First Corinthians | Faithful Stewardship in the Gospel

Well, good morning. It's good to see everybody.

If you have your Bible, you can turn to 1st Corinthians chapter

16. We'll be in First Corinthians

16. What that means is we're in the

final chapter of First Corinthians.

I think this is sermon #38 in the book of First Corinthians.

So now there's been breaks. So hopefully it hasn't felt that

lengthy, but that's where we're at.

We've got this week and then two more weeks in First Corinthians.

And then as of now, the plan will be to jump into the Gospel

of Matthew, jump into the Gospel of Matthew.

So I'm looking forward to that. But First Corinthians 16, today

we're as we come to the close of First Corinthians, Paul begins

to draw together all that he's been teaching this church.

Now this church is a church that, like ours, needed constant

reminders of grace and guidance for godly living.

In chapter 15, we stood on what is the summit of Christian hope,

and that is the resurrection of Christ and the promise of our

own resurrection. We we saw there that Jesus lives

or that because Jesus lives, death has lost its sting, sin

has lost its dominion, and our labor in the Lord is never in

vain. It's always meaningful.

It's always got purpose. And so now as Paul begins to

begins chapter 16, he brings this glorious theology of the

resurrection right down into the ordinary details of life.

All right, so he shifts from resurrection hope, if you will,

to resurrection living. OK, there's going to be a lot of

application in the next few sermons from what we believe to

how we behave, from what Christ has done to how we must respond

to what Christ has done for us. So here at the end of the

letter, Paul speaks about very practical things.

You'll see in today's message. There's a financial offering.

You'll see some travel plans, some ministry partnerships and

opportunities for gospel work. But these aren't random closing

remarks. It's not like Paul's coming to

the end of this letter. He thinks, man, I've been

writing, you know, all of these words and now I must hurry up

and get on to whatever Paul needed to get on to.

And so he just closes quickly. And then, hey, snow, these words

are pinned by the power of the spirits through Paul.

And so we know that they're meaningful, right, That they

matter. And often times as we come to

the close of the various epistles, we will just quickly

read over them and we'll miss so much of what God means for us to

understand. So here he he, he's doing that.

What these words show us is what a gospel shaped life actually

looks like. All right.

How believers in churches must live faithfully in light of the

resurrection. Now, these verses remind us of

the Christian life is not detached from our spiritual

lives. These aren't detached spiritual

ideas that he lays out. It's a whole way of living under

the lordship of Jesus Christ. So even in how we handle our

money, how we handle our time, and how we handle our

opportunities, we're called to reflect the gospel.

That has saved us. So as we read the passage, I

want you to listen for how Paul connects grace and daily life.

All right? Listen for how He connects grace

and daily life, how He connects hope and stewardship, and how He

connects belief and obedience, because what He lays out for us

really is a picture of what it means to live faithfully until

the Lord returns. So if you're able, would you

please stand to your feet as we read 1st Corinthians 16?

Going to read verses one through 9.

Now concerning the collection for the Saints, as I directed

the churches of Galatia, so you also are to do on the first day

of every week. Each of you is to put something

aside and store it up as he may prosper, so that there will be

no collecting when I come. And when I arrive I will send

those whom you a credit by letter to carry your gift to

Jerusalem. If it seems advisable that I

should go also, they will accompany me.

I will visit you after passing through Macedonia, for I intend

to pass through Macedonia, and perhaps I will stay with you or

even spend the winter so that you may help me on my journey

wherever I go, for I do not want to, I do not want to see you

now, just in passing. I hope to spend some time with

you if the Lord permits, but I will stay in Ephesus until

Pentecost, for a wide door for effective work has opened to me,

and there are many adversaries. This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God. Let's pray.

Heavenly Father, we come before you now.

As we open First Corinthians 16, we ask.

Father, that you would guide us by your spirits, we ask, Father,

that you would open our hearts to receive your word, that you

would open our minds to understand it.

Lord, that our eyes and ears may be open to see and hear.

Lord, we understand that we are powerless to the task of

transforming our own hearts. We understand that we're

powerless to the task of sanctification as believers.

That it's, it's not only you who draws us to yourself in belief,

but it's you who works in US, your salvation.

Lord, that you perfect those things in us.

And so we, as we hear these words preached this morning, as

those who believed, how would you draw us deeper into

maturity? Would you strengthen our walk

with you? Would you help us to live godly

lives that are examples of the things that we believe?

And Father, if there's anyone in here who doesn't know you, Lord,

I pray that through the preaching of your word that they

would see Christ today and that they would see him not only just

in in a picture, but they would see in such a way that they

would believe in their hearts that he is Lord and that you

raised him from the dead, that their souls would be saved.

Lord, again, we thank you for your word and we humbly submit

to it now. It's in Christ name, I pray.

Amen. Amen.

You may be seated. So Paul ends this letter really

in the same. Way that he began, which is with

the gospel at the center and the church in view, and it's the

Gospels at the center of the churches in view throughout

First Corinthians. He's been correcting, he's been

instructing, he's been reorienting a confused

congregation toward the grace of Christ.

He has dealt with divisions. There were divisions among them.

He's dealt with immorality. He's dealt with lawsuits, he's

dealt with abuses of worship, he's dealt with confusion about

spiritual gifts. He's even dealt with a shallow

view of the resurrection. And there's been other things

even in those that he's dealt with.

So through it all, though, what Paul has done is he keeps

bringing them back to the same foundation, the gospel of Jesus

Christ that saves sinners, it unites the church, and it

transforms daily life. He's he's bringing them back to

that over and over. Chapter 15 again lifted us to

this monumental peak, if you will, which is the resurrection

of Christ in the hope of our own resurrection one day.

Paul reminded us in First Corinthians 15 that because

Christ is risen, death has been defeated, sin has been

conquered, and our labor in the Lord is never in vain.

All right, that's the high point of the letter and that's, that's

the theological summit, if you will, of all that Paul's been

writing. Every, everything that he's been

arguing for in First Corinthians finds its resolution in that

high point. Everything that he's been

correcting and teaching and, and all the things that we've seen

in this letter, they find their purpose in that high point of

the resurrection of Christ and one day our own resurrection.

But when Paul begins chapter 16, he's not drifting again into

theological abstraction. He's not drifting into

sentimental goodbyes. Instead, he shows what

resurrection hope looks like when it comes down to earth in

the ordinary details of giving and planning and serving.

Chapter 15 gives us the engine of the Christian life.

Then chapter 16 gives us the dashboard of the Christian life

where we see that resurrection, that resurrection power driving

ordinary obedience. You might expect Paul to end

with lofty doxology, as he does at times, but instead he talks

about an offering. He talks about travel plans.

He talks about ministry partnerships.

He talks about opportunities for gospel work.

And I want you to know that that's instructive for us this

morning because Christianity is never, ever, ever meant to

remain theoretical. It's meant to be practical.

It's meant to be lived out. The gospel that saves us also

steers us. Amen.

So true theology, always true theology, understood, always

leads to faithful practice, always leads to it.

So in these opening verses of chapter 16, Paul paints this

picture of what it looks like for a church to live out the

resurrection. Not just to understand it, not

just to believe it, but now how should it inform the way we

live? And the first thing he comes to

is this idea of faithful stewardship.

He shows that faithful stewardship, whether it's in our

giving, in our planning, or in our perseverance, is a mark of

mature discipleship. It's how a gospel shaped people

live together for the mission of Christ.

So if you're taking notes and in your bulletins, these are

actually fill in the blank now, you're welcome.

All right. Faithful stewardship means

managing our resources, plans, and opportunities for the

advance of the gospel. Faithful stewardship means

managing our resources, plans, and opportunities for the

advance of the gospel. Now, Paul's going to show us

what this looks like in three ways.

First, we'll see that faithful stewardship is generous in

supporting good gospel work. Secondly, we'll see faithful

stewardship is intentional and planning gospel work.

And thirdly, we'll see that faithful stewardship is

courageous and pursuing gospel work.

Now, if you weren't able to write those down, then we're

about to get into them, and they'll just remain on the

screen for plenty long enough time for you to write those

down. OK, so these verses remind us

that gospel maturity is not measured by knowledge alone.

All right? If you've ever met someone who

believes that the knowledge they have about God equals their

maturity, just the knowledge, you likely have met someone

who's a real turd in all of life.

All right, I've been that guy. It happens to all of us.

We have good intentions, but you Start learning these things

about the Lord and you automatically think I've

arrived. And you realize very quickly,

no, you have not, right? We have to learn how to take

what we know about God and live it out, right?

It's the difference between knowledge and wisdom.

Wisdom is putting into effect the knowledge that we have.

But often times we have knowledge without wisdom, right?

So these verses remind us that it's not.

Maturity is not measured by knowledge alone.

Maturity is measured also with faithfulness.

It's the wisdom to carry out a faithful life.

So it's measured by how we handle what God has entrusted

to. US.

Right, the resurrection doesn't make us careless or passive,

which it shouldn't. The resurrection ought to make

us steadfast. It ought to make us purposeful,

and it ought to make us generous that the grace that saves also

sins. God sends us to give and to plan

and to labor for the Kingdom of our risen Lord.

And so point #1 faithful stewardship is generous in

supporting gospel work. Bless you brother.

Faithful stewardship is generous in supporting gospel work.

Look at verses one through 4 again.

Now concerning the collection for the Saints, as I directed

the churches of Galatia, so you also are to do on the first day

of every week. Each of you is to put something

aside and store it up as he may prosper, so that there will be

no collecting when I come. And when I arrive, I will send

those whom you accredit by letter to carry your gift to

Jerusalem. If it seems advisable that I

should go also, they will accompany me.

So Paul begins his closing chapter by addressing something

very practical yet deeply spiritual, which is a collection

for the Saints. He writes in verse one.

Now concerning the collection for the Saints, as I directed

the churches of Galatia, so you also are to do now.

This wasn't just a one time project, it was part of the

ongoing ministry of compassion that stretched across the early

church. The early Church understood the

Great Commission, and they understood the Great Commission

right as to go and make disciples of all nations,

baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the

Holy Spirit, teaching them to do all that God commands or all

that Christ commands, right. The early Church so understood

this that they would give to good Great Commission work,

right? In other words, I would give to

missions, I would give to the support of other churches, the

support of other missionaries, the support of men and women who

are going around the world, just like David and Adriana Petro,

who we prayed for this morning, right?

The believers in Jerusalem were suffering under persecution and

famine, and the Gentile churches, like those in Corinth

and Galatia, which he mentions, were given the privilege of

participating in their relief. But this act of giving was more

than charity, right? It was a, it was theology made

visible. If you think about the churches

of Galatia and Corinth and the church in Jerusalem and you

know, kind of the history of those two things, there ought to

be something that there ought to be a glaring note that you make

there, and that is that Gentile believers are sending financial

help to Jewish believers, right? So this is theology made

visible. In doing so, what they're doing,

what they're doing is declaring that the gospel had torn down

that dividing wall of hostility that once existed between Jews

and Gentiles. So as Paul would write

elsewhere, Romans 15 says, for just as we have shared in their

spiritual blessings, they now share in our material blessings.

The offering that was being offered or given was a living

picture of 1 body in Christ, one people redeemed by 1 Savior.

Amen. And so Paul continues in verse

2. He says on the first day of

every week, each of you is to put something aside and to store

it up as he may prosper so that there will be no collection

collecting when I come. Now here we see that a

generosity and gospel stewardship is not impulsive.

It's not just when the missionary comes to town and

speaks that you're like, oh, shoot, let me grab that $20 out

of my wallet and throw that in the plate.

All right? It's not just impulsive.

It's not merely emotional when you hear about difficult stories

and you're moved by your emotions to give.

And it's certainly not irregular, not from what he's

describing. What we see is that it's

ordered, it's intentional, and it's woven into the life of

worship. On the first day of the of every

week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up.

It's ordered, intentional, and woven into the life of worship.

But Paul's words there on the first day of every week likely

refer to the Lord's Day when they would gather for worship,

the day when believers gathered to celebrate the resurrection.

So in other words, giving was not a separate activity from

worship. It was an act of worship, right?

It's a day set aside, or in this day that was set aside for

worship, part of one of the acts of worship was to give.

And we should note the university, the universality of

Paul's command. Each of you, after visiting

today and you think, here we go, another preacher preaching on

money. I want you to know that I have

labored for 37 weeks in the book of First Corinthians and come to

this passage. We did not begin here, but what

we've tried to do throughout that laboring is to deal with

every phrase, to deal with every word of it, and to see what

God's Word tells us. And here it tells us, each of

you, brother and sister, please hear me.

No believer is exempt from the joy and responsibility of

giving, right? Stewardship is not for a select

few who have greater means than everyone else.

It's the daily expression of gratitude from every heart

that's been touched by the grace of God.

Paul then says each is to put something aside and store it up

as he may prosper. So this informs the giving.

The phrase stored up literally means to treasure up, right?

It's to store a treasure in heaven, so to speak.

The image here is of a believer setting something aside,

regularly treasuring it up week by week so that when the need

arises, the gift is ready, right?

So giving then is not reactionary.

It's planned, it's prayerful, and it's steady.

So Paul adds the phrase as he may prosper because the question

always comes, how much am I supposed to give as he may

prosper, meaning according to how God has blessed him.

All right. Giving in the Christian life is

proportionate. God does not call for equal

gifts, but for equal sacrifice. So the question is not what can

I afford to give? But rather, how has God

prospered me and how can I reflect his generosity through

mine? All right, Charles Spurgeon once

said this. He said, this is not how much we

give, but how much love we put into the giving.

All right, It's giving with a cheerful heart.

And that captures the heart of the passage.

The goal of Christian giving is not to meet a budget.

The budgets are useful for stewardship.

The goal of Christian giving is to mirror God's character, to

show that grace has so gripped the heart that it's loosened our

hands. All right.

Paul also adds in verse 2 that giving should happen so that

there will be no collecting when I come.

Now Paul's not trying to avoid the awkwardness of taking an

offering. Now he's teaching that true

generosity should be ready, Generosity, right, which comes

through good stewardship. But the gifts are to be gathered

long before Paul arrives, so that when he comes, their giving

will already be complete, a completed act of worship, not a

pressured moment of performance. And then verses 3 through 4 add

this layer of integrity and accountability that's important

for us as we think about stewarding the resources that

God grants to a church. He says, And when I arrive, I

will send those whom you accredit by letter to carry your

gift to Jerusalem. If it seems advisable that I

should go also, they will accompany me.

So Paul knows that financial stewardship must be handled with

transparency, right? Those whom you accredit, that

means those whom have been tested, those whom you trust,

they will be the representatives from among the church.

It'll be men of proven character who could safely deliver the

offering. All right, you got to remember

it wasn't as simple as mailing a check or making a gift online as

you're taking the money bags and giving them to these men and

asking them to traverse rough country to deliver it.

It'll be easy for such men to just take the money bags and

head in their own direction, but these men were to go with

written commendations, official letters verifying their role

right as a weighty task. So, in short, what we see is

that Paul wants the church to give generously but also wisely,

to let wisdom instruct our giving.

Paul's guarding both the integrity of the gift and he's

guarding the reputation of the gospel in doing this.

Matthew Henry observed this. He said good men should not only

be careful to do good, but to do it well.

Amen. That's what Paul models here,

generosity with accountability, faith with prudence, grace with

order. And Paul's comment here, if it

seems advisable, that I should go also.

Well, this shows his humility, right?

He's an apostle called by God to preach the gospel across the

known world. And he's saying, if it's

advisable for me to go with them, I'll do that, right?

He doesn't assume authority over the offering.

He's willing to accompany, accompany the offering if the

church deems it wise. And so the focus here is on

shared responsibility, the church giving, the messengers

carrying, and the Apostle Paul serving, right?

This entire section paints a picture of gospel shaped living

for us, regular, thoughtful, accountable and joyful, right?

The church is not a business that raises funds.

It's a family that shares burdens.

Brothers and sisters. Paul's pattern is still

instructs us. 1st we see that giving is an act of worship.

Right, it's not an. Afterthought, it should be as

much as part of as much a part of our Sunday rhythm as singing

and prayer. We also see here that giving is

personal. Each believer, no matter how

small their means, has the privilege, the privilege of

partnering in gospel. Work.

Thirdly, we see that giving is proportionate, all right?

We give according to how God has prospered us.

We don't give out of guilt. We give out of gratitude,

grateful to the Lord for his provision.

We also see, finally, that giving requires integrity.

We handle the Lord's resources in a way that builds trust, and

it protects the witness of the church.

That's super important. So faithful stewardship begins

right here. It begins an open handed

generosity that flows from gospel grace.

We've been saved by grace. And so we graciously, generously

give, just as the Father gave his Son and the Son gave his

life. That they might.

Save our souls. We now give ourselves and our

resources for the glory of Christ and the good of His

people. Amen.

Secondly, faithful stewardship is intentional in planning

gospel work. Faithful stewardship is

intentional in planning gospel work.

Look at verses 5 through 7 again.

I will visit you after passing through Macedonia, for I intend

to pass through Macedonia, and perhaps I will stay with you or

even spend the winter so that you may help me on my journey

wherever I go. Brother, not want to see you now

just in passing. I've written a very difficult

letter to you all. I do not want to come just in

passing. I want to come and spend some

time right. I hope to spend some time with

you if the Lord permits. So after teaching the the

Corinthians how to give, Paul now models for them how to plan,

right. His stewardship isn't limited to

money. So often we think of stewardship

purely as a monetary instruction, but it's not.

It extends to time. We ought to steward our time

well. It extends to relationships.

We ought to, we ought to steward our relationships well.

And here what we see is that it extends to our mission.

We ought to engage in the Lord's work well.

We ought to think about it as stewardship.

Verse verses 5 through 7 reveal a man whose life is guided by

the gospel. It's not a life of impulse or

personal ambition. Paul writes in verse five.

I will visit you after passing through Macedonia, for I intend

to pass through Macedonia. The words I intend, I intend.

These do not reflect casual thinking, brothers and sisters.

These reveal A deliberate, prayerful resolve.

Paul is making travel plans that he believes will strategically

further the gospel and strengthen the churches.

What we might say about Paul is that his calendar was a tool for

the Great Commission. All right, How many of us can

say of our calendars that they were tools for the Great

Commission? I don't mean that you're all

called to missions. Please don't mishear me.

A few of you might be called to missions if we're so fortunate.

What I mean is that every moment of our lives can be given to the

mission that God has given us, whatever that may be.

And we should steward our lives like we think they matter, like

we think time is important. We should steward our lives

remembering that life is a vapor.

You have a few moments, a few breaths, and then life is

finished and compared to eternity, right?

And so how are we going to spend our lives?

How are you going to spend your life?

How are you going to steward your role as a husband?

How will you steward your role as a father?

How will you steward your role as a child that's even shorter

than what your whole life might be?

All right? How will we steward our roles as

workers and church men and church women and friends?

I'm not saying you can't coach your kids baseball team.

Use those things as a way to glorify the Lord, all right?

There's all sorts of ways you can steward your time in a way

that would show that your calendar is a tool for the Great

Commission. What I want you to see about

Paul is that he's not aimless. I don't think any Christian has

the right to stand before God one day and say Lord, I was

aimless just as you asked me to. Be no.

That's never, never required aimlessness.

Of us. It requires intentionality,

purpose, right? He doesn't wander.

Paul's not wandering from place to place.

He's not waiting for divine sparks to fall out of the sky.

He's committing himself to the plans that the Lord has.

And so he plans purposefully. But I want you to notice He

plans as we should all plan. He plans as a servant.

He doesn't plan as a sovereign, right?

He his plans are shaped by Kingdom priorities.

His plans are shaped by pastoral care.

His plans are not shaped by comfort or convenience.

If you know anything about Paul's life, you know that it

was not comfortable. It was not convenience, right?

His phrase there, I will visit you after passing through

Macedonia. Well, this also shows that Paul

is considering the needs of multiple churches.

It's not just the church at Corinth that he feels

responsible for, that he wants to strengthen.

Paul's not thinking in isolation here.

And that's what gospel stewardship means for us.

It means that we move beyond thinking about only ourselves,

and we use our time and our opportunities to build up

others, not just our own ministry or our own life.

And then in verse 6, he says, and perhaps I will stay with you

or even spend the winter so that you may help me on my journey

wherever I go. There's some humility in that.

There's some realism in that. Perhaps Paul recognizes that his

best laid plans are still subject to the Providence of

God. He leaves room for flexibility,

not because he's indecisive, but because he's submissive.

He doesn't say I will set will stay.

Rather he says perhaps I will stay because Paul's ministry is

not self-directed. There's a phrase that has been

used in my life over and over again by the great Dustin

Meadows. He says Semper Gumby all the

time. Is anybody familiar with the old

cartoon character Gumby? Oh my gosh, this example doesn't

even work in this generation of people.

Never mind he was super flexible.

I will have to start saying Semper Mr. Fantastic or

something. Anyway, Semper going to be

always flexible, which means that you make plans, but you're

flexible to the Lord's Providence.

You understand that your plans are directed by His Providence.

We see that again in verse 7 where he says, for I do not want

to see you now just in passing. I hope to spend some time with

you if the Lord permits. That phrase, if the Lord

permits, captures the heart of Christian planning.

Paul acknowledges that God's sovereignty governs even his

travel itinerary, right? He knows that his ministry

belongs to God, it doesn't belong to himself.

And so we too can understand that our lives belong to God

that do not belong to ourselves. His words echo James 415 or

James writes there. If the Lord wills, we will live

and do this or that, if the Lord wills.

John Calvin observed this. He said that Paul's observed

that Paul's phrase teaches believers this, to make plans

subject to the will of God, that He may guide us where he

pleases. So planning is not pride when

it's surrendered to Providence. All.

Right Planning becomes prideful when our plans don't go the way

we want and we throw a fit about it, or we think that our plans

are going to build something for ourselves.

That's when plans are prideful. But planning is not prideful

when it's surrendered to God's Providence.

You understand that to plan without the Lord is presumption

on your part, but to plan under the.

Lord is faith. Proverbs 16 verses 1/3 and 9

Proverbs 16:1

offer these. Helps for us.

The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the

tongue is from the Lord. Verse 3.

Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be

established. And then in verse 9, the heart

of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.

So Paul's desire to spend some time with the Corinthians also

shows this relational priority of his ministry.

He's not interested in a drive by visit or a transactional

relationship. Hey, I'm going to stop in, pick

up the money, and then we'll head out.

He longs for time with him. Why he he wants to have a

presence with them. He longs for the kind of

fellowship that produces maturity.

Ministry for Paul was never merely about task or travel.

It was about people, right? Ministry is always about people.

When Paul says that you may help me on my journey, he's using a

term that means that you might send forward or assist in

mission. The Corinthians would

participate in his next steps. I could support him with prayer.

I might support him with provisions, but they would

certainly support him with encouragement.

In other words, gospel planning is communal.

It has to be. The church works together to

advance gospel work through partnership.

For the for gospel work to go forward, it requires the work of

local churches. You understand that Bill Gates

is not ever going to write a check for DTN, right?

Or for New Life Community Church, or for any other

Christian ministry. Why?

Because Bill Gates. Is not a Christian.

They don't support his causes, right?

They don't advance his name. I'm just throwing out a a name

of some wealthy man. OK, That wouldn't be so personal

to you that you would be angry at me.

God has always progressed his work, progressed gospel

ministry, advance the gospel into the world through local

churches. Through their prayers, through

their provision, through their encouragement, always.

This is what we're committed to at New Life.

Faithful stewardship requires intentionality.

Remember that God is a God of order, not confusion, right?

We saw that in First Corinthians 1433.

And so when His people plan wisely, and they plan with

order, they reflect God's own orderly, wise nature, right?

But godly planning is always tethered to humility.

We don't cling to our. Plans as if they're the ultimate

'cause we hold them loosely and we say along with Paul, if the

Lord permits, right if the Lord. Allows we also see the gospel

stewardship involves relational investment.

Here, Paul's desire to spend time with the Corinthians

reflects the incarnational pattern of ministry.

Right. Just as Christ came near to us,

so gospel servants draw near to one another.

So this passage invites us to examine how we use our time.

It invites us to examine how we structure our lives each day.

Faithful stewardship isn't just about tithing our income.

It's about tithing our calendars all right.

Do we plan for gospel usefulness?

Do we carve out intentional space for people, discipleship

and prayer? Do we submit those plans to God

when our agenda changes? Do we trust his Providence, or

do we resent his interruptions? Do we include others in our

planning? The gospel advances when the

church works together, when individuals see their schedules,

their resources, and their skills as part of something

bigger than themselves. So Paul's example challenges

both our laziness and our self-reliance.

He shows us that the Spirit filled life is neither haphazard

nor is it controlling. We might say that it's

disciplined dependence. It's purposeful yet flexible.

It's strategic yet surrendered. Bless you.

Wow, that rivals mine at home. Boo.

I promise. If the first mark of faithful

stewardship is generosity, and the second is intentionality,

then the third has to be courage.

Courage because no matter how well we plan, obedience always,

always involves opposition #3 faithful stewardship is

courageous in pursuing gospel work.

Look at verses 8 through 9 again.

But I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost, for a wide door for

effective work has opened to me. And there are many adversaries.

So Paul closes this little section that we're looking at

with a remarkable statement that revolve that it reveals both his

resolve and his realism. I will stay in Ephesus until

Pentecost, for a wide door for effective work has opened to me.

And there are many adversaries. So here Paul is writing from

Ephesus, and in Ephesus he's experiencing one of the most

fruitful and one of the most difficult seasons of his

ministry. Acts 19 tells us that the gospel

spread powerfully in Ephesus, that many people in the area

turn from their idols to serve the king.

They turn from their idols, those dead gods, to serve the

one true living God. Yet that same work provoked

fierce opposition. The opposition was economic, it

was cultural, and certainly it was spiritual.

But if you notice the balance or you should notice, you should

notice the balance in Paul's words, a wide door and many

adversaries. A wide door and many

adversaries. Now we would expect him to say

something like he might use the word, but there a wide door is

opened, but there are many adversaries.

Yet Paul doesn't see these as contradictions, does he?

He says and and many adversaries so opportunity and opposition

coexist in the will of God, and you need to settle your.

Heart on that. And we have to settle our.

Hearts on this? That opportunity and opposition

coexist in the will of God. The same open door that invites

ministry also invites conflict. The word Paul uses for doors,

The same word used elsewhere for God's providential openings.

You can see it in Acts 1427 or Second Corinthians 212.

This wide door is an opportunity that only God could create.

Hearts are opening, the gospels advancing.

Disciples are being made. Only God does that right.

He does it through the proclamation of His Word.

But God does that right, Paul says earlier in this book, first

Corinthians, you know, Apollo's water, Apollo's plants eye

water. God gives the increase.

So but we see that there's a he says a wide door for effective

work. And this word effective reminds

us that this is no passive opportunity.

It's it's a door of active work where God's power is at work.

You might say it's act a door of active energy, and that's used

to describe God's power at work. And then Paul adds, and there

are many adversaries. The phrase means there are many

who stand in opposition. What are they opposed to?

They're opposed to the work, the effective work of God.

They're standing as ones who oppose God's work.

And so we might rightfully conclude that they oppose God

himself. Paul doesn't minimize the

hostility. He acknowledges it.

Very plain, plainly. But in acknowledging it, he's

refusing to let it dictate his obedience.

Charles Spurgeon is hopeful here again.

He once said this. He said if there are no

adversaries, then you may fear that there is no good being

done. In other words.

Opposition is often a sign that the gospel is in fact advancing.

Paul's courage flows directly from his theology.

He's not persevering because ministry is easy.

Brothers and sisters, you've heard it said a lot.

We need to believe it that the life of a Christian is not an

easy life. We didn't sign up for a life of

ease. All right, we were called.

By God. And we found God worthy, worthy

of a life of pain and struggle and hardship because of the

blessings that will come. Amen.

He perseveres because the resurrection is true.

Chapter 15 fuels chapter 16 again.

In 15, we saw that because Christ is alive, Paul can stay

where the battle rages. Now in 15, he showed us that

death has been defeated. And because death has been

defeated, Paul doesn't fear adversity.

Paul sees it as a pathway to fruitful labor.

This is courage that's shaped by conviction, not personality.

We we might rightfully conclude that Paul.

Was a bad man. Like he was awesome.

We can look at his life and say it was amazing.

I, I wish that I could be as courageous as Paul and Paul

looks. And he says my courage is shaped

by my conviction. We can all be men and women of

conviction, can we not? Paul's not offering up bravado,

as your favorite WWE wrestler might.

He's not offering up recklessness.

It's not this willingness to to stay where the fight is thick

just so he can die a martyr. He recognizes there's a great

opportunity here. I'm going to stay here through

Pentecost because of my conviction.

So what he's offering to us is faith.

Courage is simply faith that refuses to quit.

Courage is faith that refuses to quit.

The gospel advances through both open doors and enduring hearts.

In every age of the church, God's servants must see

opportunity not merely as comforts, but as a call to

perseverance. The pattern of the cross still

governs ministry today. What's the pattern of the cross?

Well, it's glory through suffering.

Christ suffered greatly that he might be glorified.

What's the pattern of the cross? It's victory through endurance.

Christ endured the shame of the cross because of the glory that

was set before him. John MacArthur notes here that

Paul's ministry was marked by the paradox of success and

suffering. He was always rejoicing, yet

always battling. And that's gospel ministry in

every generation. Paul's example calls us to

courageous stewardship, to stand firm and to stay faithful

wherever. God has placed us.

In the church, this means we don't flee hard ministry as

leaders. In the church, we don't flee

because the ministry gets hard. We stay and we labor for for

spiritual fruit even when the results are coming slowly.

In your home, this means you ought to be courageous in

spiritual leadership. You're to lead your family in

prayer. You're to correct with the love

of God. You're to instruct with the

wisdom of the Lord you. You are to endure in grace and

all of it so that you can build godly homes in your workplace or

in the community at large. When faith brings mockery or

cost, remember that every adversary is another opportunity

to display the worth of. Christ our Lord.

And missions we support and we pray for those who are serving

through open doors that are often surrounded by hostility.

Courageous stewardship doesn't mean that we never feel fear,

Brothers and sisters, courage again is simply faith that

refuses to quit. It's a Courageous stewardship

means fearing God more than fearing man.

It means trusting that every opposition can become an

opportunity. When Christ is Lord, you think

about. Paul's own life, he's on the

road to Damascus. To do what?

To persecute more Christians, to put them to death.

When Christ miraculously appears to him on the road and saves his

soul, turns his life around, he becomes the greatest missionary

the world has ever seen. You and I sit here as believers

because of the ministry of Paul. We sit here as believers.

More importantly, because of the lordship of Christ.

Those Christians who were persecuted were fearless in

their persecution. Think of Stephen as Paul.

He saw at the time, but he's standing by overseeing the

stoning of Stephen. And Stephen in Acts 6 declares

one of the greatest sermons you'll ever read.

They don't let him finish it because they begin to gnash

their teeth at him and rage over the truth that he was spilling

out. And as he's taking one stone

after another, he looks up and he can see his Lord in heaven.

What a magnificent vision God granted Stephen in his final

moments. What's he telling him?

It's worth it, Stephen. Your courage and your faith will

be rewarded. Faithful stewardship is the

natural outflow of resurrection hope.

Because Christ gave everything for us, we give generously.

Because His plan of redemption never failed.

We plan intentionally. Because His victory is certain.

We serve courageously. And every season, God calls His

people to manage what He's entrusted to them.

Whether it's your wealth, your time, your relationships, or

your opportunities, we manage those things for His glory and

for the advance. Of the Gospel.

And so, beloved, I urge. You give with open hands, plan

with open hearts, and persevere with open eyes.

Today, for the risen Christ reigns.

Christ is King. Amen.

And every act of faithfulness in His name is never in vain.

It's a faithful stewardship means managing our resources,

plans and opportunities for the advance.

Of the gospel, let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you

for your word this morning. Grateful Lord, for the way that

it challenges our hearts and minds as we consider our wealth.

So we consider our time and as we consider those ministry

opportunities that you have given us.

And Father, would you lead us? Would you lead us in

faithfulness? Help us to be wise in evaluating

our stewardship across those areas and help us to be faithful

stewards of all that you grant to us.

Whether it's in the home as husbands and wives and fathers

and mothers or children, whether it's out on the mission field,

whether it's in the trenches of local church ministry, whether

it's in our places of employment that you've granted to us.

God, may we use all those things and more for your great glory.

Father, I ask that you would save anyone here who doesn't

know you as their Lord. She would help them to see the

life they've been given. She would help them to evaluate

their own sinfulness, to see it clearly, to see their need for a

Savior, to understand God that you so loved the world that you

gave your own Son to die a brutal death on a cross.

To be raised to life on the third day.

So that you might call a people to yourself and put them in

service to you as people who worship you above all else, As

people who gladly give our time, talent, treasure, for your

name's sake. You might unleash us for

ministry in every area that you've called us to, no matter

how small we might think it is in our own mind.

God, we understand that you redeem all things.

And so Lord, may they surrender themselves to you this morning

and find life in your name. Let me give you a moment now to

pray there where you're seated to seek the Lord for a few

minutes and or for a brief time. And maybe there's sin you need

to confess. Maybe you're hoarding your time,

talent, treasure for yourself, trying to build your own

Kingdom. And the Lord's convicted you of

those things this morning. Maybe you're not a believer and

you sense that God's calling you to become his child.

Would you surrender to him today?

What it? Whatever it is, what however it

is the Lord's leading you this morning, Take a moment now to

pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you

for your grace and Your mercy seen in Christ.

We ask that you would help us to believe in Him.

Father, would you grow our faith in Jesus Christ?

Having heard the sermon, would you grow our love for the

Saints? Having heard the sermon, would

you help us to glorify you and all that we do as we strive, as

we Co labor side by side to make disciples?

Lord, Sir, it's our hope, it's our purpose.

To honor you, we ask that you help us do that in the name of

Christ our Lord, Amen.