Chapter One
Opening Greeting
1:1 Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes, 2 To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul identifies himself as an apostle (the word refers to one that was sent) for Jesus, not as one being self-appointed but as one called by the will of God. He apparently is joined by Sosthenes who was once the ruler of the synagogue in Corinth (see Acts 18:17) and now since Paul calls him ‘brother’ he must be a believer.
The epistle is addressed to those sanctified, called to be saints together with those who, regardless of location, call upon the name of Jesus, being their Lord. Paul and Sosthenes extend greetings of grace and peace from God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul Gives Thanks
1:4 I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, 5 that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge— 6 even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you— 7 so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8 who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Paul lets them know that he always gives thanks to God for them because of the grace God has given to them. Grace that allows them to be blessed in everything they say, which confirms that what he taught them was indeed true. Having every Spiritual gift they need, Jesus will sustain them to the end of time. God will do as He promised, as He invites them to be in a close mutual relationship with His Son, Jesus.
Disunity and Division
1:10 I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.
Paul wastes no time and points his readers to a serious problem, perhaps the crux of all the issues as to why Paul is writing this epistle. Paul knows that unity is vital for a healthy church as it can do mighty things if everyone prayed and worked towards a common goal. Disunity results when people begin to think that they have a better way or a different understanding. The ‘splintering’ of God’s Word can quickly lead to false teaching and compromise. Paul understood from reports he was hearing that this church needed additional guidance and encouragement.
1:11 For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. 12 What I mean is that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.”
We are not given much detail about Chloe in the Bible, but we read here that someone affiliated with her (family member perhaps) informed Paul about some of the infighting that was going on in the church. Paul notes that some had boasted about who they follow as being important, perhaps even a moral or spiritual superiority, implying that each of these persons offered a different perspective and possibly a different theology. We know that Apollos was possibly one of John the Baptist’s followers (see Acts 18:24-28) and Cephas is Peter’s name in Aramaic (see John 1:42).
1:13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?
Paul asks a vital question, “Is Christ divided?” There is nothing about Jesus that is divided! Division only comes from humanity’s error, be it lack of understanding God’s Word, limiting God, being influenced by the world, etc. Paul then asks if he was the one that was crucified for them, or were they baptized in his name. With these questions Paul is pointing out that there is only one interpretation that matters and that would be God’s interpretation, man’s ideas are not acceptable (as they can lead to eternal condemnation).
1:14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name. 16 (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.
On the subject of baptism Paul reflects back and notes that he only baptized a few of them, so that no one could boast about being baptized by him or done in his name. He then states something that surprises many believers today, that he was not sent to baptize but to evangelize, to preach the gospel message (something that all believers need to be involved in, see Matthew 28:18-20). He then adds that his preaching was not to be elaborated by him or based on some eloquence of his own but only the truth of Jesus being victorious on the cross.
Considerations
Unity is a Strong Theme in the Bible
In the garden before His crucifixion Jesus prayed, the apostle John recorded His prayer in the seventeenth chapter of his gospel account. In verses 1-5, Jesus prayed for Himself, in verses 6-19, He prayed for His apostles, and in verses 20-26, He prayed for those that would believe as a result of the teaching heard from the apostles, which includes most, if not all, believers today. In verse 21, Jesus was concerned about unity among believers and that through that unity it could be evidence to the world that God really did send His Son. Jesus knew that great effort would be applied to water down or corrupt the Bible. Seeing the disunity among churches today one could easily question if God truly did send His Son! The hard truth is that there are some so-called ‘Christians’ and churches that really don’t know Jesus (see Matthew 7:21-23).
The Birth of False Teaching
There are several potential sources of false teaching, they can typically be categorized as being: external, such as influences from Satan, his minions, and the world; or internal, being intentional (deception in mind) and unintentional (error). The church in Corinth appears that they allowed misunderstandings to dictate their perception of truth. While the error may have been conveyed innocently by various people within the church we still cannot disregard the possibility that the error was intentionally introduced (see Jude 1:4). Fast forward to today we see thousands of different Christian organizations and churches each offering a different ’truth’. False teaching has successfully “watered down” the church as a whole today. One could only imagine that if all believers in a city prayed for the same people, prayed for the same outreach, prayed for…well you get the picture!
Baptism in the Scheme of Things
Some Christians and several Christian denominations place a great amount of emphasis on baptism. Yes, it is true that Jesus gave us imperatives to be baptized, but that is what inaugurates our life in Him. Once done we move on, time to “open the door” to the grand adventure God has in store for us. Perhaps the most important word in the Great Commission (see Matthew 28:18-20) is ‘Go’!
Wisdom and Power from God in Jesus
1:18 For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
To those that reject the gospel message any discussion about some person dying on the cross is a strange story, perhaps even foolish. Paul notes that they are the ones perishing (a polite term for eternal condemnation), but for those who accept that story as being true they are saved by the power of God, done, nothing more needs to be done for salvation.
1:19 For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”
Paul quotes Isaiah 29:14 who is writing about a future restoration offering “wonder upon wonder,” something that is beyond understanding and discernment. Paul is calling our attention to a huge gap between our understanding and discernment to God’s wisdom and His discernment. In other words some people may not understand why Jesus had to die for our sins, but we know He did!
1:20 Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.
Paul asks three rhetorical questions, where is the wise, where is the scribe (we might call them attorneys today), and where is the debater? He is essentially saying “give up” trying to make sense of how someone dying can open heaven’s doors for someone else (we can know it’s true because we have the Holy Spirit living in us). He notes that since mankind could never understand Him through human wisdom that He was pleased to use a foolish message (in human terms) to offer salvation.
1:22 For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
The apostle summarizes the “life goals” of the Jews and the Greeks, the Jews desire to see signs, tangible visual evidence, while the Greeks seek wisdom (especially hidden knowledge). But instead, he is presenting Jesus on the cross, something that causes Jews to stumble (as it doesn’t align with their idea as to what the Messiah should have done) and the Gentiles think the whole idea is stupid. But regardless of being Jew or Greek who have been given insight, see the power and wisdom of God in Jesus. Paul then makes a profound proclamation that God’s foolishness is wiser than any human, and that the weakness of God is stronger than man’s greatest strength.
1:26 For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, 29 so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. 30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”
Paul notes that before they came to accept Jesus as their Savior that not many of them were wise or learned, not many were politically influential, and not many were born in royal or privileged families. He was not trying to insult them, but he did want to them to think and consider that Jesus, and only Jesus, brought them to where they are at that time. That God chose the foolish to shame the wise, He chose the weak to shame the strong, He chose what was low and despised that which was considered unimportant and useless to bring things that are truly important so that no one can boast in the presence of God (see also Ephesians 2:8-9). That because of God, they are in Jesus, who became wisdom, righteousness (His righteousness, Jesus did all the work), sanctification (what we need to grow in Him), and redemption (salvation for eternity), all from God to us. Paul then quotes Jeremiah 9:23-34, essentially saying if you’re going to boast, boast in the Lord. Christianity is about Jesus, not about us.
Considerations
Can God Make Us Non-Perishable?
When God first created man he was made to last forever. We, of course, have no idea what that looked like, let alone know how everything was made before the curse on all creation (see Genesis 3:17-19). So if man was first created to be imperishable then God can certainly reverse the curse for those that accept Jesus as their Savior (see Job 19:25-26; 1 Corinthians 15:42-43; Philippians 3:21).
Setting the Stage
In this chapter Paul just “set the stage” for the remainder of this epistle, he reset everyone’s thinking from desiring to get “their way” in church to understanding it is not a democracy. Jesus is the source of wisdom and strength. Paul effectively emptied out their pride and encouraged them to seek God to fill the void.