1 Corinthians chapter 1

Okay so I typed all of this up for a message board and figured I'd copy and paste what I wrote here too in case someone might be encouraged. It will probably be 4-5 posts long.\

1 Corinthians chapter 11:1-3 Paul, called as an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother, To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling with all who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

-Paul starts off by saying that he is writing to the "church of God" with all who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours."
- "Church of God" is a phrase using the greek word, eimi (I Am), with the genative case (which denotes possession). We are "of God" in the sense that we belong to God. We are His possession, it is a term used for slaves who are owned. We belong to him.
- Paul also uses the word "Lord" right away. He says "call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours." He also uses this term at the end of verse 9 later in the passage. This word is also a slavery term in the first century. We belong to God as His Church and we belong to Christ - He is our Lord.

Paul starts off the book by talking to the people of the church like someone would talk to their servants. This sets the tone for the whole book.

1:4-8 I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus. That in everything you were enriched in Him, in all speech and all knowledge, even as the testimony concerning Christ was confirmed in you, so that you are not lacking in any gift, awaiting eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will also confirm you to the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

- "the grace of God given you in Christ Jesus" tells us that Paul is writing to believers.- "all speech and all knowledge"
- These are two areas where the Corinthians thought they were bigshots. When we think of philosophers and such we think of the Athenians but the Corinthians liked to think that they were also good in these areas.
- "you are not lacking in any gift"- Paul is acknowledging that God has given us everything that we need to accomplish the task that the master has left for us. He, the Master, is the one who equips us with these things.
- "revelation" in verse 7 is a term meaning judgment. Almost every time "revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ" shows up in the New Testament it is a reference to the day when Christ will judge his slaves for their behavior while He was gone. Jesus paints a picture of this judgment in Matthew 25:14-30.
- Paul says that we eagerly await the "judgment of our Lord Jesus Christ" because we know that (v. 8) we will be declared blameless - we will be found without sin because of the death of Christ. That does not mean we are not accountable for what we've done with the task that the master left for us while he was away.

1:9 God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

- God WILL keep his promises and he expects us to keep His commands. The emphasis on "Lord" in these first 9 verses (used at the begining and again at the end = emphasis) with the words for judgment are a reminder. Christ is going to judge us for what we've done with His message.