1 Corinthians 6:9-11

                                                     1 Corinthians 6:9-11

Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

 

Hope is one of the greatest blessings of the Gospel.  Without Christ, there is no hope.  The promises of God in the Gospel fill our hearts with hope for the future and help in the present.  Paul wants to make sure that we all understand our position without Christ, so we can fully appreciate the wonderful provision of Christ.  This passage is a source of hope for all of mankind.  No matter how sinful a person is; the power of the Gospel is astounding.

 

SIN PROMOTES CONDEMNATION: Those who continue to live in sin will be eternally condemned.  Paul lists all kinds of sins, but the reality is that all men are born in sin and stand condemned before God.  As men we look at the sins in this list and recognize them as extremely offensive before God.  There might be some who would claim that those who make a claim of salvation can simply continue to live in their sinful lives and will be saved despite continuing to love and enjoy their sins.  Paul makes it clear that this is simply not the case.  Those who are genuinely saved are set free from sin.  They will still struggle with sin, but they will not continue to love their sin and live to sin.

 

SALVATION PROVIDES TRANSFORMATION: Paul recognizes that all these sins that were mentioned were present in the Corinthian church prior to them coming to Christ.  It does not matter how much sin we commit or how deeply we are enslaved to sin; Christ sets us free.  He washes, sanctifies and justifies all who trust Him.  The power of Christ not only forgives us of sin but it sets us free from sin and allows us to walk in a new path of obedience.  Justification and sanctification are both the works of Christ in the lives of all who believe.  From our perspective, justification is an event while sanctification is a process.  However, from God’s perspective both are so certain that they are referred to in the past tense.  This is the hope of the Gospel.

 

APPLICATION: Repent of sin and do not live a life that is enslaved to the sins of the flesh.  Warn the ungodly of the impending condemnation.  Know that Christ has set us free from sin and we can be victorious over any area of struggle we might face.  Rejoice in the hope of the Gospel.  Tell others how they can find this same hope.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Isaiah 54:1-17

Hope is a wonderful blessing from God, without which we would be vulnerable to all kinds of destructive tendencies in our lives.  Today’s society is marked by depression, anger, fear, anxiety and self-righteousness, in large part, because of the sense of hopelessness that prevails in our culture.  Isaiah writes to a people who are about to be taken into captivity because of their sin.  God knows that they will feel rejected, threatened and hopeless so He reveals His future plans for the nation in order to give them hope in the midst of the coming trial.  Hope is the expectation of good based upon the promises of God.  Many times when our lives are marked by the sins mentioned above it is because we have forgotten or failed to focus upon the promises of God’s Word. THE PROMISE OF GOD: From the very first day that God revealed His plan for the nation of Israel, He promised numerous descendants.  God chose Abraham, not because he was more righteous than any of the other people of his
Read more

1 Timothy 2:11-15

Let a woman learn quietly   with all submissiveness.    I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet.    For Adam was formed first,   then Eve;   and Adam was not deceived, but   the woman was deceived and became a transgressor.    Yet she will be saved through   childbearing—if they continue in   faith and love and holiness, with self-control. There is certainly controversy and confusion about this passage in many churches today.  The idea of a distinction between men and women and their roles in the family and church certainly goes against the flow of many cultures around the world.  Some would argue that the literal and plain teaching of this passage is no longer applicable to today’s culture.  However, it is always dangerous to discard biblical teaching or try to interpret Scripture based on the cultures in which we live.  Certainly, the Spirit who inspired this text was aware of the many changes that would occur in future cul
Read more

1 Timothy 1:1-2

Paul,   an apostle of Christ Jesus   by command of   God our Savior and of Christ Jesus   our hope, To Timothy,   my true child in the faith:   Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. The true sign of maturity is multiplication.  Believers, churches, and ministries that do not reproduce are not demonstrating true maturity.  One of the key characteristics we can identify in Paul’s ministry is that he was constantly reproducing godly believers who were faithfully following the Lord.  Evangelism, discipleship, and leadership training are the hallmarks of mature ministers and ministries.   THE APOSTLE: Paul was called by God to be an Apostle.  Though Paul converted after the resurrection and assentation of Jesus, he met Jesus in the road to Damascus and was instructed by Jesus in the desert.  Paul considered himself to be the least of the Apostles because he persecuted the church and did not walk with Jesus on earth like the other Apostles.  However, God had
Read more