1 Corinthians 1:1-9
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SLIDE 2
1 cor 1:1
Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes, To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
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INTRO:
In , we get the account of Paul leaving Athens and heading west to the nearby city of Corinth. Corinth was a major urban center in the ancient Mediterranean and one of the most culturally diverse cities around… made up mostly with both Greeks and Latins.
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It was a prosperous mercantile community and a trade hub for many nations. A lot of people from many different nations, cultures and religions were coming and going on a regular basis.
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When Paul came to Corinth, he met fellow Jews named Aquila and Priscilla, who were also tentmakers and he stayed with them, and worked with them.
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As was his tradition, he spent every Sabbath in the synagogue, trying his best to reason with both the Jews and the Greeks who were there.
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After having too much conflict in the synagogue, he declared that he would now take the Gospel to the Gentiles....
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While with the Gentiles, ministering to the Gentiles… the the ruler of the synagogue believed in the Lord, along with his whole household.
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Amazing things were happening amongst both the Jew and the Gentiles… and amongst the rich and the poor.
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Paul stayed for 6 months… and by the time he had departed, the church in Corinth had been established.
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The town of Corinth was very diverse… and that diversity brought certain levels of division into the church. In Rome, the believers were encouraged to live in unity, despite their differences, as a testimony to God..
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But in Corinth, the difference in social class brought with it, conflicts and divisions in the church. In fact, after the introductory greeting, Paul introduced this letter by pleading with the Corinthians… to no longer be divided amongst themselves.
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They were divided on the nature of their leaders… they were divided on issues of sexual morality… they were divided on what they ate… they were divided on worship etiquette… they were divided on doctrine, especially in terms of the H.S… and, they were divided on how the Gospel was to be applied in their lives.
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In a way… they probably reflect divisions, conflicts and differences that some of us have seen, time and time again, as we have grown up in the church.
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So, practically speaking… 1 Corinthians will, in many ways, be a letter that we can relate to.
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The letter begins with one of Paul’s typical introductions:
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SLIDE 3
Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes,
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Sometimes Paul would introduce himself as a servant of God, called to be an apostle… and sometimes he would simply declare himself an apostle by the will of God
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The only exceptions would be his letter to Philemon, where he introduced himself as a prisoner for Christ… and to the Philippians, along with Timothy, he referred to himself simply as a servant of Christ.
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These introductions are important… especially when they are followed by messages of rebuke and correction. To the people of this city specifically, many would have had trouble ascribing such authority to a guy who made a living as a blue collar laborer.
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When Paul planted this church… he was supporting himself as a tent maker. And yet, amongst the elite culture of this city, a person of authority and education wouldn’t have lowered themselves to such a humble estate. They wouldn’t have done a job that got them dirty, or sweaty… and in deed, that’s what Paul did.
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In part, this is why they divided themselves… they saw different leaders and teachers as having more validity… Maybe they claimed Peter as their authority, because he was the first Apostle to minister to Gentiles… Maybe they claimed Apollos as their authority, because he was an impressive and respectable orator.
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In fact… this division would be the first thing that Paul confronts them on… encouraging them to take their eyes off of the man, and putting them instead, on Christ.
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And yet… Paul needed to have a voice. He needed to speak with authority. He needed the church to recognize that his authority was not of himself, but of Christ directly.
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So he reminded them, that he was an apostle… that is, one who is sent with a message… and he reminds them, that the one who sent him, was Jesus Christ… and he reminded them, that his service as an apostle sent by Jesus… was indeed… THE WILL OF GOD.
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So… in this letter… he tells the church in Corinth who he is… ‘an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God’… and then he tells them who they are… “sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all who call upon Jesus as Lord”
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SLIDE 4
To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Cor 1.
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One thing that Christianity did, was to take possession of language that was common and generic, and make it theirs.
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The word for student, or disciple… or discipleship… was a common word used across various platforms. You could be a disciple of secular philosophy… or of pagan worship… or of the Christian faith.
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But now a day… we no longer have to clarify. The church has pretty much claimed this word as their own… and the application of discipleship has to do with the teachings of Jesus Christ.
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The word Gospel was a pronunciation of good news. It was most commonly used with the army would return from a victorious battle, and they would come into the city, amongst much fanfare, declaring the gospel of their great victory.
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But early on, especially through the efforts of the Apostle Paul… the Gospel became synonomous with the prophesied and fulfilled, redemptive story of Jesus Christ the Messiah.
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The word ‘church’ is another example. To the Greek culture, church… or ekklesia… was a common term applied to any form of assembly. In the riot in Ephesus was called an ekklesia… a church… three times… in verses 32, 39, and 41.
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The literal implication of the word ‘church’ is assembly… it refers to the gathering together of different people into one place. Paul tells the church in Corinth… a church that is divided in so many ways..
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That they gather, in spite of their differences… under the rule and ownership of God.
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They are ‘GOD’S ASSEMBLY’. - and what made them GOD’S ASSEMBLY? - It was the fact that they were sanctified in Christ Jesus, and called together, to be saints with all the other believers.
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Now… there are some things written to the early church that have an unique application apart from our current, modern church.
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The church has reformed and split up into different groups, mostly as a response to differences of doctrine. The Orthodox broke away from the Catholics on the terms of images and icons. The Orthodox accused the Catholic church of idolatry because they prayed to many different images… so the Orthodox church replaced images with icons… which were not statues or carved images… but were simply, picture.
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Many years later, the biggest break came when a guy named Martin Luther realized that the Bible teaches salvation by grace, and not works… - So he pushed against the corruption of the main national church, and eventually… the Lutheran church was born.
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Other splits arose over baptism, communion, the power of the church leaders, and the unhealthy alliances with secular government.
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As the church spread into many different cultures, and as those cultures developed over time… the divisions multiplied even more… - Now a days, there are countless divisions and denominations that virtually agree upon the same thing in terms of the most vital doctrines…
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And yet… there are also, countless divisions and denominations that don’t believe in the authority of God’s word at all… and have forged for themselves, an ever changing belief of right and wrong. Many of these organization, take their lead from the voice of government and culture, and have, in a subtle way, bridged that necessary separation between church and state.
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We live in a different world than the one the church of Corinth was in… and so, whenPaul tells them of their identity… it has a different ring to us, than it did to them.
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Just like in Rome… a church comprised of two polar opposite groups… the church in Corinth had a very diverse membership.
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But they were the only church… the idea of breaking up into different racial groups.... or into different social classes… or into groups that differences of opinion… - well, that just wan’t a reality to them.
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Instead… they just divided themselves w/in the midst of their own fellowship. The most pronounced example of this is in , when Paul confronts them on their manner of practicing the Lord’s Supper.
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The rich came together… ate and drank of their own food and wine… they were filled and drunk with empty plates and empty cups… while the poor who were unable to bring anything, had nothing. - Paul accused them of despising the house of God… and humiliating their brothers and sisters who had nothing.
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To this church… bent on internal division… Paul reminds them of their identity… right off the bat.
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This is who YOU REALLY ARE… in spite of the way you act… - You are called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:
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Paul declared this to a church on the front end of the great denominational fracture… but what are we supposed to do with this information?
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Paul called upon the churches he led to do two things: 1. hold to sound doctrine, and 2. to be united. - But we live in a world where, after the church as a whole lost sound doctrine… and splintered into many factions in order to regain sound doctrine.. - And we, as the universal church, exist in the form of thousands upon thousands of different labels…
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…How are we to come to terms with this identity?
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We are not just saints, called together in this building… or even under the umbrella of the this organization…
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We are called to be saints together with all those who, in every place, call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:
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I think, what this boils down to, for us… is a heart issue..
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Human beings are wired for team unity and team loyalty. A part of team loyalty, is dislike for the opposite team. When that mentality creeps into the church… we become loyal towards our little group… and loyal to our particular denomination… and loyal to our specific doctrinal viewpoints..
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When this happens… we look upon others with disdain.
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Now… let me define this clearly… and let me base this on something Jesus said:
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“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
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Not everyone who calls themself a Christian, is a Christian. Not everyone who uses the terminology, is a Christian. Not everyone who goes to church, or reads a Bible, or dresses a certain way, or observes certain religious practices.... is a Christian.
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Church buildings are full of people who are never called to an absolute belief in the Gospel. Church buildings are full of people who equate Christianity with ‘being good’. Entire denominations deny the Gospel’s call to repentance and imperative call to Lordship by faith.
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So, when I talk about our identity, along side of all those who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ… I’m talking about people who truly believe in the Gospel of Jesus… the authority of the scriptures… and the reality of our redemption by faith and repentance.
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On a heart level… sometimes we need our attitudes and our opinions to be tempered with love and compassion… when we think upon other Christians… or other denominations…
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If you background is pentecostal or charismatic… the Baptists are not your enemies. If you background is Baptist… the charismatics are not your enemies. If your background is doctrinally reformed… those who are not reformed… are not your enemies. If you come from a church has a mystical view of communion or baptism… the churches that have a memorial view of communion or baptism, are not your enemies..
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If they believe in the Gospel… and if they call our Lord Jesus Christ… their Lord… then we are on the same team… We are all Saints. - There is only one football team… (Marian).. the New Orleans Saints. (joke)
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On a heart level… Paul’s words to Corinth in verse two… should temper our opinions of other Gospel believing Christians…
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But on a practical level… in the place where we will actually have the opportunity to practice this… we should recognize the unity and camaraderie that we have here… with one another.
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I HAVE FOUR QUICK POINTS FROM THE SCRIPTURES TO HIGHLIGHT THIS…
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1. Our commitment to one another… serves as a witness to others..
SLIDE 6
By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
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2. Our commitment to one another… serves to demonstrate and experience… the compassion and love of Jesus.
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SLIDE 7
So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.
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3. Our commitment to one another… should blur the lines of intersectionality from our midst.
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SLIDE 8
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
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4. Our commitment to one another… should abound in demonstrations of love.
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SLIDE 9
Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.
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Let’s continue on into Paul’s introduction… beginning at verse 4
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SLIDE 10
I Cor 1.4
I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge— even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you—
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SLIDE 11
so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
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Paul not only reminds them of who he is… and who they are … but here, he reminds them of what Jesus has done for them.
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He isn’t thanking God for their works… or their faith… or their diligence… or their obedience.. or their prayers… or their generosity… or their acts of worship…
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Everything that Paul gives thanks for, here in these 6 verse… are things that JESUS HAS DONE in them, and for them.
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This whole introduction… sets a tone. It establishes a standard. In a subtle way, as we know the context and content of this letter… we can see that Paul intentionally set before them.... - the high standard of their position in Christ.
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THERE’S ABOUT TO BE A CONTRAST… between this work that Jesus has done in them… - and the reality of how it’s being demonstrated in their lives.
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Paul is about to address their division, their immorality, their lawsuits, their disputes, and their doctrines. In some areas, this church is really off the rails..
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But, in terms of their identity in Christ… nothing has changed. By the grace of God, they are still a people who are enriched in God.. in all speech and knowledge… they are not lacking any gift, they are sustained… they are guiltless before God, and they are recipients of God’s faithfulness..
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This is the standard. This the reality of what Christ has accomplished for them.
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And for you and I… it’s the same.
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This is the reality of who we are in Jesus. Maybe our lives don’t always reflect this… maybe we are living in a true manner to our identity in Jesus…
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God declares us guiltless… but our behavior is contrary to that… God has enriched us with the stuff that really matters… but we don’t embrace that… instead, we bemoan our miserable situation… God has sustained us, and in our despair, we cry out that all is lost.
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This is a declaration of God’s grace. And as the NT has shown us repeatedly… this is our motivation for living in a manner that pleases, and glorifies God.. - Not the rules… not the demands… but rather, the grace.
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The grace of God determines our identity with God… and our identity with God, is a pretty amazing thing. Who we are to Him… and what we are as a people who are forgiven… And who we are as a family of saints who are called…
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All of this… is amazing… if, we are able to recognize it… - AND WHEN WE TRULY RECOGNIZE IT… - WELL, it should change us.
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Let’s consider that change… let’s consider the grace that is ours… let’s consider all the amazing things that God has done for us… as we close this service with a time of worship, reflection, and communion.
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end.