Spiritual Gifts in Corinth

Corinthians was written by Paul the Apostle to the church at Corinth, while he was in Ephesus. It was written about AD 50-51, making it one of the earlier epistles. He had heard about the direction the church was going in. He wanted to address these issues quickly. As the commentator Moffatt put it - The Church was in the world, as it had to be, but the world was in the Church, as it ought not to be.”. Which is still a problem today.

From Believers Bible Commentary:

About 3 yrs after starting the church at Corinth, he received letters speaking of difficulties in the assembly and asking questions about Christian practice. This is what prompted the writing of the is epistle.

From MHenry:

The Corinthian church contained some Jews, but more Gentiles, and the apostle had to contend with the superstition of the one, and the sinful conduct of the other. The peace of this church was disturbed by false teachers, who undermined the influence of the apostle. Two parties were the result; one contending earnestly for the Jewish ceremonies, the other indulging in excesses contrary to the gospel, to which they were especially led by the luxury and the sins which prevailed around them. This epistle was written to rebuke some disorderly conduct, of which the apostle had been apprised, and to give advice as to some points whereon his judgment was requested by the Corinthians. Thus the scope was twofold. 1. To apply suitable remedies to the disorders and abuses which prevailed among them. 2. To give satisfactory answers on all the points upon which his advice had been desired

Some Background - from Chuck Smith

Corinth at that time was the center of the worlds’ commerce, philosophy and culture. The physical location on the isthmus separating the southern tip of Greece and the north of Greece created a bottle neck that lent itself to the city becoming a commercial hub.

Mediterranean picture

Thus, any commerce going from north to south, that is from Macedonia to Achaia, had to pass through Corinth. It came to be that most of the commerce that was going from east to west also passed through Corinth, because around the southern tip of Greece the Cape of Mathene was so treacherous that the early sailors really did not like to sail around southern Greece. So they would usually sail to Corinth. If their ships were light enough, they would take them out of the water and put them on rollers and roll them across the four miles and then launch them again in the Aegean and sail on to Puteoli, (currently the city of Pozzuoli-our son’s birthplace) the port of Rome, or the same thing coming back. If the ships were too big to transport across the land, then they would often unload the ships and just take the cargo across the four miles of the isthmus.

Corinth picture

Corinth was not just a commercial center. It was a center of philosophical thought in those days. There came a phrase, "He speaks in the Corinthian style," which meant very articulate, precise and colorful. These men were more interested, not in what they said, but how they said it. Giving a lot of flair and color and all to their speeches. They loved oratory. Doesn't matter what the guy said, just as long as he was a good orator. They were attracted to oratory, but also interested in philosophical thought.

Corinth was also one of the most debased, wicked cities in the world. With all of their philosophy, they could not keep that city from sinking into the lowest kind of debauchery. Thus, "He lives like a Corinthian" was a very common phrase that became a part of their vernacular to describe a man who was always drunk and living in open debauchery. In the Greek theater, whenever they would portray a drunk, they would always refer to him as the Corinthian.

My guess it was a combination of Las Vegas and the docks in Baltimore – They put up a good front, but underneath it was corrupt.

Greeting - vs 1-3

1 Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes ourbrother,

Paul identifies himself as an apostle - here and in Rom 1:1, called by G-d. This differentiates him from Matthais, who was chosen by the Apostles just to get the number back to 12.

Rom 1:1 --Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God –

Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ - The Greek word for called is kletos - another definition means summoned

Sosthenes ourbrother - Sosthenes - may be the one referred to in Acts 18:17 - Then all the Greeks took Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment seat. But Gallio took no notice of these things.

If it is the same one, he started out as an adversary – trying to shut down the church at Corinth, and ended up as Paul’s companion.

2 To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

To the church AT Corinth, not in Corinth. Interesting distinction - indicating the importance of the next phrase - sanctified in Christ Jesus - It is not important where the church is, but rather that you are a part of the church as a believer in Christ Jesus.

Sanctified in Christ Jesus - what does this mean?

It is our position in Christ - because we are saved, we are sanctified.

There is positional sanctification and practical sanctification - once we are saved - we assume a positional sanctification - because we have trusted in Jesus. Practical sanctification is from the work of the Holy Spirit in us - cleansing us, molding us to be more like Christ.

The next part is “called to be saints” indicates how we are to be examples of Christ

Paul, In Eph 4:1 - I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called.

And in 1 Thess 2:12 - that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory

We need to be to be “set aside to G-d”

If we call on the name of Jesus, we are not perfect, but forgiven - doesn’t mean we shouldn’t strive for it, but we know we will never attain perfection.

With all - means this letter is meant not just for the Corinthians, but the body as a whole.

3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Grace and Peace - Charis - a greeting from the Greek world, and Peace - shalom – a Jewish greeting

When we have been saved by the grace of God, then we can have the peace of God in our hearts.

By including Jesus in this statement Paul is indicating that Jesus is equal with the Father.

Spiritual Gifts at Corinth

4 I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus,

Although Paul didn’t have any specific thing with which to compliment them, but he always found something positive to say. And He wanted them to remember – it was the grace of G-d…

5 that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge,

This is what Paul is referring to in Col 3:16 - Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord

The important thing is to have the Word of Christ in our hearts. That does not necessarily mean to memorize it. It means we are to obey it, and the only way to do that is to know it, by reading it.

1Cor 12:7-11 discusses some of the gifts: But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.

in all utterance and all knowledge - One way they were blessed was with spiritual gifts...utterance refers to outward expression and knowledge with inward comprehension, two gifts of the Spirit.

6 even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you,

Because of the evidence of their gifts...this confirmed their salvation.

7 so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ,

Paul does not want them to focus on the gifts themselves, rather focus on the fact the Lord has chosen them to be worthy of the gifts.

Titus 2:13 - looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ

He is also praising them for their attitude of waiting for the revelation of Christ, in themselves in terms of spiritual growth and the return of Christ.

8 who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Phil 1:6 - being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ

From BBC:

“it is striking that Paul’s thanksgiving is concerned with what God will do rather than with what the Corinthians have done. Because they have trusted Christ, and because God confirmed this fact by giving the gifts of the Spirit to them, Paul was confident that God would keep them for Himself until Christ’s coming for His people.”

Blameless is not faultless.... because of Christ we can be blameless in the day of judgement

Not only today, but on the day of His return, when He will take the church out of this world.

9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Deut 7:9 -“Therefore know that the Lordyour God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments

Paul is emphasizing Jesus - he’s mentioned in every verse so far...

He makes two tremendous statements: God is faithful – G-d is, but men are not always faithful. “By whom ye were called” is the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. And we are called unto the fellowship of His Son.

Fellowship is important - why?

The word for fellowship is koinonia – from Vines: to have a share in, to give a share to, go shares with, communicate, partnership. Fellowship implies a more meaningful and deeper sense of us gathering together – not just a bunch of friends hanging out – but we are to share or be involved with each other lives, fellowship is a deeper relationship than friendship. The word is also used to describe communion, as well as sharing with each other what one has to meet their needs. Here I believe Paul is referring to our need to have a partnership or fellowship with Christ. Why is it important? – John 15:4 - Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me We need to stay to close to Jesus J.Vernon McGee puts it this way: What does it mean, then, to be in partnership with the Lord Jesus? For one thing, it means that in business you own things together with Him. Everything that I own belongs to Jesus Christ. It belongs to Him as much as it does to me. Therefore, He is interested in what I own. Do we consider our “stuff” as Christ’s, to be used for His benefit? We owe everything to the Lord Jesus – He came to be sacrificed for us, and is faithful to us, he wants to have fellowship with us, and we owe it to Him to be faithful to Him. 10 Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and [that] there be no divisions among you, but [that] you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

The name of our Lord Jesus Christ - Paul is emphasizing the lordship of Jesus. Do we seek Him as our Lord? Is He our Lord and Master? That means we do nothing without his blessing or guidance. And that we accept His direction - if He tells us not do something, we don’t do it. Or, if He tells us to do something, we do it!

Paul was speaking to the Corinthians in the name of Jesus, not as Paul.

Speak the same thing - to be of the same mind and of one accord - not a Honda… Unity is produced by having the mind of Christ.

I find it amazing what happens when we allow ourselves to get away from the emphasis on having the mind of Christ -we get caught up in ourselves, not Him. We need to focus on Him, and how he wants us to treat/deal with each other, not get hung up on a particular man’s preaching or teaching style.

J.Vernon McGee says this:

That ye all speak the same thing” doesn’t mean that everyone must say the identical words. It means believers shouldn’t be clawing one another to death, fighting with each other, hating each other. The word for “divisions” is schisma. It means there should be no open break, no fracturing of the church, which is done by fighting, by gossip, criticism, hatred, or bitterness.

If we have a conflict with a brother or sister - how do we resolve it?

Matt: 18:15- 15 Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother.

This attitude of dealing with conflict - talking to the person who you think has offended you, will go a long way in reducing the divisions within the church.

Joined together in the same mind:

Phil 2:5-8 - 5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, andcoming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

1 Peter 3:8-9 - Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous, not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing

11 For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe's [household], that there are contentions among you.

Because the source of the information is identifiable, it does not fall into the category of gossip. Chloe’s household was relaying information to the apostle in the hope of getting it corrected.

We shouldn’t pass on information about others unless we are willing to be quoted. This differentiates it from gossip…

The Greek word used here for contentions is ERIS - which means strife, quarrel, especially rivalry, contention, wrangling

Eris is also happens to be the goddess of strife. - quite the co-incidence eh?

12 Now I say this, that each of you says, "I am of Paul," or "I am of Apollos," or "I am of Cephas," or "I am of Christ."

People were forming cliques around the three major evangelists at the time. They were focused on the personalities, not the message. By focusing on the persons, they essentially formed three sects...and causing the divisions within the body. Paul was an intellectual, well versed in the scriptures, Apollos was a great orator, eloquent preacher and Peter was an enthusiastic preacher. The important thing is they all pointed to Christ. The fourth group - “I am of Christ” were apparently the holier than thou group, thinking they were the more spiritual of the groups.

Acts 18:24 - Now a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus.

We have sort of the same thing happening today – I am of Skip Heitzig, I am of Raul Reis, etc.

It ought not to be so!

13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

Paul was trying to point out the foolishness of the divisions…

JVMcGee - The answer is obvious. Of course, Christ is not divided. Anything that breaks up the unity in Christ has something wrong with it—regardless of what it is. The crucifixion of Christ is the bedrock of Christian unity, and it is absurd to contemplate establishing a unity on any other basis.

He (Paul) is trying to redirect their attention to Jesus.

14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius,

Baptizing was the part of the duties of the deacons of the church, not the apostles. Crispus and Gaius were among the first converts, therefore baptized by Paul.

15 lest anyone should say that I had baptized in my own name.

16 Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas. Besides, I do not know whether I baptized any other.

Paul is NOT trying to make a name for himself, or win converts to himself. He wanted to point the believers at Corinth back to Jesus....

17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.

Here he is trying to get them to focus on Christ, not the men who brought the message of Christ.

1 Cor 2:4-5 -4 And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

In summary – We are not to get hung up on any one gift, but seek all of them, and not allow Satan to cause division within the body. We need to work together to avoid divisions within the body, we are to be one in Christ. We aren’t to get focused on the messenger, but the message – Christ crucified for us.