Transcript

First Corinthians chapter 11. Paul has shifted gears as he’s dealing with this carnal, backslidden church full of baby believers. He’s dealt with problem after problem after problem, and now he comes to the arena of public worship. And last time we saw the first problem in public worship that he had to address, and that was that the ladies, misinterpreting their new liberties in Christ, were coming to public worship without veils on their heads. And so not having that veil, which in that day among Jews and Greeks, among all ladies, it was a solemn statement of their submission to male authority. And Paul reproved them very strongly and said, you are liberated in Christ. You are equal before the Lord, but you still have to function under the structures of authority that God has given for a decent and orderly church, family, and society.

So said Christian women of all women should wear the veil. If that is the symbol in your culture that show submission to male authority. So he corrected that problem in public worship. Now we do not have a corresponding issue in our present age. I do not I at least I am not aware of a very prominent clear cut statement that is made in our culture like the veil did in that day. So it’s very difficult there to have a practical application, but at least the text very strongly taught us about God’s standard of there being a line of authority for all of his culture, and for there to be a sane society.

Then he goes today to the second major area, and that is the abuse or the perversion of the Lord’s Supper in the church at Corinth. And we’re going to look at the first part of that abuse in tonight’s message. And then after this one, we’ll go on to the abuse of spiritual gifts. Now, there are those who would use the text of Corinthians to support their views on spiritual gifts. But I caution you that you must remember as you study Corinthians about spiritual gifts. As you’re talking about, you’re rather seeing an apostle who’s reproving and correcting and straightening out the messes carnal believers had made of the gifts. This is not your best text for the instructions on gifts, but rather the correction of the abuses. But nonetheless, that’s 3 or 4 weeks away. Let’s look today at the first part of his dealing with their, abuses of the Lord’s Supper. And I call it the problems with the Lord’s Supper.

In 1 Corinthians 11:17-22, Paul says, “but in giving this instruction, I do not praise you, because you come together not for the better, but for the worse, for in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you, and in part I believe it. For there must also be factions among you, in order that those who are approved may have become evident among you. Therefore, when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper. For in your eating each takes his own supper first, and one is hungry and another is drunk. What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Are you dead? Do you despise the Church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you in this? I will not praise you.”

Now in the early church, including the early church in Jerusalem, and spreading out through the Gentile churches, the Lord’s Supper, that memorial ordinance left by our Lord was typically taken after a meal. And that was basically because the Lord instituted the supper at the end of the Jewish Passover meal that he had with his Apostles. On that occasion, he transformed the Jewish Passover into the Lord’s Supper. It is not proper for us, really for Jews, if they were followers of Jesus to take a Passover meal any longer, we now take the Lord’s Supper, after the Passover has been fulfilled in the Lord Jesus Christ. So the supper no longer points back to the lamb and this blood that was smeared over the doorpost when the death angel passed over the households of the Israelis during Egyptian slavery. But now we have a Passover meal that points to the Lord Jesus and his blood that was shed on the cross for our sins.

But anyway, they had it with the meal because the Lord had his with the meal, and also because the the pagans of this day, they typically had feasts, that were associated with their pagan worship. When they became Christians, they still wanted to have great feasts together, which was perfectly proper. There’s nothing wrong with us getting together like they did, having a great big feast and then having the Lord’s Supper as a part of that great big feast. So that’s the setting that Paul is dealing with.

Now, first of all, two major points. And the first one I want us to see is a serious problem rebuked, a serious problem rebuked. We see this in verses 17 and 18. And then in verses 20-22.

Let’s begin in verse 17. Paul says “in giving this instruction” and the word instruction there, according to many Greek authorities, should be translated “command”. It’s a strong word in the original language. He said, I’m giving you a solemn command here, and I want you to listen to me. Then he continues on in verse 17, “I do not praise you because you come together not for the better, but for the worse”. Of all things to happen, coming to church is supposed to strengthen you, to challenge you, to exhort you to honor Christ and live for Christ and be more Christlike. But Paul said, you folks in Corinth, you’re coming together as a church, it’s making you worse, not better. It makes you less like Christ, not more like Christ.

And I begin to think about some churches that their pastors have called me for counsel and advice. And I’ve thought about some of you who shared with me your testimony of where you have gone to church in the past, and it is true in today’s world that there are a lot of churches, like the ancient church at Corinth, but actually when you go home on Sunday morning or Sunday night, due to the strife and division and flashiness and carnality and worldliness of maybe so many in leadership, you actually feel further away from the Lord and more frustrated then closer to the Lord and more Christlike. Shall I be so bold as to say many, possibly most Baptist churches in America today, you may leave worse than better after being there.

I jotted down some questions one should ask about his church, and this is not perhaps thorough. These are just some things that came to my mind that you ought to ask about your church, that you’re attending, or maybe purpose to attend or join. First of all, I would ask very soberly, is the church based on scriptural principles? Forget emotions. Forget how you feel. Forget what you think. Forget what people say, investigated thoroughly and find out. Did they have a long standing tradition of developing what they do on scriptural principles? Now, no church has arrived in this area, but some churches are purposing and really trying here and some are not.

Secondly, I would ask the question are the leaders biblically qualified? First Timothy three and Titus three gives the character qualifications for those who would serve as overseers in the church. One of the strongest churches, literally in the southeast, has a pastor who has a broken marriage because of his own moral failure. And when we have things like that going on, we don’t have to wonder why God’s not honoring and blessing in the churches today. You must ask, are the men leading biblically qualified to lead?

Thirdly, I would ask, am I challenged and encouraged to become more like the Lord Jesus Christ after being there? And fourth, I would ask the question, Is God blessing the church with converts? Are you seeing people saved in that church through the ministries, the outreach, the services of that church? Now you have to be careful here, not getting just a numbers game. And we knew that know that there are seasons when there are blessed subtractions, but over the long season, you should see that God is bringing new souls into that church family. Those are just four things that I would challenge anybody to look at very carefully and looking at the church that they attend, including this church.

Now let’s go on to verse 18 as we continue looking at a serious problem. Rebuked. In verse 18, he gets more specific and he says, “for in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that divisions exist among you, and in part I believe it.” Now the word divisions here is possibly too strong of a word because he’s not talking about a sect. He’s not talking about a real structured formal group over here in another structured formal group over here. This is more of an alienation between one group in another group, sort of an inward, emotional alienation. And specifically in this church, it was between rich and poor. And we’ll talk about that in just a few moments.

And then Paul says, last part of verse 18, “and in part, I believe it.” What he’s saying is, I’ve heard a lot of things from a lot of people about what’s going on in Corinth. And I know I’ve heard things from one side that perhaps are not accurate, and one thinks something’s things from another side, and I know there’s been some exaggerations, but he said there’s been enough for me to know that there’s a lot of truth to what I’m hearing about those cliques, not sects, not clearly defined divisions, but cliques within the church, that inward alienation between one group to another group.

Let’s follow on skipping verse 19, because verse 19 is just sort of thrown in there. It doesn’t follow the flow of the text and we’ll get to it at the end. Verse 20 “Therefore”, and the therefore connects with what he said in verse 18. “Therefore when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper.” Now this is a strong rebuke. What Paul is saying is this when you come together, the way you come together with the self-centered lusts to satisfy your physical appetite, and with this cliquish-ness, this one brother against another, particularly the rich believers, sort of excluding the poor believers, he said, when you come with that kind of spirit and that kind of approach, you may say you’re coming to observe the Lord’s Supper, but you’ve robbed and stripped the Lord’s Supper, if any of its true meaning. The Lord’s Supper is all about our oneness and our equality and our unity before the Lord. No one is better than the other, and no one thinks that they, should separate themselves from the other person.

Verse 21, he continues to amplify what he’s saying. He says, “for in your eating each one takes his own supper first, and one is hungry and another is drunk.” It became a first come, first serve grab top game. And what generally the scholars believe would happen is this the wealthy folks who could leave work or leave their responsibilities whenever they wanted to, would go by the meat market, get some prime rib and some lobster, and show up early for the love feast. And they’d all kind of huddle around in one place and they’d be eating all this great rich food and drink in the sweet wine. And then the poor folks, many of whom were slaves. This was a day of slavery, barely were able to leave their task early enough to even make it to the love feast. And many of them, at best, could bring only the least amount of food and the most inexpensive foods. And some of them not bring food at all. So by the time the poor got there was not enough to even feed themselves. The rich were all stuffed with their food and were drunk already on their wine.

And so there was a real alienation and hard feelings developing between the two here, rich against the poor. Robertson and Plummer said it this way. “Here we have hungry, poor believers meeting intoxicated rich believers at what was supposed to be a supper unto the Lord”. That’s a strong statement. Look at verse 22. “What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink?” Paul was basically saying this when you come together as a church, your main object shouldn’t be which one of us can get there first and stuff ourselves before the other guys get here and want to eat it. Can our little clique sort of call each other during the day and say, you get the lobster, I get the prime rib, you get the pork chops and make sure you’re there an hour before most of the guys get there. And we’re just gorge and will not be concerned about the poor brothers and sisters in Christ who can’t afford those type things.

And when he says, “Do you not have houses to eat in?” He’s basically saying this, that it is not God’s standard for communism to exist in the church family. Some people will be able to eat better things than others in the church. And if you want to get together with your buddies and have a meal and have a fellowship time, that’s fine. But you do that at home. Don’t let that spirit come over into the church. When the church meets together you do everything to try to keep everybody on the same level. Make sure that no one’s overlooked and that no one is neglected.

I think another thing that he’s saying here is that the church should not come together to do what can be better done at home. The church should not come together to do those things which can be better done at home. And I fear that in today’s modern age, the church is getting into a lot of things and a lot of arenas that are not really our business, not really our job. Good things. But really the church shouldn’t be spending their time, effort and energy in hiring staff to do those things. Manual Scott, great black preacher, was preaching at a conference. I suppose I’d only been saved 2 or 3 years. I was sitting on the front row and Manual Scott was talking about his large church in Texas that meets a lot of the needs of the inner city people, and he made a statement I have never gotten over. Manual Scott said, “The church is most truly the church when it does what no other group even claims to be their job”. I want to say that again, “the church is most truly the church when it does, or when it is doing what no other group even claims to be its job”.

Then he explained. He said in Texas, there, in the inner city, he said, we have a great ministry of feeding hungry folks. But the way Manuel Scott would said he said, but other folks are doing that. He said, in our city, we have a great ministry of clothing the destitute. But he says other folks do that. He says we have a great ministry trying to house the homeless. But he said other folks are doing that. But then he got to soul winning, Bible preaching, equipping disciples in world missions. He said, that’s our job. Nobody else even claims to want to do that. And I’m telling you, Satan has had a field day in churches getting us to adopt a social gospel to the end that we neglect the spiritual gospel, getting us to address the physical and emotional need. True and good is that is, but not to the replacement or the neglect of the deep core root spiritual need of man. My friend, others try to meet the emotional need, others try to meet the physical need. Others are involved in these areas and we should be too. But our main job is to do what all the other groups don’t even claim to want to do. The spiritual need of man.

You see, the church doing good things can end up in evil because the good can suddenly crowd out the best. That’s why when you look at our church purpose statement and you look at our strategy statements that we use to achieve the purpose statement, you’ll find it’s thorough, simple scripture, small group ministries to evangelize, equip, meet needs, celebration services where singing praises and worship the Lord and admonishes the saints with sound doctrine and where the pastor preaches expository sermons. A world Missions ministry where we are personally and strategically and directly involved around the world, where God opens open doors, where there are unreached people groups, and how and in the other ways God directs us to be directly involved. Very simple, very basic, thoroughly biblical, because that’s what the church is about. Now we may do some other things, but we must be cautious that we never let the tail begin to wag the dog.

Look at verse 22 there, as he continues on and he says, “do you not have houses in which to eat?” Then he continues and says, “are you do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing?” Now they were despising the church when they had this segregation spirit going on, and the wealthier folks were just sort of in a cliquish spirit, congregating after themselves and sort of neglecting and leaving out the others. And many of them were going home hungry because of that, and of all places, the church. And of all times during the Lord’s Supper, the time when everybody humbly says, God, we’re nothing except for the blood of Jesus Christ. We’re nothing apart from the grace of God, God, master, and slave, business owner and peasant. We’re all equal at the cross. We’re all one together, and all under you as our Lord. That’s why Paul said, you may come together and take the supper, but you so robbed the supper of its purpose with your cliquish spirit. It’s not even the Lord’s Supper anymore.

He concludes this serious rebuke in the last phrase of verse 22, when he says, “what shall I say to you?” That’s just a statement that expresses Paul’s total bewilderment. He is totally bewildered at these guys, it’s kind of like saying, what in the world am I going to do with you Corinthians” And man, before long I’m going to go back and just list the problems he’s addressed already. It’s overwhelming. It’s overwhelming. Then he continues, “shall I praise you in this? I will not praise you.” His point is, there’s nothing to praise you for in this area of taking the Lord’s Supper. You guys are a total flop. You’re in a mess. So we see, first of all, a serious problem rebuked.

Now secondly, and this is where verse 19 that I skip comes in, notice a sovereign purpose revealed just out of nowhere. Paul throws in this sovereign purpose of God and notice it there in verse 19 where he says, “for there must also be factions among you.” And that phrase must also means there’s a compulsion. It means a compulsion of any kind. It means it is a necessity. That phrase must also is translated in Matthew 18:7 this way: “it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come.” Paul says it is inevitable. It is necessary that there be factions among you. That’s important that you understand something. Listen very carefully. The word factions in verse 19 is a totally different word from the word divisions. In verse 18 and verse 18 he says, I hear there are divisions, or cliques not formal segments against each other, but informal heart to heart native nations clique to clique.

But now uses a different word in verse 18 that says there must also be factions. Now that is the word for heresies. And the word heresy literally means to choose to believe a certain thing, to choose to join up with a certain sect are certain group. Here’s what Paul is saying. You may not right now have formalized groups, heresy sects in the church, but he said you can expect it’s going to come. Listen to me right now. You’ve got some cliques going on. But Paul says it is necessary, and you better believe there’s going to be a point in time when you have some formalized sects are heresies, groups setting themselves up.

Now he tells us about the sovereign purpose of what God does through this notice. “There must also be factions among you,” verse 19, “in order that those who are approved may have become evident.” He says, God has a sovereign purpose for these sects, these groups, these divisions that come up in the church. He says. When this happens, what God is doing is he’s making a parent are manifest those who are approved. Now, the word approved here means tested and tried. And having stood the test, it means people who are worthy of being set apart and being labeled as spiritual, or mature, are fit for leadership, he says. You just let a church go through some storms. You let a church go through fights and divisions, and you just hang tight and watch, and I’ll make manifest the spiritual ones, and I’ll make it clear who the carnal, backslidden ones are. Just wait till the dust settles and you’ll see all of that come about. You see, trouble in the church creates a situation in which true spiritual strength, wisdom, and leadership can be manifested. In the heat of divisions and other evils there is manifested the pure gold of mature saints.

So here in this verse, verse 19, Paul’s throwing out a principle that they might not have those formalized sects, heresies, divisions right now. But he’s saying you’ve already got some cliquishness, and you can bet in any and every church there going to be those formalized divisions and groups coming up. But just understand, God’s got a purpose in that he’s causing those who are proved to be come more clearly evident. Now we journey through some of this, and a lot of you perhaps have been in church fights and church divisions and church split, so to speak. But I say much too often it ends up being one carnal group against another carnal group, and it’s not a real spiritual group for God to manifest, and you end up in bewilderment. And there are many, much to many churches in the world today. I was going to say Baptist churches, but I just think that broader churches where this substantial majority are not spiritual enough for God to manifest anything, and you just got to get out of there. God’s already left the thing. Like I told a man one day is talking about the church he went to for many, many years is obviously God wasn’t on it. God wasn’t blessing it and God wasn’t moving. He says, “you know, but I’m about all they’ve got left.” And I said, “sir, if God has left, why do you want to stay?”

Let me say three things about these divisions, these factions, number one, factions within the church are to be expected. Factions are to be expected. And I’m going to use a lot of Scripture. And I would ask you to jot these down. But I want you to understand how, thorough, I guarantee you 97% of churches have never had a message on this principle. Never heard of it. Matter of fact, if you pray says most churches, you get run out next week. 97% of churches have never heard a message on this particular principle. Factions are to be expected. Verse 19. That’s exactly what he means. He says “there must also be factions in the church”. God says, I’ve got a purpose for when that happens and I’m accomplishing something.

Now, 1 John 2:19 is another important text that shows us how people will separate themselves off and that God is accomplishing something through that. 1 John 2:19, John says, “they went out from us.” That means they left us. They divided off and the little group left. “They went out from us, but they were not really of us, for if they had been others, they would have remained with us. But they went out in order that it might be shown”, made apparent, manifested “that they all are not of us.” Listen, church, it is the pattern for the church to at intervals. Who knows the seasons, who know how long. But certain groups of individuals will leave a true church. And John says, don’t get too shaken up about that. Sure, go after them. Sure, encourage them. Sure, reach out to them. Sure, ask them not to go. But ultimately, if a church is honoring the Lord Jesus Christ, serving the Lord Jesus Christ, preaching the Word of God, there will be those who go out from us that it might be evident and made manifest: they never were really of us. You can expect it to happen. Don’t look at this thing as something strange or unusual. The Bible is full of this principle.

Matter of fact. Look over at Deuteronomy chapter 13. Look at verses one through three. Notice the warning God gave to Israel of old along this line. Deuteronomy 13:1, “if a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or wonder, and the sign or the wonder comes true,” now here’s a guy that shows up and says, I’m of God. I can prove I’m of God because watch this miracle and he does the miracle. And now, verse two, “the sign or wonder comes true concerning which he spoke to you, saying, let us go after other gods whom you have not known, and let us serve them”. He says, “you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer or dreams, for the Lord your God is testing you to find out if you love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul.” He’s saying, God allowed that guy to come your way, so those who are truly he is will be made manifest apparent. They’ll catch it and see it.

Acts chapter 20, verses 29 and 30. Acts 20:29-30 was as Paul was leaving the Ephesian elders, and he calls the elders of the church at Ephesus. And he’s about to head toward Jerusalem. And this is what he says. Acts 20:29-30, “I know that after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock and men from among your own selves will arise, speaking perverse things to draw away the disciples after them.” What are you saying? Very clear. Paul didn’t say, now, after I leave, there’s a possibility this might happen. No, he said, after I leave from without and from with thee, and men will arise to form a little group and try to get you to follow them off. You can expect factions and divisions in the church to happen.

Now look at Jude chapter 1. Go all the way to revelation. Jude is that little one chapter book right before revelation. Jude chapter 1. Matter of fact, that’s all it’s got is chapter one. No chapter two, just Jude 1. Now, boy, I would, I probably I’m going to preach through the book of Jude one day when I think we all handle it, it’s strong. It’s very strong. Now look at verse 4. Jude says, “for certain persons have crept in unnoticed” talking about the church we call these guys creeps. And now, he continues, “those who are long beforehand marked out for this condemnation.” Did you read that? The guys who creep in unnoticed, going to cause a little division in the church, going to try to lead people to their persuasion, away from sound doctrine, away from church, the church’s true leadership. The Bible says they were marked out. What does it say? Let’s read that again, “marked out beforehand for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turned the grace of our Lord God into licentiousness”.

Now you listen to me very carefully. When you find a carnal, divisive person trying to lead a group, you watch long enough and see if almost every time they’re not into sin, sexual sin and moral failure. What does is say, to “turn the grace of God into licentiousness.” It means sexual immorality. They use God’s grace as their covering for their sexual immorality and deny our only master and Lord Jesus Christ. Now down to verse 12, “These men are those who are hidden reefs in your love feast”. The churches generally had those great big love feasts. They’d have the Lord’s Supper with the love feast, and Jude says, they’re hidden reefs in that love feast. They’re like those great big logs are submerged islands out there in the Tennessee River. You can’t see them there, but you run your outboard motor boat across them. You’ll find out they’re there. They’re disguised just under the surface of the water.

It says “when they feast with you without fear, caring for themselves”, they’re in it for themselves and for the glory of God. “Clouds without water carried along by winds. Autumn trees without fruit doubly dead. Uprooted. Wild ways of the sea. Casting up their own shame like foam, wondering stars for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever”. Now jump out of verse 16. “These are grumblers”. That doesn’t mean that ever grumbling is going to start a division, but you can be for certain a division starter will be a grumbling, “finding fault”. I mean, they just kind of walk around trying nit picking a fight. “I don’t think that’s just right. Do you think that’s just right? I think when we think about this over in the church, I’ve got questions about that. What about this over here? And what do you think about this over here?” And just just they’re just constantly sort of nit picking stuff that they’re not really thinks just right. Finding fault.

Look at verse 16: “following after their own lust. They speak arrogantly flattering people for the sake of gaining an advantage”. We could go on and on and on. I’m going to stop there just to say the Bible explicitly speaks and tells us you can expect factions and divisions in the church. Now here’s what I’m confident is true. The more immature, spiritually immature our carnal the church, the greater and more destructive the divisions, the more biblically founded and spiritually mature the church, the fear of the divisions and the less impact the divisions haves. That’s why I’m convinced that this church, we’ve had divisions for the last seven years here, but you know what? We never hear about them. You know why? When you’ve got a spiritual and mature church, the guy starting the division gets one on his side and two on his side, and the third guy he runs into rebukes him in Jesus name. He says, “my goodness, I better shut my mouth. I’ve been. I’ve been corrected.” And that’s the way a mature church handles it. It’s there. But you got to keep knocking it down, knocking it down, knocking it down, knocking it down.

And our prayer needs to be there’ll be enough spiritually mature laypeople that if a fleshly centered person, after their own appetite, in their own glory, wants to start their division in their group, they’ll be knocked down before they get started. That’s what happens in a mature church. It’s not that they didn’t had the faction, they just kept it from getting started. An immature church, it ravish is it, destroys it. That’s why so many Baptist churches go from division to division, to fight, to fight, to split at the split, to break off, at, to break off. And every time you know what I think the solution is? We’ll get we’ll get a new pastor and all this will be the answer. The new pastor is not the answer. Getting right and getting saved and getting rid of the factious people is the answer.

Well, they’re to be expected. I’m aware of my time, but I’m going to preach till I get through. Number two factions serve to expose. Factions serve to expose. Now look at 2 Peter 21-9. But I’m going to have to hurry. But you just hang and strap in and listen. Peter says, “but false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you.” Here’s another text and you can expect them. They’re going to show up “who will secretly induce destructive heresies, even denying the master who bought them, bringing swift destruction among themselves. And many will follow the sensuality, and because of them, the way of truth will be maligned, and in their greed they will exploit you as false words. Their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”

“For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell, and committed them to the pits of darkness reserved for judgment, and did not spare the ancient world, but preserve Noah, a preacher of righteousness with seven others when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly. And if he condemn the city of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly thereafter? And if he rescued righteous Lord, oppressed by the sinful conduct of unprincipled men, for by what he saw and heard, that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day with their lawless deeds.”

Now look, look at verse nine: “then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the righteous under punishment for the day of judgment.” Notice what do you say, as he begins in verse one, by saying, these false teachers will come in, these false professors will come in and they’ll start leading people after them, he said. But just as you saw God preserve Lot in Sodom and Gomorrah, just as you saw God preserve Noah and protect him, he said, you can be sure when these people come in. They start leading people astray, they start causing divisions. You can be sure those who know the Lord Jesus and love the Lord Jesus will remain strong and will become manifest and will become evident and godly, exposed to truly righteous and a truly ungodly, just like he did with Noah, just like he did with Lot, just like he’s always done. He will do that. The fact that the the factions serve to expose.

Now look at 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12. Scripture is abundant with these principles. Folks. This isn’t something over in the side margin we’re trying to dig up. This is a prominent principle of Scripture. I don’t know why… I tell you why we’ve missed it in our church: Satan don’t want us to stand here. Satan doesn’t want us to understand this because he’s ruined in church, at the church, and he controls church at the church. Matter of fact, I submit to you that many, if not the majority of Baptist churches are controlled. Mark that phrase, controlled by groups that ought to been expelled because they’re factious and God’s not going to bless it. He’s not going to bless it.

2 Thessalonians 2:1, he said, “now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and are gathering together to him, that you may not be quickly shaken from your composure, or be disturbed, either by a spirit or a message or letter, as if from us to the effect that the day of the Lord has come.” Verse three. “Let no one in any way deceive you, for he will not come unless the apostasy comes first. And the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction.” Now let’s stop right there. What Paul is basically saying that false teachers are coming in, trying to form their own group, saying the day of the Lord’s already come, trying to form their own little belief system, their own heresy. What the word faction means. And he said, don’t believe that, because there has to come the time of apostasy before the Lord is going to come. It’s not talking about the rapture, but the Second Coming.

Verse five. “Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things? And you know what restrains him now” that’s the Antichrist has got to come before the Lord comes. “You know what restrains him now so that in his time he may be revealed. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work.” The spirit of the Antichrist is already at work in the world, even though the Antichrist is not set up yet. “Only he who now restrains will do so until he’s taken out of the way.” The Holy Spirit is restraining the all the onslaught of the full power of the Antichrist for the present season. Verse 8. “And then that lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will slay with the breath of his mouth, and bring to an end by the appearing of his coming.” Verse nine. “That is the one whose power is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders.”

Now listen very carefully. If all it takes is a miracle, a sign or a wonder to get you to think God’s on something, you’re going to love the Antichrist. Brother a sign an experience, a miracle of healing all that stuff maybe from God, but it’s never proof God is at work. That can be the enemy. You check out your experience by this book. If it lines up this book, you know it’s of God. If the teacher doesn’t line up and the teaching doesn’t line up, and the doctrine don’t line up, or the morals and the character don’t line up with the book: It’s not of God.

Now let’s continue on verse 10. “And with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.” Now here’s what I want you to get verse 11. “And for this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they might believe what is false.” Now here’s what Paul is saying. They’ll be those who come in and try to lead groups astray, lead people away from pure and sound doctrine, leas people away from spiritual, true leaders. And he said, I’m going to tell you what God’s going to do. God’s going to let a certain number of people be deceived. He’ll give them a deluding influence so they will follow those people because they have already in their heart rejected Christ. And God said, alright, you said no to me. I’m going to say no to you, and I’m going to give you an influence and let you be persuaded by these Antichrist false teachers. So what are we saying? Factions, expose the godly, and the righteous will remain steadfast, and the others will be exposed for what they are because of whom they follow. It’s very strong and clear in Scripture.

Now we’ve seen factions are to be expected, factions serve to expose, and thirdly, notice, factions should be expelled, factions should be expelled. Romans 16:17-18. Powerful verses of Scripture. Notice what Paul says to the church at Rome, basically a good church, a mature church that, he entrusted with some very deep theological teachings. Now, Paul could have never given the church at Corinth the kind of teachings he gave to Rome. But he told the Roman Church, something has to be on guard against. Verse 17, chapter 16. “Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who caused dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them.” Now you listen very carefully. In any church at any time. There are a certain number of people that God’s spiritual leaders should have their eye on. Brother Jeff, are you saying that you as our pastor, the elders of our church minister at the church, have some people that you keep your eye on? Absolutely right. I’m poised like a Rottweiler dog with age. Watching them.

But I’m going to tell you something. For the glory of God and the zeal for Christ honor. I would go to war. I’d go to hell with a toothpick to protect this church for another wicked, fleshly, divisive spirit. We’ve been there, we’ve traveled there, we’ve come out victorious. We’ll not go back again. Wont let it happen. And there’s only one man called with the conviction and the zeal to stand when that time comes. And that is the senior pastor. No one else on earth will understand the zeal of the heart of the man given the sacred duty of preaching this book and overseeing the church. That’s why, perhaps when I see some things, it stirs me deeply. When others say, no big deal, because I’m aware of these things, and I’m aware of how extremely precious the unity, the oneness, the non divisiveness that we have is. And I will guard it with all that is in me till the Lord takes me home, or God moves me somewhere else.

Well, I’m only in verse 17. “Now urge you, brethren, keep your eyes on” that means mark them. Their name comes up on the computer. A little red light flashes. Beep beep beep beep. Potential problem here. Verse 18, “for such men are slaves not of our Lord Jesus Christ, but of their own appetites.” Friend, you listen to me, Satan works feverishly to plant his followers in churches like this. Works hard at the. They’re not slaves of our Lord Jesus Christ, but of their own appetites. “And by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting.” And you listen to me very carefully. If Satan ever allows, or let’s put this way, let’s say if Satan ever causes a division in a church that’s had the years of grounding in the word that we’ve had, it would be through somebody who has great biblical knowledge, but not a heart for God.

And that person, male or female, will be very persuasive, very influential. And many of you mark them up with spiritual because they have great head knowledge of Bible stuff. That’s the only way in a church like this. A person like that could get an advantage. But folks, you better go beyond the head knowledge and the intellect better go to a heart and the character that is evident when a person walks with God. And one of those is that they honor church leadership and respect them and submit to them. One other text Titus 3:9-10, Paul speaking to Titus about Titus’ role of overseeing churches. Paul says to him, “but shun foolish controversies and genealogies and strife and disputes about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless.” He said there going to be some that have come in, and they want to make a point on nothing.

They want to make a position on things that really don’t matter, non-essential sideline issues, and they want to draw a lot of people to their party in their position on those sideline issues. And then in verse 10, he nails the thing, he said, “reject a factious man after a first and second warning, knowing” not that it might be true, not that maybe it’s true, but “knowing that such a man is perverted and sinning, being self condemned” He’s says, if you’ve got a person in your church, they’re starting to form factions, you tell them one time, brother, sister, this isn’t right, this isn’t of God. We love you. You don’t be drawing people away on this stuff, this inessential stuff. This is sideline issues the Bible is not clear on. We don’t need to be starting a division over this kind of stuff. He said, then warning one more time. If it happens again, you’re to dismiss him and remove him from the church.

Faction should be expelled. Paul says the Word of God teaches more generally that factions are to be expected. Factions serve to expose, and factions should be expelled. I’m convinced that factious people control many, if not most, evangelical churches in America today. And too often, when a factious group rises up, what happens is the spiritual group caters to that ungodly faction in order to keep them quiet and to keep them pacified. And in the name of, ” Christian love”, to keep the unity. And that is not the will of God. All they’ve done is thrown fuel on the cancer that God tried to expose and remove. And they didn’t honor what the word said and done what they felt was good for the church — instead of what the word said was good for the church. God was purposing to expose and remove the faction. They in immaturity, consoled and preserved that faction and wonder why God’s not blessing. Now it is necessary, Paul said, to have factions, but it is not necessarily appropriate to allow them to go on and destroy and ruin the church. Well, those are some of the things Paul said about problems what the Lord’s Supper.