“The Nicene Nature of the Church Part II: The Holy Church”

The Appomattox Court House Presbyterian Church Pulpit
A Guest Sermon by Rev. Robert P. Mills
The Lord's Day, December 3, 2006
1 Corinthians 6:12-20

I. Introduction
Today we resume our sermon series on the Nicene Creed's historic confession "We believe one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church." This confession conveys four foundational truths about the Church, meaning the Church with a capital "C," the collection of all Christians as it extends throughout all time and space.

The Nicene Creed affirms that the capital "C" Church is one.
The Nicene Creed affirms that the Church is holy.
The Nicene Creed affirms that the Church is catholic.
The Nicene Creed affirms that the Church is apostolic.

     As I noted in the first sermon, the fourth-century theologians who composed the Nicene Creed weren't the first to say these things about the Church. They were merely re-voicing, in the language of their day, what Scripture long ago had revealed. Specifically, each of the four marks of the Church articulated in the Nicene Creed may be traced back to Paul's first letter to the church at Corinth, which is the foundation of this sermon series.
     As I'm sure you all remember from when I was here in April, we looked at I Corinthians 12:12-20 and talked about some problems in the Corinthian congregation. We saw how many of the issues facing first-century Corinthian Christians, especially problems of sexual immorality, are troubling churches today as well. That sermon explored what it means for Christians today to confess "the Church is one" and we saw that the Church is the body of Christ, that the body has many members, and that the body is one.
     Keep those images in mind, for our confession of the oneness of the Church, our recognition that the Church is the one body of Christ, is inseparable from our confession that the Church is holy. Indeed, each of the four marks of the church found in the Nicene Creed - one, holy, catholic, and apostolic - can be understood most fully only when it's understood in relation to the others.
     Today, I want to divide our time together into two unequal parts. In the first, longer, part, we'll highlight two prominent words and three key phrases from this morning's Scripture lesson, a passage that deals with the holiness of the individual Christian's body. In our remaining time, we'll consider how Paul's observations about the holiness of our own bodies help us understand the holiness of the Church, which is the one body of Christ.
     May God grant us wisdom and insight as by faith we seek to understand what it means to believe and confess that the Church is holy.

II. The holiness of the Christian's body
Two Greek words are prominent throughout I Corinthians 6:12-20. The first is porneia, which both the ESV and NIV translate, "sexual immorality." Porneia, obviously, is the root of such English words as "pornography." As you may remember from the first sermon, Corinth was so widely noted for its permissive sexual standards that the Greek author Aristophanes coined the verb korinthiazo, literally, "to act like a Corinthian," which meant, "to engage in sexual immorality."
The second prominent Greek word in today's Scripture lesson is soma, which means "body," from which we get such English words as "somatic." Paul's understanding of the body - both the human body and the Church as the body of Christ, ties together much of what he teaches in these verses.

"All things are lawful for me"
     The first of the three key phrases we'll consider is the Corinthian assertion "All things are lawful for me," the first words of v. 12. But before we get to that phrase, we need to take a step back to understand the context of this claim.
     Remember, that when we read I Corinthians, we're coming into the middle of a conversation. Paul has heard about divisions within the congregation he established in Corinth. The letter we now know as I Corinthians is his response to what he's heard. Based on Paul's response, it seems that some Corinthians were arguing that their faith in Christ had made them "spiritual" people, that they had moved to a higher level of existence than other people, and that, as a result, what they did with their bodies was of no eternal consequence.
     The specific problem being addressed by Paul in this portion of his letter is the fact that some members of the Corinthian congregation were frequenting prostitutes. Worse, they were actively campaigning for their right, as Christians, to engage in such sexual immorality. They even had their own campaign slogan, "All things are lawful for me."
     Paul recognized that far more than the Bible's teachings about personal morality was being challenged by this claim. He realized that, whether or not they were doing so intentionally, the culturally captive Corinthians who were advocating such behaviors were replacing biblical teachings about the nature and importance of the human body with a false teaching known as Gnosticism dualism.

     Dualism was well known to the pluralistic Corinthians. It was a prominent feature of many ancient religions. Although there were many types of dualism, common to them all was an eternal division between two (hence, dual) eternal and equal powers.
     In Gnostic dualism, a Christian veneer was placed over the pagan principle of eternal and equal powers. Specifically, Gnostic dualism taught that spirit was good and that matter - all matter, including the human body - was evil. Therefore, the Corinthian Gnostics argued, since all matter is eternally, irredeemably evil, Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, couldn't possibly have been a flesh-and-blood human being. Since Jesus didn't have a human body, their argument continued, what the Corinthians did with their bodies, including sleeping with prostitutes, didn't matter.
     Note this well: the Corinthian's endorsement of porneia, their aggressive advocacy of sexual immorality, was based on their rejection of Jesus' Incarnation. I can't put enough emphasis on the importance of this point. The Corinthian's argument that was lawful for them as Christians to have sex with prostitutes was the direct result of their willful rejection of what we're preparing to celebrate at the outset of this Advent season: Jesus' incarnation, the coming of the Son of God to live on earth as a fully human being.
     Building their behavioral standards on this flawed theological foundation, they developed a false view of Christian ethics, which they summarized in the slogan "all things are lawful for me." This slogan summarized their unbiblical view of the human body: that the human body is of no Christian consequence. Basing their behavior on these unChristian assumptions, some in the church at Corinth were teaching that porneia, sexual immorality, engaging in behaviors God declares sinful, was perfectly consistent with Christian faith and life. And while we don't hear much today about Gnostic dualism, the gnostic argument is alive and well in many of our congregations and denominations.

     When we hear pro-gay activists demand that the Church formally endorse homosexual behavior in general and gay marriage in particular, we shouldn't be surprised. Instead, we should remember that in the first Christian century Paul dealt with people in his congregations who were making the exact same argument. We should also remember that in our day as in Paul's, when these debates are taking place, the ultimate issues aren't ethical; they're theological.
     Is every Presbyterian who campaigns for gay marriage or homosexual ordination aware of these theological issues? I doubt it. I suspect that many of the foot soldiers on the front lines of these battles have been being caught up in the cultural tide. They've been captivated by code-words such as "justice," "inclusiveness," "diversity," and above all "tolerance" and they've joined the cultural battle without theological reflection.
     But make no mistake: the leaders of the current crusades against biblical standards of sexual behavior fully understand the theological considerations. Within Protestant mainline denominations, there are leading advocates of sexual immorality who openly reject the biblical teaching that Jesus is both fully God and fully human. Many activist leaders who reject Church's historic, biblical teaching about human sexuality begin by rejecting the affirmation of the Nicene Creed that Jesus Christ is "God of God, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father." Today's efforts to declare good what God has called evil are nothing less than willful attempts to pry the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church off her theological foundation of God's self-revelation.
     How can you and I respond to these contemporary Corinthians, to these proponents of porneia? We can follow Paul's example. Paul first rejects the Corinthians' distorted notion of Christian liberty then he corrects their misunderstandings about the nature and importance of the human body.

"Members of Christ"
     "All things are lawful for me," Paul writes, quoting the Corinthians at the outset of v. 12, "but not all things are helpful. 'All things are lawful for me,' but I will not be enslaved by anything."
     In declaring "All things are lawful," the Corinthians were probably twisting something Paul himself had taught them, distorting his words to make it seem as if he himself approved of their immoral behavior.
     As an aside, let me note here that if first-century Corinthians were willing to twist Paul's words, you and I shouldn't be surprised when 21st-century church members and denominational leaders use the same tactics. Whenever we encounter those who distort the clear teachings of the Old and New Testaments, we should do as Paul did: We should immediately correct them; gently but firmly, privately if possible, publicly when necessary.
     Whatever the original source of the slogan "All things are lawful for me," Paul tells the wayward Corinthians that the question Jesus' followers ought to ask isn't whether an action is in their power, or even whether it's technically permissible, but whether their action is good, whether it benefits the individual Christian and the body of believers.

     What Paul is pointing out in these verses is that Christian conduct is never based on whether I believe I have the permission or the power to do whatever I want to do. Rather, my behavior must be based on whether my conduct accords with God's commands, on whether what I do with my body honors God and builds up the body of Christ.
     That becomes clear when Paul asks in v. 15, "Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ?" "Members of Christ" is the second key phrase I want to explore with you this morning.
     Throughout I Corinthians, Paul uses the metaphor of the body (the Greek word soma that I noted earlier) in a variety of ways. In I Corinthians 12:12-20, the text for the first sermon in this series, Paul says that the Church is the body of Christ. Christ's body, he says, has many members, and yet the body is one body.
     Here, in chapter 6, he considers that truth from another perspective. He says the individual human bodies who constitute the Church are themselves members of Christ; that the physical, human body of every single Christian is eternally united to our risen Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Therefore, at least ideally, the body of every Christian is at Jesus' continual disposal, available for his use whenever, wherever, and however he desires.
     In effect, Paul is asking, "Am I to deny Jesus the use of what is his? Am I to take a part of Christ's own body and hand it over to a prostitute?" "Never!" is his emphatic answer.
     Paul recognizes that the physical, human bodies of Church members are Christ's hands and feet in the world. That means that when the world looks at the Church, when those who are separated by sin from the triune God look at the one body of Christ, one of the first things they see is you and me.
     That, in turn, raises some uncomfortable questions, including: When the world looks to see what the Church is doing, how does it see me using my body? What does the world see you doing with your body? When it looks at you and at me, what does the world think of Jesus? Paul sees the public life of the whole people of God as the embodiment of the Gospel. He also sees the body of each individual Christian as a temple of God's Holy Spirit.

"A temple of the Holy Spirit"
     In vv. 19-20, he concludes, "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body." The third key phrase we'll consider comes in v. 19, "your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit."
     Earlier this letter, I Cor. 3:16-17, Paul had described the Church, the community of believers, as the Holy Spirit's temple: "Do you not know that you [plural] are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you [plural] are that temple."
     In chapter 3, Paul speaks of the community of faith as the dwelling place of God's Holy Spirit. In chapter 6, our text for this morning, he applies this image to each individual Christian. The usages are complementary. When the unity and purity of the Church are at stake, Paul reminds the Corinthians that the Church is the temple in which the Spirit dwells. When the moral life of the individual Christian is being threatened, Paul reminds his readers that the same Holy Spirit abides in every individual Christian, and that the Christian who defiles the Spirit's dwelling place does so at grave peril to himself.
     This connection between the bodies of believers and the body of Christ leads to our second major topic, the holiness of the Church.

III. The holiness of the Church
     As I'm sure you've heard in many sermons and Sunday school lessons, the word "holy" means "separated, set apart." By definition, that which is holy - whether an object, an individual, or a group of people - must never be used in a sinful or profane way. One consequence of this definition, a fact unfolded from the beginning of the Bible to the end, is that holiness requires making distinctions; holiness requires setting boundaries.
     Despite what some will try to tell you, biblical boundaries and distinctions are not human innovations. Rather, they're required by God's very nature. Human holiness can be understood only in relation to the character and conduct of God. Therefore, because holiness is expressed supremely in God's own moral character, the holiness of God's people will always include an essential moral component.
     The close connection between holiness and morality is shown in a dramatic, albeit dysfunctional, way by those in the Corinthian congregation who abandoned orthodox Christian theology for the more culturally comfortable Gnostic dualism and who, as a result, got their sexuality all tangled up with their spirituality. Sadly, the same theological dysfunction on such vivid display in ancient Corinth is equally evident in many American congregations and denominations today. Like their ancient archetypes, modern gnostics demand that the Church give its blessing to their preferred porneia.
     For those who've studied Scripture and Christian history, such demands should come as no surprise. The moral requirements of personal holiness mean that sexuality and spirituality are inevitably intertwined. Do you remember the way the Old Testament prophets so often described Israel's idolatry? As adultery! Those who are unfaithful to God aren't likely to be worried about remaining faithful to a spouse. And those who are unfaithful to a spouse tend to find themselves increasingly unfaithful to God.
     As I said a few moments ago, holiness demands distinctions. Holiness requires boundaries. A church that refuses to acknowledge distinctions, a church that won't observe boundaries, a church that tolerates beliefs and behaviors that God condemns, is not a holy church. And if it isn't holy, it isn't a church.
     God expects the Church to be holy because he himself is holy. In I Peter 1 we read, "As he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, 'You shall be holy, for I am holy'" (I Peter 1:15-16).

The unfinished tense
Writing about the holiness of the Church, which means the holiness of each of us as individuals and all of us together, Thomas Oden quotes I Peter 2:4, "You also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood." He then observes, "The holiness of the church is best expressed in the imperfect or unfinished tense."
I love that description. "The holiness of the church is best expressed in the unfinished tense." Take that thought home with you today: "The holiness of the church is best expressed in the unfinished tense." Oden reminds us that God isn't finished with us yet. We are being built (the unfinished tense) into a spiritual house. As individuals and as the Church, we are holy. And yet, as long as we remain on earth our holiness remains unfinished.

A position and a process
     Another way of conveying this truth is by saying that the holiness of the Church is both a position and a process. Holiness is something we've already received and holiness is something we continually pursue. Here's another take-away from this sermon: The holiness of the Church is both a position and a process.
     Holiness is a position. The Church is holy because God has given holiness to the Church as his gift. The holiness of the Church is not the result of the moral and religious behavior of its members. The Church is not holy because of who we are or what we've done. Rather, the positional holiness of the church is the result of what God has done in bringing the Church into existence and setting it apart for his service.
     At the same time, holiness is a process. The holy Church continually pursues holiness, a process known as "sanctification," because God calls us to live into and to live out of the spiritual power of the gift he has given. We accept God's gift of holiness, then strive to bring our lives into obedient conformity to the gift we've been given.
     The Corinthians whom Paul was correcting had overemphasized the positional aspect of holiness. They said "We are holy," and they were right. They had indeed been set apart by God for his service.
     But, as heretics have so often done, the Corinthians who claimed "all things are lawful for me" took one true statement about Christian faith and life, the statement "We are holy," and they used it to exclude many other true statements about Christian faith and life. The Corinthians so elevated the position of holiness that they eliminated the process of holiness.
     Of course, it's also possible to make the opposite error. In fact, in recent decades, a school of thought called Process Theology has deified process and demonized such positional notions as making distinctions and recognizing boundaries. As one of my seminary professors taught, "Process theology may be a very fine theology, but it's not Christian theology."
     Orthodox Christian theology recognizes that the holiness of the Church is a position the Church occupies by the grace of God. Equally, orthodox Christian theology recognizes that the holiness of the Church is an ongoing process, one that won't be completed this side of glory.
     If you want a practical illustration of these twin truths, look around you. Look at who's sitting beside you. Look to see who's in front of you and behind you. From front to back, from side to side, this congregation this morning is wall to wall sinners.
     I've heard it said that evangelical, theologically orthodox, congregations don't welcome sinners. Friends, that's just not true. Not only are sinners welcome in an evangelical church, sinners are the only ones who come. Look around you. The people here this Sunday, and every Sunday, are either sinners who know that they've been saved by grace through faith or they're sinners still living apart from the saving grace of the Triune God.
     Does a holy church welcome sinners? Absolutely. Does a holy church encourage and promote behaviors God calls sinful? Absolutely not. That was Paul's word to the Corinthians. That's his word for us today.

The holy Church
When we confess our faith by declaring "We believe one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church," we're saying the same word God says about our position as being holy in Christ and about our process of becoming holy. We confess that our bodies belong to our risen Lord and Savior and that we should do nothing with our bodies that would bring dishonor to God's name. We acknowledge the distinctions God has made, the boundaries he's established. We confess that because the eternal Son of God lived a fully human life in true human flesh, we are united with him and with all other Christians throughout eternity.
Those are the truths we declare each time we confess, "We believe one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church." Amen.