A husband and wifes life of faithful love is designed to point to greater things, but so is their sexual union. I could drink alcohol, and I could smoke a cigarette. The question the Christian should ask is this, Is this practice beneficial? Paul goes to great lengths to show that the resurrection of Christ was a historical reality. The connection between Corinthian problems and gospel solutions is usually direct (e.g., 1 Cor. Dont wrong and defraud your own brothers, because the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God. Some Corinthian Christians were prioritizing less valuable spiritual gifts and failing to use their gifts to edify the body of Christ in love. Paul ends this first section by informing the Corinthians that he is sending Timothy to them, who will remind them of Pauls ways and teaching (1 Corinthians 4:16-17). Your email address will not be published. Paul indicates that these differences between believers could have, and should have, been settled privately in the church. The gospel solves every issue Paul addresses in 1 Corinthians because the gospel (and its presuppositions and consequences) is decisive for every issue regarding how Christians should live. One Lord, One Faith, One . 5 Reasons the Catholic Church is the True Church Problem. B. so that none of you will be puffed up in favor of the one against the other (1 Corinthians 4:6, emphasis mine). When Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia (18:5), they must have brought a contribution from the saints there (Philippians 4:15-16) because Paul was now able to devote himself completely to preaching the word. Sign me up for the Busy Pastor Sermons newsletter! Some of the saints refused to wait for others, so that they gorged themselves with food and drink, and the Lords Table began to resemble a heathen idol-worship ritual. The first has to do with the different roles of men and women in the church. 7 The fact that you have lawsuits among yourselves demonstrates that you have already been defeated. (1 Corinthians 6:18). So sacrificially share food with one another when you celebrate how Jesus sacrificed his life for you. No, you yourselves do wrong and cheat, and you do these things to your brethren! So there were all kinds of people in the city. She was supposed to be the goddess of sensual love and pleasure. No Comments . When he left Corinth the apostle to the Gentiles made his way to Ephesus, where his initial ministry was very brief (Acts 18:19-21). Authority. This situation called for separation, for a kind of division. If Christianity were to be divorced from Judaism, then it would no longer enjoy the protection of the Roman government. Or do you despise the church of, For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to. Powered by. They embraced the values of their Roman society, which divided over ethnicity (e.g., Jews vs. Gentiles) and social rank (wise vs. foolish, powerful vs. weak, noble birth vs. low and despised). Please make sure all fields are filled out. (And dont become a bondservant of men because God bought you with a price: Christ crucified.) Is it needed? 10 Issues the Gospel Solved in the Corinthian Church. This fellowshipping with Jesus is not only an individual thing but an expression of the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 10:16). You cant participate with both (1) the blood and body of Christ and (2) demons. (1 Corinthians 10:14-22). (Thanksgiving. What was the issue in the Corinthian church that led Paul to discuss the problem of the weaker brother? Then Paul followed up with a brief review of Israels failures in the Old Testament in the early verses of chapter 10. (3) We should not seek our own glory, but the glory of God. When the early church met to observe the Lords Table, they did so in the midst of a shared (potluck?) You can block or delete them by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. Soon, Paul will also be coming to Corinth. Some Corinthian Christians were bringing lawsuits against one another. 390 Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the NET Bible. Here are some of the reasons that troubled the apostle Paul: These false teachers had followed Paul to Corinth and purposely planned to destroy his ministry, to discredit his authority as an apostle, to belittle his gospel and his person (2 Corinthians 10:1012), to discredit his character, to accuse him with mishandling money, with dishonesty, and with usurpation of authority. For a more detailed explanation of 1 Corinthians, see Nasellis concise commentary on 1 Corinthians (Crossway, 2020). This morning, in our study of I Corinthians, we finally get to chapter 14. 5 So then, do not judge anything before the time. Required fields are marked *. Paul's Letter to a Prejudiced Church | Christianity Today Our aim is to share the Word and be true to it. By continuing to browse the site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. The heathen Corinthians were shocked by this kind of conduct, and yet the man did not repent. It seeks to address some of the major problems in the church. These people did not socialize with one another. But brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers! His method was to proclaim in clear and simple words the truths of the gospel, rather than to use sophisticated trickery or manipulation: 21 For since in the wisdom of God the world by its wisdom did not know God, God was pleased to save those who believe by the foolishness of preaching. Will it prove to be spiritually profitable? Or, put another way, Will this practice bring me under bondage? Just because I can do something (legally, or biblically) does not mean that I should do it. What Role Did The Church Play In The Middle Ages? In chapter 11, Paul deals with two major problems. What was its significance? 22 Or are we trying to provoke the Lord to jealousy? 4 So if you have ordinary lawsuits, do you appoint as judges those who have no standing in the church? Christians could then be persecuted and driven out of Achaia, with no interference from the Roman government. Next Paul journeyed to Athens (17:16-34), where his ministry was not as fruitful as it had been elsewhere, so after a time he moved on to Corinth, where he had a lengthy and fruitful ministry (18:1-18a). On the night Jesus was betrayed he . 16 Is not the cup of blessing that we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ? The hypocrisy in Corinth is mind-boggling. (5) Just because something is lawful, does not mean that it is profitable, to me or to others. If you go to a neighbors house and meat is served, eat it without raising agonizing questions. Activities that should make people blush. Thus, Gallios decision established the gospel Paul preached as a sect of the Jewish faith, a religion approved and protected by Roman law. 32 Do not give offense to Jews or Greeks or to the church of God, 33 just as I also try to please everyone in all things. Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription. But in the end, it was merely sophisticated reasoning which justified disobedience. When Paul wrote the letter of 1 Corinthians to the church at Corinth, the believers had been Christians for no more than three years. Book of First Corinthians Overview - Insight for Living Ministries 12 So let the one who thinks he is standing be careful that he does not fall. And I tried to present these problems as some of what we face now. meal. 22 For Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks ask for wisdom, 23 but 10 Issues the Gospel Solved in the Corinthian Church. Purge the evil person from among you because Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Political Opinion? The book of 1 Corinthians reveals many of the problems that the Corinthian church faced. Paul reminds us that while there may not be other gods, there are demons, and they are very much involved in heathen worship. The reason Paul had to reiterate his teaching on the conduct of women is because women sought to indulge themselves in glory that should have gone to their husbands, and ultimately to Christ. Paul discusses a wide range of events and endeavors to assist the church in gaining a proper perspective on them through the prism of the Gospel. The Corinthians were basically making a mockery of Communion. 2 If someone thinks he knows something, he does not yet know to the degree that he needs to know. I am with Christ (1 Corinthians 1:10-12, emphasis mine). I am with Paul, or Mike Mazzalongo. To the contrary, one might as well eat, drink, and be merry because there may be no tomorrow. People choose the church they attend for very self-indulgent reasons. ! I do not want you to be partners with demons. Gospel solution. Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. A church is a group of sinnerssaved and repenting sinners, yes, but still, If thats the case for a group of longtime Christians, imagine a church consisting, . It is not that the Corinthians refused to judge; it is that they only sought judgment when it served their own interests. It is interesting to notice that in Acts 18:17 it is Sosthenes who is the president of the synagogue. It is not until chapter 10 that Paul exposes this error for what it is. No doubt a number of them severed their ties with the synagogue and identified themselves with Paul, who had moved his headquarters next door. Gospel solution. 4 Marriage must be honored among all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, for sexually immoral people and adulterers God will judge (Hebrews 13:4). I believe that this is not the case at all. An Examination of the Practice of Ordination in Southern Baptist Churches, The Journeys of Elijah in 1 Kings 17 and 18, The Mormon Doctrine of God and Polytheism, Free Sermon Outline on the Great Commission. If then you have judgments concerning things pertaining to this life, do you appoint those who are least esteemed by the church to judge?. The one who judges me is the Lord. Gifts that are not exercised in love are not only useless, but annoying (a clanging cymbal 13:1). 1:10-13) Gallio could see through the whole scheme, and he wanted to have no part of it. 11:216) or flows from the gospel (e.g., 1 Cor. But if someone troubles himself to tell you that the meat was offered to an idol, then abstain from eating it, more for that persons sake than for your own. And if any would quibble with these restrictions, Paul wants his readers to know that this is his consistent teaching and practice: 17 For this reason, I have sent Timothy to you, who is my dear and faithful son in the Lord. The translation project originally started as an attempt to provide an electronic version of a modern translation for electronic distribution over the Internet and on CD (compact disk). Their new cliques puffed them up, and they indulged themselves in their newly found status (4:7, 18).