1 Corinthians 6

The complexities of the ancient world are often lost on modern readers. The extended conversation in chapter six about fornication and "joining" with a prostitute seems, to the modern reader, to be a simple reminder to keep oneself sexually and morally pure. The complicating factor is that sexual intercourse was often a key factor in pagan temple worship. The primary goddess of the city of Corinth was "the goddess of love" and "ritual fornication" was an integral part of worship. The reference in 6:9 to "male prostitutes" is a reference to this same ritualized behavior. Paul's condemnation of this practice has as much to do with avoiding idolatry and returning to pagan worship than it does with more conventional sexual mores (although I believe, both apply).

The bottom line, sexual values aside, is glorifying God in body and spirit. How we live, how we steward our bodies, our time, our very selves does matter. Think of it this way. The human being is a unique blend of physical and spiritual being. Angels are pure spirit. Animals are pure physical. But human beings live life with a foot in both camps. We know that what impacts our bodies also impacts our spirit (try to pray when stricken with the flu). We also know that what impacts our spirit also impacts our bodies (that knot in the pit of our stomach when things are not right). The biblical goal is to seek and find balance. Balance between healthy physical living (faithful stewardship of our bodies) and healthy spiritual living (faith stewardship of our Spirit). The body and the spirit are not in competition with each other -- our physical self is not a burden nor is it inherently evil -- the harmony of body, mind, spirit and relationships is part of what the Kingdom of the Heavens is about. This is living life in "right relationship".

I didn't say much about the "lawsuit" issue in chapter 6. Suffice it to say that pride and the search for vengeance can cause us to do some pretty stupid things.

1 Corinthians 5

There are some important principles in chapter 5. The first is Paul's admonition regarding a flagrant case of sexual immorality in the church. A man is has taken his father's wife. This does not mean the woman is his mother (although possible) but under the law code of the Hebrew Scriptures this is clearly and consistently forbidden. It is not an issue Jesus address in any specific way and so the early church's understanding was that such behavior was still forbidden. The problem is that the Corinthian church has chosen to boast about their "freedom" and "grace" rather than confronting the man with his behavior (not to mention his father's wife).

Paul makes a distinction in 5:9ff between judging the behavior of those who claim to be Christ followers and judging the behavior of those who are not claiming to be Christ followers. We are not to judge the behavior of those who do not belong to Christ. We are to love them, walk with them and our encouragement of them is not "clean up your act" but "come to Jesus." A friend of mine once said that Jesus never cleans his fish before he catches them. It is up to Jesus to bring conviction and correction to the life of one living immorally. However, if we claim to be Christians we have a responsibility to live up to a different standard. In modern America this is profoundly difficult. Research consistently shows that there is minimal difference in the ethics and behavior of those who claim to be Christian and those who do not. Divorce rates among those who claim to be Christians is no lower than the national norm and instances of alcoholism and infidelity run about the same. I have often thought that in modern American we have as many non or nominal Christians inside the church on a Sunday as we do outside the church on a Sunday. How do we handle these confrontations today?

I have come to believe that I must earn the right to speak into someone's life. Just become someone comes to church on a regular basis does not mean that they are committed to following Jesus nor is it an automatic indicator that they intend to do so. It is only in convenental relationships that we have permission to speak into peoples lives. In my covenant group we strive to hold each other accountable and when one of us is off the rails a bit the group confronts and strives to bring them back.

I have also come to believe that the church is open and available for everyone -- regardless of what they are doing or where they come from. However, leadership in the church is an entirely different matter. What behaviors should be considered "forbidden" for leaders? What "immoralities" should be confronted? For the first century Corinthian Church, they were choosing to live by the same standards as the world around them (and, in this one specific case, at an even lower standard than society around them). As we shall see in the next chapter (on Monday) this is not the only issue they struggled with.

Finally notice that is not just the sexual immorality that Paul wants us to take notice of: he adds "greedy" "idolater" "reviler" "drunkard" and "robber" to the list. We tend to focus on the "hot" sins like sexual immorality and neglect the deadlier behaviors of greed, idolatry, putting others down, conspicuous consumption and wrongfully taking from others. . .

1 Corinthians 4

Some people in the Corinthian church have been challenging Paul's authority. It appears that they have accused him of being "stern" in letters but not so challenging in person and some more aggressive members of the community have used this to stir dissent and division in the Church. Paul's response to this is to place himself, not in the position of power and control, but along side Christ who emptied himself and became a servant (see Philippians 2). Paul says it is pointless to pass judgment on him since there is only one judge (Jesus) and when judgment day comes everything will be revealed about everything.

He continues his argument by noting that the Apostolic life is the hardest of all. The Apostles have been put on display (see 8-11) and are "fools for Christ." I had a friend, Andy, who had a T-shirt that said "I'm a fool for Christ, whose fool are you." It is an unspoken but inevitable conclusion of life that everyone is a servant of someone or something or some "idea" or "ideal". Paul says in one of his other letters that we are the servant of whatever we submit or surrender to. We are wired in such a way that something has to have first priority in our lives. It might be self preservation, it might be a political ideal, or it might just be one of the primary idols of our culture: money, sex, power or self. Notice the litany in verse 11: "we are hungry and thirsty, we are poorly clothed and beaten and homeless, and we grow weary from the work of our own hands. . . " They apostolic life -- the life of preaching the gospel in new places to new people -- was a very difficult life, indeed.

1 Corinthians 3

Paul continues his denunciation of "factions" in the church. I wonder what he would have thought of the modern concept of "denominations" -- I suspect the rhetoric he used on the Corinthians would be mild in comparison. He tells them (1-4) that they are behaving like babies (can only drink milk, cannot handle solid food). The example of their babyness is their clinging to the factions. From chapter 1 we learned that there were at least four different factions in the church: the Paul group, the Apollos group, the Cephas (Peter) group and the Christ group. Paul's solution to this factionalism to to point out that Paul, Apollos, Cephas are all servants of Christ -- one plants, another weeds, another waters but God gives the increase and the ultimate harvest is the harvest of souls.

He shifts metaphors in 3:10 from "growing" to building. Paul says he has labored, like a good worker, to lay an excellent foundation. He is blessed to know that others have followed him and have built on his foundation. In the "Day" -- short hand for "The Day of the Lord" -- our works will be tried by fire and what we are will ultimately be revealed. For pastors and other Christian leaders this image is vitally important. All of us stand on the shoulders of those who went before us. I pastor Christ Church in Snyder. I pastor here because many other pastors laid foundations, built structures, gathered community and engaged in mission and ministry in this place. I am grateful to all of them. My job is to build on the foundations they laid down. The next stage of the equation is equally important. I do not live in an isolated present. I am building a foundation and a community that others will be responsible for after me. I need to be the best foundation builder, community builder I can possibly be.

1 Corinthians 2

Only those who are striving to "walk in the Spirit" can understand spiritual things (14-15). I have observed in my years of being a Pastor this important but profound truth. Until I am awakened to the presence and the redeeming grace of God I cannot perceive nor can I understand the life in faith. When I first traveled to Africa (in 2006) I was told many stories, I saw photos, I saw videos, I heard first person accounts of what life in Zimbabwe might be like. I filed all that information away and believed myself prepared for the experience. I was not prepared for the experience. When I was immersed in the Zimbabwe world I had a change of heart and a change of world view that no amount of story telling or photo showing could have accomplished. With this change of heart and world view I understood (or, perhaps put more humbly) I began to understand and a whole new world opened up to me. I could not have had this change of heart without the experience of being there and meeting the people.

The same is true of the life in the Spirit. I can tell people about it, I can show examples and introduce others who are on the same journey but none of that compares to the reality or the spiritual life and that reality has to be personally experienced -- it cannot be taught it must be caught. C.S. Lewis once suggested that the best way to experience this, from a doubter's perspective, was to take a month and live one's life as if the Christian message were true and see what happens. I suspect that when I spend that month reading the Bible, taking time to pray, engaging in mission and ministry and seeking worship, the Holy Spirit will meet me in each and every one of those points of contact and I will discover that my heart and life has been renewed by the presence and the power of God through Jesus.

1 Corinthians 1

The Corinthian church looks a little like the modern American (or anywhere else for that matter) church. The good news is that the church is full of people. The bad news is that the church is full of people. Human beings are broken, flawed and wayward creatures. One of  my professors used to say "human beings are not rational animals they are animals that rationalize." When I read the Corinthian correspondence I am reminded that folks in the first century were no so different from us -- and 21st century arrogance aside -- we have not improved much over the past 2000 years.

Key issue in chapter 1: Divisions in the Church. The church has fallen into "party" factions based on which preacher they came to faith under (or were baptized by). There is the Paul party, the Apollos party, the Peter party (Cephas) and then the true posers who claim to be of the "Christ" party. From play grounds to board rooms from the athletic fields to the cooking channel, human beings are locked into a struggle. It is the game called "I'm better than you." In our pathetic struggles to be able to declare "we are number 1" even if it is vicarious through our local sports teams, we find ourselves divided. We are red or blue states, democrats or republicans, Orange or Blue, UB or Buff state, socialists or capitalists,all aligned divisions that keep the world from coming together.

Notice the biblical solution to this. It is the message of the Gospel: "but we proclaim Christ crucified," (23). At the heart of the Jesus movement is an understanding of the renunciation of tribalism and all inherent power. Jesus proves his love for us and redeems the world not by political means or creating a new faction (even those who are of the "Christ" party) but by embracing the horror of our humanity and in embracing it he redeems it through is death and resurrection. In the first century this was "foolishness" and a "stumbling block". The crucified were not discussed in the Roman Empire -- it was considered the most shameful of all deaths (which is why "Jesus scorned the shame" Hebrews 12:2). The Jews understood from the Hebrew Scriptures that "cursed is anyone who hangs on a tree (Deuteronomy 21:23)." Ours is not a faith of power to control but a faith of power to redeem, release, forgive and to heal. We have no reason to boast or to create a whole new "us versus them" mentality because what was done was done for us and not by us -- it is a gift from God, and not something we did by ourselves.

1 Corinthians Introduction

Here is the introduction I wrote for my Ugandan friends:

1 Corinthians was written from Ephesus around AD 55 by Paul. 1 Corinthians is the second letter Paul wrote to the church at Corinth. The first letter (see 1 Corinthians 5:9) is lost but the Corinthian’s response to that letter forms the basis for 1 Corinthians. The city of Corinth was an affluent and decadent city that controlled the critical trade route between the Aegean and Adriatic Seas. I understand that there is a word in Latin "to Corinthianize" which means to take something good or innocent and completely corrupt it.  Corinth was the home of the temple of Aphrodite (goddess of love.) The city of Corinth was a melting pot of cultures, races, and religions. The Corinthian church reflects this diversity. The issues that necessitated this letter are spelled out in Chapters 7 through 15 – marriage, celibacy, food offered to idols, worship, spiritual gifts (especially speaking in tongues), and bodily resurrection. Before Paul addresses these matters, he establishes his authority by addressing some other matters: factions in the congregation, a case of immorality, and lawsuits among Christians. The letter contains some of the earliest Christian traditions regarding the resurrection (see chapter 15) and Communion (see chapter 11) and one of the most beloved chapters in all the New Testament – Paul’s hymn to Christian love (chapter 13). The early Christian movement struggled with people making the transition from pagan religions to becoming faithful followers of Jesus Christ. Old behaviors, habits, and understandings were often difficult to change. 1 Corinthians, more than any other letter, reveals the broken humanity that filled early Christian churches.