All right, if you would like to follow with me in our study this morning of 1 Corinthians, we're going to be in chapter number 16. 1 Corinthians and chapter number 16. I'll mention, pray for Sister Linda Williams, she ended up If you saw her Wednesday night, she had hit her eye, but an infection has set in her eye, and they've got her on antibiotics, and it's not a laughing matter at all. She needs that medicine to do what it's intended to do, so pray for Sister Linda, that God would heal her as she recovers from this. All right, in 1 Corinthians, in chapter number I'm gonna read in your presence verses five through 12, where God's word says, now I will come unto you when I shall pass through Macedonia, for I do pass through Macedonia. And it may be that I will abide, yea, and winter with you, that ye may bring me on my journey whithersoever I go. For I will not see you now, by the way, but I trust to tarry a while with you, if the Lord permit. But I will tarry at Ephesus until Pentecost, for a great door and effectual is open unto me, and there are many adversaries. Now if Timotheus, or Timothy, If Timotheus comes, see that he may be with you without fear, for he worketh the work of the Lord as I also do. Let no man therefore despise him, but conduct him forth in peace that he may come unto me, for I look for him with the brethren. As touching our brother Apollos, I greatly desired him to come unto you with the brethren, but his will was not at all to come at this time, but he will come when he shall have convenient time. Plans for the future. You read this, you are really reading the Apostle Paul's plans for the future. Now the closing section of this letter with its simple intentions differs from the majority of the epistle that we have studied together so far. In my study in preparation for this portion of scripture, there wasn't really a need for lengthy word studies or hours of exegetical background work. Instead, in this passage, Paul is merely sharing his future plans for the church at Corinth and with the church at Corinth. Now, while at first glance, it may seem like this passage has little to teach or little to tell, however, and much to my own surprise, I was both blessed and somewhat shocked by the practical wisdom of this passage and certainly its timeliness. In July, now follow me here, in July of 2017, I preached my first sermon from this book. Can you believe that? July 2017. Now here we are, two years later, finishing up this study. Now I did not know what issues would be facing the church at this time, but God knew. You did not know what issues would be facing the church at this time, but God knew. And God, in his loving, curious providence, has brought us to this text at this hour. Now with the matters of business that lie ahead of us, it seems to me more than just a coincidence that we are where we are when we are. As we, as a church, Continue to pray about the possibility of relocating, selling or not selling our property, building, not building, selling the pastorium, not selling the pastorium with a missionary from a district country about to pass through here. God has brought us to this text at this time. Now either you can believe that I am both smart enough and devious enough to have planned this out, or you can believe that God has a message from Memorial Heights from his word. And in this passage, Paul is relating his plans for the future while challenging the church at Corinth to make plans of their own. His plans will include revisiting numerous churches while making his way to Corinth, But in the meantime, Paul is sending an itinerant preacher to help instruct the Corinthians in the things of God. And he expects the church at Corinth to honor and support those in the gospel ministry that he sends. Like the apostle Paul and the exhortation given to the Corinthian church, we too need to make plans for the future. And while we may not and will not always agree on what course we should take, our plans must always include doing what is best to further the kingdom of God. Of course, of course, we are not always, always going to agree on everything. I can't get my family of four to agree where we ought to eat lunch. You think dozens of people with different experiences and different ages and different backgrounds, you think we're always, always going to agree on everything? Of course not. But we should all be making plans for the future that include furthering God's kingdom. Whatever our plans are, individually or collectively as a church, it must include making plans to further the gospel of Jesus Christ. Now this is true of a church, and it is true of every individual member of a church. Our plans for the future must include carrying out the work that God has called us to do. The Apostle Paul, I believe, here is a fine example of someone who's always thinking ahead and someone who is always planning ahead. Would you agree with me that there are too many people in this world that when it comes to the spiritual and to the eternal, they aim at nothing and hit it every time. There are others who make no plans, set no goals, and have no vision, and get nearly nothing done in the present. Far too often, churches and their church members live off the past rather than thinking about the future. And Paul wants the church at Corinth to know, hey, I've got plans and you should be making plans for what lies ahead. We should, he was showing them, we should always be thinking about what is in the best spiritual interest of ourselves and others. And whether we look at this passage as individuals or as a church, we should be asking ourselves these questions. Do my future plans include furthering God's kingdom? And am I submissive to God's will and God's schedule? Now I want you to see from this text that Paul's future plans will always focus on the eternal, the spiritual, that which is truly significant. Now listen, Paul is not writing, making plans or telling them about his intention to visit Disney World. Or is Paul writing about where he's going to spend spring break? Paul is not sitting in some summer cottage somewhere, soaking up the sun, not thinking about tomorrow. No. Even while battling adversity in Ephesus, he is writing an unpopular letter, which is what 1 Corinthians is. Even while battling adversity in Ephesus, he is writing an unpopular letter to the Corinthians, preaching and fighting and still planning ahead. Now, you know good and well, I don't have anything against going to Disney World or sitting in a summer cottage or taking a vacation on, I don't have any problem with that, but overall, our future plans should center around furthering the kingdom of God, furthering the Lord's work. Carrying out, let me say it like this. Carrying out the Great Commission was not just something that Paul thought about on Sundays. Amen. That's why I amen my own preaching. One writer said that Paul never saw a ship in which he didn't think, man, I wish I could get aboard and wherever it goes, I want to preach Jesus Christ. Paul never saw a mountain in which he didn't think if I could, I'd climb it and preach Jesus to the people on the other side of it. His life focused around, ministry focused around making plans for the eternal future, for the spiritual, for that which was truly significant. What a wonderful example Paul is in this passage of one whose future plans always included carrying out God's work and God's will. Yet in this regard, Isn't the Apostle Paul much like his Savior, whose totality of life was focused around doing what pleased the Father? May God help us to follow in the bloody footprints of the Apostle Paul and the Messiah Christ in making our plans, our future plans, about Him and His Word. Now from this passage this morning, we're going to look at this and break it down. And I want us to notice, first of all, Paul's plan to encourage the church, encourage the church. Verse five through seven, if you would, Paul says, I will come to you. Now that's my plan. He is sitting in Ephesus, writing this letter, battling with all kinds of enemies and adversaries. And he's writing this letter and saying to them, I am going to come visit you. Why? He wants the church to know he loves them, he's not forgotten them, he wants to support the church, he wants to encourage the church. And so what he says is, after Pentecost, Pentecost is around the spring of the year, the time of our Easter, When sometime after spring, he says, I'm going to make my way through Macedonia. Now that means he's in Ephesus. I can turn around so it's all the same. He's going to make his way up northwest, go through Thessalonica, Philippi, Berea. He wants to visit some of those churches and then make his way southward and head down to the little isthmus that is the church at Corinth. That's his travel plans, right? And he intentions. Very intentionally, his goal and his purpose is when he leaves Ephesus, I want to visit this church, this church, this church, this church, and I'm going to Corinth. Would you agree now that as we've studied this book for nearly two years now, the church at Corinth needed some encouragement, needed some instruction, needed some direction, They were in a mess. And so it is Paul's goal, his aim, that he's going to come visit them. If you go back all the way to chapter 4, verses 18 and 19, he tells them, some of you think I'm not coming, but I'm coming. I intend to come and I'm going to try to be a blessing and a help to the church. Verse number 6 from our text, it says, it may be that I will abide, yea, I may even spend a winter with you. And he goes on to say that when I do leave, in the language there at the close of verse number six, bring me on my journey, that specifically means whenever I do leave that you're gonna provide me with the things that are necessary for me to continue my missionary efforts. And he says then in verse 7, but I will not see you now, by the way, but I trusted Terry with you for a little while. So his intentions, Paul's future plans, are to visit the church at Corinth as he is on yet another missionary journey. And folks, I think that Paul sets a good example of what it means to live a life that intends to be a blessing and encouragement to the Lord's churches. Paul's goal was to be a blessing to as many churches as he possibly could. You see, I think that's worth saying again. Paul's goal was to be as an encourager to as many churches as he possibly could. He wanted to spend time in Corinth. He said, if it's possible, I'm gonna spend the whole winter with you. Obviously from a very practical side, when you're traveling by boat or by ship in that area, winter is a terrible time to try to travel. And then over by land, it wouldn't be easier either. So he just says, if I can get there after Pentecost, I'm gonna try to spend the winter with you. I wanna spend not just quality time, I want some quantity time. I want to invest in you and invest in the church. Remember, he, under his missionary journey, he was the one that, from the human end, started this church. Now he wants to go back and encourage this church. He yearned to impart truth and give direction to this wayward church. He wasn't making plans to get away from church. but trying to decide how can I be a blessing to the Lord's churches. Now let me just make a couple of real practical applications. It would be a mark of spiritual maturity for young people when considering where to go to college that they would consider, is there a sound New Testament church that I can attend in that location? It would be a mark of wisdom for grown folk when deciding whether or not to take a promotion, accept a new job, move to a different area, for them to ask themselves, is there a true New Testament church that I can go and I can worship Jesus there in that place? Because I want my future plans to include being a part of and encouraging the church that Jesus built. I think that'd be good future plans, don't you? Not walking away or ignoring whether or not there is a church hole for me, but making that part of your decision. Paul's plans, his future plans, always included what can I do to further the Gospel. He had eternity in mind. He, as I preached earlier, he viewed life through the lens of eternity. And this should be part of us. It should be who we are and what we do. So that our future plans would be made with the idea of eternity in mind. How can I do what I need to do in this life, and also, as it applies to our text, how can I encourage the Lord's people along the way? How can I be a blessing to other churches along the way? All around us, right here in this community, there are lost souls that need Jesus Christ. From Georgia to Germany, there are lost souls. From Paris to Paris, there are people who need Christ. And part of our decision-making processes should be, what can I do to further the gospel of Jesus? Not make decisions strictly from a worldly, fleshly, carnal point of view, but think about the spiritual, the eternal, that which is lasting and significant. I'm telling you, when I got started into this text, I said, I ain't going to have anything to say from this text. I found a few nuggets around here. Whatever our future plans may be, they should include furthering the message of God. It was William Carey, the man who was known as the father of modern missions. He was a shoe cobbler. He made shoes, repaired shoes, but his heart was for the lost world. So he drew a map of the world and laid it out in front of him so that the entire time he was working on shoes, he was praying over lost in the world. And given enough time, he left a shoe shop behind and carried the gospel to India. No telling how many millions have been saved because he went and opened the door to India. Because he made future plans that focused around the gospel of Jesus Christ. Like the Apostle Paul, William Carey was concerned about the spiritual need of others and so must we be. It was Paul's intent. to get the church at Corinth to think about the future. Paul wanted to support the church, to encourage the church, to spend quality and quantity time with the church. He wanted to spend quality and quantity time with the church. I knew that'd get a lot of amen, so there we go. However, Things did not go according to Paul's plan. The second thing I want you to know from this text is that Paul's plan was contingent on the Lord's will. Oh, this'll preach now. Paul's plan was contingent on the Lord's will. Now this is something we all need to learn, and it's something we need to live. Notice, if you would, the close of verse number seven. He says, I won't see you right now, but I trust to tarry a while with you. Notice these few little words. If the Lord permit. All of your future plans should be made with those four words in mind. If the Lord permit. You understand? Paul's plans. You know, it's better to have a plan and have to change your plan than not to have a plan at all. And Paul had to change his plans, but he understood, folks, we are finite. I don't know where it comes from. Somebody said it, and I don't know who, when, or why, but the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry. That's just a fact. all of our future plans. I'm encouraging us as individuals and us as a church to make plans for the future that center around furthering God's kingdom, but with the understanding, if the Lord permits. We will do this or that if the Lord permits. Isn't that exactly what James wrote in James chapter number 4? Where he says, go ahead now, y'all who think you're so big and bad, Make your plans. Tell us what you're going to do when the truth is you don't know whether you'll even be here tomorrow or not. What is your life? It's just a vapor that ascends for a short season and vanishes away. And then James says what we ought to say is if the Lord wills. We ought to make plans. We ought to make future plans. But inside of our heart and in our mind should always be the understanding that I'm only going to do this if the Lord wills, if He permits. You may have great big plans, but it may not be God's will. Now, y'all ready for this? Here comes some deep stuff. Hold on to your pew. Your will and God's will is not always the same. Amen? What you want, what God has for you is not always the same. And the question is, are we willing to yield our will to His, or do we just want to bully our way on through? When we've done our best, when we've made our plans, Isn't it true that sometimes things still happen that you didn't expect, and everything goes awry? Listen, the apostle Paul found out, he made plans, but his plans didn't work out. Now, we don't learn this from just reading this text, but when you get over into 2 Corinthians, what you find out is Paul's plans fell apart. He intended to come see them after Ephesus spent a winter with him. Guess what? It didn't happen. Does that mean he'd give up, walk away, and just throw his hands up and say, I'm done? No, you've got to press on. Just because what you want, what God has for you, is not the same, there's no reason for you to just quit and give up. You've got to keep on keeping on. You've got to press on towards the mark of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. As we read in 2 Corinthians, you learn Paul had one thing in mind, but God had something else altogether. One absolute lesson we need to learn from this is when we make plans for the future, our plans are always contingent on God's will. You are not in control of the future, and neither am I. But God is. Have you been here on earth long enough to learn that God doesn't always work on your timetable? That not only does God not always do what you want, God doesn't always do what you want when you want Him to do it. Have you been here on earth long enough to learn that? We must plan, yes. We should set goals, yes. But with the understanding that ultimately God is in charge of our lives. We are His. We've been bought with a price, and He can do what He wants with His own. We all have to bow to His will. The apostle Paul had to, and so do we. Paul's plans for the future were changed. But at least he had a plan. We ought to say, if the Lord wills. Now, you don't have to be hyper-pharisaical and every time you get ready to walk out the door, say, I'll see you tonight if the Lord's willing. Or every time you go to the grocery store, I'll be back in a little while if the Lord will. You don't have to say that every time, but it ought to be in your mind every time. Who knows what's on tomorrow? Who knows what's ahead? Plans, yes. This reality should be in your mind. Listen to this. I am a frail, mortal human. You can be here today, and you can be gone today. That's life. I want us to make solid spiritual plans, but I also want us to realize they are all contingent on God's will. Not only did the Apostle Paul realize his plans were contingent on the Lord's plans, but thirdly now, Paul's plans included controversy. Paul's plans included controversy. Verse eight, verse nine, Paul says, I will tarry at Ephesus until Pentecost, till spring of the year. Notice verse nine. For a great door and effectual is open unto me, and there are many adversaries." Many adversaries. Notice the Apostle Paul, what he's saying, I'm going to come back to Corinth, but I can't leave right now. God is blessing right here in Ephesus. I'm preaching, people are being saved, the church is being edified, I can't leave right now while the Spirit is at work. There's no doubt that this missionary, and that's what he was, he had a missionary's heart. And I believe that those that God calls to be missionaries, He gives them a special, unique desire not to be pinned down in one place, but to travel with the Gospel. And they'd be happy doing that, just like I'm happy staying in one place, okay? His desire was to get back out on the mission field. I want to get back on the ships and cross the sea. I want to climb those mountains, but I've got to stay right here, right now, because God is blessing my work in Ephesus. You want to read about that? You go to Acts chapter number 19. You can read all about that. It'll explain what was going on in Ephesus at this time. But here Paul says to them, I'm going to stay because God has opened a door. But do you know what happens when God opens a door? The devil tries to kick it shut. It's a fact. Not only had God opened the door, but there was opposition. There are many adversaries. It is a fact whether we want to admit it or not. Where God is at work, Satan is also at work. Are we in spiritual warfare or not? I know everything's real cushy sitting in our American pews. We've enjoyed the freedoms for a long time here in America. But if Jesus don't come, there's coming a day when it's going to cost you to be a Christian right here in the United States of America. You can count on it. We already see the opposition lined up against American Christianity, do we not? Do you think You can go kicking in the devil's doors and he's not going to send up a swarm of enemies against you. We are trying to further a kingdom of holiness, righteousness, and purity, and the kingdom of darkness will fight it at every turn. Don't be so naive to think that you can have opportunity without opposition. You get it? When you're trying to spread the light and the dark wants to consume it, there's going to be opposition. It is a law of nature. It is a law of spiritual fact. Where there is motion, there is friction. I heard a preacher say that a long time ago and it stuck with me ever since. Where there is motion, there is friction. And if we are trying to carry out the exclusive soul-saving message of the Gospel, there's going to be conflict. There's going to be controversy. When you go into a society and tell them that the only way for you to be saved is to trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ, His life, His death, and His resurrection is the only pathway to heaven. Do you think an anti-Christ world will receive that message with open arms? They're going to fight against it. Where there's opportunity, and I believe ahead of Memorial Heights Baptist Church there is opportunity, but guess what we can expect right along with it? Opposition. Now I'm going to pastor just a minute. I don't care if the opposition comes from out there. It's not the boat in the water that sinks the boat. It's the water in the boat. The downfall of any society is when it crumbles from within, and I'm just telling you here. I don't expect, listen to me, I don't expect everybody to agree with me about everything. I'm not so foolish and naive and you shouldn't agree with me about everything. I'm gonna be wrong, as hard as that is for me to say, I am going to be wrong sometimes. But bless God, so will you sometimes. And even if we don't see eye to eye, listen to me, don't you be like Peter and let the devil put words in your mouth. You with me? Are you with me? Jesus said, I'm going to the cross, and I'm going to die for your sins. Peter said, oh no, you're not. And how did Jesus reply? Get thee behind me, Satan. Don't you allow the devil to put words in your mouth. You make sure what you have to say is spirit-led, spirit-filled. Wherever God is at work, Satan will be at work. We need to realize there are many adversaries. Don't you be the adversary. Don't you be the adversary. My brothers and sisters, the matters that lie ahead of our church are opportunities to advance the Lord's Kingdom. We need to pray and we need to make plans, but we need to do so with the understanding that with opportunity comes opposition. Yes, we're going to disagree, but listen, there's a right way to disagree. Don't you believe that? Isn't there a right way to disagree? And when it's all said and done, all of us have to yield to the will of the church. Wisdom tells us to expect controversy. Do you think Paul folded up shop and left town just because of some controversy? No. We can expect it, and we gotta keep on keeping on. Fourthly, from our text, notice that Paul charged the church to receive Timothy. So he's making these plans. Paul says, I can't come right now. I'm busy. I am neck deep in a spiritual battle in Ephesus. God has opened the door, but there are many adversaries. I can't come right now, but I'm going to send Timothy. And then he charges the church to receive Timothy in a Christian manner. Would you please follow me a few minutes with this? Knowing he could not immediately come, but also understanding the church needed direction, Paul sends his protege, his young pupil, He sends an emissary by the name of Timothy. It is possible, in fact it's probable, but that's as best as we can say, that it is possible that the letter that we have right here, 1 Corinthians, it is very possible that Timothy was the one that brought it to town. Now we don't know that, but just consider that possibility. In chapter 4 verse 17, again, Paul had already made mention, I'm going to send Timothy to you. Now he reaffirms his intention to send Timothy there to bless the church. But I want you to notice from the text how carefully Paul charges the church to receive him. Look at verse 10. Now if Timothy comes, Timotheus if he comes, see that he may be with you without fear. Now as we've studied this book, we have learned that there were some strong-willed, and that's the nice way of saying it, there were some strong-willed people in the church at Corinth. Remember, there were those who just had to have the preeminence, wanted to be seen and heard. Unfortunately, it has been my experience, and get mad if you want to, but it has been my experience and every pastor that I've ever known has always said every church has its diatrophies. 3 John, read that and find out. And when we put this text with other texts, when you read this alongside 1st and 2nd Timothy, here's what we learn. Now think on this. It seems evident that not only was Timothy young, and he was, let no man despise thy youth. Right? And you know what Paul wrote? Not only was Timothy young, but it becomes pretty evident that Timothy was timid. He was easily intimidated. And Paul knew this about him. When you compare all that the Scriptures have to say about Timothy, Paul warns him. Buck up, stand up, quit you like a man, stand and preach the Word. I mean, you read the epistles of 1 and 2 Timothy. He is encouraging. He says, God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. He is encouraging Timothy to buck up, as it were. Because I think he knew that, as we might say in today's language, that Timothy was probably more of an introvert than an extrovert. Hey, not everybody's a big mouth like I am. It's hard for me to imagine that, but not everybody's a big mouth, showman, just likes to be seen. Not everybody. Some people just, they are more happy to be sitting in a quiet corner than they are out in front of people. There's some of you like that in this building right now. Yet, God called Timothy to the gospel ministry. And Paul sends him to Corinth, to a church that's in a mess. Here you've got a young preacher who already has a timid disposition, who may well be delivering a scathing message to the Corinthians. And Paul says to them, when he gets there, you make sure you treat him right. You make sure that somebody muzzles diatrophy so he sits down and shuts up and hears what the Spirit has to say. See that he may be with you without fear. Can I put it to you like this? Don't push the preacher around just because he's timid. Don't be a bully just because you can. Yeah, he has a quiet demeanor and a meek spirit, and he may not be boisterous like the Apostle Paul, but he's still the man of God. And you treat him as such. You know what that tells us? We ought to think about our words and what we say and how they will affect both the man of God and the church of God. You ought to think about it. Paul has encouraged Timothy to be strong in the Lord, to be bold. But more than that, he is now charging the Corinthian church, you make sure that you treat him, in fact, you treat him like you treat Jesus. Verse 11, let no man therefore despise him. That word despise, I did do a few little word studies. That word despise means not to set him at naught. In fact, it's translated that way in the New Testament. Don't esteem him as less because he's young. Maybe he's a little bit backwards. Maybe he doesn't have the eloquence of Apollos. Maybe he's not as brash as Peter. And maybe he's not as bold as Paul, but he's still the man of God. And as long as he's delivering the Word of God, you need to sit down and hear from God. Unfortunately, in the Lord's churches, there are too many people that like to try to take advantage of the preacher's weakness, timidity, meekness. But notice what Paul says at the close of verse number 10. For he worketh the work of God as I also do. You get that? He's one of God's men. So you respect him, you honor him. You treat him good because he's one of God's men. Now it's easy for me to preach this, right? Isn't that real self-serving? But it's the text, and I'm going to preach it just the same. You show reverence to the man of God. You respect him because of the office, because of God's calling on his life, because he works the work of God even like I do, Paul says. Don't reject his words just because he's younger than you. Don't push him around just because he's timid. Don't bully this traveling itinerant preacher. Don't push him around just because he's kind of quiet and meek. You treat him right. In fact, if you're interested in learning this, in verse number 11 where it says, conduct him forth in peace, You want to know what that means? It means you give Him all He needs. You supply His ever physical and material need so that He can be at peace. Man, I'll get done in a minute, but just hold on. Now for those of you that are interested in learning this, I want you to learn this. In verses 1 through 4, Paul has told the church to start a collection for the poor saints in Jerusalem. We preached that a couple of weeks ago. Then, in verse number 6, where he says, bring me on my journey, he tells them that when I get there, you're going to have to give me some money and supply my needs so that I can go carry out the work of Christ, the work of the gospel. But then in verse 11 where he says, Conduct him forth in peace. In fact, it's the exact same Greek words that are used there. They're translated differently. But in verse 11, Conduct him forth in peace. He says the exact same things. You provide Timothy what he materially needs, physically needs to carry out the work. So Paul in this letter is told the church, now before y'all think the preacher's passing that plate too often, just listen to me. Paul has already told them in this letter, don't muzzle the ox that treads out the corn. You take care of your elders. Then he says in this chapter, you take up a collection for the poor saints. And then he says, when I get here, I want you to give to me to support my ministry. And oh, by the way, I'm sending Timothy and you're gonna give to him too. So when I ask you to reach down in your pockets, I ain't doing anything but following the Bible example. Get mad at God if you want to, it's alright with me. I'll sleep just the same tonight. But do you see that? You take care of the work of God and God will take care of you. I'm just that foolish, folks. You take care of God's men, you treat those that are carrying out my gospel, you treat them well and I'll treat you well. and pastor appreciation just around the corner in case anybody was curious about that. I don't care, I'm telling you the truth before God. And I'm just saying this, listen, many of you give to them, pastor appreciation, you give to me, take that money and give it to this preacher that's coming, I don't care. I don't care, I'm serious. Take what you give to me and give it to him, he needs it more than I do. God is always, do I look like I'm going hungry up here? God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. He can put some steak on my plate. So you, listen, I'm charging you to receive Timothy well. Receive him well. Take care of him. Don't push him around. This is the man of God. And then we as a church and as individuals, shouldn't we take this directly? I didn't make this stuff up. It's in the text. It's right here. And God, in His timing, put it right here at this time. And the truth is, honestly, this is not a rebuke from Memorial Heights. You all do a good job taking care of visiting evangelists and preachers and pastors. You do good. You don't know this, but the other night you put somebody up out here in the fellowship hall. You don't know that, but you took care of a preacher who was making his way through. We put him at the hotel and you didn't know. I just want to brag on you. Keep doing what you're doing and dig deeper. But then fifthly and finally out of verse number 12, Paul's plan to send Apollos collapsed. It collapsed. Verse 12, as touching our brother Apollos, I greatly desired him to come unto you with the brethren, but I want you to hear Paul, but his will was not at all, not at all to come at this time. You know what I learned from this? Even good men are going to disagree from time to time. Even good men who are both serving the Lord are going to disagree from time to time. Probably, again, the term here as touching our brother is the exact words that have been used four or five times already that's translated as now concerning. Probably, and almost certainly, the Corinthian church, as they had asked Paul a series of questions in a letter, they probably asked about Apollos. And in chapter 7, verse 1, where it says, now concerning, chapter 12, chapter 16, now concerning, right here where it says, now concerning, or it's touching Apollos. Remember, Apollos had gone down there and preached to them, and through no fault of his own, He had garnered up a little bit of a fan club. You remember, I'm of Paul, I'm of Apollos, now we're going back two years. I'm of Paul, I'm of Apollos, I'm of Cephas, right? And Apollos, who had been there and preached, obviously people liked him. The book of Acts tells us that he was a mighty man in the scriptures, eloquent with the scriptures, right? And it's easy to be impressed by flashy, articulate, well-dressed preachers. But that wasn't Paul. But nonetheless, it's easy to be impressed by that. And it seems like the church at Corinth asked, can you send Apollos our way? So Paul reaches out to him and says, can you go to the church at Corinth? And his answer is, no, I'm not going right now. Now why Apollos refused, we don't know. We just, it is purely speculative, we have no idea. Maybe, maybe he didn't wanna come just because he knew there was a fan club in town, and he didn't wanna fan that flame. He didn't wanna be the cause of more division. Rather than him showing up and the church splitting in another faction, he just says, I'm not gonna add to that. Maybe he was like Paul, he was neck deep in a city somewhere preaching the gospel, so he said, I'm not going. We don't know exactly why, we just know Apollos refused to go. And so even good men are going to disagree. Paul's plan, his intention to send Apollos, it fell apart. This is not the first time the Apostle Paul and somebody else has had a disagreement. You Bible students will remember that Paul and Barnabas had a sharp disagreement in Acts chapter number 15, so much that they split ways. But they didn't get so mad. You ready for this? Just because you don't agree with somebody is no reason to get up and leave church. They didn't walk away from the church. They didn't walk away from serving the kingdom. They had future plans of serving Christ together. And just because good men disagree does not mean you give up and you walk off. Here it is. His will was not to come, but He will when it's a convenient time. The work didn't stop. The plans may have changed, but still they pressed forward with the gospel message. Folks, listen. The overarching message of this passage is that regardless of what direction we are headed or what decisions we are trying to make, they must be made with God's will and God's kingdom in mind. future plans, whether it is receiving a traveling preacher, whether it is in our text here, whether it is gathering up funds for those who are in need, whatever that it is, it must be done with eternity in mind. I'm going to boil it down like this and then I'm going to quit preaching. What we see from the Apostle Paul is a Christ-centered life. a gospel-saturated way of viewing life. I'm making plans, I'm asking the church to make plans, but whatever they are, I want God to be at the center of those plans. I want Christ to be at the heart of what you do. Paul wanted people to know the good news of salvation, so when he made plans for the future, his plans included supporting and encouraging the Lord's churches. His plans included submitting to God's will. Paul knew far better than any of us that where there is opportunity, there's also going to be opposition. He knew that far better than any of us. Yet that didn't stop him from carrying the message out. And if Paul himself couldn't go, and listen, let's hear it. And if Paul himself couldn't go, he wanted to send others to strengthen the Lord's people. And if you can't go, part of your future plan should be encouraging and strengthening others that can or will go. This is how we must make plans for the future. Now, I'm not trying to tell you turn left, turn right, go up, go down. I'm not trying to dictate to everybody all the matters of business before the church. All I'm trying to tell you is God brought us here at this time on His calendar. And may we take these things to heart and to mind as we consider moving forward as a church family. Let me ask you this before I let you out.