1 Corinthians Greeting. Reward is not given according to gifts, talents, or even success, but according to their, : God gives us the amazing opportunity to work with Him. Precious stones doesn’t mean jewels, but fine stone materials like marble and granite. This point is so important to understanding the value of work that it is worth including the passage in its entirety here. This lesson will serve as a 1 Corinthians 1 Bible study and commentary. The most simple truths of the gospel, as to man's sinfulness and God's mercy, repentance towards God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, stated in the plainest language, suit the people better than deeper mysteries... View the entire commentary And you are Christ’s: This is Christian responsibility. a. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. ii. c. Each one’s work will become clear: God will test the building work of all His fellow workers, so each one’s work will become clear. Of course the Corinthians considered themselves. Straw may be fine, it may have a place (in the barn), but it is an inadequate building material. Click to enable/disable _gat_* - Google Analytics Cookie. among Christians are not the only signs of fleshiness, but they are the ones most evident among the Corinthians. c. When one says, “I am of Paul,” … are you not carnal? All rights reserved. Some build with precious things like gold, silver, precious stones; others build with unworthy materials like wood, hay, and straw. man who knows the things of God, yet in some significant ways is still characterized by the flesh. a. Every doctrine that can be taught in seminary can be taught to children, though not in the same words. c. If anyone defiles the temple of God: If you defile the church, God will destroy you. Some people are frustrated because they want to water when God has called them to plant, or they want to plant when God has called them to water. Anthony C. Thiselton — The First Epistle to the Corinthians (New International Greek Testament … I want to focus on the beginning of this chapter where Paul addresses his brethren as being carnal. They were his “field” (using the picture of a farmer planting and watering), and they were his “building” (using the picture of a builder). c. The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise: God has evaluated the wisdom of this world, and He considers it foolishness, craftiness, and futile. Click to enable/disable _ga - Google Analytics Cookie. 1. We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. The Apostle Paul spent 18 months there on his Second Missionary Journey and established a church there. These cookies collect information that is used either in aggregate form to help us understand how our website is being used or how effective our marketing campaigns are, or to help us customize our website and application for you in order to enhance your experience. You can also change some of your preferences. Ministers must beware how and what they build on this foundation, 1 Corinthians 3:12-15. He himself will be saved, yet so as through the fire shows that some will be saved, but barely saved, and saved with everything gone. 2. If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. The cause of wrong attitudes among Christians 1 Corinthians 3:1-3. With the exception of personal epistles addressed to Timothy, Titus, and Philemon, all Paul’s letters bear the name of the city where the church addressed existed. James Rosscup writes that "This was the great work in the life of the versatile Dean of Canterbury. i. Paul asks them to renounce all worldly wisdom, all humanism (man-centered philosophy), even if it means being called a fool. Here his emphasis is on the church as a whole (though it has application to individuals). © Copyright - Enduring Word       |      . Visit our library of inductive Bible studies for more in depth inductive studies on this and other books of the Bible you can use in your small group. This term really just means someone who is dominated by the flesh. If you do not want that we track your visit to our site you can disable tracking in your browser here: We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Straw may be fine, it may have a place (in the barn), but it is an inadequate building material. Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:1-11 (Read 2 Corinthians 3:1-11) Even the appearance of self-praise and courting human applause, is painful to the humble and spiritual mind. Both Paul and Apollos belong to you; the whole universe is yours in Christ. Commentaries for 1 Corinthians Chapter 3 The Corinthians reproved for their contentions. According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. Fleshly, when used of a person means, “characterized by the flesh.” It speaks of the one who can and should do differently but does not. You are the temple of God: Paul will later (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) speak as individual Christians being temples. (5-7) The foolishness of exalting church leaders. Though they have the Holy Spirit (unlike the, – that is, fleshly -people, like immature Christians (, i. 1 Corinthians 1:1-3 is in the imperfect tense, marking the continued work of God. ©2018 David Guzik – No distribution beyond personal use without permission. Check to enable permanent hiding of message bar and refuse all cookies if you do not opt in. Mixing the wisdom of men with the wisdom of God in the work of building the church is like using alternate layers of straw and marble in building. ii. And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual, These people are part of the family of God (he calls them, ), and that is the problem. Christians have a higher call than living like the rest of humanity. So one can’t build on any other foundation; but one can build, God will test the building work of all His, ; others build with unworthy materials like, , Paul seems to have in mind the building materials used in the construction of the temple (1 Chronicles 22:14, 22:16, and 29:2). It appears that some of the Corinthians had been impressed by the pretentious claims of false teachers; but Paul in this chapter affirmed that "Their philosophical pretense was a sign of their spiritual infancy, produced faction, tended to destroy the church (1 Corinthians 3:17), and resulted in no permanent value (1 Corinthians 3:12-15)." 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