Good morning! My name is Adrienne Judson, and it is my joy to be here with you this morning while my mom, Pastor Dorry Newcomer, is away on vacation. She and my dad are taking a long-awaited cruise to Alaska. They were originally scheduled to go on this trip in 2020 but had to postpone due to the pandemic. I was so excited that they were finally getting to take this trip that I immediately said yes when my mom asked if I would preach while she was away. But, if I had read the scripture lesson first, I might not have said yes so quickly! This one is a doozy.

I understand that you are all reading through the New Testament together and that this week, you read 1 Corinthians chapters 3-7. In 1 Corinthians, we get Paul’s response to a letter that he received from the early church at Corinth. In their letter, the Corinthians asked Paul for his advice concerning several issues they were experiencing. And, I have to warn you, these issues are not G-rated! They had a congregant who was having an affair with his step-mother. They were filing lawsuits against each other. They couldn’t agree on what rules to follow concerning sexual ethics, marriage, and divorce. They were know-it-alls and rule-breakers, and they could not figure out how to get along. Their problems were extreme, yes, but some of them are more familiar to me than I would like to admit.

In our reading this week, Paul works through their list of issues one by one. If the Corinthians were hoping for clear, concise guidance from Paul—if they were expecting one-size-fits-all, black and white answers—they were surely disappointed. Because in chapters 3-7, Paul provides specific, situational, and at times, conflicting advice.

First, he says that married people should fulfill their marital obligations to one another (7:2). Then, he says that married people shouldn’t act as if they are married (7:29). In some contexts, he says that single people should get married (7:2); in others, he says that single people should stay single (7:32-40). We should never judge others, Paul first says, because God is our ultimate judge (4:5). But, Paul later says that we should set standards for ethical behavior in the church, and we should judge each other by those standards (5:11-13).

This is complicated! This is messy! My mom sure did pick a good week to go on vacation. Life, according to Paul, is not black and white. So, how are we supposed to see through the grey? Thankfully, Paul is consistent in some things. He always explains his reasoning, and he always cites his sources. The librarians of the world would be very proud of him.

The specific advice that Paul gives to the Corinthians is highly dependent on their unique circumstances, beliefs, and culture. I personally only find some of it to be relevant to my life today. But, regardless of our differences in culture and context, we can learn from how Paul thinks through these issues, and we can apply those methods to our own lives. Our problems are hopefully not as extreme as those faced by the Corinthians. I would hope that we aren’t filing lawsuits against each other or engaging in incest. But, we all have challenges in life. We all face situations where the Christlike response is unclear. So, let’s see what we can learn from how Paul approaches the issues of the Corinthians.

Paul begins these chapters by warning the Corinthians to let go of their worldly wisdom. As Clara read for us in the first scripture lesson, Paul says that “the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight” (3:19). This is not to say that we should check our thinking caps at the door! Paul relies heavily on his own reasoning to advise the Corinthians. But, Paul does not want us to be overly confident in our knowledge of the world as it is. Because is the world today the heaven on earth that God promises? Absolutely not. So, the wisdom of our world can only get us so far.

What then, should we rely on? Paul teaches by example. When addressing each of the Corinthians’ concerns, he turns first to the words of Jesus. If Jesus has directly spoken on the topic, he says so. We too should turn to scripture first to guide us.

Some of the Corinthians’ problems, though, were never directly addressed by Jesus. The Corinthians wanted to know if they should stay married to their non-Christian spouses (7:12-16). They wanted to know if they, as Greeks, should become circumcised (7:18-19). We too face issues that Jesus never addressed. As far as I know, there’s no scripture lesson about how to deal with a relative who over-shares on Facebook or a boss who expects us to be available 24-7. So, how does Paul proceed when he cannot rely directly on the words of Jesus? First, he acknowledges that the advice he is giving is based on his own reasoning. Throughout these chapters, we repeatedly hear Paul say “I, not the Lord” say this. Or, “The Lord, not I” advises that. He is always clear when an opinion is just that—an opinion.

And how does Paul form these opinions? First, he trusts that God is guiding him. He knows Jesus’ teachings, and he knows the Spirit is with him. When there is no clear answer to a question in scripture, Paul says, “I have no command from the Lord, but I give a judgement as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy” (7:25). He trusts that the Spirit is guiding him because he knows God, and God knows him.

How can we become like Paul and trust in our relationship with God? Well, we can start by becoming familiar with scripture. You folks here at Lima are already doing a great job of that! You’re reading through the whole New Testament this year. You memorize key verses together each month. By building up our knowledge of scripture, we can come to trust that we know God.

But what about trusting that God knows us? This is where I’d like to advocate for prayer. My husband EJ and I recently moved to Conshohocken from Washington, DC. At our church in DC, we participated in a Bible study group, where EJ once infamously said, “I don’t believe in prayer!” An awkward silence fell over the room. He went on to explain that he doesn’t believe that God actively determines whether the Eagles win the Super Bowl or whether the shoes you’ve been eyeing go on sale, so why bother praying about it? After he explained his viewpoint, everyone let out a sigh of relief. But, since then, every time prayer comes up in that group, someone jokingly says, “Well, we all know that EJ doesn’t believe in prayer!”

One thing that I love about the Methodist church is that we encompass a wide range of viewpoints about God. Some of us believe that God is very active in our daily lives; others, not so much. I’m not here to say who is right or wrong—the truth is that I, like you, can’t know for sure. But I do think it is worthwhile to pray about the circumstances of our lives regardless of whether we believe that God will intervene. Prayer helps us draw close to God. How can we trust that God knows us if we never let God in?

So far, we’ve seen that when Paul needs to make a judgement call, he turns first to scripture. Then, if scripture isn’t available, he lets go of his worldly wisdom and trusts in his relationship with God. What else does Paul do to find clarity about the issues of life? Well, he leans on his relationships with other believers. In many of Paul’s New Testament letters, we hear him discuss his communication with the other apostles. Paul regularly checks in with his peers. Just wait until you get to Galatians chapter 2! It is one of my favorite chapters of the Bible. It shows what can happen when passionate people come together to serve a common purpose. Paul and the other apostles support and affirm each other, but they also call each other out. It is clear from watching how Paul operates that he doesn’t expect us to answer all of life’s questions by ourselves. We can rely on each other. What a relief!

The final thing that Paul does to form his opinions is to think critically through a lens of love. Some of you know that my brother recently got married. Before the wedding, the other bridesmaids and I met up with my sister-in-law for her bachelorette party in Nashville. Each of us brought something festive for the party: streamers, balloons, party poppers. I brought each of us a pair of pink heart-shaped glasses. Have any of you seen those heart-eye glasses before?

Now, normally, if we say that someone is seeing the world through rose-colored glasses, it’s not exactly a compliment. It might imply that the person is naïve or is overlooking the negative aspects of situations and relationships. But Paul tells us that seeing the world in pink—looking through a lens of love—is the one thing we can truly rely on. As Clara read for us in our second scripture lesson, at the end of the day, prophesies will fail and knowledge will pass away, but three things will remain: “faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love” (13:13).

The key verse at the top of your bulletin says that “knowledge puffs up.” Worldly wisdom makes us overly confident in ourselves and our opinions. But, “love builds up” (8:1). When we put on our rose-colored glasses, when we think critically with love, we work for the benefit of ourselves and those around us.

Now, inevitably, when we form opinions, we will sometimes get it wrong. A lot of the advice that Paul gives in these chapters sounds odd, or even concerning, to the modern reader because Paul was operating under an assumption that turned out to be false. Paul believed that time was short (7:29) and that Jesus would soon return to earth. Because of that belief, he advises the Corinthians to stay as they are (7:20). He even implies that slaves should be content with their situation (7:22). This is not the message I would expect from Jesus, who stood up for the poor and oppressed and encouraged personal growth!

But Paul himself acknowledges that mistakes are inevitable. He says that “we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears” (13:9-10). “For now, we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then, we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known” (13:12). In Paul’s time, mirrors were not made of glass but were made of polished metal or stone. They did not create a clear reflection.

So for now, we’re stuck at the carnival, looking into a fun-house mirror. Everything is a little wonky and grey. Wouldn’t it be nice if things were crystal clear? If only we had a Jesus helpline. Just call 1-800-WWJD and Jesus will tell you what to do! But we don’t have Jesus on speed-dial. And life will always be messy. Life will always be complicated. So, what can we do? We can turn first to scripture for guidance. Then, we can get humble! We can let go of our worldly wisdom and trust in our connection with God. We can turn to each other for counsel and hold each other accountable for our behavior. And, most importantly, we can put on our heart-eye glasses and think critically through a lens of love. Yes, we will get it wrong. Yes, we will make mistakes. The best we can do is make a good-faith effort to see the world in pink—to work to build each other up and act out of love. Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Benediction: When we went out in Nashville for my sister-in-law’s bachelorette, we all wore our heart-shaped glasses. At every music venue and restaurant that we entered, people saw us and immediately knew: they’re here for a bachelorette. The same thing is true if we address life’s challenges through a lens of love. If we follow the actions of Paul and see pink, if we acknowledge that our opinions are just opinions, if we stay humble and are driven by love rather than self-justification, we will be recognized as Christians everywhere we go. Look at those folks in their pink heart-eye glasses! They are here to spread God’s love. Go in peace, and serve the Lord. Amen.