The First Epistle of St Paul the Apostle

The First Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians The City of Corinth: + It was the capital of Achaia, in Greece, located 40 miles to the west of Athens. + Corinth was a center of trade hence a center for luxury and science. In spite of all its wealth Corinth was famous for immoral behavior. + Corinth was the last stop in St. Paul’s 2 nd missionary trip where he stayed for 18 months (A. D. 52 -54). He visited it twice afterwards. Time and Place of Writing: + St. Paul wrote this epistle towards the end of the three years he spent in Ephesus, around A. D. 57. :

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians “But I will tarry in Ephesus until Pentecost” (1 Corinthians 16: 8) Purpose of Writing: To Solve Different Problems in the Church of Corinth: 1. To Rebuke the Corinthians for the Divisions in the Church: “Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment” (1 Corinthians 1: 10) 2. To Address Sexual Immorality:

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians “It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not named among the Gentiles—that a man has his father’s wife!” (1 Corinthians 5: 1) 3. To Talk Over Marriage and Celibacy: “Now concerning the things of which you wrote to me: It is good for a man not to touch a woman. Nevertheless, because of sexual immorality, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband… For I wish that all men were even as I myself. But each one has his own gift from God, one in this manner and another in that” (1 Corinthians 7: 1 -2, 7) 4. To Warn them from Accepting the Sacraments while being Unworthy Lest they Receive Judgment:

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians “Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord” (1 Corinthians 11: 27) 5. To Show the Supremacy and Permanency of Love in Contrast to Spiritual Gifts they were Seeking to Gain: “Love never fails. But whethere are prophecies, they will fail; whethere are tongues, they will cease; whethere is knowledge, it will vanish away” (1 Corinthians 13: 8) 6. To Refute the Doubts Related to the Resurrection of the Dead, Witnessing to the Resurrection of Christ and our Resurrection through Him: “Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how…

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? ” (1 Corinthians 15: 12) Contents: I. Introduction: (Ch. 1) “Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, to the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Corinthians 1: 1 -2) II. Dealing with Divisions: (Chs. 1 -4) 1. Reproaching the Corinthians for the Divisions among them:

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians “For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are contentions among you. Now I say this, that each of you says: I am of Paul, or I am of Apollos, or I am of Cephas, or I am of Christ. Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? ” (1 Corinthians 1: 11 -13) 2. The Wisdom of God Through the Cross, Not the Wisdom of Men: “For the message of the Cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1: 18) “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame things which are mighty” (1 Corinthians 1: 27)

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 1: 31) “For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2: 2) “But we have the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2: 16) 3. Ministers are Servants, Used by God: “Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. Now he who plants and he…

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor” (1 Corinthians 3: 5 -8) 4. The Believers are the Temple of God: “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are” (1 Corinthians 3: 16 -17) 5. St. Paul Defending Himself and His Ministry: “Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God” (1 Corinthians 4: 1)

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians “Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one’s praise will come from God” (1 Corinthians 4: 5) III. Handling the Problem of Sexual Immorality: (Chs. 5 -6) 1. Immorality Defiles the Church: “Do you not know that a little leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us” (1 Corinthians 5: 6 -7) 2. The Body is for the Lord:

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians “Now the body is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body” (1 Corinthians 6: 13) 3. Our Bodies are Members of Christ: “Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a harlot? Certainly not!” (1 Corinthians 6: 15) 4. Our Body is the Temple of the Holy Spirit: “Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in…

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s” (1 Corinthians 6: 18 -20) IV. Advices Related to the Social Life of the Corinthians: (Chs. 7 -10) 1. Marriage Versus Celibacy: “The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. And likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does” (1 Corinthians 7: 4) “A wife is not to depart from her husband… And a husband is not to divorce his wife” (1 Corinthians 7: 10 -11)

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians “But I want you to be without care. He who is unmarried cares for the things of the Lord—how he may please the Lord” (1 Corinthians 7: 32) 2. Relationships between Believers and Pagans: “Yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we live” (1 Corinthians 8: 6) “And because of your knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died? But when you thus sin against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never again eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble” (1 Corinthians 8: 11 -13)

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians “I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. Now this I do for the gospel’s sake” (1 Corinthians 9: 22) “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful, all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify. Let no one seek his own, but each one the other’s well-being” (1 Corinthians 10: 23 -24) “Give no offense, either to the Jews or to the Greeks or to the church of God, just as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved” (1 Corinthians 10: 32 -33)

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians V. Approaching Communion: (Chs. 10 -11) 1. The Communion of the Lord’s Body and Blood: “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? ” (1 Corinthians 10: 16) “For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread” (1 Corinthians 10: 17) 2. Institution of the Lord’s Supper: “For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the…

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said: Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me. In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying: This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes” (1 Corinthians 11: 23 -26) 3. Self-Examination Before Approaching Communion: “But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body” (1 Corinthians 11: 27 -29)

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians VI. Spiritual Gifts and Love: (Chs. 12 -14) 1. Unity and Diversity: “There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit… But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills” (1 Corinthians 12: 4, 11) “That there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another. And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually” (1 Corinthians 12: 25 -27) 2. Symphony of Love:

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing” (1 Corinthians 13: 1 -3) “Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Corinthians 13: 4 -7)

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians “And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13: 13) 3. Doing All Things for Edification: “I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding” (1 Corinthians 14: 15) “How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification” (1 Corinthians 14: 26) “Let all things be done decently and in order” (1 Corinthians 14: 40)

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians VII. The Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ: (Ch. 15) 1. The Resurrection, Proclaimed in the Gospel: “For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve” (1 Corinthians 15: 3 -5) 2. The Risen Christ, Our Hope: “And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable” (1 Corinthians 15: 17 -19)

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians “But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15: 20 -22) “And why do we stand in jeopardy every hour? I affirm, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. If, in the manner of men, I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantage is it to me? If the dead do not rise, let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” (1 Corinthians 15: 30 -32) 3. Nature of Resurrected Bodies: “The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in…

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians power. It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body” (1 Corinthians 15: 42 -44) “As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man” (1 Corinthians 15: 48 -49) 4. Our Final Victory: “For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 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? O Hades, where is your victory? The sting of death is sin, and the…

The 1 st Epistle to the Corinthians strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15: 53 -56) “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: 58) VIII. Concluding Exhortations and Greetings: (Ch. 16) “Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong. Let all that you do be done with love” (1 Corinthians 16: 13 -14) “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen” (1 Corinthians 16: 23 -24)