Good morning and welcome in everybody. Today we are going to take a look at a passage of Scripture from 1st Corinthians.
1 Corinthians 9 ³ Mine answer to them that do examine me is this,
⁴ Have we not power to eat and to drink? ⁵ Have we not power to lead about a sister, a wife, as well as other apostles, and as the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas? ⁶ Or I only and Barnabas, have not we power to forbear working? ⁷ Who goeth a warfare any time at his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and eateth not of the fruit thereof? or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock?
⁸ Say I these things as a man? or saith not the law the same also?
⁹ For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen?
¹⁰ Or saith he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope. ¹¹ If we have sown unto you spiritual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things? ¹² If others be partakers of this power over you, are not we rather? Nevertheless we have not used this power; but suffer all things, lest we should hinder the gospel of Christ. ¹³ Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar?
¹⁴ Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel.
Starting right at verse 3, the Apostle says…Mine answer to them that do examine me is this, Have we not power to eat and to drink?
You have the right to eat or drink whatever you want to in your own home. In fact we have liberties in the New Testament that we didn’t have in the Old. But all over the world, you will find nosy and intrusive people who would like to go through your kitchen cupboards when you aren’t looking. I’m not talking about borrowing some salt, but finding something that they can use against you. If they only looked inside their sinful hearts with that much effort! Whether it’s having a pop, cup of coffee, an alcoholic beverage, or a chocolate malt, all of us have the right to eat what we want, or drink what we want. But sometimes people will use what you consume as an opportunity to find fault with you. When this happens, we must put our foot down and not allow them to judge us in these types of unspiritual matters.
“Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink,…..Colossians 2:16
They were judging the Lord Jesus and John the Baptist in the same manner.
Matthew 11 ¹⁸ For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil. ¹⁹ The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.
Some people actually think that they are better than others, simply because they abstain from certain foods.
“But meat commendeth us not to God: for neither, if we eat, are we the better; neither, if we eat not, are we the worse.” — 1 Corinthians 8:8
Even Paul’s personal life was being drawn into question, as people scrutinized him for bringing others along with him on many of his religious duties. Yet in the world, many people will take their wife or a family member on a business trip with them. The same types of people will also find fault with a minister because they feel that they should hold down some type of Earthly job. Jesus didn’t expect that from His own disciples. In fact, when He called them to follow Him, they immediately left their occupations to preach the gospel. Rather than making their living in the world, they were provided for by the church, and partakers of the contributions that came in. After all, they were certainly worthy of that reward.
“For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward.” 1 Timothy 5:18
If a high schooler came over and cut your lawn, wouldn’t you eventually pay them? If you put in eighty hours of work at your job, would you consider it immoral to receive some type of remuneration for your time? We can do lots of volunteer work, especially when it comes to preaching, but sometimes a minister will be condemned simply for receiving a reward for the efforts that he has made. We’re not talking about a cloak of covetousness. It’s a matter of lovingly providing for the needs of others who have educated you in the will of God.
“And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal…John 4:36
We live in a society where some people won’t do anything unless they make a hundred bucks an hour, but then when somebody is preaching God’s Word and being supported for what they are doing, they are quickly condemned. Teachers at a college receive remuneration through tuition. Your purchases provide for the needs of the local grocer and his family. The local sheriff is paid for his time through local or state taxes. Nothing is strange about any of this because it’s the way that the world operates. People have different jobs throughout the world, but for some reason, people can have great difficulty when it comes to preachers. If you don’t think it’s wrong for man to pull a wrench and receive an income, why would you find it immoral for a preacher to receive income for what he does? If you raise a flock of chickens, wouldn’t you eat some of the eggs? If you grew tomatoes in the garden, wouldn’t you pick them and eat them? How would you feel if somebody told you that you shouldn’t have any? You worked for them. You raised them. You deserve them no matter what anybody else might say.
Even a soldier in the military is taken care of. He doesn’t have to be concerned about where his next meal is coming from. So much more a soldier of God who is preaching the truth of scripture. This world is a Spiritual battlefield, and love for the teachings of God would cause somebody to support those who spend their lives doing it. Preaching is the greatest job that one could ever have. This is because the work that you are involved with will last forever, while Earthly jobs are only temporary. When an employer hires you, you receive some type of compensation for your time, and it’s the responsibility of those who have been educated in Spiritual things to support those who have taught them.
Philippians 4 ¹⁵ Now ye Philippians know also, that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church communicated with me as concerning giving and receiving, but ye only. ¹⁶ For even in Thessalonica ye sent once and again unto my necessity. ¹⁷ Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account.
It’s the duty of the man of God to preach, and it’s the duty of the church to provide for the man of God. It’s the occupation that he has chosen, and is more than worthy of his hire.
Romans 15 ²⁶ For it hath pleased them of Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor saints which are at Jerusalem. ²⁷ It hath pleased them verily; and their debtors they are. For if the Gentiles have been made partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is also to minister unto them in carnal things.
So the next time you give money to a piano teacher or the next time you donate money to the basketball team. The next time you give money to someone to plow your snow covered road, maybe you will remember God’s commandment.
¹⁴ Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should…
……Live of the Gospel.
Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious groups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody. ❤️
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