July 07, 2023 | Be On Mission
What’s a Preacher to Do?
Scripture: 1 Corinthians 9(NIV)
1 Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not the result of my work in the Lord? 2 Even though I may not be an apostle to others, surely I am to you! For you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.
3 This is my defense to those who sit in judgment on me. 4 Don’t we have the right to food and drink? 5 Don’t we have the right to take a believing wife along with us, as do the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers and Cephas? 6 Or is it only I and Barnabas who lack the right to not work for a living?
7 Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat its grapes? Who tends a flock and does not drink the milk? 8 Do I say this merely on human authority? Doesn’t the Law say the same thing? 9 For it is written in the Law of Moses: “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.” Is it about oxen that God is concerned? 10 Surely he says this for us, doesn’t he? Yes, this was written for us, because whoever plows and threshes should be able to do so in the hope of sharing in the harvest. 11 If we have sown spiritual seed among you, is it too much if we reap a material harvest from you? 12 If others have this right of support from you, shouldn’t we have it all the more?
But we did not use this right. On the contrary, we put up with anything rather than hinder the gospel of Christ.
13 Don’t you know that those who serve in the temple get their food from the temple, and that those who serve at the altar share in what is offered on the altar? 14 In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel.
15 But I have not used any of these rights. And I am not writing this in the hope that you will do such things for me, for I would rather die than allow anyone to deprive me of this boast. 16 For when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, since I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! 17 If I preach voluntarily, I have a reward; if not voluntarily, I am simply discharging the trust committed to me. 18 What then is my reward? Just this: that in preaching the gospel I may offer it free of charge, and so not make full use of my rights as a preacher of the gospel.
19 Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. 23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.
24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
Devotional
In the early chapters of 1 Corinthians, Paul addressed the tension in the church at Corinth that some were loyal to Paul, some to Apollos, and some to Cephas (Peter). The controversy must have extended to whether people like Paul and Barnabas should be allowed to eat whatever they wanted, or get married, or be paid for their work as preachers. Paul said, yes, yes, and yes. He had the right to do all these things, but he restrained himself from all of them. He hoped that his willingness to give up some of his personal rights would serve as a role model for the Christians in Corinth, who were being challenged to yield their freedoms to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
Greco-Roman philosophers were everywhere in Corinth and throughout the Roman Empire, and they were paid for their services. Jewish priests were also compensated for their work among the Hebrews. Paul said, “In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel” (v. 14). This is echoed in Galatians 6:6 which says, “Nevertheless, the one who receives instruction in the word should share all good things with their instructor,” and 1 Timothy 5:17 which states, “The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.”
But Paul refused to take payment for his services. The Corinthians knew this firsthand, for while he was living in Corinth he met Aquila and Priscilla. Acts 18:2-4 says, “Paul went to see them, and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them. Every Sabbath he reasoned in the synagogue, trying to persuade Jews and Greeks.” During the week Paul worked as a professional tentmaker. Every Sabbath he preached the good news of Jesus Christ. Perhaps that is part of what he meant when he wrote, “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings” (1 Cor. 9:22-23).
In the end, Paul hoped that that his ministry would yield a crown that will last forever, not wealth that will fade away when he died. He wanted the Christians who lived in the affluent city of Corinth to know that there is more to life than their pocketbooks and portfolios. What is your motivation for serving in ministry?
Poem
A Preacher's Prayer
I have a precious gift for you
Well crafted, work not spared
God’s word full meditated, shaped
And polished with my prayers
Prepared, I offer it to you
With open voice I share it
I hope this gift is well received
With open heart prepar-ed
I preach the gospel, scattered broad
Good soil it hopes to settle
No hardness, birds or weeds entwine
No falsehood creeping, meddle
Receive it, please with open ears
With heart a-fire and blazing
With full reception, Heaven’s choirs
Will burst forth with great praising
