Turn with me if you would please tonight in your Bibles to the book of 1 Corinthians. We pick up there in chapter 9 tonight and verse 1, 1 Corinthians chapter 9 verse 1. And we find ourselves at a passage of scripture in Paul's letter to the church of Corinth that has been used quite often through the years with regard to discussions, maybe even debates with regard to life in the church and the church's responsibility toward the pastor. This exchange that Paul gives us as he is teaching or giving instruction to the congregation at the city of Corinth has been used, interestingly enough, as a support piece for both sides of this debate. There are those who have used this passage of Scripture to actually promote the position that pastors should not be paid and certainly not be compensated full-time in their service and ministry to the Church. And then there are those who have actually used, and quite frankly, I believe the more accurate version is that Paul's teaching here actually does support the support of the pastor as he serves the church and the need and the understanding that a congregation would support him and care for him in the service of that ministry. Now, it's interesting that a passage of Scripture could be attempted to be used on both sides of that argument, isn't it? And yet, certainly it's unmistakable tonight we'll be looking at chapter 9 and these first 18 verses, and part of that discussion will be the issue of the expectations, the rights, if you will, that Paul will speak about regarding his expectation of the Corinthian congregation. Is this about whether we should pay the preacher or not? Though I believe in its context it can be used as a reference point for it, but I do not believe that's part of the teaching that Paul is trying to get across at all. In fact, this is one of the most important things of when we address a scripture expositionally, going from chapter 1 through the end of the book, that we have the opportunity to have a greater insight by virtue of where Paul has been in this letter, where he has begun with this church, where we were last week with regard to the liberties and freedoms of a believer and how we should view those liberties and freedoms because that's exactly the subject that Paul is using as an example to send a message to the church at Carim. I believe we need to consider the idea that what Paul is really trying to expose tonight in this teaching is that he wants to confront, he wants to instruct, and he wants even a loving rebuke of this Corinthian congregation. Because among the many symptoms that they are suffering from in this congregation, maybe we can call them growing pains. After all, in the early words of Paul's letter, he speaks to the fact that he wished that they were able to receive the meat of the Word, but they're not there yet. He speaks of their immaturity. He talks about the things that they are counting as important that are being used as issues of division when they should never be issues at all. For instance, when he talks about how they are laying claim to certain leaders such as Cephas and Apollos, and even some of them Paul, and even those imagining that they can single out Christ in some measure or form. And he talked about it was a revealing or an evidence of the fact that their worldly experiences were still having a great deal of influence on how they viewed the church in the community and the congregation. You may recall that we talked about in chapter 1 that one of the issues of the church was that they were seeking an identity in spite of the fact that they already had one. They already had an identity in Christ, and Paul's trying to reinforce that that is sufficient for them. He's been building a case for that. He has attempted to break down this idea of leadership and how they should view it by presenting himself, an apostle of Jesus Christ, as these other men, but for them to recognize that at best they are servants as they are and responsible as stewards in that service, meaning that they are house managers, not house owners. And therefore, the understanding of their leadership is based on the fact that they have been charged to guard, to manage, and to keep precious the responsibility of the Word of God, the responsibility of preaching the gospel. He's taken us from that point forward as we find ourselves in chapter 9 through the issues of relationship, interaction in the church body, and how that's to be handled for the glory of God. He has looked in chapter 8 about our freedoms and our liberties. and he has challenged the church at Corinth that they be considerate of even those whom they consider and may consider the weaker brother because they don't understand fully their freedoms in Christ, that they are still attached maybe in some measure of fear of those things in the pagan world, and how a mature believer can navigate those waters and not needlessly offend that person. Be willing to deny yourself for the sake of another brother. And recognize that if they are the weaker brother, then the common goal is that in time, in discipleship, they will mature to understand these things that they're struggling with now. In other words, it's not meant for you to deny yourself for eternity in hopes that in acceptance of these people will never grow. but in doing so in anticipation of their growth. When we come into chapter 9, I believe we'll see the position of Paul is one that he is giving defense in response to the implication of an accusation having been made. He literally uses the word here of making a defense. When someone says they're making a defense, then we must presume that there's been a charge. There's been an accusation of some sort. And so we see that Paul is responding to that. And how he responds is magnificent. It is God's inspired word. And how he does so is one that we can learn from greatly because I believe we need to challenge ourselves tonight with regard to how we view our rights, how we view our liberties, how we view our positions of responsibility and leadership, that means me and others like me as they stand in the pulpit as men of God in service to the church, and how the congregation are to view themselves and those who stand before them. Let's dive into our text. Chapter 9, verse 1. Am I not an apostle? Am I not free? Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord? I am not an apostle to others, yet doubtless I am to you. For you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord. My defense to those who examine me is this. Do we have no right to eat and drink? Do we have no right to take along a believing wife as do also the other apostles, the brothers of the Lord and Cephas? Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working? Whoever goes to war at his own expense, who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit? Or who tends a flock and does not drink of the milk of the flock? Do I say these things as a mere man, or does not the law say the same also? 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 all together, 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. If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it a great thing if we reap your material things? 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. Do you not know that those who minister the holy things eat of the things of the temple, and those who serve at the altar partake of the offerings of the altar? Even so, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel. But I have used none of these things, nor have I written these things, that it should be done so to me. For it would be better for me to die than that anyone should make my boasting void. For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of. For necessity is laid upon me, yes, woe is me, if I do not preach the gospel. For if I do this willingly, I have a reward, but if against my will, I have been entrusted with a stewardship. What is my reward then? That when I preach the gospel, I may present the gospel of Christ without charge, that I may not abuse my authority in the gospel. So as Paul begins this address, with this section of his letter to the church at Corinth. I believe we see something here in the first three verses. The first three verses that I want to begin by speaking to an issue that may very well be a problem for the Corinthian church that we can certainly relate to in our modern setting today. And that is, is the Corinthian church suffering from a misunderstanding of their liberties such that they have become entitlements? That they have become entitlements. Can we see the danger of that? If we look at the culture that surround us, I think we can clearly see the danger in that. I think surely we can all agree that the culture in which we exist in now, we are beset about the problems of people who feel entitled. Entitled now, how do we how do we represent that? I don't think it's hard to play out the examples. First of all, it's generational Most of us, especially those who are older, who have either raised their children or have grandchildren or are looking around, find this encounter oftentimes. We see that not everyone, but certainly it's not uncommon to see families or to see young people, teenagers and the like, whom we perceive and observe in their behavior that sometimes have an attitude such that they believe that they are entitled to things. They don't simply hope for things. They don't wish for things. They are quite demanding of things. By the time they're age 18, they're looking at parents and grandparents and whatever they have at that age, they presume that should be theirs even now. They don't encompass the time and the effort maybe that has to go into acquiring those things. Instead, they want somehow a system or a benefit by which they can have those things now. Now, whatever political spectrum you find yourself on, I think we have to be honest with ourselves. And when we see that there is a cry from the multitude of our young people today who believe that they're entitled to not only a high school education, but they're entitled that we pay for their college education. Fascinating. Now, it's one thing to feel entitled to it, but there's even more so that is striking is that when it does not come to them, rather than accepting a decision and saying, oh well, I wish they had, I think it's the right thing to do. Instead, there's outrage and anger. There is overreaction here in resistance to that. Now, when we see a measure of that, One has to see that it has come from some measure of freedom and liberty that has led to a sense of entitlement. Because there's now an expectation. What do they think? They think they deserve this. They think it's their right to have it. As these teenagers and those before them become adults, then now this self-seeking, this entitlement, has not simply gone away. It simply resides there, and all the drive, often in these cases, find themselves heavily influenced, even in their achievement, based on a clear expectation of achievement, of going up the ladder, so to speak, because that's what they deserve. To give you a snapshot of this mindset, About three or four weeks ago, I remember watching one of the pundit news programs, and they were citing a survey that had been done recently. And in that survey, and I have no idea how many people they might have asked, but they cited that 55% of the people who were asked this question believed that their life story should have a book written about it. That it was worth a book being written about it. Worthy of it. Let that sink in. More than half those people believed that their life story was something everybody else ought to be reading about. Does that not strike you a little bit odd? When I think about life stories in autobiographies, I think of unusual people, or at the very least, statesmen and historical figures. I don't think about Jimmy Joe who lives down the street. Is that an indication of somebody who is a little bit self-indulgent, self-focused, so much that they think other people ought to read about their story, whatever it is, that it's significant? What happens here is when we develop this mindset, there's always a bubble that's going to burst. We're going to hit a wall somewhere when things begin to hinder or oppose how we believe, or how that person believes their story should be going. And when that story and that effort does not appear and does not materialize, then all of a sudden we've got a problem. Now I believe it's very evident here and very probable that Paul is exposing a problem in the mind and the heart of the Corinthians. And it may be such that they're no longer seeing Paul as a gift of God, as they should, but they're perceiving Paul as someone who needs to improve. May not be quite the leader that they're seeking for, no matter what he has done to establish this church. And thus we find this defense. Paul asks the question. Let's work backwards. Verse 3 says, My defense to those who examine me. He begins by posing the question, am I not an apostle? Am I not free? Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord? Now, when he puts those statements before, he is presenting this question mark to the congregation, am I not an apostle? And here's the defense of my apostleship, the qualifications, if you will, that they all will have been very familiar with. Now, if Paul sees the reason to explain that, then it is an implication of the Corinthian congregation have begun to view him as something less than that. Maybe even somebody that's replaceable. So, if they are, in fact, implying a criticism of Paul as the leader of this congregation, it's also very likely that Paul is answering with regard to his rights of financial support because this too may be a point of contention. Because Paul's about to explain to us and make a case for every reason that he should expect this financial support, and then he's going to tell us why he won't take it from them. It's not that he won't receive it, for we find out that he's received it from other churches and other congregations. But Paul makes it clear that he won't take it from them. Because I believe that it's very likely that the church of Corinth believes that their financial support of Paul might give them greater privilege and authority to influence him as a leader over their congregation. And potentially even hinder the gospel of Christ. Very interesting subject, isn't it? Now, before we go into Paul's defense, I want to give equal time to the idea of how this happens when you're in the ministry, too. This danger is not just in the congregation. This danger lies with me and others like me, whom God has called to stand before the church and be the shepherd and be a pastor and be a servant and a minister to the church and its congregation. There's some learning lessons here that need to come, and sometimes they come painfully. I want to share with you a story tonight that I came across a few weeks ago of another pastor who was addressing this passage of Scripture, quite frankly. And he related a story from his youth in the ministry, and how he learned this lesson in something of a painful way. This young man said that it was a summer, and he had just graduated from college, and he had begun an internship at a church. Now the church was an hour and a half away from his home. So that meant three times a week he was driving to this church an hour and a half. One way. So after he'd been doing this for a few weeks, he quickly began to be tempted sore with a sinful mindset of feeling entitled. He began to question if this is how this thing should really go. He began to wonder, he said, do these people have an inkling of how much I'm sacrificing to serve them? A few weeks into the internship, a couple in the church that he had known for a few years, they began to see how he was feeling and starting to see it from his perspective. He imagined in his mind, how could they not see it? And they made a proposition. They said, we need to get away and you need to commute less. So let's do this. Why don't you stay at our place for a week? Watch our dogs and just breathe easy. There's plenty of food in the fridge. You'll love it. I thought, thank you, Lord. This is a quote. I thought, thank you, Lord, for finally getting it right for once. I can kick back, watch TV, and even make a few bucks on the side, he thought. Well, to put it bluntly, it was not the week that I thought it was going to be. Their dogs were humongous. Some breed that is gigantic. Wherever I was, they needed to be near me. If I went in another room and closed the door, they went nuts. They barked all night. They needed to be walked multiple times a day, which consisted basically of them dragging me around. And I won't even tell you about how one of them got away in the middle of the night, and I ran around in my pajamas in the rain for an hour and a half trying to track them down. When the relaxed and rested couple finally returned home, I put on my best, it was a great weak face, and kept the escape dog story under wraps. And then I waited and waited for something more than a thank you, an envelope or a card or something that could possibly contain some cash or a check for what I deserved, for what I'd earned. Of course, they would give me something. Surely, even a measly $100 would do. But nope, nothing, nada, zero. As I drove away, I realized that we had never discussed money. And then I began to see those ungrateful They were on vacation while I was forced to live with those mongrels. How dare they take advantage of me that way? I was entitled to something more than what I currently had. This situation didn't fit my narrative. Now the rest of that story is that he had to come to a great understanding of himself. That the problem might not have been with them as much as it was with him. What happened to this young man? What did he discover? I would offer to you that once he allowed himself to begin to feel entitled, then it was inevitable that what was being given to him would never meet his expectations because he had lost all perspective on reality. All perspective on reality. He had not seen now what really had taken place here, what really was going on and what the people were trying to do for him. And therefore what happens now is, after he's lost perspective on reality, he now has a barrier that eventually causes him to lose his ability to receive the gifts when they come. He began to focus on what he didn't have rather than what he did have. Actually, he came to a realization in spite of all that had happened that week. He had saved money on gas. He had had more time, arguably. They fed him. by providing the food. There's no complaints about the food that was in the fridge. It must have been as advertised. And yet, he couldn't enjoy that at all because all he could see was the negative side of what had happened that week. Now, what happens then? When one gets to this place, we can see the evidence in his story that you can literally turn against the ones you love. He knew these people who did this for him. They did it out of love and now he turned against them. Now, try to apply that in any form to what is going on with the Corinthians now. For them to question Paul as a leader of the congregation, for them to suggest that maybe that Cephas should be the leader they should adopt here and that we deserve a leader that meets that certain criteria in spite of the fact that the leader they have is in fact an apostle of Jesus Christ, one has delivered the Word of God, one in fact that their salvation is actually an evidence, that one could examine of his faithfulness to the ministry and being called by God. What is it Paul does now? In verse 4, I believe Paul delivers a measure of tough love. My words, not his. Verse 4, he begins by saying, do we have no right to eat and drink? Do we have no right to take along a believing wife as do also the other apostles, the brothers of the Lord and Cephas? Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working? Who ever goes to war at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit? Or who tends a flock and does not drink of the milk of the flock? So the first thing he appeals to, he says, it seems in response to them that they're offering the money, he said, let me tell you something. I do have the right to expect that you compensate me. Has there been a passage of scripture that says the Corinthians don't want to give Him money? But Paul said, you're right, I do have the right to it. In fact, in comparison with these other men, he said, I would believe that based on what is happening here, I should expect that if I chose to have a wife with me, that you would want to support me enough even so that she may go with me and be a part of the ministry as you would and as you have these other men. Or he says, is Barnabas and I the exception? Are we the exceptions that we don't get that treatment? That's the position that he puts forth beginning in his argument. He goes on to say and affirms a scriptural support for taking their money by using an example that is found in the book of Deuteronomy chapter 25 and verse 4. He said, Do I say these things as a mere man, or does not the law say the same also? 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 all together 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. So using a reference, interestingly enough, from Deuteronomy 25 verse 4, which literally says, you shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain. Paul is saying that God went to the trouble of putting into the Mosaic Law that when you're utilizing a farm animal, like an ox, to thresh out grain, that you should not put a muzzle on that animal to prevent it from eating some of the grain that it's threshing. Paul said, do you really think that God was worried about the ox? He said, my goodness, if He said this about the ox, how does He feel about us? Why shouldn't you want to care? And why shouldn't you treat the service of the ministry to the church at the very least with the same measure of compassion and concern that you would for the animal and the working and threshing the grain? He goes further. Verse 11. If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it a great thing if we reap your material things? 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. Do you not know that those who minister the holy things, eat of the things of the temple, and those who serve at the altar, partake of the offerings of the altar?" Paul affirms that it's not only scriptural, but it's sensible that he take their money. The principle is sound and it is affected in every other part of life. He said, indeed, For material things, you would compensate. For spiritual things, why would you not see the value of those things and even more? He said, yes, I affirm the fact absolutely that I should expect and it's absolutely sensible for me to receive a financial support from you regarding my service to this church. And he gave the sensible argument of it. He said it's an example, it's a tradition, it's a custom that is done repeatedly in other religious services, so it's nothing foreign to you. Why should it be any different here? Finally, Paul will give reference to the command of Christ Himself. He said in verse 14, "'Even so the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel.'" From what place can we find any reference to this that we can identify with? Well, one would be found in Matthew chapter 10. It is on the occasion in Matthew chapter 10 that the Lord is sending out the 12, His disciples. He's sending them out and He has told them. In fact, to be specific, let me pick up in Matthew chapter 10 in verse 5. He said, These 12 Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying, Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. Provide neither gold nor silver nor copper in your money belts, nor bag for your journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor staffs, for a worker is worthy of his food." I want to be. Fully transparent, there's a contextual emphasis there in Matthew chapter 10. It is a mission-oriented, task-oriented exercise that Christ is providing for the Twelve. He's sending them out, but He's telling them exactly the houses and the areas that they should go to. They are specifically targeting the Jews. He said, this is exactly what I want you to do. Preaching the Kingdom of God is at hand. He's talking about performing signs and wonders. But He said, this is what I also want you not to do. I don't want you to pack a bag. I don't want you to take a change of clothing. I don't want you to bring a toothbrush. I don't want you to bring any spending money. Not even a spare pair of shoes. You understand how tough that would be for us? Well, for some of us anyway. Maybe some of you really simple living folks would thrive on this. Just keep wearing that same outfit every day. What was he trying to accomplish here? Well, he said it in verse 10 because he would prescribe in detail about how they would come into someone's home and how they should treat and how they should react to those who welcome them as opposed to those who don't want them there. What he's saying is, trust me enough to know that anyone who endeavors to serve me in the ministry, I will provide for. That was the lesson. The lesson was, in this exercise, the next trip you go on, take another cloak. But on this one, I want you to see, I want you to trust and exercise a measure of faith in what I'm commanding you to do and trusting that I'll provide for you. And indeed, as you serve in the gospel, you will live off the gospel, which is Paul's point here in verse 14. One who preaches the gospel should live from the gospel. So, Paul has made the argument. Springboarding after chapter 8 about the liberties and the rights that we have, the expectations, Paul has turned around and said that he is free and he has the liberty. And as a man of God, he has every precedent. He has support in God's Word. He has a command from the Lord. He has an absolute expectation from what even makes sense in the culture of his day. Yes. Yes. I have every reason to expect you to support me financially. But I won't. Verse 15. But I have used none of these things, nor have I written these things, that it should be done so to me. For it would be better for me to die than that anyone should make my boasting void. For I preach the gospel. I have nothing to boast of. For necessity is laid upon me, yes, woe is me, if I do not preach the gospel. For if I do this willingly, I have a reward. But if against my will I have been entrusted with a stewardship, what is my reward then? That when I preach the gospel, I may present the gospel of Christ without charge, that I may not abuse my authority in the gospel. For Paul, Paul wants to make a point clear. Receiving money from you is optional. But the preaching of the gospel was not. And therefore, if taking money from you will cause it to be a hindrance to the preaching of the gospel, I will not receive it. He even makes a point. Now, did the others have to be taught that they should support him, the other churches he was given support from? There's not a reading in God's Word of a letter to the church at Philippi, there's not a reading in God's Word where we see that he had to demand anything from them. Apparently, out of compassion, generosity, and a desire to support the man of God, they did so. Paul's telling the Corinthians, I never put this forward to you and said this needs to be done. And he said, the reason why it needed to be done, I think, reverts back to the lack of maturity in this congregation. He'd already said that they needed the meat, but they were still on the milk. And so, he understood that the implications of taking money from the Corinthians, he applies it here as a potential hindrance of the preaching of the gospel. And he said, I could not allow that. Would not allow that. He puts this in perspective here. In verse 16, when he says, For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for necessity is laid upon me. Yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel. Now what you might find as a negative, Paul presents here as a positive. He is saying that I do not preach the gospel by choice. It is not my idea. It is God's command. There is no option for me in this. And he puts it in, if you didn't get it the first time, he then comes back in verse 17 and says, for if I do this willingly, I have a reward, but if against my will, I have been entrusted with a stewardship. Since we're on the subject of surveys and statistics tonight, just today, a study I read in a Christian publication where Barna has been doing a survey all along, apparently, every so often the pastors It does not speak to the specific denominations, but in the general category of Protestant churches, in the number of pastors that they have surveyed, four in ten are seriously considering quitting the ministry. Four of ten. A host of reasons. But four of ten are considering walking away. And I understood some of the conditions they described, burnout, pressure, COVID, all these things that in many churches where it's been a very lackluster reappearance of people in the pews, even for those churches have gone back to in-person, and the percentages are quite disturbing in some cases. But there was a statement in that article that I kept tripping over. where the person who had done the study said there are men who are literally asking the question, am I still called to do this? And I'm sorry, but for my personality and my makeup, I mean the bells were ringing. Am I still called? The implication that Paul puts forward to you is that there's not a situation where God says you're no longer called. Paul said my preaching the gospel is not an option. He said, woe is me if I don't preach the gospel. Now, I'm sympathetic with these men. I really am. I'm not meaning to throw them under the bus. But Paul's presenting a picture here. He's saying, listen, I want you to understand, if I were doing this as a choice, then that financial compensation from you at Corinth would be my reward. By the way, it's not like Corinth couldn't compensate. In fact, there's a great irony here. Probably of all the churches that Paul had established, Corinth may have been the richest, the most well-off. The Philippians had been generous, but I don't know if it's out of an abundance of riches. We know the churches in Macedonia were poor because Paul highlighted the fact that they gave money that in the modern world somebody would say they didn't have to give. But they gave sacrificially. to those who needed it. Not simply Paul, but even the suffering saints, the Jewish believers in Jerusalem. But instead he said, this is not what I do out of willingness. And so therefore he comes back and says, but if against my will, then it's by virtue of the fact that I recognize, and he goes back to that same term that he'd used earlier in his teaching. He said, I recognize that I have been entrusted with a stewardship. When Paul used that illustration previously, He applied it to the image of a servant. A servant who is still a slave, but one that has been promoted to the responsibility of being a steward servant in the household, meaning he's a manager. He has greater responsibility, but he doesn't own anything more than he owned last week when he was just a slave. He's now charged with the keeping of something that is not his. for the responsibility of the success of something that he'll not necessarily reap the benefits from in the immediate terms as one might think of in human terms. Instead, he says, I recognize I've been entrusted. Because look what he says in verse 18, so what is my reward? He says, when I preach the gospel, I may present the gospel of Christ without charge, that I may not abuse my authority in the gospel. What Paul is saying is, is I can live with myself and recognize that I'm doing my best to do that which God has commanded me to do. And that I have not used it, I have not leveraged it, I have not at least expressed or acted on some sense of entitlement as a minister of the gospel. Because If I use, as Paul puts it, if I abuse my authority as an apostle and begin to believe that I'm entitled to something, then what happens? Let's review for our young pastor friend. I am tempted to lose perspective. I am tempted to no longer be able to graciously even receive those gifts that have been given out of love because I've lost perspective on what I deserve. And then I'll find myself turning against the very people who love me enough to give me something. It's incredible, isn't it? And yet every last one of us can fall right into this bucket. Many of us have, more than once. So Paul says, for that reason, I've set aside my rights, quote-unquote. I set aside my liberty. to ask and to have an expectation. I have purposely chosen not to do this so that I might not abuse my authority as an apostle. This is the example that Paul sets to the church at Corinth, sending them a message of two things. One, I cannot allow your financial support for two reasons. One, that you not imagine that you have the right to manipulate me into the leader you think you deserve. Number two, I cannot accept it so that I may not be in danger of abusing my authority as an apostle, imagining that not only do I have a right to it, but I have an entitlement and an expectation of it. Because if I'm not careful, my ministry will be more greater more greatly influenced by that reward than the reward of the purity of the ministry God has called me to. Because if I trust in that, then it's also a measure of trust that Christ was trying to reinforce to His twelve in Matthew chapter 10 when He told them to go out and don't pack a bag. Now, Does that mean that there should not be any expectation on the church to support the man of God? Well, you would have missed the forest for the trees if you thought that. Paul just spent the bulk of this text explaining to you why you should. But he also made it clear that if you're not doing that for the right reasons, that even the most generous compensation can be destructive. It can be destructive in two ways. One, if the church begins to see the man of God as an employee and not the minister that God has gifted them with, who's attempting to faithfully deliver the word of God to them, faithfully invest his life into theirs in service and being there for them and caring for them and helping them as they would for him. then it has now become a measure of entitlement and leverage. If it is detrimental for the pastor, if for some reason he begins to imagine that this is what he deserves and he begins to judge based on whether it meets his expectation or whether he believes that it's equated to the amount of effort that he's put forth, the sacrifice that he's making, does it really, does it really respond to the respect that I'm due as a man of God? Paul said, God forbid, that they would ever enter into the mind of the man of God who preaches the gospel. Why? Because all those things take away, take away from the focus, take away from the devotion, single-minded devotion to understanding what your priority is, what your calling is, to whom you're doing it for. Now, to recognize how difficult this is, can I take you back for a moment to where we were in 1 Corinthians chapter 7. Do you remember when Paul was discussing to be married or not to be married? Do you remember when he said that in celibacy there is an advantage? Because in celibacy you don't have a wife to worry about. You don't have to have a family to provide for and protect. Hall said, I don't expect you to abandon that family, but I want you to understand that this is a potential detriment. It makes it more difficult to remain focused and understanding of the ministry, because you also have God-given responsibilities with regard to wife and children that take away from this, and by the way, have the potential to be a great support, but also have the potential to take your attention away and your focus away. and began to wonder and began to evaluate and began to place priority and expectations on things that aren't a part of the ministry. Paul said, I'm not taking this because I am concerned, I have reason to believe that this would be a detriment, that this would be a hindrance to my preaching of the gospel. This would be a detriment to you as a congregation of understanding the God-given role I have before you as a man of God. I believe this is very much the message of 1 Corinthians chapter 9. It may have its application in our discussions about to pay or not to pay. That may very well be. But when we look at it in the heart of who Paul is addressing and what's been going on with him, and by the way what will happen afterwards, make no mistake, there are people in the Corinthian congregation that are attacking Paul as a pastor. They will be critical of his ability to speak. They will be critical of his appearance. They will be critical of his understanding of the nature of the world, that he's not a respectable voice and authority, because obviously, as we've said so many times before, the joke about the Apostle Paul is whenever he comes to town, there's either going to be a revival or a riot or both. So he's not the charismatic leader that's going to win the community over. He is the godly man who's going to preach the whole counsel of God's Word. And as he described it, to the one who does not believe, it's the smell of death. To the one who is believing, whom God has given salvation, it's the sweet smell of life. The Corinthians couldn't handle that distinction. They were struggling with their identity and their willingness to be the oddball in the city of Corinth. To be the unique one, the peculiar one. To recognize to be in the world and not of the world means you're going to be swimming upstream against the culture. And therefore don't seek out a leader that has a way of bridging that gap. Respect and respond to a leader who will stand firm and faithful to God's word in the face of it. Maybe that's the message Paul is trying to get across and maybe that's still a good message for us to hear tonight as well. For all of us. the danger of entitlement, converting liberty into entitlement, allowing our expectations to take greater influence and authority over the expectations of God's Word. Does anyone have any question or comment on these verses tonight?