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<v SPEAKER_01>This is the Love One Another podcast from Beach Point Church.

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<v SPEAKER_01>Together we're exploring the first letter to the Corinthians with the hope that we will be formed by the way of the cross and the love of the one who bore it.

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<v SPEAKER_01>Admitting, as this letter says, that we are nothing without love.

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<v SPEAKER_01>Love, empowered by the Spirit through the work of Jesus, is an unstoppable force.

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<v SPEAKER_01>It invites each of us to join God in the work of redeeming all things back to God.

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<v SPEAKER_01>With that in mind, let's open our hearts to God's word today.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Today's reading is 1 Corinthians 4, verses 1 through 7.

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<v SPEAKER_00>This, then, is how you ought to regard us, as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.

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<v SPEAKER_00>I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Indeed, I do not even judge myself.

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<v SPEAKER_00>My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent.

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<v SPEAKER_00>It is the Lord who judges me.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Wait until the Lord comes.

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<v SPEAKER_00>He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness, and will expose the motives of the heart.

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<v SPEAKER_00>At that time, each will receive their praise from God.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Now, brothers and sisters, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Then you will not be puffed up in being a follower of one of us over against the other.

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<v SPEAKER_00>For who makes you different from anyone else?

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<v SPEAKER_00>What do you have that you did not receive?

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<v SPEAKER_00>And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?

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<v SPEAKER_00>We love status.

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<v SPEAKER_00>We love the status from our work, the status from our kids' successes, the status from our grades and our accomplishments.

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<v SPEAKER_00>We love when we are recognized for the status we have earned, or even the status we aren't sure we deserve.

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<v SPEAKER_00>The Apostle Paul focused heavily on status throughout the first four chapters of his letter to the Corinthian church.

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<v SPEAKER_00>The status of Jesus, the status of church leaders, the status of Paul and Apollos.

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<v SPEAKER_00>And that focus established one major theme for the divided church in Corinth.

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<v SPEAKER_00>We all share the same status.

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<v SPEAKER_00>If you are Bill Stafiri or if you are a quote unquote lowly nursery volunteer like Angela Tended.

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<v SPEAKER_00>You have the same status as a faithful steward of God's mysteries, a faithful servant of Jesus Christ.

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<v SPEAKER_00>There's no need to be puffed up or seek to be different from anyone else.

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<v SPEAKER_00>There's only the need to live up faithfully to the trust that has been placed in you by God and by his son Jesus.

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<v SPEAKER_00>The Corinthians were a divided church filled with people trying to puff themselves and stand out in all sorts of ways.

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<v SPEAKER_00>And Paul sought to remind them in his first real argument of this letter that the only status that matters is your status as a servant of Jesus.

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<v SPEAKER_00>We may not be facing the sort of conflict and division the Corinthians were facing 2,000 years ago, but we certainly face our own share of these problems.

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<v SPEAKER_00>We want to puff ourselves up either in our community here or in our appearance to the world on social media.

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<v SPEAKER_00>We want to be different from anyone else as we pursue achievements and successes that set us apart.

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<v SPEAKER_00>But the only status that matters is our status as faithful stewards of God's mysteries.

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<v SPEAKER_00>God has revealed to each of us the mystery of his gospel.

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<v SPEAKER_00>The good news that we have access to the kingdom of God through Jesus' life, death, and resurrection.

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<v SPEAKER_00>The challenge for us is to be faithful stewards of that mystery, of that gospel.

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<v SPEAKER_00>We aren't called to be faithful stewards to earn something from God.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Paul will address similar concerns throughout his writings.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Instead, we are called to be faithful stewards because we have been entrusted with something from God.

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<v SPEAKER_00>We have been entrusted with a beautiful announcement that there is more to this life than meets the eye.

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<v SPEAKER_00>A beautiful announcement that the kingdom of God has drawn near to us here on earth.

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<v SPEAKER_00>A beautiful announcement that there is hope for everyone.

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<v SPEAKER_00>It doesn't matter how lowly they appear in the eyes of the world.

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<v SPEAKER_00>So just as the Corinthians were called to regard Paul and Apollos and each other as servants of Christ, and as those entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed, so we are called to regard one another in the same way.

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<v SPEAKER_00>Let's take a moment to respond to our reading today.

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<v SPEAKER_00>In a culture like ours, where success, image, and accomplishments often define a person's worth, how does Paul's teaching challenge the way we view status?

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<v SPEAKER_00>Where in your own life do you feel the temptation to be puffed up or to stand out of?

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<v SPEAKER_00>And how can you redirect that desire toward being a faithful steward of God's mysteries?

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<v SPEAKER_01>And how could you be faithful to share with him?com slash messages or on the Beach Point Church app.

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<v SPEAKER_01>May you carry the love of God into every encounter you have today.