 --> 00:47:09.840 at this. Look at this verse. Slaves, obey your 00:47:09.840 --> 00:47:13.099 human masters with fear and trembling, he writes, 00:47:13.300 --> 00:47:15.900 in the sincerity of your heart as to Christ. 00:47:16.320 --> 00:47:18.940 Don't work only while being watched as people 00:47:18.940 --> 00:47:23.119 pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing God's 00:47:23.119 --> 00:47:26.599 will from the heart. With goodwill, render service 00:47:26.599 --> 00:47:29.519 as to the Lord and not to men, knowing whatever 00:47:29.519 --> 00:47:32.980 good each one does, slave or free, he will receive 00:47:32.980 --> 00:47:36.159 this back from the Lord. That is a, that is a, 00:47:36.280 --> 00:47:41.119 whew. What a passage. Do you see the key, though, 00:47:41.179 --> 00:47:44.139 to living out a fruitful Christian life, even 00:47:44.139 --> 00:47:47.539 in slavery? The key to faithfulness. And again, 00:47:47.619 --> 00:47:49.719 whether you're a slave in the ancient world or 00:47:49.719 --> 00:47:53.500 you're an office worker today, right, or anywhere 00:47:53.500 --> 00:47:56.599 in between, the key is the sincerity of your 00:47:56.599 --> 00:48:01.880 heart. Living out your place, living out the 00:48:01.880 --> 00:48:04.079 role that God has called you to, the condition 00:48:04.079 --> 00:48:07.070 that he has placed you in. doing it with the 00:48:07.070 --> 00:48:10.309 same integrity that you would render if Christ 00:48:10.309 --> 00:48:15.230 were standing right next to you. And the promise 00:48:15.230 --> 00:48:17.730 for that kind of faithfulness, when yes, I have 00:48:17.730 --> 00:48:20.489 to serve this earthly master, and maybe he's 00:48:20.489 --> 00:48:23.269 the biggest jerk in the world, maybe he's even 00:48:23.269 --> 00:48:28.230 abusive, right? The promise for faithful, integrous 00:48:28.230 --> 00:48:31.650 living as a Christian with a testimony for Christ 00:48:31.650 --> 00:48:34.469 is that even if you're a slave all your life, 00:48:34.610 --> 00:48:37.079 look at the last statement, You have the promise 00:48:37.079 --> 00:48:40.300 of an incomprehensibly great reward from the 00:48:40.300 --> 00:48:47.179 Lord. That'll get you through, won't it? Friends, 00:48:47.320 --> 00:48:49.340 if this idea of being content as a slave still 00:48:49.340 --> 00:48:52.340 causes you anxiety or frustration, I get it, 00:48:52.360 --> 00:48:56.420 but will you remember this as well? Jesus doesn't 00:48:56.420 --> 00:48:58.639 ask anything of us that he wasn't willing to 00:48:58.639 --> 00:49:03.050 do for others. Jesus completely turned the relationship 00:49:03.050 --> 00:49:06.510 of status and service on its head. Jesus didn't 00:49:06.510 --> 00:49:12.590 view menial labor as demeaning. He washed feet. 00:49:13.869 --> 00:49:17.889 As the Lord of glory, he washed feet. He became 00:49:17.889 --> 00:49:22.030 a servant for us on the cross. His apostles weren't 00:49:22.030 --> 00:49:24.789 even ashamed to call themselves slaves. Slaves 00:49:24.789 --> 00:49:26.969 of the Lord, they called themselves. That was 00:49:26.969 --> 00:49:28.550 their favorite way of referring to themselves 00:49:28.550 --> 00:49:32.900 in scripture. We're bond slaves of Christ. And 00:49:32.900 --> 00:49:35.079 because of his faithful service on our behalf, 00:49:35.199 --> 00:49:38.039 God elevated Christ to a position of even higher 00:49:38.039 --> 00:49:40.460 glory. And those apostles who called themselves 00:49:40.460 --> 00:49:43.239 slaves to everyone else, guess what? In the era 00:49:43.239 --> 00:49:46.820 to come, they get to sit on thrones, which tells 00:49:46.820 --> 00:49:52.920 us something. The way up is always down. The 00:49:52.920 --> 00:49:55.219 way up is always down. Jesus and the apostles 00:49:55.219 --> 00:49:59.039 actually show us the way. Now, having said that, 00:49:59.059 --> 00:50:01.440 how wonderful is it that Paul writes in the second 00:50:01.440 --> 00:50:03.960 half of verse 21, because look, he knows how 00:50:03.960 --> 00:50:07.619 hard being a slave was. He empathizes with them. 00:50:07.900 --> 00:50:10.000 He says, but if you are able to become free, 00:50:10.079 --> 00:50:13.820 do it. Improve your life. Take that opportunity. 00:50:13.860 --> 00:50:16.719 If God opens that door, walk through it, improve 00:50:16.719 --> 00:50:19.780 your life in ways that will glorify God and build 00:50:19.780 --> 00:50:22.719 his kingdom. And then he adds this beautiful 00:50:22.719 --> 00:50:26.519 paradox in verse 22. We're just about done. And 00:50:26.519 --> 00:50:28.539 it points to this theological truth that is so 00:50:28.539 --> 00:50:31.079 much bigger than our circumstances on this earth. 00:50:31.239 --> 00:50:33.500 He says, for he who was called in the Lord while 00:50:33.500 --> 00:50:37.360 a slave is actually the Lord's freedman. In other 00:50:37.360 --> 00:50:39.280 words, you might be a slave physically, but as 00:50:39.280 --> 00:50:43.159 a Christian, you've been freed. Freed from slavery 00:50:43.159 --> 00:50:45.619 to sin and death. Freed from the curse of the 00:50:45.619 --> 00:50:48.099 law through Christ. That makes you spiritually 00:50:48.099 --> 00:50:51.539 free. And if you're spiritually free, you are 00:50:51.539 --> 00:50:53.920 free indeed, no matter what your circumstances 00:50:53.920 --> 00:50:57.059 are. What a hopeful thing for a slave to read. 00:50:57.239 --> 00:51:00.039 I might have to have these physical chains on, 00:51:00.079 --> 00:51:03.840 but I am spiritually free in Christ. Likewise, 00:51:03.920 --> 00:51:06.119 the verse goes on, he who was called while free 00:51:06.119 --> 00:51:10.800 is now Christ's slave. So even those who are 00:51:10.800 --> 00:51:13.440 called into the kingdom of God as free men, we 00:51:13.440 --> 00:51:16.699 welcome the idea of becoming slaves to the one 00:51:16.699 --> 00:51:20.579 who purchased us with his blood. That's us. That's 00:51:20.579 --> 00:51:22.539 you and I. We're physically free, but we are 00:51:22.539 --> 00:51:26.519 spiritually free. Slaves now. Do you welcome 00:51:26.519 --> 00:51:29.739 that? Slaves to Christ, slaves to righteousness. 00:51:30.099 --> 00:51:32.559 What Paul's showing us in all of this is that 00:51:32.559 --> 00:51:35.039 outward things simply don't matter that much. 00:51:35.159 --> 00:51:37.260 So he says, don't be so concerned about them. 00:51:38.699 --> 00:51:41.039 Don't be anxious about changing your condition 00:51:41.039 --> 00:51:43.739 or your situation. Lay it before the Lord with 00:51:43.739 --> 00:51:46.460 the right heart motive. Trust in him to open 00:51:46.460 --> 00:51:48.619 the doors. Trust in him to guide your steps. 00:51:48.840 --> 00:51:51.639 And in the meantime, above all things, Paul says, 00:51:51.860 --> 00:51:57.230 be content. Be content. Amen? Let's bow our heads. 00:52:02.869 --> 00:52:07.110 Heavenly Father, what a passage. What a hard 00:52:07.110 --> 00:52:09.929 thing for us to process through as 21st century 00:52:09.929 --> 00:52:15.829 Americans. Modern day Christians who we look 00:52:15.829 --> 00:52:18.269 at our problems and yeah, Lord, for our time 00:52:18.269 --> 00:52:22.989 they are substantial. But wow, to see the things 00:52:22.989 --> 00:52:27.300 that Christians in the first century had to walk 00:52:27.300 --> 00:52:31.739 through. All of the turmoil, the disorder, trying 00:52:31.739 --> 00:52:34.039 to get their minds right around the apostles' 00:52:34.199 --> 00:52:38.659 teaching. What a benefit we have living 2 ,000 00:52:38.659 --> 00:52:40.820 years later to be able to look back and to learn 00:52:40.820 --> 00:52:43.460 from your word and then to apply those things 00:52:43.460 --> 00:52:46.039 culturally to our day. Heavenly Father, would 00:52:46.039 --> 00:52:48.099 you seal these truths to our hearts? Will you 00:52:48.099 --> 00:52:52.019 take our particular circumstances? Each one of 00:52:52.019 --> 00:52:55.039 us, whatever situation we're in, will you take 00:52:55.039 --> 00:52:57.900 those things, Lord, and speak to us by your spirit 00:52:57.900 --> 00:53:01.820 this week? Help us to grow in our joy and our 00:53:01.820 --> 00:53:05.340 peace in the place that you've put us. Help us 00:53:05.340 --> 00:53:07.239 to grow in contentment in the role that you've 00:53:07.239 --> 00:53:10.039 called us to. And Lord, even if we're looking 00:53:10.039 --> 00:53:12.719 out there and looking for change and opportunities, 00:53:13.079 --> 00:53:15.940 would you correct our heart motivation if it's 00:53:15.940 --> 00:53:18.519 not in the right place? Would you do these things 00:53:18.519 --> 00:53:21.010 by your spirit, Lord? And would you do them for 00:53:21.010 --> 00:53:22.889 your glory and for the building of your kingdom? 00:53:22.929 --> 00:53:25.269 Thank you for our time of the word this morning. 00:53:25.329 --> 00:53:27.889 We love you. We praise you. In Christ's name, 00:53:27.989 --> 00:53:28.389 amen.