Cornerstone Mission Church, Sunday Sermon
Explore the flickering nature of human faithfulness… I know that some of you love playing golf. Depends on the outcome of the first Annual CMC golf outing in April, perhaps, I will become one too. Who knows? Well, you don’t have to be a golf fan to know something about the disgraced superstar, Tiger Woods. Known for his clean image and integrity, he has made tons of money through endorsements and advertisements. One company called Accenture had built its company image through the image of Tiger Woods, nice guy with integrity and excellence in performance. Their ads assume this about the company, “We know what it takes to be a Tiger. 
Talk to us to see how we can help.” It fits well with the company’s mantra, “High performance. Delivered.”
As you can imagine, the company soon found out that they really didn’t know what it takes to be a Tiger. Beneath the high performance delivered in golf fields, beneath the squeaky clean image of integrity, was the ugly truth of unfaithful husband at home. Accenture was the one of the earliest companies to drop Tiger Woods from their ads.
Tiger Woods, the iconic sports super star’s rise and fall isn’t the unique story. I am afraid that he not only represents the world of golf, but also the world of unfaithfulness, the world that has gone out of control behind the façade of excellence, high performance and control. What’s important in the world is not to produce a perfect product, a perfect life, because that would be too costly and consuming with no means for profitability… The world values the mere appearance of excellence that’s going to guarantee the bottom line profit. The world doesn’t want perfection.
As Christians, if we take our cues from the world on how to live our lives well, we will undoubtedly go after the appearance of high performance and excellence. But, the supremacy of the gospel doesn’t envision mere appearance of excellence. The gospel envisions the perfect and spotless mirror that reflects the full glory of God. The gospel is not after raising compromised people; the supremacy of the gospel envisions uncompromised people who don’t settle for the appearance of excellence, but the perfection of Jesus Christ.
When the vision is the formation of the perfect image of Christ, the only way to realize it is through saying “yes” to Jesus. Instead of asking, “Am I living excellently?” we need to ask, “Do I say “yes” to Jesus?” Only when you say “yes” to Jesus, you are going to see changes. And, those changes are what’s going to make your life count for eternity.
- The illustration of “Yes to Jesus” in Paul’s life
Paul’s life illustrates this “Yes to Jesus.” Do changes equal to inconsistency?
Let me give you the context to better understand what Paul is talking about in this text. Paul was being accused of being fickle, changing plans at whims. Therefore, some accused him unfit to lead with authority.
The plan A laid out in 1 Corinthians 16:2-8 was the itinerary plan was Ephesus-Macedonia-Corinth-Jerusalem. But, here in 2 Corinthians 1, Paul adopted to the plan B, Ephesus-Corinth-Macedonia-Corinth-Judea. But, then the actual itinerary was not the plan A, nor plan B, but Ephesus-Corinth (=the painful visit”) –Ephesus-Troas-Macedonia.
· Plan A: Ephesus-Macedonia-Corinth-Jerusalem (1 Corinthians 16:2-8)
· Plan B: Ephesus-Corinth-Macedonia-Corinth-Judea (2 Corinthians 2:15-16)
· Actual: Ephesus-Corinth (=the painful visit”) –Ephesus-Troas-Macedonia (2 Corinthians 2:1, 2:12-13)
So, he was accused of talking things lightly (2 Corin 1:17), changing his plan arbitrarily and selfishly without regard to his promises or concern for the Corinthians. He was accuse of flip-flopping, saying “Yes” to one thing, but then later saying “no” to it.
Was Paul indeed unfit to lead because he disregarded his own plans, because he took things lightly? Was Paul unfit to lead because of his presumed low performance due to changing his mind? Surely excellence and inconsistence don’t go together!
“Yes” to Jesus = Changes in Paul’s life
To this Paul argues that the fact that he changed his mind about his plans, not once, but twice isn’t because he is flawed in his character, but rather it shows his commitment to Christ; it shows Paul knew how to say, “Yes” to Jesus.
In his plan A, his desire was not just to “make only a passing visit,” but to spend the winter with them, to spend more time with them (1 Corinthians 16:7).
But, he decided not only to visit once, but to visit them twice in order to benefit the Corinthians twice. Paul said “yes” to Jesus for living to benefit the Corinthians. So, there was his plan B.
But, when he went to his initial visit to Corinth, it became an incredibly difficult visit for him. Paul calls the visit “painful visit” in 2 Corinthians 2:1. It was a painful visit because he faced the rebellion against his apostolic authority. And, to revisit them as he planned in plan B, would have meant that he would have to exercise his apostolic authority to rebuke the rebellions and to exercise the church discipline to expel those who rebelled. So, instead of risking another “painful visit” (2:1), Paul decided to return to Ephesus. There in Ephesus, he wrote them a letter; Paul said he wrote it “out of distress and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to grieve [the Corinthians] but to let [them] know the depth of [his] love for [them].” (2:4).
But, some considered Paul as a coward who couldn’t face up his accusers. But, the truth is Paul made the change of plan not because he was afraid of people, but because he was driven by the mercy of Christ. In 1:23 he called on God to be his witness that indeed it was to spare them from God’s judgment that he didn’t return to Corinth. Instead of defending his reputation against those in rebellion by exercising his apostolic authority, Paul sought to win those in rebellion over through his letter rather than through his visit. Paul said “yes” to Jesus and showed the mercy of Christ.
Paul went from plan A to plan B but ended up doing plan C. Paul argues that such changes reflect not a deficiency in his leadership, but his commitment to Christ. Paul was compelled by the gospel of Jesus Christ and instead of selfishly being motivated to promote himself, he was motivated to benefit those he loved.
“Yes” to Jesus… my changes…
Perhaps, some may argue that I am being inconsistent in my leadership as a pastor. Many of you know that I until December and the first week of January I encouraged us to consider the possibility of joining KCUMC. But, then shortly I came out strongly against merging with KCUMC and started advocating for continuing the life of CMC; not only that I’ve also been advocating for replanting our church outside of our current location, to become truly an independent church.
Perhaps, some might wonder if I am I taking things lightly, if I am being inconsistent in my leadership, if I care for myself. I tell you that left to my own natural self I will not be choosing the path to lead us out to become fully independent church. I don’t like taking risk. I don’t like when people don’t like me. I don’t like taking responsibility for which I can be blamed later if things don’t quite work out. Left to my natural tendency, I will avoid risking, concede and appease people so they like me, and I will shrug my shoulders and passed my responsibility to others to make the call.
But, I tell you that God is doing something very unnatural inside of me. He has ignited the fire, the deep passion for the explosive power of the gospel. He has awakened me to the vision of the supremacy of the gospel over cultures and over biological ties. He has awakened me to the vision of equipping you to be accomplish God’s mission; God’s mission to call the lost so they can be found, to give life to death, to give hope to those who have given up, to free up those who are captured, to call those who are lonely to belong.
As Paul says in our text, I want to see our church being built up so that there is not “yes” or “no” but only “yes” to the promises of God, to that which God wants to accomplish through us. Verse 20, Paul says, “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.” It means that God is going to fulfill his promises through the gospel of his Son Jesus Christ.
I want to see our church full of people who are tired of saying “no” to Christ out of fear, out of lazy comfort, out of lack of vision and challenge. I want you to be tired of saying to “no” to the great things God wants to accomplish.
I want to see our church full of people who say “yes” to Christ, who will dare to risk, who will dream big, who will sweat and work to make God’s vision happen.
As I reflect on what God has entrusted me, to take care of you, his sheep, his lambs, I am compelled to lead you to the path, to the direction, that you will not venture out on your own. So, have I changed? You bet I’ve changed. But, I am not satisfied. I want more changes.
So, what’s going on here? And, you are seeing changes taking place as I learn to say “yes” to Christ. And, I believe that when you say “yes” to Christ, you cannot help but want to change and experience change.
Reasons to say “yes” to Jesus
Paul gives three reasons why we need to cultivate lifestyle of saying “yes” to Jesus.
· You stand in Christ. God ordains to stand firm in Christ.
· You are set apart. God anointed you.
· You belong to God. God owns you.
· You have God’s vision for your life. (God put his spirit in your hearts as a deposit guaranteeing what is to come)
Are you in the habit of saying “yes” to Jesus?
Difference between excellence and obedience
· To aim for obedience is to aim for perfection, not for “excellence”…
· Mere excellence allows room for a mixture… not a fixed standard… a mixed standard.
American businesses are in search of excellence, not perfection. Perfect products, perfect service is too costly because it eats into profits. Rather than be perfect, businesses know it’s enough to seem perfect to their customers. By stopping short of perfection, they find a profitable balance between quality and costs.
So, the businesses ask, “How far can we go and still seem perfect? By how far can we stop short?” To find that profitable point of stopping short at the middle ground of excellence.
While in business it’s profitable to seem perfect, in the spiritual realm it’s merely comfortable to seem perfect. It is never profitable.[1]
With excellence we try to cover our disobedient tracks.[2] Satisfied with mere excellence, we stop short of God’s standards. We move nearer our peers only to find distance from God.
Excellence is the result of living out obediently… the goal is to obey, not to perform excellently.
It’s time to step up.
· If it’s important, then you will make it happen no matter what. If it is not happening, it is because it doesn’t matter. Time to repent!
· In order to move forward, you need to own this church as yours. This is such a crucial time, the major crossroad that you need to step up to the challenge. Is this your church? Does it matter what happens to it?
Let’s not ask How far we can go and still be called a Christian? Instead, let’s ask how holy I can be?
[1] Areterburn & Stoeker, Every man’s battle, Colorado Springs, Colorado: WaterBrook Press, 2000, p. 50.
[2] Arterburn & Stoeker, p. 51.
[3] O'Brien, P. T. (2002). Vol. 44: Word Biblical Commentary : Colossians-Philemon. Word Biblical Commentary (228). Dallas: Word, Incorporated.
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