1 Corinthians 9

Tuesday, 9 September 2014

If others are partakers of this right over you, are we not even more? Nevertheless we have not used this right, but endure all things lest we hinder the gospel of Christ. 1 Corinthians 9:12

After all the previous verses of chapter 9, Paul will begin to explain why he chose not to exercise his apostolic rights. Before he does though, he makes an obvious statement –

“If others are partakers of this right over you, are we not even more?”

He has spent seven verses showing how the rights of the one who labors include their entitlement to being supported by those they labor for. As this is a right which goes all the way back to the Law of Moses and which included brute beasts, it should be considered a universal axiom.

As it is, and because the other apostles used this right when visiting Corinth, weren’t Paul and Barnabas even more entitled to using it? It was they who originally came and shared the gospel with them! In fact, Paul said to them that “you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord” (verse 3). Because of this undeniable fact, he was certainly entitled to the right of payment for his labors.

And yet, despite this certainty, Paul continues with “Nevertheless we have not used this right.” This shows that Paul had an agenda other than profiting off of those in Corinth. If sharing the gospel was his passion and his life’s main purpose, and yet he didn’t earn his keep from it, then it showed a sincerity of heart that others should have recognized. If a person played major league baseball for nothing more than food money and a place to sleep, it would show a true love for the game. But when there are millions of dollars up for grabs, one can never really tell if the players are on the field for love of money or love of the game.

The same is true with televangelists. Just because someone has great oratory skills, doesn’t mean that their love for Christ is sincere. Knowing that there are literally millions of dollars available to those who preach the gospel, along with fame, power over others, and Lear jets waiting in the hangar, one can’t really be certain that Christ is the purpose for the preaching. Paul desired to avoid any such pitfall in the minds of those he ministered to. Instead he notes that they “endure all things lest we hinder the gospel of Christ.”

He was willing to go to great lengths and through any trials to share the gospel, even without exercising his rights as an apostle. The word translated “endure” is the Greek word stegomen. It means to cover closely (so as to keep water out). In essence, “to contain without leaking.” The external pressures on a ship as it passes through heavy seas is immense. Such a test of the ship will show its true colors. If it survives such a beating, it is a worthy vessel to trust one’s life with. Paul was showing to them that the message he preached was a worthy message; one in which another could trust with their eternal soul. There was nothing which could harm their fate, and Paul’s willingness to suffer externally without cost or benefit was a demonstration of this.

The word for “hinder” is the Greek word enkopēn. It is only used here in the New Testament and it basically means an “incision” or a “cutting into.” Hence Paul gives the idea of an impediment on a path which would interfere with following that path. If he were to come and lollygag around, eating food, schmoozing with the church, and expecting special treatment, those in the church could easily question his motives concerning the sharing of the gospel.

He wanted no such thing to occur, and so he worked diligently and without charge to share the wondrous message which had been entrusted to him.

Life application: About the secrets hidden inside each of us the Bible says –

“The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?” Jeremiah 17:9

Only the Lord can truly search out the heart of man. But our eyes should be used to evaluate those around us, particularly those in positions of power or leadership. It is a foolish thing to implicitly trust someone who acts in one way while speaking in another. If a leader were to spend all of his time on the golf course while telling others about the importance of work, it would show a corruption of the heart which was obvious. Likewise if that leader’s wife were to tell those around her to only eat certain foods she deemed healthy and yet she was often seen eating foods which weren’t on that list, it would show the corrupt and twisted thinking of a person who merely wanted control over others. In such cases, evaluating the actions would show the heart of the person. Let us reasonably evaluate our leaders, both in the church and elsewhere, and not blindly follow them because they have fine speaking abilities or some other highly noticeable trait.

Lord, help me to be discerning in how I evaluate others. Help me not to be overly judgmental, but at the same time, give me the wisdom to not blindly follow those in leadership positions. Help me especially in the church to properly and wisely evaluate leaders and to not get caught up in idolizing them or their great abilities. I know if that were to happen, I would blindly trust them, even if their message wasn’t sound. Grant me such discernment so that I will follow Your word above all else. Amen.

Monday, 8 September 2014

If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it a great thing if we reap your material things? 1 Corinthians 9:11

Paul has been showing through the use of Deuteronomy 25:4 that the oxen which treaded out the grain is actually making a greater statement about the labors of people. If an oxen isn’t to be kept from eating the grain he treads, then how much more should the human laborer be provided for through his efforts! He now transfers this thought directly to his apostleship, which he defended several verses ago as one shown to be valid and which actually was the means of transmitting the gospel to those in Corinth.

Because their coming to Christ came about through his efforts, then wasn’t he entitled to be provided for through those efforts? In this reasoning, he states it from the greater to the lesser; from the spiritual to the material. This then is the opposite of the previous argument –

1) From the ox (lesser) to the human (greater).
2) From the spiritual (greater) to the material (lesser).

His words are “If we have sown spiritual things for you…” The “if” is to be taken as a statement of fact – “We have (definitely) sown spiritual things for you” (as he demonstrated earlier). Because of this, “is it a great thing if we reap your material things?” The question demands an answer that it is no great thing, but rather what would be expected. The ox was entitled, according to the law, to eat as he threshed. The context of the surrounding passage (and Paul’s words of analysis concerning it) show that this naturally leads to the same entitlement for man in his labors. Therefore, it is no great thing to consider that those who minister in spiritual things should in fact reap in material things.

In both clauses, the “we” is emphatic, only bolstering the intent of his words, and the use of the word “great” involves a hint of sarcasm. He is showing very clearly that his apostleship is one which has been both helpful to them and deserving of their help to him in return. Despite this, Paul declined to accept such help from them. This will be seen as the chapter continues and the reason for it will be explained.

Life application: Paul says in Galatians 6:6, “Let him who is taught the word share in all good things with him who teaches.” There is good reason for this. The one who teaches spiritually is providing the most valuable of all benefits to those he teaches (assuming the word is being properly handled and rightly divided). Is it then too much to return to the teacher something of benefit for his material profit?

Let him who is taught the word share
In all good things with him who teaches
For in that precious word, and only there
Is the found the true path to which heaven reaches

The one who so instructs has the most important duty
And the one who is instructed should so avow
With gifts and offerings, a thankful booty
For spiritual instruction of the Who, the what, the how

For in learning the word, we learn of Jesus
And in Him is found the true and only heavenly path
It is His cross which has delivered us
From condemnation and God’s holy wrath

Lord, I thank You for the many great men who have instructed me in my spiritual walk. Some have passed long ago and only their writings remain. Some I’ve met from afar, through the television or radio. And some have come into my life by Your gracious hand so that I have personally met them and learned from them. For each of these people I am grateful to You. Thank You for those who have carefully and rightly divided Your word in order to instruct me about Jesus. Amen.

Sunday, 7 September 2014

Or does He say it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written, that he who plows should plow in hope, and he who threshes in hope should be partaker of his hope. 1 Corinthians 9:10

This verse refers to the previous verse. Taken together, they read –

“Do I say these things as a mere man? Or does not the law say the same also? ⁹ For it is written in the law of Moses, ‘You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain.’ Is it oxen God is concerned about? Or does He say it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written, that he who plows should plow in hope, and he who threshes in hope should be partaker of his hope.”

Paul’s question concerning the words of Deuteronomy 25:4 is whether God intended to mean an ox, or was He rather making a spiritual picture of a fortiori argument. Is it “altogether for our sakes?” The answer immediately follows – “For our sakes, no doubt.” The context of the verse, which is in the middle of other passages dealing with human matters, indicates that it was actually referring to a human matter as well. However, this does not exclude a literal meaning also. The word translated as “altogether” is pantos. Albert Barnes, after reviewing the nine uses of pantos in the New Testament concludes –

“The word here, therefore, means that the ‘principle’ stated in the law about the oxen was so broad and humane, that it might “certainly, surely, particularly” be regarded as applicable to the case under consideration.”

And this is exactly what one should deduce when reading the law in Deuteronomy. The logical thought process should be something like: “God has said to not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain. The law is intended for us to understand and consider God’s heart for us. If God is concerned about a mere ox as it labors, then how much more is He concerned about us! If I have employees under me who labor for me, I should give greater care to them than the law requires me to give to my brute beast.”

The man “who plows should plow in hope.” The laborer shouldn’t come home hungry after his day of work if he has been laboring in the processing of food all day. That would be an abuse of the bounty given to the one who hired the laborer. Likewise, “he who threshes in hope should be partaker of his hope.” There are various ways to thresh grain depending on the type of grain. Isaiah explains this to us –

“For the black cummin is not threshed with a threshing sledge, Nor is a cartwheel rolled over the cummin; But the black cummin is beaten out with a stick, And the cummin with a rod. Bread flour must be ground; Therefore he does not thresh it forever, Break it with his cartwheel, Or crush it with his horsemen. This also comes from the Lord of hosts, Who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in guidance.” Isaiah 28:27-29

If an ox is not to be muzzled while it treads out the grain, then it logically follows that someone who beats out grain with a stick should also not be kept from partaking as he threshes. Therefore, the principle found in the law is God’s way of protecting His creatures and keeping the hearts of His people from hardening towards His laborers. It is an ingeniously placed passage in Deuteronomy which points to much more than it at first appears.

From this springboard, Paul will move from grains to the gospel.

Life application: The word given to us by God spans thousands of years of human existence and yet it coalesces into one whole, united, and understandable work of literature. The reason this is so is because God is the ultimate Author of its words. He carefully, methodically, and slowly revealed His heart to us through His word in order to show us our great need for Jesus. As you read the pages of the Bible, never stop looking for spiritual applications and pictures of Christ. You will be abundantly rewarded as you do.

O Lord, my heart often gets beating rather quickly as I read Your word. A sudden insight into something I’d never before considered will fill me with a sense of awe at how I missed that in the past. Reading a psalm will often elevate my soul to a higher place where my hope in You becomes surer than only a moment earlier. When I contemplate the words You spoke to and through your prophets, I see history itself unfold. I stand ever in awe of the beauty revealed in Your superior word. Thank You for this immeasurable gift! Amen.

Saturday, 6 September 2014

For it is written in the law of Moses, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain.” Is it oxen God is concerned about? 1 Corinthians 9:9

In his words of 1 Corinthians 9:9, Paul uses a common rabbinical technique known as kal va-khomer (from light to heavy) to argue his case. It is an argument as Chabad describes “whereby a conclusion is drawn from a minor premise or more lenient condition (“light”) to a major or more strict one (“weighty”) or vice versa, a fortiori argument. In common parlance, ‘all the more so.'”

He has, for the past several verses, been arguing for the case that he bears all the rights of an apostle. In order to bolster that argument in a way which the “judaizers” could not honestly refute, he turns to the very source of their claims for their laws, traditions, and heritage – the Law of Moses. There, within the law are written the words, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain.” This is stated in Deuteronomy 25:4.

The idea is that to muzzle an ox, who is participating in the labors of treading out the grain in order to separate the grain from the chaff, would show a disrespect for the laborer, even if it were a mere ox. Muzzling involved tying its mouth closed in one way or another or even placing a basket over its mouth so that it couldn’t eat the grain, thus depriving it of the food that was in its eyesight. It showed a coldness of heart towards the brute beast that was unacceptable in the eyes of God.

Paul then asks, “Is it oxen God is concerned about?” The answer is two-fold. First, “Yes, God cares about the oxen or he wouldn’t have placed the admonition in the law in the first place.” For this to be prescribed showed that God did, in fact, care for the oxen. He showed the same care for the animals of Nineveh when speaking to Jonah. At the very end of the book, these final words are noted –

“You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow, which came up in a night and perished in a night. And should I not pity Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot discern between their right hand and their left—and much livestock?” Jonah 4:10, 11

However, in making his kal va-khomer, or “light to heavy” argument, Paul shows that though God did care for the ox, he displays more care for man, His highest creature. This is with all certainty (though Paul doesn’t explain it here) because bordering the curious verse about muzzling the ox are examples of care for His people. Deuteronomy 25:1-3 deals with the punishment of an offender of the law and the mercy he was to be given. No more than 40 lashes could be meted out lest, “he should exceed this and beat him with many blows above these, and your brother be humiliated in your sight.”

And then after the note about the ox comes more verses which concern the care of His people. Specifically, the rights of, and care for, the widow of a dead man. The principle of the ox then, even within the law itself, implies something of greater weight than the mere words initially seem to entail. God is showing care for the ox and yet, the implication is of greater care for His people.

The verse is of such importance to understanding the greater principle intended by the law that Paul repeats it in his first letter to Timothy in 1 Timothy 5:18.

Life application: The Law of Moses, though set aside in Christ, contains valuable insights into God’s relationship with, and desires for, His creatures. Because the Old Testament is so heavily cited in the New Testament, it is not truly possible to grasp the depth of New Testament revelation without understanding that of the Old. Don’t be afraid to dig into the Old Testament… it won’t bite you, but rather it will edify your understanding of God’s redemptive plans for humanity.

Precious Lord! I am thrilled beyond measure to wake up in the morning and know that You are there. As the day unfolds, I can see Your hand of grace, leading me to beauty that surrounds me – rainbows and puffy white clouds are there if I will just lift my eyes and look. The food I eat… I will not take it for granted, but will remember to thank You for it. So many others lack the abundance I possess. Lord, thank You for Your attentive hand of care for me. And should it all disappear tomorrow, I will thank You for my lack, knowing that it was ordained by You. You are great and are always worthy of praise. Amen.

Friday, 5 September 2014

Do I say these things as a mere man? Or does not the law say the same also? 1 Corinthians 9:8

After defending his apostleship, Paul has been asking rhetorical questions to bolster his rights as an apostle. He is entitled to partake of the benefits of being an apostle whether he exercises those rights or not. It can be inferred that because he didn’t exercise them, others were using it as evidence that he really wasn’t an apostle.

Because of his apostleship to the gentiles, there was certainly a dislike of his status among those who argued that the gospel was for the Jews, or at least for those who held to the law of Moses. That issue was resolved at the Council of Jerusalem, but it didn’t change the hearts and minds of those in the legalistic faction of Judaizers. In fact, it hasn’t changed them today, 2000 years later. Regardless of this, Paul’s apostleship was valid and he was entitled to the rights and benefits of it.

In order to bolster this, especially in the eyes of those who held to Scripture (meaning what is now called the Old Testament), he will appeal to Scripture itself. He uses this particular formula abundantly in his letters. Instead of relying merely on human reasoning, Scripture will support his claims. In this verse, he uses two separate words to intensify what he is relaying. In his comment “do I say,” the verb is lalo. In the comment “does not the law say” the verb is legei. The first word, lalo, is a general word; as a mere man. The second word, legei, is a more distinguished word; from Scripture itself.

Life application: Paul’s argument from human reason is bolstered and intensified when it is combined with the very words of Scripture. This is an extremely useful point to consider and remember. Defending the faith from science and philosophy is a wonderful way to get people to consider the workings of God. However, only Scripture can specifically bring a person to salvation. One who relies on Scripture first for their worldview will always have a better understanding of the issues which surround us, be they morality, Zionism, the nature of God, or a plethora of other things that swirl around us from day to day.

Lord, there are many ways to look at a given issue, be it morality, prosperity, health, Zionism, the nature of creation, or even the nature of You who created. Because these things can be argued in different ways, I will always first consider them from the perspective of Your word. I know that in doing this, I will have the superior source from which to make my decisions about those issues, regardless of how they may appear in the world around me. I trust Your word above all else to be my light, my guide, and my source of understanding those issues which are addressed by You. Thank You for Your superior word! Amen.