26-0510p Transcript

(0:38) So, good evening once again. (0:41) I hope everybody had a lovely day honoring their mothers, remembering their mothers, (0:49) enjoying time with family.

Well, this evening, we’re going to be concluding Paul’s exhortation (0:58) to the Corinthians. And this morning, we observed through scripture Paul’s relationship (1:05) to the Corinthian church. And Paul had a fatherly relationship with them.

(1:12) They were a church that had a lot of growing pains with behavioral issues. (1:18) And Paul, as only a father could do, by lovingly instructing them and even by (1:25) punishing a member who was living in a sinful relationship, corrected those behaviors. (1:34) We looked at three of his four-step method on correction.

It was affirm and accept, (1:43) address and admonish, rebuke and correct. And now we’re going to look at exhort and encourage. (1:51) As seen in these verses, 1 Corinthians 16, 13 and 14, be on your guard, (2:00) stand firm in the faith, be men of courage, be strong, do everything in love.

(2:08) So, we’re going to break these down. First, be on your guard. The Greek word here for guard is (2:19) Gregorio, which means be alert, be watchful, be vigilant, be ready, be on guard.

(2:29) Why? Well, Jude says in verse 3, contend for the faith. We don’t remain silent or shrink back. (2:41) We engage intellectually.

This is to be applied to all phases of our Christian walk. (2:51) So, be on guard at church, at home, at work, when alone, or when in a crowd. (3:00) We have mortal enemies, both human and spiritual.

And Peter says in 1 Peter 5a, (3:14) be self-controlled and alert. Again, there’s Gregorio. Your enemy, the devil, (3:22) prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.

All the Jews Paul admonished (3:31) the Corinthian church for, they were to be on the lookout for and guard against. (3:43) They were to guard against division, sexual impurity, false teachings, false teachers, (3:50) the morally wicked, worshiping incorrectly, and not to harm the faith of the weaker brother. (3:58) All of these are fiery arrows from Satan’s quiver.

They were to be ever vigilant, (4:08) to do everything out of love, putting others above themselves, and most importantly, (4:14) to ever be ready and on guard for Christ’s return. Jesus used the same Greek word, (4:24) Gregorio, in Matthew chapters 24 and 25, when exhorting his followers to be ready at his coming, (4:35) for no one knows the hour in which he is coming. He said, stay alert.

That’s Gregorio. I will come (4:41) like a thief in the night, and stay alert. Again, no one knows the hour in which the bridegroom (4:50) will come.

So the charge to Christians is to be alert. Keep an eye out for the return of the Lord. (5:02) The second point in his exhortation, stand firm in the faith.

The faith is synonymous for the gospel. (5:13) It’s like saying, stand firm on his gospel, or stand firm in his word. (5:22) Faith, along with the definite article, the, the faith, points to the gospel.

(5:30) That faith. Jesus said his followers know the sound of his voice in John 10.4, and how do we (5:38) know that? By spending time with them, reading scripture, and studying his word, and in prayer. (5:47) We become familiar with his word.

We know his voice. And when we hear a teaching contrary (5:55) to his word, it’s like hearing the voice of a stranger, and we reject it. That’s standing firm.

(6:05) When temptations come our way, we’re to say no to ungodliness, as Paul tells the Thessalonians. (6:15) No to ungodliness, that’s standing firm in the faith, and abiding in his word. (6:23) Paul, in the 15th chapter of the Corinthian letter, exhorted them by saying, in verse 58, (6:29) which John read, therefore my dear brothers, stand firm.

Let nothing move you. Always give (6:38) yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in (6:45) vain. So we’re to stand firm in our work to the Lord.

Sometimes you think, wow, I’m the only one (6:54) working. Sometimes you think, when will I get a break? Sometimes it’s like, oh, this load is so (7:02) heavy to carry. Stand firm to the end, and your reward will be great.

That’s standing firm in the (7:15) faith. You are proving your faith by working tirelessly for the Lord, because you know in (7:23) your heart that it’s true. You know in your heart that the Lord needs workers, not shirkers.

(7:33) I just made that up. I should be an ad man. In Philippians 1.27, Paul says, only let your way (7:46) of life be worthy of the good news of Christ, that whether I come and see you or am absent, (7:55) I may hear of your state, that you stand firm in one spirit, with one soul, striving for the faith (8:05) of the good news.

There it is again. The faith is the good news, the gospel. That’s what it means (8:12) by the faith.

We have faith, yes, but when referring to the faith, we’re talking about (8:19) God’s Word, and we’re to stand firm in it, be united in it, not divided by it. In 2 Thessalonians 2, (8:32) 13 through 15, it says, but we ought to always thank God for you, brothers, loved by the Lord, (8:40) because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit (8:47) and through belief in the truth. He called you to this through our gospel that you might share in (8:55) the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings (9:03) we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter. Our steadfast and immovable belief (9:13) in God’s Word is standing firm in the faith. The world might mock us for believing in the invisible (9:22) God and in His Son whom He raised from the dead, but that’s okay.

We’re standing firm in the faith. (9:34) Don’t reject the Lord. Don’t neglect standing up for Him and giving the good testimony.

That’s (9:42) denying Him. If you deny Jesus in front of man, guess what? He’ll deny you before the (9:52) angels in heaven and the Father, and we don’t want that. Believing the Word of God as fact (10:04) and history in the face of increasing pressure to believe the lie of evolution, that’s standing firm (10:13) in the gospel, the good news, because the world hates Jesus.

It did then, and it does now. (10:22) He said to those who believe in Mark 13, 13, all men will hate you because of me, (10:29) but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. Amen.

(10:37) Third point, be men of courage. Peter tells us in the first chapter of his second letter (10:45) that as our knowledge in the Word increases, our faith gets stronger, and we receive more grace from (10:54) God. When we see this at work in our lives, we trust God more.

This emboldens us. We are more (11:05) courageous. We know that no matter what happens, God has our back.

Peter tells us that he will (11:12) supply us with everything we need for life and godliness. Godliness is not just being holy (11:21) because he is holy. It is also to be courageous like our Savior.

Jesus was courageous even as he (11:31) faced Calvary and went through death on the cross. As he approached Jerusalem, it’s said that he (11:39) set his face like flint. He couldn’t be dissuaded.

He set his course for the cross. (11:49) That’s courage, knowing what Satan and man had up their sleeve for him. (12:00) Crucifixion is the absolute worst form of torture and death, and he was courageous and went through (12:11) it for us.

Thank you, Jesus. So being courageous in the face of adversity, persecution, conflict, (12:25) and even death, Jesus set an example for us. David prophesied about the suffering Messiah (12:34) on the cross in Psalm 22.

The Psalm reveals not only did David and the Israelites trust in God, (12:44) but our Savior did as well. In verses 4 and 5, it says, and you, our fathers, put their trust. (12:52) They trusted you, and you delivered them.

They cried to you, and you were, and you saved. In you, (13:01) they trusted and were not disappointed. Jesus Christ trusted his Father that everything they (13:08) planned from before eternity would go according to the plan of salvation for mankind, and he (13:16) proclaimed with the last breath he had on the cross, it is finished.

Father, into your hands, (13:24) I commit my spirit. He trusted God to the very end. The proof that Jesus lived a perfect, (13:35) sin-free life is proven by the fact of his resurrection from the dead.

God saw his perfect (13:42) life and how he was tempted in every way just as we are, and yet was without sin. (13:50) And that’s why Paul could say in Romans 1, 3, and 4, regarding his son, who as to his human nature (13:59) was a descendant of David, and who through the spirit of holiness was declared with power to be (14:08) the son of God by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ, our Lord. That couldn’t hold him (14:18) because God pronounced him innocent.

He was falsely accused, falsely convicted. (14:26) God sprang him from jail. God pardoned.

Gave him the pardon that said, you’re free. (14:35) And one day we’re going to get that pardon from our when we die. Be free as we rise up in the (14:43) resurrection.

Jesus was illegally crucified because he had no sin, so all the charges were dropped, (14:52) so to speak. Proclaimed innocent. Therefore, death and the grave couldn’t hold him, (14:57) and on the third day, of course, he rose from death.

(15:02) Point four, be strong. Psalm 31, 24. Be strong and let your heart take courage, all of you who hope (15:14) in Yahweh.

Psalm 27, 14. Wait for Yahweh. Be strong and let your heart take courage.

Yes, (15:27) wait for Yahweh. And why is that? David answers for us in Psalm 105, verse 4. Look to the Lord (15:37) in his strength. See his face always.

We pray to our great God, Yahweh, and we can take courage (15:46) and trust on its strength, not our own. When we rely on our own strength, we’ll always fail. (15:56) We have to condition ourselves to turn it over to the Lord in prayer and know that he’s got our (16:04) back and that in his time, he’ll work things out for the good of us who believe in him.

(16:11) Paul says in the Ephesian letter in chapter 6, verses 10 through 18, (16:17) be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power, and put on the spiritual armor he provides for us. (16:28) This is a spiritual battle, remember that. So the example of Jesus' temptation by Satan, (16:37) Jesus used his Father’s strength and words to overcome those temptations, (16:44) and we have to use his strength and his word as our sword.

So be strong, brothers and sisters. (16:53) Be strong in the Lord. Point five, he says, do everything in love.

So love should be our (17:04) modus operandi. Love is the reason for being a Christian, for God so loved the world. (17:12) It is a character quality we should have as Christians because God is love and we’re his (17:19) children, so we should be loving children just like God.

It is first of the nine fruits of the (17:30) Spirit listed in Galatians 5, 22 through 23. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, (17:39) faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. It is a godly virtue that we should be employing in (17:47) whatever we do.

If you do something for somebody, it should be done with a loving attitude. (17:53) God doesn’t change. He was a loving God in the beginning in the garden, (17:58) he was a loving God to the patriarchs, he was a loving God to Israel, and he’s a loving God (18:05) to we as Christians.

In Deuteronomy 7, 9, it’s written, (18:19) know therefore that Yahweh, your God himself, is God, the faithful God, that’s the AM, (18:32) amen, who keeps covenant and loving kindness with them who love him and keep his commandments (18:41) to a thousand generations. In 1 John 4, 7 through 12, John writes, Dear friends, (18:52) let us love one another for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God (18:59) and knows God.

Whoever does not love does not know God because God is love. This is how God (19:09) showed his love among us. He sent his only begotten son into the world that we might live (19:16) through him.

This is love, not that we love God, but that he loved us and sent his son (19:23) as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought (19:31) to love one another. No one has ever seen God, but if we love one another, (19:38) God lives in us, and his love is made complete in us.

Finally, for a biblical definition of what (19:48) godly love is, the agape love, which we’ve been talking a lot about in Steve’s class Sunday (19:56) morning, we can find that definition in 1 Corinthians 13. And there, Paul will tell us (20:11) what godly love is and what godly love is not. So if you’d like, turn to 1 Corinthians 13, (20:23) and we’re going to look at verses 1 through 8 and 13.

And now I will show you the most excellent (20:33) way. If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding (20:41) gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all (20:49) knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

(20:57) If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain (21:05) nothing. Love is patient. Love is kind.

It does not envy. It does not boast. It is not proud.

(21:13) It is not rude. It is not self-seeking. It is not easily angered.

It keeps no record of wrongs. (21:23) Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, (21:31) always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails. And now these three remain, (21:42) faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.

So godly love just isn’t (21:50) an affectionate feeling for someone. That would be phileo, which is brotherly love. (21:57) And of course eros is the special love between man and his wife who enjoy together.

Agape love (22:06) is made up of all kinds of godly virtuous attitudes. Agape love is what God wants us to practice (22:15) with everyone we come in contact with. That’s why he can make it a command.

(22:26) There are at least 12 points listed there as to what agape love is. Since God is love, (22:37) you can put God in front of each of those points and it would describe our God wonderfully. (22:45) God is patient.

God is kind. God does not envy. He does not boast.

He is not proud. He (22:55) is not rude. And right on down the list.

All of those points add up to godly love (23:04) and describes his character. So those are the virtues we are commanded to have with each other (23:12) when Christ commanded, a new commandment I give you, love one another. As I have loved you, (23:19) so you must love one another.

By this all men will know that you are my disciples, (23:26) if you love one another. So that’s how we’re identified. Not by the book we have tucked (23:36) under our arm, but by our actions, by our behavior, our attitude.

It’s one of love. (23:46) Paul sums it up with this simple phrase he told the Galatians in chapter 5, verse 6. (23:54) The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. (24:03) So our faith has to express that godly virtue, that fruit of the spirit, called love.

And this (24:12) is the exhortation that Paul leaves with the Corinthians, the loving advice, (24:22) step four, so to speak, of how he corrected the Corinthian church. He had to build them up and (24:29) encourage them, reminding them that love is what it’s all about. Love is going to keep them from (24:37) being divided.

Love for God is going to keep them on the straight and narrow and to love each other. (24:47) So Paul’s final words to the Corinthians I leave with you, (24:52) be on your guard, stand firm in the faith, be courageous, (24:58) be strong, and do everything in love. If you have any need from the church, (25:05) you can come forward and we’ll be glad to lovingly help you.