Corinthians A.0

This is the beginning of a study of Paul's letters to the Corinthians. It grew out of a discussion about the application of specific passages in the letters to current experiences in church. So often, isolated verses are taken out of the context in which they are found and wielded like a club to impress a point. It's a direct result of the technique of prooftexting, the use of a specific verse or verses of scripture to back up a doctrine, dogma, or even just an opinion. I've done it myself a time or two (or three) (or four) (well...you get the idea), but I don't think scripture should be treated like a smorgasbord (buffet, for those of you who haven't been to Sweden) where you get to pick and choose from among the offerings whatever you want or think is tasty. Rather, it's more like a multi-course meal where you start with one level and then move on to the next, but you eat the whole thing!

So, first of all, a note about the title. I'm going to use the format found in some Greek manuscripts where the two letters we have from Paul to the church at Corinth (there was possibly a third that predated them) are designated by the letters "A" and "B" rather than the more contemporary Roman numerals I and II. The second character in my title designator will be the chapter number, all the while realizing that Paul didn't put chapters in. Editors did that several hundred years later. The third character will be the sequence of the post. So a title designator of A.3.2 would be the second post on chapter 3 in First Corinthians, and the designator for this post is chapter 0 of the same, for some background setup.

A short note about my biographical and doctrinal backgrounds: I am a born again believer in Jesus Christ as the eternal Son of God. I believe he died in my place as the atonement God required for my sins and that he was raised to life again by the power of the Holy Spirit. I also believe he is alive now and living at the right hand of God the Father. As a result of my acceptance of this belief, I also believe that God's Holy Spirit has come to be with me. However, I have also accepted a second step through asking him (Holy Spirit) to be in me. Thus, I have been baptized both with water in obedience to God's word and with the Holy Spirit to receive the "power from on high" that Jesus promised to his disciples and was fulfilled first on the day of Pentecost following his resurrection and ascension. I have spoken and still speak in a language that I did not learn. I have also experienced other elements of what is commonly called the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. If you must label me, I entered this sojourn in the early 1970's during the "Jesus People movement" and at one time was called a Charismatic. However, I have and frequently do fellowship with believers of many different kinds of labels, including Catholics, Protestants of many kinds, and Pentecostals. But enough about me, already; let's move on and talk about Paul and the church he started at Corinth.

Front Matter

Corinth was the most important city in Greece in Paul's day. It was also a bustling hub of world-wide commerce, degraded culture, and idolatrous religion. Its closest contemporary American counterpoint is perhaps Las Vegas, Nevada, their more modern attempts at becoming family friendly notwithstanding. The most prominent religious feature in Corinth was the temple of Aphrodite with its 1,000 temple prostitutes.

First Corinthians reveals the problems, pressures, and struggles of a church called out of a pagan society. Paul addresses a variety of problems in the lifestyle of the Corinthian church, including factions, lawsuits, immorality, questionable practices, abuse of the Lord's supper, and spiritual gifts. Note that while that last item probably receives the least attention in Paul's letter, it is often the focus of most modern attention. We assume that since most Americans today do not worship the ancient pagan deities, they do not experience or have to deal with things like factions or cliques in the church, lawsuits between Christians, immoral behavior (how many Pastors have I known personally who have left their wives and the pulpit for another woman in the church?! Or even just had an adulterous experience with one!), etc. We take pains to read Paul's admonitions when we take the Lord's supper, but how do we live in between Eucharists? Do we really apply the rest of the letter during the week?

Now, we may not have temples dedicated to the open worship of Aphrodite anymore, but there are still places in American culture - some physical, some virtual - where identical or similar practices are found, so we are not really that far, even in America, from the pagan culture found in Corinth. There is much that we will find applicable to our current events, culture, and society, even in what was designed to be a Christian nation! So let's learn a little more about ourselves by looking at the folks at Corinth.