Join me in 1 Corinthians chapter nine. The gospel message isn't complicated. It's not difficult to learn and it's not difficult to share. But becoming a messenger of the gospel is a whole other subject. It's going to require some work. Not just to speak truth, but to live in such a way that you can gain a hearing of God's gospel truth. It's easy to become complacent in our Christian life, comfortable. The Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 9 is addressing some attitudes. We see in chapter eight, verse one, as touching things offered to idols, we know that we all have knowledge, but knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth. Paul's concern was an attitude adjustment in the life of the Corinthians. They had the head knowledge, but they needed a heart knowledge. They needed to love one another. And as Paul is answering a question that they asked regarding eating meat that had been offered to idols, or how to think about those who do that, or don't do that, he gives his own personal testimony of sacrifice. He says in verse 13 of chapter eight, wherefore, if meat make my brother too offend, I will eat no flesh, while the world standeth, lest I make my brother to offend." Now, let me just quickly explain that word offend. It isn't like, oh, that bothers me, that frustrates me, I don't like that. The word offend, it's like a stumbling block. It's either you're getting pushed down or pulled down. It's like pushing somebody off the road. It's a serious word, okay, and it's talking about, in a sense, derailing another person's faith. So if you say, well, that offends me. Well, like what? I mean, is that really going to throw you off the road on your Christian path? Is it really gonna be a stumbling block that's gonna put you face in the dirt? And so the Apostle Paul says, I don't want to push someone off the road, I don't want them facing the dirt. And he says, and if necessary, I'm gonna avoid meat altogether if I had to. If I have to do it so that weak Christians are not derailed spiritually. So we're gonna look at the subject today of gospel work, and it's gonna require work on our part, not only to know how to relate to one another, but how to give the gospel to others. And the Apostle Paul, in answering their question about meat offering to idols, gives his own testimony. And so he says, I'm willing to give up meat if necessary. And he's not telling us to become vegan or vegetarian. He's just saying, there should be such an attitude in our heart that we're willing to make some serious sacrifices. You say, well, that would be a big deal for me. And that was probably a big deal for Paul to say that. But what do we find in chapter nine, the beginning, he says not only that, I am willing and have given you an example of other sacrifices. He gave up the right to have a wife so that his ministry could be more effective amongst them, so he had more energy and time to pour into the ministry. He gave up the right to be provided for by preaching the gospel. He gives the example of he and Barnabas, who worked with their own hands, and he said amongst them, the church of Corinth, if he received any kind of a love offering from them, it might have led them to think that he was just in it for the money. And because of the temperament, because of the nature of the church of Corinth, very carnally-minded city, very carnally-minded church, he said, I didn't do that. I took great sacrifices to give you the gospel. And so he gives us these examples of himself. But as we move through the chapter, we find, look at verse 18, he says, for what is my reward then? Verily that, when I preach the gospel, I may make the gospel of Christ without charge, that I abuse not my power in the gospel. In other words, he was free because he was not enslaved by their giving to him. And he says he was going to receive the reward of giving the gospel without charge. That was a great blessing to him. He received a reward for not receiving anything from them. We do know there were times the Apostle Paul was welcomed gifts and was supported. For an example, the church at Philippi. They met his needs. They gave to him financially to help him do what God had called him to do. And when we think about Paul's example, we also have to ask ourselves, is there any application to us? And Paul is going to give us that. He's going to give an illustration of how their attitude towards one another and their attitude towards the lost will impact how effective they are in giving the gospel. So he says in verse 19, for though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all that I might gain the more. He said, I'm free from you because I'm not receiving anything from you, but here's what I've done. I made myself a slave, a bond slave. I put myself in bondage, is what he's saying, in regard to how he shared the gospel with the people at Corinth. But not only them, but he gives them an example of his own life and testimony of how they can and should live and share the gospel. And there's two needs that are gonna become really clear here for us, right? Number one is a heart need, that's the attitude. I have to have a right attitude towards God and towards others. And then there is not only a heart need, but there is going to be hard work. There's going to be some hard work involved to effectively give the gospel to all kinds of different people from all kinds of different backgrounds, to do it effectively, in a God-honoring, Christ-exalting way. And it's gonna require a lot of hard work. The great thing, though, is what happens when we're saved is God puts the love of Christ in us. Romans 5 said, it's said abroad in our hearts, it's the work of the Spirit. When you trusted Christ, right, this love of God was put into you. We're told in Galatians 5, it's a fruit of the Holy Spirit. And so, As I walk with the Lord, as I obey his word, what fruit will come out in my life? There's gonna be love for other people. And that love is going to cause me to consider my life, my lifestyle, my choices, and how I witness. And so Paul's gonna explain some of those things to us in the verses we're gonna look at here for a few moments this morning. There's hard work that's going to be involved, but Christ, whatever Christ calls us to, he supplies the resources for, right? Faithful is he who hath called thee, who also will do it, we're told in 1 Thessalonians 5. So what God asks me to do, he enables me to do. He supplies the resources for me to do. And there is an attitude that we need to have, but there's also some actions that we're going to have to have if we're going to effectively share the gospel with other people. Now Paul, again, he's answering a question about meat offered to idols. And so specifically, he's talking to Christians. But he's gonna say how my relationship with other Christians is going to impact my relationship with the lost, and whether or not they're going to receive the gospel message I share with them. So it begins by telling us in verse 19, and unto the Jews became I as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews to them that are under the law as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law. Verse 21, to them that are without the law as without the law, being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ, that I might gain them that are without the law. Verse 22, to the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak. I have made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. Verse 23, and this I do for the gospel's sake, that I may be partaker thereof with you. You see the word gain repeated a number of times. You could say Paul had gain on the brain. He was concerned about winning people to faith in Jesus Christ. That word is the idea of winning, winning their hearts to Christ or winning them back to a place of blessed Christian obedience if they're already saved. We'll talk about that in just a moment. But number one, it's going to require hard work to win people to Christ. You see, again, the message isn't complicated, Pastor. It's not that difficult. I mean, you can use a simple outline. You could even use one verse of the Bible that shares the entirety of the gospel. You could use a verse like John 3, 16, which addresses man and his sinfulness, and the mercy of God offered through Jesus Christ, and the way of salvation by putting faith and trust. It's all there in John chapter 3, in verse 16. Well, where is the hard work? The hard work comes not just in giving the gospel, but living a life that is effective at communicating the gospel. There's no shortage of people in America or in our church who know the gospel. No shortage. You're aware of it. We have so many tracks in our church that we can't put them all at one time. We rotate them monthly. And so there's always fresh ones, always new ones. We have so much opportunity to give the gospel. We've got books, we've got resources, we've got classes, we have programs. We have the gospel everywhere. But it isn't just a matter of having the gospel, it's being able to give the gospel effectively. And Paul's gonna address that with the church at Corinth. and how they relate to one another has a direct impact with how effective they're going to be. An effective minister of the gospel, effective Christian who's going to share the gospel, someone who's going to work hard at sharing the gospel is somebody who is going to be sensitive or see that they're responsible to adapt with a sacrificial mindset. Paul said, I became a slave. I put myself under bondage. And he gives some ideas of how he did that. First he tells us there, to the Jews, he became like a Jew. You say, well, wasn't Paul Jewish? Yes, okay. He was a Jew, and speaking nationally here about some certain national customs. He was made, even though he was Jewish, he became a child of God, he became an apostle to the Gentiles, there were certain national customs that he may have foregone to effectively reach the Gentiles. And he says, when I'm in a Jewish community or before a Jewish audience, I'm gonna be sure, not that he takes up the law again, but I wanna make sure that I'm not gonna cause unreasonable offense to the message I'm sharing. He says, to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law. The two issues mentioned here, and we see those in Romans 14, are the issue of meat and days. And Paul was free before the Lord to do work on the Sabbath, to preach the gospel on the Sabbath, but if he was in a Jewish community, those who were under the law He realizes preaching would be much more effective if he didn't offend them by preaching it on their Sabbath day. Or by inviting them out for a pork chop dinner afterwards, right? That's not going to be helpful to him. And so he's conscious of this, he's sensitive to this. You know what this requires in our part? It requires work for us to know who we're talking to. It requires work for us to realize that there's a world around us and every person, every individual has a different background. And there were people that Paul was concerned about reaching who had a different background than him. Or than he had at present. Now he was a Jew of the Jews, right? A Pharisee of the Pharisees. But the Apostle Paul had to get his brain in gear when it came to reaching the Jews or reaching those that are under the law. He gave energy and time. There was a time in America when you thought, well, I can find common ground with anybody, anywhere. But that day has long gone. We're becoming an international community, and there are people that you're going to meet from all over the world within the city boundaries of Lima. You're going to come across people, and you say, well, I'm an American. I'm going to be an American. And if they're in our country, I'm going to be an American. Well, OK. But when it comes to giving the gospel of Jesus Christ, Are you concerned for their very soul? And you understand that there may be some things that you might need to either limit or restrict so you can become effective at sharing the gospel with that person. So it means, number one, I get to know people. Number two, I give consideration to people. Now some talk about living your life walking on eggshells, but it's just called being aware. Like, I'm gonna live my life thinking of somebody other than myself. If I love Jesus Christ, I'm gonna love them. The great and glorious God from eternity past planned to send his son to die in our place. His gift of the gospel came because he came as a human being to be born, to live a sinless life, to die sacrificially for us, right? He sacrificed himself for our sin. And so Jesus adapted, right? He came to this world. He was incarnated, God in human flesh. And we have an example, as we read in Romans today, of the Lord Jesus, who gave up his rights so that he could effectively win the loss. The Apostle Paul, read with me, okay? I don't want you to leave here and say, well, pastor said something that wasn't in the Bible. I want you to see what he's saying. He says, though I be free from all men, I've made myself the servant, I've put myself under bondage, unto all that I might gain them more. So he's talking about the Jews, he's talking about those that are under the law. Look at verse 21, to them that are without the law. This is Gentiles, those who have no association with the Mosaic law. Now Paul wasn't saying that when he reached the Jews he puts himself back under the law and gets rid of the idea of God's grace, not at all. But he would think in terms of I don't want to cause unreasonable offense to the message I'm trying to preach. Now as it relates to the Gentiles, there are certain customs. As a Jew of the Jews, there may be some customs or traditions of the Gentiles that may have been personally frustrating to Paul. But Paul says I'm willing to not only restrict myself, to put myself in a way not to offend those who are under the law, but he says I'm also willing to expand beyond my comfort level so that I can effectively reach those who are outside the law. And so maybe he didn't grow up eating pork chops and he didn't grow up eating baby back ribs. But he's sharing the gospel, and somebody invites him, and Paul, you know, here is, here's a pork chop, Paul. Here's a bacon cheeseburger, Paul. And though it wasn't his custom, though he wasn't familiar with it, he's concerned about their soul, and so he, amen, it's good stuff. He eats it, right? Two things are gonna be required of him. Number one, and us. The sacrificial mindset will be, number one, I need to have I need to be humble. He put himself under bondage. That's really the mindset he's saying the Corinthians should have. And Christians, hey, we should have it too. A humble mindset that says no matter who I am or where I'm from, I am willing to humble myself either to restrict or expand my lifestyle for the effective giving of the gospel. Now, never once does he challenge us to violate scripture. Never once does he say to violate godly living. He is not saying that. But he is saying that there are going to be some areas where you need to give consideration to effectively sharing the gospel with people who are Jewish, who are under the law, who are not under the law. So I need to be number one, I need to be, if I'm gonna win people to Christ, I need to be humble, but I also need to be flexible. I will restrict or I will expand. Really, that's what the Lord Jesus did. Philippians chapter two, verse five, it says, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. And then it goes on to explain how he served us and gave up his reputation, and he went to the cross on our behalf. That's our privilege, to follow the example of the Lord Jesus, that we live a life, again, it's gonna take work on our part. It's working hard to win people to Christ, and working hard means I'm giving consideration to other people. There's a last category here that's interesting, verse 22. Some would just lump this person, the weak, in the category of people who are lost, but I don't think that's true. I don't think that's who's, when we see in chapter eight, being careful around the week, in Romans chapter 14 verse one or Romans chapter 15 verse one, when it's speaking of the week, I think this is talking about people who are Christians. And so, my willingness to adapt for other Christians can, in fact, impact the effectiveness of my gospel witness to those who aren't Christians. Romans 14 verse 1, it says, him that is weak in the faith, receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations. For one believeth that he may eat all things, another who is weak eateth herbs. Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not, and let not him that which eateth not judge him, that eateth for God hath received him. And I won't go through all of Romans chapter 14, but I do wanna define a couple of terms. One is the word weak. Who is this weaker brother? Who is this person that I'm to be considerate of so that I can be effective in my gospel witness? He says in verse 22 back in 1 Corinthians 9, to the weak became I as weak that I might gain the weak. Now the word gain used other places in the New Testament It's used in Matthew chapter 18 about the disobedient brother who's lovingly confronted by one and by two and then by the church. And it uses that idea that if he responds to your confrontation, you've gained your brother. So that's one essence and it's talking about somebody who is a Christian. It's also used another time by the Apostle Paul when he talks about a Christian wife who has an unsaved husband. And her living a godly life before him, she doesn't save him, but her testimony points him to Christ. And when it uses the idea of gain, gain her husband. So it can be spoken of relating to somebody who is lost. It can also be used speaking of somebody who is saved, who is restored. So who is this weak person? Who is the weak person described here? A weak person is somebody who does not have the freedom to do what God allows. In chapter eight, he's speaking about meat that's been offered to idols. It's discouraged, right? And it comes up in numbers of times. In fact, you read in Revelation, I think it's Revelation chapter two, a couple of the churches there had this problem. They weren't losing their salvation, but they shouldn't have been eating meat that had been offered as worship to another God than their own. And so it's a concern, but what does Paul say about it? The idol is nothing and the meat offered to nothing is nothing. So Paul's saying here to those who are weak, they don't have the freedom. This isn't talking about a brand new Christian necessarily. It's talking about somebody perhaps because of their own background, because of the world in which they grew up, Maybe the conscience that had been trained. Now, each of us has a conscience. It's that moral instinct in us that determines right and wrong. It's the ability to make judgments. Now, your conscience can be trained right or wrong. And there are some people who believe that pineapple should not be put on pizza. Their conscience has been trained wrong. There are some people who don't believe ketchup has any business being on a hot dog. They're just wrong. Oh, pastor, that's your conscience. Understand, we can train our conscience, and our conscience can be trained to rigidly follow things that are not given in Scripture. So the weak brother is the one Let's just say, for example, okay, maybe a person who was raised in a Muslim home. And you want to reach them with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Or let's just say, let's scratch that. Someone who had been a Muslim, but they got saved. And they've trusted Christ. And there are true believers. But they come to your home, and perhaps you serve them. barbecued baby back ribs. They may not have the freedom to do all that God allowed them to do because of their background. In a sense, you'd say, come on, you're a child of God now, you're free. Switch around and say, well, let's not use a Muslim, let's use somebody who was Jewish. Okay, same deal, they both have the same restrictions. In other words, they're not free to do the thing that God permits. And so what is my attitude? Hey, buddy, grow up. Get over it. We flaunt our liberty in their face, causing them needless offense. And Paul is just saying this. He says if there's people who are weak in the faith, they cannot do the thing that God permits, he said, to the weak became I as weak. I'm going to limit myself so that my testimony before the lost world is not hindered. The world watches how Christians relate to one another. There are unbelievers who are watching you, who are watching our church. I mentioned in Sunday school this morning, Holly and I were going through the checkout at Meijer the other night, and the lady who checked us out, I mentioned something about being a pastor, and she said, which church, I mentioned our church, and she said, you know what? My next door neighbor goes to your church, and she's been trying to get me to come to your church. You are being watched. There are people who are looking at you, and so how you relate to one another is gonna impact how you relate to the lost. So how do we do that? Well, humbly and flexibly. Or you can say no, no thank you. You can be hard headed and you can say other people need to bend to me, but that would definitely displease the Lord. It would hinder my testimony and other people's testimony if you chose to be that way. So Paul is encouraging us, work hard to win people to Christ. Work hard to win the prize for Christ. Picking up here at verse 24. Know ye not that they which run a race run all, but one receiveth the prize. So run that ye may obtain. Now I've given this verse, I've given this passage, you know, at Awana Grand Prix's and Awana Olympics, and I've given them before for seniors who are graduating, and this is a great passage of scripture, but I want you to keep in mind the context. Paul is giving not only his own example of limiting himself, he's teaching the church how to be conscious, how to have an attitude that flexes and adjusts, restricts itself if necessary for effectively sharing the gospel. And here he's gonna give a sporting mindset, the mindset of an athlete. He speaks of the one who runs, the one who wrestles, and the one who boxes. And Corinth was not far from the Isthmian games. And during this period of time, those Isthmian Games were, they were incredible. In fact, the winners of the Isthmian Games would be honored all throughout the region. They had wreaths. The most valuable one was a pine wreath. For the Olympics they would get the olive leaf laurel. But the most valuable one was the one from the Isthmian Games, which wasn't far from Corinth. So these people knew about sports in the Isthmian Games. It included Horses and chariots and boxing, foot races, feasting, wrestling, music, poetry. It had a little bit of a religious connotation to it. And Paul is explaining to them, he's giving them a picture of a runner in a race. The race course that was used for the Eastman games was just over 600 feet. There were three square pillars they would pass. One had the word excel, one had the word hasten, and the other would have the word turn. The athletes, the competitors, would train themselves for 10 months. And do you know who else would train along with those athletes during that 10 months? The judges. All the judges did the exact same training as the athletes. How incredible is that? And to the winner, there was only one, would be given the pine laurel, the pine crown. And so Paul is explaining something. making a connection with the church. And here's what he's talking about. Hard work. So giving the gospel, winning people to Christ, is gonna take hard work on your part. You're gonna have to think about who you are and how you live and how you communicate the gospel. But it's also gonna require hard work on your part to make sure you are worthy to give the gospel. It's gonna require a radical adjustment. And so he gives this example of the athletes. He says, Ron, that she may obtain, plan on winning. Run like you are the one who's gonna win the pine laurel. Everyone that strive with verse 25, for the mastery is temperate in all things. They do it to obtain a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible. That pine laurel is gonna wither away and die. Pine might last a little bit longer than olive leaves. But eventually they do die. We had a beautiful wreath table setting that we had got for Christmas. We got it from the teacher's Christmas party. My wife says, do you want to take it home? I was like, eh. But you know what, it was beautiful. It was wonderful. And it just died about a week ago. Pine will eventually die if it's not hydrated. And so these people are giving their 10 months, giving their time, giving their effort, giving their energy, they're limiting themselves so that they could win the prize. But that prize is gonna fade. Verse 26, he says, I therefore shall run, not as uncertainly so fight I, not as one that beateth the air. And he's not talking about shadow boxing here. He's talking about swinging and missing, exerting energy to no avail. When I coached basketball a few years ago, it was the kids that would run down the court as fast as they could on a fast break, and they'd go up and they'd just miss the layup. And it's like, that was a lot of energy that cost you. What a waste. Take your time, take the shot, and make it. Just make the shot. But just like going to punch somebody and you miss altogether, that's a lot of energy you've just expended. And the Apostle Paul is saying, I'm gonna be disciplined, I'm gonna be controlled because it matters for the sake of the gospel. I wanna win the prize for Christ. I'm gonna work hard to win the prize for Christ. He says, verse 27, I keep under my body, bring it into subjection, lest when I, by any means, when I preach to others, I myself should be a castaway. And so two thoughts that relate to this winning the prize. I need to be number one, competitive, and I need to be number two, aggressive, competitive. Now, there's not just one Christian who will win the prize, but he says, pretend that you're the only one, and you're going to be the only one to win that prize. So be competitive. We had a game night here not too long ago. Next week is volleyball. I dare say there might be somebody in this church who's competitive. There might be a whole lot of people in this church that are competitive. Are we competitive about altering our lifestyle to win people for Jesus Christ? That's what the Apostle Paul is saying. Be competitive, be aggressive. He uses words temperate and run and fight. Be subject to bend yourself. Sometimes it's easy just to be hard hearted. We forget the big picture. We're on this world for a season, but you're not just here to enjoy yourself. You're not just here for the pleasures that this world has to offer. You are here for a time to invest your life for eternity. Our citizenship is in heaven. Philippians 3, verse 13, the Apostle Paul used this sporting analogy another time, and What's he talking about? He's talking about working hard to make sure that your life is such that you can effectively give the gospel and win people to faith in Jesus Christ. Charles Spurgeon made a statement, if my message offends, oh well. If my manner offends, oh me. Sometimes we thoughtlessly live hypocritical lives and we say, well, I've given them the gospel, I gave them a tract, huh, that's their own fault. Maybe, maybe we are not as effective at giving the gospel because we're not as effective at living a life worthy of giving the gospel. We're not thinking about people. We're not thinking about their situation or their past beliefs. We're just living our own life and say, well, all the world needs to bend to me. Well, don't be hard-headed. Don't be hard-hearted. Don't lose sight of the big picture. So what does he say? Philippians chapter 3, 13. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended, but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth to those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Then he says over chapter four, verse 12, Philippians 4, 12. I know both how to be abased and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. And here Paul is talking about whether or not he receives payment, whether he's provided for, if he had prime rib or if he had some dry oatmeal. he could be content faithfully following and serving God. And so in order to win the prize for Christ, I'm gonna have to work hard. I'm gonna have to have the mindset as a Christian to be like an athlete. My Christian mindset is like a runner, like a boxer, like a wrestler. I'm giving myself. And so in some ways, a liquid takes the form of its container, right? And you can live with your heart hard and your life rigid like an ice cube. But while the gospel doesn't change, while the message doesn't change, we do need to consider our surroundings to be effective at sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let me give you a couple broad brushes, okay? This is just my opinion. You can take it or leave it. In the 80s and 90s, churches were using what we call attractional the attractional model of evangelism. Become like the world, to win the world, get them through the door. Some of you were part of that. You were part of churches that were that way. They would do anything to get people through the door. I mean, giving away whatever, gas cards, Starbucks cards, hot dogs, donuts. If you give a big enough prize, people are gonna come. And you get them all there and you give them the world and then you give them the gospel at the end. The attractional model of evangelism was a failure. Bring them in at all costs, it said. In the 2000s, and I would say to today, there's been another mindset, the missional mindset. Go out to them at all costs. Eventually you wanna get them the gospel, but if it means planting a community garden, or if it means some kind of care ministry, if it's environmentalism for the gospel, going out calling, basically everything is called missions. Now the heart behind it was what? To go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. That's our commission. We're responsible before the Lord to get the gospel to the world. But the missional movement, again my broad brush, sometimes has lost sight of it. They've lost sight of the true gospel and everything has become missions. Well that's not true. I think there's a Bible balance that we're gonna find in Philippians chapter nine. I just call it the gospel model. I think it should start today. Where the church is growing within but we're going out. In other words, We're not just going to the loss of the gospel, forgetting about the church. We're concerned about one another. We understand our relationship as a body is going to infect our testimony to the community. And so I consider the weaker brother. I think about that person who does not have the freedom to do the thing that God permits. Now, eventually, Lord willing, they'll move from weak to strong. But I'm conscious of that, I'm aware of that. I don't want there to be infighting and bickering and quarreling within the body unnecessarily, okay? Let's just lay down our rights when we enter through the doors of the church and as we go out into the community. I am here to serve others. I made myself a servant. So that's gonna affect how we relate to other believers and it's gonna affect how we relate to the lost world. Again, never compromising truth, never compromising the gospel, never compromising godliness, but living in a way, as Paul instructs us here, to be flexible, to be aware. God wants to use us, so we must aggressively engage people in our community and in our culture with the gospel, an aggressive mindset. We're gonna work hard at this. Can we do that? Can we agree to that today? You see that, what Paul's saying here? This is something we should really work at. And it's not like one and done. Like, okay, I did that once, I'm good. No, the community's ever-changing. Our culture's ever-changing. And so we have to be diligent. So not just to study the culture, okay? You can pour all your life into studying the culture, forget the truth. but I need to be diligent to seek the scriptures. Okay, what is the unchanging truth of the word of God that must be upheld at all costs? And what are the principles that point to that? And then along the way, my applications may vary. They may vary. Again, never changing truth, never changing godliness. But my applications of the truth may need to change next week. They may have needed a change 10 years ago, but it's taking the effort on my part to work hard and just say, well, I've got, I know, I've got this preacher, and he's got all the answers, and I listen to his podcast, or I look him up on YouTube, and any question I have, he'll probably be able to answer it. Or maybe I'm just gonna ask ChatGTP, and it can give me all the answers. No, no, no, Christian, here's the thing. Romans tells us, let every man be persuaded in his own mind. In other words, every man, every woman, every Christian is responsible to do due diligence to dive into the scriptures and to know not only what you believe, but how you live. Sometimes those applications, it's gonna take a lot of work. Sometimes they need refined, and sometimes they need honed, and sometimes you don't realize it, but you are the weaker brother. And you don't have the freedom to do the thing that God permits. And other people might accommodate you. They may bend over backwards. But that tension between you guys may in fact be hindering the gospel of Jesus Christ. Some things do matter. And they matter, matter, matter. And there are some things that don't really matter. Doesn't mean we're cruel or thoughtless or careless about others. But we work hard. So the picture of Paul's restraint, the discipline, he is suggesting it's gonna be hard work. I have a Schwinn Airdyne in my basement. It's an antique. I'm not sure what year the thing was made. Are you familiar with a Schwinn Airdyne? It's like an exercise bike, but worse. I call it the murder machine. It's got a fan blade, and you move your hands and your feet. Now, years ago, I liked to cycle, I liked to bike. And a friend taught me, he says, everybody has their own cadence, and it's important for you to find your own cadence. So whenever I get on my bike ride, I pretty much ride the same speed, unless I'm with, you know, smaller people who can't keep up or something like that. Or I'm with somebody else who, my sons are a whole lot faster than I am now. So there's this general speed. If I'm gonna go on a bike ride by myself, I'm gonna keep this general speed. But if I go down to my Schwinn Airdyne in the basement, and I do my normal cadence, I mean, the harder you push, the harder the resistance. And so, I kid you not, five minutes on a Schwinn air dye and at the cadence I've been going, it's just enough to cause all my hair to fall out. It is a lot of work. You know, I do it. I find creative ways to make it less painful. But I'm doing it because I need it. Christian, there's gonna be things that you don't look forward to. There's gonna be times when you need to be humble or flexible in things that you're not comfortable with whatsoever. It's a lot of work, but it's necessary. It's a whole lot easier to be comfortable. It's a whole lot easier to be complacent, but the reality is we're not here for this world. We're here for a time to prepare for eternity and to take the gospel to those who have never heard it. Charles Spurgeon was talking to a band who had just recently trusted Christ, and he smiled. He says, either the world has changed, or I have. There's a world that needs Jesus Christ. They need a different outlook. They need Christ in their heart so they can see, hey, it isn't just the atmosphere around you that's changed, it's what's happened within your heart. And what happens is you and I faithfully share the gospel with those who are Jews, and those who are under the law, and those who are without the law. And as we consistently live in a way that honors Christ towards the week, what's going to happen? God will use us. He says it, that I might gain, that I might gain, that I might gain, that I might gain, that I might gain. Verse 22, that I might by all means save some. His goal was the gospel. This isn't the end of the topic. We're gonna pick it up again in chapter 10. But Paul has a point, and he wants the church at Corinth to understand something. Their party spirit, their infighting within the church has been hindering the message of the gospel going out from the church. He concludes by saying in verse 27, I keep under my body and bring it into subjection, lest by any means when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. He's not necessarily talking about standards of holy living here. Many make that application, that's fine. He's talking about being worthless, not being able to win the prize because he didn't work hard enough to adapt to his audience, to in a God-honoring way accommodate other Christians, The Apostle Paul was concerned for the lost, and his greatest concern was that he might in some way live in such a way that's gonna hinder others from being saved, and therefore he wouldn't win the prize. He would be disqualified from the race because he didn't take this into account, because he didn't work at it. What was the prize that Paul was working for? We find it in 2 Timothy chapter four, the good and faithful servant award. Well done, Paul. The great God of this universe loves the people he's made. He's offered them his son, Jesus Christ, and it's our job and it's our privilege to take the precious message of the gospel, the good news, to those who have never heard it before. How will we do that? We better work hard at it. You better be willing to live humbly before the Lord, to follow the example of the Lord Jesus, to give consideration to individual needs and individual people, to be aware of backgrounds so that I can effectively share the gospel. You're gonna come in contact with people this week who don't know Christ. Will they see him in you? Will there be an opportunity because of how you live before them that you can speak truth and they're going to hear it? For many a Christian, you know, giving the gospel is like something you turn on the switch. Like, ha ha, I'm gonna share the gospel now. And I'm Mr. Gospelman or Mrs. Gospel Lady. And then you turn it off. The apostle Paul is really saying to live your life in a way that pleases the Lord at all times. He's not talking about being a hypocrite. But he's talking about being a consistent Christian who is aware of his environment so he can faithfully share the truth and gain the hearing. Father, I thank you for your word and I pray that we would be helped by it. Help us to give careful consideration to our attitude towards other Christians and towards our adaptation to the lost. Help us, Lord, not just to be comfortable or become complacent Help us not to leave the gospel sharing to the church staff. Help us to realize that your calling is for every believer to be engaged in gospel living and gospel ministry. May you use our lives to be light and salt and give us a gracious spirit towards one another that helps the weak, that loves them, that loves them enough to be careful, in Jesus' name, amen.