Marriage - 1 Cor. 7:1-7

Introduction  In this passage, Paul begins to answer a series of questions that the church at Corinth had sent to him. We don't have the questions themselves, but Paul's answers help us to figure out what they were. They were usually introduced by the formula, "Now concerning…"  It seems like these questions were designed, not simply to seek information, but to establish their point of view. In summary, they just wanted Paul to side with their position. Apparently, women in the church who were having struggles with the physical nature of marriage brought the particular questions answered in chapter 7. But the chapter has something for every segment of the church. It provides guidelines for those who are married, were married, wish to be married, and want to be single.  I. The First Question Itself, 1.  A. What the Corinthians were saying was that a man should not touch a woman sexually – This is something that is true, if we add some qualifiers to it.  B. But what they meant by it was that a man and a woman should never have a sexual relationship under any circumstances.  II. Paul's Answer, 2.  A. Yes, men should not touch women sexually… unless they are married.  B. But not everybody is able to live a single life that is not plagued with sexual lust.  C. Thus, marriage is there for those who do not have the gift of singleness, which are all who desire to be married and/or who struggle with sexual desire, 2.  D. Though marriage is a way to deal with sexual desires, this is not all that it is, 3-4.  III. Oneness in Marriage Is Displayed in Selfless Service and Mutual Submission, 3-5.  A. Among other things, marriage is a sexual relationship.  B. The husband and the wife are to serve each other in this area, 3.  C. Both husband and wife are to submit to one another with the purpose of blessing the other person in this aspect of marriage, 4.  D. Do you see how the Holy Spirit puts the husband and the wife at the same level in marriage?  E. We can also extrapolate from the physical relationship that husbands and wives should be looking for ways to selflessly bless and serve each other in general.  IV. The Sexual Relationship between a Husband Must Be Cultivated and Must Be Generally Present, 5-6.  A. Paul implies here that it is not ok to just go through long periods of time neglecting this aspect of marriage.  B. As a matter of fact, he says that being together physically must be the norm of your marriage.  V. It Would Be Better None of Us Struggled, But We Do, 7. A. Here Paul brings things to a biblical balance.  B. Being single is a good thing if you have that gift (more later on 32-35).  C. Desiring a spouse is also a good thing.  D. Being single when you are at a marriageable age and do not have the gift of singleness should be something to work on in God's providence.  Conclusion God gives us what is good. He gave us marriage for our good. He meant it to be a union in which two people become one in virtually all aspects of life including the physical. He calls us to have joyful and fulfilled marriages in this area. It is now up to us to take what he has given us and by faith transform our marriages.

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You Were Bought at a Price - 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 - Pastor Tito Lyro

You Were Bought at a Price - 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 - Pastor Tito Lyro If you find these lessons helpful, or if you have questions please write to us at contact@olympiabp.net. We would love to hear from you and learn how we can serve you.

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You Were Bought at a Price - 1 Cor. 6:12-20

Introduction  The Corinthian culture was not much different than our culture today. Perhaps they were more accepting of some depraved behaviors that are still somewhat taboos in ours, but fundamentally they had an over-sexualized, self-gratifying, hedonistic society.  These ideas found their way into the church. In the church, at least some of the Christians took hold of a concept that Paul likely taught them in a particular context and applied it to whatever they wanted, thereby rationalizing their sin.  We are also naturally very good at rationalizing and justifying our sins. Therefore, it will do us much good to pay close attention to what the Spirit says to the Church.  I. The Problem: Sexual Immorality  A. At least some of the Corinthian Christians were visiting prostitutes, 15-16.  B. Now, Paul uses the broadest word possible to talk about this issue, 18.  II. The Mentality behind the Problem: It Doesn't Matter and God Doesn't Care  A. It seems like that, at some point, Paul taught the Corinthians that Jesus freed them from a legalistic obedience to the Mosaic Law and/or any other man-made laws with the goal of being saved.  B. The Corinthians took that teaching and, like any good sinner worth his wickedness, put it to use in justifying their fulfilling the lust of their flesh.  C. They also twisted Paul's teaching concerning the soul, the body, and the final judgment, 13a.  III. The Reality: God Does Care  A. First, Paul corrects their logic, 13b.  B. Paul explains that God loves the whole human, both body and soul. God demonstrated this love in the resurrection of Jesus, 14c.  C. And God will ultimately demonstrate his love for our bodies in our resurrection at the second coming of Jesus Christ, 14b.  D. God loves our bodies because he purchased us, both body and soul, by the blood of Jesus Christ, 20a.  E. God expects us to love him with our bodies, 15-17, 19, 20b.  IV. The Solution: Flee! 18.  A. It has become popular in Reformed circles to downplay the heinousness of sexual sin.  B. So we are commanded to flee sexual immorality.  Conclusion  Christian, you have been bought at a price and the price was the Lord Jesus Christ himself. Through faith you have been joined with him, both body and soul. You are called to love him, and today you have been particularly called to love him with your body. He who calls you to this good work will also give you the grace and the strength to do it.

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REMINDER: CareNet Baby Bottle Campaign ends this Sunday, Feb 10

REMINDER: CareNet Baby Bottle Campaign ends this Sunday, Feb 10--bring your bottles!

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SAVE THE DATE: Women's Fellowship, Monday, February 11 @ 6:30 PM

SAVE THE DATE: Women's Fellowship, Monday, February 11 @ 6:30 PM

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Test Post - Please Ignore/Delete

We're testing a new automated system for posting to multiple social networks.  Please ignore this post. Thank you.

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Such WERE Some of You - 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 - Pastor Tito Lyro

Such WERE Some of You - 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 - Pastor Tito Lyro If you find these lessons helpful, or if you have questions please write to us at contact@olympiabp.net. We would love to hear from you and learn how we can serve you.

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Such WERE Some of You - 1 Cor. 6:9-11

Introduction  The thing we need the most is the grace of God. We cannot live without God's favorable disposition toward us. We know that, but we don't want to do things by God's terms. So, we bargain with God and offer him our terms. Then, we convince ourselves that those are sufficient terms, better yet, better terms than God's. That is exactly what at least some of the Corinthian Christians were doing.  They had convinced themselves that they could live like those who did not believe in Christ while professing faith in Christ. Life and faith were not connected and they dishonored Christ by the way they lived.  "The tendency to divorce religion from morality has manifested itself in all ages of the world, and under all forms of religion." Charles Hodge  Yet at other times they would point to their lives as the reason why God was going to accept them at the last day.  "A moral lifestyle, though admirable, in itself is no evidence of the kingdom of God." Paul Barnett  I. The Unrighteous Will not Inherit the Kingdom of God  A. Who is the unrighteous?  II. Stop Being Deceived, 9b  A. Don't allow this idea that you are ok and being like the world will work out just fine deceive you.  B. Our natural tendency is to be deceived  C. So we need to be on guard against deceit, including self-deceit, in this area because it is the difference between eternal life and eternal damnation.  D. The best way to keep us from being deceived about our condition is to look at ourselves against the standard of God's law.  E. By the time we are done using God's plumb line, we are ready to cry out with the apostle, "O wretched person that I am, who will deliver me?"  F. Paul brings this reality to the Corinthians.  III. Such WERE Some of You, 11.  A. Yes, the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God, but you are not the unrighteous.  B. The fact that we WERE the unrighteous, but we no longer are the unrighteous must govern our thinking in several ways.  Conclusion  But there is all comfort in a true knowledge of Jesus Christ. And there is great hope in a passage like this one. We who were unrighteous are now powerfully, eternally, and securely declared to be righteous, washed by the blood of Christ, set aside of God's glorious purposes.  If you remain in your sins, I challenge you today to come to Jesus and turn your heart to him. Join those who were wretched like yourself, but who are now sons and daughters of the living God.  If you know the sweetness of Jesus Christ in his Gospel of grace, rejoice, for you have life eternal.

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A Charge to the Man and to the People - Hebrews 13:7-17 - Pastor Tito Lyro

A Charge to the Man and to the People - Hebrews 13:7-17 - Pastor Tito Lyro If you find these lessons helpful, or if you have questions please write to us at contact@olympiabp.net. We would love to hear from you and learn how we can serve you.

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A Charge to the Man and to the Congregation - Heb. 13:7, 17

Introduction  When we gathered together to ordain an officer in the church, we are in effect getting together to celebrate God's gracious gifts to us. Christ promised that he himself will build his Church. He does that, In part, by giving officers to her as gracious gifts. Eph. 4:7-12 – But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift. Therefore He says: "When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men." (Now this, "He ascended"—what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.) And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ…  We tend to associate the word pastor with the guy who preaches most of the time, who may work full time for the church. But the Bible uses that word to describe the job of all and every elder. When Peter instructs the elders in Asia Minor, he tells them to shepherd (pastor) the flock.  1 Pt. 5:1-4 – The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away.  As we recognize this morning God's calling on Nick's life by the laying on of hands, we are also celebrating and rejoicing in Christ's gracious gift to us as he gives us officers to lead us on his behalf.  I. The Relevance of the Passage  A. One of the things we must do when we are drawing conclusions from a particular passage in the Bible is that the passage actually speaks of the thing we want it to speak.  B. As you noticed, our passage in Hebrews does not use the words elders or officers.  C. But we can be confident that it does speak of them, even though the words are not used.  II. A Charge to the Man  A. You must rule over your congregation.  B. You must speak the Word of God to your congregation  C. You must live a life worth imitating before your congregation – notice how most of the qualifications for the office of elder are moral qualifications  D. You must watch over your congregation.  E. You must fulfill your duty as an elder to your congregation in joy or in grief.  III. A Charge to the Congregation  A. You must remember your elder.  B. You must imitate your elder.  C. You must obey your elder.  D. You must be submissive to your elder.  E. You must make his service to you a service of joy by your attitude toward your elder.  Conclusion  Elders serve the church as undershepherds of the Great Shepherd of the sheep, the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ has given leaders to his church in the past, is giving us leaders now, and will continue to give us leaders in the future till the day he comes again to receive his church. Praise the Lord for his gracious and good gift of an elder to us.

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March for Life Today @ 12noon - WA State Capitol

Remember the March for Life today at 12noon at the WA State Capitol in Olympia http://ow.ly/gM2xr

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SAVE THE DATE: Jan 26 Youth Group Bowling Trip

SAVE THE DATE: Sat 1/26 - Youth Group Bowling.  Contact Jason Anspach (253-381-8076) for details.

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This is to Your Shame - 1 Corinthians 6:1-11 - Pastor Tito Lyro

This is to Your Shame - 1 Corinthians 6:1-11 - Pastor Tito Lyro If you find these lessons helpful, or if you have questions please write to us at contact@olympiabp.net. We would love to hear from you and learn how we can serve you.

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It Is to Your Shame -1 Cor. 6:1-11

Introduction  After a month and a half hiatus, I am glad to go back to our journey through the first epistle of the apostle Paul to the Corinthians. It always amazes me how a letter that was written around A.D. 55 remains so lively and relevant for us today. This is a testimony to the inspiration of the Scriptures by the Holy Spirit.  Review  First Corinthians was written as a response to several questions that the Corinthian Christians asked Paul (we find these answers starting in chpt. 7). It was also written out of concern that the Corinthian Christians had lost their focus in the service of Christ. Paul heard several reports that were very displeasing to him.  There were some disturbing things that were happening in Corinth. Teachers had risen from among them teaching that preaching Christ was not sufficient, that the wisdom of the world was necessary in order to be super spiritual. These teachers promoted disunity and fights among the Christians (chpt. 1-4). Meanwhile, the Christians neglected to take care of some very important problems, and sins that weren't practice even in the pagan world were getting a free pass in the church.  Paul structures this letter around three major themes: holiness, unity, and the glory of God, 1:2-3.  Introduction to Chapter 6  That brings us to chapter 6 and we get ready to look at it, I want you to realize how the Holy Spirit does not leave any area of life untouched. We tend to think at times to think that the Bible is about how to get saved, and heaven, and "spiritual" and religious things. It is about all these things. But it is also about the nitty-gritty of everyday life. These verses we red this morning are all about our attitude toward and our conduct in lawsuits and lawsuits are something that Americans are really good at.  I. The Issue: Christians Defaming the Name of Christ by Suing Other Christians in Civil Courts  A. This is clearly expressed in vv. 5, 6, 7a, and 8.  B. But it is also implied in the whole context of the passage.  C. We have grown very numb to the heinousness/seriousness/wickedness of taking a brother to court that we can't see the big deal here. This was true of the Corinthians as well.  D. So, Paul brings in what we would consider the "big guns" sins and connects them to bringing a lawsuit against a brother in an adversarial civil court system, 8-10.  E. The worst offense is not against the brethren, who are offended by this action, but against Christ himself, whose name is mocked by two or more people for whom his blood was shed so that the may be reconciled.  F. Their taking each other to court in an adversarial system is in essence crucifying Jesus afresh.  G. The issue, the problem, is the defaming of the name of Christ by brothers taking brothers before the civil courts.  II. The Solution: Christ, 9-11.  A. We are going to briefly touch on this verse and will come back to it in two weeks, Lord willing.  B. Kids, if you don't know what some of these things are, don't worry, just know that these things are really displeasing to God and that there is hope in the Gospel for the most wicked sinner there is.  C. The foundation for not looking sinful into our interests by taking a brother to court is to keep in the forefront of our thoughts what Christ has done for us, 11.  D. Do you see how Christ touches and takes over all of life including how we think about lawsuits and rights? If we don't see that, we'll end up like the Corinthian church.  E. We can be easily deceived in this area, 9.  III. The Practice: Advance God's Kingdom, Benefit Your Opponent, Enhance Your Ability to Know and Serve Christ (from Ken Sande in the Peacemaker).  A. Realize you are equipped to deal with issues that arise between brothers, 1-5  B. Give up Your Rights, 7.  Conclusion  I know I am leaving lots of questions unanswered. Lord willing, we will revisit this topic in the near future in our series on conflict resolution. But one thing is clear: when a brother/sister sues another brother/sister is civil court, he is defaming the name of Christ. It is also clear that Christ has freed us from the necessity of doing that. Remember, such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, "…you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God."

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Annual Congregational Meeting Tonight @ 7 PM

Please remember the Congregational Meeting tonight at 7PM.

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SAVE THE DATE: March for Life 1/22/2013

SAVE THE DATE: March for Life is coming up Tuesday, January 22nd at the State Capitol in Olympia - 12noon. http://ow.ly/gM2vj

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Reminder: Ladies Fellowship Tonight @ 6:30PM

Remember, Ladies Fellowship tonight @ 6:30PM.  Mrs. Bond will be speaking.

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The Summit of the Holy Love of God - Ephesian 3:14-21 - Rev. Doug Leaman

The Summit of the Holy Love of God - Ephesian 3:14-21 - Rev. Doug Leaman If you find these lessons helpful, or if you have questions please write to us at contact@olympiabp.net. We would love to hear from you and learn how we can serve you.

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Past and Future Grace in 2013 - Titus 2 - Pastor Tito Lyro

Past and Future Grace in 2013 - Titus 2 - Pastor Tito Lyro If you find these lessons helpful, or if you have questions please write to us at contact@olympiabp.net. We would love to hear from you and learn how we can serve you.

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Past and Future Grace in the New Year - Titus 2

Introduction  We just spent a season of celebration of the birth of our Savior. Whether we celebrate Christmas or not, we live our lives in light of the fact that Jesus Christ, God in flesh, has come. Every moment of every day is lived under this truth. For those who trust in Jesus Christ, the fact that Jesus Christ has come is the basis for a joyful life of obedience to the God who has redeemed them. To those who do not believe that Jesus Christ is their Savior, the fact that Jesus Christ has come just adds more judgment to them.  But that is not the only coming of Jesus that we should be celebrating and living in light of. As sure as he came the first time over 2,000 years ago, he will come again, and that is our blessed hope, according to the apostle Paul.  As we begin 2013, let us make our purpose to ground our lives, our hearts, everything that makes us, on the past and future grace of the comings of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.  I. An Analysis of the Passage  A. The argument, the reasoning, for this passage actually starts in chapter 1.  B. These unbelievers are not outside of the church – They profess to know God, but their lives deny that profession, 1:16.  C. In contrast with these unbelievers who are not qualified for anything good, each segment of the church is to do what God calls them to do, 2-10.  II. The Pivotal Element for Doing What God Calls Us to Do: The Grace of God That Teaches.  A. Notice how Paul says in v. 11 that we do all these things because (for) the grace of God has appeared to all men.  B. Notice that Paul speaks of past and future grace of God through Jesus Christ.  C. It is worth now asking the question, "what is the grace of God?"  D. So, Christ pushes us as we think of the cross and he pulls us as we think of his coming back.  III. The Teaching That the Grace of God Does  A. The favorable disposition of God toward us teaches us several things.  B. Notice that the grace of God has appeared and is teaching all types of people.  C. Paul list two put offs and three put ons that grace teaches us.  D. Notice that these two negatives and three positives summarize the several groups of people and relationships in vv. 2-10.  Conclusion  The turning of the New Year is often nostalgic and hopeful. There is a looking back at what took place in the year that ended and an excitement about what the New Year is going to bring. The Christian life is similar to that. We look back to past grace in the cross and that propels us to future grace in the coming of Jesus Christ. That grace, past and future, fuels us to obedience in the now age.

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