Act Like Men

God's People Must Be United and Growing in Holiness

1 Corinthians 16:12-24^[1]

As preached at Rolling Hills Church on Sunday, August 26^th, 2012

Scriptures

12 Now concerning our brother Apollos, I strongly urged him to visit you with the other brothers, but it was not at all his will to come now. He will come when he has opportunity.

13 Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.

14 Let all that you do be done in love.

15 Now I urge you, brothers--you know that the household of Stephanas were the first converts in Achaia, and that they have devoted themselves to the service of the saints--

16 be subject to such as these, and to every fellow worker and laborer.

17 I rejoice at the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus, because they have made up for your absence,

18 for they refreshed my spirit as well as yours. Give recognition to such men.

19 The churches of Asia send you greetings. Aquila and Prisca, together with the church in their house, send you hearty greetings in the Lord.

20 All the brothers send you greetings. Greet one another with a holy kiss.

21 I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand.

22 If anyone has no love for the Lord, let him be accursed. Our Lord, come!

23 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you.

24 My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen.

As Paul closes this letter, he gives the church at Corinth at least three things to take with them. 1) Some Fellowship Reminders, 2) Exhortation to Obedience, and 3) a Curse and a Blessing. Let's pray and then walk through these closing words of the Apostle, which our Lord has inspired.  So, first of all…

Vs 12-20 Some Fellowship Reminders:

Vs 12, 15-18 On Christian submission.  Apollos considered Paul an equal, it seems; he felt free to disagree with Paul. It might have been because of the immature practice of the Corinthians in comparing Paul to Apollos (1:11-13). Whatever the reason, Apollos chose his own time. There is a submission won out of superior strength. Admiral Nelson of the British Navy fighting off France in 1796 won a battle over a French officer. When the defeated opponent was brought into the presence of his enemy he strode boldly up to Nelson and held out his hand. Admiral Nelson stepped back and said, "Give me your sword and then I will take your hand." But the Christian submission is different; we submit to men who won our respect out of loving service, not superior strength. This is a different submission; one given as willing adults, not as conquered opponents. Maybe because they're considered equals, but Apollos rejected Paul's strong urging. On the other hand, in verses we are to be subject to such as Stephanas.

Vs 18 On Christian Recognition. See, acknowledge, and recognize those who serve faithfully. These are the ones you look to, as opposed to those who greatly desire to be looked to. Servants are putting others above themselves; we are free to recognize them. Selfish people only have their pride fed when we acknowledge them.
Vs 19-20 On Christian Unity and Love. Love and respect are obviously broader than the local church; unity was felt with believers in other cities - other churches, we would say today. We enjoy good unity with other evangelical churches in our city, brothers and sisters. We are also joined, through mission giving, basic beliefs, and through prayer with other churches in our association. We are also united with churches throughout the states of MN/WI. Whereas we aren't called to literally kiss the brothers and sisters, we are called to warmly greet them in our current manner, and to show Christian hospitality and love when we have opportunity. Those are the fellowship reminders that Paul brings out as he closes this letter. Now back to what I consider the meat of this passage…

v 13-14 An Exhortation to Obedience. This is nothing but a call to Christian character and virtue. Obey by faith, men! What do men act like? Who do you consider to be manly? Jesus Christ? Watching

Be watchful. Vigilant, awake. This phrase, throughout the NT, has to do with vigilance against spiritual enemies, and apathy and complacency; with persistence in prayer, and doctrinal accuracy against the labors of false teachers. In this letter Paul had already given the church in Corinth many warnings to consider, reproofs to take in, and corrections to be made in the church. Don't go to sleep on these - be awake! You have enemies – be watchful!

Stand firm in your faith. As JAM[2] says, stand firm in the truth of the faith, not just the trust of the faith. "The Faith" here is referring to the truth of the gospel, faith in Jesus Christ as belief, not just as trust. Stand firm in the truth of the gospel.

Act like men, be strong, show mature courage. This is the same sense that you get from reading Joshua 1:1-9 where God says to Joshua, "Be strong and courageous!" three times. In the context you could say that Joshua was to strengthen himself in the promises of God, the presence of God, and the power of God as he set out to obey God. It is similar here. Paul gave many commands and corrections in this book. So be strong, act like men, get about doing what you have to do!

Let all that you do be done in love. Now in our world this may seem to be out of place on this list! Be watchful, stand firm, act like men, do everything in love. Love? This is what our Lord did – everything courageously, and in love. There is no contradiction.

Vs 21-24 A Curse and A Blessing

If anyone has no love for the Lord, let him be accursed. It is good to believe the gospel. Let's say a person answers the gospel test questions accurately, but has no affection for Jesus; is that saving faith? We can't assure him or her! According to Paul in chapter 13, Love is very important – more important than faith and hope. Cursed is the one who doesn't love Jesus! It is good to ask ourselves again today - do I love Jesus, the person, the Savior, the One who absorbed the wrath of God that I was due? And this while I fought against Him? Do I love this God who calls me to believe and follow Him? To hold fast to Him despite what others around me may do? 

The Grace of the Lord Jesus be with you. At the end of the day, this is what we need, isn't it? The grace of Jesus Christ! This is where we have hope, cleansing, life, forgiveness, and sonship – in the grace of Jesus Christ. Receiving all that we do not deserve through Jesus who deserved none of our punishment – but received it all! Help, strength, and life are here.

My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Paul, despite his heated reproofs, loved this church. This closing reminds us that a struggling church isn't an unloved church. A sinful church isn't a rejected church - only a corrected church. Consequently, struggling believers aren't unloved believers. Isn't this good to know, to be reminded of?

As Paul closes this letter, he gives the church at Corinth at least three things to take with them. 1) Some Fellowship Reminders, 2) Exhortation to Obedience, and 3) a Curse and a Blessing.

Do these fellowship reminders help you?

Are you acting like men – courageous, and loving? Are you carrying out the words and the works of our Lord Jesus Christ – because you love Him? He certainly loves us!

Are you losing battles against sin? Will you receive the correction of those who love you enough to call you out on it? Will you humble yourself and respond rightly? The option is to harden your heart in defiance, to hold out against God's words to you.

 

---

[1] All Scriptures, unless otherwise noted, are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (via E-Sword Software) © 2001 Crossway Publishing. All Rights Reserved. I paste them in red for distinction.

[2] The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, 1 Corinthians. MacArthur, Chicago, Moody Press, 1984. Page 473