3 More Promises The World Can't Take From You

He said, "I'll give you $100 if you'll change the wedding vows. When you get to me and the part where it asks if I promise to 'love, honor, cherish' and 'forsaking all others, be faithful to her forever,' I'd appreciate it if you'd just leave that part out." He passed the minister a $100 bill and walked away satisfied.

The day of the wedding arrived, and they reached the part of the ceremony where the vows are exchanged. When it came time for the groom's vows, the pastor looked him in the eye and said:

"Will you promise to prostrate yourself before her, obey her every wish and command, serve her breakfast in bed each and every morning of your life, and swear eternally before God and your lovely wife that you will not ever even look at another woman, as long as you both shall live?"

The groom gulped, looked around, and replied in a meek voice, "I do."

After the wedding, the groom pulled the pastor aside and hissed, "I thought we had a deal!"

The pastor put the $100 bill into the groom's hand and whispered, "Sorry, son, she made me a much better offer."

Today is about more promises the world can’t take away from you.

Historical/Cultural Context -

Paul preached the gospel in Corinth in the early 50s AD during his second missionary journey (Acts 18:1–18). When opposition grew fierce there, the Lord Jesus spoke to him in a vision assuring him that he had ‘many people’ in the city (Acts 18:10). With this encouragement, Paul stayed on for eighteen months, ‘teaching them the word of God’ (Acts 18:11). God used Paul’s ministry to bring about the birth and establishment of the church in Corinth.

Biblical Text -

1 Corinthians 15:50–58 NKJV

Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

-[Prayer]-

Life Principle - Our Lives Are Based In Hope, Death Is Swallowed In Victory, & The Church Excels Or It Dies.

Life Point- Hope Is Our Basis For Our Lives

Exegetical -

1 Corinthians 15:50–52 BSB

Now I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

Homiletical -

The simple truth about all other philosophies, religions, and schools of thought is that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven.

You can’t do enough, you can’t be good enough to enter into heaven.

The simple truth is that we are all born in sin. The Lord revealed the depth of man’s sin in:

Psalm 51:2–5 BSB

Wash me clean of my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You may be proved right when You speak and blameless when You judge. Surely I was brought forth in iniquity; I was sinful when my mother conceived me.

Isaiah 64:6 BSB

Each of us has become like something unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all wither like a leaf, and our iniquities carry us away like the wind.

We also know that it is the law that shows me how truly sinful I am, and in the law of God, that is Torah, we are shown just how sinful we are. From the moment we are born to the moment we die.

Romans 7:7–17 BSB

What then shall we say? Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed, I would not have been mindful of sin if not for the law. For I would not have been aware of coveting if the law had not said, “Do not covet.” But sin, seizing its opportunity through the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from the law, sin is dead. Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. So I discovered that the very commandment that was meant to bring life actually brought death. For sin, seizing its opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through the commandment put me to death. So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous, and good. Did that which is good, then, become death to me? Certainly not! But in order that sin might be exposed as sin, it produced death in me through what was good, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful. We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do, I do not do. But what I hate, I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I admit that the law is good. In that case, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

Does this mean I am like a man who is condemned to death?

Yes! We as humans stand condemned already.

But you see thanks to the shed blood of Jesus on the cross and his subsequent resurrection the Christian stands in hope.

Hope is not something we wish for. Like someone would say, “Gee I hope I can afford this car.” That’s not hope, that is wishfulness.

Hope is the calm assurance of what is promised to come to pass

I know and believe in Romans 8 because of hope. I have this assurance because of hope.

Romans 8:1–11 BSB

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For in Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man, as an offering for sin. He thus condemned sin in the flesh, so that the righteous standard of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. Those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh; but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. The mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind of the flesh is hostile to God: It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are controlled not by the flesh, but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you.

Now with all of this in mind as we look at 1 Corinthians 15:51 look at the promise, the hope that is coming.

1 Corinthians 15:51–52 BSB

Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

This is our hope. This is absolutely, fantastic. If you don’t get excited about this you are dead. You need Jesus.

Life Point - Death Will Be Swallowed Up In Victory

Exegetical -

1 Corinthians 15:53–55 BSB

For the perishable must be clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come to pass: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” “Where, O Death, is your victory? Where, O Death, is your sting?”

Homiletical -

To be saved to the uttermost our hope in the promise tells us that we must be clothed with the imperishable and mortality with immortality.

Why?

There are several reasons, but here are a couple that stand out right now:

Exodus 33:19–20 BSB

“I will cause all My goodness to pass before you,” the LORD replied, “and I will proclaim My name—the LORD—in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” But He added, “You cannot see My face, for no one can see Me and live.”

Sin cannot be in the presence of God’s holiness and not be utterly destroyed. Sin is an abomination to God. No one can see the face of God The Father and live.

Another reason is that we must be clothed with imperishable is because if we didn’t have this corrupt flesh purged then it wouldn’t be much of a fulfilled promise because we would still have the sin nature to contend with.

Romans 8:5–8 BSB

Those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh; but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. The mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind of the flesh is hostile to God: It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the flesh cannot please God.

Galatians 5:16–18 NKJV

I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

With the completion of our salvation we will be able to say with Paul “O death where is your victory? O death where is your sting?”

Life Point - We Must Excel Or We Die

Exegetical -

1 Corinthians 15:55–58 BSB

“Where, O Death, is your victory? Where, O Death, is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast and immovable. Always excel in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

Homiletical -

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

There are 2 revelations of God, as it were.

1) Is the natural law. That which is around us that reveals the knowledge of God. We know that there are certain things that are universal that are written on man’s heart.

Such as murder being wrong.

2) Then there is the special revelation of God that is the Scriptures. It is to this revelation that Paul refers too.

It is this that shows just how bad we are, for in it we find God’s precepts. His prescriptions for how to handle both the natural and the supernatural.

That means that no one has an excuse before a Holy God as to their sins, not even those who haven’t heard of the Bible or Jesus.

All will be judged based on the knowledge they are given. Even Sodom will be judged less harshly than those towns that rejected Jesus 72 preachers he sent out.

Jesus says as much in Luke 10

Luke 10:1–16 BSB

After this, the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of Him to every town and place He was about to visit. And He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Carry no purse or bag or sandals. Do not greet anyone along the road. Whatever house you enter, begin by saying, ‘Peace to this house.’ If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you. Stay at the same house, eating and drinking whatever you are offered. For the worker is worthy of his wages. Do not move around from house to house. If you enter a town and they welcome you, eat whatever is set before you. Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God is near you.’ But if you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go into the streets and declare, ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off as a testimony against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near.’ I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades! Whoever listens to you listens to Me; whoever rejects you rejects Me; and whoever rejects Me rejects the One who sent Me.”

1 Corinthians 15:56–58 BSB

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast and immovable. Always excel in the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

I will tell you that we will stand before the Bema seat of Christ and we will have to account for what we did or did not do as Christians.

Paul says that because of all that he has said before and we have studied before that we are to be steadfast and immovable. We are to not compromise on the cross of Christ or the truth given to us in His word.

We are to be like gigantic mountains in the face of all things that come against God’s truth. Yet we are to excel in the work of the Lord.

I can promise you one thing church and that is this.

A Church that is not doing anything in the community to share the Gospel is a church that is not stagnate, but it is a dieing church. We either move forward with the message of Jesus and the cross as a church or we die.

I got some revelation for you. I can’t make this church succeed in the spread of the Gospel by myself. It takes each and every one of us. It takes you to spread the Gospel. It takes you to make events happen, it takes you to make this church grow.

I charge you today as Jesus charged and charges you still

Matthew 28:18–20 BSB

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Will you go? Or will you die? That is the choice that is put before you all today. Will you seek others and tell them the good news or not?

3 More Promises The World Can't Take From You

Secular -

Historical/Cultural Context -

Biblical Text -

-[Prayer]-

Life Principle - Our Lives Are Based In Hope, Death Is Swallowed In Victory, & The Church Excels Or It Dies.

Life Point- Hope Is Our Basis For Our Lives

Exegetical -

Homiletical -

Life Point - Death Will Be Swallowed Up In Victory

Exegetical -

Homiletical -

Life Point - We Must Excel Or We Die

Exegetical -

Homiletical -

Life Principle– Our Lives Are Based In Hope, Death Is Swallowed In Victory, & The Church Excels Or It Dies.

Call to Action – altar call….