›I Corinthians 9:1-12
›A Different Perspective
1 Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are not you my workmanship in the Lord? 2 If to others I am not an apostle, at least I am to you, for you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord. 3 This is my defense to those who would examine me.
(I Corinthians 9:1-3, ESV)›
4 Do we not have the right to eat and drink? 5 Do we not have the right to take along a believing wife, as do the other apostles and the brothers of the Lord and Cephas? 6 Or is it only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working for a living? 7 Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard without eating any of its fruit? Or who tends a flock without getting some of the milk?
(I Corinthians 9:4-7, ESV)
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8 Do I say these things on human authority? Does not the Law say the same? 9 For it is written in the Law of Moses, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain.” Is it for oxen that God is concerned? 10 Does he not certainly speak for our sake? It was written for our sake, because the plowman should plow in hope and the thresher thresh in hope of sharing in the crop. 11 If we have sown spiritual things among you, is it too much if we reap material things from you? 12 If others share this rightful claim on you, do not we even more?
(I Corinthians 9:8-12a, ESV)
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Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right, but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. 13 Do you not know that those who are employed in the temple service get their food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar share in the sacrificial offerings? 14 In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel.
(I Corinthains 9:12b-14, ESV)
›Main Point
› Paul has labored through teaching the Corinthians, being faithful in Word and deed to the Gospel
› He should have received some renumeration for his work
› He opted to not receive compensation in order to not be a burden to anyone
› The Corinthians believed they have a right to eat food in the pagan temples
› Paul shows one can forego these rights for the sake of others
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›Application Points
›A Different Perspective
– What we discuss today is another topic
– Ministers of the faith deserve compensation for their work
– We tend to hold the belief that the minister’s work is reward unto itself
– The pastor enters the ministry not to make money…but to shepherd the flock
– Isn’t the spiritual reward more important than the physical or material?
– Perhaps this is a problem we come to which has already been addressed
– We devalue the physical and overvalue the spiritual
– Even in the Law…there is a right for us to receive compensation for our labor
›Application Points
›A Different Perspective (2)
– It is one thing to consider the police officer, or the medic, the firefighter
– The way to examine what one should earn is to consider the requirements for the position
– Some will hear of the pastor’s duties and believe that it is easy
– What are the qualifications for being a pastor, anyway?
– We have qualifications listed in I Timothy 3 and Titus
“The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. 2 Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3 not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4 He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, 5 for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? 6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. 7 Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.”
(I Timothy 3:1-7, ESV)
7 For an overseer, as God’s steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, 8 but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. 9 He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.
(Titus 1:7-9, ESV)
›Application Points
›A Different Perspective (3)
– Imagine a position where these are the necessary qualifications
– Not just on Sunday the pastor must be disciplined…but always
– We should all be seeking to live this lifestyle
– The expectation for the pastor is that they are to be the example for others
– What does it look like to be…the pastor should come to mind
– What is the price for having a pastor who fits all these character qualifications?
– How important is it to you to have a good example of what it means to love God?
– How much would that be worth to have in your life?
›Application Points
›A Different Perspective (4)
– Notice too, we have only discussed personal characteristics
– Do you think it is any easier to do as a pastor?
– Let’s add the scariest of all which is teaching and preaching
– The time preaching and teaching often feels equivalent to working a few days at the factory
– Every week, for almost 10 years, I continue to dive into scholarship in hope of understanding the context
– Is it just so I can boast in my own abilities?
– It is exhausting to read and write every week
– Do I get satisfaction from the seemingly endless cycle of learning and relearning?
– I get more enjoyment from being distracted
›Application Points
›A Different Perspective (5)
– If not for ability, or enjoyment, then why do it?
– To accurately give sound instruction and rebuke bad teaching
– To be on guard against wolves
– Teaching and preaching have fallen far short of the standard they once held
– The responsibility of the pastor is…
– A). Be an example
– B). Be able to teach
›Application Points
›A Different Perspective (6)
– How much is it worth?
– Let’s put a price tag on it
– It seems that pastoral responsibility is harder than it looks on the outside
– Is it a pastors right to request more?
– Does the pastor (do I) have a right to ask for more compensation?
– Have I ever done this?
– I have foregone this right for the same reason Paul did in Corinth
– Our congregation is a poor rural Church in the middle of nowhere
– If the people I love sacrifice what they have so will I
– To be scorned and looked down upon than burden the people I love
– I have been mocked and ridiculed for everything I believe
›Application Points
›A Different Perspective (7)
– There is also the anxiety of the congregation to bear (See Paul in II Corinthians 11:28)
– Feeling the weight of seeking the truth and making sure I am in the truth and not leading astray
– The demonic voices that say, “You’re not good enough.”
– Has it been worth it?
– For my part, I do believe it has been worth it
– The love we share is great, the hope we have is strong, the encouragement to faithfulness is always present
– People I would never have met if I didn’t also work outside the ministry
›Application Points
›A Different Perspective (8)
– Yes we know that pastors deserve greater compensation
– Yes we can rightly be called labor everything that comes with it
– That God calls us each according to His will to work in His own way
– That we have the right, but we also have the right to choose a different path
– God be praised for raising up individuals who can lead by example and teach the truth
– Keep the leadership in prayer that they would be faithful
– That God would be most glorified through them
›Application Points
› The Gospel of Christ
– Origins
– Fall
– Redemption
– Glorification
