July 2, 2019
There are a number of times when the relationship between a church and her pastor is strained. Often times the focus is placed on the differences between the two parties. After reading through 1 Corinthians 9:1-18, it seems that those strained relationships could be strengthened if both parties focused on the Gospel.
June 28, 2019
In the 21st century it is strange to think that a Christian would view eating meat as sinful, but that was what some Corinthian Christians were wrestling with. The problem was that their conscience grieved them because of their background in idolatry. While we may not wrestle with this exact same issue, do we make issues of conscience (NOT issues of sin) more important than the salvation of our brothers and sisters? Our text is 1 Corinthians 8.
June 18, 2019
We often have one of two approaches to time- “hurry up” or “slow down.” Time is what marks out our lives, and yet it seems we don’t have enough of it. 1 Corinthians 7:25-40 is written in answer to a question that the Corinthian church had (What do we tell our widows? What should we tell those who are engaged to be married?) and Paul answers by focusing on the larger question- “what do we do with our time?”
June 11, 2019
There are a number of times we think God is like us… specifically, that He is limited by our barriers. In 1 Corinthians 7, the Apostle Paul takes on two barriers that hindered many Christians in the 1st century- Circumcision and slavery. Before we get too caught up in finding 21st century parallels, the big picture of this text is the sovereignty of God. There should be no doubt in our minds that God is all powerful and able to do all things through us.
June 5, 2019
“God hates divorce.” That’s what Malachi 2 tells us. But if you read through the entire passage, you find that God hates divorce for the same reasons we do- it is a violent end of two unified lives. In 1 Corinthians 7, Paul answers some questions the Corinthian church had about divorce. Is there ever a reason? Is it an appropriate response when someone you are married to isn’t interested in Jesus?
May 28, 2019
In 1 Corinthians 7:6-9, Paul tells the Corinthian church that he wished they were single as he was, but recognized that not everyone was gifted from God in the same way. People who have wrestled with loneliness might ask, “How could Paul refer to his being single as a gift?”
May 21, 2019
In the sexually charged environment of 1st century Corinth, some of the church had come to the conclusion that sex was an evil in and of itself, stating, “it is not good to have sexual relations.” The next question to ask is “What does God have to say about this?” So Paul walks them through God’s design for sex- that is a good thing, a gift, and it is helpful for escaping Satan’s favorite temptation. That being said, sex is not our identity, it is not our primary goal. There is an even greater blessing in marriage… Our text is 1 Corinthians 7:1-5
May 14, 2019
When it comes to the subject of sexual immorality (Biblically defined as any sexual activity outside the bounds of a married couple consisting of one biological male and one biological female), the imperative from God’s word is to flee. But why? Why should we flee? In 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 shows how much the gospel applies to our bodies, therefore, we must glorify God even with our bodies.
May 10, 2019
Growing up in the church has allowed me to run into my fair share of judgmental people (I would include my own self at times, to be completely honest). We might find it strange, then, to find Paul actually encouraging the church in Corinth to make judgments (1 Corinthians 6:1-8). So what is Paul telling us? What should we conclude when we are told that the saints will take part in judging the world… even angels?
April 22, 2019
The “discipline” here is what is often referred to as “Excommunication.” 1 Corinthians 5 gives instruction on how to handle flagrant sin issues within the church… while this is an often uncomfortable topic/practice, we find that even this text is written in light of the celebration of Easter. So, how can this uncomfortable thing have any hope involved with it? With the cross of Christ.
