1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Who am I? Who are we? This question of identity is perhaps one of the most important questions a

person can ever ask, isn't it? That's the question that really drives the passage that we're looking

at together today. Our text this morning is 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verses 1 through 9.

1 Corinthians 1:1–9

That's page 952 in the Pew Bible. If you're new to the Bible, the big numbers are the chapters

and the small numbers are the verses. That'll help you find your way around. We're starting a new

sermon series today in this book of 1 Corinthians. And if you're new to Trinity, our typical practice

on Sundays is to pick a book of the Bible and simply teach straight through it, section by

section, pulling no punches, leaving no verse left unturned. One of the most basic claims of

Christianity is that Jesus continues to lead and guide his church through scripture. That God,

in fact, continues to speak through the words of the Bible. So teaching through whole books is a way to

ensure that we hear everything that God is saying for our good. And that we don't just hit the parts

that me or Matt or Greg or anyone else thinks might be helpful. You don't really want to hear what I

have to say. Trust me. If you're curious to learn more about what the Bible is and why Christians

understand it the way they do, check out the new Sunday school class that just started at 9 a.m.

before the service downstairs in the fellowship hall. Well, 1 Corinthians 1, 1 through 9.

Let's read this. Let me read this for us. And before we do, let's pray together. God, we thank you for

your word. We thank you for this time that we get to attend to your word. Oh God, we pray that you would

continue to show yourself faithful to speak to us through this word that you, Jesus, have given to your

church. By your spirit, we pray that you would give us hearts that are receptive and understanding.

Lord, to truly behold you and your glory this morning. Amen.

1 Corinthians chapter 1. Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus and our brother

1 Corinthians 1 · chapter mention

Sosthenes. To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus,

called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus

Christ, both their Lord and ours. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus,

that in every way you were enriched in him, in all speech and all knowledge, even as the testimony

about Christ was confirmed among you, so that you are not lacking in any gift. As you wait for the

revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will sustain us to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus

Christ. God is faithful by whom you were called into the fellowship of his son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

God is faithful by whom youfort your God not.

He says, I can only answer the question, what am I to do?

if I can answer the prior question

of what story or stories do I find myself apart?

I can only answer the question, what am I to do

if I can answer the prior question

of what story or stories do I find myself apart?

You remember J.R. Tolkien's great trilogy,

The Lord of the Rings?

Well, how does that story open?

It opens with the hobbits, right?

Living their simple lives in the shire,

not really worried much

about what's happening beyond their borders,

happy to keep carrying on with life as usual,

enjoying their long pipes and sharing their many meals

and gossiping about their extended families, right?

But what they don't realize

is that the shire is actually caught up,

actually enmeshed in this larger story,

this story of epic proportions,

a story the unfolding of which will determine

not just the fate of the shire,

but the fate of everyone in Middle Earth.

Tolkien's story is about one hobbit,

or actually really a group of hobbits, right?

Frodo and Sam and Mary and Pippin,

this group of friends who together,

as this epic story unfolds,

begin to realize who they really are

and what story they are a part of

and what it is they have to do.

When the Apostle Paul wrote the letter of 1 Corinthians

sometime in the early 50s,

he was writing to a church

that had lost track of who they really were

and what story they were really a part of,

and so they had lost track of what it was

they were meant to be doing in the first place.

Which is to say,

they were experiencing the same danger

that you and I face today.

There are probably few books in the New Testament

that feel as current or relevant as 1 Corinthians.

The church was dealing with all sorts of problems,

and many of these feel immensely practical

and even urgent to us today.

Questions about worship,

and questions about sex,

and marriage, and singleness,

and questions about our rights,

and how do we express them,

and do we give them up?

There are even some in the church

facing severe intellectual doubts

about some of the core tenets of the faith,

and we'll be walking through these issues

one by one in the months to come,

but maybe the primary reason

why 1 Corinthians feels like such a practical book

is because at the end of the day,

it's all about being the church

in the midst of a pragmatic,

pluralistic, achievement-dominated culture

just like ours.

You see, friends,

Corinth was the fast lane of the ancient world.

It was a port city

and an economic powerhouse.

And because of its geography,

it was a city where east and west met.

The main commercial shipping routes

connected eastern and western ends of the empire

that connected the eastern and western ends of the empire

ran straight through Corinth.

And so people of vastly different cultures,

and classes, and languages, and religions

all came there,

and they all met there,

and they all lived together.

Think of some of the world's fastest-growing cities today,

like Dubai or Shanghai.

Corinth was fast,

and it was new,

and most of all,

it was where you went to make it.

If you wanted to climb the ladder

and make a name for yourself,

where did you go?

You went to Corinth.

And that's why 1 Corinthians is such a relevant book for us,

and why we'll be spending such a big chunk of time studying it,

because it teaches us

not just what to believe about the gospel,

not just to believe the gospel,

but it teaches us how to live the gospel,

and how to live the gospel in a world

just like ours,

where style

often matters more than substance,

and where what works

often takes precedence over what's true,

how to live the gospel in a world

where the dominant plot line,

the dominant shaping narrative

of our lives

basically says that

the road to happiness is found

through achievement

and through fulfilling your desires.

And very interestingly,

what we'll find along the way

is that as each of these individual topics comes up,

we'll see that Paul's response

isn't

so much like our response often is.

Paul's response isn't,

look, here's the rule book,

just do it.

No.

Paul goes deeper than that.

He goes down to the heart.

Yes, there are principles,

and there are rules,

and they're there for our good,

but deeper than that,

this book's going to remind us

again and again and again

not to forget who we are,

and not to forget whose story

we're a part of.

That's what Paul's up to

even in these opening verses.

Of course, on the surface,

it looks like just a standard opening

to a first century letter, right?

You've got who it's from

and who it's to,

and then there's a nice little word of thanks

before you really get down to business.

But you know, actually,

when you look again,

you realize that Paul has taken

these first century conventions

and used them.

He's transformed them even

into a vehicle

for laying the groundwork

of the whole letter.

As we'll see in a minute,

almost every major theme

is actually anticipated

in these first nine verses.

It's quite stunning.

But more than that,

right from the start,

Paul's getting down

to the heart of the issue.

And as we've seen,

this issue is our issue too.

We face conflict

and questions and doubts.

We wonder what it is

we're supposed to do.

We wonder how exactly

are we supposed to live.

But first,

you have to remember

who you are.

And you have to remember

whose story you're a part of.

And so along those lines,

there are four reminders

in this passage

about the real identity

of the church of God.

Four things that are true

about the community

that God has called

into the fellowship

of his son,

as verse nine says.

So let's look through these

one at a time.

The first is that the church

is sanctified in Christ.

Look again at verse two.

To the church of God

that is in Corinth.

To those sanctified

in Christ Jesus.

Now sanctified is a word

that needs some explanation, right?

Popularly when we hear language

like sanctified and saint,

which is from the same root word,

we typically think of what?

Someone who's really moral

and really religious, right?

Saints, after all,

they're the spiritual all-stars.

They're up here.

And then there's the JV squad

of you and me,

everybody else down here.

You know, like you're not

ever going to find

a stained glass window of me

in the back of the church.

Obviously that's not

what Paul means here, right?

Just start reading

1 Corinthians

and you'll realize

that that can't be

what Paul means.

This church is messed up.

He's not saying,

oh, you are the spiritual all-stars.

You get it all right.

No, that's not what he means.

So that popular meaning

isn't exactly going to help us.

So what does it mean?

Well, in the New Testament,

sanctification language

is used in one of two ways.

Stick with me for a second.

On the one hand,

sanctification can be a process

whereby we become

more and more like Christ

after we believe.

That's sometimes called

progressive sanctification.

And that's how sanctification

is often used

in theological conversations, right?

But,

the New Testament

will also talk about

sanctification in another way.

And this way

is actually a lot more frequent

in the Bible.

It will use this word

to describe

what has happened

to all believers

once and for all

through their union

with Christ by faith.

That is,

in Christ,

they have been

utterly and completely

cleansed

of the guilt of sin.

And now,

they are set apart

for God's own purpose.

This is sometimes

what's called

positional

or definite

sanctification.

You see,

one of the ways

that the Bible

describes sin

is as a stain.

And doesn't that metaphor

immediately ring true?

When you lie to someone,

when you lash out in anger,

when you give in to lust,

you feel that,

don't you?

Like you're somehow dirty

or unclean.

And that if someone

would now look at you,

really look at you,

they might not like

what they see.

And so,

you feel shame,

that sense of worthlessness

and ugliness.

And the worst of all

is that these stains

don't seem to go away.

And so,

we hide from one another.

And we hide from God.

But friends,

here is the stunning

good news

of Christianity.

That God has made a way

for us

covered in stains

to be clean again.

You see,

when Jesus died

on the cross,

he took the punishment

for our sin.

And now,

as the guilt

is lifted

from us

through his cross,

our stain

of guilt

is removed.

Our record

is now completely clean.

Our stains

are washed away.

And God

demonstrates this,

that our record

has been made clean

by raising Jesus

from the dead.

Maybe you're here

and you're exploring

Christianity.

Maybe you came

with a friend

and you're wondering

what Christianity

is really all about.

Well,

friend,

this is it.

That God,

through Jesus,

has done something

for you

to cleanse you

of your guilt

and shame

and to bring you

holy welcome

to himself.

In other words,

Christianity

is not at root

about trying

to clean up

and do better.

It's about trusting

the one

who has cleansed us

by grace

and giving your life

wholly to him

in love

and in trust.

And then,

watching him

make you new.

But you know,

we need to remember

that Paul is writing

this letter

to people

who are already

Christians,

right?

That Christians,

too,

need to be reminded

that we need

to remember

that we've been

made clean

in Christ

and that God

has set us apart

for his own

noble purpose

in the world.

In chapters 5

through 7,

Paul will return

to this theme

of holiness,

of sanctification.

And his argument

there will be,

don't you see?

This is his argument.

Don't you see,

friends,

you've already

been cleansed

in Christ.

All your guilt,

all your shame,

it's done with.

Now,

be who you are.

Live the holy life

that Christ

has already

welcomed you into.

Let nothing

of your past

hinder you.

In the early

18th century,

the young

Jonathan Edwards

began keeping

a notebook

of theological

reflections

that he called

that he called

his miscellanies.

And he wrote

something like

1300 of them

in his life

because he was

a machine.

And the very

first one

that he wrote

was about

this topic

of holiness.

holiness is a

most beautiful

and lovely

thing.

It makes

the soul

like a delightful

field or garden

planted by God

where the sun

is Jesus Christ,

where the

blessed beams

and calm breeze

are the Holy

Spirit,

and where the

sweet and

delightful flowers

are the

Christian

grises.

Christian,

how do you

view yourself

this morning?

A failure?

A second

rate follower

of Jesus?

Someone who's

messed up

so many times

that you can't

be of any

real use

to God?

Friend,

hear the word

of God

this morning

that none

of that is

true.

You are

washed.

you are

sanctified.

You are

justified

in the name

of the Lord

Jesus Christ

and by the

Spirit of

our God.

That's what

Paul will say

in chapter 6

verse 11.

First and

foremost,

that's who

you are.

And God

has a

glorious

purpose

for you.

The next

thing that

Paul wants

to remind

us of

is that

we're

not just

sanctified

in Christ

but we're

also

united

with a

worldwide

movement.

Look again

at verse 2.

Called to be

saints

together

with all

those

who in

every place

call upon

the name

of our

Lord Jesus

Christ

both

their Lord

and ours.

Paul is

saying lift

up your

gaze

for just

a moment.

Lift up

your eyes

from your

local

concerns

and the

petty

squabbles

that you're

having with

each other

and realize

that you're

a part of

something so

much bigger

and so

much broader.

Do you see

what it does

when you

remember that

we as the

church are

part of a

global

worldwide

international

movement of

God?

Puts

things in

perspective

doesn't it?

In chapters

1-4

of 1 Corinthians

Paul is

going to

tackle this

issue of

church unity

and jealousy.

There are

divisions growing

in the church.

People are

saying I

follow this

leader and

I follow

that leader

and that

makes me

pretty much

better than

you.

And Paul is

saying it's

such a small

and petty

understanding

of what it

means to be

the church.

You are

part of a

global

family of

faith.

Bigger than

any one

leader.

Certainly

bigger than

any one

congregation.

Why are

you trying to

puff up

your own

ego and

grow your

own little

tribe when

there's a

worldwide

advance of

the gospel

happening as

we speak?

That God's

glory is

spreading to

the ends

of the

earth.

That people

are calling

on the

name of

the Lord

Jesus in

every corner

of the

globe.

Friends,

catch a

vision.

Catch a

vision for

extending his

kingdom globally

instead of

spreading your

own petty

little fiefdom

in Corinth or

in New Haven

or wherever you

may be.

Lift up your

eyes and lose

yourself in a

mission that is

as big as the

world.

Remember that you

belong to a

global movement.

Let's keep

going and look at

the third

thing.

Paul wants us

to remember

about who we

are.

He wants us to

remember that

we are a

people who are

not just

sanctified, not

just worldwide,

but are

enriched by

grace.

Pick up at

verse 3.

Grace to you

and peace from

God our Father

and the Lord

Jesus Christ.

I give thanks

to my God

always for you

because of the

grace of God

that was given

you in Christ

Jesus.

that in every

way you were

enriched in him

in all speech

and all knowledge

even as the

testimony about

Christ was

confirmed among

you so that

you're not

lacking in any

gift as you

wait for the

revealing of our

Lord Jesus

Christ.

Now perhaps the

first observation

to make here is

that for all the

problems in

Corinth, Paul

could still be

genuinely thankful

to God for

them.

Isn't that

amazing?

Of course there

may be a hint

of irony here.

We'll learn

later in

chapters 12

through 14

that the

Corinthians

use or their

misuse of their

so-called spiritual

gifts was actually

causing some

problems.

I'm so thankful

that you're so

enriched Corinthians.

But even if there

is a hint of

irony I still

think Paul is

giving genuine

thanks.

Which is a

lesson for us

isn't it?

Even if things

aren't exactly

how you wish

they were

in your

marriage

or in your

friendships

or in your

small group

or in your

church family

for all that

isn't there

still ample

room for

thanksgiving?

Are you

thankful friends

for what is

rather than

being simply

critical of

what is not?

And Paul

here thanks

God for

what?

For the

grace they've

been shown.

And that

grace enriches

them in every

way he says.

And of course

grace by

definition is

something you

don't deserve.

It's a sheer

unmerited gift

and we too

need to remember

that today.

That it's

grace

not our own

doing that

brings us to

God.

And that

means that

our life

together as

a church

grace

enriched

grace

enriched

should not

make much

of ourselves

but should

make much

of Christ

the giver

of the

grace.

That's what

Paul's getting

at in verse

six isn't

he?

They've been

given these

gifts of

speech and

knowledge not

to demonstrate

how great and

spiritual they

themselves are

but in order

to confirm

the testimony

the message

about Christ

and to

display how

great he

is.

Remembering

this grace

will cause us

to exalt

Christ all

the more

and especially

when remember

that it's not

a miserly grace

that God

extends.

He's not

sort of

doling it

out quarter

by quarter.

Now he

enriches us.

He lavishes

us.

There's no

lack of

grace.

It's an

abundant grace

that he

pours out.

A grace

that saves

us and

then equips

us to do

his work

and to

make much

of Jesus.

And when

we remember

that we're

recipients of

grace it

also does

this.

It produces

in us a

love for

one another.

After all

doesn't grace

mean nothing

more than

that we've

been loved

with an

undeserved

love?

And when

that hits

home,

when it hits

home that you

have been

loved with

an undeserved

love, you

will in

turn love

others.

Especially when

you realize that

those others are

loved by Christ

himself.

Loved ones for

whom he died so

that he might

extend them

grace.

You know, in

fact, it's a

bit odd, isn't

it?

It's a bit odd

when you sort of

compare this to

Paul's other

letters that love

isn't mentioned

here, isn't

it?

Most other

churches that

Paul writes

to, he gives

thanks for the

love that they

show.

But in

Corinth, there's

a strange

silence.

In this

thanksgiving, love

is absent.

When you read

ahead, it begins

to make sense.

Eventually, you

come to 1

Corinthians 13,

the famous love

chapter that we've

all heard read at

weddings, right?

Actually, a

friend of mine

told me a funny

story once.

This isn't in my

notes, I'm going

to share it

anyway.

A friend of

mine from

Australia where

they don't

really know the

Bible that

well was at a

wedding and the

person was

supposed to read

1 Corinthians 13,

but the reader

wasn't really

familiar with the

Bible, so they

ended up reading

1 Chronicles 13.

That was pretty

awesome.

But you know,

when you read

1 Corinthians 13

in context, in

the context of

chapters 12 and

chapters 14, what

do you realize?

You realize that

1 Corinthians 13

isn't sort of

commending the

Corinthians for

their great display

of love.

It's this scathing

critique for their

lovelessness.

the most

essential thing, he

says, you're

totally missing.

And that's the

problem.

And you know, if

we tie that later

critique back to

this strange absence

in these opening

verses, we can

guess that their

lovelessness was

due to the fact

that the

Corinthians had

forgotten about

grace.

Paul is reminding

them and us that

the spiritual gifts

they had and

everything else that

they've received

were just that,

gifts.

Gifts to be used

in the service of

love.

And briefly, before

we move to our

final point, do you

see why this is why

we can't celebrate

grace enough as a

church?

Because if we

really internalize

this biblical grace,

that is the costly

fulfilling the law

in my place,

unmerited grace of

Jesus Christ, if we

get that, we will

be a loving church.

Preaching and

believing real gospel

grace won't make us

lazy, it won't make

us indifferent to

good works, just the

opposite.

It'll make us people

who actually love.

And love will motivate

all kinds of good

works.

grace.

Remember who you are,

friends.

Sanctified,

worldwide,

grace lavished.

And the last point

that Paul drives home

is an extension of

that grace and love.

We need to remember

last of all that we're

a people headed towards

a future full of hope.

Let's pick up in verse

seven.

So that you're not

lacking in any gift as

you wait for the

revealing of our Lord

Jesus Christ who will

sustain you to the end,

guiltless in the day of

our Lord Jesus Christ.

God is faithful by whom

you were called into the

fellowship of his son,

Jesus Christ our Lord.

As the church, we look

forward to the future,

not with fear, not with

worry, not with anxiety,

but with confidence.

Why?

Because we know that the

God who created all

things will one day

triumph in righteousness

over sin and death and

brokenness and that

Christ will return in

glory and be the perfect

judge and he will put all

things right.

And the church looks

forward to that day with

confidence because as

Paul says here, he will

sustain us to the end.

And because of Christ's

death and resurrection for

us, there will be no

charge on that day to be

laid against us.

Those who have put their

trust in Christ, those who

are found in him.

Because any charge, any

condemnation has already

been removed by the cross

once and for all.

And the verdict on that

day, when our lives are

laid open before him, the

verdict for those who are

in Christ, Paul says here,

will be guiltless, innocent,

accepted, approved.

Of course, the idea of a

final judgment may seem

more than a bit strange to

you.

But think about it,

friends, could there be any

greater affirmation of the

value and meaningfulness of

this life?

You and I live as if the

things we do matter, as if

they make a difference, as

if they're not just absurd

blips on the ways of cosmic

nothingness.

We go to work, we build

relationships, we dream and

plan, we laugh and we

grieve.

To believe in a God who

judges perfectly in the end

is to believe that every

single moment of your life is

charged with significance and

that no second of your life is

a waste, that it all, all of

it matters to God in the end.

And besides, if what the Bible

says about God's creative work

is true, that he made us and

loves us and orders all things

for his glory, is it so hard to

believe that he will put things

right in the end?

That he will value and dignify his

creation by affording it his

perfect regard and perfect

justice?

You know, there's one way to

show someone that you don't like

them.

It's not to correct them.

It's not to judge them.

It's not to consider them.

It's to ignore them.

Friends, God loves the world too

much to ignore it in the end.

So friend, how will you stand

before God on that day?

When your life is laid open

before him?

When he affords you the dignity

of you in your whole life?

How will you stand before him?

Are you going to stand in your own

shaky righteousness?

Are you going to stand in your own

record?

Are you going to say I tried?

Are you going to stand in Christ?

The one who has become for us,

Paul will say, righteousness and

sanctification and redemption.

The one who becomes for us a

perfect record and a perfect

righteousness.

And friends, if you're standing in

that day is Christ, then you look

forward to the future with hope.

In chapter 15, Paul will return to

this theme of hope as he draws his

whole letter together.

And he there will show us how the

Christian understanding of the future

is more glorious than anything

anyone has conceived ever before.

God's faithfulness and our fellowship

with his son, as he says in verse 9,

all that will mean that even in God's

redemptive consummating work, that even

our material bodies will be rescued from

death and liberated from decay on the day

when Christ returns in glory.

And if you think that that element of our

identity in Christ doesn't affect how we

live now, friends, keep coming back because

the hope of the resurrection changes

everything.

So this is who we are.

The sanctified, worldwide, grace-enriched,

hope-filled church of God.

But as much as who we are,

perhaps it's most important to see

whose we are.

And it's obvious, isn't it?

Ten times in nine verses, who is the

center of this passage?

To whom does the church belong?

To the Lord Jesus Christ.

It's really his story that matters the most.

The true story of God the Son,

the second person of the Trinity,

taking on flesh for us and for our

salvation to fulfill all the promises

God made to Israel, to be crucified for

sinners, to be risen in power, to ascend

to the Father's right hand, to pour out

his spirit, to call the world to himself

in grace, and to come again in glory to

make all things new.

His is the story of which we find

ourselves apart.

What does it mean to live the gospel?

What does it mean to have our lives

replotted, reshaped around his?

That's what 1 Corinthians is all about.

Yes, it's about unity.

Yes, it's about holiness.

Yes, it's about love.

Yes, it's about hope.

But ultimately, it's about him.

Living in fellowship together with Jesus Christ,

our Lord.

Put yourself in that story.

Put yourself in the story of grace,

the story of the world headed towards justice,

the story of God's Son, Jesus Christ.

Put yourself in that story,

and you will never be the same.

And our church will never be the same.

Let's pray.

God, thank you for your word and its clarity.

And God, how you remind us

of all that we have in Christ.

Lord, I pray that as we meditate

on these first nine verses in the coming week,

that the picture of who you've made us in him

will stretch us and cause us to be in awe

and give us great confidence and hope

in the world in which we live.

God, seal these things in our hearts, we pray.

Amen.

Well, friends, it's right to respond

to God's word with praise.

So let's stand, and we're gonna sing a hymn,

Christ is made the sure foundation.

Isn't that what we've been saying this morning

that Christ is at the center of it all?

So let's use these words as a vehicle

for praising God together.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.