1 Corinthians 9:15-18

Scripture: 1 Cor. 9:15 But I have made no use of any of these rights, nor am I writing these things to secure any such provision. For I would rather die than have anyone deprive me of my ground for boasting.

1 Cor. 9:16 For if I preach the gospel, that gives me no ground for boasting. For necessity is laid upon me. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!

1 Cor. 9:17 For if I do this of my own will, I have a reward, but if not of my own will, I am still entrusted with a stewardship.

1 Cor. 9:18 What then is my reward? That in my preaching I may present the gospel free of charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.

Teaching: Paul is teaching on the necessity of congregations to support their pastor and the Church financially, but in verse 15, he denies himself such provision in a seemingly dramatic way. He would rather die than receive money from the Corinthians? To understand this, we need to see that Paul had been planting and growing this church in Corinth without pay thus far. If the Corinthians, as a result of this letter and Paul’s instructions that they should be supporting their pastor, then begin supporting Paul, Paul would view it as a loss in his heavenly reward. He would rather die now than lose some of his heavenly reward. His “ground for boasting” is his claim at heavenly rewards, as Jesus taught in Matthew 6:19-21, and perhaps, Paul does not want to even be charged by the Corinthains with violating what Jesus taught in Matthew 6:1, “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no rewards from your Father in heaven.”

Paul’s view of his own ministry is his basis for this perspective. In verses 16-18, he describes the fact that for him, merely preaching the gospel is no grounds for rewards. Paul was called by Christ to be Christ’s “chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel, for I will show him how much he must suffer for My name’s sake.” (Acts 9:15-16). For Paul, just showing up and preaching the gospel when he feels like it, or when he’s already had his earthly comforts met, does not cut it. Perhaps he was thinking of Jonah as he cried out, “Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel!” (but instead disobey the Lord who had so gracefully saved him). Paul is a changed, and reborn, man with a clear purpose, and as he says in verse 17, he is to steward that purpose freely and willfully because he was given it freely and gracefully. His reward on this side of heaven is that he would present the gospel “free of charge.” This statement in itself reflects two things: 1. That he completely trusted the Lord to provide for his needs to the fulfillment of his God-given purpose (though, not his wants. Paul fully embraced what was said to him in Acts 9:16, that he would suffer) and 2. His reward this side of heaven would be to see the gospel spread, Christ glorified, and lives changed. And that was enough for Paul. 

Takeaway: These verses make me ponder. Would it be enough if my only earthly blessing was to see the Lord working through me in the lives of others? I think that’s a worthy question to ponder in prayer, as it cuts to the heart of the Biblical concept of seeking first the Kingdom of God, focusing one’s eyes on eternity, storing up treasure in heaven rather than earth, and makes one incredibly grateful for each earthly blessing that has been added to us. I believe when we are called home to be with Christ, no matter what we experienced on earth, we’ll say it was worth it. I think we’ll likely see that we had a whole lot less to do with it than God did, too. One of the metanarratives, or underlying themes, of Paul’s letters is a determined perspective towards eternity. He says it explicitly many times and in many ways, such as these verses today, but as Paul teaches, admonishes, and encourages, you can see that the foundation of his argument is always the fact that eternity with Christ is what ultimately matters — not this fleeting world. One of the greatest perspective changes the Bible gives us is that of eternity. These verses aren’t prescriptive as the standard the all pastors should live by when it comes to financial support, but rather, they reveal the deep seated perspective of a man on fire for Christ. Let us all see like Paul did and as he wrote to Timothy in his final days while awaiting execution for his faith, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2 Tim. 4:7)