1 Corinthians 4 - Clover Sites



I had a great English teacher in 10th grade – Roland DelucaI think I even mentioned him once before.Mr. Deluca was hard.I remember when we had a test on a book we had read, we had to memorize quotes to use in the essay on the test.There was no open book with Mr. Deluca. He gave us a list of 30-40 quotes and if we memorized them, we could use them in the essay.This quote has always stuck with me from then:“The quality of mercy is not strained; It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven ... It is twice blessed.”Does anyone know what book it comes from?It comes from William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice.Who had to read it in school?I’m not sure if I knew what the quote meant back in the day.But recently I revisited the context and I love what it means. I’ll explain it in a minute.The play is set in?? Where? Venice.Antonio is the main character. He is a?? Merchant. He owns ships.Antonio always helps his reckless friend Bassanio.One day Bassanio comes to Antonio and asks for money so he can court a wealthy heiress, Portia.But, since all of Antonio’s money is tied up in ships that are out to sea, he agrees to guarantee a loan Bassanio makes with a Jew named Shylock.Since Shylock secretly hates Antonio and Christians, he agrees to make the loan at no interest, but only if Antonio agrees to give Shylock a pound of his flesh if the loan isn’t repaid on time.Antonia agrees.After different things happen in the story,It comes to be that Antonio’s ships are lost at sea and he is unable to repay the loan. Shylock brings Antonio into court to have his pound of flesh.Through classic Shakespearean disguises, the judge turns out to be Bassanio’s new wife, Portia.Appeals for mercy are made to the judge to force Shylock to have mercy.And that is where Portia says, “The quality of mercy is not strained ...”You can’t force or compel a person to be merciful.It falls from heaven like gentle rain ... It is twice blessed ...After all late attempts by others to repay even triple Antonio’s debt are rejected by Shylock,Portia, the judge, grants Shylock his right to exact a pound of Antonio’s flesh.Shylock has won.The whole court is heartbroken that nothing can be done for the beloved Antonio.Until ... as he holds the knife to his chest, Portia adds, “Take your pound of flesh. But, do not take no jot of blood. For your contract affords you flesh only and no blood.But, in the cutting it, if thou dost shed one drop of Christian blood, thy lands and goods Are, by the laws of Venice, confiscate unto the state of Venice.After robust protests by Shylock, she also adds“And take just one pound, no more no less.For the contract is for one pound of flesh.if the scale do turn but in the estimation of a hair, Thou diest and all thy goods are confiscate.Antonio is saved!In fact, because Shylock is found guilty of trying to attempt murder of a citizen,He is sentenced to death and forfeiture of all. ... But Antonio and Portia have mercy on him. It’s one of the greatest quibbles of all literature – one of the best little contract detail twists that let someone out of a bad agreement. A couple months ago, when I watched some of a modern movie version of the story,it occurred to me that this was a perfect illustration for when Jesus said,Matthew 7:1-2 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” 1. Shylock got judged with what he tried to judge another.2. Shylock tried to extract a certain measure of justice – stick to the contract!And that exact measure of justice was turned back on him – stick to the contract!3. And there is even this connection to the idea of with the measure you use...Shylock has a literal measure of judgment – one pound of flesh.Have you ever had someone judge you . who seemed to take something like a pound of flesh?Are you a person who judges others with strict or strong measures?Or are you a person who is careful never to measure judgment harshly, so that you will not face the return judgment Jesus implies here from God one day?So if we are going to obey Jesus and follow his teaching,the first question we have to ask is what is judging? What does Jesus mean by that word and how he uses it here?The language the NT was written in is ancient Greek.Greek was the common language in Jesus’ day, like English is in the world today.The Greek word Matthew records Jesus as using here as judge is krino.In biblical studies, we have books called lexicons.They are a dictionary of ancient words and their uses as we can derive from ancient literature. These are some of the lexical definitions of the word krinoKrino (Greek)1) to separate, put asunder, to pick out, select, choose2) to pronounce an opinion concerning right and wrong3) condemnation of wrong4) the decision (whether severe or mild) which one passes on the faults of others5) of those who act the part of judges or arbiters in matters of common life, or pass judgment on the deeds and words of others6) the sentence of a judge7) the punishment with which one is sentencedSo, I tell you this so you can see for yourself, judge here is mostly the same way we use judge.We are not to condemn others wrongs.We are not to pronounce our opinions of other’s actions as right or wrong.We are not to play the part of a judge in life on the deeds or actions of others.We are not to pass decisions, severe or mild, on the faults of others.We are not to punish others for all of these.As a people in our country these days, how well would you say we are doing at this? I get that we have a political process in America that affords us freedom of expression and opinion.But the Bible comes before the constitution in a Christian’s life.As a church, either local or collectively in America, how well would you say we do at this?We may believe that some misuse this principle to claim that no judgment is ever valid.That cannot be the case of what Jesus is saying here.But, it also seems true that in our zeal for righteousness or in our carnalness or selfishnesswe too often these days forget that Jesus said not to judge others. As a family or a person, how well are you doing at this? But Jesus doesn’t only simply say don’t judge or you too will be judged.He explains why! He goes on to expand on the idea and explain to us what it is about judging we do wrong.He says,For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.In the same way we judge, we’ll be judgedWith the measure we use, it will be measured to you.So, Jesus tells us what the problem is.The problem is in the way we judge.The problem is in how we measure our judgment or our justice.I think Jesus is explaining where we go wrong in judging when he adds the second part.I think it’s this.Every time I judge someone, I am measuring their actions or motives or words or whatever.Every time we condemn someone in our mind or with our words to them or others, we say that person is wrong, that person has done this to hurt me, that person is not what I think they should be or whatever,we are measuring. We are using some process in our mind to say I know what you did and it was “this” bad.I know what you thought when you said that and you meant to hurt me “this” much. I know that person’s character and they are “this” kind.We measure others.And here’s the problem - we stink at measuring judgment!Quickly, The word Matthew records Jesus as using here for measure is metron.It’s the Greek word that we get what word from? What does it sound like?Metron1) Measure, an instrument for measuring2) a vessel for receiving and determining the quantity of things, whether dry or liquid3) a graduated staff for measuring, a measuring rodI tell you that to show you that it’s not just a figure of speech.It’s a real part of the text.What’s wrong with our judging others is an issue of measure.I think the problem with judging peoples actions, thoughts, motives, hurts, offenses, etc., is that you and I have a very difficult time in our imperfect knowledge of measuring how much guilt a person haswhat they did or didn’t dowhat was their intentwhat don’t we know about the situation, and so much more. We think we know, but so often we have no idea or very little idea about even the things that happen directly to us. And, we have a very unjust and imperfect and heavy handed way of measuring our response, our justice, our penalty, or our payback.We say “you did this to me and for that you owe me a pound of flesh.Or you did this to that person, and I know that was wrong, and I judge you owe her a pound of flesh. And since I know you will not repay, I will punish you – I will take a pound from you myself. It is an incredibly complex job to measure guilt and repay it fairly.That’s why the Bible tells us to leave judging to who?James 4:12There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?Here’s the practical thing about this measure.I think some of us spend way too much of our lives deciding how much flesh other people owe us.That person hurt me – a pound of flesh.That person let me down, wasn’t there for me – half pound of flesh.My husband doesn’t appreciate all I do for him – 2lbs of flesh, measured out a little each day.My wife doesn’t meet my needs – she takes a pound of my flesh every day, she owes me.Those people at my work ... 10lbs altogether.My parents ... The friend who let me down ...All the while we are keeping tabs and making ourselves and our relationships unhappier.And all the while we are inflicting pain and punishment or severing relationships out of our estimation of what they deserve as a measure of payback. When if we would listen to Jesus and let this go, we could be liberated, and forgiving, and wounds could heal,and mistakes could be avoided, and unjust retaliation could be ended.Listen to what Paul, the Apostle, and a righteous man says about why he doesn’t judge.1 Corinthians 4:3-5 I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. 4?My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 5?Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.He’s saying I judge no one.Because why?Only God knows everything.Only God knows motives.Only God knows all things – hidden things, things we just don’t know about others.And we should therefore, as much as possible, leave all judging to the Lord.And in the end he will judge or praise us for our deeds.So I wonder, What if God can see all the wrongs, all the sins, all the accounts of pain inflicted by each of us all at once.What if he can perfectly tell what happened, and why, and how much pain was caused to us, and all the factors and reasons and issues all at once.And what if you are the kind of person that always takes more than a pound of flesh with people who hurt you?What if you seek to take pounds of flesh from people who only hurt you a spoonful?What if you take pounds of flesh against someone who never really did anything to you?Or, on the good side,What if you are the kind of person who always gives other people mercy when they make mistakes?What if you are the kind of person who always gives other people mercy even when they don’t deserve it?What if you are the person who is always patient when it comes to assuming the best in others – giving grace?What if you hold back your tongue & rethink your negative thoughts and guard your assumptions?What if God can see all of that all?What if he can see all of the deficits you have in the hurt you take and give to others when you have been wronged?What will it be like when he looks at all your accounts and sees you being like him?“At that time each will receive his praise from God.”With the measure you use, it will be measured to you If you give mercy, you will get it.418084058229500The quality of mercy is not strained,It droppeth as the gentle rain from heavenUpon the place beneath. It is twice blest:It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.One more thought.Title slideToday we are beginning a new sermon series called CommunityAll through the Bible the people of God are called a community.All through the NT especially, the emphasis is on the unity – having unity in relationships with each other.This message speaks to that in our relationships.And I want to show you one more way I think this is clear in the text.As I was studying what Jesus said when he said do not judge,I believe his Spirit gave me an insight.Do you remember the first definition of krino – the Greek word Jesus used that we translate judge. Krino (Greek)1) to separate, put asunder, to pick out, select, chooseJudge in English doesn’t really mean to separate or put asunder – to cut in two.But it seems to be a part of the biblical or cultural idea of judging here.Do you remember when Jesus said he would return one day and sit on the throne & judge mankindWhat did he say he would do to people like a shepherd does to sheep and goats?He would separate us.He would judge us by separating us - the good from the bad.In the NT the word for judge or judged had the connotation, the implied meaning, of to separate or separator.Kreses, another form of the word, means separates.Here’s what I think the Bible says to us today:Judging divides. Judging others separates.Judging the people in your world, in your life, in your relationships, fractures those relationships.I have a person in my life.I recently had a phone call conversation with her.She told me about her niece that was in town for a visit. The niece had a young adult son. At some point in the recent past the son had hit his mother. So the young man had been sent to live with his father. The father and young man lived in the same town as the aunt. So the niece said she would like to come over for a visit with the aunt and bring her son. But the aunt said “No, he was not welcome in her house.” She said to me “How can I let him in my house. If I do then I will be accepting what he did.”Can you see how destructive the judging is there? And how ironic?The mother forgives the son and wants to rebuild her relationship with him.The aunt judges the son, and it keeps her from relationship with him.Even when the mother forgives.Judging divides relationships.Judging puts asunder.Like the Shylock who wanted to cut a pound of flesh, judging cuts.It cuts twice. It is twice condemned.It cuts the one who is judged and it cuts the one who judges. And it is not from heaven.So I say to you today,Jesus, who knew all things and who will one day be our judge, taught usMatthew 7:1-2 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” ................
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