17
Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is the rule I lay down in all the churches. 18 Was a man already circumcised when he was called? He should not become uncircumcised. Was a man uncircumcised when he was called? He should not be circumcised. 19 Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God’s commands is what counts. 20 Each one should remain in the situation which he was in when God called him. 21 Were you a slave when you were called? Don’t let it trouble you—although if you can gain your freedom, do so. 22 For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord’s freedman; similarly, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ’s slave. 23 You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men. 24 Brothers, each man, as responsible to God, should remain in the situation God called him to. (1 Corinthians 7:17-24 NIV)Before we take a look at our text today, let's take a brief look at ourselves. How would you characterize your level of contentment? When you look at your life, how would you describe the feelings you have toward it?
Look at the various component parts of your life. So many things are involved–– where you work, where you live, who you're married to, how much money you have, how much education you have, how much you weigh, how many opportunities you have, and on and on and on. We could go through each item and you could rate your level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction on each one. Let's say a one is total dissatisfaction and a ten is incomparable metaphysical bliss. After rating each item you could then tally up the score to discover your general level of satisfaction with your lot in life. Where you think you would be? Would you be singing the little chorus that goes, "I'm so happy, so very happy, I've got the love of Jesus in my heart," or would you be singing that well-known song, "I can't get no… satisfaction"?
When you think about it, there probably is a lot in every one of our lives that we would like to change. All of us could have some level of dissatisfaction about many things. But the two questions I would like to ask are these: Where does that come from and where does it lead?
Where does your dissatisfaction come from? In other words, why are you so dissatisfied? You might think that is a stupid question. You are dissatisfied because you're not happy with the situation, you say. But it might not be as simple as that. You see, you are assuming that your unhappiness is a healthy response to a bad situation. Have you ever considered that you may be unhappy because your perspective has been altered? It may be that you have been programmed to be unhappy.
Our whole society promotes dissatisfaction with life. In some ways, it is built into the economic system of capitalism. Goods and services are marketed through advertising, and the goal of advertising is to create a felt need for the product. They want to convince you that you need this new thing. What you have is not good enough. If you could only get the new, the improved, the bigger and better whatever, the quality of your life would take a giant step forward. And we fall for it.
Sadly, sometimes it is applied to more than a better brand of toothpaste. Often people think that if they could only get that new husband or wife, they would be better off. And they fall for it.
This consumerist approach to life comes at us from every direction. The incessant bombardment we receive through advertisements on TV, radio, billboards, and in magazines and newspapers programs our minds to think a certain way about things, and about what brings a real happiness. The message is that if only our situation were different we would be happier and more fulfilled. The situation is what is at fault. It's that sorry old job. If only I had a different one. It's those extra 20 pounds. If only I could be a little thinner. You fill in the blank. If only I could change THAT!
And where does all this lead? Well, it leads in many directions, none of them positive. It leads to a general dissatisfaction with life, as well as further unhappiness. And perhaps worst of all, it keeps you from being the man or woman of God that you were created to be because it leads you to believe that you are not in a position to serve God yet. If only you could change this or that, then you could really serve God. But not now. Not in your current situation. This is the lie that Paul will address in our text today. And it is something you need to address in your life as well or you will be held in miserable bondage to it for the rest of your unhappy life.
God wants you to bloom where you have been planted. He can use you right now, in the situation in which you find yourself. Unless it is a sinful situation that you need to forsake and abandon, he can show you his purpose for using that situation for your good and for his glory. So, if you want to learn the secret of godly contentment and true peace, look with me at our text today. In his message to these confused Corinthian Christians, we will see clearly what we are to focus on.
One of the most important lessons of our text is this: Don't focus on secondary situations. And what are these secondary situations? Paul makes it quite clear that they are the circumstances of life in which we find ourselves. They are our job situation, our financial situation, our marriage and family situation, our health situation and the like. This is quite clear from the context. He has been discussing marriage and instructing them to stay together. He now expands that thought to other areas of our lives.
Was a man already circumcised when he was called? He should not become uncircumcised. Was a man uncircumcised when he was called? He should not be circumcised. Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. (7:18-19a)
Were you a slave when you were called? Don’t let it trouble you—although if you can gain your freedom, do so. For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord’s freedman; similarly, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ’s slave. You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men. (7:21-23)
He gives two illustrations of contemporary situations some of them would have found themselves in–– circumcision and slavery. Can someone who was not circumcised according to the Jewish law really be a true servant of Jesus Christ? Some thought that all Christians needed to be circumcised–– the male ones of course. But here Paul plainly says that neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is important. In fact, he calls it nothing. Pretty strong words.
Similarly, he doesn't regard slavery as an impediment to serving God. He is not advocating slavery, as some have mistakenly claimed. He tells them that if they can gain their freedom, they should do so. It is clear that Paul saw the value of being free, but in so far as one's relationship to God was concerned, slavery was not a problem. One could serve God as a slave just as faithfully as someone who was free. After all, we are all slaves of God. And so he tells them–– Don't let it trouble you.
The message is clear. Our situation in life is secondary. It should not be our primary focus. It certainly should never be an excuse for not serving God. And yet, so many people make it an excuse. If only I didn't have this situation in my life, then I could really serve God. If only I had more money. If only I had a different job. If only my health were better. If only I had a more supportive mate. If only, if only, if only....
Your problem is that you're focusing on the wrong thing. None of these circumstances should keep you from fully following Jesus Christ. The only situations that have the power to do that are situations where you are living in unrepentant sin. If your lifestyle is not pleasing to God, then you have a problem. But the fact that you may not have ideal circumstances should never be a problem. It can only be a problem when you allow it to be and that is a problem of your focus. You are focusing on the wrong things. You are allowing secondary situations to become your primary focus.
When you allow these secondary situations to become your primary focus, you become an unhappy and dissatisfied person. You fix your gaze on all the things that you would like to change. You concentrate on what's wrong. You mull over and over in your mind the way things "ought" to be. You hold a magnifying glass over every little imperfection like a teenager looking at a pimple in a mirror. And pretty soon you have a long list of how bad your life is and you're angry at God for doing it all to you. Congratulations. You have just turned into a negative person. You are right where the devil wants you to be.
So what can we do about it? Is there a way we can avoid this downward spiral of negativity and dissatisfaction? Glad you asked.
It's not good enough to simply say that we need to avoid focusing on secondary situations. Have you ever tried to not think of something? The harder you try to not think of it, the more you are unable to think of anything else. Our minds abhor a vacuum. Rather, we need to positively focus on something else.
Simply put, we need to keep the main thing the main thing. We need to aim our focus at the primary reason for living as a Christian. And what does Paul say that is?
Keeping God’s commands is what counts. (7:19b)
Here we have spelled out for us the central focus of a life lived for God. It is to keep God's commandments. It is to be pleasing to God by living according to his will for us. That is what really counts. That is the main thing for the Christian. Our challenge is to keep it the main thing. Instead of focusing on all the other situations that are not ideal, we need to focus on living a life fully committed to following Jesus Christ.
No life is ideal. The richest people in the world probably still complain over a wide host of problems they face. Christina Onassis, who had a tax-free income of over one million dollars a week, and who tragically died at age 37 of what many believe was the result of a life of drug abuse, once commented, "Happiness is not based on money and the greatest proof of that is our family!"
All of us are challenged in one way or another. No life is perfect and some of us experience serious difficulties from time to time. The measure of a person is not the absence of adversity. It is how he or she responds to adversity. And the only way we will respond properly is to have the proper perspective of our lives. Having a better situation will not necessarily mean that our lives will count for anything. It will not necessarily mean we will be any more happy or satisfied. As we have said many times before, the greatest things in life are not things.
Make Jesus the center of your life. I'm not talking about giving lip service here. I'm not talking about having a warm feeling in your heart for the Lord. I'm talking about actually living for him. I'm talking about abandoning our excuses, taking stock of how we are living, and changing whatever needs to be changed in our lives that does not please God. I'm talking about keeping God's commands–– the very thing that Paul said is what really counts. Does God really counts in your life? How do you know? You know by whether you are willing to do what he wants.
When you and I really begin to live out what we say we believe, then and only then do we begin to experience the peace and contentment that we desperately need and desire. For the first time in a long time, we can truly relax. We can breathe a sigh of relief in the knowledge that it all doesn't depend on what we can bring to the table. God is not impressed by what we have and his work in our lives is not hindered by what we do not have. In fact, we may very well be in the exact situation that God wants us in.
Sometimes we forget that God is sovereign. Remember that God called you. And when he called you, he knew everything about you–– not just about your past, but also about your future. He knew all about the circumstances of your life. And he not only called you, but he desires for you to serve him in the midst of your unique circumstances.
Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is the rule I lay down in all the churches. (7:17)
Each one should remain in the situation which he was in when God called him. (7:20)
Brothers, each man, as responsible to God, should remain in the situation God called him to. (7:24)
It is clear from these passages that God has a plan for your life that includes using the situations of your life for his glory. You don't need to change those situations in order to be used of God. You need to ask yourself how you need to be obedient in the midst of those circumstances. Remember that God called you and that he knows what he's doing. And you also need to remember that God has the power to change anything in your life he desires to change. Until he does, why not trust him?
God is calling us to bloom where we are planted. God is aware of our situation. Our challenge is to be God's man or God's woman, living as a Christian ought to live, responding as a Christian ought to respond, as we deal with what has been dealt to us.
Two things will happen. The first is that our own feeling about life will change. We will begin to see how many gifts we have been given at how much we have for which to be thankful. The mountains will become molehills once again and we will simply step over them or walk around them. Our level of peace will increase and pessimism will be replaced by optimism and hope. In short, God will do something in our hearts. We will become better people–– people of joy.
The second thing that will happen is that others will notice the difference. They will see the difference that God makes in a person who is committed to living their lives by the principles of his word. As we face the common difficulties of the majority of people on planet Earth, people will come to understand that following Jesus is not pie in the sky in the sweet by and by, but a practical faith that deals with life as it is. In short, we will be a living testimony of the power of the grace of God.
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