How can Paul be confident of this when the Corinthian church has so many problems? The growth of the ivy, covering the message, showed the spiritual decline. i. , he does not speak of his spiritual identification with the death of Jesus. It is truly the, i. Paul reminds us of something important: death is an, . 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. This danger was constantly on the mind of the apostle Paul, and should be constantly on the mind of any preacher or teacher. The work of God in the Corinthian Christians could be seen by, iii. d. Lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect: Paul makes it clear that it is possible to preach the gospel in a way that makes it of no effect. ii. (50-53) The need for the resurrection. Paul tells them just what kind of apostle he is, a called apostle. iv. through the pride and cleverness of men! If there is no principle of resurrection, and if Jesus did not rise from the dead, then the apostles are. For it is written: I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? . Paul praises God for their positives, and expresses confidence that God will take care of their weak points, and, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ, i. i. Paul faced all this for the sake of the resurrection of the dead, both Jesus resurrection and the believers. The Corinthians were called saints, not called to be saints. They both describe a work in progress. e. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed: In a single moment, Jesus will gather His people (both dead and on the earth) to Himself, for resurrection. Paul doesnt only consider believers in Corinth to be. They were not the spiritual achievements of the Corinthians, but the work of the. They were not the spiritual achievements of the Corinthians, but the work of the grace of God in them. Truly it is never a pleasant sound, that rattle of the clay upon the coffin-lid, Earth to earth, dust to dust, ashes to ashes, nor to the farmer, for its own sake, would it be a very pleasant thing to put his grain into the dull cold earth; yet I trow no farmer ever weeps when he sows his seed. (Spurgeon), ii. At some point before He died, before the veil was torn in two, before He cried out, ii. Believers in Palestine are described this way (1 Corinthians 15:9), as well as the church at large (1 Corinthians 10:31-32). i. I am of Cephas: There was the Peter Party, who declared We are following in the footsteps of the man who is first among all the apostles. i. Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas. a. Jesus, who became for us wisdom: Jesus perfectly shows us, in His teaching and life, Gods wisdom. Let every pulpit rightly say, we preach Christ crucified! A strong church once inscribed these words on an archway leading to the churchyard. ii. those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. Grace, by definition, is given freely. If someone were there, perhaps in a brilliant flash of light, they would have seen the dead body of Jesus transformed, and virtually vaporize out of the grave clothes. The weight of the body, pulling down on the arms and shoulders, tended to fix the respiratory muscles in an inhalation state, and hindered exhalation. The righteous are put into their graves all weary and worn; but as such they will not rise. He speaks of utterance and knowledge. The really significant background, though, is its use in the Greek translation of the Old Testament to render the divine name, Yahweh Christians who used this as their Bible would be familiar with the term as equivalent to deity. (Morris, in Romans), ii. He can be confident because God is faithful. Jesus work for us didnt just come out of thin air; it was planned from all eternity and described prophetically in the, iv. Foolish one: In the wording of the ancient Greek, it is even stronger: Fools! Some people think that Paul was disappointed by the results in Athens, and resolved to preach differently in Corinth. At the core of the gospel are things that. i. Freud was wrong when he said: And finally there is the painful riddle of death, for which no remedy at all has yet been found, nor probably ever will be. Compare that with Pauls triumphant declaration, Death is swallowed up in victory! c. I tell you a mystery: In the Biblical sense, a mystery is simply a thing to be understood by spiritual, rather than by merely human perception. The lack of adequate respiration resulted in severe muscle cramps, which hindered breathing even further. Lady Huntington, the rich and influential friend of Whitfield and Wesley, said she was going to heaven by an m: it isnt any noble; instead it is not many noble. Each of these were resuscitated from death, but none of them were. At its narrowest part the isthmus was crossed by a level track called the diolcus, over which vessels were dragged on rollers from one port to the other. Although Jesus bore the full wrath of God on the cross, iii. For others, there is resurrection and eternal life, but unto damnation. enduring word 1 corinthians 15 Best Selling Author and International Speaker. 2. There is another significant difference between Pauls ministry in Athens and his work in Corinth. Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? An objection commonly raised concerning the necessity of baptism is based on Paul's statement to the church at Corinth - cf. ( 1 Corinthians 4:1-2) Servants and stewards. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then death has power over Him and defeated Him. is perhaps mentioned in Acts 18:17, as the head of a Corinthian synagogue who was beaten because he protected Paul. The actual Corinthian factions may have centered around people in the congregation, not the different apostles who ministered to them. Those who feel called to rebuke sin and correct error in the church today should follow Pauls example. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. Click to enable/disable essential site cookies. Ironside says that the last trumpet was a figure of speech that came from the Roman military, when they broke camp. This chapter falls logically into two divisions having reference to fellow-laborers in God's field (1 Corinthians 3:1-9 a), and to fellow-workers in God's building (1 Corinthians 3:9b-17), with a short summary and recapitulation of the apostle's argument in the epistle to this point (1 Corinthians 3:18-23).THE FIELD. : Whether Paul or one of the other apostles brought the message, the result was the same. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. Jesus will take His rightful place as, He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet, : Paul here refers to the one-thousand-year reign of Jesus described in Revelation 20:1-6. b. 3. Cephas is the Aramaic word for Peter. What of the dead in Christ before that day? Everything good the Corinthian Christians have from God has come to them by. i. Paul quotes from an ancient, secular comedy play, Thais, written by Menander. Then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father. As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. 5. But largely, the smarter one sees himself, the less regard he has for God. But this is not necessarily the case at all. 1. This is the sting of death to you, unconverted ones, not that you are dying, but that after death is the judgment, and that you must stand before the Judge of the quick and dead to receive a sentence for the sins which you have committed in your body against him. (Spurgeon). Jesus paid our admission to the resurrection! So when he says, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. But how we receive grace will help to determine how effective the gift of grace is. Where is the wise? i. Morgan says well in his introduction to 1 Corinthians: The measure of failure on the part of the Church is the measure in which she has allowed herself to be influenced by the spirit of the age We are sometimes told to-day that what the Church supremely needs is that she should catch the spirit of the age. We dont need to waver, we dont need to change direction, we dont need to fall, and we dont need to quit. d. Is Christ divided? body, suited for life in heaven, not only life on this earth. It wasnt so much that they thought Apollos was great, but that they were great for following him. Either the present dead in Christ are with the Lord in a spiritual body, awaiting their final resurrection body; or because of the nature of timeless eternity, they have received their resurrection bodies already because they live in the eternal now.. He was a changed man, forgiven, cleansed, and full of love when he used to be full of hate. But the ancient Greek word for church (ekklesiai) was a non-religious word for an assembly of people, typically gathered together for a specific purpose. i. The point is plain: There is no wise man, no scribe, and no debater who can do what Jesus Christ has done. b. ii. If the cross doesnt seem strange to you, then you either dont understand how the cross was seen in Jesus day, or you dont understand who Jesus is. O Hades, where is your victory?. God isnt saying that it is better to be foolish or uneducated. Then life is lived only under the sun, as is considered in Ecclesiastes. 1. Crispus believed on the Lord with all his household (Acts 18:8), and was saved. ii. The expression means that he was public in his trials, and that this was exhibited to the universe. Those who insist that we must change the emphasis of the gospel because people cant relate to it today must realize that the people of Pauls day couldnt relate to his preaching either, yet he kept it up, and with great results. i. Paul brilliantly links together the ideas of sin, death, and our identification with Jesus death and resurrection in Romans 6:1-14. d. Through our Lord Jesus Christ: This defeat of death is only possible for those who live through our Lord Jesus Christ. So, he persecuted the church before being confronted by Jesus on the road to Damascus (Acts 9). ii. Changes will take effect once you reload the page. Conceivably, if Paul had not worked as hard as he did, the grace of God would still have been given to him, but in some measure it would be given. a. iv. But that the, : It would be strange and inappropriate for us to receive resurrection before Jesus. : The book of Acts does not record an occasion when Paul faced wild animals in an arena. Paul understood this principle well, writing, . What happened to change them? Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. b. I Corinthians 15:3-6 " For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. This Pauline letter is one of earliest writings in the New Testament, alongside his Thessalonian correspondence. In the Septuagint it is one of the words used to denote the people of Israel in their religious character as Yahwehs assembly. (Bruce in his. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website. Called to be an apostle is literally a called apostle. i. Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. In His work, He communicates three things to those who are in Christ Jesus. It is certain that a blind man is no judge of colours, a deaf man is no judge of sound, and a man who has never been quickened into spiritual life can have no judgment as to spiritual things. (Spurgeon). i. Clarke on Chloe: This was doubtless some very religious matron at Corinth, whose family were converted to the Lord; some of whom were probably sent to the apostle to inform him of the dissensions which then prevailed in the Church at that place., b. Contentions among you: The Corinthian church suffered under quarreling and conflict. These cookies collect information that is used either in aggregate form to help us understand how our website is being used or how effective our marketing campaigns are, or to help us customize our website and application for you in order to enhance your experience. It might be easy for us to think they werent even saved! ii. 2. i. is typical of Pauls letters, and draws from both Greek and Jewish customs. Paul was in Athens a day or two; he stayed in Corinth for a year and a half. During the time after His resurrection, but before His Ascension, Jesus met with His followers on many different occasions. , and because in Matthew 12:40 Jesus refers to, : Because this idea is so important, Paul repeats it twice in these two verses. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. If the cross doesnt seem strange to you, then you either dont understand how the cross was seen in Jesus day, or you dont understand who Jesus is. There is inherent power in the preaching of the true gospel, when it is received with faith. For those who are not in Jesus Christ, death still has its, . For believers, the promise is sure: we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man. The work of God in the Corinthian Christians could be seen by what they said, by what they learned, by a supernatural element in their lives, and by their expectant anticipation of Jesus return. We might also think saying called saints is mere flattery, Pauls way of preparing them for coming rebuke. The problem is addressed. If you are an unbeliever, death is not your friend; it is your enemy. You can also change some of your preferences. Paul doesnt only consider believers in Corinth to be the church of God. d. I have fought with beasts at Ephesus: The book of Acts does not record an occasion when Paul faced wild animals in an arena. This is due to the fact that grace is the source of peace. are significant. This may seem like a small distinction to us, but it must be an important distinction to God. The, Copyright - Enduring Word       |      . c. Since we will bear the image of the heavenly Man, the best example we have of what a resurrection body will be like is to see what Jesus resurrection body was like. Yes and no. For I delivered unto you first of all . We dont grow in sanctification by focusing on ourselves, but on Jesus, because Jesus became for us sanctification. i. Salvation is not the achievement of human wisdom; it is the embrace of Gods dramatic, unexpected act of love at Calvary. On all counts, the resurrection body wins! There may have been many more meetings that are not described in the gospels. d. Those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints: Paul continued his description of the Corinthian Christians. Instead of being torn apart, Paul pleads that they would be joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. v. It is possible there was not an actual Paul Party or Apollos Party or Peter Party or Jesus Party at Corinth. Why then are they baptized for the dead? How different for the Christian! You see your calling, brethren: Paul says to the Corinthians, Look at yourselves. He is describing them as they appear to the perishing man, the wise man of this age. The idea is that we have been purchased to permanent freedom. i. : Paul will later spend most of this letter rebuking sin and correcting error, yet he is still sincerely thankful for Gods work in the Corinthian Christians. In putting the strong and wise and great to shame, God does not exalt the weak and uneducated and worthless, but brings all of them down to one common level. (Calvin). for the Christians destiny. Besides, I do not know whether I baptized any other. Three glimpses of the bodys glory were seen, in Moses face, in Christs transfiguration, and in Stephens countenance. (Trapp), iii. The sting of death lay in this, that we had sinned and were summoned to appear before the God whom we had offended. Jesus does not belong to any one party. These cliques ignore the truth of unity over all diversity in the church, even if they were all in the name of spirituality. 1 Corinthians 15:1-11. They have not been chosen because they are so great, but because God is so great. This is not always the case; some of the most brilliant men of history have been Christians (such as Isaac Newton). We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. c. There are contentions among you: Though division is ungodly, it is not wrong to make distinctions between churches and ministers. We write a letter by saying who the letter is to first, and we conclude with writing who the letter is from. We are following in the footsteps of no one less than Jesus Himself. c. But that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment: The contrast to divisions is to be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. They are shown to have, at times, morality problems, doctrine problems, church government problems, spiritual gift problems, church service problems, and authority problems. I thank God Christ did not send me to baptize, : For Paul, preaching was more important than baptizing, though he was certainly not opposed to baptism. While our present bodies are adapted for the environment of time and earth, our resurrection bodies will be adapted for the environment of eternity and heaven. i. Whether there are degrees of glory, as it seems probable, so we shall certainly know, when we come to heaven. (Trapp). a. Paul came speaking plainly, without any attempt to dazzle with eloquence or intellect. 3. He currently serves now as the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Santa Barbara. Therefore, the resurrection of Jesus is not some add on to a more important work on the cross. As Paul said to Agrippa in Acts 26:8, Why should it be thought incredible by you that God raises the dead? But in the first century, saying message of the cross was about the same as saying message of the electric chair except worse! Not only did they see Jesus after His death, but they saw Him in a manner which revolutionized their faith and trust in Him. Therefore be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, : Because we know death is defeated and we have an eternal, resurrected destiny with Jesus Christ, we should stand firm and unshakable all the more for Him right now. It is true that knowing Jesus and loving Jesus can make this life better, but sometimes it will make this life worse. In terms of what love "is not," Paul says it is not self-seeking, short-tempered, and offensive. ii. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. g. So this corruptible must put on incorruption: Resurrection is a must for the Christians destiny. a. i. We dont find freedom by focusing on ourselves, because, He who glories, let him glory in the LORD, : Paul uses this reference to Jeremiah 9:23-24 to show that God did it all this way so that God would get the glory. It was prosperous, busy, and growing; it had a deserved reputation for the reckless pursuit of pleasure. a. So he was fired from or quit his job as ruler of the synagogue! You can also change some of your preferences. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. Over time, two things happened: the church lost its passion for Jesus and His gospel, and ivy began to grow on the archway. But they still were known as. Over time, two things happened: the church lost its passion for Jesus and His gospel, and ivy began to grow on the archway. Instead He rose. For the grace which was given to you by Jesus Christ: This was the specific reason for Pauls gratitude. Session 3: Superiority of the New Covenant. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain. He will. True wisdom isnt about getting smart. Gods wisdom is received in and through the person of Jesus. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence. i. We have all borne the image of the first, will also bear His resurrection image. By which you are also saved, if you hold fast that word I preached to you. (54-57) Resurrection is the final defeat of death. Answer: First Corinthians 13:8-10: "Love never fails. : The Corinthian Christians had their strong points, and they had their weak points. These cookies collect information that is used either in aggregate form to help us understand how our website is being used or how effective our marketing campaigns are, or to help us customize our website and application for you in order to enhance your experience. He establishes the certainty of our Saviour's resurrection, ver 1-11. (22-25) The wisdom of God, though foolish to the world, triumphs. Originally it said strongly, we preach Christ crucified. (14-17) Paul is grateful he did not happen to baptize more people in Corinth and thereby add more fuel to the partisan debate. i. Crucify him! if we had our wits about us, we would have shouted back, Dont crucify Him! Ancient writers considered Corinth rich, prosperous always great and wealthy (Mare). Though he was a pagan, Menander told the truth at this point, and Paul (more properly, the Holy Spirit) had no problem quoting a pagan who did tell the truth at a particular point. Since every cell of my body contains the DNA blueprint to make a whole new body, God can no doubt take one cell of my dead body and make a glorious resurrection body out of that old blueprint. There is much in 1 Corinthians that is unflattering to the Christians of Corinth. we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, mean that Paul predicted Jesus would come in his lifetime? Their problem with the resurrection also indicated the source of many of their moral problems. However, we learn something just from the meaning of the ancient Greek word " apostolos ," which has the idea of "a special ambassador." Paul was a "special ambassador" of Jesus Christ to the world and to the church. ii. That there be no divisions among you: The ancient Greek word for divisions is schismata. Although we derive our English word schism from this Greek word, it does not really mean a party or a faction; it properly means tear or rend. Pauls plea is that they stop ripping each other apart, tearing up the body of Christ. The great gospel of Jesus Christ, the very power of God unto salvation made empty and of. For Paul, the message of the cross was the gospel. Certain divines tell us that they must adapt truth to the advance of the age, which means that they must murder it and fling its dead body to the dogs which simply means that a popular lie shall take the place of an offensive truth. (Spurgeon). also implies there were some people or some things which might want to snatch the true gospel away from the Corinthian Christians. Famous athletic contests known as the Isthmian Games second only to the Olympian Games were held at the temple of Poseidon in Corinth every two years. i. Philippians 3:21 repeats Pauls theme: Who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself. They were, is mere flattery, Pauls way of preparing them for coming rebuke. iii. c. Enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and in all knowledge: This was the effect of grace in the life of the Corinthian Christians. ix. On the positive side, Paul says love is: patient, kind, and selfless. It doesnt matter if you get the praise or the encouragement; sometimes you will and sometimes you wont. If there is no resurrection, and no future judgment, then we may as well have the best time we can right now and Paul was a fool for putting himself in such discomfort and danger for the sake of the gospel. iii. Pauls third proof for the resurrection in this section is also compelling. Changes will take effect once you reload the page. Jesus made a special appearance to James (1 Corinthians 15:7). In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul deals more fully with what makes a person an apostle. Simply put, God the Father will always be God the. If the cross is the, iv. Paul thought, with all I have endured for Jesus Christ, if there is not a resurrection and a heavenly reward beyond this life, I am a fool to be pitied. Can we, in our super-comfortable age, say the same thing? The Corinthian Christians are called saints, but this isnt exclusive to them. In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul deals more fully with what makes a person an apostle. a. July 17, 2017 / by Enduring Word 1 Corinthians 14:1-19 - The Gifts of Tongues and Prophecy. We can follow Pauls logic point-by-point: If there is no principle of resurrection, then Jesus did not rise from the dead. When Paul explained it like this, it shows how foolish it is to focus on anyone but Jesus. This wisdom is often in contradiction to mans expectation. Yet, we can see by this that, that he baptized so few in Corinth, and he, as an evangelist, could. viii. 1. The Corinthian Christians did not deny Jesus resurrection; they denied. Paul praises God for their positives, and expresses confidence that God will take care of their weak points, and confirm them to the end, so that they would be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. is the other head of the human race, and Jesus brings resurrection to all that are under His headship. But in the first century, saying, is foolishness to those who are perishing, To us who are being saved it is the power of God, : Though it is a strange message, and regarded as foolish by the perishing, to those who trust in it and are, in the preaching of the true gospel, when it is received with faith. Significantly, Paul did not say, we baptize for the dead, but asked, . 1 CORINTHIANS - PROBLEMS OF A LOCAL CHURCH Click chart to enlarge Charts from Jensen's Survey of the NT - used by permission. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul now will show why this is true of the cross and the message of the gospel. Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. was the ultimate oxymoron, and this was what Paul preached! He knew that he was forgiven; yet he remembered his sin. Session 7: Christ's Poverty, Our Wealth. How can Paul be confident of this when the Corinthian church has so many problems? Instead, a stalk of wheat grows. We may request cookies to be set on your device. Evil company corrupts good habits: This is not a quotation from the Old Testament, or even from the words of Jesus. It was impossible for the Apostle to preach the gospel without presenting the message of the cross. They had been enriched by him with all spiritual gifts. the gospel Paul preached to them. Or were you baptized in the name of Paul. What of the dead in Christ before that day? This the church of Corinth was famous for. First, every day carefully consider the certainty of death. So also is the resurrection of the dead. In the Septuagint it is one of the words used to denote the people of Israel in their religious character as Yahwehs assembly. (Bruce in his Acts commentary). But death is an enemy nonetheless. c. We preach Christ crucified: Instead of giving the Jews and Greeks what they demanded in deliverance and wisdom, God gave them something unexpected: a crucified Messiah. : In Pauls day, the Jewish world was looking for a, . Click to enable/disable _gid - Google Analytics Cookie. I know thou art no more able to destroy me, but thou art sent as a messenger to conduct me to the golden gate wherein I shall enter and see my Saviours unveiled face for ever. It was founded on a promise of God, when He said for I have many people in this city (Acts 18:10). iii. Even if this is the case, the picture fits. Now, after preparing their minds for rebuke, acting like a good, experienced surgeon, who touches the wound gently when a painful remedy must be used, Paul begins to handle them more severely. (Calvin). . Death has no power over the person found in Jesus Christ. 2018 David Guzik No distribution beyond personal use without permission. You see that the mark of a child of God is that by the grace of God he is what he is; what do, His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, : Though grace made Paul what he was, Paul still, i. What is there wise (in the Greek sense of wisdom) about a crucified Messiah?. Click to enable/disable essential site cookies. Paul quotes from an ancient, secular comedy play, Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for some do not have the knowledge of God, : For Christians to resist Gods process of transformation by the renewing of our minds is to neglect the knowledge of God. That is of little importance to me, because I am not an apostle because of a popular election. d. To the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness: The Jews regarded Christ crucified as a stumbling block; perhaps this is better understood as an offense or a scandal. As noted above, in this chapter Paul deals both with Christ's resurrection (15:1-11) and with our own (15:12-58). The unspiritual, worldly conduct of the Corinthians . c. To put to shame the wise: This explains part of the pleasure of God described in 1 Corinthians 1:21. describes the Christians marching orders at the rapture of the Church. In its Gentile sense it denotes chiefly the citizen-assembly of a Greek city but it is its Jewish usage that underlies its use to denote the community of believers in Jesus.