Do as I do (Part 1)

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Thanks for tuning in to No Compromise Radio with pastor and author, Dr. Mike Avendroff.

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Today on No Compromise Radio, we'll be hearing Pastor Mike open the Word of God in a recent message he preached at Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston, Massachusetts.

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Now let's join Pastor Mike in progress as he preaches through the scriptures verse by verse with No Compromise.

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It was a while ago I met with the ushers and I wanted to help them learn how to ush and I wanted them to know their duties, that it's an important ministry.

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And I said to the ushers something that got me kind of a funny look. I said to the ushers, here's how you usher, here's how you treat people, here's how you act around other people.

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I want you to act just like me around other people. That's how you do it.

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And they looked at me almost like, this is blasphemous. You didn't say act like Jesus, you didn't even maybe stoop a little bit and say act like Paul.

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But the way we're supposed to deal with people as ushers is we're supposed to act like Mike does the pastor.

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They just looked at me like you're looking at me right now. Sometimes in New England we're gruff and we're grumpy and we're not personable.

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And so when I meet people I want to show them, you know, I'm glad you're here, welcome. Because I know what

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I'm going to do later, I'm going to get up in the pulpit and I'm going to smack you, but I'm just trying to be nice. And I want to be open,

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I want to convey even with my face and with my personality that I love you. So I said, ushers, that's what

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I want you to do. I want you to think of the way I do it instead of being stoic and staid and New Englandy.

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I wonder if you could look at another Christian and say, when it comes to prayer, I want you to pray like I do.

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When it comes to evangelism, could you look at another Christian and say, here's how you evangelize. Watch the way

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I do it and therefore that's the way you do it. When it comes to hospitality or fellowship, could you look at another

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Christian and say, now if you want to really learn what to do, you watch me. Listen to what

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D .A. Carson said, do you ever say to a young Christian, do you want to know what Christianity is like?

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Watch me. And then Carson said, if you never do that, you are unbiblical.

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Come I'll show you how to do family devotions. Come I'll show you how to study the Bible. Come let me take you through some of the fundamentals of the faith.

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Let me show you how to be a Christian husband and father, wife or mother. And then maybe when you're older, let me show you how to die.

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Watch me. Is this what we're supposed to do? Are we ever to look at another person and say, we should imitate their faith, imitate their conduct, act like them?

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Aren't we supposed to really look to Christ Jesus? Follow a man?

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I mean, even Paul was sinful. Yet if we turn our Bibles to 1 Corinthians chapter 9, let's open up our

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Bibles there. We're going to see that Paul says, follow me. Watch what I do. Act like I do when it comes to the

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Christian faith. He's already said in chapter 4, imitate my faith. Paul regularly tells people to watch him and to learn from him, become imitators of me is

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Paul's regular chorus. Not pointing to himself, of course, but ultimately to Christ Jesus.

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That is the Christian faith. You see someone who knows more than you do and you watch them, you follow them.

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You see how they do things in light of how God has saved them. You see their example and then you walk in their footsteps.

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That's just like the Old Testament days of here's the rabbi and the rabbi was to be followed, literally walking behind the rabbi, watching and doing.

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And so in this passage in 1 Corinthians chapter 9, Paul is saying this, here's what I do Corinth, do what

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I do. Watch me. Of course, he's not saying when I sin, you sin, when I act unrighteously, you act unrighteously.

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But no, when I follow what God has told me to do in light of the gospel, you watch me, you follow me.

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And as we were singing, by the way, Jesus paid it all, all to him I owe. I just kept thinking to myself, what a scoundrel

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I was, what a sinner I was, what a reprobate I was, but Jesus paid it all.

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Can you imagine God cleansing us from every sin? And I watch even in the news, man standing before the judge, jury, do you have your verdict?

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Yes, we do. All rise. And you can just watch the person's face as they hear from the judge the sentence, guilty.

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Can you imagine before God, our holy creator, we stand guilty, condemned, we have earned hell and punishment.

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Yet based on Jesus Christ, we don't get what we deserve. We get adoption, we get sonship, we get forgiveness, we get redemption, we get reconciliation.

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We have it all in Christ Jesus. And because of that, God says through Paul, I want you to line yourself up and act appropriately, conduct befitting an officer.

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You call yourself a Christian? How do you act? And here in 1 Corinthians chapter 9, we're in verses 19 through 23.

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We just go chapter by chapter, verse by verse, and on occasion, word by word.

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Paul is writing to the church of Corinthians. He wrote them four letters. The first one wasn't inspired, the second one was, and we call it 1

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Corinthians. And he's dealing with issues in the church, and here's the issue. With Jews in the church and Gentiles in the church, they're different.

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Different social backgrounds, different ethnic backgrounds, different religious backgrounds, and when you put a bunch of Christians together, how do they all get along?

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How do they act? Do they say, the strong ones, measure up to the weak, stop doing that, do that?

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What do they do? If you're a weak Christian, you're a brand new Christian, who do you look to to follow?

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How do you get everybody to get along? And here's Paul's point. We have the liberty in Christ Jesus to do a lot of things, but we never have the liberty to treat people without love and to somehow think that the gospel isn't the priority.

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Gospel -driven priority, loving other people, then we'll get to your liberties. And so that's what Paul is saying in chapter 8, 9, and 10, the liberty of a

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Christian. And he says, by the way, I have liberty to have you pay for me to be an apostle and teach you the

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Bible, but I said no to it. I've self -sacrificed for you, and he's trying to get the

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Corinthians to say, hmm, maybe we should be self -sacrificial as well.

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Let's look at verses 15 to 18 first, because in this whole section from 15 to 27,

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Paul is talking about Christian liberty and the gospel and love. And he says first in verses 15 through 18 that the top priority of a

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Christian isn't his liberty, but it's the gospel. Let me read these verses so you can catch up what we did last week.

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Your top priority isn't flexing the muscles of your liberty, it's the gospel.

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Verses 15 to 18, but I have made no use of any of these rights to get money for the gospel sake, nor am

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I writing these things to secure any such provision. This is not a support letter for short -term's missions, asking for prayer but really wanting money.

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For I would rather die than have anyone deprive me of my ground for boasting. For if I preach the gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting, for necessity is laid upon me.

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Woe to me if I don't preach the gospel. In other words, I've been charged to preach the gospel, how can

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I be boasting for something that I'm told to do? So Paul says, I'm going to boast in something else. I'm going to boast that I could get money, but I don't.

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Verse 17, for if I do this of my own will, I have a reward, but if not of my own will,

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I am still entrusted with stewardship. What then is my reward? That in my preaching

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I may present the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.

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So for you, I said last week, congregation, that everything that should drive you is the gospel. First importance, the priority of the gospel, and remember the gospel isn't be good, the gospel's not stop that, the gospel's not be nice, the gospel's not no elbows on the table, the gospel is clearly encapsulated in 1

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Corinthians 15. That the Messiah, who did not sin, died for our sins, according to the scriptures.

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And that he was raised on which day? The third day, according to the scriptures. That in time, 2 ,000 years ago, the

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Messiah died as a representative substitutionary sacrifice. That's what we're about too, the gospel.

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We're not about social change, we're about the gospel. But Paul goes further, and in verses 19 through 23, he says, my top priority is winning people.

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He says, I'm a soul winner. If the gospel's important, then it should flesh itself out in my life, and I want to be about winning souls.

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I have to make a public confession right here, it's my confession, I only do it once a year, so here it is. I used to despise it when people said,

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I'm a soul winner. Meet some kind of Armenian, some kind of fundamentalist, somebody, and I was glad they wanted to tell people about, you can have all your sins forgiven in Christ Jesus.

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God can count your sins against Christ Jesus if you'll look to the risen Savior by faith alone. I was happy for that, but I didn't like their terminology,

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I win souls. Like, I have the power to win a soul? No, no, you don't have the power to win a soul.

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God wins souls. Yet you know what? Paul says here lots of times that he wins souls, that he desires to win souls.

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And it's just shorthand to say that God has the gospel preached through sinful people, opens their eyes, and Paul calls that here soul winning.

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So I repent in dust and ashes. If you tell me you're a soul winner, and you mean by that you save people,

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I'll still look at you like I used to look at other people, with disdain, with a long brow.

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But if you mean you want to preach the gospel to other people so God wins the people through you, and therefore you call yourself a soul winner, he that wins souls is what?

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Wise. Then I'll be happy. And this is the, Michael, where are you going? Okay, sorry.

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All right, it's the last time you'll do that. Soul winning is not an unbiblical term as long as you think about it the way

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Paul does. And that is, Lord, I haven't earned anything. I can't save anybody.

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I can't regenerate anybody. I can't forgive people's sins. I have my own sins to pay for.

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Yet God has paid for my sins, and I want other people to be redeemed. I want other people to be free from their sin.

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So let's read through these verses to talk a little bit about soul winning. And you'll see that Paul uses this, even though in Galatians 2,

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Paul had already said, it's all by the grace of God. It's all by Christ's work alone at Calvary that people save as the

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Spirit of God applies it. Yet he talks this way in this theological shorthand, if you will. Chapter 9, verse 19 through 23.

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See how many times you hear the word, win or save. For though I am free from all,

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I've made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them.

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To the Jews, I became as a Jew in order to win Jews. To those under the law,

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I became as one under the law, though not myself being under the law, that I might win those under the law.

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To those outside the law, I became as one outside the law, not being outside the law of God, but under the law of Christ.

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I might win those outside the law. To the weak, I became weak, that I might win the weak.

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I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.

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I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings.

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Now, you really have two options. Option one is to say Paul was sinning by saying he could win people when salvation is from the

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Lord. Or you could say in this context, the majority of these words, win, is just a way of saying things from the human perspective.

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As Paul preached the gospel and God converted them, you might say Paul was the instrument of conversion.

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Who said these quotes? Same man said all these. If winning isn't everything, why do they keep score?

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Winning isn't everything, but the will to win is everything. Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing.

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Winning is habit, unfortunately, so is losing. Winning is not everything, but wanting to win is.

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Who said those things? Vince Lombardi.

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But you know what? Paul would say, I'm all about winning people for the gospel.

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So what do we do for an outline today? I guess I could call today's sermon, Just Win Baby.

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If you're a Raiders fan, I don't know. I don't think we have too many Raider fans here, but you never know.

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We're going to look at six purpose clauses. You go, great, another lesson in grammar.

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Here's what Paul does lots of times. In order that I might win, in order that I might win, in order that I might win, in order that I might win, in order that I might win, in order that I might save, in order that I might share in the blessings.

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Six times, it's all around this purpose. I've got a purpose, and that is to win people over to the gospel.

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And with one exception, he says, to win the weak over to the strong point. I'm just going to give you these six, if you want to take notes.

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Six times, Paul has a purpose to win other people over, to have something accomplished.

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It's purpose driven. I've got a purpose in life. Here's my purpose. Since you know the gospel,

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Bethlehem Bible Church, part of the purpose of your life is to extol the glory of God in the way you live.

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And at the very top, or close to the very top of the reason why you live is, that you might preach the gospel so God converts them.

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And if you want to call it theological shorthand, I won them over. Don't do it here at the church.

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I'm just kidding. But see, I feel like I want to say that because it's win, win, win. And we know

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God saves, God alone. I have no tick marks in the front of this Bible, how many people

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I led to the Lord. But maybe I should start. Win, win, win.

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Don't you love the scriptures? This is one of these sermons for Bethlehem Bible Church that everybody's going like this.

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Especially all those, you know, the reformed types are going like this. This is a sermon that makes you want to crack your own neck.

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There it goes right there. All right, I feel better. By the way, for 14 years, I've desired that a chiropractor would get saved and come to this church.

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When I first got saved, first became a pastor, I wanted chiropractors and policemen.

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We've got policemen here. Just would somebody evangelize and win over one of your chiropractors so I could get adjusted before I preach?

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I had a Roman Catholic chiropractor for about 14 years and I couldn't win him. So I just switched over to another atheistic one.

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So maybe I can win him. Okay, so if you're thinking about outlines,

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I'm just letting the outline of the text be the outline. And here's the outline. If you don't want to know what a purpose clause is, just think

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Paul has a goal and for him that goal is to win people over. So let me give you six illustrations of how

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Paul wins people over with a purpose, single -minded devotion. If you don't aim for anything, you'll be sure to hit it.

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Paul was about the gospel. He wasn't about feeding the poor primarily. He was glad to do it.

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And even in Galatians, he was reminded by some of the other leaders, don't forget about the poor. But in the priority of first importance, the gospel, and then it's applied to people's lives by the spirit of God through gospel preaching.

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Let me just try to bend your mind a little bit more before we start.

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You are saved by more than the gospel, but you're never saved by anything less than the gospel.

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What do I mean by that? The gospel plus? Saved by more than the gospel?

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Yes. If there's an unbeliever here in this room today, and I tell you and I've already told you what the gospel is, are you guaranteed to become saved?

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No, because the Holy Spirit has to apply the gospel to your life. You don't just get saved by hearing the gospel.

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You get saved by the spirit of God sovereignly, freely applying the gospel to your life, correct?

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So you're never saved by less than the gospel, but you're saved by more than the gospel. And that is the spirit of God applying the gospel to your life.

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So here's what Paul says in verses 15 to 18. The gospel is everything. And now

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Paul says in 19 to 23 that I know by scripture that the way

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God applies the gospel through the Holy Spirit is through a preacher, is through an evangelist.

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So if everything's about the gospel, I know that I have to do my responsibility and preach the gospel.

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And when God's pleased to open minds, he does. Let me just give you six illustrations of Paul's purpose for life.

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And it's mainly evangelistic. The first one is found in verse 19 that I might win more of them.

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In order to win them. By the way, if you ever hear somebody say it's a henna clause.

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What's a henna clause? It's not Santa Claus. It's a henna clause. H -I -N -A.

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And it's just a Greek word that means purpose. In order that. Here's what I'm shooting for.

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Sometimes you'll hear preachers on TV say that. Not TV, sorry, radio. Maybe satellite TV. Verse 19.

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For though I am free from all. Remember, Paul was born free Roman citizen.

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Some people had to pay for it. Paul was born a free citizen. Though I am free from all. And who does this?

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We don't have a lot of people in America doing this today. I made myself a slave or a servant to all. That I might win more of them.

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And Paul now is just making a general statement. He's going to go deeper, but he's making a general statement. I live for other people.

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I'm free. I don't have to bow to any particular person.

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But I'm going to make myself a slave because of the gospel. And because I want to win people over.

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If you've made yourself a slave to someone. No wonder Paul didn't mind working with his hands.

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Remember the Corinthians teachers? You know what? We don't want to work with our hands at all. Because if you work with your hands, your blue collar, you're low life.

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This happens even in India today. Low on the caste system. Paul says, by the way, I made myself a slave.

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So I don't have any problem working. No qualms about that. Listen to these words of Jesus.

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And you'll think about Paul's verse right here. You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lorded over them.

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And their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant.

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And whoever wants to be first must be your slave. Matthew 20.

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And Paul says, I do it to win people. Same word used for wives who are saved.

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Winning over husbands who are lost. 1 Peter 3. Just let me read you the verse.

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Likewise, wives be subject to your own husbands. So that even if some do not obey the word.

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They may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives.

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Paul's not bragging that he saves people. It's just a humble word that says through my desire to serve other people.

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I have a goal and I want people to be saved. And you can ask yourself quickly that question. When you see people at work, at home, neighbors, friends.

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I don't care when you see a sports star. Do you think this way? Do you know what? I just wish

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God would save them. God have mercy on them. You're a God who saves. I want mercy for them.

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That's what Paul would do. Win here is a technical missionary term. I want them to be saved.

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Paul's got an intentional approach to ministry. Salvation. I want people saved.

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Remember Paul in Romans 9? I wish I could be damned. If some of my

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Israelites and the Israelites could be saved. So Paul says

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I've got flexibility. I'm trying to be flexible. And you're going to see this fleshed out. Whatever culture you're in.

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You want to be flexible because the gospel is at stake. Let me just give you a quick illustration that I thought was apropos for this.

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I'm in India and I preach at a conference. And a lady came up to me and she said, would you please come and preach at our church on Sunday?

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I said, I'd be glad to. But I'm here under the authority of Chris Williams, Sammy's father. And as long as he's fine with it,

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I'll be fine with it. So I talked to Chris and he said, go and preach the gospel.

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Because it's a liberal, Methodist, dead, mainline church. Who knows if even the leadership there is saved.

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And so I said, what do I wear? Do I wear a suit or whatever? Yes, wear a suit. I remember that morning, too, because I got up in the morning.

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Those are the days I still had hair. And the shower was broken. The electricity's out, hooked up to the shower.

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And I remember pouring Bisleri water on my head, like Evian water on my head to get my hair slicked back and trying to shave in the dark.

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Looked at myself at the church and I thought, whoa. So when

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I got there, some ladies in leadership, can we please go to the back and pray? Yes. She said, you know,

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I have a request for all our speakers. Underneath that pulpit area, it's holy ground.

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Right there where you preach, that's holy ground. So you're not allowed to wear your shoes. So what would

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I do? I thought, I wasn't saying, is it right for a woman to be a pastor? Does she have authority over me?

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All these questions. Is it OK? What's so sanctified about that carpet area? But I thought,

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I've got a goal. And my goal is, I want to win these people. If, in fact, Chris is right that most of them don't even know what the gospel is and they're not saved,

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I have a goal. And what would I do? Sorry, you know, where are your credentials for being a pastor in light of 1 Timothy 2 and following?

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By the way, there's no such thing as sacred space. I am the sacred space. We are the sacred spaces.

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There's no such difference as secular and sacred and all that. And I didn't do any of that. You know what I did? I got loafers.

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No, just kidding. I took my shoes off. And when it's time for me to preach, I took my shoes off. And I'll never forget to this day, because as I walked up to the holy ground,

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I'd never been on a holy ground before. I didn't know I was going to float or something. Whoa, whoa.

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I stood there. And they have all kinds of flowers. It's a poor part of the world.

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But there's flowers everywhere. And they look beautiful. And somebody had dumped over the vase, the vase, and dumped over on the holy ground.

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So now it's holy wet ground. And my socks are oozing with the water between my toes.

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And I just think, oh, I am super sanctified. Man, this is like good tidings and feet.

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And unless it's a sin,

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Paul was willing to accommodate himself to Jew or Gentile or anybody else because he had a goal.

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No Compromise Radio with Pastor Mike Abendroth is a production of Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston.

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Bethlehem Bible Church is a Bible teaching church firmly committed to unleashing the life -transforming power of God's word through verse -by -verse exposition of the sacred text.

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Please come and join us. Our service times are Sunday morning at 830 and 11 a .m. and Sunday evenings at 6 p .m.

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We're right on Route 110 in West Boylston, Massachusetts. You can check us out online at bbcchurch .org

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or by phone at 508 -835 -3400. The thoughts and opinions expressed on No Compromise Radio do not necessarily reflect those of WVNE, its staff, or management.