I Corinthians Intro and 1:1-17
Introduction to I Corinthians Notes
Intro
Where it began
Acts 18:1-17
Details
Written by Paul in around the spring of 54AD
Main Theme:
Paul wants this church, divided because of the arrogance of its more powerful members, to drop their divisive one-upmanship and work together for the advancement of the gospel.
Outline Coverage
Letter Opening
Salutation (1:1–3)
Thanksgiving (1:4–9)
God’s Wisdom for a Divided Church (1:10–4:21)
An Appeal for Unity in the Light of Corinthian Factions (1:10–17)
Salutation (1:1-3)
1 Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes,
There is some evidence of a crisis between Paul and the Corinthians and thinks he intends to defend his apostleship and re-establish his authority.
Sosthenes
Sosthenes, the co-sender of the letter, may be the “synagogue ruler” mentioned in Acts 18:17, who was beaten by the Jews when the Roman proconsul Gallio refused to hear their complaint against Paul.
2 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:
Sanctifiedmeans “holy people.”
Something “holy” is set apart from evil and dedicated to God’s service.
In the OT, God set Israel apart from all other nations (Ex. 19:5–6).
Together
His intent is to strike at the independent spirit among those in Corinth who wanted to go their own way.
He reminds them that they are under the Lordship of Jesus Christ and they exist in relation to other churches.
Throughout the letter Paul gives instructions with reference to the commonly held teachings of all the churches.
What he says to the Corinthians he says to all.
They are part of a much larger picture.
Paul speaks collectively to the church of God in Corinth, not to any one house church, and he reminds them that they are only one assembly of believers among many.
Because the Corinthians have a tendency toward self-centeredness and disunity, Paul reminds them that in Christ they are spiritually united to all Christians in every place (see also 1 Cor. 4:17; 7:17; 11:16; 14:33, 36).
The statement that Jesus is both “their Lord and ours,” reminds the Corinthians of their solidarity with other believers and prepares the way for the exhortation to unity in 1:10.
3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Grace indicates God’s unmerited favor and peace flows from grace, presupposing a former state of rebellion.
Thanksgiving (1:4-9)
4 I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, 5 that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge - 6 even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you-
Verse 5
Enriched in him
In 4:8 Paul will say that the Corinthians’ spiritual riches have led to an inappropriate pride.
Paul’s thankfulness here shows that the problem lay not with the gifts God had given them but with the way the Corinthians used those gifts.
Speech and Knowledge
That Paul singles out the enrichments of “speech” and “knowledge,” surely has to do with the misuse of these gifts in Corinth, which becomes apparent in the letter.
The most prized gifts among the Corinthians likely contributed to their divisions in some way, yet Paul recognizes the genuineness of these gifts and their divine origin.
Verse 6
The presence of these gifts also bore testimony to the effectiveness of Paul’s message about Christ.
7 so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8 who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Verse 7
Not lacking in any gift
He implies that many spiritual gifts are “enrichments” of speaking abilities, knowledge, or skills that people had before they became Christians.
As you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ
The term rendered “eagerly wait” always occurs in eschatological contexts in Paul.
This implies that spiritual gifts are given as temporary provisions until Christ returns (see 13:10).
They could eagerly wait for Him because they have been made blameless by Christ
Verse 8
Will Sustain
Same word as confirmed in verse 6
Guiltless
Col 1:22
9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Faithful
The faithful God who saved them will be the one who “keeps them strong” to the end (1:8).
That God is faithful means that he is worthy of our belief, trust, and devotion.
The Corinthians have a long way to go before their behavior matches their status before God (1 Cor. 3:2–3a), but Paul is confident that God, who is faithful, will make them what they should be.
Transition to verses 10-17
But one cannot enjoy fellowship with Christ while being at odds with other members of His body (Matt. 5:23–24).
So it is on this note that Paul made his transition from what God had done in the past and will do in the future to what the Corinthians needed to do in the present, namely, mend their divisions.
Division (1:10-17)
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.
Name of Jesus
This is the 10th reference to Christ in the first 10 verses, leaving no doubt as to the One Paul believed should be the source and focus of Corinthian unity.
United
Their disunity is the very antithesis of their fellowship with the Son and status as God’s holy people.
The word translated “ united” carries with it the notion of reconciliation that brings about the restoration of relationships.
Same mind
He wants them to embrace the “mind of Christ” (cf. 2:16), that is, to take up a perspective conditioned by the cross
Greek translation
The Greek text that underscores the need for unity. The text reads literally, “that you speak the same thing and that you be joined together in the same mind and same outlook.”
11 For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers.
Chloe’s people
Chloe’s identity and her location (Ephesus? Corinth?) are unknown, as well as whether these “people” are friends, business associates, family, or from her household.
12 What I mean is that each one of you says, "I follow Paul," or "I follow Apollos," or "I follow Cephas," or "I follow Christ."
Apparently the Corinthian Christians were divided into factions on the basis of who had baptized them (vv. 14–17).
13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?
The three questions in this verse were rhetorical and expected a definite no
14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name. 16 (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.)
According to John 4:2, Jesus did not baptize, but left it to His disciples. This was usually Paul’s practice too.
17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.
Not to baptize
While Paul considers baptism important (Rom. 6:3; Col. 2:12), it is subordinate to the proclamation of the gospel.
The Corinthians need to center their lives on the gospel, not on the various preachers in whom they can take pride.
Words of eloquent wisdom
The art of rhetorical persuasion was highly valued in the Greco-Roman world, and professional orators frequented large cities like Corinth, giving impressive displays of their ability to entertain and instruct.
Paul’s proclamation of the gospel failed to measure up to these standards.
This failure, however, served to place the spotlight on the power of the message itself (see also 2:1–5), for the Holy Spirit so empowered Paul’s words that they awakened faith in Christ and changed people’s very hearts and lives.
Paul’s qualification in 1:17, that he did not preach the gospel “with words of human wisdom,” leads into his extended exposition of the gospel as God’s wisdom and the solution to their problem of divisions.
The divisions in Corinth can be healed if the Corinthians see the distinction between the world’s wisdom and God’s wisdom.
Emptied of its power
For Paul, the effectiveness of proclamation lay not in the manipulative rhetorical devices of the speaker but rather in the persuasive message of the cross proclaimed in the power of the Spirit (2:1–5)