1 Paul called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,

2Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both their's and our's:

3Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

4I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ;

5That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge;

6Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you:

7So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:

8Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

9God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

10Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

11For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you.

12Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.

13Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?

14I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius;

15Lest any should say that I had baptized in mine own name.

16And I baptized also the household of Stephanas: besides, I know not whether I baptized any other.

17For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.

18For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.

19For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.

20Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?

21For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

22For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:

23But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;

24But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.

25Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

26For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:

27But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;

28And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:

29That no flesh should glory in his presence.

30But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:

31That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

COMMENTARY by Dr. Dave Burnette

Written By: God through Inspiration

Penned By: Paul

Date Penned: (55 AD)

Overview: Paul Addresses Church Problems (c 1-6)

Theme: Divisions in the Church (c 1-4)

Message: Condition of the Church (v 1-27)

1 Corinthians 1 Commentary

(1:1-3) Greetings from Paul - Through various sources, Paul had received reports of problems in the Corinthian church, including jealousy, divisiveness, sexual immorality, and failure to discipline members. Churches today also address many of the same problems. Believers can learn a great deal by seeing how Paul handled these delicate situations.

(1:4-9) Paul Gives Thanks to God - The problems in the Corinthian church shaped almost every word Paul wrote in his letter. He realized that the believers were struggling with internal, as well as external, problems. They were forgetting to whom they belonged. When correcting others, draw their attention to what God has already accomplished in them and for them. The same process can guide your own reflections on the condition of your relationship with God.

(1:10-17) Divisions in the Church - In this large and diverse Corinthian church, the believers were favoring different preachers. Because the whole New Testament had not yet been written, the believers depended heavily on preaching and teaching for spiritual insight into the meaning of the Old Testament. However, they had split into factions—each following their favorite preacher or leader, even though the leaders spoke the same message and apparently had no knowledge of these factions. Paul admonished the believers to remember the singular message that had brought them to faith, and to stop comparing messengers. Believers today should also focus on the truth of the message, not the style of the messenger.

(1: 18-31) The Wisdom of God - The Greeks highly valued wisdom. Paul showed in the following verses, however, that there is the kind of “wisdom” that the world worships, and there is the true wisdom that comes from God alone.

LIFE APPLICATION by Dr. Dave Burnette

Each day we walk through the Bible chapter by chapter making an application of our text to help us grow in the Lord. Many applications can be made from each day's text. Today we start the book of 1st Corinthians with Chapter 1 and in our text we see Paul addressing the Corinthian Church and the problems they are having. Here Paul greets them, give thanks to God for them, appeals for harmony in the body, and preaches Christ. In making application we see the importance in unity in the Church among the body of Christ. Today we have many personalities in the body with different levels of spiritual maturity so we should apply God's Word to work together in unity. How about you? Do you purpose to work with the Body in unity? Let us learn from our text today and the instruction of Paul to the Church at Corinth to work within the body in unity to do the Will of God.