1 Corinthians Week 1 • 1 Corinthians 1

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Good morning.

If you've got your Bibles, going to open them up to 1 Corinthians chapter 1.

1 Corinthians 1 · chapter mention

It's where we're going to be as we start off in our new series.

I hope you all got to go outside or chose to enjoy the snow in the way that you wanted

to enjoy it, right?

I don't know if you know this or not, but Joanne C. gets cold, like, looking at refrigerators

at Lowe's, all right?

Like, she's that level of cold.

And so, she confessed any picture that she got was, like, from the inside of the comfort

of her home.

But us, we got out in it for, like, three hours, as long as it was out there, and got

to enjoy doing some South Carolina sledding, which means, like, finding stuff around your

house and then pushing people down a hill of mud, right?

And that's what we did for a while.

But it was a wonderful, wonderful time.

And I hope you guys had the opportunity to enjoy it.

But it's good to have you guys here this morning.

Did this, got here early, hit a little bit of ice on some of the back roads from my house

to here, but overall, it was safe and glad to be able to be here with y'all.

We will have our Sunday night starting back.

We were supposed to start back last week, but we will start back tonight.

And we're excited about that.

Sunday night's full on for us.

Sunday night's more like Sunday afternoons, starting at 4 o'clock.

We'll have all of our adult small groups will be starting back.

Some started this morning, but we'll be back.

And we're going to be working through on Sunday mornings and in our groups, 1 Corinthians

together.

So I'm excited about that, to be leading a group, going through that, preaching through

this on Sunday morning.

But then also on the rows that you're seated, you'll see there's a little reading schedule

there.

And so what I would like to challenge you to do is to take that reading schedule.

And as we work through this on Sunday morning and in our small groups, during your quiet

time, work through it with us.

And here's what you're going to see.

Like on Sunday mornings, we're not going to necessarily read and go word by word through

1 Corinthians.

We'll do a little bit more of that maybe in our small groups, but you have the opportunity

to do that on your own as we walk through this.

And I love it when we have the opportunities to do this together as a church, because what

we see is, is you guys through the power of the Holy Spirit, feeding yourselves in quiet

time, discussing that in your small groups as you meet together.

And then us having the opportunity corporately to come together in worship through studying

God's word.

If you're not in a small group, also on your seats, there's a list of all of our small groups

and there's definitely an opportunity and time for you to get connected in one and would

love to see you have that.

We've also got our kids discipleship is going on tonight and our student ministry is going

on tonight.

And so we have something for every age and every opportunity for you to be a part of Willow

Ridge Church and what God is doing here.

So let's look in, get started in 1 Corinthians.

Now, last week was different for me.

All right.

Confession moment.

All through seminary, you take preaching classes and they're like, hey, we want you to preach

on this passage of scripture.

And it never worked out that that's the passage of scripture that we were doing in church.

And so on usually Sunday nights after we'd get done with church, I would tell Aaron and

the kids, hey, I need y'all to go upstairs and be really quiet.

And then I would position myself somewhere in the house.

Like I did like all the trash, all the dirt, right?

Get move all that out of the way.

Not that we're dirty people.

That just sounded bad, right?

But try to make it cleaner.

And then I would position myself in our home and preach.

And it was weird because it was me and the camera.

And then last week it was weird a little bit too.

But God was good, enjoyed being able to do that.

And just kind of give us a little background of 1 Corinthians of what is this letter about

that we're diving into.

And one of the things that I talked about last week, and I want to kind of recap that

a little bit as we're going into this, is if you've studied scripture some, what you'll

know is that the church at Corinth, as we get into this, like it epitomizes, it embodies

dysfunction.

There's a lot of stuff that's going on that when we read through this, we're like, really?

You're like, this is the decision that y'all are making.

And what I want us to do a little bit is as we read, we're going to see the problems that

are in this church that we're studying.

And I don't want them to see these as these problems that they suffer with, because for

us on the surface, they may be so foreign, but yet the theological stuff that's going on,

the application things that are going on, the practical issues that we're going to see,

and as Paul corrects, are so many of them that can be applied to our context at Willow Ridge

Church, but also to our lives as individual believers.

So that as we journey through this, it's not the standing on the outside looking at the

shock of what those people are doing in their problematic church, but seeing what Paul is

addressing, why Paul is addressing that, how Paul is correcting them, and then looking at

that for ourselves.

And we're going to look at this morning with unity amongst the body, and say, God, what

are you showing me in my life?

Lord, what are you showing us as a body of believers in Willow Ridge Church in Lexington,

South Carolina, where we have the privilege and the opportunity to read this letter this morning?

Right?

It's not just them, it's us, and what do we want to draw from this?

And so just a minute, we're going to start reading in verse 10, but Paul begins this letter,

very important, and we're not going to read it this morning, but he begins it with a greeting

like he often does, and begins it with a thanksgiving.

I think that's important.

I think that's important, and here's kind of what I want to just segue on a little bit.

They're a problematic church that Paul has to deal with, that Paul's got to work with.

There we go.

But what is beautiful in this that we're going to see, and I want it to be the way that we

look at, the way that we address, the way that we work through different things in our life,

is when we have things that cause us problems, when we have things that cause us issues that

we've got to work through, how, what is the mindset that we're taking to them?

Are we taking them to with thanksgiving, as Paul does, as he recognizes that it's a group of

believers that have wandered, a group of believers that are confused, or do we look at these as the

simple inconveniences of our life?

But Paul looks at this as an opportunity for the church to grow and mature in their faith,

and as a result of that, Paul begins with thanking the Lord for them.

So it's going to be the groundwork that we're going to see with this.

So let's start reading in verse 10.

Paul writes, and he says,

I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree,

and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind, in the same

judgment.

For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there is some quarreling among you, my brothers.

What I mean is that each of you, what I mean is that each one of you says, I follow Paul,

or I follow Apollos, or I follow Cephas, or I follow Christ.

Is Christ divided?

Was Paul crucified for you?

Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one may say that

you were baptized in my name.

I did baptize also the house of Stephanas.

Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.

Verse 17, for Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, and not with words

of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of his power.

And so Paul jumps in very quickly, and he says, look, I'm grateful for you, and now I

want to appeal to you.

I want to appeal to you for who you are to address these things out of the love that I

have for you.

And what Paul does is he calls them to unity.

Look back at verse 10.

I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united

in the same mind and the same judgment.

And so Paul says, I want to encourage you.

I want you to be united.

I want to appeal to you.

So I'm not bringing this to you in words of anger, but as the loving, as someone who loves

you, as a leader who cares for you, as someone that a lot of you look to me as a father in

your faith, I want to appeal to you in this.

Like, can you hear the heart of Paul, what he's dealing with?

It's a parent who's sitting there with their children, imploring them out of the love that

is in their heart, not in the rebuke that comes from their mouth, but imploring them,

begging them, understanding, like, this is what it means for God, for you to walk in his

will, and to exude all that Christ has for you.

And he says in verse 10, he defines this unity for us in two ways.

The first is at the end of verse 10.

He says, but that you may be united in the same mind and in the same judgment.

So what's he talking about?

Paul here is talking about an inward harmony.

He said, I want to be how you feel toward one another and how you feel toward the gospel

to be one of unity.

That when you look at and when you see one another, that you do not see the divisions.

When you look at and when you see one another, what you see is Christ.

When you hear about the gospel, when we're called to the gospel, that we're in the same mind,

there's the same feeling, there's the same desire within this.

That there's agreement, that there's unity.

But also, kind of in the middle, he says that all of you agree.

And this word that you agree is the word, it's a court term that would mean that all of you

would have the same testimony.

And not testimony as in my testimony of coming to faith and your testimony of coming to faith

align and that they happen in the exact same format.

But it's that the testimony of Jesus Christ, the gospel of Jesus Christ, of who he is,

is unified in who we are.

So our stories may be different, but we're proclaiming the same gospel.

And what we're working toward is we're working toward alignment and unity within the church.

Because the gospel works in this way.

So let's talk a little bit about unity.

And then kind of a negative context.

Let's talk about divisions versus disagreements, all right?

Can we disagree in the church?

Yes, we can disagree in the church.

Now, that makes some of us, myself, feel uncomfortable, right?

But we can disagree.

There are wonderful, beautiful things that we can disagree on.

But can we have divisions in the church?

No.

Here's the thing.

We can disagree on the things that are secondary.

But where there must be unity, where there cannot be division, is on things that are primary.

And that's how the church needs to live and how the church needs to be.

And we can look at that and see that in so many different areas of our life.

From your job that you go to, you need to be unified in where you're going and what you're doing.

Does that mean that there can be disagreements?

Yes, there can.

And disagreements can honestly bring out what's better in this situation.

I thought about the example in my life where I learned so much from what God is gracious to give me is in our marriage.

Mine and Aaron's marriage.

Some of you may find this hard to believe, but we disagree from time to time, right?

I know, right?

And I'm wrong, right?

We disagree.

But what is beautiful in marriage is we disagree on what's secondary.

What color to paint a room, where to go out to eat, what to do on vacation.

These are disagreements that if you've lived in a marriage, you know these are things that we can disagree on.

But we're unified on what is primary.

That in our marriage that we seek and desire to be obedient to God in all things.

That in our marriage we fight for and cling to faithfulness amongst the two of us.

That in our marriage that we want to agree that we raise our kids to love the Lord and to seek after Him.

And so when we take these understandings of who we are as a couple and that this is what we work toward.

Do Aaron and I disagree in our marriage?

Yes.

Do these disagreements bring disunity?

No.

Because they're secondary.

And so many times on both sides of this, churches divide over secondary.

Church divides over things that are based off of opinions.

Paul's like, we can disagree on that.

But we can work toward unity because we're unified under the gospel.

And the church, we need to fight to make sure that we don't have these divisions.

But we must not turn secondary disagreements into primary divisions.

And Paul's going to kind of address some of the things in the church that causes this.

So what causes disunity?

What causes divisions?

Well, let's look at what's happening here in Corinth.

Look at verse 11.

Paul says,

For it's been reported to me by Chloe's people that there's some quarreling among you, my brothers.

What I mean is that each one of you says,

I follow Paul, or I follow Apollos, or I follow Cephas, or I follow Christ.

So Paul points out here that there's four divisions that are going on in the church.

And we think we can understand a little bit through context of scripture what's going on, how the church is divided.

So the church is divided into four different factions.

Well, see, this church isn't just a church of Jewish converts.

It's not just a church of Gentile converts, even though it's mainly a church of Gentile converts, right?

They outnumber the Jewish converts.

And so Paul says, some of you follow Paul.

Some of you are saying that they follow him.

And so these are more than likely the Gentile converts.

He says, some of you follow Apollos.

Now, Apollos, you can kind of read about him in Acts 18.

But basically, he was known as a very eloquent preacher from Alexandria.

Now, you're going to see some of this context later at the end of this passage of what Paul writes.

So some of you are like, man, we're Gentile converts, and we follow Paul.

He's the one because he's the missionary to us.

And some are like, no, no, no.

Have you heard this Apollos guy speak?

Like, when he shows up to our church, when we have the opportunity to go out and listen to him,

like, how eloquent he is, like, whatever he says, we follow him.

And then some are like, well, but we follow Cephas.

Now, Cephas is Peter, and Peter was largely seen as a missionary to the Jewish people.

And so they're like, no, no, we're Jewish, and so we follow him.

And then there's a fourth group.

And the fourth group's like, no, well, y'all can follow them, but we're just going to follow Jesus.

Now, they're not right either, and let me explain.

All right?

What's going on with this group is they're standing back with almost like a sense of religious pride.

Look how good we are.

You can have all your quarrels all you want to.

We're going to rise above this.

We've been enlightened to the things that you aren't enlightened to.

And so we're just the ones who follow Jesus, and you're incapable of being where we are.

And we're going to see this level of division all throughout 1 Corinthians come up over and over again.

And so what causes this?

What causes this sense of division that we begin to see within here?

And I think there's three different things that we can look at in churches that bring this type of division.

Number one is ego.

Number one is ego.

And let me say this before we get into these three.

If there's division in your church, division in your marriage, division in your job, division in your family,

I would be willing to bet that one of these three things is what's kind of raising its head up there, too.

That when we see what brings so much pain and so much suffering,

when we see what destroys the unity that God has for us,

we'll find these exact same things.

I mean, if my marriage and my family are supposed to be a reflection of the church,

then these things would be consistently there, too, if there's division.

If you're a Christian in your workplace and you're supposed to be the one that embodies Christ and shows Christ,

but yet you and other believers find a sense of disunity which is in there,

more than likely this would be the case as well.

And the first one that we see is ego.

And so what's happening in here,

and honestly, we don't know what's kind of coming forward in a lot of these different aspects

of what's leading these people to choose these factions,

but what we see happening here and what we see can happen in the church

when the egos begin to rise up

are pastors and leaders

who demand loyalty

even over loyalty to Jesus.

Now, we're going to talk about the frailty of pastors

in just a little bit.

We're going to talk about the weakness of pastors here in just a moment

and I feel like I know them really well.

But pastors and leaders who demand loyalty

over loyalty to Christ.

Yes, loyalty is a beautiful thing.

Loyalty is something that needs to be embraced

within the context of the church.

But in the moment where it's choosing a man

over choosing Jesus,

he's lost his way

and so has the church who follows him.

Or secondly,

people who try to put pastors and leaders

on a platform that they don't deserve

and honestly, I've seen this so many times

that they never even asked for.

I mean, if I can have a little bit of freedom here

on this passage of scripture,

Paul goes five years earlier

before he writes this

and helps plant this church.

And what Paul would do

is he would plant a church,

he would raise up leaders,

he would leave that church to go

plant more churches,

they would help fund what he was doing

and then he would report back,

he would hear back from them,

he would send letters, right?

And to continue to encourage

to be able to do.

And so Paul gets this report

from Chloe's people

that says,

hey, there's factions in the church.

Paul's like, really?

Like, yeah, and some of them

are like, no, no, no, no,

we only follow Paul.

We only follow Paul.

And I can imagine the heartbreak

of what we see from scripture

consistently with the heart of Paul

for the gospel.

And look at how Paul,

and we're going to talk about this

in a little bit,

look how he tries to address this issue

in scripture.

He says, was Paul crucified for you?

Were you baptized in Paul's name?

The humility of what's there.

And church, we're going to follow leaders.

And we're going to follow pastors.

And Paul's not perfect.

And Paul's not Jesus.

And every pastor that I know,

including the one standing here,

is filled with struggles,

with doubt,

with sin,

with battles that they face.

But if that pastor

ever doesn't embrace

the humility

of what Paul says here,

he's no longer worthy

to be the pastor that we follow.

Was it Paul that crucified you?

Were you baptized in Paul's name?

Obviously, you know that's not true.

It's ego

that we follow.

The second thing

that we begin to see

that brings disunity,

this anti-authority.

Right?

While Christ is the leader

of the church,

Christ leads the church,

and Christ is the leader

of this church.

Right?

God does give us leaders

to follow.

He gives us pastors,

elders,

ministers,

and He calls us

as a congregation

and He calls us

as a body

to follow them

and to submit to them

as they seek to lead us

in the way of Christ.

The problem is

for so many of us,

we have a sense of rebellion

that we still want to cling to.

We still have the sense of,

oh, you think you're going

to tell me what to do?

And it's the battle

of the pride of the heart.

That in spite of what I see,

in spite of what God is doing,

that I feel like

that I know what's best for me

and I feel like

I know what's best for you.

Was the leadership

trying to lead

and to keep our eyes

focused on Jesus?

Is our leadership

trying to keep us focused

in on the proclamation

of the gospel

and seeing lost people

come to know the Lord?

Are we there

to glorify Him

in all that we do and say?

If the answer is yes,

then is the leaders

headed in the wrong direction

or are you taking

a secondary issue

and making it primary?

And we all,

all of us,

have to follow leaders.

A danger for leaders

is this.

Ask the leader

who's leading them.

Ask the leader

who they submit to.

And it should be

in the area

that we see

and what we find

in the value

of Scripture

in understanding

authority.

It should be Christ

and others

that are around them.

And then also

what we're going to find

as we read through this

is agendas.

It's agendas.

Now Paul doesn't speak

directly to agendas here,

but we're going to see it

throughout 1 Corinthians

and you see it all

throughout Scripture.

is I'm going to do

what I'm going to do

apart from the unity

of the body.

And it doesn't matter

where the church

is going.

It doesn't matter

what the church

is being a part of.

It's just the choosing

in what I want to do.

And all of this,

all of this comes

from a heart

and a mindset

of taking our eyes

off of Jesus

and putting them

on someone else.

When people talk

about loyalty

to a person

and not a loyalty

to Jesus,

we begin to see

eyes shift.

And so what Paul

wants to do

is he wants

to establish unity

to see that unity

is what's going

to be a part

of the body

of what they're

working toward,

of what they see.

And so much

of what Paul's

going to call them

into unity

is what they

already have.

And so he gives

them three different

reminders.

The first one

that he's going

to see is the

equipping of the church.

Look back in verse 4,

we're going to read

verse 4 through 9.

And this is in

Paul's thanksgiving.

He says,

I give thanks

to my God

always for you.

because of the grace

of God

was given to you

in Christ Jesus.

That in every way

you were enriched

in him

in all speech

in all knowledge

even as the testimony

about Christ

was confirmed

among you.

And then pay

attention to verse 7.

So that you

are 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 days

of our Lord

Jesus Christ.

God is faithful

by whom

you are called

into fellowship

of his son

Jesus Christ

our Lord.

Here's the beauty

of what Paul's

telling them

and the beauty

of what we can

cling to today

at Willow Ridge Church.

That the church

at Corinth

and the church

at Willow Ridge

right now

for us

right now

in this moment

and right then

for them

we have all

that we need

to be who God

has called us

to be

and to do

what God's

called us to do.

There's no excuses

for us to not

pursue

the gospel

and the will

of God

in our lives

and in our congregation.

Paul says that

you are not lacking

in any gift

any gift

and the truth

is said

for that

for us today

that we are not

lacking

in any gift

that we have.

So what do we have?

What do we have

that the church

at Corinth had?

Number one

we got the Holy Spirit.

Paul established

for all of these

because of the grace

of God

was given to you

in Christ Jesus

and then what happens

when we are saved

that the Holy Spirit

of God

indwells

within us.

the same Holy Spirit

of God

indwelled Paul

indwells you

indwells me

indwells the church

at Corinth.

So you got the Spirit

of God.

You got part of the Trinity

in you.

It's everything

that you need.

That's everything

that is required.

That within you

because the goodness

of God

is his Holy Spirit

but also

and I think this is

one of the most

beautiful things

of what God

blesses the church

with.

All right?

You got each other.

You got each other

and that's beautiful.

That's beautiful.

Every single one

of you

sitting in here

today

is a gift

of God

to each

and every

one

of us.

and the beauty

of this

of what God

gives us

and the people

that God

brings us

to be a part

of the body

here

is the diversity

that he gives.

Right?

He brings us

the diversity

of gifts.

Right?

There's a few

of us

that can come

on stage

and do

what they

do.

There's a few

of us

that can come

on stage

and do

what I do.

There's a few

of us

that can go

into the kitchen

and do

what they do.

There's a few

of us

who can go

and stand

out the doors

and do

what they do.

There's a few

of us

that can gather

in these rooms

and do

what they do

and what God's

doing

is he's given

us all

this wonderful

sense of giftedness

among us

so that we can

serve amongst

the body

because we have

all that we need.

The beauty

of what God

gives us

is he gives

us different

perspectives

of life

of what we've

experienced

of what we've

been through

the diversity

of that

in which

that brings

of where

we've come

from

who we've

learned under

how long

we've been

saved

it's a beautiful

diversity

of what God

gives us.

God gives us

a beautiful

diversity

of passions

of what he

brings

and so

some people

are passionate

about school

ministry

some people

are passionate

about kids

ministry

some people

are passionate

about worship

ministry

some people

are passionate

about international

ministries

and God gives us

all of these

different passions

so that men

and women

can find

who they

are

and it's

a beautiful

thing

and all

of these

are used

in a way

to build up

the body

and to share

the gospel

but here's

what gets

dangerous

is what

that when

the gifts

become not

seen as

gifts of

diversity

that are

used together

to unify

but gifts

of difference

that are used

to divide

that when

the gifts

of perspective

are not

there as

differences

to learn

from

but are

there as

areas of

division

we have

concerns

than the

areas of

passions

of ministries

of what

we have

that they

must be

seen as

a diversity

of differences

that can join

us together

to strengthen

and to equip

more ministries

so that more

people could

come to know

Christ

and not

as areas

of disunity

that could be

divided

the second

thing that Paul

shows us

and we

focused on

this

or reminds

us on

is to

focus on

Jesus

why was

Paul crucified

for you

or was

Paul crucified

for you

or were you

baptized in

the name

of Paul

a couple

questions

I want to

ask

why are we

here this

morning

why are we

here

we here

for Jesus

or anything

else

if anything

else

or anyone

else

filled that

answer

we missed

it

we missed

it

and who

are we

following

who are we

following

God's

blessed us

with the

wonderful

privilege of

being able to

be at this

church I

believe we'll

be here for

nine years

this summer

I didn't

have gray hair

in my beard

when I got

here

I had a lot

more hair

on the top

of my head

when I got

here

I don't

blame y'all

for that

I blame

genetics

I just want

to be honest

with you

right

I come

from a

long line

of balding

gray men

right

been here

nine years

the average

stay

of a senior

pastor

in the church

in the United

States right

now is four

years

right

I was reading

a study on

the Barna

group some

of you may

be aware

of them

and from

2020

until right

now

shows that

38%

of pastors

38%

are trying

to figure

out how

to leave

the ministry

all right

and go do

something else

they don't

care they

just don't

know

and they're

dying to

get out

and that's

the danger

of when we

put our

eyes

and focus

solely

on the

people who

stand up

here

right

four

years

38%

most

churches

when a

pastor

leaves

attendance

declines

dramatically

church

members

fall

to the

side

and I

just have

to ask

the question

who are

their eyes

on

and focus

on Jesus

and the

last thing

is be

gospel

focused

read verse

17

for Christ

did not

send me

to baptize

but to

preach the

gospel

and not

with words

of eloquent

wisdom

lest the

cross of

Christ

be emptied

of its

power

so this

Apollos guy

you can read

about in Acts

18

here's what we

can find out

about this

guy

what we

know

right

he's

entertaining

he's

engaging

he's got

a crowd

a crowd

that loves

to hear

him

a crowd

that wants

to follow

him

and they

begin to

say

it doesn't

matter about

the faithfulness

of what we

have

it doesn't

matter about

the vision

that's there

we want

that guy

because of

what he can

bring to

us

what he can

share with

us

and the

talent that

he has

and whether

you stay

here for

one more

Sunday

or whether

you stay

here for

another

thousand

Sundays

whether God

grants me

the wonderful

opportunity

which is what

we pray for

to retire

from here

or whether

God calls

me at a

different time

I don't

know

but when it

comes to

preaching of

God's word

and let me

just tell you

I've been

so blessed

to be

under some

pastors

that have

let me

swing and

miss a lot

more than

swing and

hit a

home run

okay

but I want

you to ask

these questions

when you're

sitting there

with your

small group

leader

when you're

sitting there

in your

Bible study

I want you

to ask

these questions

don't let

the standard

be

is he

entertaining

is he

engaging

is he

relevant

is he

smart

let the

question

that rings

in your

mind

ask this

is he

faithful to

God's word

is he

faithful to

God's word

I've got a

friend of

mine who

pastors at

another church

in another

state

and big

old church

mega church

they do like

seven services

it's crazy

he starts

preaching on

Saturday night

and he gets

done on

Monday it

feels like

anyway

he was

talking to

me and

there was

a church

there in

their area

and he was

really curious

about what

they were

doing and

so he

he went

there to

the church

and he

knew some

of the

people that

were on

leadership

that were

at this

church

and he's

like I

was just

really

curious

and so

I went

and I'm

not going to

use any

names but

just want to

kind of share

this with

you guys

and I said

well what

did you learn

and he said

you know my

wife and I

we went

and then we

left and we

went out to

eat and we

we were

just kind

of processing

through ways

we could

learn and

ways we

could get

better and

he said

here is the

realization that

we came

to he

said during

that service

we laughed

during that

service we

felt compelled

to move

to take

action

during that

service we

got angry

during that

service we

cried

some pretty

strong

emotions

to be

experienced

for sadness

to hit you

for laughter

to hit you

for tears

to come

from you

to feel

compelled

to action

and I

said well

man that

was fantastic

and he

said but

the problem

was

is that he

opened God's

word

he read

a few

verses

and he

never came

back to

it

and he

wasn't

faithful

and he

wasn't

faithful

as a

preacher

verse 17

has hit me

hard

for Christ

did not

send me to

baptize but

to preach

the gospel

and not

with words

of eloquent

wisdom

listen to

this

lest the

cross of

Christ

be emptied

of its

power

we got to

be careful

that the

standard of

teaching of

God's word

is not the

standard of a

politician

trying to lure

us with their

words to buy

into something

but to

understand

that the

gospel

it's

enough

and it's

all that's

needed

Jesus Christ

the son of

God

came here

and died

for you

to pay the

price for

your sins

the price

that you

don't want

to pay

the price

that you

can't pay

and was

buried

and was

raised to

life

three days

later

and lived

and ascended

to the

father

and for

those who

surrender

and put

their faith

and hope

and trust

in him

are guaranteed

the inheritance

of eternal

life

as we go

into this

season of

our church

going to

our small

groups

small group

leaders

be faithful

just be

faithful

as you

open up

your

God's word

every morning

whether you're

working through

first Corinthians

with us

don't open

it

saying

God

entertain

me

open it

knowing

that God

will be

faithful

his word

is living

and is

powerful

and whether

God blesses

me with

another

25 years

25 days

let the

standard

be

is

he

faithful

to

Christ

would you

pray with

me

Lord we

come to

you this

morning

Lord

thanking you

for the

beauty of

your word

and the

truth that

comes from

it

Lord I

pray for

us as a

body

that we

would be

unified

completely

and fully

in you

of who

you are

or what

you've

done

Lord may

we keep

our eyes

focused

on the

primary

Christ

you

Lord

we keep

our eyes

focused

that we

are

surrounded

by people

who don't

know you

and who

have never

had the

opportunity

to respond

to the

gospel of

Jesus

Christ

Lord may

we not

be okay

with that

or could

we be

reminded

that every

Sunday

we have the

opportunity

on Sunday

mornings and

Sunday nights

to pour

into the

lives

of kids

and students

who are

journeying

through a

world that

is demanding

their

allegiance

in many

different

ways

Lord and

they will

make a

choice

choosing

what to

follow

may we

be

unified

and that

it is

Christ

may we

work

toward

that

Lord may

we be

unified

that all

over this

world are

men and

women and

children who

woke up

this morning

never hearing

the name of

Jesus

and no

opportunity

to go hear

about him

Lord can we

not be okay

with that

Lord all

the other

things

that seek

to divide

may we

push them

to the

side

because our

eyes are

focused on

you

Lord I

pray for

wisdom

for myself

for our

other pastors

for our

elders

for our

ministry

leaders

for all

of us

who take

the

opportunity

to teach

your word

to facilitate

a lesson

Lord may

we not

feel like

we need

to be a

politician

trying to

convince you

of our

way

instead

could we

be men

and women

who are

faithful

to the

inerrancy

of your

word

that

stands

the test

of time

and that

rings

true

Jesus

may we

keep our

eyes

fixed

on you

amen

we've got

prayer

encouragers

on either

side

of our

auditorium

maybe this

morning

you want to

talk to

somebody

maybe you

came in

here with a

struggle

with a

doubt

with a

concern

they would

love to

pray with

you

love to

encourage

you

maybe this

morning

you walked

in

you want

to find out

a little bit

more about

this guy

named

Jesus

what it

means for

him to be

your savior

and Lord

that tug

that you're

feeling at

your heart

here's what

we're going

to ask

that you

do

that you

respond

to that

leading

of the

Lord

great way

to do

that is

to let

either one

of them

know

or

I'll be

down here

down front

and we

can talk

with you

we can

pray with

you

we just

want you

to respond

to the

Lord's

calling

this

morning

would you

guys all

stand

as we

worship

thanks again

for listening

to the

Willow Ridge

Church

weekly

podcast

we hope

that you

enjoyed

listening

to this

week's

message

if

you'd

like

to learn

more

about

who

we

are

or

explore

additional

resources

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at

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