What does it mean to have faith? It is this: to trust God wholly with our provisions, protection, and providence. It is to be assured of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen (Heb 11:1). Faith is in operation in our lives when we look to our Heavenly Father and place complete confidence in this Word through Jesus Christ in all things. The Bible exhorts that this is the standard way of life for a Christian (Rom 1:17). However, we still struggle with trusting God in various seasons of our lives. We are guaranteed to stumble in faith when we place our confidence in anything but Him. Sometimes, we even live in a duplicitous way. Meaning, we give lip service of worship declaring our faith in God, yet our lifestyles reflect that we trust more in:
· Human abilities

· Earthly provisions

· People

· Governments and politicians

When we have displaced God’s throne in over lives for other things, idolatry is present. We can see the fruits of its sinful operation in our hearts we show more reverence and adoration for things that are created over the Creator. The point is that we worship what we place our faith in.

In this sermon series, Paul reminds the church of the dangers of unbelief by surveying the Biblical history of the Israelites continual cycles of distrust in God (despite the many miracles, signs and wonders he performed delivering them out of Egypt). He wants the church to learn from the saints of old. He wants us to clearly see the perils of unbelief and the disciplining judgment of God it invites into our lives. Remember, man has been created for worship. We will worship something. We will either place our faith in living God or idols invented by vain human imaginations.

Focus Scripture: 1 Corinthians: 10:1-5

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Our lifestyles are a testimony to what we actually believe. The Christian life is not one solely of lip service to our Lord, but also actions and thoughts that are consistent with what we profess. Just as a tree is identified by the fruit it bears, so also our life reveals our faith. Here is a Biblical truth: following Jesus is difficult but has eternal reward for those who take upon this journey with him. Jesus even taught (Mt 7:14), “For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”

With this in mind, Paul likens the life of faith to that of an athlete who begins to train and prepare for Olympic games. He uses the method of illustrations to teach the Corinthian congregation the necessity of dedicating one's whole life to the Holy Spirit Boot Camp training program in righteousness. This is the only way we be victorious in this life of Jesus and receive heaven’s prize.

Focus Scripture: 1 Corinthians 9:24-27

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The central focus of the Gospel is the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. As a result, the primary purpose of all ministry is the spreading of its good news of our great salvation and thus save souls. Further, this message is not reserved for one ethnic nationalistic group, but to all nations, tribes and tongues, thus Jesus Great Commission (Mt 28:19-20), “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, (20) teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you…” This is the church mission until the Second Coming of our Lord, thus he said, “…and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Paul was called into this mission field of ministry as an Apostle to preach to the Gospel to both Jews and Gentiles (Acts 9:15). This was especially a difficult tasking with the Corinthian church who was composed of both. At times, their distinct cultural differences were like attempting to mix oil and water, thus causing disunity within the church. In our sermon text, Paul reminds us of our call to spread the Gospel to both groups. He offers his strategy for winning souls out of every nation, tribe, and tongue.

Focus Scripture: 1 Corinthians 9:19-23

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