1 Corinthians 9:1-18

We are looking at 1 Corinthians chapter 9 this morning, verses 1 through 18.

1 Corinthians 9 · chapter mention

And I actually didn't write down the page number, but it's in your bulletin.

So let me encourage you to turn there with me, 1 Corinthians chapter 9.

1 Corinthians 9 · chapter mention

We're going to look at just the first half of this chapter this morning,

and then we're going to come back to the rest next week.

Let me pray for us as we're turning there.

God, we ask that you would now come and quiet our hearts and help us to listen well to the message of your word.

God, we thank you that we can rest in you, that we can repose in you,

Lord, that we find in you a great and gracious savior.

And Lord, we thank you for your word that instructs us and teaches us and above all reminds us of all that you've done for us in your deep love.

Spirit, would you give us hearts that are eager and expectant to hear your word today?

We ask this, Father, in Jesus' name. Amen.

1 Corinthians chapter 9, verses 1 through 18.

1 Corinthians 9:1–18

Am I not free?

Am I not an apostle?

Have I not seen Jesus our Lord?

Are you not my workmanship in the Lord?

If to others I am not an apostle, at least I am to you.

For you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.

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?

Who serves as a soldier at his own expense?

Who plants a vineyard without eating any of its fruit?

Who tends a flock without getting some of the milk?

Do I say these things on human authority?

Does not the law say the same?

For it is written in the law of Moses,

Thus 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 the same way,

the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel

should get their living by the gospel,

but I have made no use of any of these rights,

nor am I writing these things to secure any such provision,

for I would rather die

than have anyone deprive me of my ground for boasting.

For if I preach the gospel,

that gives me no ground for boasting,

for necessity is laid upon me.

Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel.

For if I do this of my own will,

I have a reward,

but if not of my own will,

I'm still entrusted with a stewardship.

What then is my reward?

That in my preaching,

I may present the gospel free of charge,

so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.

Well, it's been observed that one of the great moral gains,

one of the great moral advances of the second half of the 20th century

is the idea that all people,

not just some,

are to be respected and valued.

All people,

not just the rich and powerful,

are worthy of dignity and respect.

All people,

including the weak and the poor,

people of different color and different nationality,

and so on.

And for the last hundred plus years,

this belief has commonly been expressed

by speaking of human rights.

Rights.

The 1948 UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights

is a great example.

It says,

and it begins by saying that,

the recognition of the inherent dignity

and of the equal and inalienable rights

of all members of the human family

is the foundation of freedom,

justice,

and peace in the world.

But of course,

we can find earlier examples

that speak of human rights

in a similar way.

We hold these truths to be self-evident,

that all men are created equal,

that they are endowed by their creator

with certain unalienable rights.

But among these are life, liberty,

and the pursuit of happiness.

Famous lines, of course,

from the 18th century

Declaration of Independence.

And I think we can all agree

that a widespread acknowledgement

of human rights

is a great gain.

As one writer put it,

it's become a way of saying

that we,

the worldwide community,

won't tolerate bullies

who exploit people

for their own ends.

We say that people have rights

in order to say

that other people

don't have the right

to abuse or exploit them.

So talking about rights,

affirming rights,

is a good thing.

And yet,

it can also become problematic,

can't it?

If affirming human rights

is one way of standing up

for the weak,

of affirming the dignity

of all people,

it can also become a way

for people to justify

their own selfish actions.

For instance,

perhaps I technically

have the right

to play

my favorite

Taylor Swift albums

nice and loud

at 8 a.m.

on a Saturday morning.

Because, let's be honest,

nothing says,

good morning,

like a little Tay Swift.

But the rest

of my apartment building

will probably be seething

with their own bad blood,

wishing in their wildest dreams

that my apartment

became a blank space

and reoccupied

by someone

with a little more

musical style.

So rights language

by itself

can be a bit problematic.

It can easily be twisted

to justify selfishness.

My rights are,

after all,

my rights,

and there's nothing

you can do about it.

But rights language

is also problematic

because rights

can sometimes

seem to collide.

And haven't we seen

this all too close

to home?

If your right

to free speech

and my right

to a respectful

learning environment

come crashing

into each other,

how do we work

things out?

And who gets

to decide?

So it seems

that on the one hand

our widespread

affirmation of rights

is a great gain,

and yet our idea

of rights by itself

is still in need

of something else.

Something over

and above them,

perhaps,

that can help us

know how to best

make use

of our many

and good rights.

In other words,

how to really live together

in ways that make

for peace

as opposed to

selfishness

and conflict.

Well, what,

if anything,

does the Bible

have to say

about this issue

that presses down

on us today?

And we find,

actually,

it has quite a lot

to say.

In fact,

our text this morning

speaks directly

to this issue

of rights.

And it shows us

both that it's

proper

to defend them,

while at the same time

it may be best

to defer them.

So let's look first

at Paul's defense

of his rights

in verses 1 through 14

and see what we can learn.

Now, remember the context

of chapter 9.

In the last chapter,

we learned that the church

in Corinth was divided

over the issue

of meat offered

to idols.

Some thought they had

the right to eat it,

and others thought

they most certainly

did not.

But the issue

was more complicated

than it seemed

on the surface.

Because for starters,

there were lots

of different places

where you could come

across meat offered

to idols in an ancient

city like Corinth.

The first place

was in an actual

pagan temple itself.

Most pagan temples

had dining halls

where you could share

a meal.

In fact,

this is where

a lot of the business

and social networking

happened in the ancient world,

especially for the upper classes.

You didn't go

to the Union League

for lunch

in the first century.

You went down

to the temple

of so-and-so

and shared a meal

in the banquet hall

where the table

was set

with some freshly

prepared fillets

recently sacrificed

to whatever god

the temple happened

to be.

Did Christians

have the right

to eat meat

in such a place?

After all,

we know

that there's only

one true god,

right?

And we know

that these

so-called gods

and idols

aren't really real

after all,

so why not?

That's all

some Christians

in Corinth

were thinking.

But second,

you could encounter

meat offered

to idols

if your non-Christian

friend invited you

to their house

for dinner.

And maybe

they would

explicitly say

that this meat

was offered

in honor of Apollo,

let's eat,

or maybe they wouldn't.

But remember,

meat was a luxury

for most people

in the ancient world

to be invited

to a meal

where they were

serving meat

was potentially

a big deal.

So what about

there?

Could you eat

that meat then?

Or should you

refrain?

Would you offend

your host?

Was that right?

But third,

it wasn't just

in temples

or in private homes

that you'd encounter

meat sacrificed

to idols.

Nearly all

of the meat

that you could buy

in the general

marketplace

came from

the leftover

sacrifices

in the temples.

Anything that

they didn't cook

for the banquet halls

was carried

to the marketplace

and sold.

So pretty much

all of the meat

in a city like Corinth

was associated

in one way

or another

with an idol.

It was like

trying to find

a fast food restaurant

in the 90s

that didn't use

partially hydrogenated oils.

They just didn't exist.

Whether you went

to McDonald's

or Wendy's

or Burger King,

you were going

to be ingesting

a healthy dose

of trans fat.

So it was

with meat

in first century

Corinth.

You could probably

trace it back

one way or another

to a sacrifice

to some false god.

So you see,

the question of

whether or not

a Christian should

eat meat sacrificed

to an idol

was a multi-sided question

and that's why

Paul takes

three whole chapters

to parse the thing out.

And as Greg

mentioned last week,

let me say

as a sidebar

this morning

that today

there are some

moral issues

that take some

deep reflection

and some nuance

for us as followers

of Jesus

to parse out.

At least if we're

going to do so

in a way

that does full justice

to the truth

of the gospel.

In Paul's day,

I'm sure there were

people on both sides

of the idol meat issue

who wanted Paul

to just say yes

or no.

Should we

or shouldn't we,

Paul?

Just tell us.

But there was more

to it than that.

Now eventually

Paul will deliver

a clear yes,

no,

maybe.

And if you haven't

yet read ahead

through chapter 10,

spoiler alert,

here's what he says.

No to the meat

in the idol's temple,

yes to the meat

in the marketplace,

and maybe to the meat

in the friend's house.

So there are

some guidelines

Paul can lay down.

But there are

deeper issues

at play here.

Deeper heart issues.

Some Christians

felt like they had

a right

to eat meat

wherever,

whenever.

But before Paul

even parses out

whether or not

they have such a right

and where

and when

and with whom

and under what circumstances,

he goes after

their hearts.

He pushes them

to think about

how they should be

using their so-called

rights at all.

and to do that,

he gives them

an illustration.

An illustration

that they will

know very well.

An illustration

that they've all

experienced and seen

and that will resonate

with each one of them

because they've all

in some way

benefited from it.

Paul uses the illustration

of himself.

Chapter 9,

what he's doing here

is presenting himself

as an example

of how Christians

ought to approach

their rights.

And at first,

he defends his right

as an apostle,

for example,

to receive financial support

from the churches

he ministers in.

This is my defense,

he says in verse 3.

Here it is.

And he does that

in four ways.

Real briefly,

first,

he uses some analogies

from everyday life

in verse 7,

from common experience.

Imagine a soldier

marching off to war

and risking his life

but having to pay

for his own body armor,

his own machine gun

and amusician,

and his own food and drink.

That's ludicrous.

Imagine planting a vineyard

and not eating

any of the fruit.

Imagine working

at J.Crew

and not at least

getting an employee discount

so you can wear

some of the clothes.

If all those examples

seem ludicrous,

well, Paul says,

so is the idea

of an apostle

at least not having

a right to some

material support

from the churches

he's ministering in.

Second,

he uses an argument

not from common experience

but from scripture.

In verses 8 through 12,

he quotes a passage

from the Law of Moses

from Deuteronomy 25.

You shall not muzzle an ox

when it treads out the grain.

Now, of course,

the law wasn't

just about oxen.

It was laying down

a principle about work,

about labor,

and moreover,

about the just sharing

of the fruits of the work

with the workers.

And if it applies

to oxen,

then surely it applies

all the more

to humans, right?

Third, Paul argues

by analogy

from the temple service

in Jerusalem.

That's verse 13.

If the Levitical priests

have a right

to receive their livelihood

from their labors

in the old covenant temple,

shouldn't we apostles

have a right

to receive support

from our service

in the new covenant temple?

the church?

The temple of the Holy Spirit,

as he calls them

back in chapter 3?

And then fourth,

Paul sort of brings it home,

not by way of analogy,

but by way of just

straight command.

Verse 14,

in the same way

the Lord commanded

that those who proclaim

the gospel

should get their living

by the gospel.

The Lord here referring

as it usually does

in Paul to the Lord Jesus.

If you come back

to the evening service

tonight

by a strange

working of providence,

we're actually going

to be studying Luke 10

where Jesus teaches

that very principle.

In Luke 10, 7,

Jesus says in the context

of mission and ministry

that the laborer

deserves his wages.

And Paul will actually

quote that same saying

of Jesus

in 1 Timothy chapter 5

1 Timothy 5 · chapter mention

along with his Deuteronomy

verse about oxen

where he makes the same point

about ministers receiving

support for their labors

in the ministry.

Interesting,

as a total rabbit trail,

in 1 Timothy chapter 5,

1 Timothy 5 · chapter mention

Paul says,

as the scripture says,

don't muzzle the oxen.

The laborer

deserves its wages.

Very interesting.

The only place

where we know

that that saying

of Jesus exists

is Luke 10, 7.

And Paul says,

that's what the scripture says.

Did Luke know,

did Paul know

about Luke's gospel?

Was he calling it scripture?

Curious.

Yes.

Now,

the main point

of 1 Corinthians 9

isn't really about pastors

being supported

by their congregations.

Of course,

this passage,

along with some others

like 1 Timothy 5

and Galatians 6,

certainly teach

that congregations

should provide

for their pastors.

And I'm thankful,

along with the other pastors

here at Trinity,

that you members of Trinity

do just that.

But,

the main point here,

remember,

is that this is

an illustration

about how

all of us Christians

ought to approach

our rights at all.

And Paul here

at first

defends them.

As an apostle,

he has certain rights

and he can articulate them

and provide ample evidence

for them.

And I think as we

think broadly

about human rights today,

we Christians

should not be shy

about defending

and articulating

the rights

that we have

as human beings.

At the highest level,

the dignity

and honor

that every human being

is worthy of.

In fact,

in a Christian framework

of reality,

the idea of human rights

makes a whole lot of sense.

Does it not?

If there is a good,

wise,

and holy God

who created all things

and created human beings

uniquely in his image

to know him

and love him

and reflect him

in their life together,

then all human beings

certainly have

dignity and worth

and must not be

trampled on

or exploited.

Every human person

is of incomparable value.

They do have rights.

One of the ways

in which we,

I think as Christians,

can serve

the good

of our community

is by continuing

to hold up

a vision of reality

based in God's goodness

and holiness

where we humans

are filled

with value

and purpose

and worth

regardless of our status

or position

or ability

or what have you.

Whether it's in our

work life

or cultural life

or our church life

that we keep saying

that you

and me

and everyone

regardless of what

they believe

are created

in God's image

and are worthy

of infinite dignity

and respect.

Because friends,

the reality is

a lot of the competing

frameworks

in which people live

actually aren't

very good

at giving good reasons

for why

humans have something

called rights

and why

we humans

ought to be treated

with dignity

and respect.

If everything

we see

is simply

the product

of time

and energy

and chance

and if human beings

are just a collocation

of chemicals

and matter

destined to be

utterly extinguished

when our sun

expands

and the universe

rapidly races

ever outward

into cold

dark oblivion.

We can certainly

claim

that human beings

have something

called rights

but it's certainly

hard to say

why we have them

or what indeed

they are.

I'm not saying

you need to believe

in God

to be a good person.

Most people I know

who don't believe

in God

are actually

quite moral

but I'm suggesting

that it's very hard

to know

why we ought

to treat people

a certain way.

Treat them

a certain way

regardless of circumstances

regardless of the benefit

which is what we mean

by human rights

right?

it's hard to know

why we ought

to do that

when there really

is nothing

to ground

those rights in.

So we as Christians

ought to keep

holding up

this vision

of life

where human beings

have dignity

and worth

and where there is

such a thing

as human rights

because of who

God created us

to be.

Now

of course

speaking of our

dignity and worth

as human beings

is perhaps

speaking of rights

at the highest

possible level

right?

But what about

all those other things

we consider rights?

Like Paul's right

to receive financial support

as an apostle

or the Corinthians

right to eat

idol meat.

For us today

what about

our widespread belief

in the right

to life, liberty

and the pursuit

of happiness?

Do we have a right?

Don't we have a right

to comfort

and security

and happiness?

things?

Or what about

even smaller

things?

We could make

a long

laundry list

of things

that Christians

potentially

have the freedom

or the right

to do.

Drink alcohol.

Get a sweet

tattoo.

Go dancing.

Smoke a cigarette.

Go to the movies.

Support a political

party.

Drive a certain car.

Live in a certain

neighborhood.

Go to public school.

Go to private school.

Go trick-or-treating.

Go to yoga.

Listen to rock music.

Drink caffeine.

Save for retirement.

Go on vacation.

Own a vacation home.

Get married.

Stay single.

Have children.

Don't have children.

The list could go

on and on

and on

and on.

What about

all these

sorts of rights?

From the right

to comfort

and security

all the way

down

to drinking

a drink?

What should

our approach

be to these

sorts of

individual rights?

And here,

friends,

I think Paul

challenges us.

Look again

at the second

half of verse 12.

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.

here

is the

criteria

we ought

to use

when considering

our rights

and how to

use them.

Even if we

have a

legitimate

right,

the question

we must

ask is,

will making

use of that

right put an

obstacle in the

way of the

gospel of

Christ?

Christ?

And if so,

then we

ought to

voluntarily

defer

making use

of that

right.

And this

is the

second big

point of

our text

this morning.

Even if we

can defend

a certain

right with

airtight

biblical,

theological,

experiential

arguments,

we still

ought to be

willing to

voluntarily

defer it

for the

sake of

others

knowing and

growing in

Christ.

Now,

quickly note,

Paul doesn't

say that he's

absolutely lost

his right or

totally,

absolutely given

it up.

He still has

the right to

receive financial

support.

As an

apostle,

he'll always

have that

right.

And on

top of that,

he in no

way says that

we can force

someone to

refrain from

using their

legitimate

rights.

For Paul,

it is

voluntary.

But still,

the principle

remains.

If

exercising a

right puts a

potential barrier

between someone

and the

gospel,

we ought to

be willing

to forgo

exercising that

right.

Think of

Paul's

situation.

Here he

was,

an apostle

of the

Lord Jesus

Christ,

commissioned

to bring

the saving

message of

Christ,

crucified and

risen to

the Gentiles,

to call them

to faith in

the one

true God,

to call them

out of

darkness into

light,

out of guilt

and slavery

to sin,

an end to

forgiveness

and freedom.

But you

know,

for your

typical

first century

city dweller,

on the

surface,

Paul looked

a lot like

the traveling

teachers and

philosophers who

were out to

make a profit

and make a

name for

themselves by

charging money

for whatever

it was they

were teaching.

You see,

traveling teachers

in the ancient

world could

support themselves

in one of

four ways,

typically.

They could

charge fees

for their

instruction,

they could

get a

wealthy patron,

they could

beg,

or they could

work at a

trade and

support themselves.

And because

begging and

working were

considered

demeaning,

most of the

teachers went

for the first

two options.

But because it

was hard to

find a wealthy

patron,

a lot of them

just ended up

charging money

for their

instruction.

Now, if

paying money

to receive

instruction from

a teacher who

just happens to

show up in

your life sounds

like a strange

practice, just

turn on public

television some

Saturday afternoon.

And what will

you find?

Some medical

expert or some

financial expert or

some other

expert giving a

series of talks

about how what

they know will

make your life

better.

And if you

call now,

they will send

you the DVD

in the large

format book

containing the

full series of

talks with all

the secrets and

insights you need

to be happy,

healthy,

wealthy,

and wise.

Plus, you get

the nice self-righteous

tinge of supporting

your local public

TV station.

Beth and I watch

a ton of public

television.

There's nothing

wrong with public

television.

But Paul knew

that if he showed

up in Corinth

asking for money

in response to

his preaching,

he would have

seemed like just

another Susie Orman

or Joel Fuhrman.

People would have

thought that this

Christian thing was

just another self-help

philosophy, just

another thing you can

dabble in and pick

and choose what works

for you and what

doesn't, just another

thing that will give

you a puffed up

identity over and

against your peers

because after all,

they don't have the

secrets and insights

that you now have.

And so rather than

put an obstacle in

the way of the gospel,

Paul says he made

no use of his right

and endured

anything.

And we know from

Acts chapter 18 a

Acts 18 · chapter mention

little bit of what

that anything looked

like.

Rather than receive

financial support from

the church that he

was planting,

he worked a job in

the marketplace doing

manual labor,

building tents,

which didn't just

consume lots of time

and energy,

it also put him way

down on the social

ladder.

You know, today we

think craftsmen are

cool, especially if

they grow beards and

use words to describe

their work like

handcrafted or bespoke

or artisanal.

I mean, if Paul had

made tents in Brooklyn

today, he'd probably

have his own show on

HGTV.

But in the first

century, working with

your hands didn't have

any cultural clout.

It was looked down on

and it was undignified

because important people

didn't work with their

hands and influential

people didn't work with

their hands.

And yet Paul was

willing to endure

anything rather than

put an obstacle in the

way of the gospel.

How about us,

friends?

Are we willing to

endure anything?

Are we willing to

defer our rights so as

not to put an obstacle

between our neighbors

and the gospel?

Or between our

brothers and sisters in

the church and their

growth in the gospel?

Which is what Paul is

concerned about at the

end of chapter 8.

Now the tricky thing

about concrete

application here is

that it's so

relationship and

context specific.

What throws an

obstacle in the way of

the gospel in one

place or in one

relationship might not

do so in another.

So this would be a

great question as you

go out to lunch today

with your friends.

A great question to

discuss.

What particular

rights in my life,

if I were to keep

exercising them,

might throw an

obstacle in the way

of the gospel?

We need to be doing

this kind of discernment

in community,

friends.

We need each other's

eyes to see and to

discern.

But as I thought

about it, here's one

example for me

personally as a

pastor.

And you might think

this is crazy, but

here it is.

I think as a pastor,

I technically have the

right to register with

a political party,

whether it be Democrat

or Republican or

Green or whatever.

I also think that as

a pastor, I have the

right, in the right

context, in the proper

context, not from the

pulpit or not from any

gathered church setting,

but in the proper

context, I think I have

the right to talk about

who I'm personally

going to vote for and

why.

But you know, even

though I certainly

have that right, I'm

probably not going to

register with a

political party.

And I'm probably never

going to talk a lot

about who I vote for

and why.

How come?

Because I think it

would potentially put

an obstacle in the

way of the gospel for

me as a pastor to

strongly affiliate with

any one party.

Because ultimately, the

church stands apart from

any one political party,

just as it stands apart

from any one nationality

or culture.

And in my particular

role as a pastor, I

wouldn't want anyone to

think that this church

or the gospel itself

means buying into a

particular political

platform or agenda,

whether it's right or

left or center or up

or down.

Now, I'm not saying

that all Christians

should do the same

thing, that all

Christians shouldn't

register with this or

that party or shouldn't

strongly advocate for a

particular candidate.

Surely, actually, there

should be robust,

articulate Christian

voices in politics.

And I'm very thankful

for those that exist.

But in where God's put

me in my role as a

pastor, I wouldn't want

my personal political

leanings to stand in the

way of anyone coming to

grips with the gospel of

Jesus Christ, whose

lordship is over every

party and every tribe and

every tongue.

Now, honestly, that's not a

very costly thing for me to

give up.

I don't visit CNN four

times a day.

It seems kind of like a

small thing.

But, you know, I think

along the way, as we think

about this a little more

deeply, I think along the

way, we actually all

encounter moments when

giving up our rights feels

hard and is hard.

And it may not look as

massive as Paul giving up

his financial support or

the Corinthians refusing

to eat meat.

But, you know, when I've

worked a long week and

it's Friday night and I

just can't wait to crash

and sleep in, I sort of

feel like after a long

work week, I have a right

to a good night's sleep.

A right to a little peace

and quiet.

But when one of my kids

wakes up crying and I need

to go to them because

they're sick or because

they're having a bad

dream and then as soon

as that one falls asleep,

the other one wakes up

because they wet the bed

or because they want to

drink a water again.

I start to feel the tug

in my heart of giving up

what I feel is my right.

I don't want to give up my

right to a peaceful night.

I deserve a peaceful night.

I worked hard all week and

now it's being stripped

away one crying kid at a

time.

And not wanting to let go

of my rights, I get angry

and I get impatient.

And instead of displaying

the gospel in that moment,

I display my own selfishness.

I have such a right to have a

right to a certain quality of

life, a certain standard of

living.

I have such and such a

profession.

I make such and such a salary.

Therefore, I ought to have this

size house or drive this size

car or wear these sorts of

clothes.

Now, of course, there's nothing

wrong with those things in and

of themselves.

But what if giving up some of

those rights meant that we

could invest more in kingdom

work?

Would we be willing to surrender

some of those almost

unconsciously held rights for the

sake of the gospel?

Even if it meant living at a lower

standard of living than many of our

professional peers?

And what about our right to

personal independence and

flexibility?

Think, for example, of caring for

an elderly parent.

Are we willing to give up some of

our rights and to be tied down to

caring for them, visiting them,

calling them, possibly even taking

them into our own home?

Even if it means losing a lot of

our freedom, losing a lot of the

flexibility and independence that we

cherish so much?

Even if it means that our

profession might take a hit?

What about our right when someone

has wronged us or hurt us to pay

them back?

To pay them back usually through

cold silence or quiet, even polite

indifference.

Let's be honest.

None of us are out to kill each

other.

But man, we can kill with our

silence, can we not?

Are we willing to give up even this

right to get even and do the costly

work of forgiveness?

You see, friends, at this level, at the

heart level, forgoing our rights is

much harder.

That's part of the reason why Paul

just doesn't lay down rules because

he wants to get down deep.

And it's much harder.

And that all pushes us to ask the

question of how.

Where do we find the motivation, the

ability to actually do that?

All of us, I think, naturally want to

defend our rights, but few of us have

the strength to really defer them.

And where that strength comes from, I think, is

the third thing, the third big point that we

see in our text.

In the last paragraph of our text that we

read, verses 15 through 18, Paul speaks of his

ground for boasting.

And in a parallel expression at the end of the

paragraph, he speaks of his reward.

They're one and the same thing.

And he explains that for him, merely

preaching the gospel doesn't actually give

him anything to boast about.

Jesus has commanded him to preach the

gospel, therefore he has to preach the

gospel.

He's not doing this of his own will.

It's not like he chose one day to say,

oh, you know what I should do?

I should give up this and preach the

gospel.

No, he's doing it by the will of Christ.

So there's no reward for Paul in simply

preaching the gospel.

Just like we wouldn't give sort of

accolades to a certain kind of

car because it accelerates when you push

the gas pedal.

That's just what cars are supposed to do.

They do it by necessity.

So if Paul's reward isn't just the

preaching of the gospel, what is it?

That by voluntarily making no use of his

rights in the gospel, he can then offer

the gospel free of charge.

Isn't that a beautiful phrase?

Free of charge.

There's the reward, Paul says.

Now some have thought that Paul is

speaking of a heavenly reward here,

something that will come to him in the

new heavens and the new earth.

But others have understood Paul to be

saying that the offering of the gospel

itself free of charge is the reward.

How could that be?

How could the offering itself be the reward?

I wonder if you've ever seen something beautiful,

been really captured by it, and then wanted

others to see it and experience it too.

I remember visiting an art gallery with my

brother a number of years ago, and I was so

excited to take him with me.

He studied art in college as graphic designer,

blah, blah, blah.

I was so excited to take him with me because

I'd been there before and there was a certain

picture I really wanted him to see.

I think it was a Monet painting, like one of

his 4,000 paintings of water lilies.

But this one, for some reason, really struck me.

I remember looking at it and thinking that the

canvas almost looked like it was actually water

reflecting the light of the setting sun.

It was mesmerizing.

And I looked at prints of it afterwards, and

they just couldn't do it justice to just standing

before the real thing.

So I drug my brother through this gallery and

into the room where it was hung, only to find

that the painting had actually been loaned out

to another museum.

This is the National Gallery in London.

We were on the other side of the world, and

guess where they were loaning it out to?

Some museum in the States.

It was ridiculous.

I was so disappointed.

Now, maybe for you, it's not a Monet painting.

I get that.

But maybe you've pointed out a sunset to someone as

you're walking down the street.

Or maybe you've hiked with a friend to a favorite

waterfall.

Or maybe you've even handed your earbuds to a friend

and said, you've got to listen to this.

What are we hoping for in those moments?

What was I hoping for in that moment just before I discovered

the Monet had been shipped to a far-off museum?

I mean, at a very simple, maybe, but profound level,

I was hoping that he would be able to see what I saw,

to experience what I had experienced,

and that somehow we'd be able then to share together

in this thing of beauty.

And I wasn't really wanting anything beyond that.

I wasn't expecting the museum to give me a commission

or a kickback on our entrance fee,

because I showed it to him.

I wasn't expecting my brother to buy me lunch

for showing him such a cool painting.

None of that was the reward.

The very act of helping him see what I saw

and of getting him to see what I saw,

that was the reward.

Because the thing itself was worthy of beholding.

When Paul says that presenting the gospel free of charge

is itself his reward,

it's because in doing so,

he gets to participate in a process

of helping others to see,

to experience what he himself saw,

self-saw and experienced.

A beauty so ravishing

that it changed his life forever.

That there was one who was in very nature God

and who possessed every right of God himself.

The right to glory and honor and freedom and strength.

But who, though being equal with God,

didn't exploit those rights,

but gave them up and became a lowly servant

and died on a cross for the sins of humanity.

Friends, what is our sin?

Is it not grabbing to ourselves rights

that aren't rightfully ours?

Putting ourself in the place of God

and demanding the right to run our own lives

and our own world apart from him,

without him,

even against him.

But friends, what is our redemption?

In a beautiful reversal,

Jesus Christ,

the one true rightful one

who has every right,

empties himself of those rights.

and dies our death

and rises again

so that all who trust in him

might be forgiven and made right with God.

when Paul presents the gospel free of charge,

making no use of his rights,

he becomes an illustration of the gospel itself.

The good news of the grace of God

that costs us nothing,

but that costs Jesus everything.

And friends,

every time you and I are presented with an opportunity

to lay down our rights for the sake of others,

we are offered with the prospect of the same reward.

The reward of becoming,

in the very shape of our life,

a display of the gospel.

The reward of helping others to see

and to experience in a tangible,

incarnate way,

the beauty of what Jesus has done

for you and for me.

The thing that's grabbed us

and turned us around

and made our lives completely different forever.

wouldn't that be a reward?

To participate in that kind of work.

So friends, yes, rights are a good thing.

Something to cherish and to uphold.

But don't you see that only the gospel of Jesus Christ

can help us use our rights in the right way

as a means of loving others

and building them up

and displaying the love of Christ to the world?

And may we be willing to lay down our rights

to share in that great reward.

Let's pray.

Father, we confess that we need your Holy Spirit

to take these truths

and actualize them in our hearts

and in our lives.

God, we are so prone to defend

and yet so hard-pressed

to defer.

Lord, I pray that you would give us wisdom

for this task.

God, I pray that you would help us

to see times when

the giving up of our rights

would not be the right thing to do.

God, that we would be willing

to stand up for those who are oppressed

or who are wronged

or who are being trampled upon.

Pray that you would give courage

to those who are in relationships

or situations that are abusive

where their rights have been taken away.

God, I pray that you would help them

to see that their rights are a good thing

and they are worthy of defense

and worthy of standing up for.

But God, I pray that you would also help us

to see those times

and those moments

and those relationships

where we need to lay them down

and bear a cost.

Lord, knowing that whatever cost we bear

is nothing compared to what you bore for us

and knowing that for the joy set before you,

you bore the cross

and that there is joy before us

in following your pattern.

Father, we ask this not

in our own worthiness

or in our own rights

but in the rights of the name

of Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Amen.

Amen.