In our study of 1 Corinthians chapter nine, we will look at this question and find its answer based on the life and words of the apostle Paul. This may not be the proper religious question to ask but, if we are honest with ourselves, at some point we have all asked ourselves the question.
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Am I not a free man? Am I not an emissary of the Messiah? Haven't I seen Yeshua our Lord? And aren't you yourselves the result of my work for the Lord? Even if to others I am not an emissary, at least I am to you; for you are living proof that I am the Lord's emissary.
Paul begins this section of his letter with some questions and a very obvious answer. Throughout Paul's ministry, there were those who denied his apostleship and here he reminds the readers about the qualifications for being called an apostle. He first asks the question of whether he physically saw Jesus or not and the obvious answer is yes as there were witnesses to his experience on the road to Damascus. He also points out the fact that the readers of this letter are the fruit from his ministry as an apostle. There are many today who give themselves the title of apostle and there are many schools who will sell you a supposed degree to be called an apostle but they have no basis in Scripture. An apostle is one who had Jesus physically appear to them and commission them for His work. There is evidence of this commission in the fruit of that ministry.
That is my defense when people put me under examination. Don't we have the right to be given food and drink? Don't we have the right to take along with us a believing wife, as do the other emissaries, also the Lord's brothers and Kefa? Or are Bar-Nabba and I the only ones required to go on working for our living?
Now that Paul has established the fact that he was an apostle, he turns to the rights that the title gives him. He asks whether he does not have the right to support as he works for the Lord and to even take a wife with him as the others did. The obvious answer is that Paul deserved these things as Jesus taught that a worker deserves his wages. As we see, Paul did not demand this right but instead worked as a tentmaker so that he did not need the support of the church. There are many, today, that serve the Lord for what they get out of it either directly from the congregations or indirectly by peddling their books, tapes, etc. to the churches. They are free to do that just as we saw, in chapter 8, that the people were free to eat the meat.
Did you ever hear of a soldier paying his own expenses? or of a farmer planting a vineyard without eating its grapes? Who shepherds a flock without drinking some of the milk? What I am saying is not based merely on human authority,
Paul uses basic human experiences to show how abnormal it would be to work without being paid. We must admit that most of us would not work full time without receiving a paycheck.
because the Torah says the same thing - for in the Torah of Moshe it is written, "You are not to put a muzzle on an ox when it is treading out the grain."i If God is concerned about cattle, all the more does he say this for our sakes. Yes, it was written for us, meaning that he who plows and he who threshes should work expecting to get a share of the crop.
Paul backs up the human experiences with the Law as he quotes from Deuteronomy 25. It may seem like Paul is justifying getting paid to do his ministry work but he is not. He is, in fact, saying that those who serve the Lord and receive a paycheck do what is right morally and legally.
If we have sown spiritual seed among you, is it too much if we reap a material harvest from you? If others are sharing in this right to be supported by you, don't we have a greater claim to it? But we don't make use of this right. Rather, we put up with all kinds of things so as not to impede in any way the Good News about the Messiah.
Paul uses logic to show the Corinthian believers that he and his team deserved financial support from the church but goes on to say they did not want that support. We see that the reason that Paul and his team did not take money from the churches was that they wanted the money to be used for other ministry. When he says "hinder the gospel", it is talking about the fact that the "church" only has so much funding and, if they were to demand a paycheck, that money would have to be taken out of some other ministry area such as feeding the widows, etc. Today, there are many "pastors" who are demanding high wages so that they can live in style and they have a right to receive this compensation but they are already receiving their reward for the work that they are doing. Paul was looking forward to his eternal rewards and not focused on the here and now. Those that are receiving their rewards here are also hindering the gospel because their wages could be used to serve others and bring them to faith in Jesus Christ.
Don't you know that those who work in the Temple get their food from the Temple, and those who serve at the altar get a share of the sacrifices offered there? In the same way, the Lord directed that those who proclaim the Good News should get their living from the Good News.
Paul says again that the biblical pattern is for God's servants to be taken care of by God through the offerings at the temple.
But I have not made use of any of these rights. Nor am I writing now to secure them for myself, for I would rather die than be deprived of my ground for boasting! For I can't boast merely because I proclaim the Good News - this I do from inner compulsion: woe is me if I don't proclaim the Good News!
We see Paul's heart in the fact that he does not preach for personal gain but because of what Jesus Christ did for him. He could brag about how he did not take money from the church for his ministry but he does not because he realizes that it is a minor thing compared to what Christ has done. He could not have done anything else but preach the gospel. There are many today who view preaching the gospel as a career instead of a calling. Those that hold that view are the ones that will be in it for the earthly rewards and it will be obvious.
For if I do this willingly, I have a reward; but if I do it unwillingly, I still do it, simply because I've been entrusted with a job. So then, what is my reward? Just this: that in proclaiming the Good News I can make it available free of charge, without making use of the rights to which it entitles me.
Paul's greatest joy was to be able to freely preach the gospel. He did not charge a speaking fee or sell books and tapes but instead freely gave what he was given by Jesus Christ. He did not have to take up a "love offering" or worry about stepping on people's toes as he often worked to support himself.
For although I am a free man, not bound to do anyone's bidding, I have made myself a slave to all in order to win as many people as possible.
Paul demonstrates his humility in the fact that he does not demand his rights as an apostle but instead serves all men. The "make myself a slave" is not simply talking about serving but instead is speaking of an attitude. Paul considered everyone else to be better than himself (that is the attitude of a slave). The purpose of this attitude was to win others to Christ and that should be our purpose in life as well.
That is, with Jews, what I did was put myself in the position of a Jew, in order to win Jews. With people in subjection to a legalistic perversion of the Torah, I put myself in the position of someone under such legalism, in order to win those under this legalism, even though I myself am not in subjection to a legalistic perversion of the Torah. With those who live outside the framework of Torah, I put myself in the position of someone outside the Torah in order to win those outside the Torah - although I myself am not outside the framework of God's Torah but within the framework of Torah as upheld by the Messiah. With the "weak" I became "weak," in order to win the "weak." With all kinds of people I have become all kinds of things, so that in all kinds of circumstances I might save at least some of them. But I do it all because of the rewards promised by the Good News, so that I may share in them along with the others who come to trust.
Paul did not walk around with an air of superiority but instead he met people where they were in their life. He put himself in their shoes in hopes of showing them the freedom that he had in Jesus Christ. What is meant by sharing in the blessings of the gospel? The short answer is that it is a freedom from worry based on the fact that we are Christ's bondslaves.
Don't you know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one wins the prize? So then, run to win! Now every athlete in training submits himself to strict discipline, and he does it just to win a laurel wreath that will soon wither away. But we do it to win a crown that will last forever.
Now, Paul begins to answer the question of what is in it for us. He compares the Christian life and walk to the sport of running. There are many people who train for a very long time to run a marathon. There can be thousands of runners at a race but usually only one man and one woman are the winners. They run for a temporary reward such as a trophy, title, and money but that reward is quickly forgotten and in the last days will mean nothing. As Christians, Paul urges us to treat our walk with Christ with the same urgency. The crown that he speaks of is not salvation but speaks of the judgment of rewards.
Accordingly, I don't run aimlessly but straight for the finish line; I don't shadow-box but try to make every punch count. I treat my body hard and make it my slave so that, after proclaiming the Good News to others, I myself will not be disqualified.
Those that run a race expect a reward when they win and Paul tells us that he is expecting a reward for his service in preaching the gospel. This reward is not salvation (like many people teach) because salvation is by grace (a gift) and, here, Paul tells us that he is working for this reward. He tells them and us that he puts into practice what he preaches so that he will not be disqualified from the race and lose his reward. So, what's in it for us? We do not know what these rewards will be on the last day but we can trust God that they are worth all the things that we go through on this earth.
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