1 Corinthians 5:1-13 “It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that is not tolerated even among pagans, for a man has his father's wife. And you are arrogant! Ought you not rather to mourn? Let him who has done this be removed from among you. For though absent in body, I am present in spirit; and as if present, I have already pronounced judgment on the one who did such a thing. When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus, you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord. Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people — not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.”
This last Sunday, Pastor Kyle continued in our church’s Sermon series through the Epistle of 1 Corinthians; this week he preached on Chapter 5 and the second half of chapter 6. This is a very timely message as our current secular humanistic society has lost its moral compass and Biblical foundations, and the Christian church needs reminded how to keep following Christ and stand on the Word of God, not sinful humanity, in an increasingly complex and confusing God-rejecting culture, even infiltrating the church itself. This big moral issue and sensitive topic that keeps people from God is addressed with clear biblical truth. God loves you, but hates sin. God is just, so must deal with sin. So, we need to understand God’s heart towards sexual morality. God comes from the perspective of a loving heavenly Father with our best interests in mind. God is a loving Father, trying to set His children up for “true” success in relationships, in life, and ultimately in marriage as He designed.
Matthew 5:8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”
2 Peter 3:9 tells us, “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.” In theology, repentance is defined as the pain, regret or affliction which a person feels on account of his past and present sinful conduct with real penitence; sorrow or deep contrition for sin, as an offense and dishonor to God, a violation of His holy law, and the basest ingratitude towards a Being of infinite benevolence, our Maker. This is called evangelical repentance, and is accompanied and followed by amendment of life. In the “right” (right in the eyes of God) context and by the design of our Creator sexuality is a blessing, but out of context and applied “wrongly” (wrong in the eyes of God), it is selfish, rebellious and harmful sin in cause and effect. God always wants the very best for us, but the enemy comes to steal, kill and destroy, so by believing the lies and following the deceptive distractions of the devil, the temptations of the God-rejecting world and giving into the sinful desires of the flesh, we are the ones that often sell ourselves short of God’s best.
Ephesians 5:1-4 “Therefore, be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.”
We must be true to what holy Scripture says in the Bible and true to the topic of “sexual immorality”. Though 1 Corinthians 5 focus on the sin of sexual immorality, all sin is disobedient iniquity towards our God’s just and holy commands and law meant for good. We find that sexual is usually referenced in a list with many others sins (i.e. sexually immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters), all wicked acts in the eyes of the Lord. The 1828 Webster’s dictionary defines “sin” as: The voluntary departure of a moral agent from a known rule of rectitude or duty, prescribed by God; any voluntary transgression of the divine law, or violation of a divine command; a wicked act; iniquity. Sin is either a positive act in which a known divine law is violated, or it is the voluntary neglect to obey a positive divine command, or a rule of duty clearly implied in such command. Sin comprehends not action only, but neglect of known duty, all evil thoughts purposes, words and desires, whatever is contrary to God's commands or law. As a Christian, one of our “good works that we (the church – the body of Christ) were created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them is to help the struggling people purge the iniquity in their life that is keeping them from God, because God’s intent is not to condemn, but to restore the fallen in sin back to an upright position.
1 Thessalonians 4:1-8 “Finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus that you should abound more and more, just as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God; for you know what commandments we gave you through the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you should abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you should know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, not in passion of lust, like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one should take advantage of and defraud his brother in this matter, because the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also forewarned you and testified. For God did not call us to uncleanness, but in holiness. Therefore, he who rejects this does not reject man, but God, who has also given us His Holy Spirit.”
God cares about righteousness in His church and in His people. Our understanding of what is “sin” (as defined above) is still important to God, so we can address them appropriately, with the intention of repentance and restoration, reconciliation and closeness to God.
Let's continue Pastor Kyle's message on "Biblical Morality" in the next post.
In Christ, Brian
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