Grace Bible Church of Rolling Meadows

Grace Bible Church of Rolling Meadows

1 Corinthians

Notes by Peter Philippi

Introduction

  1. Paul the apostle...called, by the will of God
  2. Sosthenes...the suffering brother
  3. Corinthians
    1. Members of the Church of God at Corinth
    2. Sanctified in Christ Jesus (“holified”, set apart for God)
    3. Called to be saints (holy)
    4. A part of the universal Body
    5. A sincere wish of grace and peace
    6. Genuine thanksgiving for the grace that God had given the Corinthians
      • Evidenced by how enriched in all utterance and knowledge they were
      • Evidenced by the testimony of Christ having been confirmed in them...True Christians!
      • Evidenced by the many gifts of God's grace given to them
      • Evidenced by their eager anticipation of the Lord's coming
    7. Totally secure unto the end by God's doing
    8. Completely blameless when it's time to stand before the Lord Jesus Christ
    9. Absolutely a product of God's faithfulness
    10. Brought into the fellowship of His Son
      • Fellowship of the mystery...Ephesians 3:9
      • Fellowship in the gospel...Philippians 1:5
      • Fellowship of the Spirit...Philippians 2:1
      • Fellowship with the Father and the Son...I John 1:3-7

The Call for Unity

I Corinthians 1:10-31

  1. The appeal for true unity
    1. Based on all that Christ is and based on all that Christ has done for you
    2. The destruction of unity
    3. The restoration of unity
    4. The manifestations of unity
    5. The examples of divisions
  2. The focus of Paul's ministry
    1. With relationship to baptism
    2. With relationship to his preaching
  3. The preaching of the cross
    1. Foolishness
    2. The power of God and the wisdom of God

CHRIST THE WISDOM OF GOD

  1. Sticking with the basics with the Corinthians 2:1-5
  2. Speaking wisdom among the perfect 2:6
  3. Speaking the wisdom of God in a mystery 2:7-8
  4. God predetermined that the wisdom of God revealed in mystery is specifically designed for us 2:9-10
  5. God has supernaturally equipped us to grasp the wisdom of God as revealed in mystery 2:11-13
  6. The unsaved cannot grasp the wisdom of God revealed in mystery 2:14
  7. The spirit controlled and spirit filled discerns the wisdom of God revealed in mystery 2:15-16
  8. Those believers governed by flesh cannot grasp the wisdom of God revealed in mystery 3:1-3
  9. The folly of being man-centered and the importance of being God-centered 3:4-9
  10. Building with the right and wrong materials 3:10-12
  11. The final test will reveal the nature of what we built with 3:13-15
  12. We are to protect the sanctity of God's building (the Body of Christ) from being defiled with the wisdom of this world 3:16-23
  13. Simply ministers and stewards 4:1-6
  14. What do you have that you didn't receive? 4:7-21

The Problem of a Specific Immorality in the Church

I Corinthians 5

  1. The issue: gross immorality 5:1
  2. The problem: making light of it 5:2a, 6a
  3. The solution: deal with it! 5:2b-8
    1. Mourn 2
    2. Remove him 2, 6b-7a
    3. Deliver him to Satan 3-5
    4. The consequences of not dealing with it 6-8
  4. The instruction: don't associate with believers who persist in open and unrepentant sin 5:9-13

The Problem of Conflicts between Christians

I Corinthians 6:1-8

  1. The issue: taking conflicts between Christians to court 6:1, 6, 7a, 8
  2. The problem: the world is unqualified to deal with these problems 6:2
  3. The solution: deal with it in the church! 6:1-8
    1. Saints will judge the world! 6:2
    2. Saints will judge angels! 6:3
    3. The least of saints is more qualified than the world! 6:4
    4. Don't you even have one wise man in your assembly that can deal with these issues? 6:5-6
    5. Why not take the wrong? 6:7-8

The Problem of Immorality in General

I Corinthians 6:9-20

  1. What's true of unbelievers – 6:9-10
  2. What was and is true of believers 6:11
  3. The choices we make as Christians 6:12-20
    1. What's allowed vs. profitable 6:12
    2. The proper view of our body and its relation to sin 6:13-18
    3. The proper view of our body and its relation to the Holy Spirit 6:19
    4. The proper view of our body and its relation to the price Christ paid on the cross 6:20

Issues Relating to Celibacy and Marriage

I Corinthians 7

  1. Celibacy is an honorable choice 7:1, 6-8, 25-26
  2. The importance of the husband and wife freely giving themselves to each other
    1. It's a protection against moral impurity 7:2
    2. It's kindness that must prevail between husband and wife 7:3-5
  3. Longing to marry is a legitimate reason to do so...only in the Lord 7:9
  4. Command to the wife: do not depart from your husband 7:10
  5. Command to those that choose to depart: only two choices, stay unmarried or be reconciled 7:11a
  6. Command to husbands: do not send your wife away 7:11b
  7. Advice to a husband with an unbelieving wife: if she desires to stay with you do not send her away 7:12
  8. Advice to a wife with an unbelieving husband: if he desires to stay with you do not leave him 7:13
  9. If the unbelieving spouse wants to leave, you must let him or her go 7:15
  10. There is a special standing, and a special opportunity and privilege to be a believer in an unbelieving home 7:14-16
  11. Remain in the status you were in when you were saved 7:17-24
    1. Don't seek to be in the other's program 7:18-19
    2. Advice to those who are slaves 7:21-23
  12. Advice concerning the unmarried in light of the current situation 7:25-40

Things Offered to Idols

I Corinthians 8

  1. Knowledge inflates the ego but love builds up 8:1-3
  2. Eating things sacrificed to idols
    1. An idol is nothing and there is only one God 8:4-6
    2. Be extremely sensitive to the convictions of others 8:7-13

Paul's Choices for the Sake of the Gospel

I Corinthians 9

  1. Paul asserts his apostleship 9:1-2
    1. “I am free”
    2. “I have seen the Lord”
    3. “Ye are my work and seal”
  2. What Paul CAN do vs. what he CHOOSES to do
    1. Free to eat and drink (3-4)
    2. Free to have a wife as others do (5)
    3. Free to refrain from working to support himself (6)
      1. There is military precedent:
        those that go to war don't pay their own way (7a)
      2. There is agricultural precedent:
        those that plant eat the fruit (7b)
      3. There is shepherding precedent:
        those that care for sheep drink their milk (7c)
      4. There is biblical precedent:
        Moses taught it in the law (8-10)
      5. There is logical precedent:
        logic will tell you this is so (11)
      6. There is others' precedent:
        this is what others practice in your very midst (12a)
      7. There is religious precedent:
        those that care for the temple partake of the things of the temple (13)
      8. There is Christ's precedent:
        He ordered that they which preach the gospel should live off of it (14)

POINT 1: WE CHOOSE NOT TO EXERCISE THESE RIGHTS SO AS NOT TO HINDER THE GOSPEL IN ANY WAY! (12b)

POINT 2: I'D RATHER DIE THAN HAVE ANYONE DEPRIVE ME OF THE JOY OF DOING THIS WITHOUT RECEIVING ANYTHING IN RETURN! (15)

POINT 3: I'M NOT SAYING THIS IN ORDER TO GET YOU TO START SUPPORTING ME! (15)

POINT 4: IT IS INCUMBENT UPON ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL WHETHER WILLINGLY OR UNWILLINGLY! (16-17)

POINT 5: MY REWARD IS TO PREACH THE GOSPEL FREE OF CHARGE SO AS TO NOT ABUSE MY POWER IN THE GOSPEL (18)

POINT 6: THOUGH I'M FREE FROM ALL PEOPLE I VOLUNTARILY MAKE MYSELF EVERYONE'S SERVANT THAT I MIGHT WIN THE MORE PEOPLE TO CHRIST (19)

  1. TO THE JEWS I BECAME A JEW THAT I MIGHT WIN THEM TO CHRIST (20)
  2. TO THEM THAT ARE UNDER THE LAW AS UNDER THE LAW THAT I MIGHT WIN THEM TO CHRIST (20)
  3. TO THEM THAT ARE WITHOUT LAW AS WITHOUT LAW THAT I MIGHT WIN THEM TO CHRIST (21)
  4. TO THEM THAT ARE AS WEAK THAT I MIGHT WIN THEM TO CHRIST (22a)
  5. I HAVE CHOSEN TO BECOME ALL THINGS TO ALL MEN THAT I MAY WIN SOME OF THEM TO CHRIST (22b)

POINT 7: I DO THIS FOR THE GOSPEL'S SAKE THAT I MIGHT BE A JOINT BENEFICIARY WITH YOU (23)

POINT 8: WE ARE IN A RACE AND IN A FIGHT AND WE HAVE TO RUN AND FIGHT WITH ONE GOAL IN MIND, TO WIN! (24, 26)

POINT 9: WE ARE IN AN AGONIZING BATTLE AND WE HAVE TO EXERCISE TREMENDOUS SELF-CONSTRAINT AND SELF-CONTROL IN ALL THINGS IN ORDER TO WIN AN INCORRUPTIBLE CROWN! (25)

POINT 10: I TAKE COMPLETE AND ABSOLUTE CONTROL OF MY BODY, TO THE POINT OF BEATING IT INTO SUBJECTION, SO THAT BY NO MEANS ONCE I HAVE MINISTERED TO OTHERS I MYSELF MIGHT EVER BE A DISQUALIFIED REJECT (27)

THE BIG LESSON: PAUL LIVED HIS LIFE SO AS TO DO ANYTHING HE COULD IN ORDER TO WIN THE LOST TO CHRIST, RESTRICTING HIS FREEDOMS AND LIVING EXTREMELY CAREFUL SO AS TO NEVER CAST A NEGATIVE SHADOW ON THE GOSPEL OR HIS OWN MINISTRY