Winning Takes Sacrifice

1 Corinthians 9:16-27 and the Call to Preach Without Boasting

I'm going to look back a little bit. Our scripture this morning is 1 Corinthians 9, verses 16 -27. I'm going to back up a couple of verses to help it make sense, starting in verse 14. So also the Lord directed those who proclaim the gospel to get their living from the gospel.

But I have used none of these things, and I am not writing these things so that it will be done so in my case. For it would be better for me to die than have anyone make my boast an empty one. For if I proclaim the gospel, I have nothing to boast, for I am under compulsion.

For woe is me if I do not proclaim the gospel. For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward. But if against my will, I have a stewardship entrusted to me. What then is my reward? That when I proclaim the gospel, I may offer the gospel without charge, so as to not make full use of my authority in the gospel.

For though I am free from all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I may win more. And to the Jews, I became a Jew, so that I might win Jews. To those who are under the law, as under the law, though not being myself under the law, so that I might win those who are under the law.

To those who are without the law, as without law, though not being without the law of God, but under the of Christ, so that I might win those who are without law. To the weak, I became weak, that I might win the weak.

I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some. So I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it. Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize?

Run in such a way that you may win. Now everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible. Therefore, I run in such a way as not without aim.

I box in such a way as not beating the air, but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified. Let's pray. Father, I pray that you would bless the teaching of your word this morning.

It is powerful, living, sharper than a two-edged sword. It pierces through sinew and through bone, and it exposes us. Lord, you know us so well. Your word is a mirror to us, and what we see in it we do not often like.

We see our sin, we see the deceitfulness of our own hearts. Lord, we focus on our weariness, we focus on the cares of the world, and yet you have called us to a greater thing. Lord, you have given your people strength to hold steadfastly to the promises that you have given us.

We do not hope as pagans as those without hope. Our hope is based on the conviction of things unseen. Lord, your word will never fade. It will never go out of style. It will never be corrupted. Instead, your word is life, Lord, and the only life that we cling to comes through it.

Lord, you have saved a people. You have lavished your riches on us. It is unbelievable the grace and the mercy that you have on those you have adopted as sons and daughters. Lord, I pray that you would be with Cory this morning, that you would give power to his words, Lord, that he would cut this text straight, that there would be no wandering, but instead, Lord, that we would see the power of the apostles' words, that we would be strengthened as a church to do as he does, so that, Lord, we would run the race, and that we would not run it in a futile way, but instead that we would throw off all the things that bind us, and we would run with clear hearts, with clean consciences, and, Lord, that we would preach the gospel, making our appeal to all of those who need to hear it so desperately.

And, Lord, I pray that you would prepare the fields before us, that men, women, boys, and girls would hear the power of the gospel, and that they would be saved. Lord, we pray for a harvest in this place.

Lord, in northwest Arkansas, that we would not grow by moving sheep around, but we would grow by converts, and that those converts would become disciples learning everything that you have taught and obeying.

You have the authority to do that, and you have given us that task as your ambassadors. Lord, be with us this morning. Help us to have a confrontation with the Word, and that we would bend to it, that we would be molded to your ideal, that we would be transformed by one degree or another to a likeness of your Son.

It's.

In your precious holy name I pray. Amen. Today's sermon is titled, Winning Takes Sacrifice, and I've finally achieved my goal. As you've known, the last two sermons I have been unsuccessful with having three points, today I've achieved that goal.

Forfeiting Wages for the Sanctification of the Church

Forfeiting wages, forfeiting liberty, forfeiting comfort. We're going to learn today that Paul assures us that we can rest in our rights, but if we wish to accomplish good things for the kingdom, we will at times abandon those rights.

So let's get to the first bit. But I have made no use of any of these rights, nor am I writing these things to secure any such provision, for I would rather die than have anyone deprive me of my ground for boasting.

This is a interesting passage because Josh needed 15 for the punchline, and I needed it for the anchor pin, and so we're double dipping here. So out of this, Paul chastises the Corinthians at large by this point in his letter, and he decides to go for the trump card.

In the passage preached last by Josh, Paul tells the Corinthians that if he is an apostle to some, he is at least an apostle to them. He then turns up the heat from the text that we just read, and makes the bold proclamation that he doesn't and has no intention to take money from the Corinthians, giving him grounds to boast.

How do you argue with the character or authority of someone who has nothing to financially gain from you? Think about this. Paul has just corrected the congregation on factionalism, sexual immorality, eating food sacrificed to idols, divorce, lawsuits, and boasting in self-importance, but daddy came home with some heavy hands, and now he defends his authority with his clear apostleship to the Corinthians, and his clear track record of receiving no material wages from them for his work.

Now, Paul doesn't say this to discredit the rights of the clergy to receive payments for souls. He clarifies that they are in fact due wages for their work, but Paul himself abdicates that for the Corinthians.

Now, just a quick aside, a warning to you all, wolves in the church are always after your money. You are only a means to their glory, power, and financial gain, and Paul can never be accused of this, and he has reasons to boast.

So, we get to verse 16,. For if I preach the gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting, for necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I don't preach the gospel. Paul states that preaching the gospel alone gives him no grounds for boasting.

He even claims that the responsibility is demanded of him. Grief, horror, and despair on his head if he doesn't. Imagine the same responsibility of the Lord giving you a wife and a child, and then you decide to turn your back on them to find yourself.

What great shame we feel for people who do that. What great shame on our own heads if we ever do that. Now, multiply that greatly for Paul. In verse 17, we get,. For if I do this of my own will, I will have a reward, but if not of my own will, I am still entrusted with a stewardship.

Now, something interesting is going on in this passage. If Paul preaches free, now we're saying for free of his own will, he has a reward. What's that reward he talked about? It's boasting. If he isn't willing to forfeit pay, Paul still has been trusted to preach the gospel.

That's the only way this text makes sense. Verse 18,. What then is my reward, that in my preaching I may present the gospel free of charge, so as to not make full use of my right in the gospel. So I want to kind of conclude by wrapping this first point into Paul's circle here.

Paul desires his right to boast. What are the implications if he loses his boast? He would rather die. But those implications are that the Corinthians could disregard his harsh corrections and accuse him of doing this because they gained from him.

Well, Paul only came to the Corinthians in the first place to make some money off of them. You can't accuse Paul of that. He is free and clear of that charge. He now gets to boast. But is it boasting for boasting's sake?

No, no. This leads to their sanctification. See, they can't disregard his corrections on them because he's had nothing to gain. He would rather die than take wages from them and give them grounds to disregard him than for them to hear his correction, knowing that he's trustworthy, that they would be sanctified in all the corrections that he's previously gone over.

What a shepherd! He will forfeit his wages for their sanctification. Josh and I were talking on Monday and he put up this really good point. He said, if the Corinthians weren't guilty of any of these things, if they looked, I'm going to paraphrase, if they looked a bit more like the Thessalonian church, do you think Paul would have had a hard time taking wages from them?

And I don't think so. I think this is clearly for their sanctification. A man for us all to model and revere. So this first point is talking about a forfeiture of wages. So you have a right to wages and Paul is deciding for himself that he's going to forfeit.

And we Americans, we pride ourselves in our rights and in our freedoms, but we might need to get some clarity on what freedom is. I can tell you what modern freedom sounds like and you've probably heard these.

I do what I want, when I want. No one tells me what to do. I just be and let be. Or I just want to be happy and travel. Those are our modern forms of freedom. But how do these measure against scripture?

What's your basis in these against scripture? Do the prophets not tell of the most sinful times being when men did what was good in their own eyes? Where they're defining freedom and they do whatever is good to them.

Yet better men than I have helped us on what the Christian's position of freedom is. John Calvin, we are not our own. Let not our reason nor our will therefore sway our plans and deeds. We are gods. Let us therefore live for him and die for him.

And then Jonathan Edwards said, the liberty of the godly consists in freedom from sin and in a freedom to holiness. Americans are inherently dissenting people. This next one will make our men proud. Our bones out of the womb cry out like Braveheart, freedom.

That's just in us. And that cultural distinction with our people can be a great quality for the gospel or a more damnable pursuit of sin. Be careful. Our freedom from sin means we are free to live in holiness.

So let's get a little bit of application here. What inconveniences will you endure to sanctify your children, wife, or brother? What rights are you thinking that you have? And if you don't rest in those rights and you're inconvenienced, right?

So fathers, are we too tired for family worship once a week? Would you rather be free to watch the game replay? Wives, are you too tired to teach your children the ancient oracles? Would you rather be free to scroll on Instagram?

And a simple charge to children, pray for your parents. So let's get on to point two, forfeiting liberty. For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all that I might win more of them.

Becoming All Things to All People

Paul has the right to be free from obligations to all people, but he makes himself a servant to them all to win some. Martin Luther says, a Christian is a perfectly free Lord of all, subject to none. A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all.

What a dichotomy. Verse 20, the Jews. The Jews, I became as a Jew in order to win Jews. To those under the law, I became as one under the law, though not being myself under the law, that I might win some of those under the law.

Fruit of the evidence of Paul becoming like a Jew is within the congregation that Paul's writing to. Two Pharisees became believers, and they're in this church at this time. Paul was wise to honor the traditions of the Jews, to introduce them to the mystery of God spoken of in the prophets.

Jesus, the King of Kings. And note that Paul separates Jews in this passage from those under the law. He could be talking about one and the same, or I personally think that there were many practitioners of Judaism that were not themselves Jews, but other people of other nations who worshiped God.

Ethiopians are an example of this. Historically, Ethiopians have been faithful to hear God speak and move in his revelation. Their people adopted both Judaism and then Christianity as to be quick to obey the voice of God.

Thank God for the Ethiopians. So this passage could be talking about one and the same, or it could be talking about two different. I have a small aside about this too. It's kind of interesting. I was brainstorming this with Josh.

Paul may have had some strategy in pursuing the Jews in synagogues before the Gentiles elsewhere. Scriptures were so expensive to obtain back then. Books would have been worth more than your house. Even if you could afford it, the process of making you a copy would have taken months, if not years, to finalize.

With that in mind, was Paul cunning in his strategy to go to synagogues first, and while trying to show them the oracles that are in their scriptures, he would study those scriptures for some time before moving to the Gentiles?

It could be. Be wise as a serpent and innocent as a dove. Back to the text. Verse 21. To those outside the law, I became as one outside the law, not being outside of the law of God, but under the law of Christ, that I might win those outside the law.

Keep in mind, Paul didn't participate or surround himself in a moral lifestyle to justify his missionary work to them. Yes, we go out to those who are outside the law, but be very careful how you ingratiate yourselves.

He didn't participate in temple sacrifices, nor in debauchery. Paul was careful to obey the law of Christ. Now if you hear of a brother, especially our brothers who are zealous for mission work, zealous for being evangelical, if you hear them succumbing to questionable practices, show them the example of Paul and give them clear warnings.

Many times, our most zealous evangelists mix light with darkness and they fall. I've had many of these friends. I went to college with many of them. Zealous. Verse 22. To the weak, I became weak, that I might win the weak.

I've become all things to all people, that by all means I would save some. Paul's speaking most likely about the least of these. He's spending time with the poor. One of the most incredible men in the world who will sit on a throne in heaven shared the table with the poor like Christ did.

I think we all need the sober reminder. I think sometimes there's extra difficulties, and sometimes in our culture, we don't know who is poor. We don't know what that looks like. Is the poor just the guy who's on the side of the street?

There's no pride in being poor, but we are given this command. If you have a heart for it, I'd pray for opportunity. There's never been a time in my life where I've asked the Lord for opportunity to share the gospel with someone, and He's denied me that.

Matter of fact, it's turned the other way to where I feel so exhausted, where I'm just like, I might need a break. To my shame. So if we're zealous for pursuing the least of these, the poor, then pray for that opportunity, and they're hard.

I want to go to Paul forfeiting his liberty. You see, Paul had identity in being a Jew, but now he's a Christian, so there's a shifting of identity going. But the Jews are still his people. We see that Paul has said that, I would forfeit my own salvation just to bring them to you.

He has such a heart for these people. He's clearly identified with them, right? But he's sober about it. As Peter goes to prefer the Jews over the Gentiles, we know that Paul delivers him correction, right?

So we have identity. We have a right to our liberty, but we see that Paul forfeits this in a number of scenarios. So I want to talk about what liberty and freedom look like for the Greeks. Greek culture has enormous pride in the privileges that status and freedom afforded them.

They prided themselves on asserting their freedom. It wasn't just a freedom for them. They would assert it. In other terms, use your freedom however you please, but make sure others know and feel it. These sound similar to some parts of our American view of rights, and this is at large where many of them came from.

Greeks would have abundant infighting amidst themselves whenever freedom was threatened. Their right to do as they pleased dominated their identities, goals, and status. Whoever could gain the most amount of freedoms and obtain the most amount of resources to sustain them was the highest man, and that's also today.

Why is Elon Musk so revered among young men? We ever thought about what that attraction is? He built his wealth to forge a technocratic crusade against old money. He carved a path where others could never traverse and created an empire to stand on above others, and the fleshly man thinks he's built so tall that Elon can see the stars unobscured.

The spiritual man knows what God does to those who think they can build towers to heaven. I don't say this to discredit good things or good thoughts that Elon has, but he is not a believer and is still an enemy of God.

Elon is the idol in America, and Alexander the Great was the idol to the Greeks. He asserted his freedom on others. He was the highest man, and he comes from the backwater territory in Greece. They were looked down upon.

High culture was in the south and the east, not in the northwest, yet that backwater man became the highest man that all Greeks revered. Yet Jesus, being above all in nature, capability, and works, condescended to be among the lepers, hypocrites, and Pharisees.

You and me. Paul takes the freedoms culture so desperately desires and lays it on the ground like palm branches before his king. Our idol is the most dangerous man cloaked in weakness. Now he sits as the king of kings.

So who is the highest man? So let's talk about what we do with this passage. Church rights are beautiful to have, but be careful not to idolize them over winning all people to share with them in gospel blessings.

Take care of Paul's example. Will we, the elect, always stand in our ivory towers of righteousness and not condescend to save our own people or other traditions? Will we sanctify our brothers by our snob noses or our strong theology?

No, I think not. I praise God for our tradition, but let us cross-pollinate with evangelicals and get our hands a little dirty. Just a little cross-pollination, not all of it, just a little bit. Are we willing to appear weak to save the weak?

Church, we are commanded to take care of the least of these. The poor, the foreigners, the orphans, the widows. Verse 24. Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize, so run that you may obtain it.

Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable wreath. Church, when Paul says one winner, he means to run the race like you intend to win it.

Outpace each other in the opportunity to do good works for the glory of God and not your own glory. We will be measured by our faithfulness and works, evidenced in crowns to cast at the Lord's feet, like David preached weeks ago.

Evidenced in the building made of good materials, like I preached weeks ago, and evidenced in spiritual fruit. Runners practice self-control in all things to win a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one.

That verse drives home this point. So how do we do this? Paul tells us, so I do not run aimlessly. I do not box as one beating the air. I want to give you a quick illustration. Some of you know that I have a wrestling background, and every sport an outsider of that sport may think someone is good, but the insider knows that they don't compare to the actual good ones.

My stint in wrestling was a brutal one. I competed and won tournaments before high school. My high school didn't have a wrestling team, so I had practiced with anyone I could, kind of a little desperate for it.

I had such a taste. In college, I walked onto our wrestling team, and I was surrounded by lunatics. These men could bend me into a pretzel by blinking. It was truly an honor to see how all American athletes would train relentlessly and with precise vision for their goal.

We practiced four times a day. I've never taken so many showers in a week in my life. Twice before noon, twice afternoon, with a longer practice after dinner. We would even put trash bags on under our sweats just to cut and make weight, which was illegal.

And these guys didn't have to do this. They could have enjoyed juicy meals and video games. They did not have to work hard. They had freedom in that decision. And just so you know, I survived less than a semester under that crazy train.

I broke my ribs and decided to get good grades again because my grades were failing. So let me bring this home. These men were focused on glory and excellence. But what does Paul say? That's the perishable wreath.

Winning the Imperishable Wreath Through Self-Control

Verse 27, but I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others, I myself should be disqualified. May the Lord give me, Josh, Lanny, Jake, and Brady abundant mercy in our failings and preserve us to never fall to the shame of disqualification.

May he give you abundant mercy as to not smear your testimony, lumping coals on your head. Lord, give us grace and quick repentance that we would turn quickly back to you when we sin. So in that passage, we see that comfort is forfeited.

They have a right to not compete. They have a right to rest. But to win the goal, they sacrifice that comfort. So we're seeing that wages are sacrificed. We're seeing that liberty and identity is sacrificed.

And we're seeing that comfort is sacrificed. Because winning takes sacrifice. Winning souls takes sacrifice. You know the ox is working when the barn is dirty. Dear church, if you did not hear anything today, please pay attention now.

If our God, who is worthy of all your affections, will forfeit his rights for perpetual glory to save you and condescend to be a man, how much more should you be willing to lay down your rights to save his people?

So let's finish with some application. Are we willing to discipline our bodies for holiness, prayer, fasting, worship, study, acts of faith? Are we willing or are we living in minimal righteousness, presenting these as good offerings?

Are we the people building our church with cheap materials that will all be burned in the fire? Besides ourselves, of course. Can we live just a little recklessly toward holy lives and see what the Lord does?

Pursue those holy lives like that athlete who has self-control in his body? As you imagine a child barely obeying you, barely finding all the loopholes to obey you, and the honor that comes with that, now imagine the child vigorously trying to give you glory in all that they do and the pride that comes with that.

May that motivate us. Are we offering ourselves in weakness or are we chasing after the goal? Are we resting in our rights or sometimes are we forfeiting those rights to chase the goal? Church, outdo each other in doing good works.

Compete with each other in doing good works to build one another up. Lastly, use wisdom to know when to rest in your rights and use wisdom again to identify your goal and happily abandon those rights for kingdom sake.

Pray with me. Father, we thank you so much for Corinthians. What a wonderful letter this has been. Father, we thank you so much for all the corrections that we see. Lord, let us not look at them as if we are better than them.

Father, help us feel the full weight of these corrections upon our own heads. Lord, I ask that you would build us up. I ask that you would grind us into holiness. Lord, give us vision. Give us goals that the people might not perish but that we would drive on.

We praise you in Jesus' name. Amen.