The Apostle Paul thanked God greatly for the evident grace in the lives of the Corinthian believers (I Corinthians 1:4). Even so, as often is the case with every Christian, they had just as evident a need for correction as well. Consequently, Paul rebuked them for the contentions that had arisen among them as reportedContinue reading “A Warning Against Contentious Behavior”
Category Archives: I Corinthians
A Steward of the Manifold Grace of God
The Corinthians had some question about spiritual gifts and Paul took time in his letter to respond. He first reminded them that before becoming Christians, they were “carried away unto… dumb idols, even as ye were led” (I Corinthians 12:2). Simply speaking, they knew not Christ. But the new birth changes their relationship to GodContinue reading “A Steward of the Manifold Grace of God”
A Soldier’s Life for Me
As he closed out his letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong” (I Corinthians 16:13). Every exhortation in this brief series of commands is comprised of language with a military origin. Paul frequently used such language because it was readily understandable given theContinue reading “A Soldier’s Life for Me”
The Wisdom of God and the Wisdom of the World
Man cannot find out God by his own wisdom. In fact, God has decreed it so for he tells us that “in the wisdom of God the world by (its) wisdom knew not God” (I Corinthians 1:21). It could not be any other way for how could the eternal God, infinite in wisdom and understanding,Continue reading “The Wisdom of God and the Wisdom of the World”
Your Labor is Not in Vain
Paul declared the certainty of the resurrection to the believer and our gathering together unto the Lord when he returns in triumph over death (I Corinthians 15:51-57). In light of that he exhorts his readers, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye knowContinue reading “Your Labor is Not in Vain”
Walking in Righteousness
Paul asks a question of the Corinthians as a platform to provoke them to right thinking. “Know ye not the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners,Continue reading “Walking in Righteousness”
We Shall All Be Changed!
Paul had instructed the Corinthian believers on both the reality (I Corinthians 15:4) and the necessity (I Corinthians 15:14) of Christ’s bodily resurrection from the dead. He also confirmed the inevitability of the believer’s resurrection (I Corinthians 15:20) and the nature of that resurrected body (I Corinthians 15:42-44). But what about those believers still aliveContinue reading “We Shall All Be Changed!”
Avoiding Sexual Sin
After reminding the Corinthian believers of their deliverance from the sins that previously characterized their lives and the lives of those among whom they now lived, Paul gave a stern warning to depart from sexual sin. He wrote to them, “Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he thatContinue reading “Avoiding Sexual Sin”
The Gospel
The Apostle Paul writes to the church at Corinth “I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand” (I Corinthians 15:1; emphasis added). The word “gospel” is mentioned 101 times in the New Testament. Yet for all its repetition and teaching, it has comeContinue reading “The Gospel”
The Inevitability of Death
In his teaching on the resurrection to the Corinthian believers, Paul makes two statements that give insight to the origin and universality of death. “For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive” (IContinue reading “The Inevitability of Death”
From the Chaplain 