Today we begin the book of 1 Corinthians and in it Paul must address some problems in the church. It is believed by many scholars that he wrote the letter while staying in Ephesus, somewhere around 53AD-57 AD.
As always, he begins with a salutation, "Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, to the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be His holy people, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ---their Lord and ours: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Corinthians 1:1-3) Sosthenes is likely the man who transcribed Paul's letter as he dictated it.
Since Paul is going to deal with some bad behavior in the church, he first reminds the church members who they are. They are sanctified by Christ Jesus. They are called to be His holy people. Sometimes in this mad world it's easy to forget who we truly are and to sink down to the world's level, but Paul's intention is to remind his readers that they are the children of the living God. Children of the living God must look like Christ, not like the world.
Paul also reminds them how thankful he is for them. He doesn't want these church members to feel like he is beating up on them. He doesn't want them to think he is giving up on them. They have been blessed a great deal by God for their faith, and Paul has nothing but good intentions toward them. He wants to see them standing firm in Christ, adhering to the word of God, and continually growing in their relationship with the Lord. "I always thank my God for you because of His grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in Him you have been enriched in every way---with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge---God thus confirming our testimony about Christ among you. Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord." (1 Corinthians 1:4-9)
Paul says to the people of Corinth, "I know you are the real deal. You have the spiritual gifts that God grants believers. You have been saved by Christ and will be kept saved by Christ. This letter is not to discourage you or to accuse you of being hypocrites. I know you belong to Christ."
"I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought. My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, 'I follow Paul'; another, 'I follow Apollos'; another, 'I follow Cephas'; still another, 'I follow Christ'." (1 Corinthians 1:10-12) The word that has been translated as "divisions" is the Greek "schismata", which is a word that means "rents in a garment". A cloak is still a cloak if it has tears in it, but it is not as useful as it could be. It is not whole. In the same way the church at Corinth was still a church, but the divisions in the church were hampering its usefulness. The church was not whole; it was not being all it could be in Christ.
Some of the church members were saying, "I'm a disciple of Paul. I'm the one who is living in the right way." Others said, "I became a Christian under the preaching of Apollos. I follow his instructions." (We met Apollos during our study of the book of Acts.) Others proclaim, "I follow Peter (whose Jewish name was Cephas). He was a disciple of Christ. He knows the best way to live." Yet others said, "I follow the teachings of Christ, not the teaching of apostles and disciples." Even these who said they followed only the teachings of Christ were wrong in their attitude toward others, as if they were better Christians than those who studied not only the words of Christ but the instructions of the apostles.
Paul asks a simple but profound question. "Is Christ divided?" (1 Corinthians 1:13a) Each of the believers was once a sinner, each of the believers came to Christ, and each of the believers now belongs to Christ. How can any of them look down on each other? They are all of the same family. They are all saved by the same grace. They should all be working toward the same goals, not bickering with each other.
Serving Christ is what they should be concentrating on, not on whose preaching they prefer. "Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul?" (1 Corinthians 1:13b) He asks, "Did I give my life to save you? Did I baptize you in my own name? Did Peter or Apollos die for you? No, only Christ died to save you, and you were baptized in His name. Therefore, you are His disciples, not ours. We are ministers called to preach the gospel to you and to instruct you in right living, but it is Christ you worship and serve, not us."
"I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name. (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don't remember if I baptized anyone else.)" (1 Corinthians 1:14-16) He declares, "I'm glad I spend my time preaching and not baptizing, or else people would be accusing me of baptizing in my own name. I baptized Crispus and Gaius when they accepted Christ. Oh, and I also baptized Stephanas and his family. Beyond that, I don't recall baptizing anyone else." It is believed that others on Paul's missionary team did the baptizing as people came to Christ, not Paul himself. On a few rare occasions it appears he performed some baptisms, perhaps because he preached the gospel privately in the houses of Crispus, Gaius, and Stephanas.
"For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel---not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power." (1 Corinthians 1:17) The gospel is a simple message. There is nothing anyone can add to it. If Paul had put on a big show and if he had used complicated words and had performed dramatic and elaborate baptisms, the simple message of the gospel could have been lost. His words might have gone over people's heads. His listeners might have focused more on ceremony or legalism than on the grace that was accomplished on the cross. Christ and His work on behalf of man is always to be the focal point. That way, those who come to Him will realize that they are His disciples, not disciples of any particular teacher or denomination. Christ is not divided and His church should not be divided either. We belong to the same Lord; we should act like it.
No comments:
Post a Comment