TOPIC: Easter (series); Cross, Gospel, Word, Works
TITLE: How has God sent us?
TRUTH/CONTEXT: Easter is a time to remind ourselves that what matters is Christ … not us. In the passage before us, Paul is speaking to the Corinthians about the Christian focus because he knows he is about to confront them concerning their individual and corporate behavior.
Paul chooses his words carefully in order not to take away from his ministry to them but he wastes no time getting to the Cross (before the first chapter ends).
Consider that Paul says, "Christ did not send me to" (do certain things) ... implying the Lord did send him to do other things. What things?
First let's be clear about what he wasn't to do and then look at what he was to do!
FOUNDATIONAL INQUIRY: What did and did not the Lord send Paul to do?
EXPANDED OUTLINE:
I. HE DIDN’T SEND PAUL TO DRAW ATTENTION TO PAUL!
And we know it is totally unrelated to man's works of righteousness ...
And as I reminded you last week, "Jesus said to them again, 'Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, so send I you.'" [John 20:21]
Understand, if we do what Paul says not to do, but rather do what we want to do or what seems right to us in our own eyes, we make the Cross of Christ and the Good News meaningless or void ... the opposite of meaningless is meaningful or full of meaning; that is what Paul is telling the Corinthians and you and I today ... that's what we’re to be doing.
This message is not about you or me ... it’s about Him, the One who was on the Cross but no longer, the One who was in the grave but no longer, the One who was in the clutches of death and hell but could not be kept, the One who was in the flesh but is no longer, and in this world but not of this world. How would you like to leave church today knowing that you have been making and will continue to make the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross and the Good news meaningless? You can.
"Wounded for Me, O glory to God, wounded for me!"
TITLE: How has God sent us?
For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made void.FOUNDATIONAL INQUIRY: What did and did not the Lord send Paul to do?
TRUTH/CONTEXT: Easter is a time to remind ourselves that what matters is Christ … not us. In the passage before us, Paul is speaking to the Corinthians about the Christian focus because he knows he is about to confront them concerning their individual and corporate behavior.
Paul chooses his words carefully in order not to take away from his ministry to them but he wastes no time getting to the Cross (before the first chapter ends).
Consider that Paul says, "Christ did not send me to" (do certain things) ... implying the Lord did send him to do other things. What things?
First let's be clear about what he wasn't to do and then look at what he was to do!
FOUNDATIONAL INQUIRY: What did and did not the Lord send Paul to do?
EXPANDED OUTLINE:
I. HE DIDN’T SEND PAUL TO DRAW ATTENTION TO PAUL!
A. He didn't send him to do righteous works ... "Christ did not send me to baptize"II. HE SENT PAUL TO DRAW ATTENTION TO HIS WORDS, AND HIS CROSS!
B. He didn't send him to proclaim spiritual truths with clever words/speech ... "not in cleverness of speech"
C. Such things make "void" (i.e., make meaningless) the cross of Christ
A. He did send him that Jesus’ works would be full of meaning (ant. "void") …[WOUNDED] I'm told that during World War I the Prince of Wales (I believe Edward who later abdicated his throne) visited 36 severely wounded men in a London hospital. The Prince shook hands with the men. As preparations were made to leave, the Prince indicated he’d only seen 30 men. "Where are the other six?"B. And not made void [without meaning]!
Although he was informed the others were severe cases, he insisted he see the others. The others were soon seen. "But there are only five, where's the last?" asked the Prince. Although the Prince was told that the grotesqueness of the man's appearance would be unbearable, the Prince insisted on seeing him. They took him to the man's bedside.
The Prince stood silent for a long moment, then moved to the man and stooped to kiss him! With emotion breaking in his voice, the Prince of Wales was heard to say, Wounded for me. Wounded for me."
"Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD [i.e., power] been revealed? For He grew up before [the Father] like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him. He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed." [Isaiah 53:1-5].
C. That Jesus' words would be heard1. Though foolishness to some ...
For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, [1 Corinthians 1:18a]
2. It is powerful to others ... but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. [1 Corinthians 1:18b]
And we know it is totally unrelated to man's works of righteousness ...
But I, brethren, if I still preach circumcision, why am I still persecuted? Then the stumbling block of the cross has been abolished. [Galatians 5:11]For ...
Those who desire to make a good showing in the flesh try to compel you to be circumcised, simply so that they will not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. (i.e., embarrassed) [Galatians 6:12]So if we want to look good, then we must imitate Paul ...
But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.* [Galatians 6:14-15]
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. [2 Corinthians 5:17]
We have the very bad habit of getting in the way of this Good News … talking about what we think and what we know and how we interpret and understand it and what we're doing or what we've done! All of this is fine but not what Christ sent us to do.
When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. [Col. 2:13-14]
[VICTOR] A Commander-In-Chief may defeat all his enemies on the battlefield yet be unable to defeat his critics at home [Lincoln, Grant, Wilson, FDR, and Dubya].Our works and our words are offered within His authority and He has "all authority." Where do we hear Jesus saying, "Go therefore and cleverly trick them into buying what you’re selling nor are we to impress them with fancy footwork. We are to simply "go", "make", "baptize", and "teach" without worry or fear.
He may be able to control the men under him and yet be unable to control himself [Jefferson, Kennedy, and Clinton]. He may be a victorious leader in the estimation of men, yet defeated in the estimation of God [numerous recent Christian leaders].
And he may congratulate himself that no one has been able to stand up against him, yet he will go down at last before man's final enemy, death [Stalin, Mao, Ho Chi Min, Castro, etc,].
Thus, all men's victories are partial in this life. Even the victory over sin and evil that the regenerated believer has in Christ is at best incomplete. Only one Man has ever conquered sin and death completely and defeated all His enemies.
And faith in Him is the victory. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying,
"All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." [Matthew 28:18-20]
And as I reminded you last week, "Jesus said to them again, 'Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, so send I you.'" [John 20:21]
Understand, if we do what Paul says not to do, but rather do what we want to do or what seems right to us in our own eyes, we make the Cross of Christ and the Good News meaningless or void ... the opposite of meaningless is meaningful or full of meaning; that is what Paul is telling the Corinthians and you and I today ... that's what we’re to be doing.
This message is not about you or me ... it’s about Him, the One who was on the Cross but no longer, the One who was in the grave but no longer, the One who was in the clutches of death and hell but could not be kept, the One who was in the flesh but is no longer, and in this world but not of this world. How would you like to leave church today knowing that you have been making and will continue to make the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross and the Good news meaningless? You can.
"Wounded for Me, O glory to God, wounded for me!"
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