1 Corinthians #5: Grow Up! (1 Corinthians 3)

“You’re acting like a baby!”

If someone were to direct that statement to us, we’d know that it’s not a compliment. I mean, most people like babies – they’re cute and sweet and vulnerable and we instinctively want to protect them. There is, however, a threshold where humans are expected to move beyond the helpless, selfish and demanding behavior of an infant. Humans without mental or physical obstacles are meant to mature.

That same expectation is present in our spiritual lives as well. In the passage we’ll be reading in our study of 1 Corinthians, we’ll examine the idea of spiritual maturity this Sunday. We’ll be reading 1 Cor chapter 3.

Paul returns to his original example of division in Corinth, highlighting the factions they have split into over different church leaders. Division is his chief identification of spiritual immaturity and worldliness. Do you find that interesting? When we consider what a worldly church, or a compromised church might have as characteristics, what things normally come to mind? Where does division fit in your thinking? Does this challenge you to reconsider the priority of unity in the church?

Paul stacks several metaphors together in order to explain his concern about unity in the church – a garden, a building and the temple. What does “garden” imagery bring to mind when it comes to the Bible? What is Paul’s point about those who tend the garden? How does the the modern American church fare when it comes to making celebrities out of church leaders? In what ways can we keep from falling into that pitfall, based on Paul’s words?

What is the foundation of the “church building” (metaphor, remember). How important is a foundation to any structure that is built? What does that tell us about where the focus of the church should be?

The temple imagery sort of wraps his thesis up. What was the temple a representation of in Israel (hint, we talked about it extensively in our teaching on Genesis)? How does it tie in with the “garden” imagery? It’s very important to remember that whenever Paul says “you” in this passage, we should be reading it as “ya’ll” – it’s corporate language; a group of people, not an individual. According to v17, why is it important to maintain the unified integrity of the “temple-church community”?

What do you suppose Paul is getting at when he says “everything belongs to you” in v22? Since the unity of the church is the theme, I tend to read it as a reminder that we don’t need to strive and fight our way to the top of any social structure….when we belong to the Church (at large), we’ve arrived at the best place we can be in God’s scheme of things. Does that mean the church is without problems? Not as long as WE’RE part of it – but it’s where God intends us to be in order to bring out what’s best in us. That alone provides us a life-long purpose and goal, both individually and corporately.

I think this will be an enlightening and still challenging study. Hope you can join us!

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1 Corinthians #4: God's Plan Revealed (1 Cor 2:1-16)

My grandson lost one of his water shoes at our house the other day. We looked everywhere for it – outside, inside, in drawers, under couches…no place left unturned. It appeared to have a yearning to be free because it never showed up. Until a few weeks later, when we weren’t looking for it, it was resting in plain view in our toy room. Had it been there all along? It seems impossible, and yet there it was on the floor for everyone to see. I’ve had numerous experiences like that in life, predominately with our refrigerator. I ask Robbie if we’re out of mustard, and she replies “No, it’s in the fridge”, to which I reply “I’m looking in the fridge and there isn’t any.”; which prompts her to join me at the door of the icebox where she magically reaches in and retrieves the mustard which was right in front of me. She’s a wizard.

Sometimes things are hidden to us even when they’re in plain view. In our study in 1 Corinthians this week, we’ll be considering how the Gospel, God’s great plan for humanity and this world, was something hidden in plain sight until it was revealed by Jesus. We’ll be reading 1 Cor 2:1-16.

Verse two of this chapter is one of my favorite verses. Think back on what we’ve learned about Roman culture, the honor / shame aspect of it. How might a crucified Messiah sound to people in that context? Paul doesn’t seem to mind how out of sync his message is to the prevailing cultural norms. Why do you think Jesus as the crucified One was an important message in Paul’s view? What message does Christ’s crucifixion give us about God’s intent for humanity (hint, look at John 3:16-17). How might Paul’s singular focus on the cross impact our message in the world we live in?

Paul goes on to describe the Gospel as a mystery – which in the Greek means something revealed that was formerly hidden. What aspects of the Gospel were likely surprising to those Paul is writing to? Paul references the “rulers of this world” being in the dark about God’s purposes. Why do you think Paul said that?

As you read his concluding thoughts on this subject (v10-16), how does it appear that the mystery of God’s plan gets revealed to human minds? It’s interesting how readily we will make assumptions about what’s going on in other people’s minds – and here Paul points out that we do that with God as well. However, we can know God’s mind because He has given us His Spirit, who reveals God’s intent to us. What do you think is the primary way in which the Holy Spirit has revealed the mind of God to us?

It’s a rather dense section of Scripture we’ll be tackling, but I know you’re up for it – and I hope you can join us this Sunday as we dig into God’s Word together!

Click here for a pdf of the teaching slideshow.

1 Corinthians #3: The Wisdom Paradox (1 Cor 1:18-31)

“Wisdom shouts in the streets.

    She cries out in the public square.

She calls to the crowds along the main street,

    to those gathered in front of the city gate.” ~Proverbs 1:20-21

I don’t know about you, but when I think of wisdom, I don’t often imagine it calling out to us in the streets and the busy places we find ourselves. However, from the beginning, the Bible paints a consistent picture of wisdom that is in sharp contrast with the world around us. We see this thought continued in the New Testament with Paul who is writing the church in Corinth. We’ll be continuing our study in 1 Corinthians this Sunday, reading ch 1:18-31. Paul is desperate to remind the church that God’s wisdom should look different than the world’s wisdom. He also reminds them that what the world has to offer, especially in terms of wisdom, is actually quite foolish and insignificant compared to what God has to offer.

So, why is Paul telling the Corinthians about wisdom and reminding them about who is the “smartest of them all”? Well, since the book of Corinthians is a response and not the beginning of a conversation, we have to use context and our imagination to fill in the gaps. Last week’s verses emphasized the importance of unity and this week Paul is emphasizing God’s wisdom above our own. Could Paul be mentioning this because the Christians in Corinth are trying to change the gospel so that it looks and sounds less foolish to the world around them? Or maybe Paul is mentioning this because the Corinthians were using things like philosophy and scholarship to determine who had the highest standing among the Christians in that area? Whatever the reason, I think it’s safe to assume that a lack of humility and an abundance of pride is probably at the center of it all.

Even though it would be oh so easy to judge the “simple” Corinthians for falling into such follies, we want to remember how to hold the scripture that we read. We want to hold this living word up like a mirror to ourselves and see the places in our hearts that God wants to reach. I invite you to join us this Sunday at 10:00 AM as we consider the context and explore this scripture together.

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1 Corinthians #2: The Weight of Unity (1 Cor 1:10-17)

Has anyone ever had a job that would require regular inspections from outside sources? When I (Janelle) worked in the children’s program at the navy base we were regularly inspected by government officials to make sure our practices complied with their standards.

Sometimes the inspections were planned and sometimes they were surprises. The planned inspections involved a great deal of preparation on our side. We would review the areas that would be inspected, we would re-train staff, and we would clean every last inch of a space that was constantly filled with over a hundred kids. Needless to say, it was a stressful time.

There was always a huge feeling of relief when the inspection was over and we could return to our normal ways of running the center. We could untuck our shirts and be a lot more relaxed about how we ran things.

While Paul was not an inspector for the church of Corinth, he was invested in how they lived out their Christian faith. Even though Paul spent a good deal of time with the church in Corinth and teaching them about Jesus, even from afar, Paul found that it was clear they got sloppy while he was away. We’ll be reading 1 Corinthians chapter 1:10-17, where we’re told that Chloe’s household noticed that they did more than untuck their shirts… they seemed to have forgotten the majority of the way they were taught to live.

From what we understand of the culture at that time, societal standings were built on an honor and shame code. It was like a never-ending game of chutes and ladders where people could move up or down depending on what leaders they followed and who they associated with. Even though they were instructed to flip the board game table like Jesus, they seemed to have fallen back into the same social traps by creating a Christian-themed version of the game.

Paul, knowing and loving this church well, had no patience for this type of behavior and was clear about where he wanted them to go from there. I find it fascinating and heartbreaking that a church’s problems from so long ago and so far away can still relate to us today.

This brings us to Sunday and the questions we must ask ourselves as we study the text. Is this a cycle we are doomed to repeat, like the one in Genesis, or are there different choices we can make? Is it possible that the actions of our small church could make a difference? Do you think the Corinthians heard Paul’s word and changed? Or do you suspect their divisions only got deeper as time passed? 

Since we don’t have the Corinthian response to Paul’s letter it means that we get the opportunity to live out the response for them. I invite you to join us this Sunday at 10:00 AM as we study 1 Corinthians 1:10-17 together and discover for ourselves the power of Paul’s pleas for unity.

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1 Corinthians #1: Introduction To A Messy Church (1 Cor 1:1-9)

So, we finished up Genesis last week, and this Sunday we’ll begin a new series, working our way chapter by chapter, verse by verse, through another book of the Bible.

However, instead of just telling you what we’re going to be studying, I’m inviting you to figure it out for yourself. Follow this LINK, and read the chapter it points to. From that background you should be able to figure out what we’ll be studying. When you are confident that you know, look that book up in your bible or bible app, and read the first 9 verses. Take note of any repeated words or names. Does the author sound kind, or angry? How would you feel if the opening words of that book were directed at you?

That will be a great way to prepare for our study on Sunday. Leave a comment if you know what book we’ll be studying next, and give me your take on the first 9 verses.

Hope to see you this Sunday!

Click here to view the teaching slideshow in pdf format.