It seems that one of the major problems in the church at Corinth was their lack of unity. This was particularly apparent in the matter of spiritual gifts, especially the gift of speaking in tongues. For some reason, some of the Corinthians considered this gift of greater importance than other gifts. Those who possessed it tended to become arrogant and looked down upon non tongue speakers with disdain. It was as if they were of lesser significance and importance and those lacking this gift, in turn, tended to be envious and jealous of those who spoke in tongues.
These attitudes created disharmony, division, and hard feelings within the church.
In reality, no one was more important or less important than anyone else. Paul pointed out, that all of their gifts came from the same source and that that the Spirit of God manifested Himself in a variety of different ways. They were all equally important and necessary for the church to function the way that God intended. God had assigned gifts to each one (vs. 11) so that they could help one another. (vs. 7)
Paul applied this same principle of variety and unity…. to the church, the body of Christ.
- All had become Christians, having obeyed the same teaching that had been inspired by the Holy Spirit. (2 Pet. 1:20, 21)
- All had been added to the church by God, (Acts 2:41, 47) and every one of them possessed the same Spirit as a gift from God. (Acts 2:38; 5:32)
- All who had obeyed were God’s dwelling place through the Holy Spirit (Eph. 2:19-22) both individually (1 Cor. 6:19, 20) and collectively, as the church. (1 Cor, 3:16, 17)
- They were all equal before God in this regard. (vs. 13; cf. Gal. 3:26-29; Col. 3:11)
As the human body is made up of many different parts each having its own function, so it is in the church. The church is comprised of many different members; and every member has been assigned a responsibility and has a contribution to make. We are jointly members of one another. Therefore, we are to “ . . . make every effort to keep ourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.” (Eph. 4:3; cf. vss. 4-6 [NLT])
No one should want to opt out because they do not possess a particular gift, nor should anyone want to exclude or diminish another. Each and every part or gift is necessary and important. When we humbly accept the role and responsibility that God has given us, the result is unity, peace, and harmony. We are to encourage and support each other, to rejoice in each other’s successes and victories, to sympathize with each other’s losses and defeats, and to bear one another’s burdens. One’s experience is to be the experience of every other member. (1 Cor. 12:26) All of us together are the body of Christ and each of us is a member of it. (vs. 27)
Disunity is impossible to hide and it came out at Corinth in a number of ways. Paul had received a report that there were divisions in the church with each following it’s own teacher. (1 Cor. 1:11, 12)
So Paul reminded them that the teachers whom they claimed to follow were nothing more than servants of Christ through whom they, the Corinthians, had come to believe the Good News. Each was only doing the work God had given him. And it was God who made their work successful (1 Cor. 3:5-7, 21-23) .
Paul urged them to be united in view of three things:
- Christ is not divided – we have just one Lord.
- Our Lord is also our Saviour. He alone has been crucified for our sins
- And all believers have been baptized into Christ….none were baptized into Paul (1 Cor. 1:13)
So Paul appealed to them to live in harmony and to be of one mind, united in thought and purpose
In Chapter 6, Paul addressed the matter of lawsuits between Christians. Internal disputes were put on public display when Christians aired their grievances in civil courts. Not only did they fail to be united, they did not trust each other enough to handle differences amongst themselves. By going public, they were destroying the church’s image and witness. It would have been better to accept injustice than to bring disgrace upon the church.
The church’s failure to be united came out again in the matter of eating meats that had been sacrificed to idols. Those who insisting upon what they considered their own rights and freedoms, showed a lack or concern for their brothers and sisters. Members who were “weaker in the faith” could not each this meat with a clear conscience. To them it was sin. And those who were forcing it upon them as a false test of faith, were causing them to stumble.
And then in chapter 11, Paul reprimanded the Corinthians for the way they celebrated the Lord’s Supper. The Eucharist was intended to be a time for thanksgiving and fellowship as together we remember the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. It was also time to reflect on our unity in Christ. When we drink from the cup and eat the bread we are jointly sharing in the blood and body of Christ. But the Corinthians went ahead and partook of the emblems whenever they pleased rather than waiting for each other. They emphasized their disunity instead of their common salvation. Sometimes, they celebrated Communion at a love feast. But even then, their lack of unity and fellowship was further emphasized when some had much and others had little. The poor were ‘put to shame’. It was not a ‘love feast’ at all, but an insult to Christ and disgrace to the church. (vss. 20-22)
It turns out that most if not every one of their problems reflected and was the result of a lack of harmony, unity, and love. If they had had the proper attitude, their actions would have been different. They could have been blessed with peace harmony, and good will.
Lessons Learned:
- Whether in the church or out in society, may we always practice the golden rule (Matt. 7:12) “treating others, the way that we would want them to treat us”.
- May we always act with humility rather than trying to impress others with our own importance.
- And may make it our goal to be humble from the inside out, “thinking of others as better than yourselves”. As the Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Philippi, “Do not look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others too.” (Phil. 2:3, 4; cf. vss. 1, 2)
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