The Apostle Paul scolds the Corinthian church for being unable to judge small legal cases between church members. He also makes a profound statement about us being in on the judgment of the world and the judgment of fallen angels.
"If any of you has a dispute with another, do you dare to take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the Lord's people?" (1 Corinthians 6:1) Paul feels that problems between church members should be handled by the church so that the problems can be settled according to what God's word says. I would also like to add that whenever we who are Christians go for counseling we should go to a Christian counselor. I've been to Christian counseling myself and the advice I was given came straight from the Scriptures, so it had the authority of God's word in it and the love of God in it. My counselor was a lady who loved the Lord and who prayed with me at every session, which allowed me to feel that her counsel was trustworthy and based on what God says in the Bible.
"Or do you not know that God's people will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life!" (1 Corinthians 6:2-3) This statement has been debated over by scholars and theologians for centuries. They have not come to an agreement over what it means. In yesterday's passage Paul said it was not his business to judge those who don't belong to Christ, that God would judge them. He said he was concerned only with recognizing sin within the church, a thing he feels any Christian who studies the Scriptures should be competent to do. So we can safely assume he does not mean we will be judging the world or angels during our lifetime on earth. We can also safely assume when he refers to angels he means the fallen angels.
So if God is the one who will judge those who have rejected His offer of salvation, and if God is the one who is going to judge the fallen angels, how then are we involved in this judgment? If scholars and theologians can't figure this out, I certainly can't, but I lean toward the idea that on the day of judgment we will witness and give our "amen" to the judgment the Lord passes on those persons and angels who have rebelled against Him. In our culture we are allowed to go to the courtroom or watch televised trials in order to witness the judge handing down the sentence on the person who has been convicted. If we feel the person is guilty and deserves his sentence we tend to feel satisfied with the proceedings and we may even nod our heads in agreement that justice has been carried out. As children of the living God I believe we will have the right to sit in God's courtroom while He hands down the verdict on ungodly persons and on fallen angels and I think we will be able to nod our heads and say "amen" in agreement that justice has been carried out.
"Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, do you ask for a ruling from those whose way of life is scorned in the church? I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers? But instead, one brother takes another to court---and this in front of unbelievers!" (1 Corinthians 6:4-6) It is generally accepted by scholars that Paul is not speaking about criminal matters, since in verse 2 he calls them "trivial cases". These are simple civil cases that in today's world we might take to small claims court. Serious matters would need to be handled by the proper authorities because they would involve jail sentences, even death sentences in cases of capital crimes. So Paul is saying something like, "Why are you airing out your dirty laundry in front of unbelievers? Many of you have been Christians long enough to know the Scriptures quite well. You should be able to decide these small cases according to the laws of God. When you angrily argue with each other in public courtrooms you behave just like unbelievers. The unbelievers sitting in the audience won't find anything attractive about your attitude and that may cause them not to ever be interested in learning about Christ."
"The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers and sisters." (1 Corinthians 6:7-8) I don't think Paul is telling us to allow people to walk all over us. We have to keep in mind he is talking about small legal matters. Has someone who claims to be a Christian ever cheated you or overcharged you? I think most or all of us have had this happen. It's a lot more hurtful when a Christian cheats us than when a lost person cheats us because we expect better behavior from our brothers and sisters in Christ. But it does happen sometimes. When it happens, and if we can't resolve the issue, Paul feels we should let the matter go and just give it to God. God will likely ensure that the person who cheated us will get cheated himself somewhere down the line. It is not our place to take vengeance or to sit in church and glare at the person who cheated us and feel unforgiving toward him. That's not going to accomplish anything except keep us from enjoying the fullness of the joy we should have in Christ. So when small legal matters come up between believers, and if we arrive at no resolution, Paul thinks it would be better to let it go than to go to court and allow unbelievers to settle our case. He feels we should be mature enough in Christ to let it go and leave it up to God.
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