Good Tuesday my ‘Walking with Jesus’ friends,
In almost every endeavor in life there are limitations, boundaries, for our own safety and survival, right? You and I have both pressed against those boundaries in our life journeys haven’t we? Hopefully we learned important life lessons in those times. Yet in every generation there have been those people willing to push beyond the boundaries, to risk life and limb to accomplish what others have never been able to do, sometimes to their own detriment. Have you known anyone like that?
Lately, we’ve been seeking to understand Paul’s remarkable first letter to his Christian friends in the first century city of Corinth, Greece. Paul’s words are so relevant to our day, aren’t they? In his 9th chapter Paul makes this remarkable, boundary stretching statement: ‘Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible…I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the Gospel…’ (1 Cor. 9:19,22) Yes, slavery, as we know, was prolific in the first century Roman empire. But Paul was a free Roman citizen! (Acts 16:38)
In that freedom, however, Paul had enslaved himself to Jesus as his master and Lord. Paul was willing and determined to always be alert to any guidance or directive from Jesus, through the Holy Spirit. Paul was determined that Jesus would always find Paul’s heart willing to do anything, anytime, anywhere to accomplish whatever God’s desire was.
Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome: ‘…count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus…Offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life and offer every part of yourself to Him as an instrument of righteousness. For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are no longer under the law but under grace.’ (Romans 6:11-14)
Paul celebrated that by his faith in Jesus he had been delivered from the demands of the Mosaic law which had governed his passionate pursuit of perfection as a Pharisee. He was also free from the penalty of death for his sin because Jesus had paid his sin debt price.
Do you see that Paul was willing to do anything short of sin, to help anyone come to understand and trust Jesus Christ for their deliverance from their sin condemnation? As we saw yesterday Paul declared that he was compelled by the love of God which had changed his life. (1 Cor. 9:16 & 2 Cor. 5:14,15) Today, Paul is declaring there was no painful price Paul was unwilling to pay; no barrier Paul was unwilling to cross; no distance Paul was unwilling to travel, by any means, in order to bring the Gospel to people who did not know Jesus.
Why? Because Paul knew their eternal destiny without Jesus was beyond horrific, almost indescribable. As long as Paul had breath in his lungs, the ability to walk or talk or write, the best use of any day was Paul communicating the love and hope of Jesus to anyone willing to hear.
Now when Paul wrote ‘I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some’ of course we understand neither Paul nor you or I are able to save someone from their sin condemnation. That miracle is only accomplished by Almighty God as He accepts the genuine repentance of a sinful person and applies the atonement death payment of Jesus Christ to the sinfulness of that repentant person, and then declares them forgiven and redeemed. (Romans 5:1,2,10; 8:1)
Paul is here celebrating the great privilege he had of proclaiming the glorious news, the Gospel of salvation available in Jesus, and helping people understand the Gospel and then take the steps of repentance and faith for their salvation. Paul was declaring that he was willing to go to any extreme to help anyone experience new life in Jesus Christ!
Paul’s declaration challenges me, how about you, my friends? How far have we gone, are we willing to go, to help someone understand their need for a Savior, understand that Jesus Christ has paid the full price for their salvation and help them understand what steps they need to take for God to then do all the work of saving them from their sin?
Again, the ‘lessons learned’ at the link below will be helpful to you as you reflect on these powerful words from Paul, and a wonderful worship song will bless your soul, and I’ll be here ready for you again tomorrow.
Today’s Scripture: 1 Cor. 9:19-22
Choose below to read or listen.
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Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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