January 7 - 1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1 - "That They May be Saved"

MPC 7th January 2018.

Jeremy Wales

January. The time for making New Year's resolutions. That golden time before February. When we forget them all. It's true most of us fail to follow through on our New Year's resolutions. But apparently you are at least much more likely to follow through on them if you do actually decide on them clearly and write them down.

So have you made yours yet? Or still thinking about it? If you need some inspiration you can always Google for recommendations and you'll find ones like these: Best Health's Our Favourite Celebrity Resolutions For 2018 - That You Should Totally Copy

So actress Meghan Markle, recently engaged to Prince Harry, has resolved to stop biting her nails and start watching her language. The latter being particularly important if you're going to be spending more time with the Queen.

Kim Kardashian has resolved to work more consistently. Now, I have to admit, I really don't know what kind of work Kim Kardashian actually does. Isn't she just famous for being famous? But I'm sure that whatever "work" it is it'd be a great thing for the world if she did it more consistently.

Candace Cameron-Bure has resolved to say NO to more things, being more picky about what she commits herself to.

Melissa Joan Hart has resolved to put down her phone and pay more attention to her kids.

Nick Jonas has resolved to travel more.

Alfonso Ribeiro has resolved to love his wife to the fullest every day. Which is nice. Except it does put a lot of pressure on ALL married men to adopt the same resolution!

More achievable is Nick Lachey's resolution which is to eat better and drink less. That's a pretty popular one, actually, especially just after Christmas and New Year's.

And his brother Drew has also resolved to drink less, but not less alcohol, less Diet Coke, he says not because he wants to but because his wife is making him.

Somehow I doubt he'll be adding Alfonso's resolution to his list.

It's pretty clear that different people have very different resolutions. So what makes the difference? I guess it's based on your current goals for your life. If your goal is fitness, you make one resolution. If your goal is career success, you make another resolution. If your goal is lifestyle, you make another. If your goal is relationship, you make another.

So then I wonder, what are your resolutions this year?

Whatever they are, I bet they say a lot about your current goals for your life. Which is interesting to think about.

Because when we read Paul's letter to the Christians in Corinth, we find Paul saying something pretty radical. We find Paul saying that EACH OF US should actually have the same main goal for our lives.

Last year we summarised the gospel, the good news about Jesus, in Tweet-form: The One Who Died For Sin is King. And Paul says here that if you believe this gospel message then it actually gives you your main goal in life.

A main goal that will help you set priorities for the new year. A goal that will actually shape every decision you ever make.

And you can see that goal there in v33. v33 Paul says I don't seek my own good, but the good of many, so that they may be saved.

Now, did you notice the contrast there with the celebrity New Year's resolutions? Most were for the celebrity's own good. Which of course is perfectly natural and normal for most people. But listen to Paul and the difference the gospel makes to him. His goal for his life isn't self-centred, it's other-centred. It's to see as many people as possible saved by hearing the gospel, the greatest good anyone can receive.

And in case you think that's just Paul's goal as a missionary, a full-time minister, Paul says NO, this is the goal for everyone who believes the gospel. See what he says to all the Christians in Corinth in the very next verse. Paul says: I don't seek my own good, but the good of many, so that they may be saved AND THEN ALL OF YOU... follow my example.

Paul makes it clear it's not just for missionaries and ministers. It's for everyone who believes the gospel. Your number one priority in life, the goal that should shape all your resolutions, all your decisions, is that ultimate good: people getting saved by Jesus.

Now it would be reasonable to wonder: Does that really have to be the life goal that results just from believing the gospel? Can't you just believe the gospel, and then still have other goals in life that are more important to you? It's a reasonable question.

To which Paul says NO, not really, not long term, not once the gospel has really sunk in for you. And here's the reason: think about what the gospel itself is all about. Remember: The one who died for sin is King. See, Jesus is the King of universe who came into this world he made. Why did he do that? For his own good???

Jesus came to be rejected by his own nation Israel, to be abandoned by his best friends, to be tortured and executed by the Roman empire on the cross. And why did he do that? For his own good?

He did it to take the punishment we deserve for abandoning the God who made us. He did it for us, for our salvation. The gospel itself is all about Jesus putting others' salvation ahead of himself. And you can't really embrace that message without also embracing that model of other-centredness.

Or to put it the other way, if you're not yet embracing that model then you haven't really embraced the message. Not yet anyway. That's why Paul says follow my example, see that there ch11v1, as I follow the example of Christ.

I've been watching a LOT of cricket this summer, especially the Ashes. Arguably I've watched a lot more than I should have. And I think just watching so much cricket has had a curious effect on me. The last time I went to the park to play cricket with the kids, my bowling had improved remarkably since last time. Now, I'm not saying I'm threatening to break into the test side, but it's improved to the point that now the majority of my deliveries, by a clear margin, are now landing on the pitch. What could possibly explain this dramatic transformation? Well, it's not practice. It's not lessons. I think it's just watching so much cricket.

It's like the more you watch, the more you take in the players' actions, their rhythms, their focus, and it starts to rub off on you. And I think something similar happens when you contemplate Jesus in the gospel. The more you contemplate that the one who died for sin is King, the more you realise how great it is that Jesus is all about other people's salvation, and so the more you too will be all about other people's salvation as well.

Of course, when you look at the example of Jesus himself, it can seem a long way off from where you're at. Jesus is the actual content of the gospel and we're just its recipients. So how exactly are we meant to put other people's salvation first in our lives? This is where it's helpful that Paul doesn't just give the example of Jesus. In ch9 he gives his own example as well, so we can see what it's meant to look like in practice for us. But be warned, what it looks like for Paul, and so for us, is still pretty radical!

So the first example Paul gives of putting others' salvation ahead of his own good is financial. And Paul doesn't do half measures. See Paul's a full-time preacher. So he should earn his living from the people he preaches to. By rights he should. But he doesn't accept money from the Corinthians. Why not? Not because it'd be wrong to do so. He says repeatedly he has the right to do so. No, Paul actually gives up his entire salary, v12, because he doesn't want people to get the wrong impression that he's only in it for the money!

Paul gives up what he has every right to, what would be best for him, if only it might help someone else come to a saving knowledge of Jesus in the gospel. On the model of Jesus, that's how important their salvation is to him.

And it's not just this decision about money. This priority of other people's salvation actually influences his decisions about everything, including what he eats. This is where those famous words of Paul come in: 19 Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, WHY? to win as many as possible. See that's his life goal that shapes every decision he makes. To win people to salvation in Jesus. So he says v20: To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law.

So when he's celebrating Hanukkah with his Jewish mates in Jerusalem, he doesn't bring a prawn platter, a leg of ham, pork crackling or anything else forbidden in their law. Even though he himself is completely free from their law. Even though those are perhaps the most delicious foods on the planet. No, he'll eat kosher like them. Why? Because his is first priority is connecting with people so they can connect with Jesus.

But then he says he'll adapt and decide differently when he's outside Jerusalem with Gentiles. v21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I'm not free from God's law but under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. See he'll happily eat their Gentile food and practice their Gentile customs, because his first priority is connecting with people so they can connect with Jesus. He says v22: I have become all things to all people... WHY? So that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel.

See the gospel message doesn't change. It's always: The one who died for sin is King. The gospel message doesn't change, but gospel messenger always changes. Doing whatever it takes to help people hear and accept that gospel message.

This is what it looks like in practice when Paul says, 10:33 in our reading, I'm not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved. This is what Paul's talking about when he tells all Christians to follow his example just as he follows the example of Jesus who died to save us. Paul has lots of freedom to exercise his rights, to get paid a fair salary, to eat what he wants to eat. But he'll choose to forgo anything, not matter how beneficial to himself, if it'll help bring someone else closer to Jesus. Because, on the model of Jesus, that's what matters most to him.

My daughter Joanna has coeliac disease, which means she's extremely allergic to gluten, the major protein in wheat. But I, on the other hand, LOVE gluten. It's awesome. Gluten is what makes French bread sticks French bread sticks. So what do I do? Well, it's actually not such a tough decision really. Because more than than the taste of French bread, I want a relationship with my daughter. I don't want to accidentally poison her with a gluten crumb, so the choice is obvious. Without even thinking I give up my preference for French bread sticks when I'm at home. It's not because French bread sticks are somehow wrong. It's not because I like gluten-free so-called bread more than them. Far from it! But I'll happily give up my bread preference to get my deeper, stronger preference for eating with and connecting with my daughter.

Well, Paul says that's what it's like when you get the gospel. When it sinks in that the one who died for sin is King. Of course you'll have all these preference of your own. For how you dress, how you talk, what you eat, what you drink, what you watch, what your read, what you listen to, what you do with your time in general. And unless they're against God in some way there's nothing wrong with those preferences. But then you'll happily give them all up to get your deeper, stronger preference. The preference you learned from Jesus' example.

The preference for connecting with other people in the hope that you might, one day, maybe, help them connect with Jesus too. The last thing you'll want to do is risk even an outside chance of poisoning someone against Jesus just to meet one of those lesser preferences. Because on the model of Jesus, you'll care more about their salvation than anything else.

So we've seen the example of Jesus in putting first the salvation of others. And we've seen the kind of issues where the rubber hit the road for Paul. What to do about money. What to eat. Who to associate with. So where does the rubber hit the road for you? I wonder if reflecting on the model of Jesus and how Paul followed it... putting others' salvation before himself... I wonder if it sparked any ideas for how you should change this year.

It might be helpful as we finish to just briefly look again at some of the New Year's resolutions we started with this morning. So we can see how they might be modified if you really believe the one who died for sin is King.

So remember there was the resolution to work harder and more consistently. Well, work is a gift from God. He made it. And how you can be a good example of a Christian to those you work with if you don't pull your weight? So judged by the goal of bringing others closer to Jesus, that's a good resolution.

But then of course so often people end up focussing so much on work they neglect their family. They neglect their church. They neglect their Growth Group. Which really can end up negatively affecting other people's salvation there. But if your driving motivation for working harder really is to bring others closer to Jesus, then when the work starts getting in the way of that goal, it should be easier for you to recognise that and pull back.

Then there was the resolution to say NO to more things, being more picky about what you commit yourself to. Well, that's a great one... especially if the way you decide what to commit to is what will bring people closer to Jesus.

There was the resolution to love your spouse to the fullest every day. That's actually a great one. Just remember that the greatest way to love your spouse is to bring them closer Jesus. And the closer someone gets to Jesus, the more they'll care about other people's salvation. So if you're married, think and pray about this: How can you partner with your spouse this year to help more people get to know Jesus?

And finally there was the resolution to eat better and drink less. Well, there's certainly nothing wrong with looking after the body God's given you. That's a good thing. But in a way, I want to encourage us all to eat and drink more this year. Not in terms of quantity. But in terms of the number of times we eat and drink with other people. Did you notice just how much of Paul's flexing this way and that was just so he could share a meal with them? That's because when we share a meal we tend to share something of ourselves. It forms a connection. And that connection with you might one day help them connect with Jesus.

Now, none of these might be the best resolution for you this year. But if not, then what is? What do you need to do, not just this year but for the rest of your life, to help others be saved by Jesus?