But in the first century, saying message of the cross was about the same as saying message of the electric chair except worse! v. It is possible there was not an actual Paul Party or Apollos Party or Peter Party or Jesus Party at Corinth. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changedin a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. Third, hold this world with a loose hand. This is the sting of death to you, unconverted ones, not that you are dying, but that after death is the judgment, and that you must stand before the Judge of the quick and dead to receive a sentence for the sins which you have committed in your body against him. (Spurgeon), The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law, : The principle of resurrection also proves that we are not under the law any longer. Sin is the ultimate cause of death (Romans 6:23, Genesis 2:17), and the result cant be defeated unless the cause is defeated. i. the gospel. He kept to His gospel, because for those who believed it (. For it is written: I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? i. ii. f. His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord: In these first 10 verses, Paul refers to Jesus in every verse, for a total of 11 times. Jesus made a special appearance to James (1 Corinthians 15:7). we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, mean that Paul predicted Jesus would come in his lifetime? His replacement was a man named Sosthenes, who was beaten by the Roman officials in a bit of anti-Semitic backlash against the Jews who tried to persecute Paul. Paul doesnt only consider believers in Corinth to be the church of God. So also is the resurrection of the dead: Its hard to understand what our resurrection bodies will be like, so Paul will use contrast to help us, giving four contrasts between our present body and our future resurrection body. (3-4) The content of the gospel Paul preached. Finally, have all your affairs in order so that you are ready to die. Jesus will take His rightful place as, He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet, : Paul here refers to the one-thousand-year reign of Jesus described in Revelation 20:1-6. 2. (10) Initial plea: dont be torn apart, but joined. : The cumulative testimony of these witnesses is overwhelming. Verse 1. It is one thing to prefer one minister to another, but we cannot divide into cliques behind one minister or another. Or were you baptized in the name of Paul: Even more foolish than dividing Jesus is to center parties in the church around men. As is evident from 1 and 2 Corinthians, Pauls standing and authority as an apostle were not appreciated among the Christians of Corinth. Save your pity for those who reject the complete work of Jesus on the cross at Calvary, and save your pity for those preachers who do not have the heart of Paul in 1 Corinthians 1:23, when he proclaimed the center of the Christian message: ? The Corinthians were a rich church, not only materially, but also in their speech and knowledge of Jesus (, all utterance and in all knowledge the testimony of Christ, ), and in that they lived in anticipation of Jesus coming (, i. You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. Paul says, In light of what God says in Isaiah 29:14, now where is your wise man? Ironside says that the last trumpet was a figure of speech that came from the Roman military, when they broke camp. Without grace there is and can be no peace, but when grace is ours, peace must of necessity follow. (Lenski). You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. . In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul deals more fully with what makes a person an apostle. c. Sosthenes our brother: This man Sosthenes is perhaps mentioned in Acts 18:17, as the head of a Corinthian synagogue who was beaten because he protected Paul. Our website uses cookies to store user preferences. He recognizes that the gifts were not the problem, but wrong attitudes and beliefs about the gifts. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain. They have not been chosen because they are so great, but because God is so great. i. The Greeks regarded Christ crucified as foolishness. You can check these in your browser security settings. Let every pulpit rightly say, we preach Christ crucified! A strong church once inscribed these words on an archway leading to the churchyard. Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother. : In the previous part of the chapter, Paul demonstrated beyond all doubt that Jesus rose from the dead, and the importance of that fact. : This is not a quotation from the Old Testament, or even from the words of Jesus. Those who believe that Jesus gathers His people, may not refer to the last trumpet of the seven trumpets of Revelation at all, but simply refer to the, was a figure of speech that came from the Roman military, when they broke camp. III. i. Then life is lived only under the sun, as is considered in Ecclesiastes. Yes and no. I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. Their problem with the resurrection also indicated the source of many of their moral problems. As noted above, in this chapter Paul deals both with Christ's resurrection (15:1-11) and with our own (15:12-58). : In the wording of the ancient Greek, it is even stronger: : Paul says our bodies are like seeds which grow into resurrection bodies. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. It is the heart shown in God when it is said of the Lord, The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance ( 2 Peter 3:9 ). How bad was crucifixion? i. I am of Cephas: There was the Peter Party, who declared We are following in the footsteps of the man who is first among all the apostles. ii. a. Therefore be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord: Because we know death is defeated and we have an eternal, resurrected destiny with Jesus Christ, we should stand firm and unshakable all the more for Him right now. Copyright - Enduring Word       |      . It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. Children are apt to be struck with novelty; but do not act like them. (30-31) True wisdom belongs to the believing. It is a new order of life that will never die again. This wisdom is often in contradiction to mans expectation. b. Enduring Word Bible Commentary 1 Corinthians Chapter 1 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 New International Version The Resurrection of Christ 15 Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. Barclay says yes, and simply points out that Paul was dead wrong here. a. I thank my God always: Paul will later spend most of this letter rebuking sin and correcting error, yet he is still sincerely thankful for Gods work in the Corinthian Christians. i. But dont expose Him to the horror and the humiliation of hanging on a cross. But God wanted Christ crucified, and if we dont embrace the cross, even with all its strange contradictions and demands, then we are lost. The Lord Jesus Christ: Paul will often (more than 17 times in the letter) refer to Jesus as the Lord Jesus Christ; it is well to recall what the title means. All rights reserved worldwide. i. (1) The sin of an unnamed Christian in Corinth. . Why then are they baptized for the dead? God isnt saying that it is better to be foolish or uneducated. i. Paul expressed the same idea again in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18. No. b. Christ: This is the ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew word for Messiah, or Anointed One. This is the One prophesied by the Old Testament Scriptures, sent by the Father to save and deliver us. But largely, the smarter one sees himself, the less regard he has for God. At the first meeting of the resurrected Jesus with His disciples, Thomas was absent and Judas had killed himself. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. 1 Corinthians 15 In this chapter the apostle treats of that great article of Christianitythe resurrection of the dead. Otherwise, what will they do who are baptized for the dead, if the dead do not rise at all? 3. In the ancient culture of Paul, a letter began with writing who the letter is from, and then stating who the letter is to. The apostle was addressing Christians, and warning them to beware of the temporal judgements with which God chastised his offending servants. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: Death is swallowed up in victory., O Death, where is your sting? They were not the spiritual achievements of the Corinthians, but the work of the. Can even this much be said about many churches today? We ought to honour those most whom God most honoureth, either by a more plentiful giving out of his Spirit, or by a more plentiful success upon their labours; but we ought not so far to appropriate any ministers to ourselves, as for them to despise others. It was prosperous, busy, and growing; it had a deserved reputation for the reckless pursuit of pleasure. The. ) There is inherent power in the preaching of the true gospel, when it is received with faith. : Here, Paul refers to God the Sons desire to glorify God the Father through all eternity. There is no real, resurrected Jesus whom they serve. Or were you baptized in the name of Paul. Understanding the tension between the, Those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called, : Paul continued his description of the Corinthian Christians. 1 Corinthians 15:23. ii. Youre no great bargain. There were, not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, i. So when he says we he means we believers. (Morris). The Corinthian people were also world known: for partying, drunkenness, and loose sexual morals. The plain fact is that Paul did not know when these events would take place, and nowhere does he claim to know. ! They were, is mere flattery, Pauls way of preparing them for coming rebuke. . First Corinthians 15 is a great way to open discussions about the historical shape of early Christian confession and faith. The disunion is unnatural and must be cured.. i. They are shown to have, at times, morality problems, doctrine problems, church government problems, spiritual gift problems, church service problems, and authority problems. We can follow Pauls logic point-by-point: If there is no principle of resurrection, then Jesus did not rise from the dead. Because church was a secular term (referring to the gatherings of the citizenry in a city-state to discuss and decide on matters of public interest [Mare]), Paul calls the gathering of Christians in Corinth the church of God. The words sanctified and saints communicate the same idea, of being set apart from the world and unto God. Paul now will show why this is true of the cross and the message of the gospel. He had authority in the church. ii. They have not been chosen because, That no flesh should glory in His presence, : This is the end result. Over time, two things happened: the church lost its passion for Jesus and His gospel, and ivy began to grow on the archway. Yet, these positives were no great credit to the Corinthian Christians themselves. Click to enable/disable _gid - Google Analytics Cookie. 1 Corinthians 15 - Clarke's Commentary - StudyLight.org ii. We may request cookies to be set on your device. Session 5: Ministry of Reconciliation. (50-53) The need for the resurrection. Second, by faith put your soul through the whole process of death. Dear friends, if such be death if it be but a sowing, let us have done with all faithless, hopeless, graceless sorrow Our family circle has been broken, say you. Changes will take effect once you reload the page. This was in constant use, because seamen were thus enabled to avoid sailing round the dangerous promontory of Malea. (Vincent) Sailors wanted to avoid the dangerous journey around Malea, which was indicated by two popular proverbs: Let him who sails around Malea forget his home, and Let him who sails around Malea first make his will. If the ship was too large to be dragged, the cargo was unloaded and loaded onto another ship on the other side of the isthmus. And what you sow, you do not sow that body that shall be, but mere grainperhaps wheat or some other grain. e. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed: In a single moment, Jesus will gather His people (both dead and on the earth) to Himself, for resurrection. Though he was a pagan, Menander told the truth at this point, and Paul (more properly, the Holy Spirit) had no problem quoting a pagan who did tell the truth at a particular point. But this is not necessarily the case at all. Click to enable/disable _gat_* - Google Analytics Cookie. iv. For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect. This last trumpet may be connected with the trumpet of God in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, but not with the trumpets of angels in Revelation 11. Paul will often (more than 17 times in the letter) refer to Jesus as. He is describing them as they appear to the perishing man, the wise man of this age. So also is the resurrection of the dead. During the time after His resurrection, but before His Ascension, Jesus met with His followers on many different occasions. God raises the dead. i. The sting of death lay in this, that we had sinned and were summoned to appear before the God whom we had offended.
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