Practice Maturity

Practice Maturity
1 Corinthians 6:1-8
August 4, 2024

We are continuing our study in the book of Corinthians where Paul is writing to Church of Corinth which he planted just a few years before. They were still young Christians and growing in their faith and he is giving them direction on many practical things.

They had division and strife, and in this section, we can see that their spiritual immaturity has caused them to go off course. The division wasn’t just limited to whether they aligned with Paul or Apollos, or Peter but there were many conflicts between the believers.

Illus – Kids and adults should treat confrontation differently. … If at thirty, your kids are still coming to you to sort out their confrontation over a piece of candy, you would tell them to grow up. There are more important things to deal with.

They needed to deal with conflict from a different perspective. Seeing that none of us are perfect, we all struggle with conflict or immature responses in conflict at times. So this is a very relevant study.

In the church of Corinth, it progressed to such an extent that they were taking each other to court. This isn’t right, Paul tells them. He then shows them the way of maturity, the way of the Spirit. Do you not know, Paul is saying, that you’re not what you used to be, you’ve been washed, you’ve been sanctified, you’ve been justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit of our God.

Therefore, walk in the light of who you are in Christ and not in the way you used to be when you were in the world. Otherwise, how is the church any different than just a group of people in a gathering? We are in Christ, we have the Holy Spirit, and we are called to walk in a new life, transformed by the renewing of our minds.

This must be evident when you are dealing with one another, because the world is watching. Our love for one another and how we treat each other is the defining quality by which the world will know that we are His followers.

 It will impact our lives greatly if we can apply these principles Paul addresses.

I. Approach Conflicts with Maturity

• It would be wonderful if we never had conflicts at all, but the truth of the matter is that on this side of heaven, conflicts are a part of life. Why? Because we are not clones. We have different viewpoints, different backgrounds, different likes, different things we see as important.
• As we grow in Christ many things start to align as we align with the word, but there will always be differences which create potential for conflict.
• Are there principles that define our maturity? Yes, absolutely, and Paul shows us those principles.
• The first principle is that we are not our own, we’ve been bought with a price, therefore, glorify God by being spiritually mature in conflicts.
• This is an important principle because many believers have the conviction that they should be forgiving and gracious, but as soon as conflict arises, emotions kick in and they throw off all Christian constraints and all hell breaks loose; which is unfortunately an accurate word.

A. Resolve it in the church

• Paul first makes the point that brother should not bring a case against another brother before the secular courts. Instead, the matter should be resolved by those who are mature in the church.
• “Do you not know?” Paul said, “that the saints will judge the world?” By this it suggests that they should have known. Perhaps Paul taught them this himself.
• Jesus Himself taught that those who are faithful in little things, will be put in charge of many things…

Luke 19:17, And he said to him, “Well done, good servant, because you have been faithful in a very little thing, you are to be in authority over ten cities.”

• Paul also said that we shall judge angels; and if that is true, how much more, then, should we be able to judge matters of this life.
• How shall we judge angels, or why, is not clear. We know that Jesus is much higher than the angels and that we shall rule and reign with Him. One interpretation is that with us being in Christ we will be part of Him judging angels.
• Therefore, says Paul, shouldn’t the mature saints be able to judge between the brethren?
• We are called to unity and love. It is so important to God that He says that there is no point in coming to church to worship God if there is anger, hatred and division in your heart. First make it right.

Matthew 5:23-24, if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.

Illus –  Have you ever seen one of those Christmas movies where the family gets together, but there is some unspoken animosity between them. Everyone tries to hide it, but eventually it all just boils over and ruins everyone’s Christmas. It would make all the difference in the world if the father of the family could call them all together to sort it out, and if everyone involved would have a humble heart to make amends. The gift of belonging to the family is the bigger picture to focus on.

• Jesus is saying that you cannot fake it. Sort out the problems, because there are bigger things at stake. We are not to be hypocrites.
• That being said, the disputes Paul is referring to include relationship and property issues, but criminal cases, for example, belong to the state.
• Paul instructs in Romans:

Romans 12:18, If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.  

• But sometimes in disputes with nonbelievers, it is not an option, and the courts are your only recourse.

Illus – The basic societal laws are still based on the law and principles God lay down for humanity. For example, if someone stole from you, they need to be judged by the system of this world. They need to be held accountable for their actions. Going through the process can lead them to hopefully see the error of their ways and it can result in them changing.  

• There is also the assumption here that brothers in a conflict respect the wisdom of spiritual leaders. If not, then it cannot be resolved in the church at all.
• In other words, if a brother does not respect the church and will not submit to its leaders, then there may be no recourse other than court. This is unfortunate, because it is exactly what Paul was addressing.

B. Be willing to be wronged

• In verse 7, Paul says that the very fact there are lawsuits at all is a defeat for them. Love has not won the day. If they could resolve issues between themselves, wouldn’t that be the result of maturity?

Illus – In Matthew 18, Jesus gave direct instructions and correction on dealing with tensions in the church.

• So them not being able to settle the issue was an indictment against them that one or both of the parties were spiritually immature, still being led by worldly values. God’s kingdom values look different.
• There is a godly principle of maturity; “Why not rather be wrong? Why not rather be defrauded?”
• This is the principle of grace, of treating people better than they deserve. And it’s also the way of peace, and God has called us to have peace in our relationships.
• In the end, I belong to God, and you belong to God. All we have belongs to God. If someone were to steal from you or wrong you, they are stealing from God or wronging God. If it cannot be settled by leadership in the church, God still settles all accounts.

Illus – There is a new rule in formula 1 that if someone gained went off track and gained an unfair advantage…

App – This should be a guiding principle in our lives. Knowing that God sees all, and He will judge in righteousness, should changes how we act. God gives us the change to make things right, and it should be driven by our love for Him, and our love for others. If we don’t in the end, He will step in.

Matthew 18:23, “For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves.’

• The king showed grace to his servant, but the servant didn’t show grace to his fellow servants.

Matthew 18:35, My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart.”

• We need to see the bigger picture of eternity. There are bigger things at stake than to be right, be vindicated and to win.

Colossians 3:13, bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.

II. Win the Person, not the Argument

• When you take the perspective of being willing to be wronged, you’re saying that the relationship is more important than being right.
• God is showing us through Paul that we are brothers, that relationship matters. We can’t take stuff with us to heaven, but we can take relationships. They are eternal.

Matthew 5:9, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.”

• If you’re the kind of person who has to win every argument, then you’ve already lost because you’re going to have a hard time maintaining a relationship.
• There is a saying that says that you can win the battle, but lose the war. You can insist on being right, steamrolling the other person, but you can lose the love and respect from the other person.

Illus – This can be seen in marriages where one of the parties is very domineering and always have to be right. We have seen this in counselling many times where, for example, a wife would break down crying, not being able to live with her husband anymore because he is ALWAYS right, stuck in his own pride and selfishness. In the end, he has won multiple battles, but lost the war FOR his marriage. And without repentance and change, he faces the possibility of losing his marriage.

A. Out grace and out love

• The problem with insisting on winning an argument is that it makes the other person a loser. But grace is more powerful because it may very well bring resolve between you, and you may very well also win your brother over.

2 Peter 3:18, But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

• Grow in understanding the grace of Jesus. The more we understand the grace He has for us, the more gracious we will be towards other people.
• If you stand under the harshness of the law and feel the weight of it on your shoulders, you will judge others with harshness as well. But when you recognize the goodness, love and forgiveness of God, it changes you to also want to be good, loving and forgiving towards others.

Illus – None of us do this perfectly and we all make mistakes, but we should try to always ask God how He would like us to handle a situation, asking Him for wisdom and grace. This is very practical, as we then see the wisdom of God leading us through His Spirit in very practical ways.

• Sometimes you might make a mistake and get it wrong.

Proverbs 15:1, A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

• Then how you fix it becomes important and shows true character. Because to fix it, you will need humility and wisdom.
• Grace is a very powerful weapon because it may very well undo your enemy, but instead of defeating him, you make him a brother. That’s powerful.
• But grace is not just a strategy; it’s a quality of character, one that God finds honorable and godly.
• Grace is also the quality of the spiritually mature. Mere men, men focused on this world with the values of this world, are divisive and contentious.

Proverbs 26:21, Like charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire, so is a contentious man to kindle strife.

2 Timothy 2:24-26, The Lord’s bondservant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.

B. Grace is a powerful way to lead

• Resolving issues and conflicts is a mark of spiritual maturity and those who are mature are called to be an example and lead those who are still growing in their faith.
• The problem is that many people struggle in knowing how to bring grace and love into a conflict so that the matter is settled.
• The key is to speak the truth, but speak the truth in love. Truth by itself can be very harsh, but truth spoken in love is very effective.

Ephesians 4:15, But speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ.

Illus – When Jesus was speaking to the woman at the well…

John 13:34-35, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

• This is actually a commandment of Jesus. Someone might say, “Did Jesus really give commandments? I mean like commandment like commandments? I knew there were commandments in the Old Testament, but are there actually commandments in the New Testament? I don’t like to word commandment, it sounds so command like, so definitive, so inconvenient.
• “By this,” Jesus said, “all men will know that you are My disciples.” It’s His character in us.

C. More of Him and less of me

• You know what the greatest obstacle is to resolving division and conflict? It’s when there’s too much of me, too much of my pride, too much of my hurt feelings; they get in the way of peace.

Illus – Go test this every time you are drawn into a conflict where you respond negatively or wrongly, it is because your pride was hurt, you were insecure, you are losing control, or you feel like you have been wronged.

• The problem is that emotions from hurt pride can be very powerful. I’m convinced that emotions are a wonderful gift from God, but they were meant to serve and not to master.

1 Corinthians 6:12, All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.

• However, negative emotions do serve a purpose.
• I believe God allows these things to happen to show us where there is still wrong thinking, identity issues, pride issues and rejection issues in our hearts.
• But God’s heart is not to show you so He can condemn you. He reveals it so we can surrender it to Him and His Spirit can reveal the truth which defeats the insecurity grounded in rejection, so we can grow in maturity through revelation of His love.
• We become mature as we grow in the understanding of His grace, and then grow in grace towards others.

App – What area of insecurity do you need to  surrender to God so He can bring change? Who is there that you need to forgive? Who is there that you need to ask forgiveness from and make right with?