1 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12

2 Then Paul says a most interesting thing.

3 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12 Does Paul’s statement cause a problem? Why in the world would Paul say that “all things”, “all” signifying things that could potentially be identified by the Law as sinful, could possibly be “lawful” for him?

4 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12 The Law had only one purpose – to condemn every sinner to absolute hopelessness and make them acutely aware of ominous and eternal punishment. Once the Law has completed its work of conviction of sin, it has no more use for that person. A good example of this principle even in the Old Testament was when David, running from Saul, ate the shewbread that was reserved only for the priests by the Law.

5 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath, and His disciples became hungry and began to pick the heads of grain and eat. But when the Pharisees saw this, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples do what is not lawful to do on a Sabbath.” But He said to them, “Have you not read what David did when he became hungry, he and his companions, how he entered the house of God, and they ate the consecrated bread, which was not lawful for him to eat nor for those with him, but for the priests alone? Or have you not read in the Law, that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple break the Sabbath and are innocent? But I say to you that something greater than the temple is here. But if you had known what this means, ‘I desire compassion, and not a sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent. Mat 12:1–7

6 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12 Another thing to remember is that the Law provided nothing in the way of a solution to all who have broken the Law, stating only that if you broke the Law, you were condemned.

7 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12 “Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.” Rom 3:19-20

8 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12 By these scriptures we have seen that the only thing that the Law does is to identify sin and condemn those who break the Law. So how can Paul say that everything is lawful for him if some things are identified as “sin”?

9 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12 “When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.” Col 2:13-14

10 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12 “for the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, there also is no violation.” Rom 4:15 That is, once the Law has done its work in convincing us of our sin and the condemnation that is due, once we have come to see God’s loving provision for our sin in the Person of Jesus, God nails the Law to Jesus’ Cross, and takes the Law out of our lives, which leaves us with nothing to condemn us! But there remains one more element to be considered in this interesting mix.

11 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12 “for the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, there also is no violation.” Rom 4:15 Having dealt with the matter of the Law in any relationship to Paul, he goes on to say that while he is not under any law because of Jesus, he does say that he will NOT allow himself to be “mastered by anything”. We need to see what he is talking about. He speaks of the same thing in other places.

12 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12 “For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be! Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?” Rom 6:14-16 All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:12

13 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12 “For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be! Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?” Rom 6:14-16 All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:12 Things that are no longer illegal because the Law was nailed to Jesus’ cross are not profitable simply because they are not illegal any longer. If they are not dependent upon Jesus in grace and faith, they are still unprofitable, but there is more we need to see.

14 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12 “For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be! Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?” Rom 6:14-16 All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:12 This is actually the same argument as to why those who are born again and therefore no longer under the Law, are not free to continue in sin because they are not under the Law. They are freed, by Jesus’ life, to live, but not to sin.

15 “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? …Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:1,7-12 “For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be! Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?” Rom 6:14-16 All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.” 1Cor 6:12 You are the slave of anything that has mastery over you. But we don’t think that things in our lives master us, do we! We believe we are entirely in control of our lives, our desire, our future and our potential. Are we? In this church we teach that we are in control of only one thing. What is that? CHOICE!

16 So let’s learn some things about “being mastered” so that we can figure out whether or not we are. Do you believe that you are “mastered” by anything right now? If yes, why and how, and if not, why not? Let’s chat a little about it and all get on the same page.

17 So are fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, as we have read in our 1Cor 6 text, “MASTERED”? Are they “slaves” to what they practice? Let’s all agree on this one point: If we are not constantly free and in the practice of living in harmony with everything God says and desires, it IS because we are “mastered” by something other than God or we would obey God constantly.

18 These elements of mastery are the WORST kind of slavery because the victims believe they are serving themselves while they feed themselves to sin and death. That is more than obvious by the most casual glance over the world, isn’t it? Let’s look a little deeper into this. What IS mastery?

19 This is the word “ ἐ ξουσιάζω” which means “to dominate, to have the right or the freedom to exercise authority over, the ability to do as one pleases, the power to decide.” So in our context, Paul says that he will not allow ANYTHING to dominate him, have the power to exercise authority over him, do whatever it wants to him, or make decisions for his life. Are we giving that power over our lives to anything other than our free will? What kinds of things do we yield our choices to as our master? We said we have choice, but if we do not choose what God wants, we are clearly serving another master. Can you identify your many masters that dominate you, or exercise authority over you? What would you say was your most powerful master?

20 FEELINGS FEARS INDEPENDENT REASON SELF-CONFIDENCE SENSE OF JUSTICE IDEA OF PLEASURE SENSE OF WORTH RETALIATION OPPORTUNITY ILLUSION OF CONTROL CONTEMPT FOR REJECTION

21 FEELINGS FEARS INDEPENDENT REASON SELF-CONFIDENCE SENSE OF JUSTICE IDEA OF PLEASURE SENSE OF WORTH RETALIATION OPPORTUNITY ILLUSION OF CONTROL CONTEMPT FOR REJECTION Did you see any familiar MASTERS in our list or are there any you would like to add?

22 God did not create us to be independent masters, He created us to be responders to our Master in faith. When we believe the lie that we can be our own master, we only open ourselves up to being the slaves of every master but Jesus, and that more than explains our struggles with “ ἐ ξουσιάζω”. It also more than identifies the only solution to the problem. If we choose to refuse to be subjected to the only loving Master, since we are not masters ourselves, the only alternative is becoming the abject slaves of every other cruel and destructive master. If you don’t take shelter in God’s providence, you make yourself a willing target for all forms of destruction. It is like asking, “Which one of my stupid independent choices do you think would be my best course of action?”