Open your Bibles with me to 1 Corinthians 16. 1 Corinthians 16. That's page 962, if you're using one of our pew Bibles. And we come to the next to last message in 1 Corinthians. As often as the case, I thought I might be able to preach just one more message, but there are too many things here that need our attention, too many rich things just Passover quickly and superficially. I feel like I'm going to do that anyhow with the five parts of these two verses that God puts before us today. But nonetheless we come very near to the end of first Corinthians and we finished the series in Matthew right before the Christmas break and some have asked where do you plan to go next. And as God has impressed my heart and stirred my heart I would like us to to study the Book of Acts together. And I'll be doing that in both morning and evening services. I haven't preached one series or one focus on the Lord's Day in one series for a number of years, but I do plan to do that with the Book of Acts. And we'll begin that the first Sunday in February. Now, January we're going to take some time. I'll need a couple of weeks to finish up Corinthians. And then I've asked Matthew Hoskinson to preach one Lord's Day. Eric will be preaching another Lord's Day. and some particular topics that I believe our congregation needs to set its heart upon. And I've asked these men to assist in that. So that will take us through January and then we'll begin the book of Acts in February. Have a missions conference if you've looked at the master calendar. You've seen that coming and that will be a great time for us. So many things to look forward to. Now this morning follow along as I read just verses 13 and 14. First Corinthians 16 13 and 14. Be watchful. Stand firm in the faith. Act like men. Be strong. Let all that you do be done in love." These two verses arise almost like some interruption to the larger thoughts that Paul has been putting forward. He's been speaking in terms of relationships with the Corinthians, his own, his travel plans. He's reminded them that he did give the message to Apollos, and Apollos at this point doesn't seem inclined to come. He has words for them regarding how they ought to treat Timothy upon his arrival, others who have been a part of ministry to Paul and that the Corinthians know well, and the greetings and such. And right in the middle of that come five outbursts, as it were. Five very brief commands, thinking, acting, speaking in particular ways. And yet I think these serve in many ways as summary commands for the entire letter that he's written. And so I want to take all five of these very briefly and hopefully help you to see that they are all connected to one priority, one very important matter for our attention. Now look with me at verse 13 and look at this first phrase, be watchful. The Lord here commands our attention and specifically I think it is our attention to the faith. Be watchful, Paul writes, and that refers to being in a continuous state of readiness, alertness, to be vigilant. That would be another synonym we could use here. Be vigilant, Paul writes. Now, there are other places in the New Testament where we are told to be watchful for certain things. One would be to be watchful for our adversary's attacks. You'll remember from 1 Peter 5, verses 7 and 8, where we're told to cast all our anxiety upon him because he cares for us. And then Peter goes on to write, be sober-minded, be watchful. Why, Peter? Because your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. It's a real danger. It's a real threat. And so we are to be ever vigilant in regard to the adversary. We're told in places to be watchful for Christ's return. Our Lord spoke words of command at the end of His earthly ministries, telling the disciples, watch, be vigilant, be prepared. In Revelation 16, 15, the Apostle John writes, records the words of Christ for us. Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake. And that little phrase, stays awake. is the same phrase we have translated here in this verse in front of us, be watchful. The Ephesian elders were told to be watchful for spiritual wolves and the selfishly ambitious leaders. Paul says to these men after discipling them and training them and mentoring them for over three years. Wolves will come in to do great harm to the flock and then some will arise even from your own ranks who will seek to build a following after themselves. And then he goes on to say in verse 31 of Acts 21. Therefore be alert. So there are many things in the Christian life that we are to be alert to or alert for. I think in the context what Paul is speaking of here though is found in the second phrase, and here let's look at the second command. The Lord commands our constancy in the faith. He commands our attention to the faith, but here it is crystal clear. He commands our constancy in the faith. Stand firm in the faith. Standing firm has the idea itself of constancy, of steadfastness. Don't be moved off of this. Now, what is the thing from which we should not be moved? The faith. as Paul writes, and he is not speaking, I do not believe, as an act of believing, but rather the content of what we believe. I think it's consistent with what we have seen for a number of weeks in our study of these last several chapters, even for the entire study in the Corinthian series. The faith is nothing less than the gospel. Now, you can even turn back there. It's just one page, 1 Corinthians 15.1. Here's part of the reason I would say this. In 1 Corinthians 15.1, Paul wrote, now I would remind you Brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand." Same terminology, same idea. Now, you have to remember the larger situation at Corinth was a demonstration. They were not standing firm in the gospel. They were standing firm in many other things, but not the gospel, not the faith in this formal sense. They stood firm in their party affiliation. You'll remember that all the way back in the beginning. I'm Paul, Apollos, Peter, the Christ party. They were standing firm for something that in and of itself might have been a good thing, but the way it played out was a bad thing. They were not standing firm in the faith. They stood firm in their legal rights. Remember in chapter 6, they were taking brothers to court. Lawsuits were unfolding. They couldn't settle their differences. They'd say, I'll see you in court. And in one sense, they had a legal right to sue someone. But Paul comes in and says, but what about the gospel? They were not standing firm in the faith. Chapter 7, you have some almost bizarre conclusions that the people had reached, that celibacy was the superior spiritual choice for life. And certainly, they had a right to choose that. But Paul explains to them that that is not the highest choice a person could make. They were standing firm in their conclusions regarding marriage and celibacy, but it was not the faith. They stood firm in their dietary rights. Some of them said, we will eat meat offered to idols, and others said, we will never eat meat offered to idols. And Paul comes in the middle and reminds them of the gospel, standing firm in a dietary choice, but they were not standing firm in the faith. Finally, as a last example, they were standing firm in their practice of spiritual gifts, but it was not the faith. Remember how that was an aberration? And chapters 12, 13, and 14 were a reminder to us that tongues is not at the top of the heap. The spirit is given gifts. It's for the glory of God. It's for the benefit of the others, but it's not to put oneself on display so that everybody can say, ooh, ah, look at the spiritual man there. So here's a church that has taken firm stands on many things, but they're not as firmly committed to the gospel as they think they are. And beloved, the sad thing, and I've mentioned this before, but I want to remind you again, is that anytime we begin to take a stand like Corinth did on secondary issues or peripheral concerns, the gospel in its glory is obscured. And the thrill and joy and peace and comfort and forgiveness and redemption that God intends for people to experience in the gospel is also obscured. And in our day, we see the same thing unfolding. Same thing. And it's possible, despite having preached through this and studying this together, that some of you are still more committed to a party affiliation than you are the faith. You argue and contend with people, and you find yourselves in these perpetual discussions, and people are frustrated with you, and some even are backing away from you, saying, I'm not going to have anything to do with that guy because he's more committed to that party affiliation than he is the faith. And some of you are in process and you will reach a point where some of your nearest and dearest brothers in Christ will back away from you because you're not really committed to the faith. Committed to your own party affiliation. Others are standing firm in God's law. Is God's law inherently evil? No. The law is good, but you have to remember it's use. Use-es, plural. And it was never intended as a means of justification before God. There are some who would pride themselves in how high their standards are. The problem is not with high standards. The problem is when they are viewed as a means of justification before God or before others, as if God values you more because you have such exceedingly high standards. God calls us to holy living. And frankly, there are many, even in an assembly like this, who need to give more careful attention to their standards, where they have placed them. But God's law cannot become a substitute for the faith. What does the faith tell us? That there is righteousness that comes apart from the law. A righteousness which is by faith in Jesus Christ. There's where my value lies. There's where my identity is created in Jesus. Some take their stand in liberty. There's a time and even a way to stand in liberty. Paul will say that to the Galatian church. Stand fast in the liberty. It's a thing for which Christ has made you free, but not in the sense that some, even here, practice it. I'll do what I want to do, think what I want to think, go where I want to go, dress how I want to dress, and who are you to tell me anything other? Oh, beloved, you're not standing firm in the faith. You're standing firm in an aberrant view of liberty. Paul's call to us is a reminder that the faith is central. The message of Christ. The message that reminds us there is no forgiveness of sin apart from Him. There is no progress in holiness apart from Him. There is no effective ministry or service apart from Him. There is nothing to offer the world or ourselves apart from Him. And so the call is clearly to stand firm in the faith. Paul speaks a similar word to the Philippian church. In Philippians 127 he says, only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ. So that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind, striving side by side for what? the faith of the gospel. Now, isn't it interesting that someone who truly understands the gospel recognizes that there will be an accompanying manner of living that is appropriate to it, worthy of the gospel. So that means all the life choices down to the most mundane thing ought to be run through this filter of the gospel. But nonetheless, I keep the gospel central, not my preference. And Paul clearly indicates, as one author writes, that we are to conduct ourselves with proper reference to our obligations in relationship to the faith of the gospel. That becomes this great benchmark. Do you know what a benchmark is? If you go up on top of certain mountain peaks or whatever and you kind of scrounge around sometimes in the grass or undergrowth, you'll find these pieces of metal that have been driven down into the ground. Those are benchmarks. And those are the things that surveyors will try to find. And you really can't get a true survey of the land until you plant your instrument right on top of that benchmark. And you may come close, and there may be some things that, you know, I mean, they're not going to create a life or death situation for someone. But you know something? If you've ever tried to navigate a wilderness or countryside area that doesn't have roads or pathways or even trails, you know that you need to have a true reading of the map. and finding a benchmark will unfailingly help you to orient yourself on that map. The faith is our benchmark. Stand firm in the faith. Number three, the Lord commands our maturity, and I believe this is tied to the faith. Third command, act like men. It's the only occurrence of this particular word in the New Testament, so we have to look more at context than anything else to figure out what it means. It could mean to just conduct oneself in a manly way. That creates some real problems for half of our beloved congregation here. It could refer to acting courageously, and I think that is something we would have to consider in this context. When I go back and piece together a few other passages that we've been through in the course of these months and years that we've been in the study in Corinthians, I would agree with one author who writes, more probably, it is meant to counter the immaturity so manifest in some of the Corinthians. Paul wants them to act like responsible adults. Back in chapter 3, verses 1 and 2, Paul wrote, but I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready." In chapter 13, verse 11, remember he wrote, when I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. In chapter 14, verse 20, he wrote, brothers, do not be children in your thinking, be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature. So this theme of maturing in Christ has run throughout the entire letter. And here it seems to me that the most specific point Paul is trying to make is that they ought to act like Christian adults. And we'll sometimes say that to one another when we act infantile. Hey, be a man. Guys show very little mercy to one another, particularly in physical events. You knock a guy down, he gets hurt, he's bleeding, you're like, hey, pal, suck it up, be a man. So you get this thing growing up in culture that, you know, real men don't cry. Well, that's stupid as well as wrong. Real men do cry because God has crafted our emotions and has created tear ducts and, you know, certain things will trigger all of that. So Paul is not speaking with the kind of harshness that guys would on an athletic field. Hey, be a man. No, he's saying grow up and be mature. Why would we be mature? For the faith. For the sake of the gospel. He commands us to show ourselves to be Christians who are matured in the faith. Do you remember back in chapter 9, in the whole point of of the matter of eating meat or not eating meat in Christian liberty. You remember Paul's personal testimony? Verse 22 he wrote, to the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. And then he broadens it, it says, I have become all things to all people that by all means I might save some. So how would that have been applied for Paul at Corinth? He's invited to a house, maybe there are meat eaters there. Asks no questions for conscience sake, no big deal. Goes to the house of someone else who's not eating meat, doesn't have to have it. What if somebody comes into your own house? You're just sitting down to enjoy a very finely prepared piece of steak. My wife did this for our family Friday night. Oh, it was wonderful. Couldn't even eat all of it. But what would happen if somebody had knocked on my door and they come in and I just see on their face there's this look of shock and awe and I say, something troubling you, and I'm just about ready to take my first bite, and they say, you know, before I came to Christ, we used to eat that kind of meat. Every time I see that, it reminds me of a life of idolatry and rebellion and sinfulness. I say, oh, now what do I do? You know, for a Christian man, a Christian adult, it's a no-brainer. I say, wow, let's find something else to eat. You take that point of hurt away. This is the kind of thinking that Paul is calling the Corinthians to continue in. Act like adults, not like a bunch of spoiled, little, infantile brats. People wanted their own way over the party affiliation, wanted their own way when it came to exercising their gifts, wanted their own way at the communion services. Remember what a mockery that was? Paul says, this is not even the Lord's I don't know what you all are doing, but it is not the Lord's table. It's because in many ways you had a church full of children demanding their rights, going after what they wanted, no one looking to serve another. God commands us to show ourselves to be Christians who are matured in the faith. Number four, the Lord commands our strength for the faith. Be strong. It reminds us of what The Scriptures teach us concerning John the Baptist. In Luke 1, verse 80, the Bible tells us the child grew and became strong in spirit. And he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel. We have no idea the specific details of how he grew strong in spirit, but one thing is clear. When he begins to stand and preach that prophetic word, call people to repentance, he is a man who's been immersed in the word. And that is certainly consistent with what the scriptures teach us. In passages like Ephesians 3, 16, Paul is praying for the church that according to the riches of his glory, he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his spirit in your inner being. Then he'll go on, remember, in chapter 6 of Ephesians to remind the Ephesian believers to put on the whole armor of God. And part of what they do is to take the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God. And so, I think here in 1 Corinthians, Paul is urging the Corinthians to remain steadfast in the gospel, to be strong for the sake of the faith. Now, going back to Ephesians 3.16, in answer to the question, well, how do we strengthen ourselves? How do we become powerful? Well, the big answer to that, the broad answer is through the Spirit. Walking in the Spirit. is not as much a mystery as we often make it. It begins in some of the simplest steps you could possibly take. And I suspect that two of the things I'm going to mention are two of New Year's resolutions or commitments that you've already made. And one, almost all of us make a concerted effort at the beginning of the New Year or at some point during the year to be in the Word more and to be praying more. Well, that's good and right. That's indication that the Spirit of God is stirring your heart. He speaks to us through the Word. He nourishes us through the Word. And you know what? If you went three or four days without eating any physical food, you would not be scratching your head by Wednesday going, I am so weak and I can't figure out why. This is odd. I'm going to call the doctor. There's no medical explanation for why so much weakness in my body. I can hardly get out of bed. No, brother, you'd say, eat your breakfast. Get your food. Many Christians who go day after day after day with little or no time in the Word, and then they wonder why there is no power for Christian service or ministry or understanding. You haven't been eating. And prayer? That's where you pour out your heart to God. And the Spirit Himself undertakes for you with groanings which cannot be uttered. It's perfect communication with God. It's also a time where He'll speak to you. Often through the scriptures that He brings to mind, or just truths that you know of Him. It's wonderful dialogue. And what I love about the Word of God is that the very thing He commands He Himself supplies. He commands us to be strong, to be powerful in the faith, but it's the Spirit through whom we are made strong and powerful, and He has given us His Spirit. The Spirit dwells in every one of us, and we are not ill-equipped or neglected by our God on this day. We have all things pertaining to life and godliness that we need to do and be all that God calls us to do and be. I can be strong as God commands me to do. by His strength. His strength. Number five, the Lord commands our affection for the faith. Verse 14 says, let all that you do be done in love. We've been here before. We spent a number of weeks in 1 Corinthians 13, the great chapter on love that reminds us that we could speak with the tongues of men and angels, we could have all faith and move mountains, we could prophesy with perfect understanding yet without love. It amounts to nothing and we are nothing. And so here again, we're brought to this idea of love being central for the believer. It's central in this book. It's central in ministry. It's central in life. One author writes, love is more than an accompaniment of Christian actions. It is the very atmosphere in which the Christian lives and moves and has his being. Now think for a moment in reference to God's love. God's love, as another author writes, is His willful direction toward man. It involves God doing what He knows is best for man and not necessarily what man desires. For example, John 3,16 states, For God so loved the world that He gave. What did He give? Not what man wanted, but what God knew man needed, that is, His Son to bring forgiveness to man. You begin to think through some of the scriptures that speak of the nature of a sinner, places like Ephesians 2 that tell us we were by nature children of wrath, walking according to the course of this world, the spirit that now works in the children of disobedience, and it becomes crystal clear we were not really looking for God. As a matter of fact, we were following in the footsteps of Adam and Eve, who after they fell in sin, ran and hid from God. Why? Unholy people don't want to be in the presence of a holy God. Now, if God had given Adam and Eve what they wanted in the Garden of Eden, what would that have been? Leave them alone. And you know what? If God had given you and me what we really wanted in that sinful condition, what would that be? To be left alone. But God didn't give us what we wanted. He gave us what He knew we needed. And what is that? Life in Jesus Christ, a substitute Savior, the one who would die in our place. and a substitute righteousness, the one who lived a perfectly righteous life so that His righteousness could be credited to us. Now it's out of that love that Jesus will say to His disciples in John 15 verse 9, As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. And then He will go on to say, Abide in My love. Remain right there. Remain in the love I have for you, even as I have been loved for my Father." And think through how Jesus put this in flesh. You say, what would God's love look like for me? Just think through the Gospels again. What do grieving women like Mary and Martha do? What kind of love could they expect from the Savior? Comforting, encouraging, participating love. Jesus doesn't come and speak truth to them. He comes and he weeps at the graveside of Lazarus even as Mary and Martha weep. What kind of love would Jesus have for disciples who are squabbling in some sort of power struggle like Peter, James, and John? Remember the argument the disciples had? They're on their way to Jerusalem. Jesus has the cross in front of him. His earthly ministry is coming to a close. They're arguing about who will be greatest in the kingdom. He loves them enough to rebuke them and redirect their hearts and say, brothers, want to be greatest in the kingdom? You must be servant of all. What about those who are physically afflicted? Afflicted with diseases that make them untouchables. The average ordinary person would steer clear whether it be a leper or a blind man like Bartimaeus or a woman with an issue of blood. You know, that disqualified her from temple worship. Where did she go on the Sabbath? What does our Lord do in His love? He comes right to those people and He puts His hand on them. He heals them. Thousands of Jews were gathered on the hillside, been with Him for a long time, had nothing to eat. What does He do? He feeds them. Four thousand Gentiles, apparently, assembled somewhere in that time frame, similar situation. What does He do for them? In love, He feeds them. He loved the Pharisees and scribes enough to confront them in their self-righteousness with the gospel of repentance and faith. It made them angry, but it was an act of love. And ultimately, in love, He submitted His body and heart to the false accusations of Caiaphas' court. to Pilate's cowardly judgment, to the unfathomable pain of the Roman scourge, and the immeasurable suffering of the cross. And out of that immense love of the Lord, he comes to his disciples and says, now, for you, I want all that you do to be done in love. Say, but Lord, I can't even begin to love in the way you did, in the way you do. And yet when I settle my heart in this passage, it's almost as if I can hear Him say, I know, that's why you're not trying to earn love-righteousness by your obedience. You already have the perfect love-righteousness of Christ credited to your account, but I want you to love as best you can in the confidence that I've got you. And that's what we forget. We forget day after day Jesus has us, that we have his love righteousness. So a command like this is not really establishing an impossible standard. It establishes a goal. God calls us to pursue that. And where we can model Christ is to say, just like he did, as the Father has loved me, so I love you. And you know, some of you could start right there in the home. As the Father has loved me, dear wife, I love you. Dear husband, I love you. Child, parent, relationships that are closest and dearest. The problem is, even taking John 15 one step further, is that many of us are not really abiding in Christ. We're not remaining right there in that place where we just stand in awe that He loves us as He does, that we have His love, righteousness credited to our accounts. We substitute many other things or even people or relationships where Christ alone should reign. You can't abide in the American dream and have fullness of joy. It's not designed that way. You can't abide in the entertainment industry and have fullness of joy. I mean, did any novel or movie or hobby or video game ever provide anyone here lasting joy? There may have been some joy in it, but it doesn't endure. You can't even find a career that in and of itself will give you fullness of joy, not even ministry. Why? Because not one of those things is what Jesus is. You're not going to find a spouse that will bring you fullness of joy. Children, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, best friend, whatever earthly relationship in and of itself cannot bring you fullness of joy. So why do you abide in that hope that maybe that person will be able to do all these things for you and be all these things for you? Oh, dear friend, they're not Jesus. And only abiding in His love is what settles you and strengthens you so that you can turn around and love others who are near you. Now, if Jesus is in the middle, if you really are abiding in Him, then even some of those forms of entertainment I mentioned a moment ago can have a certain degree of joy. God, the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. He's given us many wonderful, beautiful things to enjoy. So whether it be music or literature or some legitimate form of entertainment or the closest relationship, all of those things can have great joy when I'm rightly related to Christ and should have. But you take Jesus out of the midst and what does all that turn to? Dust. Wind. It's Ecclesiastes. It's all vanity. Put the Lord back in the middle. Oh, now it makes sense. The love we are commanded to model is the very love with which we have been loved. And so when Paul writes to us here, much like he did in 1 Corinthians 14.1, pursue love and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts. We keep it central because it is central in his ministry to us. Beloved, God is calling us to live, giving our attention, taking our stand, Acting like grown-ups devoting our strength and creating an atmosphere of love all for the sake of the faith So to go back to the illustration I offer just 20 minutes ago What is the benchmark that is driven into the center of your heart? Anything other than the gospel will leave you disoriented for everything else in life But if the gospel, that is the message of Christ, His person, His work, all that He remains for you on this day is central, it's driven like that great benchmark stake into the center of your heart, then everything else in life will have its proper orientation. God calls us to be a congregation who keep the faith central. Will you bow your heads with me please? This is a time for you