Why not rather be wronged?
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War in Israel
War in Israel
So Just yesterday War has been declared in Israel and whenever this happens you will see people say, see this prophecy or that prophecy is coming true, and this has been happening for years, ever since Israel has become a state.
So here is what I know. That we dont know the day or hour that Jesus is coming back, but that we should always be prepared for his return
I know that, the book of Revelation is not a calendar but a document that will help every generation of Disciples, faithfully live out what it means to follow Jesus in increasingly difficult times.
So Here is what I know. Our world is unstable right now…Russia and Ukraine have already put alliance all over the world on alert
China is increasingly hostile towards Taiwan & the Philippines in the South China Sea and now Hamas has launched attacks on Israel...
And what we know is that whole region is generally a tinder-box…Ready to go up in flames....
So what I know is that we should pray for Israel. We should pray for peace…We should pray for the senselessness of war to end…We should pray that God’s vision for humanity comes to fruition
So before we launch into our text today, lets pray
Oh Father in Heaven,
How we long for the day when swords are beat into plowshares
How we long for the day when human evil is blotted out
Lord we long for the day when your peace reigns
So father today we pray for our world and its desire to achieve peace through violence
Lord I ask that you would be with Israel, and to help them to end this conflict.
Lord I pray that the scope of this conflict doesn’t spill over to other nations, Lord I pray for the swift end to all of this conflict.
Lord would you bring your people peace and keep your people safe
Oh Lord that the heavens would rend and that you would come down
Come Lord Jesus, Come.
Amen
Intro
Intro
I feel like through COVID, society got gifts that we didn’t ask for.
Some of these gifts were good, time with family
Saving on Gas
My wife and I binged on just terrible reality TV together and I just feel like we got closer
When the church wasn’t gathering physically it actually heightened the need for our public gatherings
I remember when we all started worshiping together again I had a bunch of people say,
Pastor I dont think I can ever do that again! We need to be together! we need to worship together.
So it reminded us why the gathering of God’s people is actually really impotrant.
But there were some hard parts about COVID.
It was like everyone was online at all times of the day
But as we are online all of the time I noticed something of what I think is a disturbing trend
I felt like the new world currency became winning an argument
We had a lot of things that people were fighting about online
People fought about George Floyd
People fought about whether or not racism exists
People fought about Covid Mandates
They fought about the COVID Vaccine
They fought about Trump
They fought about Biden
I feel like over COVID I kept seeing the never ending comment wars
I was reminded this week that even during this time there were computer bots that were programed to make us fight even more…they were programed to say crazy things and to actually divide America
I did some reflecting on this and I feel like it reveals something about our culture:
that we just needed to win
When everything else was stripped away during covid, winning an argument felt like you actually did something that day
Winning your argument is the new salvation…
Winning your argument is the ego booster
Winning your argument is a sign of intelligence and superiority…
But this can be really damaging in the church...
Because if we are here to become more and more like Jesus…Jesus didn’t have to win…In fact his whole life lead him to the cross which looks like a loss...
Today what we are going to look at is a conflict in the church and how much the need to win devastates the church and her witness to the world
Now its counter intuitive to the world we live in but I think that we need to redefined what it means to “win” in the kingdom of God
But what if you have to lose in order to win?
I mean isn’t that what Jesus did on the cross? He lost massively! But the only way to win the world was to lose in such a way!
Lets get into our text this morning
If any of you has a dispute with another, do you dare to take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the Lord’s people? Or do you not know that the Lord’s people will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, do you ask for a ruling from those whose way of life is scorned in the church? I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers? But instead, one brother takes another to court—and this in front of unbelievers!
Let’s Pause right here for a second:
Paul is like: “hey Corinth church…You were bragging about how wise you are... and you can’t even settle your disputes”
He is like…How is it church that you have all of this worldly wisdom and yet when it comes to all of this wisdom that you have you can not even settle a dispute?
But then he takes it much much larger:
Do you get what you are called to? Do you get what happens when you enter into eternity with Jesus? You get to judge angels!
And I know what you’re probably thinking…We didn’t learn that in Sunday School...
And whenever I bring this up people are like WHAT?
But there is a basis for all of this in scripture…
Jesus himself taught that his followers would act as judges at the end of time (Matt. 19:28; see also Rev. 20:4).
Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
In Daniel 7 it said that judgment will be given to the “saints of the most high”
But I think one of my favorite texts on this is 2 Timothy 2:12
if we endure,
we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
he will also disown us;
Paul argues that the ultimate destiny of the believer is to reign with Jesus in heaven.
Paul argues that the ultimate destiny of the believer is to reign with Jesus in heaven.
Paul is like…Church do you get it…YOU have a HIGH CALLING…and that is to reign with Christ!
He is saying, he y church I know your destany and it is to win at the end even if it looks like your loosing…Its just like Jesus so stop getting caught up in these stupid worldly disputes!
Your job is holiness:
To grow so much like him that you literally get to reign with Him!
Paul everywhere says, hey the end result of your life is that you can be a person who literally reigns with Jesus…
But instead you are too worried about winning stupid arguments here.
God wants human partners
There is this huge point in the Bible that is not said but is everywhere: God wants human partners
That’s what Adam and Eve were all about!
God created human partners and Adam and Eve…The humans, he says here you rule over all of creation!
And sometimes think of how flippantly we treat our relationship with Jesus! I mean he is literally training us to reign in eternity and
We are like….I WANT TO WIN! My Point was better…You offended me!
How quickly will we go from wanting to reign with Jesus to wanting to reign here…Because isn’t that what winning feels like here and now…
I won a battle…I’m in charge
You have to remember that Jesus had this discussion with his disciples…Because one of the default human tendencies is to amass power.
Remember the Mother of the Sons of Zebedee? She asked for her sons to have power and influence in Jesus kingdom and then everyone else was mad…because they wanted power too
So Jesus gathers everyone together and says this:
Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,
The human heart has this desire for power! A kind of power that Lords over others
But you have to remember that we were designed to be able to have the power of God’s life flow through us...
But we will gladly take the cheap alternative...
Winning a fight
It makes you feel powerful for a second.
So Paul’s point was Whatever decision the public court reaches, the Christians have been completely defeated already.[4]…Just because by winning you sacrificed your own witness!
And you have to remember these are pagan courts!
But let’s keep going here
The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers and sisters. Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
This question has been so powerful in my life lately…..And I have to keep asking this question
And remember this is for settling disputes within the church
Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated?
Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated?
Isn’t it better to be cheated and wronged then to tarnish the reputation of Jesus?
See what Paul is saying…
If you take your dispute public…and you go to the courts…
If you win in the public courts, then you lose your witness for Jesus…So why not just make it your personal preference to be wronged?
I was a young youth pastor and I really wanted to preach all the time...
And I got my first outside the church preaching gig…at a Saturday night service…at a church of nearly 1,000…For a young youth pastor it felt like a big deal...
So I drove with another pastor friend and when I got back it was late at night and typical as a youth pastor my car was decorated with toilet paper and there was confetti all over it... so I had two things in my hand my sunglasses, which I had just bought and a digital camera which I had just saved up to buy
And I set them on the trunk of my car because I couldn't even get into my car...
About 20 minutes of cleaning later and taking junk to the dumpster I drove my car away and it wasn’t until I got home that I realized that my new camera and sunglasses were on the trunk.....
So I went back and found them smashed to a thousand peaces in the gutter
And initially I was so mad…I was on the phone with my then girlfriend, who is my wife now...
And I was like its so frustrating like $500 worth of stuff is broken I am going to call this person who I knew decorated my car and just give them a peace of my mind
and my wife immediately says…No dont do it, you have to decide what is more valuable, stuff or your friendships....And its probably been about 20 years since then and this is the first time I am telling that story publicly
Right then and there I knew she was right and that people were more valuable than things and before a dispute ever started my wife said
Come on act like Jesus…Decide that you can be wronged and move on... and I did...
This is an election year…and what I am going to say you might want to write down because this is helpful
We as Christians need to be deliberate about avoiding the pitfalls of political participation.
While we shouldn’t plan to lose, Christians should keep in mind that we are not engaging in political battles to win or to serve our own interest either!
Don’t forget this election season:
if you have given your allegiance and trust over to Jesus, that we already have the ultimate victory!
if you have given your allegiance and trust over to Jesus, that we already have the ultimate victory!
The victory is our salvation in the kingdom of God.
Nothing in this world is comparable to your inheritance in the kingdom of God…There is no political ideology that can replace the kingdom of God, nor does the kingdom of God rely on your side winning!
I want you to hear this…And this is where you might turn off the sermon and walk away
If you are a Trump Supporter: Jesus is not depending on Trump to win!
If you’re a Biden Supporter: Jesus is not depending on Biden to win
Now your whole world might fall apart if one of these guys loses, but that just reveals that your faith is in a system of politics and not in the lamb!
It is not as if Jesus is on the throne of heaven saying…Oh My…I hope this side wins!
Our participation in politics should be to faithfully represent Jesus in the public square!
This doesn’t mean that we ignore our own interest, but it also doesn’t mean that we are consumed or misled by our interests either!
When we are in political conflict.
We must demonstrate that a faithful witness to Jesus is more important than winning a political battle.
We must demonstrate that a faithful witness to Jesus is more important than winning a political battle.
Let me take that deeper…This means that if my side has to do something corrupt or illegal to win, then it is better for me to lose that political battle and retain my faithful witness!
It is better to lose a political battle than to sacrifice your virtue for what is politically expedient.
See what Paul is saying about fighting between believers…whether it is a lawsuit or political dispute or anything
Is that our ultimate preference should be, to be wronged, or to lose! before our witness to Jesus sustains any damage!
A couple of weeks ago we talked about maturity…
How mature is it to decide to lose the fight…Because Jesus matters more?
So here is how this goes
You have been wronged and you just know that with an email you can tear apart the person who wronged you…
On Facebook someone made an obviously stupid comment that is wrong and with a few clicks of the keyboard, you can take them down!
But what is more important to you? Winning or your witness?
What would it look like for you to forfeit the right to retaliate?
What would it look like in your life, to find joy in being wronged or cheated?
This is maturity!
Maturity is realizing that if you are in Christ, you’ve won already!
Maturity is realizing that God will use you one day to judge the world!
Maturity is realizing that there are times in our life when it is better to be wronged than to win!
So Church, I am sending you out today
To lose political battles
To forfeit your great arguments
To try not to win that Facebook argument
To not have the last word!
I am sending you out to prefer to be wronged
To find joy in being cheated!
Because if you are in Christ, you already have the ultimate victory!
And this is how Paul ends…Church you have to remember your salvation…You have to remember that you have been saved in a big way
Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
What Paul is saying is listen you have to know that the people who are judging your cases will not inherit eternal life
And thats what some of you were....
You have to remember how far you’ve come
But this community has been changed and redeemed
You were washed by the blood of Jesus
You were Sanctified or made new by the Spirit of God and
You were justified…or declared not guilty by God the father
Lets pray