Stay Out of the Ditches

In one paragraph

This sermon worked through 1 Corinthians 6:12 through 7:40 in one stretch, looking at what Paul says about the body, sexuality, marriage, and singleness. Pastor Ray walked the congregation through two opposite errors that were pulling the Corinthian church apart, and showed how Paul steers between them without landing in either ditch. The Corinthians had picked up a pair of slogans. "All things...

Read together

1. Proverbs 18:10 opening verse: the name of the Lord is a strong tower, the righteous run into it and are safe
2. Psalm 14:1 noted on an atheism bumper sticker: the fool has said in his heart, there is no God
3. 1 Corinthians 6:12 Corinthian slogan all things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful
4. 1 Corinthians 6:13 foods for the stomach and the stomach for food used as euphemism for sexual immorality; God will destroy both
5. 1 Corinthians 6:14 God raised up the Lord and will also raise us up by His power
6. 1 Corinthians 6:15-16 bodies are members of Christ; he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her
7. 1 Corinthians 6:16 the two shall become one flesh, quoting back to Genesis
8. 1 Corinthians 6:17 he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him
9. 1 Corinthians 6:18 flee sexual immorality; he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body
10. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit; you are not your own, bought at a price; glorify God in your body
11. 1 Corinthians 7:1 now concerning the things of which you wrote to me; is it good for a man not to touch a woman
12. 1 Corinthians 7:2 because of sexual immorality let each man have his own wife and each woman her own husband
13. 1 Corinthians 7:3 husband render to his wife the affection due her and likewise the wife to her husband
14. 1 Corinthians 7:4 wife does not have authority over her own body but the husband does, and likewise the husband
15. 1 Corinthians 7:5 do not deprive one another except with consent for a time of fasting and prayer, lest Satan tempt you
16. 1 Corinthians 7:6 Paul says this as a concession and not as a commandment
17. 1 Corinthians 7:7 I wish all men were even as myself but each one has his own gift from God
18. 1 Corinthians 7:8-9 to the unmarried and widows it is good to remain as Paul is; if they are not exercising self-control let them marry, for it is better to marry than to burn with passion
19. 1 Corinthians 7:10-11 to the married, not I but the Lord: a wife is not to depart from her husband; a husband is not to divorce his wife
20. 1 Corinthians 7:12-13 if a brother has an unbelieving wife willing to live with him, let him not divorce her, and likewise the wife
21. 1 Corinthians 7:14 the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife; otherwise your children would be unclean but now they are holy
22. 1 Corinthians 7:15 if the unbeliever departs let them depart; a brother or sister is not under bondage in such cases; God has called us to peace
23. 1 Corinthians 7:16 how do you know whether you will save your husband or wife; keep living your Christian witness
24. 1 Corinthians 7:17 as God has distributed to each one, as the Lord has called each one, so let him walk; ordained in all the churches
25. 1 Corinthians 7:18-19 circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing; keeping the commandments of God is what matters
26. 1 Corinthians 7:20-21 let each one remain in the calling in which he was called; were you called as a slave, do not be concerned
27. 1 Corinthians 7:22-23 he called in the Lord while a slave is the Lord's freed man; you were bought at a price, do not become slaves of men
28. 1 Corinthians 7:24 let each one remain with God in the state in which he was called
29. 1 Corinthians 7:25 concerning virgins I have no commandment from the Lord yet I give judgment as one whom the Lord in His mercy has made trustworthy
30. 1 Corinthians 7:26-28 because of the present distress good for a man to remain as he is; if you marry you have not sinned; such will have trouble in the flesh
31. 1 Corinthians 7:29-31 the time is short; those who have wives should be as those who had none; the form of this world is passing away
32. 1 Corinthians 7:32-34 he who is unmarried cares for the things of the Lord; he who is married cares about the world and how to please his wife
33. 1 Corinthians 7:35 said for your own profit, not to put a leash on you, but that you may serve the Lord without distraction
34. 1 Corinthians 7:36-38 if any man thinks he is behaving improperly toward his virgin daughter past the flower of her youth, let them marry; he who does not give her in marriage does better
35. 1 Corinthians 7:39-40 a wife is bound as long as her husband lives; if he dies she may marry whom she wishes, only in the Lord; she is happier if she remains as she is; I think I also have the Spirit of God
36. Ephesians 5:17-21 closing verses: do not be unwise but understand the will of the Lord; be filled with the Holy Spirit; submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ

Talk about it

1. Pastor Rich warned that going through 1 Corinthians was going to be 'really, really hard.' What made you uncomfortable or surprised you as you listened to this passage, and why do you think the church tends to avoid passages like this one?
2. Paul says 'all things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful' and 'I will not be brought under the power of any.' Where in your own life have you seen something that felt like freedom quietly become something that had power over you?
3. The sermon described two ditches: hedonism on one side and asceticism on the other. Which ditch do you think is more of a temptation in your own life, and which one do you think the broader culture around Jackson falls into more often?
4. Paul wrote about married couples setting aside physical intimacy by mutual consent for a season of fasting and prayer. How much does the idea of spiritual disciplines shaping a marriage show up in conversations you have or hear in the church, and what gets in the way of that?
5. The closing point was 'bloom where you are planted,' and the call not to be in a rush to change your status in life. What does it actually look like, practically, to pursue God faithfully in whatever situation you find yourself in right now?