The church of Corinth was established by Paul in the Book of Acts. After setting up the church, Paul heard of squabbling within the church and wrote several letters. I will deal with some divisive issues about 1 Corinthians; specifically, idolizing leaders and spiritual gifts. In this book, Paul addresses the problems of infighting within the Church and what can become of it.
Paul sets up the book beautifully by showing all in Corinth that the church belongs to God, not the people. His salutation is a sort of shot across the bow against everyone. He opens with, “Unto the church of God which is at Corinth.” (1 Cor. 1:2) The wording of this is masterful because he first establishes that the church is God’s church not the people of Corinth. Had the Corinthians recognized this, their division problem might not have existed.[1]
He chastises the church for fighting over who to exhort, Paul, Apollos, and Cephas. Paul addresses that we are all messengers of God and the wisdom we bestow is that of God and belongs to God. The Corinthians were divisive over whose message was better. Today, it is equivalent to our congregations fighting over whose pastor or deacon is better or more holy Paul charges the church with edifying the man, not the message. He extols; “For your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.” (1 Cor. 2:5 KJV)
This is seen all around us today. The Joel Osteen and Kenneth Copelands of the World are being torn down by none other than Christians. Creationists (Ken Ham) fight with another creationist (Hugh Ross) over the wisdom of man; how old is the earth? Not only are the leaders among our churches fighting over doctrine, i.e. prosperity message, faith message, and purpose-driven message; but the congregation is so confused that we pick out pastors through natural selection.
I recently fell victim to this plight. I had trouble trying to find a church to attend. I was worried about who the Pastor was spiritually and morally. I judged Copeland for his million-dollar jets and Osteen for his million-dollar book deals. This is almost exactly what the congregation was doing with the various leaders in the church. They were arguing over who is the better teacher. This was creating strife within the church and exalting teachers over the word of God. This is what we, as modern-day Christians tend to do, we follow the man, not the message. But Paul addresses this beautifully in 1 Corinthians 4:1-5;
“This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful. 3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. 4 For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me. 5 Therefore do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive his commendation from God.”
He is telling the Corinthians, do not stress over what you have no control over. We can judge and abandon churches and condemn pastors and debate over who is more righteous, but God is the ultimate judge, he will hold those accountable who are misrepresenting the word of God. God, alone, will condemn the Shepard from leading the flock astray. This revelation changed my life on how I view leadership in the ministry.
Paul also warned the church of spiritual gifts such as speaking in tongues or healing. He told them that they must be careful of the method in which it was to be used. He gave the basis for this method to be love. In chapter twelve he speaks of the various spiritual gifts as coming from the Holy Spirit. However, he urges these gifts to be used sacredly and in communion with God. His message here is that sacred gifts from God need not be possessions of righteousness or endowments, but gifts to do God’s work. The secret here is that they are different gifts but from the same spirit, God’s spirit. All the gifts come from God and are of God;
“Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.” (1 Cor. 12:4-7)
Paul tells them that the gifts of the spirit are the spirit, they are one and the same. Using these gifts to edify oneself, or boast about the ability to possess these gifts, is unwise. He admonishes the use of tongues outside of private communion with God or someone who can interpret. His basis for this is simple, incoherence. I like how he used instruments and notes as a metaphor. Personally, I think the misuse of tongues within the church is one of the fundamental reasons many people think Christianity is insane.
Spiritual gifts are thrown around churches as a badge of holiness. What Paul is saying is that these gifts are meant for the glorification of God, not self. This is present today, parishioners speak of tongues as if they accomplished a Ph.D. The purpose of tongues is to commune privately with God, so if you are speaking to others or boasting about it, you have defeated the purpose.
In Chapter thirteen, Paul gives a basis for all these gifts and how the church should behave. “So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” (1 Cor. 13:13 ESV) The most important of all gifts is love. Paul urges us to love one another and love God. The church in Corinth should focus on God and love instead of division. Paul spends all of chapter thirteen expressing the power of love. This is very important to the infighting amongst the church. Who is the wisest, and who can speak what, and who has the gift of what means nothing if you don’t have love for each other. Love transcends all others.
First Corinthians is an excellent example of modern-day Christology. We, as Christians, should not let the divisions within our own churches tear us down. Whether we raise our hands, speak in tongues, or baptize in different ways; ultimately none of this matters in the grand scheme of God’s Divine Kingdom. I know that 1 Corinthians has a massive amount of information that is vital to the church, and the peace therein, but the most profound message I grasped from it was chapter thirteen. The importance of love in our lives and the church is crucial to the spreading of the gospel. Love conquers all and because God is the embodiment of love, through grace and understanding we might be able to properly use his gifts to reach the world.
Bibliography
Lowery, D. K. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 507). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books. (1985)
Footnote:
[1] Lowery, D. K. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 507). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books. (1985)
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