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The High Gospel Calling for Parents – Deuteronomy 6

Good morning church! Hope you all are doing well. Just wanted to welcome all who have joined us today in-person and also friends who have joined us online. 

We are doubly excited today as we get to dedicate baby Levi and encourage Pradeep and Olayinka to steward this wonderful calling to raise Levi in the ways of the Lord. That will happen a little later but just wanted to say that it’s our joy to journey with them as a church family. 

But before we get there, it’s important that we spend the next few moments anchoring ourselves in God’s Word. After all, everything that we do is a response to God’s Word. Most of you know that our usual pattern is to preach through books of the Bible – chapter by chapter like our current series from 1st Corinthians. 

But every now and then we do standalone sermons especially if it coincides with an occasion like a dedication service which we have today. It gives us an opportunity to care for church biblically through some of those subjects like the subject of parenting that we will cover today. 

And I’m aware that among us we’ve got a mixed audience. There are some who are parents right now, and there are some who aren’t parents but I still believe that this passage will be encouraging and helpful for all because even if you’re not a parent, you definitely know someone who is and you’ll be able to encourage them with what you’ve learnt today. 

What is the goal of parenting? What would you say is the main purpose for parenting? 

Most would say that the goal is to make their children independent, well educated, well behaved people of society who will one day be in a position to repeat the whole cycle again with their children. That’s what most people would agree is their purpose for parenting. And so they spend all of their energies trying to fulfill this purpose for their children. 

But what if we were to ask God what was his purpose in making us parents, what would he say? His answer from Deuteronomy 6 would be quite different from what we normally expect. In fact all of those goals don’t feature anywhere in the passage. Now it’s not to say that those things are bad in itself, but that’s not God’s primary purpose. That’s not why God calls us to be parents to our children. God’s calling for us is far higher than we even think or imagine. 

What is God’s high calling for parents? 

Deuteronomy 6:1-2 

[1] “Now this is the commandment—the statutes and the rules—that the Lord your God commanded me to teach you, that you may do them in the land to which you are going over, to possess it, [2] that you may fear the Lord your God, you and your son and your son’s son, by keeping all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you, all the days of your life, and that your days may be long. 

The high calling is to fear God and to teach that to your kids. And this “fear” is not dreading God but one of reverence out of great honor and esteem for Him. Because we know of God’s supreme authority and because we know that He’s Holy, we approach Him with honor and esteem. 

Well how do we go about fearing God and calling our children to do the same? Deut 6 gives us 3 steps. 

1. Trust (v4-6) 

[4] “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. [5] You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. [6] And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 

The first step tells us to personally trust God ourselves before we get to teaching our kids. We are challenged to look inside our own hearts before we get to looking at the hearts of our children. 

Look with me at v4. This verse is often known as the Shema which in Hebrew means “hear”. For a Jew, this is one of the most important verses which says “The Lord our God, the Lord is one”. 

He is not to be treated as one among many gods. He is the One True God. He is making a claim for exclusivity. It’s not Yahweh + other gods. God is telling us “You either chose me as Lord or you don’t.”

And that’s the same sentiment in v5 – the familiar verse which tells us to love God with all our heart, all our soul and all our might. Notice it doesn’t say love your God with a part of your heart, with a part of your soul and with a part of your might. He’s demanding all of our devotion or none of it. He’s demanding all of our surrender or none of it. He’s demanding all of our love or none of it. He’s demanding all of our trust or none of it. 

For many of us who have been around church and heard this verse time and time again, we sometimes miss out on its impact because we assume that we know what it means for us. But I want us all to ask ourselves these questions to evaluate our love for God:

Can I honestly say that I love God more than any relationship in my life? Can I honestly say that I love God more than my spouse and kids? Can I say that I love God more than my friends? Can I say that I love God more than making more money? Can I say that I love God more than my job? Can I say that I love God more than my comfort? Can I truly say that I love God more than receiving approval from my peers? Can I truly say that I love God more than the pleasures that I enjoy when no one’s watching? 

And all of these questions get to heart of it. When the Bible says “love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul and all your might”, it means that our affections for God should be unparalleled. We should not be making room in our hearts for competing affections. And this is challenging and convicting for all of us because we’re coming face to face with the competing gods in our hearts. 

And that’s why personal trust needs to be accompanied with daily repentance. If we need to daily exhibit trust in the God of the Bible, it needs to be accompanied by daily repentance where we confess all the people and the things which are competing for that place in our hearts which is only reserved for God. 

First step in fearing God and parenting our kids is to demonstrate how we personally Trust God first. It’s humbling to realize that kids are likely to do what they see us do rather than what they hear us tell them to do. We can’t jump this first step. 

Second step is to

2. Teach (v7-9) 

[7] You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. [8] You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. [9] You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

V7 tells us to diligently teach our children God’s Word and His commands. What’s interesting is that the word which is used in the Hebrew for diligent actually is translated as “pierce”. As parents we’re called to pierce the hearts of children with the truths of God’s Word. It’s not just doing it for the sake of doing it but with the intention of getting God’s Word into the hearts of our children. Have we ever thought about teaching our kids in this way? 

And then it goes on to say how spiritual conversations need to be the focus and the norm for everyday conversations with your children. It’s not a one-time activity. In fact in v7 it almost seems like an obsession where the parents are intentional in bringing up these conversations during every point of the day. Everything seems to circle back to God’s Word. 

V8 and 9 talk about how there’s not only regular daily spiritual conversations but there are visual reminders placed all around the house to point people back to the God of the Bible. God’s Word is not put up for decorative purposes in the home, but to spur the family back to God time and time again. 

So what we can see here is that spiritual conversations with your kids can’t be limited to Sunday School only. Although we greatly value all that the Sunday School teachers do to bring the Gospel to the children in a way that makes it accessible to them each week, yet spiritual conversations with our children can’t be outsourced to Sunday School. As parents we are called to own that responsibility for our children. 

I think it’s a good pause point to ask ourselves – what’s taking center stage in our conversation with our family and children? Is it studies? Is it politics? Is it sports? Or is it movies? Where do spiritual conversations feature in our everyday family conversations? 

And so we Trust God ourselves, we Teach and then the third step is to

3. Testify (v20-25) 

When your son asks you in time to come, ‘What is the meaning of the testimonies and the statutes and the rules that the Lord our God has commanded you?’ [21] then you shall say to your son, ‘We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt. And the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand. [22] And the Lord showed signs and wonders, great and grievous, against Egypt and against Pharaoh and all his household, before our eyes. [23] And he brought us out from there, that he might bring us in and give us the land that he swore to give to our fathers. [24] And the Lord commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as we are this day. [25] And it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to do all this commandment before the Lord our God, as he has commanded us.

These verses give us a very different perspective to parenting right? When our children ask us “Dad / Mom – why do we have so many spiritual conversations at home? Why do we have these verses put up everywhere? Why do we not join our neighbors when they participate in idol worship?” Our response shouldn’t be a short one liner saying “Because we’re Christian”. 

That’s a God given opportunity to testify to God’s grace and rescue in your lives. Those are precious discipling moments which God has ordained not to put you in a spot, not to make you think of the smartest theological answer but to simply testify to your own grace story. 

V21 – Talk about how you were a slave to sin & Satan and what life was like as a slave apart from God. 

V22 – Talk about how God had mercy on you and how He sent His one and only Son Jesus to rescue you through His amazing work on the cross. 

V23 – Talk about His resurrection and your trust in Him which totally changed your life forever. As someone who experienced freedom from your slavery to sin, Satan and death – now we owe our lives to our Savior forever. All of our life choices need to reflect obedience to our Savior and that’s why we do what we do. It’s not blind rule keeping. It’s not keeping traditions. It’s obedience as a response to amazing grace! 

Just an encouragement to some of us who might read this passage and think “I missed the whole point of parenting. I wish I knew this earlier but I know I can’t turn back time” – God is sovereign and gracious. You should know that it’s not too late even now. Ask God for grace to help you Trust, Teach and Testify to your children. 

Some others might think – this 3 step process seems overwhelming looking at the high calling for parents. Just want you to know that God wouldn’t have called you to the role, without giving you the grace to fulfill it. Grace is available in plenty at Jesus’ feet. Run to Him and you’ll find all the help you need to be able to fulfill this high Gospel calling. 

Oftentimes when we talk about people being called to ministry, we automatically associate it with pastoral, mercy or evangelistic ministry and these are wonderful callings for sure. But in the light of what we’ve read and heard in Deut 6, parenting is a high gospel call to ministry. It’s not ordinary or insignificant in God’s eyes. God has called and equipped parents to fulfill a purpose of modeling what it means to fear God and they do it by 3 steps:

Trust, Teach and Testify. 

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Surrendering our rights for the sake of the Gospel – 1Corinthians 9

This sermon is from the series “The Church: God’s Dwelling Place.”

Last Sunday, we looked at 1 Corinthians 8, where Paul prohibits believers from eating food offered to idols for the sake of a weaker brother who may stumble in his faith due to lack of knowledge. In the same spirit, Paul continues his conversation in chapter 9, addressing another conflict in the church. He shares his personal decision on a particular matter to help avoid any conflict or misunderstanding from becoming a stumbling block to the Gospel.

When we carefully read the words of Paul, we see that he was addressing two conflicts the church had against him.

First, they had not accepted him as an Apostle as they did with the other 12 disciples of Jesus. Look with me at 1 Corinthians 9:1-2.

To understand this, we need to know the meaning of the word ‘Apostle’. An Apostle is someone sent to preach the Gospel and plant churches who saw Jesus and was directly appointed or commissioned by Jesus himself.

Mark 3:14 ESV: And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach.

Perhaps the church was asking how Paul could claim to be an Apostle when he was not among the 12 who saw and walked with Jesus and were directly commissioned by Him.

Paul has a backstory that I assume the people either didn’t know or didn’t believe in.

Paul did meet Jesus on the road to Damascus and was directly commissioned by Jesus to preach the gospel and plant churches. Whether the people Surrendering our rights for the sake of the Gospel 1 Corinthians 9 2 believed him or not, he seemed pretty convinced. In defending himself, he also claimed that the proof of his apostleship appointed by Jesus was evident in the Lord’s excellent work in the people’s lives through his hard work and efforts.

The second issue with people was that they were constantly examining Paul. They may have concluded that he was working for personal gain or ulterior motives, preventing them from enjoying certain benefits that the other apostles were allowed to have.

1 Corinthians 9:3-6 ESV: This is my defense to those who would examine me. Do we not have the right to eat and drink? Do we not have the right to take along a believing wife, as do the other apostles and the brothers of the Lord and Cephas? Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working for a living?

From verse 7 onwards, Paul provides reasons for them to believe they genuinely serve the Lord and the people.

1 Corinthians 9:7 ESV: Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard without eating any of its fruit? Or who tends a flock without getting some of the milk?

He is saying, look at the work we’ve done so far. We’ve done it at our expense. We did not take anything from you. We served you with a genuine heart.

In verses 8-14, Paul explains that even if they had to take a reward for their labor in the gospel, there was nothing wrong with it. God approves of it.

1 Corinthians 9:8-14 : Do I say these things on human authority? Does not the Law say the same? For it is written in the Law of Moses, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain.” Is it for oxen that God is concerned? Does he not certainly speak for our sake? It was written for our sake, because the plowman should plow in hope and the thresher thresh in hope of sharing in the crop. If we have sown spiritual things among you, is it too much if we reap material things from you? If others share this rightful claim on you, do not we even more? Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right, but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. Do you not know that those who are employed in the temple service get their food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar share in the sacrificial offerings? In Surrendering our rights for the sake of the Gospel 1 Corinthians 9 3 the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel.

Now, what’s interesting is that knowing the conflict in people’s hearts, a division in their hearts that was becoming an obstacle to the gospel, Paul is expressing his decision to willingly surrender his rights to enjoy the fruit of his labor.

In other words, Paul is saying that because of the confusion in your heart, which is becoming an obstacle to the gospel, he is not making full use of his right in the gospel for the sake of the gospel.

Does that mean that Paul says a ministry worker shouldn’t enjoy the fruit of their labor? No.

In a different context, even Paul has taken support from the church to meet his needs. Look at 2 Corinthians 11:9.

2 Corinthians 11:9 ESV:
And when I was with you and was in need, I did not burden anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my need. So I refrained and will refrain from burdening you in any way.

In other words, Paul could also be saying that if there were no dissension among you regarding us enjoying the fruit of our labor, we wouldn’t mind taking a little support. However, because you have issues with that, which has also become an obstacle to the Gospel, I am refraining from accessing that right and privilege.

Kindly note this gesture is purely motivated by love, humility, and a desire to avoid causing others to stumble in their faith.

From verse 19 onwards, he explains the degree to which he is committed to serving the church in this manner.

1 Corinthians 9:19-27 ESV: For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by Surrendering our rights for the sake of the Gospel 1 Corinthians 9 4 all means I might save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings. Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.

He says, “I am here to serve, win souls for the kingdom, willing to adjust and become all things to all people, discipline my body to fulfill the duties given to me, and will practice what I preach.”

In light of this passage, I want us to spend some time thinking about what it would mean to lay down our rights for the advancement of the gospel in our hearts and the hearts of others.

Surrendering our rights means giving up our privileges, freedom, and entitlements, especially if they have become an obstacle to the gospel in your heart and the hearts of others.

Examples of surrendering our rights for the sake of the Gospel include:

  1. Financial Support:
    • Example 1: A Christian worker or missionary might choose to support themselves through a secular job rather than receiving financial support from the church to avoid any potential criticism or accusations of greed. This is similar to what Paul did by working as a tentmaker (Acts 18:3).
    • Example 2: A Christian worker or missionary might give up a secure job that provides growth and security to fully commit to the church’s service and mission, like the other disciples of Jesus.
  2. Personal Freedoms:
    • Example: Someone might abstain from consuming alcohol in social settings to avoid causing a fellow believer who struggles with alcoholism to stumble. This aligns with Paul’s teaching in 1 Corinthians 8:9, where he warns against using our freedom in a way that becomes a stumbling block to the weak.
  3. Cultural Adaptation:
    • Example: A missionary might adopt the customs and dress of the culture they are ministering to build trust and effectively communicate the Gospel. Paul exemplified this by becoming “all things to all people” (1 Corinthians 9:22).
  4. Time and Resources:
    • Example: A person might give up their weekends or leisure time to serve in community outreach programs or church activities, prioritizing the needs of others over their comfort.
  5. Dietary Choices:
    • Example: Choosing to refrain from eating certain foods when in the presence of those with dietary restrictions due to religious convictions or health reasons, as seen in Romans 14:21, where Paul talks about not eating meat or drinking wine if it causes a brother or sister to stumble
  6. Forgoing Legal Rights:
    • Example: A Christian might choose not to pursue legal action against someone who has wronged them, opting instead for forgiveness and reconciliation to demonstrate Christ’s love and mercy, inspired by Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 5:40-41 about turning the other cheek and going the extra mile.

Biblical Basis:

  • In 1 Corinthians 9:12, Paul says, “We did not use this right. On the contrary, we put up with anything rather than hinder the gospel of Christ.”
  • In Philippians 2:5-8, Paul exhorts believers to have the same mindset as Christ Jesus, who “made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant” and humbled Himself by becoming obedient to death on the cross.

I know these tasks are complex, but let me remind you of someone who willingly laid down his rights to save us from death and eternal damnation, give us hope, and unite us with our heavenly father

Jesus, though He was divine and equal with God, chose to surrender His rights and privileges for our sake. He left the glory of heaven and took on human form, becoming a servant. He lived a humble and obedient life during His time on earth, ultimately submitting to death on the cross. This act of ultimate sacrifice was to save humanity from sin and eternal separation from God. By laying down His rights, Jesus provided a path to reconciliation with God, allowing us to experience a whole and abundant life on earth and in eternity. His life and sacrifice are the perfect examples of selflessness and love, inspiring us to live in a way that honors Him and serves others.

By doing so, he has also enabled us not just to receive mercy but also to show mercy, not just receive grace but also show grace to others, not just receive forgiveness but also forgive others, not just be served but also serve others as Christ did. Most importantly, he gave us the grace that enables us to surrender our rights for the gospel’s sake.

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Christian Liberty is all about love – 1 Corinthians 8:7-13

Good morning church! Hope you’re all doing well today. As a church we’ve been going through this series titled The Church: God’s Dwelling Place from 1st Corinthians. And a theme that we’ve repeatedly seen in this letter so far is this – that God’s dwelling place or His residence isn’t in a building or a temple or a religious place. God’s dwelling place is among His Redeemed People – His church! 

Which means that God’s presence is no longer confined to a building or even limited to Sunday mornings between 10.30am to 1pm. If God’s people are present in the workplace or at school or in a home, then you can be sure that God’s presence is with them. That’s a huge paradigm shift! 

And this understanding of “God’s dwelling place among His people” brings with it some key questions. If God dwells in us 24/7, then how do I relate with the world and the culture around me? How do I live in the midst of this culture? Do I accept everything or reject everything from the culture around me? Where do I draw the line between my Christian life and the culture around me? And these are some tough questions that every believer wrestles with daily. 

But I want you to know that God hasn’t left us alone to figure this out and He’s graciously given us His Word to help us navigate through this. You’d be encouraged to know that the Corinthian church although in a different context also wrestled with these very same questions – hope and help is available in God’s Word! And so today we arrive at an important section of this letter which focuses on Christian liberty. But before we proceed, I’d love to pray for us.

If you look up the meaning of liberty in the dictionary, you’d see that it’s described as “independence, freedom from control, interference, obligation, restriction, hampering conditions, etc.; power or right of doing, thinking, speaking, etc., according to choice”. (Freedom to do or say as we want) 

Now the question is – can we describe Christian liberty in the same manner? Can we describe our freedom in Christ in the same vein? Now that I’m a believer in Christ, am I free to do or say as I want? Am I free to do whatever I want to do without any consequences? I’m sure all of us from a biblical viewpoint would say no. Our liberty is under Christ’s rule. Christ’s rule gives us the framework of our liberty. What’s that framework? This passage tells us it is love! Christian liberty is all about love – loving God and loving people! 

In last week’s passage, it spoke about loving God. But if anyone loves God, he is known by God. (v3) Loving God is on one side of the liberty framework & on the other side is Loving people which we will cover in today’s passage. They are two sides of the same coin. They go hand in hand. Christian liberty is all about love. Our Christian liberty needs to be filtered through the lens of love – loving God and loving people. How does this passage break it down for us, in three ways:

1. Our Christian liberty involves understanding others (v7-8)

7 However, not all possess this knowledge. But some, through former association with idols, eat food as really offered to an idol, and their conscience, being weak, is defiled. 8 Food will not commend us to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do.

I think it’s important for us to recap the context of this passage. The context is the issue of eating food offered to idols. Just to give you a picture of the city of Corinth – everything about the city revolved around its idols and temples. Its temples were not only a place of worship, but also functioned as butcher shops and dining halls. 

Important trade conferences, weddings, funerals and private dinner parties were held there. This was the center of Corinth culture and life. And people who went to the temple for worship or to dine there were served portions of food offered to idols. And that was the main contentious issue for the church where they were asking Paul, “Is it okay for us to consume the food offered to idols?” 

    And there were some people in the church who thought of themselves as “mature Christians” who possessed “special knowledge” or “superior knowledge”. And they were saying “we know that these idols are not real. Hence the food offered to them is inconsequential. There should be no problem in consuming it”. And they were hoping that Paul would agree with them. 

    In fact Paul begins by agreeing with them saying “Yes, it’s true we worship the One True God & the Lord Jesus Christ – others gods are not real gods”… “But”, “However”, “Having said that”… “not all possess the same knowledge”. 

    Paul is saying “Everyone doesn’t have the same level of understanding as you do.” Everyone is not on the same page when it comes to food offered to idols. Especially those who might have a weak conscience because of their past baggage associated with idol worship. 

    They are probably newer Christians who’ve just come out of a lifestyle of idol worship or they may be Christians who have not yet attained the understanding that you have – and for them this food that you’re consuming is still considered as food offered to idols. 

    And Paul is telling that by doing this, those who consider themselves as “mature” are “defiling” or “soiling” the weak conscience of these other brothers or sisters.

    And even as Paul is saying this, he’s making it clear that the food by itself isn’t inherently wrong or sinful. V8 which says “Food doesn’t commend us to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do.” We don’t win any extra brownie points by consuming or choosing not to consume this food. What we eat has no bearing on our standing with God. God doesn’t accept us or reject us simply on the basis of food. 

    So although food by itself isn’t inherently wrong, we still need to bear in mind that everyone doesn’t view it in the same way. Past associations of food with idols can hurt the weak conscience of our brothers and sisters. We can’t be blind to it. We need to understand that. We need to be mindful of that. Our Christian liberty involves understanding others.  

    But not only does our Christian liberty involve understanding others, it also 

    2. Our Christian liberty can’t be at the expense of others (v9-12)

    9 But take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. 10 For if anyone sees you who have knowledge eating[c] in an idol’s temple, will he not be encouraged,[d] if his conscience is weak, to eat food offered to idols? 11 And so by your knowledge this weak person is destroyed, the brother for whom Christ died. 12 Thus, sinning against your brothers[e] and wounding their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ. 

    V9 gets to the heart of the matter. But take care (make sure, pay careful attention, see to it) that this right of yours (this freedom, this liberty) does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. That word “stumbling block” means “stubbing our foot”. It’s a word to describe stubbing your foot against an obstacle while walking. 

    In the context of this passage, this word is basically telling us that our christian liberty / freedom should not end up being an obstacle to another person’s faith. And the impact is far more than stubbing your foot, it could result in hurting and turning someone away from his faith! Our Christian liberty can’t be at the expense of others!

      And then in V10, Paul goes on to elaborate. He says that if a weaker brother or sister sees you “who have knowledge” – “mature, knowledgeable and understanding” Christian go to a pagan temple and eat food offered to idols, would he not think that it’s okay to eat food offered to idols something he associates as sinful? 

      Even worse, wouldn’t he think that since eating food offered to idols is okay, it’s probably alright for him to also now go back to worshiping those idols alongside the Lord Jesus Christ? And you can see how Paul’s building the argument – that christian liberty can end up negatively influencing and hurting the faith of those around us. Have we ever considered this thought? That our actions and choices influence the people around us especially those in our family and in our church family. Take a minute to allow that to sink in.

      The next couple of verses explain the gravity of the situation. V11 – When we use our Christian liberty / freedom in a way that isn’t understanding and loving toward those around us, then our so-called “freedom” or “maturity” can actually destroy another person’s faith. It can hurt and harm another brother or sister’s faith – a person for whom Christ died! For those in Christ, they are no longer so and so from this family, so and so from this state or city; they are people for whom Christ died for. They were purchased at the highest cost – at the cost of His own precious blood. They are now His. They belong to Him. And it’s that person’s faith you are hurting!  

      V12 is even more weightier and more convincing. Thus, by sinning against your brothers and wounding their conscience (pummelling with repeated blows), you against Christ! That’s the weight and gravity of the situation. When we become stumbling blocks to each other, we are not only offending our brother or sister, we are offending Christ himself. 

      My mind was blown when I read this. Since we belong to Jesus, now any offense to us is a direct offense to Jesus Christ himself. Which is why when Jesus met with Saul on the road to Damascus as he was enroute to persecute the people of God, Jesus didn’t ask him “Why are you doing this to my people?” Jesus asked him “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” Being a stumbling block to another person is not only sinning against that person but sinning against Jesus Christ. Our Christian liberty can’t be at the expense of others. 

      But not just that

      3. Our Christian liberty needs to be used to sacrificially serve others (v13)

      13 Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble.

      V13 starts with “Therefore”. On account of the reasons given in the previous verses, Paul says that if by me eating food offered to idols, it will make my brother stumble and turn from the Lord, then I will resolve to never eat it. NIV puts it in this way “I will never eat meat again”. 

      In other words, Paul is saying that he will never eat food offered to idols again for the rest of his life if that is what is required to keep his brother from stumbling. 

        And for some of us that might seem like a stretch. Why is Paul doing this? It’s because loving His brother takes precedence over his liberties. Love over freedom. He’s saying “I’ll willingly give up my rights for the sake of another”. “I’d rather use my liberty to sacrificially serve others”. 

        Does that sound familiar? If there was one person in the whole universe who had every right to do what he wanted to do – that was Jesus because He is the Son of God. 

        And yet we see God’s Jesus Christ relinquish His glory and majesty and choose to step into our shoes in the form of man. I know the whole of India has been mesmerized by the Anant Ambani wedding. I’m sure all the things that Anant wanted to do for his wedding happened – and off-course he can do that because he’s the son of Mukesh Ambani. He is the heir! 

        But what wouldn’t have happened is Anant entering his home as a servant and that’s the willing choice that Jesus made when He chose to take on the form of man. As He walked on the earth, He lived the perfect, obedient life that we were all supposed to live. And then He died the death that we were supposed to die as our substitute. The wrath of God which was directed toward us because of our infinite sins (too many to count) was absorbed by God’s Son Jesus Christ. 

        He died and was buried and three days later he rose from the dead so that whoever may turn from their sins and their efforts to win God’s acceptance by themselves and solely put their faith in Jesus Christ and His work would be saved not just for this age but for ages to come. It’s a humbling thing to realize that our salvation was the result of our Savior choosing to use His liberty to sacrificially serve us! 

        What’s the take home for us? 

        1. We need to start by taking out the time to understand the people in our church. Unless we understand each other’s stories, each other’s cultural and religious baggage, we will never be able to move toward them with sensitivity and compassion. It’s not going to happen overnight either, it’s going to take time for us to really begin understanding each other. 
        1. I know that we can get touchy about subjects like alcohol, fashion, how we spend our money, movies we watch etc. but we need to be open to having honest conversations on what we believe, why we do certain things a certain way and also allow people to share their reservations about certain liberties which can be perceived as sinful or immoral by them because of their background. 
        1. Once those reservations or issues are brought to us, our response matters. It could involve discipling them biblically through that issue but also we need to prayerfully ask God to help us discern how to use our liberty to be loving to one another. Pray and ask God to strengthen you to willingly give up your liberty if that helps in preserving your weaker brother’s faith.
        1. We need to show patience and grace to each other. Knowing that we’re all in different stages of maturity, we need to be patient and gracious to each other, trusting that the Spirit will ultimately help us gain maturity in due time. And this is not a one-time activity. This is a life-long activity. 

        The reason we are saying all this is not because the bible is trying to restrain our liberty and freedom. Christian liberty is all about love! 

        1. It involves understanding others
        2. It can’t be at the expense of others
        3. It needs to be used to sacrificially serve others
        Categories
        Sermon

        3 Theological Truths from 1 Corinthians 8:1-6

        We’re back again with Paul addressing questions raised by the Corinthians. Remember in chapter 7 verse 1, an issue regarding sexual temptation and sexual relations with women was raised. There the people were saying that it is good not to have sexual relations with a woman given how great the temptation surrounding sex is. But Paul says you shouldn’t give up sexual relations with your spouse because that opens the door to more temptation in your life. Instead, you should embrace it as God’s good gift and enjoy it with thankfulness.

        Similarly, today Paul addresses a question about eating food offered to idols. What was the problem here? In the times the Corinthian believers lived there was the practice of offering food as sacrifices to their false gods. These people used to have feasts in their temples and before the feast began, they would offer the food as a sacrifice, then they would eat. When the feast was done, the leftovers would be kept by the priest of the temple and sold in the marketplace. You should know that Paul and Corinthians are talking about the food sold in the marketplace. The food that was eaten in the temple during the feast was a different matter. What we’re seeing here is leftover food from the feast sold in the market. Now, the Corinthians are saying it’s okay to eat such food because we know the idols the food was offered to are not real. Verse 1 says “all of us possess knowledge”. If you look at the phrase, it’s in double quotes indicating that Paul is using a phrase that the Corinthians wrote in their letter to him. So, the Corinthians are saying we possess knowledge. What is this knowledge? It’s in verse 4-6. The knowledge is of the reality that there is only one true God and one Lord, Jesus Christ. These idols are not real, so the food offered to them has no meaning. Therefore, it’s okay to eat that food. So some Corinthian believers rather arrogantly say that have knowledge so don’t tell us to refrain from eating that food. Moreover, the sacrifice to idols was a common occurrence that it was impossible for the believers to escape situations where that kind of food would come before them.

        And what is Paul’s response? Yes, we all have knowledge, including us the apostles. But this knowledge makes you proud. This knowledge makes you grow arrogant. This knowledge hurts you and others. But love on the other hand? Love builds up. If anyone thinks he knows something, he doesn’t know yet as he ought to know. But if anyone loves God, he is known by God. If you say you have knowledge then you should be humbled. Because knowledge of God means knowing that God is so much more holier than you thought He was, so much more powerful than you thought He was, so much more infinite than you thought He was, and so much more in control and sovereign than you thought He was. And it doesn’t end with knowledge of God, there’s the knowledge of self. You should be heart broken when your knowledge leads you to realise that you’re much more sinful than you thought you were, much more helpless than you thought you were, much more impure than you thought you were. But you should also be able to rejoice because inspite of this, God is much more merciful than you can imagine, much more patient than you can think, much more loving than you can grasp, much more faithful than you can conceive. If you have knowledge of these things then you’ll actually respond with love. And love who specifically? Those who don’t have knowledge. You may know that eating food offered to idols is fine, but there are many who can’t reconcile that with their faith. So for the sake of that weak brother or sister, you will not eat such food. You don’t want them to stumble because of you. This is what the passage is about. And it has practical implications for us. But today, I don’t want to focus on what these implications are. Today I want to focus on the theological insight that comes from Paul’s words. When Paul was responding to the Corinthians, he shed some light on the theology that informed and ought to inform their actions. Imagine you’re going on trip with your friends and family. As you driving up the winding roads you notice that the scenery is so beautiful that you have to stop the car, get out and take it all in. Soon you’ll be heading for your destination but just for a few moments you want to enjoy God’s beauty. In the same way, I’m hoping that we can enjoy God’s truth in today’s passage before heading to the main issue of the whole chapter, which we’ll be hearing next Sunday. For today, we have six verses and all six are packed with doctrine that has significance for our lives. And not only that, I believe these doctrines will bring you comfort and reassurance for today. I have three points and my first point will be from the middle of the passage, the second point from the end of the passage and the last point from the beginning of the passage. So we won’t be moving in a linear fashion as we usually do but I’m hoping and believing it’ll still make sense. 

        So, what is the first doctrine present in this passage? It is that we exist for God.

        1. We exist for God (v6a)

        yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist

        The first one is a big one. Paul is saying yes it is known to them that “an idol has no real existence”  and that there is “no God but one”. When in verse 5 Paul says “For although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”— “ he is meaning to say that the non-believers of that time consider the existence of many gods and many lords because the were people who followed the Greek religion, the Roman religion, then the few other cults of that time. So for them there are many gods and lords. But for the Christians like Paul, the believers in Corinth, and you and me, there is one God. And contrary to the false gods and lords of that time, everything comes from God. It’s written in the verse “there is one God the Father from whom are all things” Everything that you see, touch, hear, taste, smell comes from God. Psalm 24:1 says “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof” or another translation says “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it”. Everything comes from God and everything belongs to God. Genesis 1:1 “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” The very first verse says that God created the heavens and the earth. The first three words, “In the beginning” that is the beginning of time itself. Before the creation of the world, what was time? What were days and months and years? There was no such thing as time and there was nothing at all. Yet there was God. And “In the beginning” God was there to bring forth everything. 

        Now for the main part, that is, the second half of the sentence, “and for whom we exist”. We exist for whom? For God. This verse unlocks the purpose of your life. Genesis 2:2 “And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. .” The Bible says that in seven days God finished creating the heavens and the earth and all the host of them. In the process of creation, He even made man and women. Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” Genesis 1:27 gives the answer to what God created, or rather who God created, man and women. 1 Corinthians 8:6 gives the answer to why God created man and women. He created them for Him. He created you and me for Himself. We don’t exist for our jobs, we don’t exist for our friends, we don’t exist for our spouse or children, we exist for God. And what does existing for God mean? There is something called “The Westminster Shorter Catechism”, which is a series of 107 questions and answers that summarise the major truths of the Bible. The very first question in the Westminister Shorter Catechism is: “What is the chief end of man?” Or in other words, what is the main goal of men and women? The answer to that is “to glorify God and enjoy Him forever”. Existing for God means glorifying Him. And glorifying God means using every fibre of our being, our strength, our mind, our hearts, everything to praise, honour and worship God. We honour God with our words, we honour God by our obedience to Him, with our good works, we honour Him through our repentance, and with our love for one another and the care for the poor and needy. We honour Him by preaching the gospel to those who have not heard it. We honour God when we do our jobs faithfully and diligently or when we study well. We also honour God by enjoying His gifts, like music, sports, movies, food, and various crafts like painting, writing, carpentry, or enjoying His creation by travelling, trekking, hiking, we glorify Him by taking care of our health and bodies through exercise. The question I want you to ask yourself is, “Do you know you exist for God?” and if you do, “How are you existing for Him or how are you glorifying Him?”. But if you didn’t know you exist for God maybe today God is telling you that. If you try to exist for any other reason, you will be left unsatisfied. No matter what you gain in life, how successful, how beautiful your family is, how much money you make, you’ll be left wanting for more, it is like a bottomless pit, you can’t fill it up no matter how much you put in. To be truly satisfied, you need to accept that you were created for God. Your sole purpose in life is to glorify God. Coming to terms with that sets you on a path to fulfilment and eternal life. 

        That leads me to my second point, which is we exist through God.

        2. We exist through God (v6b)

        and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.

        One thing this verse highlightings is how one Lord, that is Jesus Christ, is the true Lord. All other “lords” as mentioned in verse 5 are false lords. In the beginning of the verse, Paul says from God the Father all things come. Here it says through the Lord Jesus are all things. What this verse tells us is that `just as the Father was involved in creating the whole world, the Son was equally involved. The heavens and the earth came from the Father through the Son and to complete the trinity, by the power of the Spirit. Jesus is God as much as Father and Spirit is God. The three are one but separate, three in one. Not three gods but one. John 1:1-3 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.” And again in Colossians 1:16-17, “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” These verses also reenforce the doctrine truth that Jesus is God and all creation was created through Him and for Him.

          But the part I want to focus on is the second half of the sentence “through whom we exist”.

          You know there’s a certain impossibleness to glorifying God. How are we, weak creatures that we are, supposed to worship the Lord with 100% devotion all the time? Let me tell you, God demands nothing less than our 100% devotion. It says in Deuteronomy 6:5 “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.’ How much? With half your soul? With a quarter of your mind? With 3/4th of your heart? No with all, fully, absolute. Can you do that? Can you give 100% all the time? That’s a tough ask. Sounds impossible. Then there’s the problem of sin. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, Romans 3:23. Forget about loving God fully, we’re not even worthy to stand in His presence. Are we to glorify God like this? Will God accept our worship? Will God accept us? If you’re born again then you know the answer. Whoever sitting here or listening online is a born again believer, then you can say with a shout, you can say with full confidence, you can yes with thankfulness, yes God will accept me, God will accept my worship, I can worship the Lord with 100% devotion because I exist through Jesus Christ my Redeemer, my Shepherd, my Lord and my God. I’m not living my Christian life alone, I’m not isolated, I have my Lord Jesus through whom I’m living. The greek word for “through” is dia. Other translations of the word dia are “because of”, “on account of”. So we can rephrase the verse like this: “one Lord Jesus Christ through whom are all things and on account of whom we exist”. It’s not only talking about existing in the physical world but also living spiritually and eternally. Look at 1 John 4:9 “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.” The same Greek word for through is used here. Jesus Christ came into this world so that we may exist through Him. We might live through Him. And that should be a comfort for you because whatever is the requirements of worthiness are, Jesus Christ took care of it for us. 1 John 4:10 says, “ In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” Propitiation means to satisfy or appease. Sin needed to be paid for because God’s was going to punish that sin, your sin and my sin. But with Jesus’s sacrifice, there is no more fear of punishment. 

          So brothers and sisters, what does this mean for us? It means right now, you’re living through Jesus, if you’ve repented of your sins and turned to Him. This is true for you now. Your life is in His hands, your life is in His life. John 14:9 says, “Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live.” Because He lives, you will live in eternity and right now. So you keep striving to live a holy life, say no to sin, when discouragement and doubt knock at the door, remember that you’re victory is sure in Jesus because you exist through Him and He will carry you to the end.

          And now for my final point, we don’t just exist for God even though is the greatest privilege, we don’t just exist through God, our sole comfort but we’re also known by God.

          3. We are known by God (v3)

          But if anyone loves God, he is known by God.

          • Paul’s explanation about knowledge and love
          • It is greater to love than walk around with knowledge
          • Those who love God show evidence that they are known by Him
          • Loving God is not a precondition for Him to know us. He knows us therefore we love
          • The Greek word ginóskó means it’s to know personally and well, the same word is used for knowing sexually
          • He knows us, our frame, the number of hairs on our head, we are not just another solider, servant, son or daughter
          • To be loved but not known is comforting but superficial. To be known and not loved is our greatest fear. But to be fully known and truly loved is, well, a lot like being loved by God. It is what we need more than anything. It liberates us from pretense, humbles us out of our self-righteousness, and fortifies us for any difficulty life can throw at us.
          • God sees you at you worst but still loves you.
          Categories
          Sermon

          Permanence of Marriage – 1 Corinthians 7:10-16

          Good morning church! Hope you’re well this morning. We’ve missed being with you over the last couple of weeks as we recovered from a viral infection. While we were recovering at home, we were so encouraged and blessed by your concern and prayers – and we’re excited to be back with all of you this week!

          It’s Father’s Day as well – so Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers and father figures at the Gathering. We acknowledge God’s calling over your lives to lead and shape your family in the ways of the Lord.  

          As we turn to God’s Word this morning, I’m sure most of us are aware that we’re going through a series titled The Church : God’s Dwelling Place from 1st Corinthians. And the recurring theme that we’ve been hearing week after week is this – that God’s chosen dwelling place or His chosen residence is not a building (not in a cathedral or a temple) but in His People His redeemed people in Christ.

          Think with me on how apt this theme was for the church in Corinth which was still coming to terms with the fact that they were called to live a radically different lifestyle from the culture around them. The worldly culture around them was having a greater say on their lifestyle than what Scripture was calling them to.  

          That’s why we saw issues of infighting in the church, sexual immorality in the church & even confusion on how they approached marriage and singleness. So Paul wrote this letter to address all these issues from a Gospel perspective.

          And these issues aren’t unique to the Corinthian church, these are very relevant for the Gathering as well which is located in a cosmopolitan city like Mumbai. The sub-culture of the city & also what we consume on social media sometimes has a greater say on our lifestyle than what Scripture says.

          So it’s apt for us and that’s why I’d urge us all to approach each and every passage with open minds and open hearts, so that we can allow the truth of God’s Word to teach us how to live a radically different life from the culture around us. But before we begin I’d love to pray for us.

          (Pray)

          Some years back I attended a marriage seminar where it started off well with worship songs and then it proceeded to the main session.

          The speaker, probably to lighten the mood, decided to let out a bunch of marriage jokes. As I listened to the jokes, I realized that most of these jokes were always from the husband’s perspective due to which the husbands laughed the hardest on every joke.

          But on a deeper level, I wondered if at some level the couples (mostly believers) shared a similar low view of marriage. Maybe the culture around them influenced their perspective or maybe their own personal experiences seeing the brokenness in their parent’s marriage or their own marriage colored their perspective and that’s why today’s topic on permanence of marriage needs to be handled biblically and sensitively.

          The reason the sermon is titled as permanence of marriage instead of divorce is because the overall theme of the passage seems to be discouraging divorce rather than advocating it.     

          And this passage gives us 3 ways in which we pursue Permanence in Marriage:

          1.We pursue permanence in marriage through reconciliation (v10-11)

          10 To the married I give this charge (not I, but the Lord): the wife should not separate from her husband 11 (but if she does, she should remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband), and the husband should not divorce his wife.

          In verses 10, Paul specifically instructs married couples in the Corinthian church and makes it abundantly clear that it’s a direct command from the Lord Jesus.

          What’s the command? That wives should not separate or divorce their husbands and likewise husbands shouldn’t divorce their wives. And if for some reason divorce is inevitable, then they need to remain unmarried or try to reconcile and get back together. It’s clear that God’s intention for married couples is that they stick it out together.

          And this instruction might sound strange or too old fashioned to our modern ears where people sign prenuptial agreements planning the possibility of a divorce even before they get married.

          And yet when we see a passage like this, it seems like the opposite where divorce isn’t an option. Divorce is out of scope. Divorce is off the table. The married couple mutually agree to stick it out together no matter what.   

          And why is that the case? Why is God being so restrictive? Does God want me to be unhappy for the rest of my life? And when we ask these questions, the assumption is that marriage is about us and our happiness. That’s where we get it wrong. Our baseline itself is wrong.

          Marriage isn’t about us or our happiness. Marriage is about God and His glorious purposes. So let’s first define what marriage is and then we will be able to understand why divorce is a big deal for God. Turn with me to Ephesians 5:22-32:

          22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. 25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.[a] 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. 33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

          We can see here that God’s glorious purpose in marriage is to tell a story – His Gospel story to you, your spouse and the people around you. Our earthly marriages in some way are supposed to picture the loving, self-sacrificial and committed relationship that Jesus Christ shares with His bride which is the church.

          So that’s the baseline. Marriage is not primarily about romantic love or companionship or compatibility or social obligation. As imperfect as we are and our marriages are, we get to learn and proclaim something about Jesus’ love, Jesus’ self-sacrifice and commitment for His bride through our marriage. Isn’t that amazing?

          Which is the reason why believers in Christ should only marry believers because only those who have tasted and seen Jesus’ love for them would be able to display that to each other and the people around them.

          And if marriage is all about that, then what is divorce? It’s a breaking up and a distortion of this purpose. Despite all our multiple failures and weaknesses, does Jesus divorce us? Does Jesus desert us? Does Jesus walk away from us?

          No, and that’s why divorce is heartbreaking because it involves emotional pain and sorrow for the couple and the children but also because proclaiming something totally different about Jesus’ marriage with His church. It’s giving out distorted picture which is why when Jesus was asked if it’s okay for a person to divorce his spouse, this is how he responds in Matt 19:5-6

           5 and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? 6 So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

          Jesus harkens back to the creation story to reveal God’s heart and intention for marriage. God’s heart and intention is for married couples to stick it out together because they are telling a story – His Gospel story through their marriage. And we’re called to stick together despite all the issues and ups and downs of marriage.

          And I know it can be a hard thing for some of us to digest because most of us would probably agree with the idea of not divorcing for trivial reasons but what if a wife is being physically abused by her husband, does it mean that she continues to remain in that marriage though it risks her physical safety?

          These are some really hard questions I know. And there are some real, serious situations where couples will need to be separated for a time, while at the same time getting your church involved, your own families involved and sometimes even the local authorities involved to help you navigate through this and possibly work toward reconciliation in the long run.

          Our marriages are supposed to proclaim the Gospel story which is why we pursue permanence in marriage through reconciliation, but not just that

          2.We pursue permanence in marriage through promise keeping (v12-13)

          12 To the rest I say (I, not the Lord) that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her. 13 If any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever, and he consents to live with her, she should not divorce him.

          It’s very important to understand the context of these verses to interpret this correctly. The Corinthian church was birthed in the midst of a pagan, immoral culture. And so there were church members who got married while they were unbelievers, and then later heard the Gospel and became believers.

          However, their spouses still didn’t come to faith and so the believing spouses were probably wondering if their marriages were still valid. They were wondering and maybe contemplating if they had to divorce their unbelieving spouses and Paul makes it crystal clear that their marriage still is valid and has a standing in God’s eyes.

          What Paul is telling them is that if the unbelieving spouse agrees to continue in marriage despite being aware of the spouse’s newfound faith, then the believing spouse shouldn’t divorce but continue to maintain the promises in marriage. Their covenant promises aren’t thrown out of the window. God is still expecting them to be faithful in their marriage.

          And Paul is not airing his own opinion on this – though the start of v12 seems like that. All that Paul is saying is that this isn’t a direct quotation from the Lord Jesus like v10, however all of Scripture is God breathed and profitable for teaching, rebuke, correction and training in righteousness (2 Tim 3:16) – hence even this instruction which is in this passage is no less inspired by God. This is indeed God’s Word.

          And I think passages like this should encourage us to know that if we’re in a similar place where we’re the only believers in our marriage or family, God is still expecting us to keep our covenant promises with our spouse. God’s not overlooking or ignoring our marriage.

          The way we love, serve and honor our unbelieving spouse is precious and honorable in God’s eyes. God is glorified in the way in which we pursue

          promise keeping in marriage. We are still called to proclaim the Gospel story in the way in which we approach our marriage.

          But not only do we pursue permanence in marriage through reconciliation and promise keeping, we also

          3.We pursue permanence in marriage through stewardship (v14-16)

          14 For the unbelieving husband is made holy because of his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy because of her husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy. 15 But if the unbelieving partner separates, let it be so. In such cases the brother or sister is not enslaved. God has called you to peace. 16 For how do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?

          I’m sure this is confusing because it almost seems like Paul is trying to promote missionary dating or missionary marriage where the thought is “let me marry this person who is an unbeliever and I’ll convert them”. First of all it’s assuming that we have the ability to convert someone, we can’t. It’s ultimately a God thing.

          Secondly let’s quickly look at the end of the chapter in 1 Cor 7:39 where Paul gives these instructions:

          39 A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord.

          Paul is permitting remarriage after the spouse has passed away but with a clear criteria as to who needs to be considered for marriage – “only in the Lord”. And if that’s the case, how can that not be the prerequisite for first time marriage believer couples as well?

          It’s impossible for Paul to say that “It doesn’t matter who you marry the first time. Only when you remarry, then you need to ensure he / she is a believer”. That simply doesn’t make sense.

          So it’s not referring to missionary dating or marriage. Again, context is important here – it’s referring to the situation of people who were unbelievers when they got married and then later on believed but their spouses hadn’t yet come to faith – the passage is not advocating missionary dating or marriage.

          So then what does making the unbelieving husband holy or making the unbelieving wife holy mean in v14? It means that God has a special purpose for you in your marriage. It means that God has a purpose to proclaim the Gospel story to your spouse and your children.

          God has still called you to tell your spouse something about Jesus’ love, self-sacrifice and commitment through the way in which you speak and live out the Gospel through your life.

          I hope it can encourage some of us here today because being the only believers at home, experiencing the friction with a spouse who doesn’t see eye to eye with our faith can be draining and difficult but to know that God still has a purpose for us in the way we steward the Gospel in our marriages and families is encouraging I’m sure.

          V16 in fact puts it in this way “For how do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?” Not that we can be our spouse’s Savior. We can’t replace or substitute Christ but what we can do is be a faithful steward of the Gospel in our homes and constantly bring them before God’s throne of grace asking God to save them. And in doing so, we become tools in God’s hand in our own homes and it’s precious in God’s sight.

          Application:

          • For those who are married right now or looking to get married – embrace this glorious purpose of marriage. If you’ve been approaching a different purpose, then today’s the time to repent from that and receive this biblical glorious purpose
          • For those who have gone through the experience of divorce – God is able to redeem that. The intention of this passage wasn’t to rub guilt or condemn you but to draw you to repentance (as divorce is a distortion of God’s design) and call you to remain faithful in whichever stage you are in right now.