C. J. Mahaney’s Pastoral Care and Loving People
As presented by C. J. Mahaney at The Resurgence 2008 Text and Context Conference
(the notes are my own, so please forgive any sloppiness or incompleteness)
1 Corinthians 1:1-9
1Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes,
2To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:
3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, 5that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge— 6even as) the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you— 7so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8 who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Hidden in Plain Site
A compelling example of Cross-centered Pastoral Ministry
Corinthians Church was a piece of work
- Seduced by human wisdom
- Drifted from centrality of cross
- Didn’t want to be distinctive from culture
- Desired approval of wealthy and powerful
- Division within church – 4 factions
- Sexual immorality (Ch 5)
- Lawsuit happy church (Ch 6)
- Desecrating Lord’s Supper (Ch 11)
- 1 Cor 11 “I have no praise for you for your meetings do more harm than good”
- Opposition to Paul
Yet still, Paul says “I give thanks to my God always for you” (1 Cor 1:4)
- Paul’s extraordinary gratefulness and thankfulness for the church
- Attitude and Affection are sustained by a divine perspective of the Corinthian church
You must have a divine perspective for your church
Is our perspective the same as Paul’s divine perspective?
The Divine perspective of the Corinthiand Church is evident in
1. Paul’s Understanding of the Call of God
-
- Paul is called to be apostle (v1)
- Church is called to be set apart (v2)
- They are called into the fellowship of His Son (v9)
- Accent Divine Intiative
- Paul is called to be apostle (v1)
- To salvation
- Who am I? I richly deserve His righteous wrath because of His Holiness and my sinfulness
- And yet, He called me, summoned me, a divine summons
Call of God – Pastoral
- To pastoral ministry
- Divine Initiative or areas of immaturity
- Progressive santification is a process
- Do not correct anyone you do not have faith for and affection towards – that correction is not sufficient
- 16 Chapters of correction in 1 Corinthians
- Paul’s correction is effectively transferred because of his introduction, his affection for the church
- Presence of gifts in Corinthian church is evidence of God’s grace
- Only the humble can identify evidences of grace in those so evidently in need of adjustment
- Which are you more away of – evidences of grace or areas in need of adjustment
- Your evaluation of the church must be informed by this divine perspective – the appreciation of the evidences of grace in your church
- The temptation and tendency to focus on the areas in need of growth and change
- But the focus must be on the appreciation of the evidences of grace in your church
- Process of evaluation is looking at how God was at work in the sermon
- Sunday is a glorious opportunity to identify evidences of grace, how God is at work
- More Christians are more aware of sin than grace, more aware of sorrow vs. joy
- If God’s at work, it’s spectacular – not at all
- God works subtly
- Teach your church to discern evidences of grace
- you will build a grateful church
- you will build a church that pleases and glorifies God
3. Confidence in God’s Faithfulness
- v9 – “I can make this statement about the Corinthian church because God is faithful”