Three Characteristics Christ Expects

In Ministers and All Christians

Characteristic #1 Faithfulness

By Pastor David L. Brown, Ph.D.

First Baptist Church of Oak Creek Wisconsin

www.FirstBaptistChurchOC.org

1Corinthians19.03102013

Text: 1 Corinthians 4:1-6 “Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. 3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man's judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self. 4 For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord. 5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God. 6  And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and to Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think of men above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another.”

Cheap Crosses

I have a two volume commentary of the New Testament, by Warren Wiersbe, in my office titled The Bible Exposition Commentary: An Exposition of the New Testament Comprising the Entire “Be” Series. In the section on Philippians the author tells the story of a missionary attending a religious festival in Brazil. As he went from booth to booth checking out the wares he, observed a sign above one booth: "Cheap Crosses." The missionary thought, that’s what many Christian are looking for today…cheap crosses.

I rather think that many who profess to know Christ do want a cheap cross and discount discipleship. We claim the name “Christian” but we do not want to pay the price required for living for Christ. I am reminded of what our Lord said in Luke 9:23 “…If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.” Willing sacrifice is a part of being a follower of Christ!

Outline

In 1 Corinthians 4, the Apostle Paul points out - Three Characteristics That Are To Be Present In Ministers of Christ & All Christians. He explains each point by using a different picture for each -  

        The Characteristic – The Picture

·        Faithfulness – The Steward (vs. 1-6)

·        Humbleness – The Spetacle (vs. 7-13)

·        Tenderness – The Father (vs. 14-21)

Today’s Focus

·        Faithfulness – The Steward (vs. 1-6)

“Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.

ü Ministers of Christ (v.1a)

I want to begin by looking at two words that we find in verse 1. The first is ministers. What comes into your mind when you hear that word? I dare say, unless you already know what the underlying Greek word is, your thoughts will not even be close to what the word really means. The word ministers is a translation of the Greek word υπηρετας (huperetas). It literally means “an under-rower.” That is a slave who rowed on the lower level the huge Roman galleys (ships).

So what I Paul saying? As the preacher, I am not the captain of the ship (my life or this church)! As a Christian, you are NOT the captain of the ship (your life for this church)! We are ALL under-rowers of the Captain of our Salvation [Hebrews 2:10], Jesus Christ! He is the Head of the Church (Colossians 1:18) and is to be the King of our lives (Romans 12:1-2).

That is exactly what Paul is saying in verse 1 – “Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers (under-rowers) of Christ….” Christ is the one who calls out the orders and we are the ones who put forth the effort to carry out those orders as we have received them in the Old & New Testament.

To serve Christ is to serve His Word, which is the revelation of His will. A servant of Christ then is a servant or galley slave of the Scripture. His function is to obey the commands of God that are revealed in His Word!

This is equally true for all believers, NOT just the pastor! We are not captains of our ship (our life), but galley slaves who are under orders of our Master, Jesus Christ who bought us! (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 & 1 Corinthians 7:23).

A Pastor must first, above all else, be a servant of Christ. Christ sets the agenda. In everything he is to be subject to the Chief Shepherd. While pastors are called to serve men, they are NOT called to be servants of men or men-pleasers but serve men according to Christ’s directives. Galatians 1:10 says, “For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.”

All believers are called to serve others but they do that through the grid of the Scriptures.

Let’s move on to the second word -

ü Stewards Of The Mysteries of God (v.1b)

The word stewards is a translation of the Greek word οἰκονόμος –oikonómos which literally means “house manager.” A steward is a servant who manages everything for his master, but who himself owns nothing.

The best illustration of what a steward does is Joseph of old. He  was a chief steward in Potiphar’s household (Genesis 39:1-23 – key vs. 4-6).

Let’s zero in on how this stewardship applies today. The church is the “household of faith” (Galatians 6:10), and the ministers are stewards who share God’s wealth with the family. Paul called this spiritual wealth “the mysteries of God.” The “mysteries of God” refer to those things that were hidden from the understanding of those who lived in the Old Testament, that is the Gospel message and the teaching of the New Testament (see 1 Corinthians 2:7-10). As ministers we are entrusted with the Gospel and it is our duty to –

1) Expound It –Preach it and teach it (2 Timothy 4:2).

2) Apply It – Make know the pardon and forgiveness available to those who will repent and be saved (Acts 20:20-21) .

3) Defend It – Expose the false gospels and false teaching (Jude 1:3)

That brings us to the FIRST characteristic that God expects will be present in each Pastor and also each Christisan - FAITHFULNESS! 1 Corinthians 4:2 “Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.”

A steward is expected to act in the interest of the master, not his own interest. A steward is not always closely supervised, but he is always expected to work diligently. The key responsibility of the steward is to be faithful to his master. A steward may not please the members of the household; he may not even please some of the other servants; but if he pleases his own master, he is a good steward. This same idea is expressed in Romans 14:4 “Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.”

Faithfulness is to be the characteristic of not only the Pastor but also the people, believers. How does your life stack up in that area? Are you looking for a “cheap cross” and “discount discipleship?” Or are you taking up your cross daily and following Christ?

The Enemies of The Cross of Christ

The Preaching of The Cross

Part #3 – The Enemies of The Cross of Christ

by Pastor David L. Brown, Ph.D.

First Baptist Church of Oak Creek Wisconsin

www.FirstBaptistChurchOC.org                                          www.sermonaudio.com/fbcoc

Blog – http://SaltLightTruth.blogspot.com          Twitter – www.twitter.com/drdavidlbrown

Facebook –www.facebook.com/DrDavid.Brown

Email – FirstBaptistChurchOC@gmail.com

1Corinthians 07.10072012

1 Corinthians 1:18 “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.”

 

Review

 

Last week we began looking at Paul’s Doctrine of the Cross. It was so important to him that he mentions it 10 times in his letters. Let’s review what we have covered -

 

·       1 Corinthians 1:17 “For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.”

·       1 Corinthians 1:18 “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.”

·       Galatians 5:11 “And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased.

·       Galatians 6:12 “As many as desire to make a fair shew in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised; only lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ.

·       Galatians 6:14 “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.”

·       Ephesians 2:14-16 “For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; 15  Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; 16  And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:”

·       Philippians 2:6-8 “Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”

 

TODAY

 

 There are three passages left that round out Paul’s Doctrine of The Cross --

 

·       Philippians 3:18 “they are the enemies of the cross of Christ:”

·       Colossians 1:19-22 “For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;   20  And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.   21  And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled   22  In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:”

·       Colossians 2:13-14 “And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;   14  Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;”

 

We will look at just one of them today.

 

·       Philippians 3:17-19 “Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample.   18  (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ:   19  Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)”

 

Paul is giving the Philippian believers a “heads up!” He is saying, look out! Beware of The Enemies of The Cross of Christ. The first question is, who are “the enemies of the Cross of Christ?” To be sure there are enemies of the Cross of Christ outside the church. However, I think Paul’s primary focus are the enemies that are within the professing church. I think there are two varieties of enemies of the Cross of Christ WITHIN the church. First there are the tares & second there are the carnal/worldly Christians.

 

Let’s consider the tares first. We must always remember that there are tares planted among the wheat. The enemy, the Devil, plants them there. And the thing is, the tares look like wheat (Matthew 13:24 & ff). Paul clearly had firsthand experience with this problem He talks about being “in perils among false brethren” in 2 Corinthians 11:26. We have even experienced that here on several occasions during my 30 plus years of ministry at this church! Basically, Paul is warning the Philippians of the same thing our Lord warned about in Matthew 7:15 “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.”

 

In this passage Paul tries to help them distinguish between sheep and wolves; between lovers of the Cross of Christ and Enemies of the Cross of Christ. He does this by pointing to himself - “Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample.” Philippians 3:17

 

Paul points to himself as a role model. The Greek word translated “be We followers together” is συμμιμηται – summimetai (soom-mim-ay-tay'). In this compound word mimetai means to mimic or be an imitator and sum means together with. What Paul is saying by the use of this word is as I am a follower of Christ; join with me in following Him. Further, the idea is, imitate me no farther than as I imitate Christ. He articulates this very specifically in 1 Corinthians 11:1 “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.”

 

The second enemy within the church is the carnal/worldly Christian.

 

The carnal/worldly Christian is a spiritual adulterer! Being a friend of the world makes the carnal/worldly Christian the enemy of God. James 4:4 attests to that! “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” The worldly Christian brings reproach upon Christ and even causes the name of Christ to be blasphemed among the unsaved! (Titus 2:5).

 

Having said that, the end of those who Paul is exposing is said to be destruction, which is a translation of the Greek word απωλεια – apoleia, which can mean loss of wellbeing, such as being a castaway such as Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 9:27, or it can also refers to the state after death wherein exclusion from salvation is a realized fact.

 

So, it is wolves in sheep’s clothing and or carnal/worldly Christians that Paul issues his warning about in Philippians 3:18-19 “(For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19 Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)” He points out characteristics of “the enemies of the cross of Christ.”

 

! “whose God is their belly”

! “whose glory is their shame”

! “who mind earthly things.”

 

Let’s examine them one at a time:

 

! “whose God is their belly”

 

The first characteristic of these enemies of the Cross of Christ is that they are self-indulgent and live for sensual gratification. Their focus is on the sensual gratification of their appetites, whether food, drink, games, or sex. It is all about them! They are not interested in serving others! They are self-focused. All they care about is themselves and making provisions for their own gratification. They are “lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God”

 

They make a god their belly, pleasing their own desires, and all their care is to please those desires and make provision for them. (2 Timothy 3:4). Romans 16:18a says, “For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly….”  

 

Old Dr. Harry Ironside wrote – “Heedless of their eternal destiny, these enemies of the cross go on in their folly, indifferent to the admonitions of Scripture, conscience, and the Holy Spirit. They are also indifferent to the warnings and entreaties of men of God who, like Paul have chosen the better part and know whereof they speak. Casting all godly counsel and sound advice to the winds, these flamboyant fools sport on the edge of a moral precipice, display their heedlessness and folly before everyone, glory in their shame, and exult in that which should cause them to bow in penitent grief before redeeming mercy.”

 

That brings me to the next point…

 

! “whose glory is their shame”

Ironically these who profess to be Christians prided themselves in the things they should have been ashamed of. They brag about things of which they ought to be embarrassed about. They indulge in modes of living which ought to be utterly embarrassed of. Paul warned the Galatians believers not to be carnal and, “use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh.” Galatians 5:13. Jude warns of false believers in the church who promote, in the name of God’s grace, living lives of self-indulgent sensual gratification -  “For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.”

 

Any way you slice it, these false believers or carnal believers are the enemies of the cross of Christ.

 

That brings me to the third and final characteristic –

 

! “who mind earthly things.”

 

The whole study and attention of these tares and carnal/worldly Christians are taken up with earthly matters; they are given to the flesh and its lusts; they have no true spirituality, despite their religious façade. But their lasciviousness and uncleanness seem to be principally intended.  

As despicable as these people were, the apostle’s heart was deeply pained on their account. He wept over them! There are 3 reasons why -

1.   Because they held and taught a false doctrine;

2.   Because they perverted many by that teaching; and,

3.   Because they themselves were perishing through it.

 

There are tares among the wheat in Bible believing churches. There are wolves posing in sheep’s clothing, even in this church! The devil has planted them here! I am reminded of Matthew 7:21 “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.” When these false Christians stand before the Lord, what will He say? – “And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” Matthew 7:23 

 

And what of the carnal believers? They too are the enemies of Christ! At the Bema Seat judgment, it will be a sad, sad time for them. They will lose all their rewards…but be saved. (1 Corinthians 3:13-15).

 

Are you the Enemy of The Cross of Christ? Are you a carnal/worldly Christian? Or do you profess Christ and not possess Him? Either way, repent and get right with God!

 

"He who provides for this life, but takes no care for eternity, is wise for a moment, but a fool forever!" Tillotson

BEWARD OF SWEARING: BE SURE YOU KEEP YOUR WORD - James 5:12

 

Beware of Swearing: Be Sure To Keep Your Word

by Pastor David L. Brown. Ph.D.

First Baptist Church of Oak Creek Wisconsin

www.FirstBaptistChurchOC.org www.sermonaudio.com/fbcoc

Facebook –www.facebook.com/DrDavid.Brown

Email – FirstBaptistChurchOC@gmail.com

James 45.03252012

Text: James 5:12

Introduction

We continue on with our study of Practical Biblical Principles That Believers Are To Practice In Their Daily Lives. Today’s principle is – Beware of Swearing (taking an oath): Be Sure To Keep Your Word.

Review

One of the key themes of the letter is James’ admonition on the proper use of the tongue.

First, believers are encouraged to listen carefully, think before we speak and not to easily get angry in James 1:19 “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:”

Second, in that same chapter, we read in verse 26 that the person who claims to be “religious” (pious or godly) and yet does not bridle or control his or her tongue is lying to themselves and not godly at all. Their profession of godliness is vain (empty). Hence, control your tongue.

Third, in James 3:1-12, James explains the power of the tongue. The tongue has the power to direct, the power to destroy and the power to delight. We are to use our tongues to direct in a godly direction and to delight (encourage).

Fourth, in a recent message focusing on James 5:9 we are exhorted not to grumble!

Now we come to today’s admonition relating to the proper use of our tongue.

ü Beware of Swearing (taking an oath): Be Sure To Keep Your Word

James 5:12 “But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.”

·        What “Swearing” Is NOT In This Passage

In the context of James 5:12, the word swear is not referring to how we commonly use the English word today. When we refer to someone swearing we are talking about using the so-called four-letter words, dirty talk, illicit speech, filthy jokes, talk with double sensual meanings, etc.

This kind of talk IS certainly wrong. Paul exhorted the Ephesians; “Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” Ephesians 4:29. The things mentioned above are certainly corrupt communication. Another applicable verse is Ephesians 5:4 “Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.”

Further, when we talk about swearing, it is understood to mean, “taking the Lord’s name in vain.” The third Commandment says, “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.” Exodus 20:7  (Deuteronony 5:11; Pslam 139:20).

I want to explain what taking the Lord’s name in vain means. It means to use God, Jesus or the Holy Spirit’s name in an irreverent, flippant, trifling, disrespectful way. It means to make it common, cheap, and insignificant.

When you use the Lord’s name like a throw-away word like the utterance of “God!” or “Jesus!” or “Jesus Christ!” you are taking the Lord’s name in vain! When you damn someone or something in God’s name you are taking the Lord’s name in vain! Further, you are taking the Lord’s name in vain when you say, “O my God!” or OMG! 

In fact we are to revere the name of God! His name is Holy. In fact the Jews never even pronounced the name Jehovah, the Covenant name of God. It was a capital crime to use the name of God irreverently in the Old Testament. Leviticus 24:16 says “And he that blasphemeth the name of the LORD, he shall surely be put to death, and all the congregation shall certainly stone him: as well the stranger, as he that is born in the land, when he blasphemeth the name of the LORD, shall be put to death.”

There is a higher name than Jehovah! Turn to Philippians 2:9-11 “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

To use the name of Jesus in a common way is sin of the highest degree! We are to speak of God and Jesus Christ with reverence and respect. We are to delight in His name and honor it.

·        What “Swearing” IS In This Passage

In the context of this passage, “swearing” means making an oath. To “swear” means “to affirm or utter a solemn declaration, with an appeal to God or some other high or holy thing, for the truth of what is affirmed.”

Let me try to explain what is going on here. The Devil is the father of lies according to John 8:44. As one preacher said, “Fallen men are basically inveterate (chronic, confirmed) liars.” In Old Testament times, there were no written contracts, so oaths in the name of God served to attest that what the person said was true. It was to call God to witness to the truth of one’s promise and to invoke His judgment if one defaulted on the promise. It was a very serious matter.

I need to note something here. I like what one commentator said:

“The Bible does not forbid taking oaths, acknowledging that in a world filled with liars there are times when they are necessary. Certainly it is not wrong to take an oath when testifying in court, being ordained, or getting married.”

As I will show in a moment, what I believe James is addressing is the use of ungodly oaths that were designed to deceive.

The Bible gives examples of godly men who took oaths, and in fact, God took an oath (Deuteronomy 29, key verse is 12).

Abraham required his servant to take an oath that he would get Isaac a wife from his relatives and not from the Canaanites (Genesis 24:2-4). The two Israelite spies swore an oath to Rahab (Joshua 2:12-20). David swore an oath to Jonathan (1 Samuel 20:12-17 & 2 Samuel 21:7).

In the New Testament Paul takes an oath before God of his truthfulness (2 Corinthians 1:23 & 11:31). Even an angel swore an oath (Revelation 10:5-6).

God expects a man who vows a vow/oath to keep his word. However, when a girl lived at home and took an oath, her father could nullify it. A wife’s oath/vow could be nullified by her husband (Numbers 30).  

I have said all that to say this: I do not believe that James is laying down a blanket prohibition against all vows/oaths. I believe oaths were and are permitted on serious occasions (like marriage) and only in the name of God. What James is speaking out against is unnecessary and deceitful oaths. The Jews had developed the practice of swearing false, evasive oaths by everything other than the name of Lord. They swore by things other than the Lord for the very purpose of pretending truthfulness while they had no intention of keeping their oath. They knew that an oath in the name of the Lord was the only binding oath. Hence, James says, “But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath…” James 5:12a.

I believe he very likely had in mind the words of the Lord Jesus who was addressing the Jewish practice of false oaths and said:

Matthew 23:16-22 “Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! 17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? 18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. 19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. 21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. 22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.” (see Matthew 5:33-37, key verse 37).

James makes it clear; people of integrity no not need to swear elaborate oaths in an effort to assure others of their truthfulness. And certainly you would not swear an oath to deceive people! Your YES should mean YES and your NO should mean NO! As the Lord said in Matthew 5:37, “for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.”

Be a person of integrity! Keep your word!