God Speaks
Paul Addresses Problems in the Church in Corinth: Factions and Leadership
Verse of the Day: “But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of ths world and the despised things–and the things that are not–to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God–that is, our righteosness, holiness and redemption. (1 Corinthians 1:27-30 NIV 2011)
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We Respond
1 Corinthians 1
Reflection: The Apostle Paul is writing to the church in Corinth to correct their many misunderstandings of what it means to be a Christian and how to live like one. Despite their many problems, Paul begins by focusing on thanking God for all the gifts He has given His people to carry out His work. The first problem that Paul addressed was the Corinthian believers’ lack of unity. They needed to stop quarreling over which human leader they were following and turn instead to unitedly following Christ alone. Complete reliance on His substitutionary death on the cross is the only way of salvation. So often God uses the people that the world looks down on (those mentally, physically, socially, or financially disabled) to display His great wisdom and awesome power as they rely on His Holy Spirit.
Prayer: Dear Father God, thank You for putting godly leaders in place to correct our misunderstandings and errant behavior as believers. Please help me and others to heed their counsel. Like Paul amid many problems, I want to focus on thanking You, Lord God, for all of the gifts You have given me to carry out Your work. May Your people work together in true harmony, each seeking the mind of Christ, united in thought and purpose. After all, it was You, Jesus, who died for our sins and in whose name we are baptized. Open our eyes to see that what seems foolish and weak, to human beings apart from God, is truly the greatest wisdom and most awesome power of all, Yours, Lord God. AMEN
Action: (Ask the Holy Spirit, which one of these He wants you to work on or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will ask the Lord to show me my misunderstandings and cooperate with the Holy Spirit to correct them.
- I will seek to work in harmony with fellow believers (even those I may disagree with on some points) for the advancement of the Kingdom of God.
- I will locate and watch videos of two Christian preachers and motivational speakers: Nicholas Vujicic (VOO itch itch) (who was born without limbs) and David Ring (who has cerebral palsy).
- I will ask God to show me which of my weaknesses He wants to infuse with His strength so that He gets the glory.
1 Corinthians 2
Reflection: From the first in Corinth, Paul didn’t rely on fancy words or high-sounding ideas. He focused on only one thing: Jesus Christ and His death on the cross and all that it means. Preachers today and all those who attempt to proclaim the Gospel should do the same. As we depend on the Holy Spirit’s power, people’s faith will be rooted firmly in God, not in mankind’s great ideas. Human ideologies and philosophies change over time, but God never does. When speaking with mature believers, Paul spoke many wise ideas, but they were the ones God’s Holy Spirit gave him, not his own. We weak human beings cannot imagine or dream of all the glorious things God has for those who love Jesus. To love someone is to trust and obey them (do what they want and/or what is best for them in the long run).
Prayer: Dear awesome, loving, all-wise God, thank You for Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection. Whenever I speak with people about You, may I, like the Apostle Paul, focus on Jesus, His suffering and death on the cross, and resurrection and all that it means. Please Holy Spirit speak to my spirit and give me Your words and wisdom. May people’s faith be rooted firmly in the wisdom and power of God, not in any human ideas. Please expose and expel the spirit of the world and manifest the Spirit of God so that Your people will know and understand all the spiritual truths You have for us. Help us to appropriate the mind, will, and emotions of Christ that You have given us by Your Spirit. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, which one of these He wants you to work on or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will quiet myself before the Lord so that His Spirit can communicate with my spirit the deep things of God.
- I will use various reference materials to make a list of at least 10 things Christ has done for me through the cross.
- I will thank the Lord for the 10 things listed above.
- I will talk with a friend who doesn’t belong to the Lord (yet) about these things but not be surprised if they don’t understand.
1 Corinthians 3
Reflection: Paul continues to deal with the problem of disunity in the body of Christ in Corinth. He states that this disunity (divisions and quarreling) is evidence of their fleshliness, worldliness, and immaturity. Different bible translations use fleshly, carnal, worldly, or infantile to describe operating out of our old human nature instead of out of the new spiritual nature God gives us when we believe. The Corinthians’ quarrels arose over whether following Apollos or Paul was better. Paul’s point was that people should look to Christ not to human leaders. Human leaders like Paul and Apollos were to work as a team, each contributing according to his or her own special God-given gifts and abilities. Paul and Apollos were merely fellow servants of God. It is God who causes things to grow and develop according to His sovereign plan. Remember, we believers are God’s house, and we should be careful how we build on the foundation of Jesus Christ. Eventually our work will be inspected. Godly people don’t want to just get by “by the skin of their teeth.” The corporate unity among believers flows from our individual unity with Christ which comes from His special unity with the Father who is the ultimate source of everything.
Prayer: Dear only true and triune God, thank You that when Your people live in harmony it demonstrates the maturity that comes through our union with You. Lord, please don’t let me worry about what other people think about my service to You. Father God, I want to grow up in my faith. Make me a fruitful garden or a beautifully designed building that brings honor to Your name. May my focus be on faithfully carrying out what You have called me to do, not on comparing myself with anyone else. May I humbly reach out to help others to grow in You as well. May all Your people grow so enamored with You that we come together to form the unified building You had in mind, not a defiled and desecrated building that You need to destroy. Let each believer realize that through their union with Christ, everything they are and have belongs to You, and everything Christ is and has is available to them. All for the glory of God. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, which one of these He wants you to work on or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will look for a way to live in harmony with other believers, then do it.
- I will extend forgiveness and/grace to someone who has acted in a carnal, fleshly, or worldly manner toward me. (Be specific.)
- I will ask forgiveness and/grace from someone with whom I have acted in a carnal, fleshly, or worldly manner. (Be specific.)
- I will rejoice in the unity I have with other believers, with Christ Jesus, and with the Father through the Spirit.
1 Corinthians 4
Reflection: In addressing problems in Corinth, Paul moves to discussing their evaluation of Apollos and himself. The question should be, “Have Paul and Apollos been faithful to carry out their instructions from the Lord?” Paul isn’t concerned about what people think of him. Only the Lord, who really knows men’s hearts, can examine them and decide. When the Lord comes, He “will turn on the light so that everyone can see exactly what each one of us is really like, deep down in our hearts.” (1Corinthians 4:5 TLB) At that time God will give each person whatever praise is due them. Paul warns them about making Christian leadership a “popularity contest.” If everything we have comes from God, what do we have about which to brag or feel superior? While the Corinthians seemed to think they had arrived, were rich, and had all they needed spiritually, Paul said that he, Apollos, and others were treated like starving, nearly naked, destitute, condemned prisoners on display. Despite their view of him, Paul was concerned for them and acted as a wise, caring father who warns and counsels the children he loves. He was sending Timothy to help them to grow in Christ following Paul’s example. Paul asked them to decide which kind of visit they wanted from him: punishment and scolding or quiet love and gentleness?
Prayer: Dear Father God, thank You for caring enough to direct and discipline Your children. I need Your faithfulness operating in me so that I can faithfully carry on Your work. Don’t let me look to other people to validate me, only You. When You come in judgment, You “will turn on the light so that everyone can see exactly what each one of us is really like, deep down in our hearts.” (1Corinthians 4:5 TLB) Then You will give each one the praise due them, but we will turn it all back to Jesus because He’s the one who really earned it. Help me to not compare and contrast Your servants. That’s Your job. Rich or poor, well fed or hungry, richly attired or nearly naked, help me to be content with You in all circumstances. Please help me to be a good parent to the physical and/or spiritual children You give me, responding to them in ways that are guided by You for Your glory. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, which one of these He wants you to work on or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will bring any evaluations I’m asked or tempted to make to God in prayer before I give a response.
- I will compliment or thank a Christian leader whenever I see him or her doing something in line with Scripture.
- I will ask my Christian leaders how I could make their lives easier, then do it.
- I will pray for my Christian leaders to be good parents to their physical and/or spiritual children regardless of their age.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.