1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Most Bible students, when they come to the Corinthian letters, see a church with real difficulties.  It is not hard to see why.  This church struggled with:

·        Serious divisions, Ch. 1-4.

·        Seeming unwillingness to deal with open, unrepentant sin, Ch. 5.

·        Church members who were taking each other to court, Ch. 6.

·        Questions about marriage, Ch. 7

·        Difficulty in dealing with “conscience” differences in the body, Ch. 8-10.

·        Abuses at the Lord’s Table, Ch. 11.

·        Differences in the use of spiritual gifts that were evident in the worship services, Ch. 12-14.

·        Theological issues surrounding the resurrection, Ch. 15.

·        And doubts about Paul’s commitment to their church, Ch. 16.

So sure, they had their problems.  But there’s another way to look at it.  The Corinthian Church was very similar to churches I have known of in the United States today.  The problems were not and are not uncommon.  And the fact that the problems were exposed and that Scripture was being applied was also good, unlike some of the churches I have known that do not face up to the judgment of our Lord whose eyes burn with fire as He walks among the churches (Rev. 1:14).

But there’s something else to be said about the Corinthian Church.  They were not the people they used to be (1 Cor. 6:11).  They were sanctified (set apart) in Christ Jesus, called saints along with every other believer (1:2). The grace of God in Christ Jesus had already been at work in their lives (1:4-7) by which …

·        They were made rich in Christ, v5.  They had not come up short of other churches in terms of the preaching and teaching.

·        Their changed lives were a confirmation that the gospel had been effective among them, v6.  As always, true faith had produced good works, even though there were still works to be done.

·        They were missing no gift from Christ as they awaited His return, v7.  They were a church full of hope, though they needed clarification in that area.

Thus Paul had confidence about this church, similar to what he had said to the Philippian church, a church with seemingly fewer issues.  Paul was confident Christ would complete the work of establishing them blameless in that day of our Lord Jesus Christ which they longed for (v8).  The basis of this confidence of Paul was in God Himself who is always faithful.  He had called them into fellowship with His Son; He could be trusted to complete the work (cf. Phil. 1:6).

Problems in a church are not uncommon.  And they are not a reason for believers to run.  It is a time to expose ourselves and our fellowships to the sword of the Lord (Rev. 1:16).  Let us hope these studies will aid in this ministry.