Not Many Fathers

O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth. You are the Lord; Creator, Sustainer, and the Ruler of all things. You are our Lord, the God who gave His own Son for our salvation; who has called us out f darkness and into your marvelous light. Come, O God, in habit the praises of your people. Send the Spirit that we may worship you in spirit and in truth. Receive our worship, as you receive our prayer.

†OPENING HYMN OF PRAISE #254

“Let All Things Now Living”

†CORPORATE CONFESSION OF SIN

“Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.” Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and he relents over disaster.” (Joel 2:12–13, ESV)

TIME OF SILENT CONFESSION

Minister: O Father, we are gathered before you, the maker of heaven and earth, whose chosen dwelling place is with the broken and contrite, to confess that:

Congregation: we have sinned in thought and word and deed; we have not loved you with all our heart and soul, we have not loved you with all our mind and strength; we have not even loved our neighbor as ourselves.

In your mercy, deepen our sorrow for the wrong we have done and for the good we have left undone, so that we may hate our sin with a holy hatred. But, please Father, do not leave us in sorrow. With you, O Lord, there is forgiveness. In your mercy, restore the joy of our salvation; so that we may love you with a holy love. Amen.

ASSURANCE OF PARDON

Hear the words of the Lord --- “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.” (Isaiah 1:18, ESV)

CONTINUAL READING OF SCRIPTURE Exodus 1

Paul Mulner, Elder

THE OFFERING OF TITHES AND OUR GIFTS

CONGREGATIONAL PRAYERS

THE LORD’S PRAYER

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

†PSALM OF PREPARATION #11B

“The Lord is My Refuge”

SERMON 1 Corinthians 4:15-21 — “Not Many Fathers”, Pastor Austin Prince

†HYMN OF RESPONSE #452

“Rock of Ages, Cleft for Me”

Prayer of Illumination:

Blessed Lord, who caused all Holy scripture to be written for our learning; grant that we may in such a way hear them, read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them, that by patience and comfort of your holy word, we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our savior Jesus Christ.

Text:

1 Corinthians 4:8–21 (ESV) — 8 Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! Without us you have become kings! And would that you did reign, so that we might share the rule with you! 9 For I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of all, like men sentenced to death, because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men. 10 We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but we in disrepute. 11 To the present hour we hunger and thirst, we are poorly dressed and buffeted and homeless, 12 and we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; 13 when slandered, we entreat. We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things. 14 I do not write these things to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. 15 For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. 16 I urge you, then, be imitators of me. 17 That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church. 18 Some are arrogant, as though I were not coming to you. 19 But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I will find out not the talk of these arrogant people but their power. 20 For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power. 21 What do you wish? Shall I come to you with a rod, or with love in a spirit of gentleness?

After Scripture Reading

The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord endures forever. Amen.

Intro

“A couple of years ago a student who was about to graduate was called in by one of our faculty members who had learned the student was planning to return to computer science and abandon plans to enter vocational ministry. The student was pleasant, with a solid B+ to his credit. But as the faculty member probed, it became obvious that this student had not put it all together. He could define propitiation but did not know what it was like to feel forgiven. He could defend the priority of grace in salvation but still felt as if he could never be good enough to be a minister. He could define holiness but found himself practicing firm self-discipline rather than pursuing holiness. His life and his theological grasp had not come together.

Mercifully, this particular faculty member was spiritually insightful. He took the student back to the cross and worked outward from that point. The student began to weep and weep as he glimpsed the love of God for him. Today he is in the ministry.”

-- D.A. Carson, The Cross and Christian Ministry, 111.

Sometimes you don’t need another lesson, you need a new perspective. This is what Paul is offering to the Corinthians.

OUTLINE:

We Follow A Crucified Messiah

Leading By Example

The Kingdom Does Not Consist In Talk But In Power

We Follow A Crucified Messiah

1 Corinthians 4:8 (ESV) — 8 Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! Without us you have become kings! And would that you did reign, so that we might share the rule with you!

There is a lot of sarcasm in this text today. The Corinthians only had the **perception** of reigning

“I wish that you did reign so that we might rule with you!” — sarcasm in light of their boasting and Paul’s suffering

The devastating critique: Already you have all you want — what is it that they wanted from Christ?

C.S. Lewis - their desires were too small, not too large

Laodicea: “For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.” (Revelation 3:17–18, ESV)

Jesus offers us a perspective shift. If you want to be rich, come to be and buy and eat — that is where real riches are.

Paul is not teaching “broken glass” christianity — that suffering is ultimate. But what Jesus does — what the cross does — is recalibrate us. Following Christ has its advantages in every way, but they often don’t look like what the world would call advantages.

At the cross we are taught to love. And what does that look like?

Love lays its life down.

Love doesn’t rejoice in wrong doing but rejoices in the truth — people hate the truth

Love is patient and kind — willing to turn the other cheek

Love pursues the lost — Jesus says that men will hate us on account of His name.

The message of the cross can not be communicated from a heart of pride

1 Corinthians 4:9–13 (ESV) — 9 For I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of all, like men sentenced to death, because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men. 10 We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but we in disrepute. 11 To the present hour we hunger and thirst, we are poorly dressed and buffeted and homeless, 12 and we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; 13 when slandered, we entreat. We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things.

Thick sarcasm again

Sharing in Christ’s sufferings:

Aristotle declares that the highest virtue is megalopsuchia, a great-heartedness, the virtue of the man with the great soul; and he defines this very virtue as the quality which will not endure to be insulted. Put Paul says, When we are insulted, we bless.” - William Barclay, Letters To The Corinthians, 45.

Te Morituri Salutamus! - We who are about to die, salute you!

Philippians 3:10 “10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,”

Romans 8:17 “17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”

“bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” (Luke 6:28, ESV)

“Apostles are very honored in retrospect, which is safe to do now that they are all dead. Have we not built their memorials? Do we not have impressive churches with St. in front of Paul and Peter? Ah, but a living apostle would have trouble getting a call to be a pastor in such a church. Too much jail time on his resume.” -- Wilson, Douglas. Partakers of Grace: A Commentary on 1 Corinthians . Canon Press. Kindle Edition.

In Christ’s economy, those who are last are first.

Leading By Example

1 Corinthians 4:14–17 (ESV) — 14 I do not write these things to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. 15 For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. 16 I urge you, then, be imitators of me. 17 That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church.

The Christian life is a way, not an idea

Sons have traditionally been expected to imitate their fathers, carrying on their trade, values, heritage and name.

Timothy is a true son - his character will remind them of Paul’s. Though his life is different, he carries the values that Paul wants the Corinthians to adopt.

Paul isn’t just sending the Corinthians a teacher, he is sending them an example.

They are not living up to what they know

The true minister doesn’t speak of “you” he speaks of “we” not from on high, but from among. He is leader by example (Rough quote from Barclay)

Paul is not, like the Corinthians, pleading them not to go beyond his own words, but the words of God. He is tethering them to the cross.

One deed is worth a thousand words ‌

The Kingdom Does Not Consist In Talk But In Power

1 Corinthians 4:18–21 (ESV) — 18 Some are arrogant, as though I were not coming to you. 19 But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I will find out not the talk of these arrogant people but their power. 20 For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power. 21 What do you wish? Shall I come to you with a rod, or with love in a spirit of gentleness?

Their worldly “wisdom” had emptied the cross of its power (1 Cor. 1:17)

The Indiana Jones scene where Indy shoots the man after he skillfully demonstrates his swordsmanship. Paul doesn’t care for their rhetoric, he cares about the power of the gospel.

Theologians with horrible marriages -- quick to answer but slow to actT

“For this reason I write these things while I am away from you, that when I come I may not have to be severe in my use of the authority that the Lord has given me for building up and not for tearing down.” (2 Corinthians 13:10, ESV)

Conclusion:

The incarnation -- the approach of Christmas

Isaiah 53 (ESV) — 1 Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? 2 For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. 3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. 8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people? 9 And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth. 10 Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. 11 Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.

Conclusion:

Potentially Isa. 53

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”” (John 10:11–18, ESV)

THE MINISTRY OF THE LORD’S SUPPER

Leader: Lift up your hearts!

Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord.

Leader: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

Congregation: It is right for us to give thanks and praise!

CONFESSION OF FAITH - The Apostles’ Creed (p.851)

INVITATION TO THE LORD’S TABLE

Beloved in the Lord Jesus, the meal which we are about to celebrate is a feast of remembrance, communion, and hope.

We come to remember that Jesus was sent into the world to assume our flesh and blood, to become God with us, that we might be redeemed. We come to have communion with this same Christ who has promised to be with us even to the end of the world.

We come in hope, believing that this bread and this cup are a pledge and a foretaste of a new heaven and a new earth, where we shall behold God.

In his earthly ministry Jesus praised those who provided for him, saying, I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink. Now here, for us, is the bread of life given; let all who hunger come and eat. Here is the fruit of the vine, poured out for us. It is for all who belong to Christ through repentance, faith, baptism, and continuing union with his church. Let all who thirst come and drink.

Let’s pray together:

PRAYER

Congregation: Most righteous God, we remember in this meal the perfect sacrifice offered once on the cross by our Lord Jesus Christ for the sin of the whole world. United with Christ in his suffering, strengthened by the Holy Spirit, trusting in the power of God to triumph over evil, we wait in joyful hope for the fullness of God’s reign. Send your Holy Spirit upon us, we pray, that the bread which we break and the cup which we bless may be to us the communion of the body and blood of Christ.

Grant that, being joined together in him, we may attain to the unity of the faith and grow up in all things into Christ our Lord. And as this grain has been gathered from many fields into one loaf, and these grapes from many hills into one cup, grant, O Lord, that your whole Church may soon be gathered from the ends of the earth into your kingdom. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! Amen.

Congregation is seated.

THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE ELEMENTS

THE WORDS OF INSTITUTION AND SHARING OF THE SUPPER

“Eat and drink.”

Mark 14:22-25

And as they were eating, he took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to them, and said, “Take; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, and they all drank of it. And he said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

BENEDICTION

May the grace of Christ, which daily renews us, and the love of God, which enables us to love all, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, which unites us in one body, make us eager to obey the will of God until we meet again through Jesus Christ our Lord.

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