1 Corinthians 9:1-27, Called to Flexibility
Theological Proposition/Focus: The Call of a Christian is to a call to be flexible, to be all things to all people that some might be won to Christ.
Homiletical Proposition/Application:
Introduction:
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Subject: Evangelism, Discipleship, Relationships
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Setting the Stage:
Body
Those called to serve God may live life but that right is subordinate to the Gospel (9:1-11).
For those called to serve God, credentials are secondary to the Gospel (1-2).
Paul uses a series of four Rhetorical questions to present his credentials and their insignificance compared with the Gospel.
Am I not free? Yes, but that freedom is ultimately a freedom to serve Christ.
This is huge. In chapter 8 Paul talked about giving up his rights. Here, now, Paul reminds the Corinthians that he is indeed free. However, that freedom is a freedom not to do whatever he wants, but a freedom to serve the Gospel.
For Paul to be free is actually to be a slave to Christ!
Am I not an apostle? Yes but even that right is subordinate to the Gospel.
There is a sense in which Paul outranked everyone else. What Paul said carried authority, Apostolic authority. However, Paul's rank is still subordinate to the Gospel.
Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Yes, but even direct revelation from Jesus does not qualify someone to supersede the Gospel.
Image: Six degrees of separation and Erdos Numbers.
In 1929 Frigyes Karinthy wrote a short story in which a group of people play a game whereby they attempt to make contact with any person in the world through no more than 5 links in a chain of friends. This concept eventually led to researchers studying the number of links needed to reach anyone in the world. In the world of mathematics, we have what is called the Erdos Number. The Erdos Number is a sort of bragging rights idea of how many co-authors are you away from the famous mathematician Paul Erdos.
If anyone had bragging rights it was Paul, not only had he seen Jesus himself, but Jesus had come to appear to him! Yet in reality those rights were subordinate to the Gospel.
Are you not the result of my work in the Lord?
Paul had led the Corinthians into eternal life they owed him big time! But that was not more important than the Gospel!
For those called to serve God, the right to live a full life secondary to the Gospel (3-6).
For those called to serve God, even their financial well-being is secondary to the Gospel (7-11).
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MTR: Ask yourself, "Am I holding my right to live life as subordinate to the Gospel?"
Those who are called to serve must be willing to give up their rights (9:12-18).
The servant of God must be willing to give up their right be supported (12-15).
The servant of God should serve because they cannot help but serve (16).
The servant of God should feel satisfaction in serving their Lord (17-18).
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===MTR: As yourself, "Am I willing to serve God even if I am asked to give up my rights?"
