1 Corinthians 16:5-9 Making Plans and Changing Plans

by | Jan 22, 2025 | 1 Corinthians, New Testament

I. Making Plans V. 5

A. It Is Not Unspiritual To Make Plans

1. We believe that Paul was writing this letter from Ephesus.
2. He had a great desire to see the Corinthian believers.
3. To travel from Ephesus to Corinth, there were two routes.

a. By sea across Aegean Sea.
b. This was a dangerous trip from December until February, and so travel by water during those months was not advisable.

4. The other route would have been by land, and would have been much longer, but if by land, Paul would have had to travel around the edge of the Aegean Sea, and through Macedonia to get to Corinth.
5. In verse 8, Paul says that He will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost, which is in the spring, and would mean that traveling conditions by both land and sea would be favorable.

B. Be Careful To Make Godly Plans

1. Paul had a fatherly love for them See 1 Corinthians 4:14,15
2. He was willing to go even though some opposed him. See 1 Corinthians 4:18-21
3. There was a desire to visit and correct those whom he loved.
4. There was also a willingness to deal with those who opposed him.
5. He had a deep conviction about the will of God for him.
6. This trip to Corinth would not be a pleasure only trip, but a labor of love in Jesus.
7. There were many things that needed his attendance; therefore, he hoped that the trip would not be a short one. Verse 7
8. Note- Our plans should never go against the revealed word of God, the Bible.

II. Submitting Your Plans To God Vs. 6-8

A. Not Unspiritual To Accept Alternative Plans From God

1. Paul said he might remain with them, maybe not.
2. He said he might spend the winter, maybe not.

a. The seas were closed for travel in the winter; if Paul were in Corinth once the seas closed, he would stay there until they opened in the spring.
b. Paul is writing in the spring (16:8), hence he anticipates spending considerable time with them (from when he arrives to the following spring).

3. He hoped they would assist him on his next journey, though he was unsure of where that might be.
4. He didn’t want to spend a short time with them, but a longer time.
5. He had his desires, but knew that he needed to submit his plans to the will of God
6. James 4:13-16 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit”; 14whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. 15Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” 16But now you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.

B. We Are To Submit Our Plans To God V. 7c

1. V. 7c- If the Lord permits.
2. We see that Paul uses human logic and knowledge of traveling conditions.
3. He makes plans that are logical.
4. We also see that he submits all these plans to God, and to whatever changes God might make to those plans.
5. Godly planning includes both human wisdom, and God’s sovereign will.

a. We should never just lean on human wisdom.
b. Proverbs 3:5,6 Trust in the Lord with all your heat, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.
c. This passage is not in contradiction to what Paul is doing.
d. He was using his understanding, but he was not leaning on it.
e. All of his human wisdom was made subject to the sovereignty of God.

C. While Submitting, We Can Still Have A General Plan

1. His general plan was to stay in Ephesus, even though he was uncertain of much.
2. Plan A- Stay the winter
3. Plan B- Visit for a short time, go to Macedonia, then another short visit, then Judea. See 2 Corinthians 1:15,16
4. Plan C- This is what happened. A quick and painful visit to Corinth, and then a return to Ephesus. After Ephesus, he went to Troas, and waited for a report from Timothy who had visited Corinth for a longer time and was now reporting to Paul about how the Corinthians were doing. See 2 Corinthians. 2:1

D. Two Mistakes To Avoid

1. Don’t be so frightened of making a mistake that you make no decision at all.
2. Don’t be impulsive, and prayerless and act without God’s leading and direction.
3. Summary- Paul wasn’t a pessimist, or one who was presumptuous.

a. He didn’t see only the obstacles, but he did recognize them.
b. He didn’t think that he could force the will of God to happen, or that because he wanted to serve God, that God would be obligated to bless his actions.
c. Paul was a realist, who prayed, walked in faith, and looked at the circumstances.

III. Seizing Opportunities To Serve God V. 9

A. Spiritual People Recognize Opportunities To Serve The Lord

1. Though Paul had both godly desires to visit the Corinthians, and was making plans, he recognized something more important and immediate.
2. God opened a door for him to minister in Ephesus

a. Great- megas, meg’-as: things considered highly for their importance.
b. Effectual- powerful, active.

3. It was a great and important opportunity, and the opportunity would bring great results.
4. Ephesians 5:15-17 15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,
16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
17 Therefore do not be unwise but understand what the will of the Lord is.

B. Don’t Let The Good Cause You To Miss The Best

1. Paul had godly desires and plans.
2. They were well thought out, but he remained flexible.
3. There was a great urgency for him to go to Corinth, to correct the many problems, and to receive the collection for the saints in Jerusalem.
4. Those were good plans, but they were not the BEST plans.
5. Paul had the spiritual maturity to recognize something greater and more powerful.
6. An urgent and immediate opportunity
7. There were many people there who were ready to hear and receive the gospel.
8. Matthew Henry- God gave him great success among them; he had brought over many to Christ, and he had great hope of bringing over many more. For this reason he determined to stay awhile at Ephesus.

C. Don’t Let Opposition Stop You

1. Adam Clarke- God gave him a grand opportunity to preach the Gospel; but he was not to expect that either Satan or wicked men would leave him unmolested.
2. Matthew Henry– Great success in the work of the gospel commonly creates many enemies. The devil opposes those most, and makes them most trouble, who most heartily and successfully set themselves to destroy his kingdom.
3. Albert Barnes- There is abundant opportunity to preach the gospel; there is attention to what is spoken, and great interest in it; there is great encouragement to labor.
4. Warren Wiersbe- The stewardship of opportunity is important. We must ask, “What opportunities is God giving us today?” Instead of complaining about the obstacles, we must take advantage of the opportunities, and leave the results with the Lord.
5. Paul did not retreat because of opposition, but he advanced into it.

a. This is the opposite of what most of us would choose to do.
b. Paul sees a great opportunity, and sees the opposition, and decided to go on a spiritual offensive, and minister even more intensely.

6. Paul did not view opposition as a reason to leave, but as a reason to stay.

a. This must be viewed in the light of the fact that there was success that was drawing opposition, but there was success