In verses 10-12, Paul begins by giving an appeal for unity. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them; that they may be one, just as We are one; I in them and You in Me, that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me. (NKJV). Christ did not send me to take scalps or to cut notches on my gun handle as to how many converts I've won." The Protestant Reformation had its beginnings in 1517 (see Chapter 1 0). For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. All that mattered to Paul was Jesus! Now, here the apostle makes very clear that the tendency among groupies is to distort the meaning of symbols. He said so himself. 5-Members going to pagan courts to settle disputes. Its all about who looks the best, how much money is made, and how big our churches are. Some considered Paul their leader, others Apollos, still others Peter. At that time it was under the leadership of its founder, Dawson Trotman, and it was my privilege and delight to be a close friend of his, to have spent a good deal of time with him and to come under the influence of his teaching and his methods. Ones honor and reputation were valued highly and if someone attacked your reputation it was expected that you would defend yourself and retaliate by publicly bashing your attacker. 1 Corinthians 1:10: I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.. Like the world, Christians are too concerned with being right and having our way. It wasnt even about secondary doctrine (the second coming, the nature of baptism). Therefore, the only basis upon which you can get Christians to agree is by setting before them the Person of the Lord Jesus, and calling them back to that fundamental base. In the same way, thats not the way the Church was meant to be fitted together. After all, he was one of the first apostles that Jesus himself called." Website 2023 by Ray Stedman Ministries. The search went on until nightfall, but no answer came to their urgent calls. Thank you, Father, for this time here contemplating the cross. In what ways have we failed to de-paganize? It seems like it would be better to ask in what ways have we been re-paganized. For example, in the first section from 1:10 to 4:21, it's errors regarding division. In fact, these divisions are a sign of worldliness. He gathers disciples and establishes a church, a meeting place for educating his disciples. So undoubtedly there was a big group that followed Paul. For example, in the first section from 1:10 to 4:21, it's errors regarding division. WebThe Christians at Corinth were dividing the church by pledging their loyalties to different celebrities. Members follow him blindly and whatever they do seems right to them. WebThe members of the Corinthian church we disunited because they were pledging their allegiance to human leaders rather than God. Their conflicts undoubtedly had its theological and philosophical dimensions, but it was social as well, human and petty, high on pride and low on love (Polhill 233). This is what Paul does here. This is really what is behind his disclaimer on baptism in 1 Cor 1:14-16. On a large jigsaw puzzle of a thousand pieces or more, its almost impossible to put it together upside down! [Then he thinks of another group that he had baptized] (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Now, almost every group does this. They are springing up all over the place, including Downunder (Australia) where I live here in Brisbane. Every piece of that jigsaw puzzle is different, isnt it? How can the presence of divisions be described as worldly?, Bruce Winter details the Greco-Roman practice of discipleship in the second chapter of After Paul Left Corinth. Having listened to Pauls words and the prayer of the Lord Jesus Christ, how important is unity to each of us today? 6-Members defiling the Lords Supper. They were caused by Cliques (1:12; 3:4). If you will turn in your Bibles with me to John 17:20-23, I will read the passage to you. He called to ask whether I thought that would be right or wrong to do. When daylight again appeared, they looked for him with renewed energy but still without success. Sometimes two or three hundred sailors, all of them Christians, would be there. There he indicates that the problem with cliquishness is that it tends to overemphasize the significance of the human leader. We have Jesus only groups even today. There are still others today who follow after some school of thought. In Matthew 12:25 the Lord Jesus says, Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and any city or house divided against itself shall not stand.. So they said, "When Peter came, we really felt that we were on solid ground. When you divide up among men you lose something, that is what he is saying. They embraced the values of their Roman society, which divided over ethnicity (e.g., Jews vs. Gentiles) and social rank (wise vs. foolish, powerful When the Corinthians divided into factions, it wasnt so much about core doctrine (nature of God, nature of Christ, the Gospel, the nature of man). We must allow him the privilege of doing that. I do not think things have improved much since the first century. I would agree that we find ourselves in much the same situations as those listening to the Greek philosophers/orators. But when doctrinal beliefs keep churches from working together to further the gospel. Then there were the stylists, those who were attracted by the different kinds of preaching, and they had especially been drawn to Apollos. When I say worn out I mean people say that it is not usable in the modern world so its words become little more than foot rests in the pew. It is well known that division in the church of Corinth was over leadership. I told them that it is a concern of mine as well. It would be great if all of you would think like me, but unfortunately there are stubborn ones among you, there are depraved ones among you, there are those who have different backgrounds than I have, and some of you just do not think like I do! Im not saying its wrong to stick to what you believe. Paul is going to go on to describe this radical force that is so different than anything else there is nothing like it in the world. When the Corinthians divided into factions, it wasnt so much about core doctrine (nature of God, nature of Christ, the Gospel, the nature of man). In desperation, they returned and held a meeting. His dissertation was published as Jesus the Bridegroom by Pickwick Books in 2012. (I suppose that if Dio were commenting on the modern world, he would describe the wretched bloggers shouting abuse at the temple of WordPress!). Obviously, here at Peninsula Bible Church we cannot do that. So we have the possibility for this very thing right here. It took four viewpoints to report his earthly life and ministry accurately enough to us. Gods people who are moving in revival (like we have been to experiencing right here in Brisbane these last few months) have no qualms about getting together to see the nation of Australia come to Christ. (1Corinthians 1:17 RSV). Paul did not want to present the Gospel as an orator, competing for students as they did. These kinds of things happen when there are divisions in a church. RayStedman.org/permissions. What should our evaluation of a ministry look like I wonder if its not by numbers? For instance, in the Greco-Roman culture the practice of teacher-disciple relationships was often common and so many Christian converts in Corinth would associate themselves with a particular teacher and be under their discipleship. We are so proud of them when they look right, but when things start to fall apart, the church begins to fall apart as well. Paul, however, was a good leader. The most well known one is having worship on Sundays instead of the Sabbath. WebAccording to Paul, the communitys problems were the consequence of the Corinthians mistaken belief that they had already been exalted. Paul wants the Corinthian church to mend the broken relationships that have been caused by the divisions among its members. Do we need to be looking for results? If I am not out of line I seem to remember that Constantine played a large role in allowing Pagan influences back into the Christian Life. Maybe if they are getting rid of core doctrine it is a justifiable anger but I can definitely see how the church is very much the same as 2000 years ago. So he says, "I didn't baptize many of you. All rights reserved. Now, we all have our favorite preacher, and up to a point that is not wrong. A number of churches in this postmodern era have begun to resemble the Corinthian church in alarming ways. Will we do so by the strength which God alone can and will supply? One of the celebrities was Paul himself some believers at Corinth actually claimed to be his followers. Paul does not want to be considered a philosopher who is gathering disciples, nor does he want that for Apollos or Peter or any man. The Protestant Reformation had its beginnings in 1517 (see Chapter 1 0). Unfortunately, this has effected our outreach. The countless denominations and different beliefs of Christianity are often not appealing to non-believers. 3- The presence of an immoral member. If Paul were to visit one of these churches, he would see a good-looking man in a custom suit standing over everybody else, and his mind would go straight to the orators of his day. 11 For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. In fact, Paul never claims disciples. The Gentiles coming into this new Church do not seem to be able to see the differences between it and a Greco-Roman philosopher gathering disciples and educating them in a particular philosophy. The Corinthian church had many problems, and most of them were the result of pride and placing so much emphasis on social status. In verses 14 to 16, Paul uses himself as an example. Now to this, there should be a division that exists considering that there are some denominations that do teach correct biblical doctrine, while other churches deviate from correct biblical doctrine in order to teach their own false doctrines. In comparison to modern churches, its easy to say that there are hardly any divisions among Christians and differing churchesbut could these divisions still exist today? To resolve this issue, he encourages communal love. I. PAULS APPEAL FOR UNITY (verses 10-12). WebThe Corinthians were basically making a mockery of Communion. It is popularized in the movie Mean Girls. One eye is purple and swollen! How many of you have ever put together a jigsaw puzzle? In verse 10 we see both Pauls affection for the Corinthian church, and his authority as an apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul gives the church a stern warning about their actions and the proper way to participate. If someone comes on preaching the doctrines that were emphasized during the Reformation, he will get a great following of people who think that the Reformation was the whole sum and substance of all great Christian truth. For permission to use this content, please review They love to listen to someone because he turns them on emotionally. It is possible that these divisions represent competing house churches, some founded by Paul, some by Apollos. As bad as it is, it makes sense for the people of Pauls day to be concerned with whatever home church has the best orator, and then argue for them to other potential followers.
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