1 Corinthians 6:1-11 - Judging Disputes in the Church

Introduction

During His earthly ministry, Jesus told a parable about a king who wanted to settle his accounts with his servants in Matthew 18. The king summoned one servant who owed a great debt, so large that he could not pay it. The king ordered his servant to sell everything he had in order to settle the debt, but the servant begged the king, “Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything” (Matt. 18:26), “only, please, do not demand that I sell everything now.”

Out of pity, the gracious and merciful king forgave the servant of the debt entirely. The servant left the king with no debt and with all his possessions.

But when that same servant went out, he came across another man who owed him a far smaller debt. When the man could not pay, the servant assaulted him and demanded that he pay up right away.

In just the same way as the servant had done with the king, the man begged the servant to “have patience” so that he might repay what he owed (Matt. 18:29). But unlike the king, the servant had no pity. He refused, and he had the man put in prison until he made good on the debt he owed.

When the king heard about what had happened, he was furious with the hypocritical servant. He summoned the servant again to his court, and the king withdrew his forgiveness, throwing the unforgiving servant in prison, like he had done with the man who owed the smaller debt.

After telling this story, Jesus said to His hearers, “So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart” (Matt. 18:35).

This parable (in Matthew’s Gospel) appears immediately after Jesus’s teaching on confronting a sinning brother in the context of the church (Matt. 18:15-20). It is particularly relevant for us today, since the teaching we are going to encounter in our passage is based upon that very teaching of Jesus in Matthew 18. The parable is a perfect picture of what the Scriptures are calling for in Corinth and in every church of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Disputes among Christians are inevitable in the life of a church, and we must learn to resolve many of them with wise judgments and also with an eye on the glory that is to come for all those who have been forgiven by Christ.

Let’s stand as I read our text for today… 1 Corinthians 6:1-11.

Scripture Reading

1 Corinthians 6:1–11 (ESV)

1 When one of you has a grievance against another, does he dare go to law before the unrighteous instead of the saints? 2 Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you incompetent to try trivial cases?

3 Do you not know that we are to judge angels? How much more, then, matters pertaining to this life! 4 So if you have such cases, why do you lay them before those who have no standing in the church? 5 I say this to your shame.

Can it be that there is no one among you wise enough to settle a dispute between the brothers, 6 but brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers? 7 To have lawsuits at all with one another is already a defeat for you. Why not rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded? 8 But you yourselves wrong and defraud—even your own brothers!

9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, 10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

Main Idea:

Disputes among Christians are inevitable in the life of a church, and we must resolve many of them with wise judgments and with an eye on the glory to come.

Sermon

1. Worthy to Judge (v1-2)

This whole passage is about judging. In various forms, the root word for “judge” shows up 9 times in the first 7 verses. In fact, the whole letter Paul wrote to the Corinthians has a strong emphasis on “judging.”

In 1 Corinthians 2:1, Paul “decided” or “judged” that he would “know nothing among [the Corinthians] except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” Paul judged the centrality of this message to be of supreme importance.

In 1 Corinthians 2:13, Paul said that “spiritual” people are able to “interpret” or “judge” the difference between “spiritual truths” and “human wisdom.”

And in 2:14, Paul teaches us that the “natural person” cannot even understand(much less embrace and apply) those “spiritual truths” since or because “they are spiritually discerned” or “spiritually judged.”

In 1 Corinthians 4, Paul talks about “judging” the success or failure of Christian ministry; and he warns of the danger of “pronouncing judgment before the time” (1 Cor. 4:5).

It’s only on the last day (when “the Lord comes”) that we will truly see the weight or the worthlessness of present-day ministries.

And in 1 Corinthians 5, Paul rebukes the Corinthians for not “judging” sin rightly among the church.

God’s “judgment” falls on those “outside” the church, but church members are to “judge” those “inside the church” (1 Cor. 5:12-13).

And this “judgment” or church discipline is necessary because sin is grievous, because there’s hope for repentance, because sin is contagious, and because God’s judgment on the last day is worse.

I preached through 1 Corinthians 5 last Sunday, and we dove deeply into the subject of church discipline. If you’d like to discuss or study this topic further, then ask me about it after the service. Happy to talk with you more about this.

I trust we can see, though, that this letter has a pervasive emphasis on judging. Already, in the first 5 of 16 chapters, Paul wanted the church in Corinth to judge rightly about wisdom (God’s and the world’s), to judge rightly about ministry (true success or failure), and to judge rightly about sin and the credibility of one’s profession of faith.

Now, in our passage today, Paul wants the Corinthians to judge “disputes” between church members (v5). And Paul continues to sound frustrated and disappointed by the divisions and quarrels among the church of Corinth, which were the result of their apparent ignorance.

Three times in our passage Paul asks the question, “do you not know” (v2, 3, 9). And all three times Paul refers to something the Corinthians ought to have known! But they were acting like they did not know what they should’ve known.

The first “do you not know” question shows up in v2. Paul says, “do you not know that the saints will judge the world?” (v2). And this is a statement of authority or jurisdiction… a jurisdiction of the future that has an influence on how we must understand a jurisdiction of the present.

As we saw last week, the local church is the embassy of the kingdom of Christ in the world right now. Conscious believers in the Lord Jesus Christ join together on the basis of a shared belief and a shared agreement to trust and to obey Christ together. These churches or assemblies or congregations are authorized by Christ to speak authoritatively on behalf of heaven in the present… about who is in and who is out of Christianity… who is in and who is out of God’s blessings.

In our passage this morning, Paul continues to affirm that the jurisdiction or authority of the local church is distinct from or different from that of the world. One day the kingdom of God and the kingdom of this world will be joined under the one true King – Jesus Christ. All nations shall bow, and all people will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

But in the world right now, God has given civil or state governments the responsibility and the authority to make laws that ensure order and morality among its citizens. And the more aligned any state is with God’s own standard of morality, the better off that state will be… both in the present and in the future.

The church (the assembly of saints) bears the responsibility and the authority to assert Christ’s laws and teachings as we read them in Scripture. And the church (all those who are members of it) must call one another (and even, to a certain degree, the world around us) to submit to King Jesus here and now because there is coming a day when Christ Himself (along with His “saints”) will “judge the world” (v2). We do not compel people to believe and obey by the force of the sword or by the use of coercion… but by the teaching of the gospel with the aim to persuade.

As I said last Sunday, friends, we cannot think of the church primarily as a consumer service provider or as a social welfare agency or as an entertainment venue. If we adopt the common perspective of the local church today (even among those who think of themselves as Evangelicals), then we will completely misunderstand what God is teaching us throughout this letter from Paul to Corinth. We will likely even be shocked and offended at some of the instruction we find here about how the local church is to speak and act.

The Bible does not teach us that the church is a mutinous thing, nor does it encourage us to war in some pursuit of a “Christian nation.” But the Bible does teach us that the church and the state have distinct (overlapping for sure, but distinct) jurisdictions. The church is the visible kingdom of Christ in the present world, and as such congregations have the responsibility and the authority to point to the commands of Christ and to call their fellow church members to obey them.

That’s why Paul says, in v2, “are you incompetent” or “are you unworthy” (KJV) to “try” or to “judge” the “trivial cases?” or the “smallest matters?” (KJV). This is a rhetorical question, and the answer is “No!” On the contrary, the local church is “worthy” or “competent” to judge!

In short, the church’s jurisdiction consists in judging doctrine(What does the Bible teach?), judging discipline (Who is a Christian and my fellow church member? And also, who is qualified to lead and to serve in the offices of pastor and deacon?), and the church is authorized to judge disputes(How might two aggrieved or disputing or discontent church members be reconciled?). The local church (and not the state) has been given authority from Christ to judge on matters of Christian doctrine, Christian discipline, and Christian disputes.

Now, because of our confused political times, and because of our common ignorance about the church, it is important for us to note what this does not mean.

First, this does not mean that all disputes between Christian must be judged “in house.” God has entrusted the state with the responsibility and the authority to judge on many matters pertaining to ethics and morality. And God has given the state (and not the church) the power of the sword. When a church member steals from his or her neighbor or lies about some legally binding thing or takes the innocent life of another… in these and in many other instances, not only has the church member sinned against God, he or she has also broken the law of the state and is subject to the state’s jurisdiction and judgment.

Second, this does not mean that any church can define the terms of judgment as it will. No… Christ has told us what the basis of our Christian judgment is (concerning doctrine, discipline, and disputes)! God has given us His word, His laws, His precepts, and His teaching. The local church already has its constitutional and its ultimate confessional document, and it is the Scripture – the word of God. We must affirm only what we understand that God Himself has already affirmed, and we must reject that which God Himself has already rejected… in His word.

Furthermore, we must humbly remember that we are not the only Christians alive today, and there are countless Christians who have lived before us. The local church that isolates itself or makes judgments about doctrine or discipline or disputes without drawing upon the wisdom of other Christians and churches is bound to make foolish judgments. If we find ourselves doing or saying something that is unique in the course of Christian history, then we must be ware… we are probably headed on a path of our own making, and it will likely lead us to disaster.

Third, this does not mean that the church ought to become some sort of legalistic clique or a sin-sniffing pack of police dogs. We must not go looking for opportunities to pass judgment on one another. No… the nature of the judgment emphasized in this passage is that which causes quarreling among “brothers” (v5)… and that which is open to interpretation. In fact, it seems that the very reason there was any “dispute between the brothers” in Corinth (v5) is that each party had their own perspective of the situation. One thought he had “suffered wrong” (v7), and the other thought he had done nothing to deserve the accusation.

In those instances where church members are estranged from one another, and where there is no obvious Bible verse that speaks directly to the problem at hand, “the saints” are “competent” or “worthy” to judge (v2). And so, we must.

2. Wise to Settle (v3-8)

The second “do you not know” question appears in v3. Paul says, “do you not know that we are to judge angels? How much more, then, matters pertaining to this life!” As we will see, this passage calls Christians… it insists… that we have a long-term (i.e., an eternal or heavenly or eschatological) perspective.

Paul has already showed us his cards (so to speak). He has reminded the church in Corinth (and us too) that there is coming a day when “the saints will judge the world” (v2). He’s even told us that (in some sense) “the saints” will “judge angels” (v3). The Apostle Paul is speaking here of the time when Christ shall return to finally and ultimately throw the curtain back on all of the acts and deeds of all creation (including individuals, and nations, and even angels).

The last section (v9-11) reminds us further that “the kingdom of God” is the “inheritance” that awaits all those who love and trust in King Jesus now… those who have been “washed,” and “sanctified,” and “justified” in “the name of the Lord Jesus Christ” (v11). Therefore, Christians must live their lives in this world… as messy and confusing and even as unfair as it might be… with an eye on the final destination… with a mind focused on the status and the reward that is to come.

But this middle section (v3-8) focus more on the reasons why disputing Christians are so shameful in the world right now. Apparently, at least some of the Corinthians were “laying” their “cases” before judges “who have no standing in the church” (v4). In other words, they were bringing their dispute (“brother… against brother” or church member against church member) to an “unbelieving” judge outside of the church (v5). And Paul says, “this [is] to your shame” (v5).

It seems to me that there are two reasons Paul gives for why this is shameful. One, it was a poor public witness; and two, it was scandalous evidence that those inside the church were no more united in love than those outside.

First, you can see Paul’s frustration in his two questions about public witness in v4-5. He says, “if you have such cases, why do you lay them before those who have no standing in the church?” (v4). And “Can it be that there is no one among you wise enough to settle a dispute between the brothers, but brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers?” (v5).

Those who “have no standing in the church” or those who are not church members need to hear and see a credible Christian witness. They need to know the gospel, and they need to know that Jesus is better than life. But here in Corinth, these unbelieving judges (and anyone else interested in knowing the details) were watching Christians bickering and indicting one another over the same sorts of disputes that fill the courts with non-Christians.

If two Christians… two believers who church together and pray together and eat at each other’s dinner tables and share life’s struggles and victories together… if they have a dispute that cannot be resolved without legal action in the courts, then what a poor witness this is to the watching world!

Friends, in our day this may certainly be applied to legal disputes. There are some Christians who believe they have been wronged by other Christians, and they are quick to prosecute in court. Now, I’m not saying that there’s never a good reason for a Christian to take another Christian to court (there are, in fact, many good reasons we might do that), but we ought never be quick to do it.

The most common way, though, that I see Christians airing their dirty laundry in our day is in the court of public opinion – on social media or through old-fashioned gossip. When Christians disparage other Christians (be they fellow church members or not), our public witness is stained. We might even be saying true things, but if we spend some of our public words on accusing and witnessing against fellow believers, then we are (by definition) witnessing against the virtue and dignity of our own family.

We may know that some Christian is a negligent husband or a disobedient child or a quarreling wife or a lazy employee or a harsh boss or an imprecise theologian or an ignorant Bible teacher… but we do them and no one else any good when we mean-mouth them before the watching world. We may at times have to admit that a brother or sister in Christ has done some immoral thing, but we ought to be reluctant to spell it out publicly… before the unbelieving world.

Jesus has taught us what to do when a brother or sister sins against us. Consider Matthew 18. Jesus said, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone” (Matt. 18:15). This is the first step of church discipline, and this is the way to begin problem solving among the local church.

Jesus says, “If he listens to you, you have gained your brother” (Matt. 18:15). In other words, the relationship between brother and brother has been healed! Sometimes this happens after one heart-to-heart talk, and sometimes there need to be several. Sometimes there will need to be another one or two mature believers added to the mix, but forgiveness and reconciliation are the goals.

Look at what Paul says in v5. “Can it be that there is no one among you wise enough to settle a dispute between the brothers…?” This is exactly what Jesus teaches us to do in the second step of church discipline! If your sinning brother does not “listen” or does not repent, “take one or two others along with you” (Matt. 18:16)… Ideally, one or two others who are “spiritually mature” (Gal. 6:1) and “wise enough to settle a dispute” (v5).

How many disputes between church members could be resolved if we would all follow such simple instructions… and show love to one another by talking about our offenses with one another rather than talking about them with the world!

Now, we must also note that this passage (absolutely) does not remove the responsibility of a Christian to confess his sin, or pay his debts, or render his services, and aim to make restitution. Don’t mistake the silence of this passage… regarding the responsibility of the one who has done wrong… to be an endorsement of “defrauding” fellow church members (v7).

Many other passages speak directly to our obligation to “do honest work” (Eph. 4:28), and to “mind your own affairs… and be dependent on no one” (1 Thess. 4:11-12), and to “owe no one anything, except… love” (Rom. 13:8).

But the thrust of this passage is speaking to the brother or sister who believes that they are the ones who have been wronged. In such cases, this passage teaches us that Christians are to avoid (if possible) taking such charges public, since to do so would be a bad witness to unbelievers around us.

The second reason why Paul says that disputing or quarrelling Christians are shameful is that it gives evidence that the church and the gospel don’t really make any difference at all in the lives of those who believe.

I think it is shocking to read v7, unless you embrace the perspective Paul is calling for in this passage. Look at it with me. Paul says, “To have lawsuits at all with one another is already a defeat for you. Why not rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded?” (v7).

What?! What do you mean “Why not suffer wrong?” Let me count the reasons! (1) I’m right! (2) You’re wrong! (3) You owe me! (4) I’m right!

From the perspective of this world and what’s mine, there is every reason to prosecute a sinning brother or sister to the fullest extent of the law. But from the perspective of “kingdom of God” (past, present, and future), there are good reasons to let sins be forgiven… to let debts be forgotten… and to let offenses go.

For Christians, we’ve all experienced (in our past) the forgiveness of a huge debt in the economy of God’s kingdom. The Bible says, “God [has] forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with all its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross” (Col. 2:13-14). How can we be so reluctant to forgive debts and sins against us, when God has so generously forgiven our debt and sin against Him?

For Christians, we also experience (in our present) ongoing forgiveness in the kingdom of God… both from God and from other Christians. We still sin! We still sin against God, and we still sin against others around us. In case you didn’t know, you and I require grace and forgiveness and patience every day from those around us. How can we be so arrogant and foolish as to require such things from others, and yet withhold grace and forgiveness and patience from them?

And for Christians, we also look forward to experiencing (in our future) the consummation of God’s forgiveness and the inheritance of all that God has in store for those who are citizens of His kingdom. We shall inherit the whole world! And we shall inherit the kingdom of the God who made it! What is the loss of $10 to a trillionaire? What is a hurtful word spoken against one who hears the Lord God almighty say, “this is my beloved, in whom I am well pleased”? What is the momentary suffering of all sorts of wrongs to the eternal glory and reward that awaits all those who “entrust” themselves “to him who judges justly” (1 Pet. 2:23)?

If we are prone to fight for what’s ours in this world, we are likely forgetting the glorious inheritance that awaits us in the world to come. May God help us give a better witness, that we really do believe there’s an inheritance to come.

3. Waiting to Inherit (v9-11)

The third and last “do you not know” question appears in v9. Paul says, “do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God?” This is a stark reminder of something negative that’s meant also to be a glorious reminder of something positive.

In the world as it is, the wicked sometimes win. They appear to have all the fun, gain all the goods, and enjoy all the luxuries. In fact, the sin-list we see in v9-10 highlight exactly the sorts of sins that are celebrated among the rich and powerful and celebrities of our present world.

Don’t we every day see “sexual immorality” and “idolatry” and “adultery” and “homosexuality” on parade in our culture? In America, we have an entire month every year devoted to “pride” in exactly these sins! And who are the ones celebrating these sins? Are they not the very ones who seem to pull all the strings of government and economy and society?

All of these sins listed here are the sort that are aimed at living your best life now. Sinners of this sort… “thieves” and the “greedy” and “drunkards” and “revivers” and “swindlers” …they all want to build and enjoy their little kingdoms in this world. They want all the pleasures they can experience in this life. And they don’t want God’s law or even nature itself to stand in their way.

But that’s not the way of the Christian. That’s not how those among the church operate. Christians are willing to suffer loss, they are willing to forgive sin, and they are even willing to overlook unpaid debts… because theirs is the full inheritance of the kingdom of God!

Note the implied positive contrasted with the explicit negative! Paul says, “the unrighteousness will not inherit the kingdom of God” (v9). But what will the righteous inherit?! Isn’t the kingdom of God their inheritance?

But this, of course, is not due to anything in themselves. Christians are not better than their unbelieving neighbors. Christians were at one time just as concerned as everyone else in this world about the pleasures this life has to offer. In fact, Christians (before they were converted) were even willing to disobey God and violate their neighbors in pursuit of the treasures of this world. Paul says it in v11, “such were some of you” (v11).

But this is not the posture or reputation Christians have now. Paul continues on, “But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (v11). Christians have been forgiven for their sinful rebellion and wicked worldly pursuits… Christ has suffered and died in their place, and those who repent (turn from their sin) and believe or trust in Jesus stand forgiven of all their divine debts.

And Christians are set apart for holy and gracious and humble and generous living in this life… even as they wait to inherit true riches and joy and pleasures forevermore… in the life to come… and all “in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ” and “by” the power of “the Spirit of our God” (v11).

Friends, the prosperity gospel preachers (those health and wealth guys) are not fundamentally wrong to tell Christians that they can have it all. But they are completely off the mark with their timing and their perspective. Christians have no promise in the Bible that teaches us to expect that Jesus will help us to have all that we want in this life. But Christians absolutely have many promises in the Bible that teach us to endure the loss of earthly pleasures while we wait for better ones.

Have you been wronged by a Christian brother? “Why not… suffer wrong” (v7)? Have you been defrauded by a Christian sister? “Why not… be defrauded” (v7)? Have you been sinned against by a fellow church member? Why not “forgive one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you” (Eph. 4:32)? Is a fellow church member difficult for you? Why not “bear with one another in love” (Eph. 4:2)?

Conclusion

Brothers and sisters, I readily admit that this is a hard teaching today. If you are like me, then you may find it quite difficult to patiently endure injustice and hardship and suffering… especially when it’s due to the sin of a fellow believer.

But we all (all of us who love and trust in Jesus) have at least two good reasons to hear and to live by this teaching this morning. First, because Jesus has given us a great example; and second, because God will right all wrongs on the last day.

The Bible teaches us such things in our passage this morning, and it does so in other places too. The Apostle Peter said, “For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. 20 For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. 21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. 22 He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23 When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly” (1 Pet. 2:19-23).

If Christ our Savior has suffered and endured at the hands of wicked men, how much more ought we be willing to endure suffering (in “trivial cases” (v2) or “small matters” (KJV)) at the hands of fellow believers? Those who sinned against Jesus did it with malice and wicked intent; and those brothers and sisters in Christ who sin against us usually do so out of foolishness or forgetfulness or ignorance.

And even if we do suffer the intentional assaults of unloving or immature or self-righteous Christians, why not forgive them or take it to them in private, so that we might reconcile and re-gain our brother or sister in Christ?

If the world to come… the resurrection… the kingdom of God… and all the glory and pleasures of eternal life with Christ are our inheritance, then what can possibly cause us to quarrel and fight with those who will share them with us?

Disputes among Christians are inevitable in the life of a church… May God help us to resolve many of these disputes with wise judgments (based upon the right application of Scripture) and with an eye on the glory to come (for all who wait for the better inheritance).

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