(# 013) 1 Corinthians 3 - Are You a Builder or a Destroyer of Community?God has a rivalry with disunity.
Welcome To BARAH MINISTRIES a Christian Church
Rory Clark Pastor-Teacher
Good Morning!
Welcome to Barah Ministries…an intimate, local Christian Church with worldwide impact. My name is Pastor Rory Clark. At Barah Ministries we know this truth…that Jesus Christ is God. As the Lord He is 100% Deity. He is God the Son. He is also 100% true humanity just like you and me. He is Jesus Christ. The Lord, God the Son…became flesh…Jesus Christ...and lived among us. He is the Sovereign God of the Universe…He is the Savior of the whole world…and He is the Jewish Messiah.
Those who make Barah Ministries their spiritual home, believe in Jesus Christ. We are Christians, and as Christians, we have a deep, intimate, and personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. Christianity is a relationship, not a religion. The Lord Jesus Christ is a Person and not a thing. Just as we would do with any person we love, we spend time getting to know Him through the study of His Word.
Barah Ministries makes a difference by teaching the Word of God from the Lord Jesus Christ’s perspective, and not from man’s perspective. We search the Scriptures to learn who the Lord is as a Person, and to learn what our God has to say about Himself, about His plan for all mankind, and about His personal plan for each of us. We look at life from His perspective.
TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON - Are You a Builder or a Destroyer of Community?
LESSON INTRODUCTION
Sibling rivalry is the jealousy, competition, and fighting between brothers and sisters. It begins in childhood, yet it extends well into adulthood. If you ask most people who have brothers and sisters, there will be one or all of their siblings they do not "get along with." Fighting with each other is immature. When we fight with each other we support rivalries and threaten the unity of believers in Christ. When you think of your own lives, where are you allowing rivalries to exist? In today’s lesson, we'll continue our look at how the apostle Paul is addressing the fighting in the Corinthian Church. In addition, as we do every month, we’ll celebrate The Lord’s Supper, and we’ll learn that at the Cross, the Lord Jesus Christ gave us a gift called redemption, and we’ll learn the significance of this gift in our lives.
SONG INTRODUCTION
There are times when things are hard for us…when we’re facing the challenges of adversity. The Lord Jesus Christ articulated the pattern for the righteous life in Hebrews, Chapter 10, Verse 9…
HEBREWS 10:9 Jesus said (to God the Father), “Behold, I have come to do Your will.”
Here’s Hillary Scott and the Scott Family to sing our righteous prayer in their song THEY WILL.
MUSIC AND REFLECTION Be Occupied with the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ Enjoy the Singing of His Praises
THY WILL Hillary Scott
OPENING PRAYER Let us pray...
We’re grateful, Heavenly Father, for the privilege of studying Your absolute truth...the Word of God…
Father, thank you that it was Your kind intention that we exist in a state of unity…thanks for demonstrating Your philosophy by placing every Church Age believer in union with Your Son, our Lord…the Savior Jesus Christ…thank you for giving us the gift of each other…because You know it is not good for us to do things alone…
Teach us to take advantage of You…teach us to take advantage of each other…help us to put aside that insidious enemy…pride…which the devil cultivates in us to separate us from You and Your blessings…
…we ask this through the power of God the Holy Spirit…in Christ’s name...Amen.
TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON - Are You a Builder or a Destroyer of Community?
Passage 3 of Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians extends from Chapter 1, Verse 10 to Chapter 4, Verse 21. The apostle Paul is addressing rivalries and dissensions in the Corinthians Church. He is communicating subtly and sarcastically about why these rivalries exist. Be clear on one thing…with God, it is unity and not divisions that He prefers. Beginning in this next part of the passage, Paul puts aside the subtlety and goers on the offensive. Let’s continue our look at the passage in First Corinthians, Chapter 3, Verses 1 to 17…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:1 And I (Paul), brethren, could not speak to you (Corinthians believers) as I would to spiritual persons (those with the indwelling of God the Holy Spirit …believers in Christ)…but (I have to speak to you) as (if I am speaking) to men of flesh (those without the indwelling of God the Holy Spirit …unbelievers) …as if I am speaking to infants in union with Christ.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:2 I gave you milk to drink, not solid food…for you were not yet able to digest solid food. Indeed, even now you are not yet able to digest solid food…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:3 …for you are still (acting as if you are) fleshly (acting like unbelievers). For since there keeps on being jealousy and strife (persisting) among you, are you not fleshly (acting like unbelievers …being selfish) … and are you not walking (living a lifestyle) like mere men (as if you are not spiritual)?
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:4 For when one of you says, “I am of Paul,” and another of you says, “I am of Apollos” … are you not (acting like) mere men?
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:5 What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? (We are) Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave the opportunity to believe to each one.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:6 I (Paul) planted…Apollos watered…but God was causing the (spiritual) growth.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:7 So then…neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything… but God who causes the growth (is everything).
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:8 Now he who plants and he who waters are one (in unity in the body of Christ) …but each will receive his own (individual) reward according to his own work.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:9 For we are co-workers under God’s direction…you are God’s cultivation…you are God’s construction.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:10 According to the grace of God which was given to me (Paul), like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each person must be careful how he builds on it.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:11 For no one can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:12 Now if any person builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones…or wood, hay, straw…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:13 …the quality of each person’s work will become evident…for the day will show the value of the work…because it is to be revealed with fire…and the fire itself will reveal the quality of each man’s work.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:14 If any man’s work which he has built on the foundation remains, he will receive a reward.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:15 If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer a loss of reward …but he will be saved…yet only in this way…as if he has escaped through a fire.
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:16 Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Holy Spirit of God dwells in you?
FIRST CORINTHIANS 3:17 If any man (a Pastor-Teacher) destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him…for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are (holy).
Next week, we’ll study this passage verse by verse. When we return from our five-minute break, we’ll take the offering and then we’ll celebrate The Lord’s Supper. Do you know what it means that you have been redeemed?
FIVE MINUTE BREAK NOBODY Casting Crowns
TODAY’S BIBLE LESSON - Are You a Builder or a Destroyer of Community?
God the Father loves all of His creatures unconditionally…and He loves us so much that He gave His Son to save us. Let this be the year…no, let this be the decade that we are not conflicted about giving. Let this be the time in our lives when we realize what God is able to do with what we give. Let us realize how important giving is to making life an amazing experience for others. Be generous with the gifts your Lord has given you. Let’s welcome up Deacon Denny Goodall with the offering message.
THE OFFERING Deacon Denny Goodall
OFFERING VERSE
HEBREWS 12:15 See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God…that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled…
OFFERING VERSE
COLOSSIANS 3:13 …bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone…just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you forgive.
OFFERING SONG THERE IS NONE LIKE YOU David Bauer, Instrumental
THE LORD’S SUPPER CELEBRATION At the Cross, the Lord Jesus Christ Gave Us the Gift of Redemption
Welcome to The Lord’s Supper Celebration, the most intimate expression of our love for the Lord Jesus Christ in The Christian Way of Living. The Lord demonstrates His desire for a deep, intimate and personal relationship with His believers by creating a way to keep on sharing His body and His blood with us, just as He did with His apostles on the night before His death. Luke, Chapter 22, Verses 14 to 16…
LUKE 22:14 When the hour had come (and His crucifixion was near) … the Lord Jesus Christ reclined at the Passover table…and the apostles reclined with Him.
LUKE 22:15 And the Lord said to the apostles, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover meal with you before I suffer … ”
LUKE 22:16 “…for I say to you I (the Lord Jesus Christ) shall never again eat this Passover meal until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God the Father.”
In First Corinthians, Chapter 11, Verse 26, the apostle Paul says, on behalf of the Lord…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 11:26 …as often as you eat this bread (representing His body)…and as often as you drink this cup (representing His blood)…as part of the Lord’s Supper Celebration …you proclaim as a reality and you announce the significance of the Lord Jesus Christ’s death on the Cross…and His resurrection from the dead…until He comes again at the second coming.
The Lord’s Supper Celebration is a time when the resident members of this congregation join hands through the miles with our non-resident members, and we demonstrate our unity by remembering our Lord together. This is a celebration for which we set aside time. We don’t do it on the move.
During the Lord's Supper Celebration, Jesus wants His believers to look back to the Cross for a moment. He wants us to REMEMBER how He rescued us from the kingdom of darkness. He wants us to REMEMBER the sacrifice of shedding His blood to cover our sins. He wants us to REMEMBER the deliverance to the resurrection life He orchestrated, bringing us into His kingdom of light. Most of all, the Lord wants His believers to look forward with ANTICIPATION that He is coming again.
As believers in Christ, when we celebrate The Lord’s Supper, we ask ourselves in reflection, “What did the Lord Jesus Christ do for us at the Cross?” At the Cross, the Lord Jesus Christ gave us the gift of redemption.
There are many gifts you have that you don’t use. Perhaps you have a gym membership but you never go to the gym…perhaps you have a benefit on one of your credit cards that you aren’t even aware of…maybe you have a friend who could help you through a life dilemma, but you’re too proud to call. We have several gifts from God that we don’t use as well…gifts we don’t stop to reflect on…gifts that offer us divine power in times of human weakness…redemption is one such gift.
When you think of the word REDEEM, you probably think of it being something you do when you are given a gift card. Or maybe you think it is something you do with a coupon at a grocery store. You may even think it's something you do after you make a mistake…you redeem yourself. I always chuckle a bit when people use this last definition because in the spiritual realm, YOU CAN'T REDEEM YOURSELF. So, there are many definitions of the word redeem, but the one that seems to fit the spiritual life best is this one…
REDEEM To obtain the release of a captive by paying a ransom
That’s exactly what the Lord Jesus Christ’s work at the Cross did for every one of us, especially for believers in Christ who have chosen to take advantage of His offer of the free gift of salvation. When we look back at the Cross during the Lord’s Supper Celebration, we remember His work on our behalf at the Cross…Galatians, Chapter 3, Verse 13 says…
GALATIANS 3:13 Jesus Christ REDEEMED US from the curse of the Mosaic Law…having become a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”—(cursed is everyone who is crucified)…
Jesus Christ was sentenced to a death reserved for the most despicable members of society. Well, we've heard this verse before…but what does it mean to be redeemed?
Everyone who commits personal sin…just one…is under the curse of the Law because they have broken divine law. Only one person has lived without committing a personal sin…Jesus Christ. Hebrews, Chapter 4, Verse 15…
HEBREWS 4:15 For we believers in Christ do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses…we have a high priest who has been tempted in all things just as we are, yet He is without sin.
In fact, even before any of us committed our own personal sins, we were under the curse of Adam’s sin because Adam is the father of everyone in the human race…Romans, Chapter 5, Verse 12…
ROMANS 5:12 Therefore, just as through one man (Adam) sin entered into the world…and spiritual death through sin…and so spiritual death spread to all men because all were considered to have sinned when Adam sinned—
Adam’s sin carried with it a curse…First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verse 22 says…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:22a …all in union with Adam at physical birth (and that is every human being) are set to die the second death in the Lake of Fire…
Adam’s sin, passed on to us at physical birth, brought with it the curse of spiritual death. As a result of Adam’s sin, and as a result of our own personal sins, all of us are in slavery to sin according to our Lord. John, Chapter 8, Verse 34…
JOHN 8:34 The Lord Jesus Christ (said to a group of Jewish unbelievers) …“Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.”
Slaves are not free. Slaves of sin are spiritually dead and are sentenced to the Lake of Fire.
The condition of being born into the slavery of sin at physical birth IS NOT YOUR FAULT…but it is your circumstance.
Just as He does with all of our problems, the Lord volunteered to take care of our sin problem. At the Cross, the Lord Jesus Christ REDEEMED us. He purchased us from slavery to sin and He set us free from the burden of our sins – because God has forgiven all our trespasses. Ephesians, Chapter 1, Verses 7 and 8…
EPHESIANS 1:7 In union with Christ, we believers in Christ have REDEMPTION through His Blood …the forgiveness of our trespasses…according to the glorious riches of His grace…
EPHESIANS 1:8 …which the Lord lavished on us…
The Lord paid for our sins the only way sin can be paid for…with His blood…First Peter, Chapter 1, Verses 18 and 19…
FIRST PETER 1:18 …you were not REDEEMED with perishable things like silver or gold from the futile way of life you inherited from your forefathers…
FIRST PETER 1:18 …but you were redeemed with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.
The Lord's blood is a higher price than money, and He paid it willingness to save us from our sins. It's a gift we must not take lightly. Hebrews, Chapter 9, Verse 22 says…
HEBREWS 9:22 And according to the Mosaic Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (of sins).
God the Father participated in our redemption as well…Colossians, Chapter 1, Verses 13 and 14…
COLOSSIANS 1:13 For God the Father rescued us believers in Christ from the dominion of darkness (Satan’s rule and authority) … and He transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son (under the rulership of the Lord…Jesus Christ) …
COLOSSIANS 1:14 …in union with whom we have (the gift of) REDEMPTION…the forgiveness of sins.
The Lord Jesus Christ rescued us from slavery to sin so that instead, we could produce the fruit of the Spirit…Galatians, Chapter 5, Verses 22 and 23…
GALATIANS 5:22 But the fruit of God the Holy Spirit is love, joy, peace (toward self)… patience, kindness, goodness (toward others)…faithfulness…
GALATIANS 5:22 …gentleness, self-control (toward God)…there is no law against practicing such virtues.
Titus, Chapter 2, Verses 13 and 14…
TITUS 2:13 …(as believers in Christ we are) looking forward to the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus…
TITUS 2:14 …who gave Himself for us…to REDEEM us from every lawless deed (sins)…and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession…people eager to do good deeds.
When God does things, they are finished for all time! Hebrews, Chapter 9, Verses 11 to 14…
HEBREWS 9:11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not a tabernacle made with human hands (as in the Old Testament) … that is to say, not of this creation…
HEBREWS 9:12 …and not through the blood of goats and calves…but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, (by His blood) having obtained eternal redemption.
HEBREWS 9:13 For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled (were effective to) sanctify for the (outward) cleansing of the flesh…
HEBREWS 9:14 …how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal God, the Holy Spirit, offered Himself without blemish to God the Father…(inwardly) cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
At the Cross, the Lord gave us the gift of redemption. You don’t have to redeem yourself…you have already been redeemed by God. So, the next time you are reflecting on how inadequate you are…when someone or something invites you to feel bad about yourself…just call to mind what the Lord thinks of you. The Lord loves you so much that He shed His blood to REDEEM you. God’s opinion, not human opinion, is the opinion that matters. God’s gifts are the ones that lift our souls.
THE LORD’S SUPPER CELEBRATION Enjoying the Elements
Obeying God’s command, we keep on celebrating Christ and His Cross regularly. We eat to remember who He is as a PERSON. We drink to remember His WORK on the Cross…the voluntary sacrifice He made to deliver us. We remember with gratitude what God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ have done to save us. Matthew, Chapter 26, Verses 26 to 28…
MATTHEW 26:26 While they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take…eat…this is My body (which is being broken for you).”
MATTHEW 26:27 And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you…”
MATTHEW 26:28 “…for this is My blood…the blood of a new testament (a new covenant)… blood poured out for many for the forgiveness of their sins.”
As you enjoy the bread and the cup, REMEMBER the Cross, and the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who hung there. Let us keep on giving thanks that we are loved unconditionally, that we are forgiven, and that we are accepted fully by a Lord who is always there for us…the One on whom we can depend. Let’s keep on being transformed by His life…His death…His burial…His resurrection from the dead…and His Word.
SONG INTRO
The Lord Jesus Christ is our redeemer…at the Cross, He purchased us from slavery to sin with His blood. Perhaps Job says it best in Job, Chapter 19, Verse 25…
JOB 19:25 “As for me, I (Job) know that my Redeemer lives…and at the last He will take His stand on the earth.”
Here’s June Murphy to sing MY REDEEMER LIVES.
LORD’S SUPPER SONG MY REDEEMER LIVES June Murphy
GOD WANTS YOU! Make the Most Important Decision of Your Life
The closing moments of our study are for the benefit of anyone who does not have a personal relationship with the Sovereign God of the Universe, the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We want you to know that GOD WANTS YOU.
What do you believe about God?
Many people have beliefs about God. A belief is an opinion or a conviction or a confidence in the existence of something that does not seem provable. Everything with God is provable. There is no need for blind faith with God! He reveals Himself in ways that make sense to human beings. If He didn't, what kind of God would He be? What would make Him worthy of our worship?
Satan, the enemy of God, prefers we have beliefs because he knows there is a big difference between beliefs and truth. Only when your beliefs and the truth are the same are your beliefs significant. Satan hates the truth. Why? He can’t handle the truth!
What many people believe is that they can impress God so much that He will let them into heaven because of their good deeds and religious practices. So, they give money to beggars… they give food to the homeless …they are actively involved in community projects…they generously donate their time, talent, and treasure to charitable organizations…they "give back." You've heard that the term "give back" used countless times. People who “give back” usually are convinced they are good people, impressive to God because they “give back.” Many think they are so good, that after they die God will reward them by letting them into heaven for their good deeds.
The bible tells a completely different story. Titus, Chapter 3, Verse 5…
TITUS 3:5 The Lord Jesus Christ saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in self-righteousness, but according to His mercy…by the washing of regeneration and through renewing by God the Holy Spirit…
Ephesians, Chapter 2, Verses 8 and 9…
EPHESIANS 2:8 For by God’s grace you have been saved through faith (in Christ for salvation) … and that grace and that faith and that salvation are not from the source of yourselves…it is the gift of God….
EPHESIANS 2:9 …so being saved is not as a result of your works (deeds you have done in self-righteousness) … so that no one may boast (about saving himself).
One thing you would never want is to put the burden of your salvation on your own back. So, if you can’t get into heaven from doing good deeds, what is the truth about how to get God to let you into heaven? The one way…the ONLY way to get to heaven is through the Lord Jesus Christ… John, Chapter 14, Verse 6…
JOHN 14:6 Jesus said to the doubting apostle, Thomas, “I am the way (to salvation), and I am the truth (through the Word of God), and I am the resurrection life…and no one comes to God the Father (in heaven) but through believing in Me.”
The apostle Paul describes this amazing Messiah…the Christ…in First Corinthians, Chapter 15, Verses 3 and 4…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:3 For I (Paul) delivered to you as of first importance the gospel message I also received…that Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures…
FIRST CORINTHIANS 15:4 …and that He was buried…and that He was raised from the dead on the third day…according to the Scriptures…
It's wise to let God save you because once God does something, it can't be undone…and God never changes His mind. So, heed the warning in John, Chapter 3, Verse 36…
JOHN 3:36 “He who believes in the Son has the resurrection life right at that moment… but he who does not obey the command to believe in the Son will not see the resurrection life…instead the wrath of God (the Lake of Fire) abides on him.”
When we choose to believe that Jesus Christ is God, it is much more than a belief…it is the absolute truth! When we choose to believe that Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven, it’s more than a belief…it’s the absolute truth! So how can you get to heaven when you close your eyes in this life? Romans, Chapter 10, Verses 9 and 10…
ROMANS 10:9 …if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord (that He is God)…and if you believe in your heart that God the Father raised Him from the dead… you will be saved…
ROMANS 10:10 …for with the heart a person believes…resulting in the imputation of absolute righteousness by God (your admission ticket to heaven) … and with the mouth a person confesses (admitting faith in Christ alone) resulting in salvation.
Acts, Chapter 16, Verse 31…
ACTS 16:31 “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and everyone in your household who also believes.”
John, Chapter 3, Verse 17…
JOHN 3:17 For God the Father did not send God the Son (the Lord…who took on human form as Jesus Christ) into the world to judge the world…but God the Father sent God the Son into the world that the world might be saved through Him.
Take the free gift of eternal life right now! There’s no time to waste! God wants you. Why bother working for your salvation with good deeds when it’s a free gift. Let the Lord Jesus Christ’s work at the Cross “give back” to you!
SONG INTRO
The Lord Jesus Christ is the still point in a turning universe…He is the center of our concern…or as June Murphy sings…MY WORLD REVOLVES ‘ROUND JESUS CHRIST!
CLOSING SONG MY WORLD REVOLVES ‘ROUND JESUS CHRIST June Murphy
CLOSING PRAYER Let us pray...
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