WEBVTT 00:00:05.189 --> 00:00:08.689 This morning we continue in our study in the 00:00:08.689 --> 00:00:13.470 book of 1 Corinthians. Our passage for today 00:00:13.470 --> 00:00:19.050 is chapter 9, verses 19 to 23. You will notice 00:00:19.050 --> 00:00:22.350 that it's verse 27 in the bulletin, but I determined 00:00:22.350 --> 00:00:26.969 to stop at verse 23 today. The subject is liberty 00:00:26.969 --> 00:00:31.769 and the stewardship of the gospel. Let us turn 00:00:31.769 --> 00:00:34.810 to the scriptures and read this passage. Then 00:00:34.810 --> 00:00:38.289 we'll pray and see what God has for us in this 00:00:38.289 --> 00:00:46.429 word. Verse 19. For though I am free from all 00:00:46.429 --> 00:00:50.950 men, I have made myself a servant to all, that 00:00:50.950 --> 00:00:56.229 I might win the more. And to the Jews I became 00:00:56.229 --> 00:01:00.149 as a Jew, that I might win Jews. To those who 00:01:00.149 --> 00:01:02.689 are under the law. as under the law, that I might 00:01:02.689 --> 00:01:05.769 win those who are under the law. To those who 00:01:05.769 --> 00:01:09.250 are without law, as without law, not being without 00:01:09.250 --> 00:01:11.890 law toward God, but under law toward Christ, 00:01:12.209 --> 00:01:16.569 that I might win those who are without law. To 00:01:16.569 --> 00:01:20.109 the weak, I became as weak, that I might win 00:01:20.109 --> 00:01:24.650 the weak. I have become all things to all men, 00:01:24.870 --> 00:01:29.810 that I might by all means save some. Now this 00:01:29.810 --> 00:01:35.019 I do, for the gospel's sake, that I may be partaker 00:01:35.019 --> 00:01:39.359 of it with you. And let's ask the Lord's blessing 00:01:39.359 --> 00:01:42.480 on this time. Oh, Father, we are gripped by these 00:01:42.480 --> 00:01:45.799 words this morning, Lord. And we pray that we 00:01:45.799 --> 00:01:49.560 might sense this passion and power in Paul, Lord. 00:01:49.879 --> 00:01:53.420 And I pray, Lord, that we might apply it to us. 00:01:54.120 --> 00:01:56.480 Lord, I pray that you would give us a burden 00:01:56.480 --> 00:01:59.620 and a passion for the lost, like is expressed 00:01:59.620 --> 00:02:02.739 here. And we pray, Father, that as we open up 00:02:02.739 --> 00:02:05.840 this word today, that you might grip our hearts, 00:02:05.920 --> 00:02:08.039 that you would open up your word and cause us 00:02:08.039 --> 00:02:11.240 to understand and be deeply affected by it to 00:02:11.240 --> 00:02:14.039 the changing and the improvement of our own lives. 00:02:14.560 --> 00:02:21.840 We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. Martin Luther, 00:02:22.080 --> 00:02:24.280 in his treatise, The Freedom of a Christian, 00:02:24.500 --> 00:02:28.740 wrote these words. A Christian... is a perfectly 00:02:28.740 --> 00:02:34.199 free Lord of all, subject to none. A Christian 00:02:34.199 --> 00:02:39.280 is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject 00:02:39.280 --> 00:02:46.340 to all. This, in a nutshell, is the paradox of 00:02:46.340 --> 00:02:49.979 Christian liberty as taught by the Apostle Paul 00:02:49.979 --> 00:02:54.419 in 1 Corinthians chapter 8 and 9. Now there are 00:02:54.419 --> 00:02:57.199 a number of paradoxes in the scripture. Statements 00:02:57.199 --> 00:03:01.080 or doctrines that look contradictory at the first, 00:03:01.180 --> 00:03:04.199 but are held together by complementary truths. 00:03:04.819 --> 00:03:07.900 There are paradoxes such as theological mysteries, 00:03:08.099 --> 00:03:13.360 such as the Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, 00:03:13.520 --> 00:03:17.479 three persons, one God. Or there's the doctrines 00:03:17.479 --> 00:03:19.800 of divine sovereignty and human responsibility. 00:03:21.870 --> 00:03:25.030 Of the incarnation. How Jesus is both fully God 00:03:25.030 --> 00:03:30.009 and fully man in one person. Then there are also 00:03:30.009 --> 00:03:33.150 rhetorical or kingdom paradoxes. Like the ones 00:03:33.150 --> 00:03:36.530 in Matthew chapter 10 that Jesus says. Whosoever 00:03:36.530 --> 00:03:41.969 finds his life shall lose it. And whoever loses 00:03:41.969 --> 00:03:46.069 his life for Christ's sake will find it. Or the 00:03:46.069 --> 00:03:49.669 one in Matthew 20 verse 16. The last shall be 00:03:49.669 --> 00:03:54.319 first and the first. shall be last. Paul has 00:03:54.319 --> 00:03:57.039 just defended his apostolic right to material 00:03:57.039 --> 00:04:00.659 support in verses 1 to 14. And then he explained 00:04:00.659 --> 00:04:04.919 why he refused to use that right in verses 15 00:04:04.919 --> 00:04:08.580 to 18. And now he shows the same principle and 00:04:08.580 --> 00:04:13.740 paradox in the wider work of the gospel. That 00:04:13.740 --> 00:04:18.939 is, freedom and liberty are used to serve and 00:04:18.939 --> 00:04:24.660 not to just do. what you want. It is a trust. 00:04:25.180 --> 00:04:29.360 It is given with a stewardship like the administration 00:04:29.360 --> 00:04:33.720 of an estate. In other words, liberty is something 00:04:33.720 --> 00:04:36.879 that we hold in our hands as given by God, but 00:04:36.879 --> 00:04:40.480 it's a stewardship unto God and must be used 00:04:40.480 --> 00:04:44.379 in accordance with his desires for it. Great 00:04:44.379 --> 00:04:48.379 freedom, but also responsibility. In the passage 00:04:48.379 --> 00:04:51.360 before us today, Paul is going to explain another 00:04:51.360 --> 00:04:55.139 aspect of Christian liberty and freedom. Once 00:04:55.139 --> 00:04:57.500 again, let's do a real quick review. What is 00:04:57.500 --> 00:05:00.959 Christian liberty? It is freedom from sin, even 00:05:00.959 --> 00:05:03.560 as we see and experience in the Lord's Supper, 00:05:03.620 --> 00:05:06.980 and we remember the death of Christ. We have 00:05:06.980 --> 00:05:09.720 been set free from the dominion, from the control, 00:05:09.959 --> 00:05:13.459 and from the manipulation of sin, and our sins 00:05:13.459 --> 00:05:16.730 are gone. They are washed away in the blood of 00:05:16.730 --> 00:05:22.029 Christ. We are free from sin. Secondly, freedom 00:05:22.029 --> 00:05:25.509 is freedom from the ceremonies and the regulations 00:05:25.509 --> 00:05:28.629 that are now fulfilled in Jesus Christ. For he 00:05:28.629 --> 00:05:32.250 is our high priest and our sacrifice as detailed 00:05:32.250 --> 00:05:35.029 in the book of Hebrews. We are the new temple 00:05:35.029 --> 00:05:38.759 of Christ and thus we have liberty. The third 00:05:38.759 --> 00:05:41.579 aspect of liberty is that we are free from the 00:05:41.579 --> 00:05:44.740 doctrines and commandments of men that seek to 00:05:44.740 --> 00:05:49.639 bind our consciences in a wrong way. Our conscience 00:05:49.639 --> 00:05:54.720 must be bound to the word of God and not to the 00:05:54.720 --> 00:05:58.240 doctrines and commandments of men. And finally, 00:05:58.339 --> 00:06:02.639 liberty is freedom to choose our own course in 00:06:02.639 --> 00:06:05.899 all things that are indifferent. That is, things 00:06:05.899 --> 00:06:10.129 that are neither commanded nor forbidden in the 00:06:10.129 --> 00:06:14.629 Holy Scriptures. This fourth aspect is the aspect 00:06:14.629 --> 00:06:17.209 of Christian liberty that is the subject of today's 00:06:17.209 --> 00:06:20.430 portion of Scripture. And so we're going to be 00:06:20.430 --> 00:06:23.089 looking at this more carefully. Nevertheless, 00:06:23.350 --> 00:06:28.170 in all of our actions, our liberty must always 00:06:28.170 --> 00:06:34.230 be accompanied with love, with wisdom, and with 00:06:34.230 --> 00:06:39.269 self -discipline. Back in chapter 7, Paul reminded 00:06:39.269 --> 00:06:41.889 the Corinthians that as freed men in Christ, 00:06:42.110 --> 00:06:45.129 they were free because they were bought with 00:06:45.129 --> 00:06:49.069 a price. And this price was the shed blood of 00:06:49.069 --> 00:06:52.810 Jesus. But because they were bought, they were 00:06:52.810 --> 00:06:56.449 also Christ's servants. And in this passage, 00:06:56.629 --> 00:07:01.189 Paul builds upon this in the preceding verses. 00:07:01.370 --> 00:07:04.410 And he shows how that serving Christ must include 00:07:04.410 --> 00:07:08.579 aspects of servanthood in the winning of others 00:07:08.579 --> 00:07:13.180 to Christ. Why is this? Because he and we also 00:07:13.180 --> 00:07:16.060 are entrusted with a stewardship, that is with 00:07:16.060 --> 00:07:21.040 the administration of the estate of God. He speaks 00:07:21.040 --> 00:07:23.600 of this in verse 17. This has been committed 00:07:23.600 --> 00:07:27.060 to us so that we might win some who may be saved 00:07:27.060 --> 00:07:32.100 and won to Christ. The proposition. that encompasses 00:07:32.100 --> 00:07:34.519 this passage or this portion of scripture is 00:07:34.519 --> 00:07:37.939 simply this. The apostle who is free from all 00:07:37.939 --> 00:07:43.139 men makes himself a slave and a servant to all 00:07:43.139 --> 00:07:46.980 so that some may be saved and he himself may 00:07:46.980 --> 00:07:50.639 share in the gospel's prize. For Paul, this meant 00:07:50.639 --> 00:07:53.040 that sometimes he gave up some of his liberties 00:07:53.040 --> 00:07:56.839 so that he could be more effective. The goal. 00:07:57.339 --> 00:08:00.480 was that people would be saved from sin and brought 00:08:00.480 --> 00:08:03.120 into a new life, that they might live as the 00:08:03.120 --> 00:08:07.220 people of God in all of that glorious life, that 00:08:07.220 --> 00:08:10.360 life of glory and beauty and order and majesty, 00:08:10.699 --> 00:08:15.519 freed from sin and living that life. So let's 00:08:15.519 --> 00:08:19.480 now look at the aspects of which he speaks. We 00:08:19.480 --> 00:08:21.779 begin with the paradox of liberty and freedom 00:08:21.779 --> 00:08:25.740 in verse 19. He says, for though I am free from 00:08:25.740 --> 00:08:30.079 all men, I have made myself a servant to all 00:08:30.079 --> 00:08:34.360 that I might win the more. Paul is free from 00:08:34.360 --> 00:08:37.600 all men. That is, no man owns him. He is under 00:08:37.600 --> 00:08:40.720 no human obligation that can bind his conscience 00:08:40.720 --> 00:08:43.779 apart from the word of God. He asserted this 00:08:43.779 --> 00:08:45.720 in the beginning of this chapter in verse one, 00:08:45.840 --> 00:08:49.759 when he said, am I not an apostle? Am I not free? 00:08:50.259 --> 00:08:54.080 And now he builds on this. I am free from all. 00:08:54.320 --> 00:08:58.460 He was not owned by any patrons, as was common 00:08:58.460 --> 00:09:01.639 in Corinth, nor was he beholden to anyone there. 00:09:01.960 --> 00:09:04.559 He had been sent out with a commission by the 00:09:04.559 --> 00:09:07.679 church of Antioch, but as an apostle, he was 00:09:07.679 --> 00:09:12.759 at liberty. He was a free man, and yet he makes 00:09:12.759 --> 00:09:16.320 himself a servant to all. The word is doulos. 00:09:16.559 --> 00:09:19.639 It's a strong word, meaning one who's brought 00:09:19.639 --> 00:09:24.750 into bondage. One who is, even going as far as 00:09:24.750 --> 00:09:29.269 a slave. His freedom is not used for self. It 00:09:29.269 --> 00:09:33.850 was spent to win more. The prominent church father, 00:09:33.990 --> 00:09:36.710 Chrysostom, said that Paul's attitude reflects 00:09:36.710 --> 00:09:40.649 his, quote, zeal and love for Christ and his 00:09:40.649 --> 00:09:44.409 insatiable desire for the salvation of mankind, 00:09:45.029 --> 00:09:48.360 end quote. Now this verse is a bit of poetry 00:09:48.360 --> 00:09:52.220 or even a chiasm. A chiasm makes several points 00:09:52.220 --> 00:09:55.480 and then follows after making counterpoints in 00:09:55.480 --> 00:09:57.960 the same order. Now this is a real short one, 00:09:58.059 --> 00:10:01.879 but we have the first part, being free from all 00:10:01.879 --> 00:10:05.519 people. To all people, I am a servant and slave. 00:10:06.940 --> 00:10:10.879 See how that corresponds together? He then goes 00:10:10.879 --> 00:10:15.019 and gives examples of how he became a servant. 00:10:15.470 --> 00:10:19.110 to win others. But first, let's consider a few 00:10:19.110 --> 00:10:22.950 notes before we go there. Paul is adapting himself 00:10:22.950 --> 00:10:27.610 to cultural realities on matters that are indifferent. 00:10:28.710 --> 00:10:33.789 He does not accommodate himself to sin, nor will 00:10:33.789 --> 00:10:36.610 he water down the gospel. That is very important 00:10:36.610 --> 00:10:38.470 to keep in mind as we're going through and we 00:10:38.470 --> 00:10:41.289 look at this. This is not about compromising 00:10:41.289 --> 00:10:45.360 the gospel or living in sin. It's rather doing 00:10:45.360 --> 00:10:47.700 certain things when he's with certain people 00:10:47.700 --> 00:10:50.139 on matters that are indifferent. It's okay if 00:10:50.139 --> 00:10:53.679 you do or if you don't do them. And when he was 00:10:53.679 --> 00:10:56.059 with them, he would do some things here and other 00:10:56.059 --> 00:10:58.120 things here. We'll get into that in just a minute. 00:10:58.279 --> 00:11:02.210 He accommodated himself. to the customs, the 00:11:02.210 --> 00:11:05.330 manners, and the way of doing things with the 00:11:05.330 --> 00:11:08.230 people with whom he was ministering at the time, 00:11:08.309 --> 00:11:11.429 as long as it did not violate the moral law of 00:11:11.429 --> 00:11:16.470 God. His goal was to serve in order to gain the 00:11:16.470 --> 00:11:20.350 more for the sake of the gospel and of truth. 00:11:20.570 --> 00:11:25.149 And so he speaks as a missionary bringing the 00:11:25.149 --> 00:11:29.309 gospel to the lost. Now, how could a free man 00:11:29.309 --> 00:11:33.950 like this, Become a servant in this way. Was 00:11:33.950 --> 00:11:39.070 this by compulsion? Did some external force in 00:11:39.070 --> 00:11:41.610 somebody else in the church of Jerusalem or someone 00:11:41.610 --> 00:11:45.929 else say you must do it this way? You must be 00:11:45.929 --> 00:11:48.649 a servant like this? Did others command him or 00:11:48.649 --> 00:11:51.850 attempt to put him under their authority in this? 00:11:52.029 --> 00:11:56.039 No. The answer is no. Even the elders at the 00:11:56.039 --> 00:11:59.360 church in Jerusalem in Acts 21 did not require 00:11:59.360 --> 00:12:03.320 him, but requested. They asked him if he could 00:12:03.320 --> 00:12:06.559 accommodate the Jews there by taking a vow and 00:12:06.559 --> 00:12:09.240 shaving his head and performing some of the customs. 00:12:09.659 --> 00:12:12.980 They did not command. So the solution to this 00:12:12.980 --> 00:12:16.460 paradox then is this. Paul did this willingly 00:12:16.460 --> 00:12:21.259 and not by compulsion. To live under compulsion 00:12:21.259 --> 00:12:26.090 on matters like this, is tyranny. And God has 00:12:26.090 --> 00:12:30.110 set us free from the tyranny of men, even well 00:12:30.110 --> 00:12:35.870 -meaning ones. But to voluntarily give up freedoms, 00:12:36.190 --> 00:12:40.230 especially for the sake of the gospel, that is 00:12:40.230 --> 00:12:43.409 a different matter altogether. This is what Paul 00:12:43.409 --> 00:12:47.710 did. And he gives three examples of what he did 00:12:47.710 --> 00:12:50.659 and how he did it. That is our second point. 00:12:50.740 --> 00:12:54.519 The three adaptations that Paul made. The first, 00:12:54.539 --> 00:12:59.879 it is in verse 20 through 22a. It is to the Jews 00:12:59.879 --> 00:13:02.200 and those under the law. I believe he's speaking 00:13:02.200 --> 00:13:05.360 of the same people here. So I included this together 00:13:05.360 --> 00:13:08.340 as one point. To the Jews I became as a Jew that 00:13:08.340 --> 00:13:11.200 I might win Jews. To those under the law as under 00:13:11.200 --> 00:13:13.399 the law that I might win those who are under 00:13:13.399 --> 00:13:17.309 the law. Paul, as a Jew, was able to engage in 00:13:17.309 --> 00:13:20.789 various Jewish activities and customs. And so, 00:13:20.950 --> 00:13:23.289 for example, when he would go to a new city, 00:13:23.389 --> 00:13:26.029 he would go into their synagogue, and he would 00:13:26.029 --> 00:13:29.649 stand and read the word when requested, as they 00:13:29.649 --> 00:13:32.250 often did. He was a Jewish rabbi, and they would 00:13:32.250 --> 00:13:35.049 ask... often asked visiting people to stand and 00:13:35.049 --> 00:13:37.549 to read the word of God and then to give the 00:13:37.549 --> 00:13:39.970 sense of it. Although they sat down for their 00:13:39.970 --> 00:13:43.950 preaching instead of standing like we do. So 00:13:43.950 --> 00:13:46.850 they would read the word and then sit down and 00:13:46.850 --> 00:13:50.909 explain the word. Paul did this. When with them, 00:13:51.049 --> 00:13:54.649 he lived and he acted like a Jew. When he came 00:13:54.649 --> 00:13:57.600 to Jerusalem. I mentioned this already. The elders 00:13:57.600 --> 00:14:00.200 asked him to perform certain things like a Jew. 00:14:00.360 --> 00:14:04.059 This is recounted in Acts 21. He took a vow, 00:14:04.299 --> 00:14:06.879 he was purified with them, and he shaved his 00:14:06.879 --> 00:14:10.460 head so that he showed how he walked orderly 00:14:10.460 --> 00:14:13.740 and kept the law among them. In other words, 00:14:13.860 --> 00:14:17.200 there was nothing off -putting about Paul in 00:14:17.200 --> 00:14:20.200 his dress, in his customs, or in his manners 00:14:20.200 --> 00:14:24.250 that would alienate a Jew at first glance. and 00:14:24.250 --> 00:14:28.269 thus the Jew would hear the gospel from him. 00:14:29.570 --> 00:14:32.809 Now, after the presentation of the gospel, he 00:14:32.809 --> 00:14:35.470 might then be thrown out because of his proclamation 00:14:35.470 --> 00:14:38.529 of the gospel. Actually, this occurred in the 00:14:38.529 --> 00:14:41.269 city of Corinth. They heard it first. He went 00:14:41.269 --> 00:14:44.090 into the synagogue, and he preached the word, 00:14:44.269 --> 00:14:47.610 and they did not like it, so they cast him out. 00:14:48.110 --> 00:14:51.230 Ironically, he goes into the house of justice. 00:14:51.309 --> 00:14:54.049 He's a man who worshiped God. And guess where 00:14:54.049 --> 00:14:57.870 his house was? Right next to the synagogue. Right 00:14:57.870 --> 00:15:01.269 next to the synagogue. And so much was the power 00:15:01.269 --> 00:15:04.450 of God there in Corinth that Crispus, the ruler 00:15:04.450 --> 00:15:06.870 of the synagogue, believed with all of his household 00:15:06.870 --> 00:15:09.490 and many other Corinthians believed and were 00:15:09.490 --> 00:15:12.990 baptized. Paul continued there for a year and 00:15:12.990 --> 00:15:16.090 six months. God does have a sense of humor sometimes. 00:15:17.830 --> 00:15:21.629 Now Barnes writes how Paul did not needlessly 00:15:21.629 --> 00:15:24.389 offend them, did not attack and oppose their 00:15:24.389 --> 00:15:26.990 views when there was no danger that his conduct 00:15:26.990 --> 00:15:30.350 should be mistaken. He complied with their rights, 00:15:30.529 --> 00:15:33.509 their customs, even their prejudices in some 00:15:33.509 --> 00:15:36.070 ways, not teaching them, but complying with them. 00:15:36.779 --> 00:15:39.000 Henry says, though he looked on the ceremonial 00:15:39.000 --> 00:15:42.139 law as a yoke taken off by Christ, yet in many 00:15:42.139 --> 00:15:45.840 instances he submitted to it that he might work 00:15:45.840 --> 00:15:49.019 upon the Jews, remove their prejudices, prevail 00:15:49.019 --> 00:15:52.360 with them to hear the gospel, and win them over 00:15:52.360 --> 00:15:57.019 to Christ. Now keep in mind that the Jews went 00:15:57.019 --> 00:16:00.279 far beyond what was prescribed in the Old Testament 00:16:00.279 --> 00:16:03.340 as far as the law, the ceremonial law. They had 00:16:03.340 --> 00:16:07.230 many, many... hundreds, even thousands of other 00:16:07.230 --> 00:16:10.330 customs and practices as revealed in what they 00:16:10.330 --> 00:16:14.110 called the oral law. That was the law that was 00:16:14.110 --> 00:16:17.210 handed down from rabbi to rabbi, from generation 00:16:17.210 --> 00:16:19.950 to generation, and this just kept building on 00:16:19.950 --> 00:16:22.870 and on and on and on. It still exists today. 00:16:22.990 --> 00:16:24.929 Now, some of it is actually written down as just 00:16:24.929 --> 00:16:27.990 a recording of the oral law, but it's a huge 00:16:27.990 --> 00:16:31.210 book of laws, some of them very, very minute. 00:16:31.960 --> 00:16:34.460 And I've spoken of this before. I'm not going 00:16:34.460 --> 00:16:36.740 to get into it all today for the sake of time. 00:16:36.940 --> 00:16:40.360 But they did this. They had tons of burdensome 00:16:40.360 --> 00:16:43.539 regulations and legislation that minutely regulated 00:16:43.539 --> 00:16:47.259 every area of their lives. Jesus speaks about 00:16:47.259 --> 00:16:49.940 this, for example, in their whole thing of washing 00:16:49.940 --> 00:16:53.159 cups and platters. He said they did this, but 00:16:53.159 --> 00:16:55.919 they omitted weightier matters of the law. And 00:16:55.919 --> 00:16:59.139 Jesus rebuked them for this in Mark chapter 6. 00:17:00.169 --> 00:17:04.130 Now as an example of how far Paul would go, but 00:17:04.130 --> 00:17:07.789 no further, let's consider a case study of how 00:17:07.789 --> 00:17:11.230 he handled the cases regarding circumcision in 00:17:11.230 --> 00:17:15.109 two of the young men that he discipled. Note 00:17:15.109 --> 00:17:18.910 this very carefully. The first was Timothy. Now 00:17:18.910 --> 00:17:22.970 Timothy's mother was a Jew, but his father was 00:17:22.970 --> 00:17:26.750 a Greek. And so Paul determined that it would 00:17:26.750 --> 00:17:31.140 be advantageous for Timothy to be circumcised, 00:17:31.259 --> 00:17:35.140 not because of obeying the ceremonial law, no, 00:17:35.279 --> 00:17:37.900 but in order that Timothy would be more effective 00:17:37.900 --> 00:17:41.640 as a witness to the Jews in Paul's ministry. 00:17:42.680 --> 00:17:46.250 Acts 16 .3 records this. Paul wanted to have 00:17:46.250 --> 00:17:49.210 him go on with him. This is Timothy. And he took 00:17:49.210 --> 00:17:52.890 him and circumcised him because of the Jews who 00:17:52.890 --> 00:17:55.390 were in that region, for they all knew that his 00:17:55.390 --> 00:17:59.150 father was Greek. Paul saw that Timothy could 00:17:59.150 --> 00:18:03.250 have a more effective ministry if he simply would 00:18:03.250 --> 00:18:08.170 be circumcised. And so he did it. Titus, however, 00:18:08.430 --> 00:18:11.829 was a Greek, did not have a Jewish father or 00:18:11.829 --> 00:18:18.089 mother. And Paul... absolutely refused to require 00:18:18.089 --> 00:18:21.849 him to be circumcised. He writes in Galatians 00:18:21.849 --> 00:18:26.009 2, verse 3 -5, Yet not even Titus, who was with 00:18:26.009 --> 00:18:29.880 me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised. 00:18:30.000 --> 00:18:32.819 And this occurred because of false brethren secretly 00:18:32.819 --> 00:18:35.940 brought in, who came in by stealth to spy out 00:18:35.940 --> 00:18:38.480 our liberty, which we have in Christ Jesus, that 00:18:38.480 --> 00:18:41.299 they might bring us into bondage, to whom we 00:18:41.299 --> 00:18:45.529 did not yield submission even for an hour. that 00:18:45.529 --> 00:18:47.829 the truth of the gospel might continue with you. 00:18:47.930 --> 00:18:51.190 In the case of Titus, the very face and the principle 00:18:51.190 --> 00:18:53.930 of Christianity was on the line. And what is 00:18:53.930 --> 00:18:57.029 that? That one did not need to become a Jew in 00:18:57.029 --> 00:19:01.250 order to be saved. It was so clear. And so Paul 00:19:01.250 --> 00:19:04.809 would not compromise in that case. He would not 00:19:04.809 --> 00:19:08.630 accommodate himself to the Judaizers on this 00:19:08.630 --> 00:19:12.869 matter. Two examples, two young men. With the 00:19:12.869 --> 00:19:15.369 one he did this, with the other he did this, 00:19:15.450 --> 00:19:19.170 and for very good reason for both. Though he 00:19:19.170 --> 00:19:22.829 complied with the ceremonial law and with many 00:19:22.829 --> 00:19:26.529 of the other practices, he did so without placing 00:19:26.529 --> 00:19:30.430 himself under the law as a way of justification. 00:19:32.210 --> 00:19:35.890 Now this took great wisdom and care, or as we 00:19:35.890 --> 00:19:39.750 might say today in our language, he threaded 00:19:39.750 --> 00:19:43.319 the needle very carefully. He watched over this 00:19:43.319 --> 00:19:46.960 with very careful to determine what the best 00:19:46.960 --> 00:19:51.880 effect would be. He had to take great care to 00:19:51.880 --> 00:19:56.180 emphasize grace and justification to a people 00:19:56.180 --> 00:19:58.839 who believed they were saved by keeping the law 00:19:58.839 --> 00:20:03.640 or that by being circumcised, they were saved 00:20:03.640 --> 00:20:06.680 or that circumcision even was necessary for salvation. 00:20:06.920 --> 00:20:10.960 And yet he did not needlessly offend them. or 00:20:10.960 --> 00:20:14.960 create a barrier to the gospel. He did not want 00:20:14.960 --> 00:20:17.900 to put an unnecessary stumbling block before 00:20:17.900 --> 00:20:21.099 them, for the doctrine of Christ was in itself 00:20:21.099 --> 00:20:24.480 already a major stumbling block to those who 00:20:24.480 --> 00:20:27.960 would not believe. He loved them. He loved his 00:20:27.960 --> 00:20:30.619 people. He wanted them with all of his heart 00:20:30.619 --> 00:20:35.170 to know Christ. In fact, in Romans 9, verse 1 00:20:35.170 --> 00:20:37.950 through 5, he writes how he had great sorrow 00:20:37.950 --> 00:20:42.029 and continual grief in his heart for his brethren, 00:20:42.190 --> 00:20:46.630 his countrymen, according to the flesh. And so 00:20:46.630 --> 00:20:50.869 he served them and gave up some of his liberty 00:20:50.869 --> 00:20:56.130 so that they might hear the word and be saved. 00:20:57.069 --> 00:21:01.490 This is how he did it to the Jews. Then he goes 00:21:01.490 --> 00:21:04.650 on to the next one, that is to the Gentiles. 00:21:04.650 --> 00:21:08.509 This is verse 21. He describes them as those 00:21:08.509 --> 00:21:10.849 without law. Of course, the Gentiles at that 00:21:10.849 --> 00:21:13.369 time were mostly Greeks and Romans in his area 00:21:13.369 --> 00:21:16.210 of ministry, and they were described as those 00:21:16.210 --> 00:21:19.369 without law. So he says, to them, verse 21, who 00:21:19.369 --> 00:21:21.769 were without law, as without law, that he might 00:21:21.769 --> 00:21:26.130 win those who are without law. So to the Gentiles, 00:21:26.130 --> 00:21:28.410 he did not present himself as a converted Jew. 00:21:29.309 --> 00:21:31.890 but rather he conducted himself as a Greek or 00:21:31.890 --> 00:21:36.569 a Roman in many ways. Again, he accommodated 00:21:36.569 --> 00:21:39.029 himself to their manners and to their customs 00:21:39.029 --> 00:21:43.150 in ways that would not set an artificial stumbling 00:21:43.150 --> 00:21:46.609 block to them. He did not participate with them 00:21:46.609 --> 00:21:49.410 in their idolatry, of course, but he met with 00:21:49.410 --> 00:21:52.109 them in their various places. He lived among 00:21:52.109 --> 00:21:55.369 them. He ate and associated with them. And he 00:21:55.369 --> 00:21:58.390 worked a trade that was useful among them. He 00:21:58.390 --> 00:22:01.750 sought with all his heart to win them to Christ. 00:22:02.569 --> 00:22:05.250 Now there's a phrase here that needs more explanation 00:22:05.250 --> 00:22:09.450 because it is sometimes misunderstood. He inserts 00:22:09.450 --> 00:22:11.730 this parenthetical statement in the midst of 00:22:11.730 --> 00:22:14.829 this verse. He says, not being without law toward 00:22:14.829 --> 00:22:20.089 God, but under law toward Christ. So let me just 00:22:20.089 --> 00:22:22.529 read this verse again, just so that you get the 00:22:22.529 --> 00:22:25.269 full sense of it. To those who are without law 00:22:25.269 --> 00:22:28.390 as without law, not being without law toward 00:22:28.390 --> 00:22:31.369 God, but under law toward Christ, that I might 00:22:31.369 --> 00:22:35.029 win those who are without law. What does he mean 00:22:35.029 --> 00:22:38.849 by this? He wanted to make sure that the Corinthians 00:22:38.849 --> 00:22:42.410 and we, that we do not think that he was advocating 00:22:42.410 --> 00:22:45.410 being without law toward God when he talks here 00:22:45.410 --> 00:22:48.730 about free from the law or not being under law. 00:22:48.910 --> 00:22:51.990 What does he mean by this? Is he dismissing all 00:22:51.990 --> 00:22:54.730 of the Mosaic law in the Old Testament and that 00:22:54.730 --> 00:22:57.130 all of the law has now been completely replaced 00:22:57.130 --> 00:23:02.950 by Christ as something? Are we to unhitch the 00:23:02.950 --> 00:23:05.650 New Testament from the Old Testament as Stanley 00:23:05.650 --> 00:23:09.789 teaches or as the ancient heretic Marcion taught? 00:23:10.460 --> 00:23:14.759 No, certainly not. Rather, based on all of the 00:23:14.759 --> 00:23:18.240 teachings of Paul on this matter throughout the 00:23:18.240 --> 00:23:21.119 New Testament, I think he simply means that he 00:23:21.119 --> 00:23:24.779 did not follow the ceremonial laws and the customs 00:23:24.779 --> 00:23:27.339 and the manners of the Jews when with the Gentiles, 00:23:27.420 --> 00:23:31.759 but he was still under the law in light of Christ 00:23:31.759 --> 00:23:36.339 or toward Christ. In this, he illustrates how 00:23:36.339 --> 00:23:39.099 we are to understand and view the law of God. 00:23:39.519 --> 00:23:43.099 The moral law of God is binding for all times, 00:23:43.140 --> 00:23:46.839 in all places, and in all ages. In other words, 00:23:46.880 --> 00:23:49.299 thou shalt not commit adultery applied to them. 00:23:49.380 --> 00:23:52.759 It applies to all the people, all the world in 00:23:52.759 --> 00:23:55.180 Paul's day, and it applies to all the world in 00:23:55.180 --> 00:23:58.019 our day. This is part of the unchanging moral 00:23:58.019 --> 00:24:01.779 law of God. The Ten Commandments are a summary 00:24:01.779 --> 00:24:05.480 of that law, and we are to seek to keep that 00:24:05.480 --> 00:24:09.789 law in light of Christ. The law is to love the 00:24:09.789 --> 00:24:12.130 Lord our God with all of our heart, our soul, 00:24:12.190 --> 00:24:14.829 our mind, and our strength, and to love our neighbor 00:24:14.829 --> 00:24:18.190 as ourselves. This is the moral law, even as 00:24:18.190 --> 00:24:21.630 Jesus himself said in Matthew 22, verse 40. On 00:24:21.630 --> 00:24:25.130 these two commandments hang all the law and the 00:24:25.130 --> 00:24:28.250 prophets. Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, 00:24:28.470 --> 00:24:32.329 Do not think that I am come to destroy the law 00:24:32.329 --> 00:24:36.109 or the prophets. I did not come to destroy, but 00:24:36.109 --> 00:24:39.819 to fulfill. For assuredly I say to you, till 00:24:39.819 --> 00:24:43.680 heaven and earth pass from the law, I'm sorry, 00:24:43.759 --> 00:24:46.619 till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one 00:24:46.619 --> 00:24:49.119 tittle will by no means pass from the law till 00:24:49.119 --> 00:24:53.960 all is fulfilled. Matthew 5, 17 and 18. Let's 00:24:53.960 --> 00:24:56.559 put this all together. Jesus fulfilled all the 00:24:56.559 --> 00:24:59.579 laws of ceremonies, of sacrifice, of diet, of 00:24:59.579 --> 00:25:02.440 certain separations in his own death. He atoned 00:25:02.440 --> 00:25:05.480 for them in our sins and fulfilled all that pointed 00:25:05.480 --> 00:25:09.140 forward to him. But in other areas, he tightened 00:25:09.140 --> 00:25:12.539 the law. He showed that the law is not just something 00:25:12.539 --> 00:25:14.819 where you just keep, for example, from adultery, 00:25:14.839 --> 00:25:17.660 but you also keep from coveting. And if you covet 00:25:17.660 --> 00:25:20.220 someone, then you're actually breaking the law 00:25:20.220 --> 00:25:24.890 and you're guilty. He tightened the law. He showed 00:25:24.890 --> 00:25:27.150 up the heart. He sent the Holy Spirit to help 00:25:27.150 --> 00:25:30.789 us to walk in them. I believe this is what Paul 00:25:30.789 --> 00:25:34.190 means with this phrase here. Yes, the moral law 00:25:34.190 --> 00:25:38.130 of God is applicable. Absolutely. So when Paul 00:25:38.130 --> 00:25:40.950 says he is without law, it's certain portions 00:25:40.950 --> 00:25:43.910 of the law that would be particularly noticeable 00:25:43.910 --> 00:25:47.230 to the Gentiles in some areas, but others that 00:25:47.230 --> 00:25:50.170 would still be quite noticeable, he did not flinch. 00:25:50.349 --> 00:25:54.539 Again, we'll see this idolatry. sexual immorality, 00:25:54.619 --> 00:25:58.839 and so on and so forth. Not without law toward 00:25:58.839 --> 00:26:02.119 Christ. In seeking to win those without law, 00:26:02.279 --> 00:26:04.859 Paul again was careful not to minimize the commandments 00:26:04.859 --> 00:26:08.400 of God. He taught against idolatry, against adultery, 00:26:08.480 --> 00:26:10.859 against fornication, and all other sexual sins. 00:26:11.079 --> 00:26:13.619 He taught against lying, against stealing, against 00:26:13.619 --> 00:26:16.319 coveting. Christian liberty does not mean that 00:26:16.319 --> 00:26:18.640 I get to do just whatever I want and then ask 00:26:18.640 --> 00:26:22.450 God for forgiveness on the matters on the areas 00:26:22.450 --> 00:26:25.289 where I've sinned. No, Christian liberty is fenced 00:26:25.289 --> 00:26:29.250 by God's word and his law. It is not unrestrained 00:26:29.250 --> 00:26:34.849 practice. But Paul would eat meat that was offered 00:26:34.849 --> 00:26:37.569 to idols if it did not somehow sanction idolatry. 00:26:37.809 --> 00:26:40.769 He mingled with them in the marketplaces, in 00:26:40.769 --> 00:26:43.869 their homes. He used illustrations of their sports. 00:26:44.170 --> 00:26:47.170 He read their poets, even quoting one of their 00:26:47.170 --> 00:26:50.660 own to the Athenians on Mars Hill. He refused 00:26:50.660 --> 00:26:54.079 to impose Jewish identity markers, and he practiced 00:26:54.079 --> 00:26:57.920 table fellowship without ritual separation. He 00:26:57.920 --> 00:27:00.119 used their own language, their own literature, 00:27:00.160 --> 00:27:02.839 and their starting points. He lived among them 00:27:02.839 --> 00:27:06.039 as a former Pharisee, but without the Pharisaic 00:27:06.039 --> 00:27:09.839 wall of separation. And he insisted that the 00:27:09.839 --> 00:27:13.160 gospel itself remain pure and unencumbered with 00:27:13.160 --> 00:27:16.920 unnecessary Jewish accoutrements. As it is written, 00:27:17.079 --> 00:27:21.329 in short, Paul laid down every non -moral covenant 00:27:21.329 --> 00:27:24.170 boundary practice that would have forced Gentiles 00:27:24.170 --> 00:27:29.369 to become Jews first. He kept every moral demand 00:27:29.369 --> 00:27:33.210 of God as now expressed in the law toward Christ. 00:27:33.609 --> 00:27:36.349 The goal was not cultural blending just for its 00:27:36.349 --> 00:27:39.609 own sake, but the removal of needless stumbling 00:27:39.609 --> 00:27:42.809 blocks so that the only offense left would be 00:27:42.809 --> 00:27:46.809 the cross of Christ. This is how he did it with 00:27:46.809 --> 00:27:51.569 those Who were not under the law. Thirdly then 00:27:51.569 --> 00:27:54.950 he says to the weak. This is the first part of 00:27:54.950 --> 00:27:59.750 verse 22. To the weak I became as weak. That 00:27:59.750 --> 00:28:03.950 I might win the weak. What's he saying here? 00:28:04.130 --> 00:28:06.630 I think he's simply restating the concern. Back 00:28:06.630 --> 00:28:10.529 in chapter 8 verses 9 to 13. Remember how we 00:28:10.529 --> 00:28:20.880 dealt with that. He said. Beware, lest somehow 00:28:20.880 --> 00:28:24.319 this liberty of yours become a stumbling block 00:28:24.319 --> 00:28:27.799 to those who are weak. For if anyone sees you 00:28:27.799 --> 00:28:32.880 who have knowledge eating in an idol's temple, 00:28:33.000 --> 00:28:35.240 will not the conscience of him who is weak be 00:28:35.240 --> 00:28:37.619 emboldened to eat those things offered to idols? 00:28:37.779 --> 00:28:39.859 And because of your knowledge shall the weak 00:28:39.859 --> 00:28:42.460 brother perish for whom Christ died? But when 00:28:42.460 --> 00:28:44.519 you thus sin against the brethren and wound their 00:28:44.519 --> 00:28:47.460 weak conscience, you sin against Christ. Therefore, 00:28:48.059 --> 00:28:50.420 If food makes my brother stumble, I will never 00:28:50.420 --> 00:28:52.799 again eat meat lest I make my brother stumble. 00:28:53.160 --> 00:28:56.420 And what he's saying here is, this is the restatement 00:28:56.420 --> 00:28:59.640 of this, that he would not eat in an idol's temple. 00:28:59.740 --> 00:29:02.500 He would not eat food offered to idols if it 00:29:02.500 --> 00:29:05.160 would wound the weak conscience of a brother 00:29:05.160 --> 00:29:09.259 and cause him to lose faith and to stumble. He 00:29:09.259 --> 00:29:12.640 did not despise them or judge them. When with 00:29:12.640 --> 00:29:15.839 them, he did not use his liberty in a way that 00:29:15.839 --> 00:29:19.930 would wound. A brother's conscience. But through 00:29:19.930 --> 00:29:25.309 teaching. He did seek to gain them. How? By enlightening 00:29:25.309 --> 00:29:28.069 their conscience. By enlightening their conscience 00:29:28.069 --> 00:29:30.309 with the word of God. To bring them into the 00:29:30.309 --> 00:29:33.890 liberty of Christ. But doing it without alienation. 00:29:34.089 --> 00:29:36.890 And thus he pursued the things which make for 00:29:36.890 --> 00:29:39.789 peace. And by which one could edify another. 00:29:40.650 --> 00:29:42.990 Paul writes of this more extensively in Romans 00:29:42.990 --> 00:29:45.390 chapter 14. We're not going to go there today, 00:29:45.569 --> 00:29:48.309 but he gets into good detail on that and how 00:29:48.309 --> 00:29:50.650 that a weak brother, the church is to receive 00:29:50.650 --> 00:29:54.609 without dissimulation, but understand also that 00:29:54.609 --> 00:29:58.589 he is weak in this. And therefore we accept, 00:29:58.730 --> 00:30:01.130 we receive, but at the same time, we teach the 00:30:01.130 --> 00:30:04.890 word of God. To the weak, I became as weak. Three 00:30:04.890 --> 00:30:09.630 illustrations of how Paul accommodated himself 00:30:10.559 --> 00:30:14.319 to minister to those to whom he was teaching 00:30:14.319 --> 00:30:19.099 and preaching at that time. Now, number three 00:30:19.099 --> 00:30:23.240 is in verse 22 to 23. This is the overarching, 00:30:23.460 --> 00:30:28.920 the governing purpose of Paul's life and why 00:30:28.920 --> 00:30:33.440 he gets into this. He says, I have become all 00:30:33.440 --> 00:30:39.059 things to all men that I might by all means save 00:30:39.059 --> 00:30:44.569 some. Now I do this for the gospel's sake that 00:30:44.569 --> 00:30:48.789 I may be partaker of it with you. He says, I 00:30:48.789 --> 00:30:52.730 become all things to all men. Why? So that I 00:30:52.730 --> 00:30:55.789 might save them. So that they might hear the 00:30:55.789 --> 00:30:58.970 word of God. This was the burning passion in 00:30:58.970 --> 00:31:02.650 his life. This was his desire, his overwhelming 00:31:02.650 --> 00:31:07.430 and strong desire that he would win them to Christ. 00:31:08.039 --> 00:31:11.019 All of the accommodation, all of the giving up 00:31:11.019 --> 00:31:13.640 of rights and of liberties on a personal level 00:31:13.640 --> 00:31:17.019 was so that others would hear the gospel. He 00:31:17.019 --> 00:31:19.680 sought to remove every stumbling block that he 00:31:19.680 --> 00:31:23.680 could. that they would hear the gospel and be 00:31:23.680 --> 00:31:28.059 saved. Note, this is not people pleasing. This 00:31:28.059 --> 00:31:31.900 was not doctrinal compromise, nor was this syncretism, 00:31:31.900 --> 00:31:34.980 which is mixing two religions in order to smooth 00:31:34.980 --> 00:31:38.599 away differences. No, the limit is under law 00:31:38.599 --> 00:31:42.759 toward Christ, and the motive is for the gospel's 00:31:42.759 --> 00:31:45.619 sake, that he would be partaker of the gospel 00:31:45.619 --> 00:31:48.700 with them. That he would win others and share 00:31:48.700 --> 00:31:51.039 the blessings of the gospel. They could worship 00:31:51.039 --> 00:31:56.940 together and receive eternal life. This ultimately 00:31:56.940 --> 00:32:00.680 emphasized a strong missionary thrust of this 00:32:00.680 --> 00:32:02.799 passage. Certainly there are other implications 00:32:02.799 --> 00:32:07.079 and applications. But this was so that his preaching 00:32:07.079 --> 00:32:12.960 to the lost would be effective. I have become 00:32:12.960 --> 00:32:18.470 all things to all men. In order to save some. 00:32:21.029 --> 00:32:26.170 This then is the meaning of this passage. I believe 00:32:26.170 --> 00:32:29.750 this is a true teaching. But let us consider. 00:32:30.799 --> 00:32:33.779 a number of further applications and considerations. 00:32:34.420 --> 00:32:38.420 Why do I do this? Well, normally I have a time 00:32:38.420 --> 00:32:40.940 of application, but I'm doing this in greater 00:32:40.940 --> 00:32:45.380 detail today because this passage has been twisted. 00:32:45.440 --> 00:32:49.099 It has been misused. It has been overextended 00:32:49.099 --> 00:32:54.119 in ways far beyond what the apostle meant when 00:32:54.119 --> 00:32:56.519 he wrote it. So we're going to look at a number 00:32:56.519 --> 00:33:00.039 of these and just say, this is not what was meant. 00:33:00.460 --> 00:33:03.000 This was meant, and so forth, as we consider 00:33:03.000 --> 00:33:06.779 it. But first, Pillar Commentary makes this excellent 00:33:06.779 --> 00:33:10.539 point. The Christian church could have simply 00:33:10.539 --> 00:33:13.500 decided that the gospel was a Jewish message. 00:33:14.190 --> 00:33:16.769 It was sent throughout the world and the proper 00:33:16.769 --> 00:33:20.430 response to the gospel should result in adopting 00:33:20.430 --> 00:33:23.650 the same cultural incarnation in all places. 00:33:23.710 --> 00:33:26.849 In that way, Christians would all look and act 00:33:26.849 --> 00:33:30.349 the same, all have the same culture or be identical 00:33:30.349 --> 00:33:35.539 wherever and whenever they lived. Indeed. This 00:33:35.539 --> 00:33:37.819 is the approach that some groups and churches 00:33:37.819 --> 00:33:41.940 take even to this day. Our background was one 00:33:41.940 --> 00:33:44.640 that was like that. Wherever they would go, they 00:33:44.640 --> 00:33:47.359 would pretty much look and dress and act the 00:33:47.359 --> 00:33:50.039 same way. You could go to almost any church and 00:33:50.039 --> 00:33:55.220 it would be pretty much identical. They continued, 00:33:55.539 --> 00:33:59.720 Paul understands that the gospel does not belong 00:33:59.720 --> 00:34:04.519 to any particular culture. As the gospel takes 00:34:04.519 --> 00:34:08.699 root among different peoples and cultures, its 00:34:08.699 --> 00:34:12.139 essence will remain the same, but its look and 00:34:12.139 --> 00:34:15.420 feel may be somewhat different. This is how we 00:34:15.420 --> 00:34:19.239 can go into a church, into another country, and 00:34:19.239 --> 00:34:22.000 we can be at home because the gospel is preached, 00:34:22.139 --> 00:34:24.840 and yet there are things that just look and feel 00:34:24.840 --> 00:34:27.480 differently, and it might be in a whole number 00:34:27.480 --> 00:34:30.460 of different areas, of non -essential areas. 00:34:30.900 --> 00:34:37.650 And yet, we can worship the Lord together. The 00:34:37.650 --> 00:34:40.550 gospel was not a Jewish message sent throughout 00:34:40.550 --> 00:34:44.610 the world that created or resulted in adopting 00:34:44.610 --> 00:34:47.789 exactly the same cultural incarnation in every 00:34:47.789 --> 00:34:51.989 place. No, we are true. We are in essence the 00:34:51.989 --> 00:34:54.489 same, but the look and the feel can be somewhat 00:34:54.489 --> 00:34:59.190 different. Secondly, we should seek to remove 00:34:59.190 --> 00:35:03.719 unnecessary obstacles. to the gospel, becoming 00:35:03.719 --> 00:35:07.039 all things to all men in order to save some, 00:35:07.260 --> 00:35:12.300 especially in a missionary context, which is 00:35:12.300 --> 00:35:16.019 what Paul was coming from here, especially in 00:35:16.019 --> 00:35:20.519 a missionary context. Hudson Taylor, the great 00:35:20.519 --> 00:35:25.139 evangelist and discipler and pastor in China 00:35:25.139 --> 00:35:28.380 in the 1800s, he is a great example of this. 00:35:28.500 --> 00:35:32.090 After living in China as an Englishman, He determined 00:35:32.090 --> 00:35:35.769 that it would be to the advantage of the gospel 00:35:35.769 --> 00:35:39.710 if he would dress, instead of looking like an 00:35:39.710 --> 00:35:42.230 Englishman, if he would dress like a Chinese 00:35:42.230 --> 00:35:45.869 man. Now this received great opposition from 00:35:45.869 --> 00:35:49.409 some quarters, but he determined... Probably 00:35:49.409 --> 00:35:51.969 based on this passage and others that this would 00:35:51.969 --> 00:35:54.710 be the most wise way for him to minister. He 00:35:54.710 --> 00:35:59.070 did so and it was tremendously effective. It 00:35:59.070 --> 00:36:02.250 had an incredible impact because now the Chinese 00:36:02.250 --> 00:36:04.929 no longer heard it as the Englishman's gospel 00:36:04.929 --> 00:36:09.210 or a foreign gospel. It was rather now a gospel 00:36:09.210 --> 00:36:13.039 for them. And the Lord used that to mightily, 00:36:13.039 --> 00:36:17.099 mightily grow the church in China, which still 00:36:17.099 --> 00:36:19.719 exists today. God's people there. They're there 00:36:19.719 --> 00:36:22.599 by the millions, despite living under communism 00:36:22.599 --> 00:36:26.099 and persecution. Yet the church of God is very 00:36:26.099 --> 00:36:29.860 strong. The church of Christ is very strong in 00:36:29.860 --> 00:36:33.440 the country of China. Part of that happened because 00:36:33.440 --> 00:36:37.909 of the efforts of Hudson Taylor. Remove unnecessary 00:36:37.909 --> 00:36:40.670 obstacles to the gospel. So we need to think 00:36:40.670 --> 00:36:43.369 about that. Are there certain unnecessary obstacles 00:36:43.369 --> 00:36:47.210 that we might face? It is something for us to 00:36:47.210 --> 00:36:53.690 consider. Thirdly, all things to all men is and 00:36:53.690 --> 00:36:57.250 must be bounded by the law of Christ. Now, I've 00:36:57.250 --> 00:36:59.030 already emphasized this, but I'm going to bring 00:36:59.030 --> 00:37:02.570 this just here as a special point. Flexibility 00:37:02.570 --> 00:37:06.210 in indifferent things. but inflexibility in the 00:37:06.210 --> 00:37:10.349 gospel and the moral law of God. If God's people 00:37:10.349 --> 00:37:13.829 are offended by our obedience to God's law, so 00:37:13.829 --> 00:37:16.610 be it. I'm sorry, if people are, if the people 00:37:16.610 --> 00:37:19.130 surrounding us are offended by our obedience, 00:37:19.329 --> 00:37:22.949 then so be it. Nor is Paul saying that we should 00:37:22.949 --> 00:37:26.130 be like them in excess. Peter describes this 00:37:26.130 --> 00:37:29.389 in 1 Peter chapter 4, verse 1 to 4. Therefore, 00:37:29.489 --> 00:37:32.250 since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm 00:37:32.250 --> 00:37:35.010 yourselves also with the same mind. For he who 00:37:35.010 --> 00:37:37.030 has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 00:37:37.130 --> 00:37:39.510 that he no longer should live the rest of his 00:37:39.510 --> 00:37:43.090 time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for 00:37:43.090 --> 00:37:45.780 the will of God. For we have spent enough of 00:37:45.780 --> 00:37:49.199 our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles 00:37:49.199 --> 00:37:53.019 when we walked in lewdness, lust, drunkenness, 00:37:53.079 --> 00:37:56.619 revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries. 00:37:56.780 --> 00:37:59.760 In regard to these, they think it strange that 00:37:59.760 --> 00:38:01.719 you do not run with them in the same flood of 00:38:01.719 --> 00:38:05.880 dissipation, speaking evil of you. This is not 00:38:05.880 --> 00:38:08.780 what Paul is talking about. Not going to this 00:38:08.780 --> 00:38:13.300 extent. No. Therefore, we can only conform to 00:38:13.300 --> 00:38:16.400 others' ways or manners or scruples in matters 00:38:16.400 --> 00:38:19.260 indifferent, that is, things of neutrality in 00:38:19.260 --> 00:38:23.420 areas where God has not spoken. These are matters 00:38:23.420 --> 00:38:26.159 where it does not sin to practice or to refrain 00:38:26.159 --> 00:38:30.639 from practicing. But we cannot conform to sinful 00:38:30.639 --> 00:38:35.440 practices. This is not a license for unlimited 00:38:35.440 --> 00:38:39.130 flexibility. David Garland is very clear on this 00:38:39.130 --> 00:38:42.230 as he writes. He says, Paul does not think that 00:38:42.230 --> 00:38:45.309 fundamental and distinctive demands are negotiable 00:38:45.309 --> 00:38:48.750 depending on the circumstances. He did not tone 00:38:48.750 --> 00:38:52.690 down his assault on idolatry. to avoid offending 00:38:52.690 --> 00:38:56.269 idolaters or to curry favor with them. His accommodation 00:38:56.269 --> 00:39:00.030 has nothing to do with watering down the gospel 00:39:00.030 --> 00:39:02.969 message, with soft peddling its ethical demands 00:39:02.969 --> 00:39:07.530 or compromising its absolute monotheism. Paul 00:39:07.530 --> 00:39:10.130 never modified the message of Christ crucified 00:39:10.130 --> 00:39:13.570 to make it less of a scandal to Jews or less 00:39:13.570 --> 00:39:20.389 foolish to Greeks. End quote. Now done inappropriately. 00:39:21.099 --> 00:39:26.960 This can have great harm. I'm threading the needle 00:39:26.960 --> 00:39:29.639 for you, okay? I used that illustration before 00:39:29.639 --> 00:39:32.659 because we have to look at this very carefully. 00:39:32.840 --> 00:39:36.340 When this is done inappropriately, it can have 00:39:36.340 --> 00:39:40.280 great harm and we must be mindful of this. One 00:39:40.280 --> 00:39:43.539 example, and this is a pretty egregious one, 00:39:43.679 --> 00:39:48.380 is the seeker -sensitive movement. In the decades... 00:39:48.889 --> 00:39:54.130 of the late 1980s through the early 2000s. They 00:39:54.130 --> 00:39:58.369 used this passage as a charter text and as an 00:39:58.369 --> 00:40:01.590 affirmation of their strategy, but it had many, 00:40:01.690 --> 00:40:07.789 many problems. So much did it have an effect 00:40:07.789 --> 00:40:12.250 that their habits are still quite common in many 00:40:12.250 --> 00:40:15.409 evangelical churches, especially, I would say, 00:40:15.570 --> 00:40:20.300 megachurches. In its heyday, Willow Creek Association 00:40:20.300 --> 00:40:25.119 conferences trained thousands of pastors. Contemporary 00:40:25.119 --> 00:40:30.079 music, drama, felt -need preaching, casual dress, 00:40:30.380 --> 00:40:34.099 and auditorium -style rooms spread widely throughout 00:40:34.099 --> 00:40:36.559 evangelical and non -denominational churches. 00:40:36.980 --> 00:40:40.239 By the 1990s, the model was the default successful 00:40:40.239 --> 00:40:44.679 church pattern in much of American evangelicalism. 00:40:46.230 --> 00:40:50.510 In 2007, Willow Creek's own reveal study reported 00:40:50.510 --> 00:40:54.710 that the model was better at attracting attenders 00:40:54.710 --> 00:40:59.949 than making disciples. Better at attracting attenders 00:40:59.949 --> 00:41:03.960 than making disciples. disciples. Bill Hybel's 00:41:03.960 --> 00:41:07.500 2018 resignation and subsequent attendance declines 00:41:07.500 --> 00:41:10.480 at flagship churches marked the end of its cultural 00:41:10.480 --> 00:41:13.619 dominance. Nevertheless, many churches have kept 00:41:13.619 --> 00:41:16.320 the production values in casual style, but have 00:41:16.320 --> 00:41:19.139 dropped the seeker -sensitive label. So what 00:41:19.139 --> 00:41:22.219 went wrong? What can we learn from this? There's 00:41:22.219 --> 00:41:24.440 a number of things, but I'm going to list four. 00:41:24.599 --> 00:41:27.599 And I list this because it is still very pertinent 00:41:27.599 --> 00:41:30.860 today. The effects of this are very much with 00:41:30.860 --> 00:41:34.320 us in our culture. First of all, they used Paul's 00:41:34.320 --> 00:41:37.760 missionary flexibility as a blueprint for redesigning 00:41:37.760 --> 00:41:40.440 the gathered church. They turned the time of 00:41:40.440 --> 00:41:44.840 worship and edification of the saints into a 00:41:44.840 --> 00:41:47.619 performance show. A performance show with lighting, 00:41:47.780 --> 00:41:51.329 music, and atmosphere to match. But the Lord's 00:41:51.329 --> 00:41:53.929 day service is not primarily for evangelism. 00:41:53.949 --> 00:41:58.130 It is the household of God. It is to be properly 00:41:58.130 --> 00:42:04.670 ordered by the word and sacrament, by prayer 00:42:04.670 --> 00:42:08.349 and holiness. Paul himself will address some 00:42:08.349 --> 00:42:10.710 of the disorderliness in the Corinthians to the 00:42:10.710 --> 00:42:14.039 Corinthians in the following chapters. He accommodated 00:42:14.039 --> 00:42:16.920 himself as he went out, but he did not remodel 00:42:16.920 --> 00:42:19.420 the assembly of the saints so that it would be 00:42:19.420 --> 00:42:23.019 familiar or feel familiar to people still walking 00:42:23.019 --> 00:42:26.579 as the Gentiles walk. When the gathering of the 00:42:26.579 --> 00:42:29.400 saints is rebuilt around the taste, the attention 00:42:29.400 --> 00:42:32.820 span, and the comfort of the unregenerate, this 00:42:32.820 --> 00:42:37.340 principle has been inverted. It is not right. 00:42:37.440 --> 00:42:41.710 It is not good to do so. Secondly, They treated 00:42:41.710 --> 00:42:45.909 some moral and theological issues or matters 00:42:45.909 --> 00:42:50.550 as if they were the same as ceremonial and cultural. 00:42:50.789 --> 00:42:53.690 Oh, you want to do this? It's okay. And I can 00:42:53.690 --> 00:42:56.329 name a whole bunch of things in there. It's okay. 00:42:56.869 --> 00:43:00.449 It's a matter of liberty. We can have liberty 00:43:00.449 --> 00:43:03.849 in this. And so consequently, you had floods 00:43:03.849 --> 00:43:07.389 of couples living together in immorality or being 00:43:07.389 --> 00:43:12.730 unmarried. on and on, I could go with it. No, 00:43:12.869 --> 00:43:16.429 Paul laid down circumcision and food laws and 00:43:16.429 --> 00:43:19.690 ritual separation. He laid it down, but he never 00:43:19.690 --> 00:43:22.190 laid down the offense of the cross, the call 00:43:22.190 --> 00:43:25.650 to repentance, the moral law, or the demand that 00:43:25.650 --> 00:43:30.289 believers put off the old man. Seeker -sensitive 00:43:30.289 --> 00:43:34.510 practices routinely softened sin, judgment, holiness, 00:43:34.809 --> 00:43:37.449 and the cost of discipleship so that the room 00:43:38.059 --> 00:43:42.519 would stay comfortable. This is not as without 00:43:42.519 --> 00:43:45.820 law. Rather, it is becoming without the law of 00:43:45.820 --> 00:43:49.900 Christ. Thirdly, they located the primary evangelistic 00:43:49.900 --> 00:43:52.739 event inside the worship service rather than 00:43:52.739 --> 00:43:55.880 outside of it. Paul reasoned in synagogues and 00:43:55.880 --> 00:43:58.460 marketplaces, but then formed churches that belonged 00:43:58.460 --> 00:44:01.619 to Christ. The seeker model made Sunday morning 00:44:01.619 --> 00:44:03.800 the main outreach event and therefore made the 00:44:03.800 --> 00:44:06.840 service itself the thing that had to be inoffensive. 00:44:07.340 --> 00:44:10.619 Music, dress, architecture, length, and even 00:44:10.619 --> 00:44:13.199 the sermon were calibrated to the outsider's 00:44:13.199 --> 00:44:16.500 felt needs. The result was often a room full 00:44:16.500 --> 00:44:19.559 of people who liked the church more than they 00:44:19.559 --> 00:44:24.079 feared God. Lastly, they measured success by 00:44:24.079 --> 00:44:26.900 attraction rather than conversion to holiness. 00:44:28.500 --> 00:44:32.300 In this, they fostered a consumer mindset rather 00:44:32.300 --> 00:44:37.059 than an active worshiper. Why do we have so many 00:44:37.059 --> 00:44:39.800 responsive readings? Why do we sing so much? 00:44:39.940 --> 00:44:42.320 Why do we have participation in the way that 00:44:42.320 --> 00:44:44.760 we do? All of this is because we are gathered 00:44:44.760 --> 00:44:48.239 here to worship God together. You're not to just 00:44:48.239 --> 00:44:50.880 come here and sit and just be a consumer and 00:44:50.880 --> 00:44:52.480 say, okay, what are you going to feed me today? 00:44:53.099 --> 00:44:55.320 Now, yes, it's my responsibility to preach the 00:44:55.320 --> 00:44:58.099 word for sure, but we're active participants. 00:44:58.519 --> 00:45:02.039 We pray, we stand, we sing, we lift our hands 00:45:02.039 --> 00:45:06.159 to God. We look to him. The brothers take part 00:45:06.159 --> 00:45:08.460 in the reading of the scripture because we are 00:45:08.460 --> 00:45:12.139 collectively a body of Christ and we worship 00:45:12.139 --> 00:45:17.360 God together. We don't just come and think that 00:45:17.360 --> 00:45:19.619 we're worshiping because there's a great band 00:45:19.619 --> 00:45:23.039 up front and because the speaker meets the felt 00:45:23.039 --> 00:45:26.420 needs that I have today. May that never be the 00:45:26.420 --> 00:45:29.440 case here, but rather that we would be active 00:45:29.440 --> 00:45:35.840 worshipers of God together. Paul's goal was to 00:45:35.840 --> 00:45:38.099 win people, to bring them under the lordship 00:45:38.099 --> 00:45:40.239 of Christ, not merely to get them in the door. 00:45:40.420 --> 00:45:42.679 Now later data from the movement's own flagship 00:45:42.679 --> 00:45:45.800 churches showed the predictable fruit. Many attenders 00:45:45.800 --> 00:45:48.960 simply remained consumers. They had been accommodated 00:45:48.960 --> 00:45:52.820 to and not called out of the world. This is a 00:45:52.820 --> 00:45:56.380 powerful and poignant example of how not to interpret 00:45:56.380 --> 00:45:59.480 this passage. I spent this amount of time on 00:45:59.480 --> 00:46:02.159 this, which I don't normally do, but it's because 00:46:02.159 --> 00:46:04.840 this is the foundational passage that was used 00:46:04.840 --> 00:46:08.860 to support all of this. And we need to understand 00:46:08.860 --> 00:46:13.159 that and why we do not want to do that. Number 00:46:13.159 --> 00:46:15.480 five, we should not conform in matters indifferent 00:46:15.480 --> 00:46:21.019 if others are interpreting it as a matter of 00:46:21.019 --> 00:46:26.070 moral law. If we make them think that our conformity 00:46:26.070 --> 00:46:28.469 is part of the moral law, then we should not 00:46:28.469 --> 00:46:32.230 do it. What I mean here is Paul's example with 00:46:32.230 --> 00:46:35.650 Titus. They thought that it should be, some of 00:46:35.650 --> 00:46:38.349 the Jews, the Judaizers, they thought this was 00:46:38.349 --> 00:46:41.730 a requirement of the moral law. And so Paul specifically 00:46:41.730 --> 00:46:47.050 did not circumcise Titus, or did not have him 00:46:47.050 --> 00:46:50.170 circumcised, so that they would not think that 00:46:50.170 --> 00:46:55.440 in any way. As a matter indifferent, but they 00:46:55.440 --> 00:46:59.460 were interpreting as a matter of moral law. Number 00:46:59.460 --> 00:47:03.420 six. When we do conform to others in manners 00:47:03.420 --> 00:47:06.400 or scruples, we are not putting ourselves in 00:47:06.400 --> 00:47:10.079 a position of always doing so in every place. 00:47:10.440 --> 00:47:13.619 The practices can conform to the various areas 00:47:13.619 --> 00:47:17.679 and locations of ministry as needed. Paul did 00:47:17.679 --> 00:47:19.659 not always practice the Jewish things when he 00:47:19.659 --> 00:47:22.320 was with the Gentiles, but only when he was with 00:47:22.650 --> 00:47:27.030 some of the Jews. And so consequently, when we 00:47:27.030 --> 00:47:29.510 conform, it is not necessarily saying that we 00:47:29.510 --> 00:47:32.250 have to do it in every place, wherever we go, 00:47:32.289 --> 00:47:34.969 and no matter where or what culture we are in. 00:47:35.710 --> 00:47:38.949 Among Christians, we must discern, though, if 00:47:38.949 --> 00:47:41.150 our practice and our freedom will cause others 00:47:41.150 --> 00:47:46.170 to offend and truly stumble or not. That is that 00:47:46.170 --> 00:47:49.630 by our liberty, we are actually causing spiritual 00:47:49.630 --> 00:47:55.050 harm. If not, If this is not the case, we are 00:47:55.050 --> 00:47:57.789 not required to abide by their scruples, even 00:47:57.789 --> 00:48:01.849 or although we might choose to do so. What I'm 00:48:01.849 --> 00:48:04.230 saying is this. The practice of our liberties 00:48:04.230 --> 00:48:06.889 among those who merely disagree with us is not 00:48:06.889 --> 00:48:10.750 prohibited in the scripture. It is not prohibited. 00:48:11.309 --> 00:48:14.710 It is only if we're causing someone to stumble. 00:48:14.969 --> 00:48:17.889 In other words, when you come from various... 00:48:18.300 --> 00:48:20.539 backgrounds, whatever it might be, perhaps your 00:48:20.539 --> 00:48:22.300 family or somewhere, they don't like what you're 00:48:22.300 --> 00:48:25.360 doing. Or it's not pleasing to them because you're 00:48:25.360 --> 00:48:28.219 departing in some tradition that they think you 00:48:28.219 --> 00:48:31.139 should be. But you practicing your liberty does 00:48:31.139 --> 00:48:32.860 not cause them to stumble. It's just that they 00:48:32.860 --> 00:48:35.599 don't like it. You have the freedom to do so. 00:48:35.800 --> 00:48:38.039 You have to determine whether it's expedient 00:48:38.039 --> 00:48:43.280 or wise or not to exercise your freedom. But 00:48:43.280 --> 00:48:45.840 it's okay if you do. You're not prohibited from 00:48:45.840 --> 00:48:49.280 the scripture from doing it. But then there are 00:48:49.280 --> 00:48:51.619 also those Christians who see every decision 00:48:51.619 --> 00:48:55.840 in life as a moral obligation before God. This 00:48:55.840 --> 00:48:59.179 is why they agonize over every decision to make 00:48:59.179 --> 00:49:01.780 sure that they are within the parameters of God's 00:49:01.780 --> 00:49:05.280 will. But we must understand God has not revealed 00:49:05.280 --> 00:49:09.280 everything to us. There is much liberty in the 00:49:09.280 --> 00:49:11.960 law of God and in the word of God. And thus we 00:49:11.960 --> 00:49:14.460 can delight in this liberty and live within it 00:49:14.460 --> 00:49:17.829 as free men and women. And this is where, again, 00:49:17.929 --> 00:49:20.250 we need to be a light to those who are held captive. 00:49:20.530 --> 00:49:23.469 And sometimes they are agonized. Should I marry 00:49:23.469 --> 00:49:26.309 this particular girl? I might be attracted to 00:49:26.309 --> 00:49:28.449 this one over here. But I think, you know, I 00:49:28.449 --> 00:49:31.210 need to know. God, I need you to reveal to me. 00:49:31.289 --> 00:49:34.889 Must it be this one? Or should I move to this 00:49:34.889 --> 00:49:38.610 place? Or on and on. We can go. And so we agonize 00:49:38.610 --> 00:49:41.929 and agonize. When God has given to us wisdom, 00:49:42.130 --> 00:49:46.920 discernment. even possibly looking for opportunity 00:49:46.920 --> 00:49:50.460 or open doors or closed doors. But at the same 00:49:50.460 --> 00:49:54.199 time, we are free in Christ to choose what it 00:49:54.199 --> 00:49:57.860 is that we believe we should do. It's liberty. 00:49:59.219 --> 00:50:03.400 The overriding thrust of this passage is a missionary 00:50:03.400 --> 00:50:06.360 thrust. That is that we are willing to be a servant 00:50:06.360 --> 00:50:08.679 of all in order that we may win them to Christ. 00:50:08.940 --> 00:50:11.820 This requires both sensitivity and boldness. 00:50:12.000 --> 00:50:15.340 For example, consider the abortion clinic ministry. 00:50:15.739 --> 00:50:18.139 Sometimes, especially those who promote this, 00:50:18.300 --> 00:50:21.360 the doctors and providers may need hellfire and 00:50:21.360 --> 00:50:24.380 brimstone preaching. They need this. They need 00:50:24.380 --> 00:50:27.199 to hear the solemn call and the warning about 00:50:27.199 --> 00:50:29.820 what they are doing. But for the women coming, 00:50:30.599 --> 00:50:32.980 Perhaps it's more effective for sidewalk counselors 00:50:32.980 --> 00:50:35.559 to combine the telling of the truth with sin, 00:50:35.659 --> 00:50:38.360 but about the sin, but also to extend compassion 00:50:38.360 --> 00:50:42.400 and help and the hope of Christ. Again, embodying 00:50:42.400 --> 00:50:46.059 by all means, save some. There are different 00:50:46.059 --> 00:50:49.980 ways of approach. We need to use wisdom to seek 00:50:49.980 --> 00:50:52.440 to bring them to Christ. Therefore, brothers 00:50:52.440 --> 00:50:56.039 and sisters, may we be free sons and daughters 00:50:56.039 --> 00:50:59.610 of Christ. Free men. and free women who live 00:50:59.610 --> 00:51:02.210 in the light and the glory of Christ. May we 00:51:02.210 --> 00:51:05.090 always be about the gospel, that transforming 00:51:05.090 --> 00:51:09.070 power of God to put sin to death, to become a 00:51:09.070 --> 00:51:11.670 new man and a new woman, and to be incorporated 00:51:11.670 --> 00:51:15.429 into the people of God and the kingdom of Christ. 00:51:16.570 --> 00:51:19.170 Let us then pray and commit this to the Lord.