1 Corinthians 1 & 2

Introducing the New Study, In Light of These Things, -Letters to the Churches!

Intent of the study is to be practical, and application filled

to understand the theology and then master the “therefore”

we want to be thinking… in light of these things, how do I live, how do I serve, how do I witness?

We begin in 1 Cor. and will work our way through the letters to the churches

we will move more rapidly than usual…this study will be more beneficial if we can see some of the successes and failures of various churches, so we can’t spend years in each epistle.

Expectation-study and apply

plan to read through the text each week (especially since we will cover more ground)

read the blog (released on Monday or Tuesday)

read and think through the word of the day (released on Facebook Monday or Tuesday)

apply—for ourselves, for class, for our church, for our community

Introduction to 1 Corinthians

Corinth

Greek powerhouse- at the time of Paul, Corinth was the foremost Greek city

epicenter of commerce, intellect, and culture

Location- strategic geographic location

located in the isthmus that connected Greece to the Grecian Peloponnesus

wedged between two seas…captains would need to sail over 250 miles through treacherous waters if they wanted to avoid Corinth

therefore it was a wealthy, incredibly diverse city

Pagan

it was an unbelievably immoral city—multiple commentaries referred to this ancient city as licentiousness (meaning lacking in any moral restraint, particularly in regard to sexual perversion)

even among pagan Greek culture, Corinth was recognized for depravity.

to “corinthianize” was a popular Greek slang phrase for “go to the devil”

The church at Corinth

the church at Corinth was founded by Paul ()

this is actually his second letter ()

this church is characterized by its division, carnality, and lack of love

this letter is therefore a strong rebuke on the practical matters of the heart and action of this worldly church

Chapter 1.

Four warning signs of a dysfunctional fellowship

Illustration: My lemon of a BMW

1. Failure to understand the calling of God (v. 1-9) (thread word, vs. 2,24,26,27,28)

we are the church of God (v.1)

sanctified in Christ (v.1)

called to be saints (v.1)

consecrated, set apart, called for holiness before God

called into the fellowship of Christ (v. 9)

called out of darkness and into His marvelous light

And yet...

they are divided (ch 1b-4)

they are carnal (3:1-3)

they tolerate gross impurity (5:1)

they bring legal action against each other (6:1-8)

they eat the Lord’s Supper unworthily (ch. 11)

There is a disconnect between their calling and their character.

Application: Our calling as saints in Christ and as the church of God must manifest in a desire to pursue personal and corporate holiness.

our confirmation in Christ is so that they may be presented as blameless (v. 8)

1 Peter 1:13–16 NKJV

Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”

1 Peter 1:13

1 Peter 2:9 NKJV

But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

pursue holiness

2. Lack of Unity (v. 10-11)

unity is a distinguishing characteristic of the body of Christ

Ephesians 4:1–6 NKJV

I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

Ephesians 4:11–16 NKJV

And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

Ephesians 4:11-

Our world is not unified in...

politics

culture

family life

We should look different…but the church at Corinth did not (1:11)

Application: We must actively, intentionally, and diligently choose and pursue unity.

why do we teach?

unified in doctrine/belief

why do we do class parties, and social events? for the pizza?

to grow in the unity of love and care for one another

Therefore, choose ahead of time. You will always have opportunity to be divisive, or fractious, or contentious. There will be things that annoy you, or that don’t conform to your desire. There will be plenty of chances to gossip, to form cliques. Choose ahead of time, in light of your calling, to pursue unity with the body of Christ.

3. Division Caused by the Cult of Personality (v.12-17)

the church was divided into parties

Cephas (Peter)-likely Jewish believers

Paul- likely gentile believers

Apollos- likely Greek believers who admired his eloquence and intellect

Christ- (the problem here was not their stated allegiance to Christ, but their exclusion of the teaching of the Apostles (and Apollos) and partisan spirit toward the other groups)

this was as ridiculous as it was unseemly

can Christ be divided against Christ?

has any other leader been crucified for you?

have you been baptized into any other savior?

Application: What brings us together and unites us is that we are saved by the finished work of Jesus Christ. Therefore, whatever may be our affinity for a certain teacher or spiritual leader, our allegiance and unity in Christ must be greater.

Illustration- In medieval times, knights would go to war under the flag and heraldic arms of their Lords. Do we march under the banner of Christ, or under some other leader?

Bonhoeffer: “United under Christ, I think you meant.”

Zach Horn, Doug Crawford, Rob Wynalda

Therefore, Genesis, Living Stones, Caleb’s Kin

Be careful not to be identified by those things rather than unified under one Lord.

4. The Pursuit of Fleshly Wisdom (1:18-2:16)

the word wisdom is used in 9 verses in chapter 1, and 5 verses in chapter 2.

it is used here in contrast in with foolishness, but here the biblical roles of wisdom and folly are reversed (these are the people who call darkness light and light darkness).

similarly the idea of weakness/strength are used frequently in this section

the “wisdom” of the natural man is the foolish, idiotic, moronic, pride-fueled refusal of man to submit to God.

this “wisdom” views the saving grace of God in Christ on the cross as folly.

the wisdom of God is for the mature (2:6), it is the mystery of God (2:7) which the world cannot receive

Application: We must adhere to the wisdom of God, not be disarmed by the folly of man.

This also means that endeavors to marry secular ideology with gospel truth is futile, and makes the gospel of no effect (1:18)

Instead, we must lean on Scripture to make wise our natural foolishness.

Psalm 19:6–7 NKJV

Its rising is from one end of heaven, And its circuit to the other end; And there is nothing hidden from its heat. The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;

Psalm 19

Psalm 19:7–8 NKJV

The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;