← Archive1 CorinthiansCross-Shaped Living in a Corinthian World (1 Corinthians 6:9-20)DateFebruary 1, 2026Speaker—Text1 Corinthians 6:9–20Passages in this sermon1 Corinthians 63:31TranscriptClick any line to jump there.0:00today all over the world we are gathering in large groups and small in different places and different languages in buildings and schools empty spaces and open fields in our homes and on our phones some come together in freedom while others have to meet in secret0:28some will sing the old hymns while others are singing something new we'll all learn different things from the same bible and worship the same god in different ways we are the church the body of christ different pieces molded together by the hand of god0:55today all over the world we are gathering as one welcome to this local church we call bethel and we gather because of one reason pastor tony already1:13said it like we're we're going to magnify jesus name today and all that we pray in the way that we sing in the way that we preach so we gather because of the gospel jesus in our place his righteousness becomes your righteousness1:43his death took the wrath of god that was intended for you because of your sin and his death on the gospel death death on the cross washes you and sanctifies you and justifies you by faith we are safe this is why we gather so my name is josh today i get to bring the word if you are new here or new ish if you're watching online we are delighted that god has brought you to this gathering because we know that we're two or more gathered in his name he will be also2:06also if you have your bibles with you join me in the book of first corinthians and as you do i want you to think about this list because i want you to put a title on this list that i'm about to read what title would you put up on that list2:36some of you might be thinking okay i that's the fbi's ten most wanted list some of you might say well no that's the true crime podcast i listened to last week or that's the most recent documentary that i have read2:53but what if i told you that was not a fbi list at all that's not a crime rap sheet that's a church membership role3:11that's the role of the church at corinth we're going to see in first corinthians 6 verses 9 through following that paul begins to list out the kinds of people who filled the pews in the church at corinth3:37these were the backgrounds can you imagine the preacher getting up and saying adulterer are you here today here swindler here thief yes sir here verbally abusive here this4:06this was the church these were the backgrounds these were the stories these were the sins these were the scars sitting in the room and these were the people that god chose to display the transforming power of the gospel through so i don't know where you have come from this week but if you say well pastor like4:35like i'm i'm on that list just know there is deep transformative hope for you if you would say here to anything on that list god has chosen to show his power through jesus christ in your life by faith if you receive him as lord and savior and the truth is we still live in a corinthian world our world is not much different than what we will read shortly5:04morally confused sexually broken spiritually distracted and deeply self-centered and i know what we think we hear about this world and we say god surely surely you took your church out of corinth that's the answer take your people out of the world5:31and yet what the word tells us is no god wants to take corinth out of the people not his church out of the city and this is where we're going to land today today's message is cross-shaped living in a corinthian world cross-shaped living in a corinthian world god does not send moralism to his people that are broken he sends a cross5:55and that's the same good news that you and i need this very day and if you think i'm making this up let's just read together this is exactly what paul says beginning in verse 9 of 1 corinthians chapter 66:13he says don't you know that the unrighteous will not inherit god's kingdom do not be deceived no sexually immoral person or idolater or adulterer nor males who have sex with males thieves greedy people drunkards verbally abusive or swindlers will inherit god's kingdom6:34and then he says and some of you were that way but you were washed you were sanctified you were justified in the name of the lord jesus christ by the spirit of god7:02everything is permissible for me but not everything is beneficial everything is permissible for me but i will not be mastered by anything food is for the stomach stomach for food god will do away with both of them however the body is not for sexual immorality but for the lord and the lord for the body god raised up the lord and will raise us up by his power7:31don't you know that your bodies are part of christ's body so should i take part of christ's body and make it part of a prostitute absolutely not don't you know that anyone joined to a prostitute is one body with her for scripture says the two will become one flesh for anyone joined to the lord is one spirit with him flee sexual immorality8:01every other sin a person commits is outside the body but the person who is sexually immoral sins against his own body don't you know that your body is a temple of the holy spirit who is in you whom you have from god you are not your own for you are bought at a price so glorify god in your body let's pray8:27father may the words of our mouth may the meditations of our heart our body our soul our mind our strength may we love you with all that we are today8:49and lord we confess we live in a world that is not far from the world we have read morally confused spiritually distracted lord today would you take away the distractions and the confusion away9:15and may we drink deeply from the well of jesus christ this living water that satisfies the longings and the thirst of our soul lord this is my prayer i pray in jesus holy name amen corinthian living but a cross-shaped future you know sometimes i have to come up with a fancy9:45intro to catch your attention but today all i had to do is read scripture and it got really quiet really quick let's begin where paul starts he says don't you know that the unrighteous unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom you see corinth was a city10:13that celebrated excess actually there was a slogan to be corinthian meant to be an hedonist eat drink to marry for tomorrow you die it was a city and a culture where sexual freedom self-expression autonomy social status financial ambition personal pleasure what we're not just tolerated they were exalted sound familiar we we still live in that world so to live like corinth was normal10:39to live like christ was strange and paul says if you are in christ you should have cross-shaped living even in the midst of corinthians and to that world the apostle paul speaks with gospel urgency and he begins to address specific sins that the church is dealing with in chapter 5 which we have11:09glossed over chapter 5 there's sexually immoral behavior in the church this is not the church pointing its fingers to the world and saying how dare you paul is saying hey look across the aisle how dare we like god's people don't do things like this and he begins to list very specific sins that they are dealing with in current sexual immorality chapter 5 chapter 611:34brothers are suing each other frivolous lawsuits to one up to find financial gain and paul says this is not how we live and to you who aren't sexually immoral and to you who aren't suing then he begins to list even more specific sins he gets personal and this is where the list comes from it's not random paul is listing sins that he knows that the church is struggling with in corinth now it's not12:03exhaustive either there are much more transgressions that he could choose but paul is looking at the church and saying i know who you are i know your struggle these were temptations pressing this young church from every side this list was actually the the sins that they were trying to escape12:29so let me pause here if you are being tempted right now in your life and you're thinking okay i'm about to go back home and greed is at my door verbal abuse is standing by my car sexual immorality is waiting at home for me like this book is your book the corinthians and we we understand the temptation and god12:58is still faithful you are not alone so paul writes this he says do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of god this is not mild language and it's not therapeutic spirituality paul doesn't say well if you if you just pray a couple prayers and go home everything13:22will be better he doesn't say well if you just give in the offering plate then god will excuse your greed he will excuse your perversion and you will be seen as a moral person no paul knows that we need something deeper in our lives so so he doesn't mince words paul is saying that these sins your sin13:47my sin when we embrace our skin our sin when we excuse our sin embracing your sin and refusing the gospel leads to hell paul is saying that corinthian living leads to hell if you do not repent and you might say well pastor that's not me because my sins aren't listed here14:14well your sins are listed somewhere in the bible the list is not the point it's the root that causes the sins and we all have sins in our life that we want to excuse that we want to dismiss and paul is reminding us today the bible is actually reminding us josh if you are holding fast to your sin and rejecting jesus christ as your righteousness14:41it will lead you to eternal punishment in a place that is called hell away from god's love and if this wakes you up and you say this that's startling i don't want to go there that's the point paul is saying do not excuse and dismiss your sin corinthian living leads to judgment15:05and for those of us will say well that's not i am way above that i am not that bad i only cheated on my ela exam this week everyone's doing it it's only chat gpt15:33it's not cheating it's still intelligence that's not my intelligence it's artificial but it doesn't count we all find ways to whitewash our sins and then paul looks at us and he says okay church let's listen to this he says but you were this person look right here in in verse 11 he says and some of you15:57this is the language of experience grace this is the language of experience grace paul says there's an inseparable connection between the experience of grace and a life that displays its transforming power he says some of you in this room have experienced god's grace and you are no longer participants in this list you're participants of god's grace he says16:22and some of you used to be this way used to be praise god for the word used to praise god for that word some of you used to be like this the gospel changes lives truly he says if you identify with the sin list you don't have to stay there16:49christ frees you from sin's dominion if you're a swindler you don't have to swindle anymore if you're a cheater you don't have to cheat if you're a liar you don't have to to lie if you're immoral you don't have to live that life you that could be a used to with the power of jesus christ17:16in church we are no better than the church of corinth there's a lot of used to's in this room and we can look back at our life and we can say christ has radically changed me and we should not look at this list with chest puffed out and say we would never do that you know how a christian reads this sin list we read it with tears in our eyes and we say but for the grace of god there i go also17:45but i was a used to i used to do that how paul gives very specific language he says you used to be like this because you were washed in christ this is what jesus does for us he washes your sins clean and and the more i realize that i need washing the more thankful i become of the18:11blood of jesus christ i don't know about you but i'm dirty and i am thankful that god has washed me through the blood of christ and this is not just assembly line no this is what christ says they belong together you are washed in christ you are sanctified in christ that means set apart18:37he has called you to himself he has done something new and beautiful in your life set apart means he's saying to you tim you are mine you're not corinthian anymore you're christian you live in corinth but you have no right to live in the list you have a right to live in the kingdom used to you are washed you are sanctified and you are justified because on our own we will never be made right before a holy god and in christ by faith his19:07righteousness becomes your own that's justification he gives you what you do not deserve because christ died in your place cross-shaped living changes who you are you see the corinthians stand vindicated by god he's done something decisive in them and for them and he does the same for you19:33and then the word begins to look at the heart of the matter because in the corinthian lifestyle they had several mantras they they were playing games with sin specifically we know most scholars would agree scholars don't agree on everything but when they do agree on some things i count that as agreement most scholars would agree that there are three maxims in this passage that the church is using to20:04excuse sin they are saying well i'm saved by grace through faith pastor you told me that all my sins are washed you told me that i have been set aside for the purposes of god you told me that i have imputed righteousness that i am forever made righteousness righteousness righteous through the blood of jesus christ and all that is true so now you are saying that i can sin and everything is permissible20:32right that's what the church at corinth was saying paul's going to address that secondly they're saying well the body for food food for body i i doesn't matter what i eat or what i do god doesn't care because i'm gonna die he's gonna resurrect me i'm gonna get a new body i can eat what i want when i want god doesn't care it's my body i'll do what i want and then the third thing20:59that they say in corinth is well every sin is external so it's not necessarily corrupting my soul and paul begins to dismantle sinful excuses and as we do that church here's the point paul is saying to you and i do not play games with your sin do not play games with your sin so he says right here he says21:24stop playing games most interpreters agree that these were theological sound bites repackaged reasoning to excuse sin one scholar said this that there is a corinthian creed that can be summarized like this free from law oh happy condition i can sin as i please and still have remission21:50let me say that again free from the law oh happy condition i can sin as i please and still have remission of sin and the particular lure here is not the point i read that sin list to shock you because that's that's the the goal of the scripture but the particular sin is not the point satan uses different22:19lures to cause us to stumble but satan doesn't care what he lures you in with the lure the temptation is not the point of your life satan wants you to swallow the hook he doesn't care what you he uses some of you are bread people all he has to do is throw bread in the water and you eat it some of you are artificial worm people you like the the wiggly worm in the water22:49some of you are hot dog people he just has to chop up a hot dog and that's that's your sin of choice some of you are bottom feeders and you like liver or rancid meat you're like a catfish of the sinful world but don't get lost in the temptation the point is this in our lives satan wants you to swallow the hook23:15and when you do it leads to a downward spiral of destruction this is exactly what the word is telling us today and in our modern sound bites echo these corinthian slogans don't they we might not say anymore in verse 12 everything is permissible we might not say in verse 13 food is for the stomach23:44and stomach for food we might not say in verse 18 every other sin i commit is outside the body but we say things like this we say things to ourselves and in our world well if i'm not hurting anyone then it's not sin we say things like this well i can love who i want to love and god understands we can say things like this it's my body my choice24:13we can say like things like this will follow your heart be true to yourself we we hear things left and right if it feels right it is right we hear things in corinth like consenting adults can do whatever they want when they want or i'll hear sometimes people say well god just wants me to be happy24:40and when we say those things either internally or even orally we champion the phrases of our world that leads to destruction because satan wants you to think to thine own self be true satan wants you to think that your heart will only lead you to healthy places25:09satan wants you to think that your appetites are always healthy until you start turning 40 and you start taking blood work every time you go to the doctor and then you realize your diet needs to change because your appetites leading you to places that you don't want to be church you still live in corinth but you are no longer of corinth25:37don't play games with your sin to minimize the seriousness of righteousness is to trifle with the holiness of god and invite the discipline of divine love to your life and we know this is what sin does sin reshapes the questions we ask of god26:03you see the corinthians begin to ask to the lord okay we're saved so what can we get away with right everything is permissible but that's not what a cross-shaped life should ask the world says what can i get away with a cross-shaped life should ask what is beneficial to the purposes of christ26:28a worldly life ask well what is permissible what do i have to do a cross-shaped life ask what honors christ a corinthian life ask well my appetites rule me it's not my fault a cross-shaped life a cross-shaped life ask how can i glorify god with my body corinthian life ask26:56or says that sexuality is casual and insignificant a cross-shaped life confesses that sexuality is sacred beautiful and designed by god to flourish within covenant marriage you say well pastor why why does god even give us this passage27:26well it's for this reason because this week in your life at some point temptation will whisper maybe not right now because we're together we're banded and locked arms we're singing songs of the gospel and satan knows like this is not the place for him and i'm thankful for that i'm thankful that demons don't want any part of what we are doing here because the word is open27:52and our hearts are full with gospel import but maybe when you're alone later this week satan's going to get in your ear and say don't don't you remember who you are don't you know what you came from don't you know what you still struggle with and when temptation whispers do not ask well i can get away with it i'll excuse it28:20no we should ask god will this glorify you will this glorify you cross-shaped living means choosing holiness not because we fear judgment but because we cherish redemption we cherish redemption and then paul wraps all of this up so he goes through and he says everything is permissible but no28:50ask what is beneficial food for the stomach stomach for food and then in verse 20 i feel like he exhales and he says church i need you to know this and let me just speak to our young adults sometimes when we speak about sexual purity we we lose the four why is that important it's important because of verse 2029:19because you are bought with a price adults why is righteousness important why should we flee sin why does this matter because you were bought with a price29:45so i don't want you to leave today thinking okay i need to do this and not do this pastor said so i'm going to be a moral person so i'm going to be a moral person check pastor said i can't be an idolater and yes i did say that you cannot be an idolater30:13so i'm going to be a non-idolater this week pastor said i shouldn't be a thief so i'm going to go home and i'm not going to steal that's not the point of this passage paul is saying we don't behave like this as cross-shaped people because of verse 20.30:39because you were bought with a price the four of this passage shows us the gospel reason and when paul says four that that's the motivation and then he uses this word price and the corinthians would have known their eyes would have lit up they said oh we know this word because at this time corinth was one of the human trafficking31:06the human trafficking capitals of the world corinth was the city where people were bought and sold when wars were lost if you lost a war you were sold into slavery that was the price of losing the war and they were bartered like commodities in corinth and every now and then in rare moments31:35a wealthy patron would come to corinth and they would pay a price for these slaves who were sold back and forth in human trafficking and they would pay a price and they would say this to that person i have bought your ransom you are free go you're free you're no longer a slave32:04go home to your family you are released from your chains and that's exactly what christ does for us redemption means rescue purchase means liberation and paul doesn't simply borrow cultural imagery he personalizes it here he's not simply saying well32:34jesus paid a price for a person in corinth at some point no paul is looking at us even today and saying he's saying don't you understand jesus paid your price your price he did not purchase only your soul he purchased you body heart soul mind and strength why do we glorify32:57god in our bodies because he purchased your body why does your mouth matter because jesus purchased that and listen the price wasn't cheap jesus is not a thrifter he didn't buy your redemption with coupons that's just how my mind thinks right some of us think that that we are on the clearance aisle and jesus bought that no the price33:25that jesus gave for you was the highest price heaven could afford the very blood of his on begotten son that's the price for our redemption the cross declares your worth because he chose to make you his treasure can you imagine that can you imagine living in corinth33:56and you heard that your son or your daughter had been sold into slavery they ran away they went to a city they shouldn't gone to there was a war they they fought in the war they they were doing they thought they were doing the right thing they got sold into slavery you see them and the owner says this is the price pay it or you will never see them again what would a father or a mother do they would sell everything that they have34:27home materials they would give everything that they could have to reclaim that child would they not that is exactly what god the heavenly father did for you when he sent jesus christ paul says for you were bought at a price church you are not cheap34:59he paid your redemption and as we talk about faith your sin has an eternal consequence your sin why do we start with sin because your sin has an eternal price and jesus paid your price in full35:25when's the last time you contemplated the depth of your ransom through the blood of jesus christ why do we strive for righteousness and not sin because if jesus did that for me why would i ever want to go back if he liberated us why would we put the shackles back on if he washed us why would we become dirty again35:50if he sanctified us why would we get mired in our transgression yet again if he made us right why would we want to go wrong this is the price of your redemption so how do we live in light of god's glorious ransom price for us36:16well if you're a christian and this is the point of current paul is saying to you and i our lives should be daily thank you notes to god we should wake up every day saying god i'm going to live in light of the glory of the gospel i can't repay you for the price that sealed my redemption but i'm going to live like i'm valuable i'm gonna live not i'm not on the clearance aisle i'm gonna live like you gave your very own son for me36:46because i'm worth it what would happen if you woke up every day and said god i want to live as if i'm worthy of the call of the gospel of jesus christ on my soul live in light of his glory we should not ask what can i get away with but how can i honor the one who gave everything for me37:15secondly some of us today need to quit making corinthian excuses you've walked in here and i talk about sin and you say well it's it's really not that big of a deal everything is permissible yet and not everything is beneficial food for the body body for food sin is external my soul is incorruptible37:41and paul would say to you and to i today do not play games with your sin listen to the conviction the holy spirit weep cry out to god for repentance because every sin in our life has eternal consequences do not invite the divine judgment of god upon your soul come to the altar and say god i'm sorry that i'm a sinner38:09help me see my sin as you see my sin i i repent in dust and ashes do not make corinthian excuses and then lastly i think there are some of us that when i read that sin list your heart sank because right now you're on that list38:38you're living in sexual immorality you're the thief you're the idolater you're the one stuck in lust and you you you walk in despair and shame because you feel like there's no way out there is a way his name is jesus christ it was to these people39:10that god chose to display his glory in christ there's hope for the sinner because the bible says while we were still sinners christ jesus died and the gospel is not clean yourself up come to jesus the gospel is idolater come to jesus and he will wash you come to jesus and he will sanctify you39:39and i have to believe that there are some in our midst today that you've never come to christ because you feel like you are not washed enough and the gospel is this no no no come to christ he will wash you it's okay there are some of you who have never come to christ by faith because you feel like you will never40:08measure up and the gospel is coming to christ because you are valuable some of you will never repent of your sins or have never because you hear satan whispering in your ear your mind is already thinking about how you're going to sin when you go home you can never be a christian and the gospel has come to christ oh weary sinner there's room for you40:34he will wash you he will sanctify you he will justify you because for you were bought with a price so therefore glorify god in the way that we live and in a moment will our worship would it not be a41:03thank you cry to a god who loves us if you have never given your life to christ by faith would you repent of your sins today repentance isn't about faith to say god i see my sin as you see it i'm sorry forgive me i will follow christ no matter the cost i believe you sent him to redeem me to wash me to41:29cleanse me i believe he died on the cross i believe he rose again and i don't know how all this works but i trust what you say is true whoever calls upon the name of the lord will be saved so jesus today for the very first time i call upon the name of the lord of course your sins can be washed of course you can be redeemed of course you can be set apart41:59that is why jesus christ died and may you respond to the gospel in a glorious way this morning let's go to christ in prayer father← Previous in 1 Corinthians1 Corinthians – Grow Up in Christ (1 Cor 3:1-4)Next in 1 Corinthians →1 Corinthians – Sex, Singleness, and the Glory of God (1 Corinthians 7:1-10)More sermons on 1 Corinthians →
