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“GREETINGS!” First
Corinthians 16.19-24 2.
And after so long a look at a book of the Bible like this we can be
tempted to ignore the closing remarks.
After all, they can’t be as important as the body of the letter. 3.
Let us remember, in this regard, something very important.
Something our Lord Jesus said in the midst of intense spiritual
conflict. “Man shall not
live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth
out of the mouth of God.” 4.
What that means is this: It
is true that some parts of God’s Word are more important than other
parts. Only a fool would deny
the truth of that. But just
because some portions of Scripture are more important doesn’t mean the
less important passages are unimportant. 5.
As a matter of fact, there are many people who would say, “Listen
especially to the last words a man speaks...or writes.
Those last words are very significant.”
Those of you who have lived for years and listened would be
inclined to agree with that. 6.
So, let’s stand and listen very carefully to the last words that
Paul wrote in this great New Testament book.
First Corinthians 16.19-24: 19
The churches of 20
All the brethren greet you. Greet ye one another with an
holy kiss. 21
The salutation of me
Paul with mine own hand. 22
If any man love not the Lord Jesus
Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha. 23
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be
with you. 24
My love be
with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen. 7.
Does something unusual strike you?
Has it ever dawned on you that in our culture the letters we write
begin with greetings? And
don’t we usually sign our letters at the end, while Paul signs his at
the beginning? 8.
When you get a letter in the mail, aren’t you usually interested
in who wrote it first? Sure
you are. And after you know
who wrote the letter, then you are interested in what they had to say.
And finally you are interested in the greeting.
So you see, Paul simply put his letters
together in the way people would like for them to be structured. 9.
Notice also the messages that he passes on.
“The Churches of Asia salute you.”
Paul is passing along greetings from various congregations across
the 10.
Then he passes along a greeting from a single Church.
It’s a Church meeting in the household of 11.
Then Paul, in verse 20, sends greetings from just about everyone.
And he tells the Corinthians to greet each other, and to do it with
a holy kiss. Not me, sucker.
You try and kiss me and I’ll drop you like a hot rock. 12.
Folks, too often Christians think of only one kind of kiss.
The sexual kiss.
The kiss, which if occurring with anyone not married, is almost
always a lustful and sinful kiss given for the purpose of manipulating
that other person into a sinful situation. 13.
But notice that Paul specifically says “holy” kiss.
It is a kiss, then, which does not suggest anything other than pure
love. Folks, if we can’t be
tender with each other in that way, we have a real problem.
And I suggest that since some Christians cannot avoid lustful and
sinful thoughts when they kiss, they have no business, at this stage of
their Christian life, to attempt a “holy” kiss.
And all the fathers in the room said.... 14.
Now, getting back to what I was speaking about earlier, Paul’s
closing remarks, those remarks which come from him and not necessarily
those greetings that he is passing on from others, are quite important to
us. Notice the four ways we
have of knowing the importance of Paul’s close. 1A.
FIRST, WE KNOW PAUL’S CLOSE IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE IT WAS WRITTEN
IN HIS OWN HAND (16.21) 21
The salutation of me
Paul with mine own hand. 1B.
Turn to Second Corinthians 12.7-9 and read with me: 7
And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of
the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger
of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. 8
For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart
from me. 9
And he said unto me, My grace is
sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most
gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of
Christ may rest upon me. 1C.
Folks, Paul had a thorn in the flesh.
This is usually interpreted as meaning that he had a physical
infirmity that was given to him by God, not because of any sin in his
life, but to prevent the onset of sin. 2C.
Some crackpots are so opposed to the
idea of Paul having a physical problem that they interpret this as Paul
having women problems, meaning that Paul had the problem of giving in to
women and having sex with them. That
was his thorn in the flesh, says Frederick K. Price. 3C.
But that’s absolutely nuts, people.
Sexual sins are typical of lost people, according to First
Corinthians 6.9-10, not Christians struggling with things sent to them by
God to actually eliminate the possibility of becoming proud because of the
abundance of revelations he had received from God. 4C.
I am of the opinion that this thorn in the flesh, this messenger of
Satan, was a demon who pestered Paul
continually. Why a demon?
Two reasons: First,
because the word “messenger” translates the word “aggelos,”
which is angel, and refers to supernatural beings no less than 180 of the
188 times the word is used in the Bible.
As well, the word translated “buffet” refers to something
external, something from outside, thus, not a disease. 5C.
So, though I think Paul had pretty
serious problems with his eyesight, an eye disease or some other disease
was not his messenger from Satan, his thorn in the flesh. 2B.
Now turn to Galatians 4.15: 15
Where is then the blessedness ye spake
of? for I bear you record, that, if it
had been possible, ye would have plucked out your own eyes, and
have given them to me. 1C.
Even though Scripture does not conclusively say, and I would not
dogmatically assert, that Paul’s thorn in the flesh was bad eyesight or
something like glaucoma, this verse opens the door to the possibility of
that Paul did have a serious vision problem. 2C.
This, I think, because of the allusion to the Galatians being
willing to pluck out their eyes to give to him. 3B.
Now, taking this into account, plus the fact that most of Paul’s
letters were dictated letters that were put down on paper by an
amanuensis, which is a transcriber much like a secretary who takes
dictation, you have good reason to suppose that Paul had real problems
with his eyes...even if his vision problems were not the thorn in the
flesh referred to. 4B.
In any event, for Paul to take the time
and the effort to close this letter with his own hand is, I think,
significant. Why would he do
it? Because
he loved them, of course. He
said that. But also, I think,
because these last words were extremely important to Paul.
Therefore, we would do well to pay close attention to the things
this Spirit-inspired man had to write to those people. 2A.
THE SECOND REASON PAUL’S CLOSING REMARKS CAN BE SEEN TO BE
IMPORTANT IS BECAUSE IT IS WRITTEN WITH HIS WARNING
(16.22) 22
If any man love not the Lord Jesus
Christ, let him be Anathema Maranatha. 1B.
Notice, If You Would, The First Phrase
“If any man love not the Lord Jesus
Christ” 1C.
Now, what do you suppose Paul meant by that remark?
For a clearer understanding of what it means to love the Lord Jesus
Christ, turn in your Bible to Second John 6:
“And this is love, that we walk after
his commandments.” In
addition to this, Jesus Himself said, “If you love me keep my
commandments.” 2C.
Now turn to First John 2.3-5 and read: 3
And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his
commandments. 4
He that saith, I know him, and keepeth
not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5
But whoso keepeth his word, in him
verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. Three
things here: 1D.
One. According
to verse 3, the assurance of our salvation at least partly comes from your
obedience. Do you obey Him? 2D.
Two. According
to verse 4, a person who says he is a believer, who says he knows Christ,
but who habitually refuses to obey Him, is not, in fact, saved.
Do you obey Him? 3D.
Three. Verse
5 teaches us that obedience will perfect, or mature, your love for Christ
and will give you assurance of your salvation.
Do you obey Him? 3C.
Back to First Corinthians 16.22.
Paul is essentially saying that if you aren’t saved, then you
will be anathema. But if you
are saved, you think, but your love for Christ is unsteady and somewhat
disobedient, then you need to obey Him and obey Him now.
For if you will not obey Christ, that
proves that you do not love Him. And
if you don’t love Him, you are not truly born again. 2B.
Now, Notice This Word “Anathema” 1C.
Paul is telling us that an unsaved man is “anathema.”
But what exactly does “anathema” mean? 2C.
In Galatians 1.8-9 we see the word
“anathema” translated by a different English word.
Let’s read those two verses:
“But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel
unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
As we said before, so say I now again, If
any man preach any other
gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.” 3C.
Notice the word “accursed.”
In First Corinthians 16.22 the word isn’t translated at all.
The Greek word is just written out in English letters.
But here “anathema” is translated into the English word
“accursed.” 4C.
The literal meaning of the word
“anathema” is “to set aside or to set apart.”
But what other word in the Bible, a word
that we are very familiar with, means the same thing?
Right.
The word “holy.” 5C.
But there’s a difference between these two words.
The difference is this: Whereas
“holy” refers to setting something apart for a good purpose,
“anathema” refers to setting something aside for a bad purpose or
setting something aside in a bad sense. 6C.
If I may use some very blunt language that should never be used
without great caution and thought, Paul is consigning those who do not
love his Lord Jesus Christ to Hell. In
modern day language, without any intention of being irreverent or profane,
Paul is saying, “Curse to Hell those who do not love my Lord.” 7C.
He doesn’t suggest that that’s where he wants them to go.
Heavens no.
Paul was a compassionate evangelist.
He is simply reminding his beloved Corinthians that those they do
not reach are deservedly going to Hell.
And those in the Church who aren’t really saved, as evidenced by
their disobedience to Christ, are on their way to Hell...if they do not
get saved. 8C.
We need to be reminded periodically,
don’t we? 3B.
Now, Notice The Last Word Of Verse 22.
“Maranatha” 1C.
It’s really difficult to tell just
what Paul meant by this word. He
could have meant, “The Lord’s coming,” or he could have meant to
say, “Lord, come.” 2C.
I like to think Paul was intentionally ambiguous because he meant
to charge the atmosphere with the subject “The Lord is coming!”
3C.
Beloved, we need to reach folks with the Gospel because the Lord
Jesus is coming. And at the
same time the soldier of the cross yearns to cry out, “Lord, won’t you
please come back now?” 3C.
You see, both of these desires are in
the heart of the believer who truly loves his Lord.
At any rate, Paul has warned us in verse 22 that we need to get
busy and serve God. 3A.
REASON NUMBER THREE WHY PAUL’S
CONCLUSION IS IMPORTANT. IT
IS WRITTEN WITH HIS BLESSING (16.23) 23
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be
with you.
1B. Does it
seem strange that the apostle Paul would close his letter in this way?
But, if you were here when we began our study of this letter, it
wouldn’t seem strange at all. 2B.
Turn to First Corinthians 1.4-9: 4
I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is
given you by Jesus Christ; 5
That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in
all knowledge; 6
Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you: 7
So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our
Lord Jesus Christ: 8
Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that
ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9
God is faithful, by
whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. 1C.
What does Paul tell the Corinthians that
he thanks God for? For the
grace of God that is given to them, according to verse 4.
But what is grace? It
is divine favor. It is divine
enablement. It is the stuff
you need to live like God tells you in the Bible to live.
Paul thanks God that they are given this stuff called grace. 2C.
In verse 5 he points out that they “are enriched by Him.”
This means that the grace of God is presently available to every
believer. 3C.
In verse 6 he points out that the “testimony was confirmed in
you.” That means grace was
available to them in past times, as well. 4C.
And in verse 8 he writes that our Lord
Jesus Christ “shall also confirm you unto the end.”
This points to the future.
Grace is available. Grace
has always been available. Grace
is promised to always be available . . . to the child of God. 5C.
So, at the very beginning of this letter, before he begins to
address any of their spiritual problems, he points out that the capacity
to be right and do right has always been theirs for the taking . . . if
they truly are saved. 3B.
Now, in the closing remarks, Paul once again commends the grace of
God to them. Why
do you suppose he does this? 1C.
First, to remind us that God’s enablement is available to live
for Him. And
we cannot live for Him without His enablement.
Amen? 2C.
Second, to remind us that our sins are
our fault. We can’t blame
anyone or anything, whether it be persons or
circumstances, for the lives we have lived since we've trusted Christ.
Why? Because
the grace of God to live right has always been there.
If we didn’t use it, it’s our own fault.
Amen? 3C.
No excuse to not live right Christian.
Unless you are not a Christian after all, #1,
or unless you, as a Christian, simply choose to do wrong instead of
choosing to do right, #2. 4C.
I think this reminder of God’s grace was important enough for him
to write by his own hand, don’t you? 4A.
FINALLY, PAUL’S CONCLUDING REMARKS ARE IMPORTANT BY REASON OF THE
FACT THAT IN THEM HE COMMUNICATES HIS LOVE (16.24) 24
My love be
with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen.
1B. Notice The
What 1C.
It’s love.
When Paul told someone he loved them, it was with a full
understanding of what real love is. It’s
giving to another. It’s
meeting the needs of another. It’s
sacrifice for another. And
it’s unrelated to that other’s response. 2C.
That is to say, Paul’s love was unconditional.
In that way, his love for the Corinthians was like the love of God.
And, as a matter of fact, that's where Paul’s love for those
people came from. God.
It was the love of God through him. 2B.
Notice The Where 1C.
“. . . be with you all in Christ
Jesus.” The Lord Jesus
Christ enveloped Paul’s entire world.
His whole existence.
He was absorbed by and with the Savior.
Nothing else mattered to him except how things related to his Lord. 2C.
In Christ, that is, within His sphere of
influence, in that area where He is recognized for what He is, which is
Lord, is my love for you, Paul is saying. 3C.
Had not Paul been in Christ he could not
have loved those Gentile Christians.
As an unsaved Jew he had despised them.
But we oftentimes say that grace erases race.
Amen? Grace erases
everything that stands between men. That’s
how Paul came to love them. Because
he realized that the Lord of his life loved them. 4C.
Let’s see how that applies in our
Church. Look around you.
Look at the skin tones and hues here, the races and cultures
represented here. Does grace
erase race? Not really.
Does grace erase culture and background?
Not really. But our
experience has shown that grace eliminates the significance of these
things as factors in our fellowship in Christ.
Amen? And even a
casual look at Acts 13.1 reveals the same to have been true in the Church
at 5C.
As well, let me comment on how that ought to apply in our Church.
A guy comes to Church and he is lost, or she is lost.
Decisionists think to themselves,
“This guy needs to get saved. If
he gets saved I might consider being his friend.
I sincerely hope he gets saved, because I want to be his friend.
But right now Church is over and I have to go home.”
Real evangelism sees a sinner in need and thinks, “That guy needs
a friend, a friend who doesn’t cut for the car and run home right after
every service, a friend who will drink a cup of coffee with him, a guy who
will let him know that it’s not just the preacher who wants him to come
to Church here and invest his life in this Church.”
A decisionist thinks, “Lead him in a
quick prayer and be done with him.”
A Bible Christian thinks, “I need to show this guy the love of
God in Christ. My
contribution to bringing this guy to Christ is to be a friend to him.”
That’s how this ought to apply in our Church. 3B.
Notice The Why 1C.
Christ Jesus.
I’ve really already told you why Paul loved those people.
It was because of Christ Jesus. 2C.
Notice why it’s Christ Jesus instead of Jesus Christ?
‘Cause Christ means Messiah.
Paul is saying, “My love is with you all in Messiah Jesus.
Amen.” 3C.
And our love should be for all our
members in the Messiah Jesus, the Anointed One, Jesus.
Amen? And beyond our
own membership, our own Church family, to those we want brought into our
Church family, as well. CONCLUSION: 1.
The last things that a man says, or writes, are usually important
to him. Paul’s last words
of this great Corinthian letter were very important to him . . . and to
us. 2.
Important because, despite his probable difficulty with his
eyesight, he wrote the concluding remarks with his own hand. 3.
Important for other reasons, too.
His warning.
My friend, one who does not love Jesus is cursed.
Know that. Act on
that. Be sure you love Him by
obeying Him. Tell others
about Him. Why?
Because He’s coming soon. 4.
Important because of his blessing.
I have great news. We
have God’s grace! Do you
believe that? Then let’s
act on God’s Word and walk on the high road instead of the low road.
Amen? No reason for a
Christian to ever walk on the low road . . . unless he foolishly chooses
to do so, or unless he really isn’t a Christian. 5.
Finally, there is love. Paul
loved those people though they gave no indication that they loved him.
He preached to them, ministered to them, went out on a limb for
them, lost a considerable amount of sleep over them, but we have no
indication in this book that they reciprocated. 6.
They wanted love to be a one way street.
They wanted everything to go their way.
But, you know, his investment of love in them was eventually
returned by them. They began
to respond when they received this letter from him.
The Spirit melted their proud hearts and they got right with God. 7.
I trust the Holy Spirit will impress each of our hearts with
Paul’s final words. I trust
that you will look around for someone to love for Jesus’ sake and that
you will intelligently, appropriately, tenderly, kindly, love that person
all the way to Christ. |
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