Monday, August 22, 2016

1 Corinthians Chapter 9

1 Corinthians
Above image from https://www.insight.org/resources/bible/the-pauline-epistles/first-corinthians

In chapter 8, Paul states the principle that exercising love for one's Christian brothers and sisters is more important than exercising the personal freedom that we have in Christ. In chapter 9, he tells how he has done that. He had the right to marry, but chose to forego that right to devote his full time to preaching the Gospel. He had the right to require his congregation to provide for him financially, but chose to forego that right for their benefit. The main focus was that they needed to concentrate, like him, on running the race and winning the prize.

(1) Am I not as free as anyone else? Am I not an apostle? Haven’t I seen Jesus our Lord with my own eyes? Isn’t it because of my work that you belong to the Lord?

  • Am I not an apostle:
    • Some suggested Paul was not a real apostle because:
      • He had not seen Jesus Christ; and, therefore, could not be an apostle.
      • He did not live like the other apostles, and was unmarried.
      • He had not accepted their financial support but had supported himself as a tent-maker.
    • Acts 1:21-22: “So now we must choose a replacement for Judas from among the men who were with us the entire time we were traveling with the Lord Jesus - from the time he was baptized by John until the day he was taken from us. Whoever is chosen will join us as a witness of Jesus’ resurrection.”
    • Acts 9:3-6: As he was approaching Damascus on this mission, a light from heaven suddenly shone down around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?” “Who are you, lord?” Saul asked. And the voice replied, “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting! Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
    • Acts 10:39-41: “And we apostles are witnesses of all he did throughout Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a cross, but God raised him to life on the third day. Then God allowed him to appear, not to the general public, but to us whom God had chosen in advance to be his witnesses. We were those who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.
    • Acts 22:14-16: “Then he told me, ‘The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and hear him speak. For you are to be his witness, telling everyone what you have seen and heard. Now get to your feet! For I have appeared to you to appoint you as my servant and witness. Tell people that you have seen me, and tell them what I will show you in the future.
    • 1 Corinthians 15:8: Last of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also saw him.
    • Galatians 2:8: For the same God who worked through Peter as the apostle to the Jews also worked through me as the apostle to the Gentiles.
    • 2 Peter 3:15-16: And remember, our Lord’s patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him - speaking of these things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to understand, and those who are ignorant and unstable have twisted his letters to mean something quite different, just as they do with other parts of Scripture. And this will result in their destruction.

(2) Even if others think I am not an apostle, I certainly am to you. You yourselves are proof that I am the Lord’s apostle.

  • Proof: Paul does not mean to say that their conversion furnished some evidence that he was an apostle; but that it was absolute proof that he was an apostle. As it says in the KJV, they were the seal proving he was an apostle.

(3-5) This is my answer to those who question my authority.  Don’t we have the right to live in your homes and share your meals? Don’t we have the right to bring a believing wife with us as the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers do, and as Peter does?

  • The Lord's brothers:
    • James, Joseph (also called Joses), Judas (or Jude) and Simon (Mark 6:3). They were either sons of Joseph and Mary after Jesus was born or they were Jesus’ cousins. James and the other brothers did not believe in Jesus until after his resurrection. Jesus made a special appearance to James (1 Corinthians 15:7) and he later became a leader in the church in Jerusalem (Acts 15:13-21; 21:18).
  • Peter:
    • The Roman catholic church claims Peter was the first pope. Yet, Peter was married and the popes and priests are not to be married?
    • Matthew 8:14: When Jesus arrived at Peter’s house, Peter’s mother-in-law was sick in bed with a high fever.

(6) Or is it only Barnabas and I who have to work to support ourselves?

  • Work to support ourselves:
    • Paul and Barnabas had voluntarily chosen to work and support themselves, rather than receive offerings for their personal maintenance from those in Corinth (1 Corinthians 4:11-12 and Acts 18:3). Paul also did this with the believers in Thessalonica (1 Thessalonians 2:9 and 2 Thessalonians 3:7-9). However, he did receive personal offerings from the believers in Philippi on more than one occasion (Philippians 4:10-19), and he commended them for their support.
    • Greek philosophers considered those who worked with their hands as inferior - somewhat like many modern-day elitist politicians and preachers.
    • Acts 18:3: Paul lived and worked with them, for they were tent makers just as he was.
    • 1 Corinthians 4:11-12: Even now we go hungry and thirsty, and we don’t have enough clothes to keep warm. We are often beaten and have no home. We work wearily with our own hands to earn our living. We bless those who curse us. We are patient with those who abuse us.
    • Philippians 4:10-19: How I praise the Lord that you are concerned about me again. I know you have always been concerned for me, but you didn’t have the chance to help me. Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. Even so, you have done well to share with me in my present difficulty. As you know, you Philippians were the only ones who gave me financial help when I first brought you the Good News and then traveled on from Macedonia. No other church did this. Even when I was in Thessalonica you sent help more than once. I don’t say this because I want a gift from you. Rather, I want you to receive a reward for your kindness. At the moment I have all I need - and more! I am generously supplied with the gifts you sent me with Epaphroditus. They are a sweet-smelling sacrifice that is acceptable and pleasing to God. And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.
    • 1 Thessalonians 2:9: Don’t you remember, dear brothers and sisters, how hard we worked among you? Night and day we toiled to earn a living so that we would not be a burden to any of you as we preached God’s Good News to you.
    • 2 Thessalonians 3:7-9: For you know that you ought to imitate us. We were not idle when we were with you. We never accepted food from anyone without paying for it. We worked hard day and night so we would not be a burden to any of you. We certainly had the right to ask you to feed us, but we wanted to give you an example to follow.

(7) What soldier has to pay his own expenses? What farmer plants a vineyard and doesn’t have the right to eat some of its fruit? What shepherd cares for a flock of sheep and isn’t allowed to drink some of the milk?

  • Soldier ... Farmer ... Shepherd:
    • A person deserves a reward for his work. He used the examples of a soldier, a farmer and a shepherd They all expected a reward for their work. Paul was Christ’s soldier in the war against Satan. He was like a farmer because he was spreading the gospel like seed. He was like a shepherd because he was looking after God’s people.

(8-9) Am I expressing merely a human opinion, or does the law say the same thing? For the law of Moses says, “You must not muzzle an ox to keep it from eating as it treads out the grain.” Was God thinking only about oxen when he said this?

  • Law of Moses says:
    • If God cares about animals, he must care about people as well.
    • Deuteronomy 25:4: “You must not muzzle an ox to keep it from eating as it treads out the grain.
    • 1 Timothy 5:17-18: Elders who do their work well should be respected and paid well, especially those who work hard at both preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, “You must not muzzle an ox to keep it from eating as it treads out the grain.” And in another place, “Those who work deserve their pay!”

(10-11) Wasn’t he actually speaking to us? Yes, it was written for us, so that the one who plows and the one who threshes the grain might both expect a share of the harvest. Since we have planted spiritual seed among you, aren’t we entitled to a harvest of physical food and drink?

  • The one who plows:
    • Paul had acted like a farmer because he spread the gospel like seed in Corinth. They had received a spiritual harvest by becoming Christians. So it was normal for Paul and other people to expect to receive things that they needed for physical life.

(12-13) If you support others who preach to you, shouldn’t we have an even greater right to be supported? But we have never used this right. We would rather put up with anything than be an obstacle to the Good News about Christ. Don’t you realize that those who work in the temple get their meals from the offerings brought to the temple? And those who serve at the altar get a share of the sacrificial offerings.

  • Support others:
    • False teachers sought money (and do today too). Some preachers become extremely wealthy. Paul proved he was not a false teacher by not enriching himself at their expense.

(14) In the same way, the Lord ordered that those who preach the Good News should be supported by those who benefit from it.

  • The Lord ordered:
    • Paul uses Jesus’ words when he sent out the 70 disciples. Jesus told them not to take money with them. They should let people invite them into their homes because ‘the worker deserves his wages’ (Luke 10:7).

(15) Yet I have never used any of these rights. And I am not writing this to suggest that I want to start now. In fact, I would rather die than lose my right to boast about preaching without charge.

  • Without charge:
    • 2 Corinthians 11:7-9: Was I wrong when I humbled myself and honored you by preaching God’s Good News to you without expecting anything in return? I “robbed” other churches by accepting their contributions so I could serve you at no cost. And when I was with you and didn’t have enough to live on, I did not become a financial burden to anyone. For the brothers who came from Macedonia brought me all that I needed. I have never been a burden to you, and I never will be.

(16) Yet preaching the Good News is not something I can boast about. I am compelled by God to do it. How terrible for me if I didn’t preach the Good News!

  • Compelled by God:
    • Preachers are supposed to preach the gospel from a compelling compulsion based on an abiding faith, not as a "hobby" or a "way to make a living". Paul never regarded preaching as just a “career!”
    • Paul was like Jeremiah who said that God’s message was like a fire inside him. Even if he wanted to, Paul could not stop preaching. To stop would have made him miserable.
      • Jeremiah 20:9: But if I say I’ll never mention the Lord  or speak in his name, his word burns in my heart like a fire. It’s like a fire in my bones! I am worn out trying to hold it in! I can’t do it!

(17) If I were doing this on my own initiative, I would deserve payment. But I have no choice, for God has given me this sacred trust.

  • No choice
    • Jesus called him on the road to Damascus and he feels he has no choice but to be an apostle because of what Christ has done for him. But, the Corinthians think he is being weak in not taking payment for his work.

(18-19) What then is my pay? It is the opportunity to preach the Good News without charging anyone. That’s why I never demand my rights when I preach the Good News. Even though I am a free man with no master, I have become a slave to all people to bring many to Christ.

  • My pay: Kretzmann: "The Corinthians have spent nothing on him, but he spent everything, including himself, on them."

(20) When I was with the Jews, I lived like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. When I was with those who follow the Jewish law, I too lived under that law. Even though I am not subject to the law, I did this so I could bring to Christ those who are under the law.

  • Lived like a Jew:
    • The problem some run into in the next few verses is that they are often taken to mean to compromise with the prevailing culture.
    • Paul, a Jew, used his knowledge of Jewish laws and customs to relate to non-Christian Jews. He did not want to offend or “turn off” the Jews because he wanted to win them to Christ. He took a vow and purified himself and others in the temple to show his good faith to the Jews (Acts 21:23-26). But, he never compromised the message.
    • Matthew Henry: "Though he looked on the ceremonial law as a yoke taken off by Christ, yet in many instances he submitted to it, that he might work upon the Jews, remove their prejudices, prevail with them to hear the gospel, and win them over to Christ.”
  • I am not subject to the law:
    • Paul was not under the Law, but this was a very radical statement to the Jewish minds of his day and to the minds of Jews and legalistic Christians today. In contrast, he says in the next verse that he was subject to "the law of Christ".
    • Wycliffe Bible Commentary: ".. a remarkable statement which emphasizes how completely Paul had broken with the law of Moses."
    • Later, Paul returned to Jerusalem. Then James asked him to take part in a religious promise that four men were making. This was to show that Paul did not expect Jews to give up all their religious practices (Acts 21:23-26). So, Paul agreed with some Jewish customs. But he taught that these customs were not necessary for salvation.
    • Romans 6:14-15: Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace. Well then, since God’s grace has set us free from the law, does that mean we can go on sinning? Of course not!
    • Galatians 3:23-25, 4:21, 5:18: Galatians 3:23-25: Before the way of faith in Christ was available to us, we were placed under guard by the law. We were kept in protective custody, so to speak, until the way of faith was revealed. Let me put it another way. The law was our guardian until Christ came; it protected us until we could be made right with God through faith. And now that the way of faith has come, we no longer need the law as our guardian. ... Tell me, you who want to live under the law, do you know what the law actually says? ...  But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses.
    • Ephesians 2:8-9: God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it.

(21) When I am with the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law, I too live apart from that law so I can bring them to Christ. But I do not ignore the law of God; I obey the law of Christ.

  • The law of Christ:
    • Christ’s law was the law of love towards other people (John 13:34-35). Paul’s speeches at Lystra (Acts 14:14-17) and Athens (Acts 17:22-31) show how Paul tried to explain the gospel. He chose to talk in a way that those without the law would understand.
    • Matthew 22:37-39: Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.
    • John 13:34: So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.
    • Romans 13:10: Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law.
    • 1 John 2:7-8: Dear friends, I am not writing a new commandment for you; rather it is an old one you have had from the very beginning. This old commandment - to love one another - is the same message you heard before. Yet it is also new. Jesus lived the truth of this commandment, and you also are living it. For the darkness is disappearing, and the true light is already shining.

(22-23) When I am with those who are weak, I share their weakness, for I want to bring the weak to Christ. Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone, doing everything I can to save some. I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings.

  • Weak:
    • David Lipscomb: "Paul accommodated himself to the prejudices and preferences of men so far as he could without sacrificing truth and righteousness, in order to win them to Christ ... He did this not that he might be personally popular with any man, but that by doing so he might throw no obstacle in the way of their giving the gospel a fair hearing."
  • Common ground:
    • This is not to say that Paul didn’t “draw the line” at times and fight for his freedoms. Paul was very uncompromising at times. However, there has to be a balance.

Verses 24 - 27 fit better with the next chapter where Paul reminds his readers of Israel's failure in the desert.

(24) Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win!

  • Race:
    • Paul knew about the games at Isthmia near Corinth that happened every two years. There were great numbers of visitors who had to live in tents giving Paul the chance to use his trade and support himself.
    • Coffman's Commentaries: "There are important differences, as well as similarities, in such a contest as Paul referred to here. Analogies are: (1) to win; a man must contend legally, being properly enrolled in the contest, suggesting that a Christian must contend along with others in the church, and not as some kind of free-lance operator; (2) discipline is required (Hebrews 12:1); (3) some win; others do not win; (4) a host of spectators views the contest (Hebrews 12:1); (5) patience is necessary; (6) the winner receives the prize. The contrasts are: (1) only one may win an earthly race; all may win the heavenly; (2) the earthly reward is but a trifle; the heavenly reward is eternal life."
    • Dr. Dwight Pentecost, in his book on Philippians called 'The Joy of Living’, wrote "When I was in London I found my way to several of the art museums and galleries of that city. I wanted to see some of the famous paintings I had become familiar with through art books. It was a delightful experience to walk through these corridors. I was particularly struck with one painting: two chariots were racing at breakneck speed, their wheels were just a blur of motion, the charioteers with whip in hand were lashing their horses to the expenditure of every ounce of energy that they had. Intensity was written in their eyes, in their faces, in the set of their bodies. The horses were straining themselves, it seemed, to the point of collapse. Their eyes were wild, their nostrils distended, they gulped great breaths of air as they pressed toward the goal. With the goal before them they were giving themselves unreservedly to their race. Those who had not so extended themselves had been left behind, and were an insignificant part of the background of the painting. The attention of the viewer was focused by the artist upon the two charioteers who strained toward the goal".
  • Run:
    • Run to win - not just to finish!
    • This Epistle is addressed to believers (1 Corinthians 1:2). We are enrolled in a race. They were to strive and disciplined so that they might win an incorruptible crown. Jesus offers a prize to those of us who run well. When the Paul said, “Run to win”, he was speaking of the incorruptible crown which will be the reward of the faithful saint who runs well the race that is set before him. This he will do by looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). Each of us is our own individual race - we're not enrolled in running someone else's race! Who is our competitor - ourselves (our temptations, weaknesses, sins, laziness, faithlessness, our flesh). So, run to win!
    • Galatians 5:7: You were running the race so well. Who has held you back from following the truth?
    • Hebrews 12:1: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.
  • Prize - Greek braberion:
    • J Vernon McGee: "I think every Christian ought to work for a reward. We do not work for salvation; that is a gift given by the grace of God. My friend, if you are going to get a reward, you will have to work for it. If you are going to get a reward, then you had better get out on the racetrack and start moving."
    • Philippians 3:12-14: I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.
    • 2 Timothy 2:5: And athletes cannot win the prize unless they follow the rules.
    • 2 Timothy 4:6-8: As for me, my life has already been poured out as an offering to God. The time of my death is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. And now the prize awaits me - the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing.

(25) All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize.

  • Disciplined: The word translated “disciplined” comes from the Greek word agonizomai, from which we get our word “agony” or “agonize”.

(26) SO I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing.

  • Purpose:
    • Fritz Rienecker, in his “Linguistic Key to the Greek New Testament,” translated this phrase this way: “I do not run as one who has no fixed and certain goal.”

(27) I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.

  • Discipline:
    • Being disciplined in your Christian life doesn’t mean being straitlaced, sober and sad. Discipline means asking yourself, “Is what I’m doing now going to help me win my Christian race later?”
    • The word “discipline” in this verse comes from the Greek word “hupopiazo,” which means “to hit under the eye (buffet or disable an antagonist as a pugilist), i.e. (figuratively) to tease or annoy (into compliance), subdue (one’s passions)” (Strong’s Concordance). Paul was drawing on the illustration of a boxer that he made in 1 Corinthians 9:26.
  • Disqualified - Greek adokimos:
    • This word adokimos (translated "a castaway" in the KJV) is taken from “bad metals” and relates to the test of whether the metal is genuine or fake.
    • In this context, disqualified doesn't refer to the loss of salvation (no Greek's citizenship was revoked upon losing), but the loss of reward. Greek citizenship, proper training, running according to the rules, being of the correct age and gender were some of the many "qualifications" to run in the Greek games.
    • 2 Timothy 2:5: And athletes cannot win the prize unless they follow the rules.

1 Corinthians 10:1-12: I don’t want you to forget, dear brothers and sisters, about our ancestors in the wilderness long ago. ALL OF THEM were guided by a cloud that moved ahead of them, and ALL OF THEM walked through the sea on dry ground. In the cloud and in the sea, ALL OF THEM were baptized as followers of Moses. ALL OF THEM ate the same spiritual food, and ALL OF THEM drank the same spiritual water. For they drank from the spiritual rock that traveled with them, and that rock was Christ. Yet God was not pleased with most of them, and their bodies were scattered in the wilderness. These things happened as a warning to us, so that we would not crave evil things as they did, or worship idols as some of them did. As the Scriptures say, “The people celebrated with feasting and drinking, and they indulged in pagan revelry.” And we must not engage in sexual immorality as some of them did, causing 23,000 of them to die in one day. Nor should we put Christ to the test, as some of them did and then died from snakebites. And don’t grumble as some of them did, and then were destroyed by the angel of death. These things happened to them as examples for us. They were written down to warn us who live at the end of the age. If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall.

CONCLUSION:

Are you qualified to run the race? Are you in the race? Are you running your own individual race with an eternal prize in mind?

NOTES:

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