1 Corinthians 1:4-9
The Right Kind
If I were to ask you "Are you the kind of Christian that God is
looking for?" you might say yes. You might say no. But what we
should probably says is, "What type of Christian does God want?"
1 Corinthians is a very strong letter written to a very wicked
church; yet, despite the many and necessary rebukes that the letter
contains, God reveal much about what we are supposed to be. In
this chapter, we gain some insight on the kind of people God is
looking for.
I. \\#5\\ The Christians God is looking is an RICH Christians.
1Cor 1:5 That in every thing ye are enriched
by him….
A. The word ENRICHED means to be made RICH.
1. What I am going to say may shock you, but the only type of
Christians that God wants are rich Christians.
2. I am not speaking of bank accounts but of spiritual
accounts nor spendable riches but rather spiritual
riches.
3. I might shock you again, but the only kind of Christians
there are, are rich Christians.
4. Some just have not checked their spiritual accounts
lately.
B. God has deposited some things inside of us so that we can be
nothing else but rich.
1Cor 1:3 Grace be unto you, and peace, from God
our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
4 I thank my God always on your behalf, for the
grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ;
1. \\#3-4\\ Grace has been given to you.
a. Grace is God working in you.
b. So God has deposited what work is necessary to get you
capable to do what He wants you to do.
2. \\#3\\ Peace has been given to you.
1Cor 1:5 That in every thing ye are enriched by
him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge;
3. \\#5\\ Utterance (the ability to speak with power) has
been given to you.
4. \\#5\\ Knowledge (the ability to know and understand) has
been given to you.
1Cor 1:7 So that ye come behind in no gift;
waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:
5. \\#7\\ Indeed, everything spiritual gift we will need to
do whatever God would have you to do as been given to
us.
C. Why would God give us all of this?
1. The big answer is because God wants every Christian to
serve Him.
2. The more detailed answer is:
a. God created us to serve Him.
b. God created us to be incomplete if we don’t
contribute.
c. There is so much that needs to do.
There are lost souls that need to be told,
truths that need to be understand,
ministries that need to be started,
love that needs to be shown,
help that needs to be given.
3. Hence, God has cross-blessed us with an abundance of
gifts.
a. We are ENRICHED with them.
b. The questions are:
(1) Will we recognize what God has given to us
(2) Will we use our gifts and get busy?"
D. God is looking for ENRICHED Christians.
II. God is looking for secured Christians.
A. Like the only kind of Christians there are, are rich
Christians, so the only kind of Christians there are,
are secured Christians; however, some are quicker to
accept that than others.
B. \\#8-9\\ Paul described the security of the believer, and
tells us that security belongs to the one who has had "the
testimony of Christ confirmed in" him \\#6\\.
1Cor 1:6 Even as the testimony of Christ was
confirmed in you:
1. The word confirmed means established, made sure, made
firm.
2. So if your testimony of salvation (which is more than just
your account of your salvation) is sure, then you are
secured.
3. It also means that if your testimony is hap-hazard, you
are not very secured.
4. I will tell you again you need to have a firm testimony
of repentance, conversation, and change.
5. If you do, then you are secured.
6. Why?
1Cor 1:8 Who shall also confirm you unto the
end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our
Lord Jesus Christ.
a. Because Christ is establishing us.
(1) The WHO \\#8\\ is pointing back to the Lord Jesus
Christ \\#7\\.
(a) So the Lord Jesus Christ is the One doing
confirming you.
(b) Confirming still means establishing, making
sure, making firm.
(c) So Christ, with His infinite power, is the
One establishing the believer, making him
sure and firm.
(2) "That is good," someone says, "but for how long?"
(a) \\#8\\ UNTO THE END means to the uttermost,
to the finally, until the termination.
(b) In short, it means to the end.
(c) Until the end of what?
(d) Being left open as it is, it would have to
mean UNTIL THE END OF EVERYTHING.
(3) If this was all the verse said, any believer
reading it would conclude that Christ had
established every true believer unto the very
end of all things.
(a) This portion of the verse is telling us that
we are eternally secured.
(b) BUT, WAIT. THERE’S MORE!
b. \\#8\\ We are secured to be made blameless.
(1) Look carefully at the verse.
(2) Some would say that if you are blameless at the
end, Christ will confirm you . (In other words,
if you live a good enough life, you will keep
your salvation.)
(3) However, what the verse is actually saying is
that Christ will keep you to the end so that at
the end, you will be blameless.
(a) It is not our being blameless that causes
Christ to keep us.
(b) It is Christ keeping us that causes us to be
blameless.
1Cor 1:9 God is faithful, by whom ye were called
unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our
Lord.
c. \\#9\\ We are secured because God is faithful - Our
security is based not on our faithfulness to God, but
on God’s faithfulness to us.
7. How does Christ go about keeping us through all of our
failures and sins?
a. He does it by forgiving us.
b. If Christ did not forgive us, He could not keep us.
c. Our sinfulness would so offend Him, He would have to
reject us.
d. So Jesus just forgives us.
e. You ask, "What about the person who won’t repent?"
f. God tells us that before a person gets so bad that He
would have to throw him back, He will kill him and
bring him home.
1Cor 5:4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
when ye are gathered together, and my spirit,
with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ,
5 To deliver such an one unto Satan for the
destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may
be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
C. God is looking for those who are secured in His grace because
those are the only ones who can serve faithfully.
III. God is looking for Christians who have fellowship with Jesus
Christ.
1Cor 1:9 God is faithful, by whom ye were called
unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our
Lord.
A. Just like the only kind of Christians there are, are those who
rich and secured, so the only kind of Christians there are,
are those who have fellowship with Jesus Christ; however,
some are quicker to avail themselves of this privilege than
others.
B. \\#9\\ Notice that if you are a believer, you WERE
CALLED UNTO THE FELLOWSHIP OF JESUS CHRIST.
1. Being called to the fellowship of Jesus is a synonym for
salvation.
2. You can ask a person, "Have you been saved?"
"Have you been born-again?"
"Have you been forgiven?"
"Have you been fellowshipping with Jesus?"
3. It is all the same thing.
C. Sadly, some don’t recognize what salvation is all about.
1. God isn’t just saving us from hell. If that is all there
was, you could take your gift and go your way.
2. God saved you for fellowship with Him.
3. God desires to have fellowship with you, and He made you
to need fellowship with Him.
D. God is looking for some Christians who use their salvation for
what it was intended, the means of fellowship with Him.
IV. \\#23-29\\ God is looking for some worthless Christians.
A. The only kind of Christians there are,
are those who are rich,
are those who are secure,
are those who are fellowshipping with Jesus,
are those who are worthless;
however some have been quicker to recognize just how little
they can do on their own.
B. \\#24\\ Paul says that we preach Christ crucified and Christ
the power of God.
1. Why do we preach that Christ is the power of God?
2. \\#26\\ Because, if we look among ourselves, we will see
that we are NOT wise, mighty, or noble.
a. Wise deals with our ability to understand spiritual
truths, seeing things the way God sees them.
b. Mighty means strong, powerful, resourceful—either
spiritual, physically, or mentally
c. Noble means lofty, high, or influential character.
d. Hey folk, none of us are any of that.
3. \\#27-28\\ Rather, we will see that we are foolish, weak,
and base.
a. A foolish person is one who has been wrong most of the
time.
b. A weak person is one who succumbs or surrenders
easily.
c. A base person is, at the best, a common person, but
more likely his is an inferior person.
4. If you missed the remark I made at the opening of this
section, let me repeat it.
a. God is looking for some worthless Christians. I think
He found some!
b. Maybe you are a blue-blood aristocrat, but you are
base and foolish in spiritual things.
c. Maybe you are wealthy and powerful, but you are a
beggar and pauper before God.
d. Maybe you are intelligent and educated, but in eternal
truths you are ignorant and untrained.
C. The only kind of Christians God has are the foolish, the weak,
and the base, and the only kind of Christians God can use are
the ones who recognize that fact.
1. \\#28\\ God chooses the foolish, the weak, and the base
for His service.
2. \\#29\\ So that no one can brag about what his flesh could
do.
3. In other words, if you thought you could, God wouldn’t use
you; but if you know you can’t, God wants you.
I come to the conclusion of this message. I ask you again, "Are you the kind of
Christian God is looking for?"
Will you give of yourself to the work of God?
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