1 Corinthians
Week 27: 1 Corinthians 16
April 23, 2023 • Tim Oakleaf • 1 Corinthians 16
Paul closes the letter we know as 1 Corinthians with his concluding remarks regarding giving, his plans to visit them, his hope for Timothy and Apollos to visit them, and various greetings. Paul’s remarks cover various aspects of the unity Paul desired the believers in Christ to display to one another. Do you see any similarities between the difficulties faced by the church in Corinth and those we face in our church today? Do modern churches struggle to display unity according to Paul’s instructions throughout the book of 1 Corinthians? I think we have seen and have to concluded they do.
Week 26: 1 Corinthians 15:50-58
April 16, 2023 • Ron Scicluna • 1 Corinthians 15:50–58
So -- what is the real reason we celebrate Easter? Ch. 15 covers a lot of material that is not just about the resurrection of Christ. The verses in this lesson address the question: What happens to the living in Christ when He returns? Paul boldly and confidently addresses this question by the Corinthians. In addition, he provides a critically important conclusion to the entirety of chapter 15. As has already been stated, Ch. 15 provides a succinct theological treatment of the resurrection of Jesus Christ and its importance for Christians in so many ways.
Week 25: 1 Corinthians 15:35-49
April 2, 2023 • Ron Scicluna • 1 Corinthians 15:35–49
Paul moves his discussion from the fact of the resurrection of Jesus and what that means for believers on to the nature of our resurrected bodies. Some asked, "How are the dead raised?" and others, more properly, "With what kind of body do they come?" This group of verses provides "details" that are difficult to comprehend until we consider that, when in heaven, "we shall bear the image of the man in heaven".
Week 24: 1 Corinthians 15:12-34
March 26, 2023 • Tim Oakleaf • 1 Corinthians 15:12–34
“First Fruits”… Paul’s Warning #38, Watch out for False Witnesses. What is the significance of Christ being “the first fruit”? This week we look at the reasons Christ’s resurrection gave the Corinthian believers to be pitied, to rejoice, and/or to be ashamed. We believers in our present-day churches certainly would have no reason to deal with these issues, would we?”
Week 23: 1 Corinthians 15:1-11
March 19, 2023 • Tim Oakleaf • 1 Corinthians 15:1–11
"The Gospel in a Nutshell”… Paul’s Warning #37, Watch out for Vain Belief. What was/is the significance of the resurrection of Christ according to Paul? Do you see any similarities between the difficulties faced by the church in Corinth and those we face in our church today? How about keeping the main thing the main thing? This week we take look at how Paul advised the church to keep their focus on what matters most.
Week 22: 1 Corinthians 14:26-40
March 12, 2023 • Tim Oakleaf • 1 Corinthians 14:26–40
Paul’s Warning #35 Confirmed: Watch out for Failing to Edify the Body of Christ, and #36 Watch out for the Failure to Submit to “the Law” (OT teachings) and the Lord’s Commandment. Do you see any similarities between the difficulties faced by the church in Corinth and those we face in our church today? Do we struggle with properly exercising our spiritual gifts lovingly to the benefit of others? This week we take look at how Paul advised the church to worship in an orderly manner.
Week 21: 1 Corinthians 14:1-25
March 5, 2023 • Tim Oakleaf • 1 Corinthians 14:1–25
1 Corinthians 14:1-25 – Paul’s Warning #35 Watch out for Failing to Edify the Body of Christ. Do you see any similarities between the dangers in the culture at Corinth and those we face in our culture in today? Do we struggle with controlling our emotions and desires? This week we take a look at how Paul advised the church to stay united by applying love as the foundation to the exercise of our spiritual gifts.
Week 20: 1 Corinthians 13
February 26, 2023 • Ron Scicluna • 1 Corinthians 13
Is Ch. 13 just "the love chapter" or is there more to it than that? Paul continues his discussion on spiritual gifts moving on from where he left off at the end of Ch. 12. He makes it quickly clear that none of the spiritual gifts have any value unless tempered with love. This is the more excellent way!
Week 19: 1 Corinthians 12:12-31
February 19, 2023 • Ron Scicluna • 1 Corinthians 12:12–31
Paul compares the unity required for a healthy church body to the health of a human body where all the members work together seamlessly; interdependently. The issue in Corinth was that those with certain spiritual gifts behaved as though their particular gift was somehow substandard or that it was better than anyone elses. In either case, and those in between, the unity of the church was suffering. Essentially, the mark of the church in Corinth, even though its members were blessed with every spiritual gift, was jealousy, envy, anger, pride. Their sinful natures were, once again, getting the better of them.
Week 18: 1 Cor 12:1-11
February 12, 2023 • Ron Scicluna • 1 Corinthians 12:1–11
Paul continues to address points raised in a letter sent by the Corinthian believers. While, again, we do not know the actual question(s), we do know by implication that there were conflicting opinions about spiritual gifts leading to misuse on several levels. The verses covered this week discuss the source of the gifts, the naming of the gifts, how they work, and the actual ownership of the gifts
Week 17: 1 Cor 11:17-34
February 5, 2023 • Ron Scicluna • 1 Corinthians 11:17–34
Paul addresses the highly unacceptable feasting practices that were meant to be a remembrance of the sacrifice of Jesus for believers. The rich among the believers showed disrespect for those poorer than them. In doing so they were bringing judgment down on themselves. Paul's very firm rebuke of their practices should give all of us pause to reflect on our heart's disposition when we partake in the Lord's supper or any fellowship meals with other believers.
Week 16: 1 Cor 11:2-15
January 29, 2023 • Tim Oakleaf • 1 Corinthians 11:2–11
Paul’s Warnings #26 Watch out for Misaligned Authority and #27 Watch out for a Rebellious Spirit. Do you see any similarities between the dangers in the culture at Corinth and those we face in our culture in today? Do we struggle with Order, Authority, and Accountability like they did? This week we take a look at how Paul advised the church to stay united by resisting the temptation to go along in order to get along
Week 15: 1 Cor 10;14-11:1
January 22, 2023 • Tim Oakleaf • 1 Corinthians 10:14–33, 1 Corinthians 11:1
Paul’s Warnings #23-25: Watch Out for Unseen Spiritual Forces, Selfishness, and Being Offensive. Do you think the temptations with which the Corinthians were struggling are significantly different than our own? This week we will take a look at Paul’s advice regarding dealing with the powers of darkness.
Week 14: 1 Cor 10:1-13
January 15, 2023 • Tim Oakleaf
Paul’s Warnings #21+22: Watch Out for evil cravings and Watch Out for becoming a bad example Do you think the temptations with which the Corinthians were struggling are significantly different than our own? This week we will take a look at Paul’s advice regarding dealing with temptation
Week 13: 1 Cor 9:15-27
January 8, 2023 • Tim Oakleaf
Paul’s Warning #19: Watch Out for Becoming a Hinderance to the Gospel Have you seriously considered the similarities between the Corinthian’s culture and our own? This week we will take a look at Paul’s Priority and Method. What drove Paul to become as a slave? How did he run His race? Are we willing to make sacrifices to avoid becoming a hinderance to the Gospel? How well are we running our race? How much do we care about winning? Why should we?