1 Corinthians 6:1-10 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? If the world is judged by you, are you not competent to form the smallest law courts? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more matters of this life? So, if you have law courts dealing with matters of this life, do you appoint them as judges who are of no account in the church? I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not among you anyone wise who will be able to decide between his brothers and sisters, but brother goes to law with brother, and that before unbelievers? Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather suffer the wrong? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves do wrong and defraud. And this to your brothers and sisters! Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor those habitually drunk, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.”
Last Sunday, Pastor Kyle continued in our church’s sermon series through the Apostle Paul’s Epistle of 1 Corinthians and sandwiched between his admonishment of sexual immorality as clear sin, not only against our just and holy Creator God but against our own bodies also, he reproofs divisive disputes between the saints [a person sanctified; a holy and godly person; one eminent for piety and virtue] of God taken to pagan secular law courts that could care less about the Laws of God, when in actuality, it is the saints that will judge the world. We live in a “sue-happy” egocentric fallen world that is delinquent of godly morality (honesty, integrity, ethics, truth or honor).
Pastor Kyle preached on four unavoidable realities on this issue of disputes. (1) In the flesh on this side of eternity, even the saints are going to disagree and feel frustrated, hurt and wronged sometimes. After making a sincere faithful decision to repent of their sin and accept God gracious gift of Salvation through the substitutionary sacrificial death of Jesus Christ making Him Savior and Lord of their life, the process of Sanctification begin (the progressive growing and maturing as a Christian). The Christian church is made up of saints at different stages (from babe to mature) in their spiritual and associated soul development through education and experience in their walk with the Lord and the leading of the Holy Spirit with a transformed heart and biblical worldview.
We often talk about the Christian church being a safe place, a refuge or sanctuary. We also use the metaphor of the church being a hospital for sinners seeking a cure of their malignant terminal sin condition; selfish, broken sinful people trying to figure themselves, their lives and Christianity out in light of the Gospel. The basics plan of Salvation by God through Christ, once accepted by “saving faith” then leads to the question: What’s next in learning to follow Jesus and obediently living out the Christian life as a disciple of Christ? Knowing the truth of sin and salvation, disciples become like ambulances going out to seek and save the spiritually lost and dying in order to get them to the “Great Physician”.
There is a saying that the Bible will keep you from Sin (because God’s Word explains what is “right” and “wrong” in the eyes of our Maker, sovereign Creator God), but sin will keep you from the Bible. You cannot see in the dark and willful sin blinds people from the light of truth. Sin is contagious and easily spreads because of our sin nature in the fallen flesh. Those who do not know the Lord, commonly do not know that they are injured, sick and dying in their sinful lifestyle and in need of a Savior because they have no standard basis to gauge “good” and “evil” by (aka – no moral compass). If asked: if they were to die today, would they go to heaven or hell? What would they have to base their answer on - their almighty Creator or themselves? Sin is direct violation of our righteous, just and holy God, who we were created by and accountable to, in what we do (in thought, word and action) and by what we are supposed to do, but don’t. Unbelief in God, His holy Word and His ultimate authority over heaven and earth is idolatry (Cosmic adultery) which leads to hateful rebellion, deliberate lawlessness, conscious division and calculated cancellation, with damming eternal consequences (the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God). This is why God sent Jesus; to seek and save the lost, to change from death in sin to life in Christ.
America was founded as a Christian nation due to religious persecution. The worship of God and the Word of God are foundational to this representative democracy by the people. The First Amendment of the US Constitution begins with the Freedom of Religious and the free exercise thereof, because the Founding Fathers knew and understood religious oppression and rebellious hatred against God and the Savior of the world. Freedom of Religion does not mean freedom from religion, yet today, the lost in sin and unbelief are constantly active in advancing atheistic ideology, vain philosophy and approval of the sexually immoral, the idolaters, the adulterers, the homosexuals, the thieves, the greedy, those habitually drunk or drug abusers, the confrontational verbal abusers, and self-centered swindlers, while calling evil good and good evil. The Christian churches are not ignorant of these assaults on God and the spiritual attacks. The people of God always pray and hope for the best, but expect the confrontation between darkness of sin and light of God; prepared for the worst and shinning the truth in advancing the kingdom of Heaven. Knowing that this is a fallen in sin world where evil exists and bad things happen, allows the people of God to not be caught off guard or devastated while defending the faith and delivering the Gospel as commissioned by Jesus. Speaking the truth in love, everywhere the Christian looks, they see ministry, and the mission fields are ready for the harvest of many precious souls.
Let's continue Pastor Kyle's message on "who is offended" and "who is offending who" in the next post.
In Christ, Brian
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