I Corinthians 9:7  Who goeth a warfare any time at his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and eateth not of the fruit thereof? or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock?
8  Say I these things as a man? or saith not the law the same also?
9  For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen?
10  Or saith he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope.
11  If we have sown unto you spiritual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things?
12  If others be partakers of this power over you, are not we rather? Nevertheless we have not used this power; but suffer all things, lest we should hinder the gospel of Christ.

God’s people need to be taught the importance of looking after those who are called to preach the Word. God’s people needed to be reminded of the importance of the preaching of God’s Word. During the Wuhan virus days, the government declared that churches are non-essential. They have believed that for years, but they made it very clear during that time. They tried to shut down all churches for a time. They tried to tell churches whether they could sing during their services. They tried to stifle singing and preaching by trying to force everyone in a service to wear a mask. They demanded social distancing.
That whole practice run for the coming of the antichrist, demonstrated just how essential true churches are. During the Tribulation there will be no true churches on this earth. That will be a dark time. God has declared that the antichrist will only have 7 years but those 7 years will be brutal for those on earth at that time.
It is interesting to note that during my lifetime, there has been this mantra about the separation of church and state. The “state” insisted that “religion” should have nothing to do with the state. Yet, the state wants to tell churches what they can do. We need to remember as well that most churches have welcomed state interference in their operations. The god of money has overtaken most churches. They need donations so badly that they submitted to the government demands to follow certain criteria so that they could be classified with “charitable status”. This then allows them to issue tax receipts for donations made. This in turn will encourage more people to give because they will get a tax break. This is all done under the fictitious guise of being good stewards of money. When you sell your soul to the devil, you get far more than you bargained for. As we can see, the state is happy to take control of churches.
True churches are built upon the Lord Jesus Christ. They are not under the authority of government. They must be law abiding, and they will be because they are under the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus taught that we need to give unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s. The true child of God belongs to God. He is not a tax-evader. He humbly submits to the government where he can. However, when the government decrees itself to be God, the child of God says “no”. We see that in the life of the Lord Jesus Christ and the apostles. Pilate wanted Jesus to defend Himself at His kangaroo court trial, but Jesus refused to do so. Jesus would not entertain Herod. Peter and John refused to stop preaching in Jesus’ name, even though they were imprisoned and beaten. The apostle Paul refused to bow to ungodly pressure just to have an “easier life”.
In my short lifetime of 72 years I have seen massive changes in religion. There are far less true, Bible-believing churches today than there were when I was younger. There are many false churches today. Those attending those “social clubs” think they are following God but they are deceived. It seems this is going to be the case until the Lord returns. There are many churches and some quite large ones as well. However, sadly, most of them are compromised. The world is very enticing to the flesh. We need to remember that Saul, who became Paul, believed he was serving God by going after true saints. He consented to the brutal stoning death of Stephen. He wanted to stop all preaching in Jesus’ name. He was wrong. He was fighting against the truth, but was so hardened by his false religion that he refused to see that until Jesus stopped him on the road to Damascus. He was gloriously converted there and he realized he had been fighting against God, not serving Him.
The apostle Paul was directed to give some Biblical counsel regarding leadership. He was directed by God to use some very common illustrations to make the point.
A soldier does not go to war and cover his own expenses; not in a good country. Sadly, Canadian soldiers had to purchase some of their own equipment in recent years. That should never happen. The nation the soldiers are fighting to defend should cover the cost of keeping those soldiers fed and equipped.
The owner of the vineyard has every right to eat of the fruit of his labours. In communist countries that may not be the case, but in God’s economy, that is how it should be. The person that looks after livestock also has the privilege of getting fed from the animals he is looking after. These illustrations are quite easy to understand. If the soldiers are not looked after properly, they cannot fight well. If the farmers are not looked after, they cannot produce the food we all need and appreciate.
In verse 8 Paul reminded the saints that this was not his opinion. He did not come up with this idea. The law of God declares this to be so. Paul referred back to Deuteronomy 25:4:

Deuteronomy 25:4  Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn.

A farmer that starves his animals will not be a farmer for very long. In today’s world, a farmer that does not put fuel in his tractor will also not farm very long. A tractor is an inanimate object but the principle still applies.
The question Paul asked in verse 9 is important to note. God cares about oxen, but in verse 10 we see that the application of this law is for man’s good. The labourer needs to have his needs supplied. In the spiritual life, there is much plowing that needs to be done. There are many false religions. The godly preacher needs to teach the truth and refute the lies. Jesus Christ showed us the importance of this. The Pharisees had developed quite a detailed false religious system prior to His coming. They had taken liberties with God’s Word that was not theirs to take. Jesus did not change the law. He simply taught the law and gave it proper application. In so doing, He exposed the heresies of the Pharisees and their friends. They hated Him for it, but that was their problem. He loved them enough to show them they were wrong and they needed to repent and believe the truth.
In verse 11, Paul stated that if they, the true spiritual leaders, had sown spiritual things among the Corinthians, then it is expected that the Corinthians would be willing to give of the carnal things they had earned, to meet the needs of the true servants of God. We need to be reminded again that the apostle Paul needed to make tents for a time while ministering to the saints in Corinth. This would have interfered with his calling to help the people spiritually.
Personally, I have done “tent making” in several churches that I have pastored. It takes away from the ability to reach out to the people the way it needs to be done. Sometimes that is necessary when starting a new work. It is important for the pastor to teach the whole counsel of God so that the saints understand what their responsibility is to see the Gospel spread as it needs to be.
In verse 12 Paul was led to continue to remind the saints of the reasonableness of this fact. The Corinthians were willing to provide for the needs of some, but not for those who were helping them the most. The church in Corinth was lacking much in spiritual teaching. God directed the apostle Paul to help them to see how true saints need to live. For a time Barnabas was there to assist Paul with this important work. The Corinthians may not have appreciated the truth at first, but it was what they needed to hear and obey if they wanted to know God’s blessings.
The apostle Paul also reminded them that he did not force them to provide for their needs. He was willing to work extra hard because the love of God motivated him to preach the Gospel even to those who lacked the proper appreciation for it. He did not want to hinder the Gospel of Christ.
There are some people who think that all the church wants is their money. There are too many churches that have their focus on that quite a bit. I received an invitation to join a “free” religious seminar in the coming days. I wanted to see what it was about so I clicked on it and right away they had another box that they wanted me to click on to pay to get some special privileges for the event. That box popped up several times on that site. That should not be how a godly ministry functions. If you are trying to lure people into giving money, you have the wrong motive. If you want to offer something extra and you want to charge for it, one box would be enough. Christianity is not a business.
True churches provide a necessary service to the people. Yes, they have bills to pay. God knows that. If a local church is serving God properly and the pastor is preaching the whole counsel of God, then God’s work will be done God’s way. As we come closer to the end of this age, there will likely be a much greater need for “tent making” ministries. I expect things will get tougher for Christians prior to the Lord’s return. There is a great lack of appreciation for the most important work on earth.
Those who are saved need to be sure their priorities are right with the Lord. Today is the Lord’s day. It is the day for true saints to be in a true local church. There are some who are not able to travel to a good church and thus a ministry like ours can be helpful for them. We are thankful for the internet which makes it possible for us to broadcast into many countries. God knows the fruit that will come from this. Our duty is to be faithful to Him.
Pastor Bartel