In chapter 16 of 1 Corinthians, we find a number of concluding instructions and greetings from Paul. These include instruction about regular and orderly collection of gifts for the poverty-stricken Christians in Jerusalem, notice of impending visits by Timothy and Apollos, encouragement for the support of Stephanas, whom Paul had baptized, and greetings from other churches. There also is a personal note from Paul pointing out he was writing a final greeting in his own hand. It is speculated that Paul suffered from poor eyesight and that he may have dictated his epistles to someone else, who penned the letters themselves.
In the middle of his final greetings, Paul inserts a short but profound statement of advice to his readers: Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love (1 Cor 16: 13-14). In these few brief words, Paul states a fitting conclusion for everything he has written to them so far about ending factions in the church and defeating personal sin.
Paul’s brief words continue to be useful and powerful advice for Christians who desire to serve the Savior. Paul’s advice, inspired by God, is especially meaningful for us in the United States now, while we experience the turmoil and uncertainty around us as our nation deals with the threat of terrorism. Let us take a closer look at each instruction:
1. Be on your guard
The literal translation is Watch! or Be watchful or even Pay close attention. It is a one-word imperative. In the context of all that Paul has told them to do, we see God is giving the Corinthians a final word of caution to be spiritually on guard.
Remember that the church in Corinth had a host of problems related to spiritual immaturity and misunderstanding, as well as tolerance of sin. Throughout the letter, Paul has dealt with these issues specifically--arrogance of those who were in leadership positions (whom he labeled spiritually immature), factions within the church (which caused arguments and strife and not only weakened the church, but threatened to destroy it), disorganization in worship services, Christians suing other Christians in civil court, tolerance of a member who was living openly in sexual sin, gluttony and drunkenness at fellowship meals, pride in spiritual giftedness and misuse of spiritual gifts, etc.
Now, he is reminding them to be on their guard spiritually. He did not want them to treat merely the symptoms, but to cure the cause--to wake up, to pay attention to their spiritual lives and their knowledge and devotion to God . . . spiritual watchfulness, as opposed to the spiritual ignorance, apathy, and indifference . . . the firm foundation of God, as opposed to the Corinthians’ devotion to a culture of competing philosophies . . . devotion to the only God and His spiritual truth, as opposed to the spiritual pluralism that was socially acceptable. Their lack of spiritual watchfulness was the foundation of the Corinthian church’s sinful condition.
Spiritual indifference and spiritual ignorance were the root problems in Corinth. Unless this simple one-word instruction was followed, everything Paul has told them would have no effect. It is not a need to merely know the facts and having the right behaviors. The Corinthians--and we--need more than merely changing behavior. We must be on our guard, with a focused awareness of His care & protection & His love for us as His children.
There is a story that pastors use frequently in their sermons. I don’t know if it is actual or simply an illustration, but it does beautifully illustrate the solution to the problems in Corinth. The story goes like this . . . A father and his son were working on a double-sided puzzle. On one side was a map of the world. On the other side was a picture of a man. The young boy had put the puzzle together many times before. As his father struggled to find the right place for all the pieces to complete the picture of the world, his son told him to turn all the pieces over, because he had found it was much easier to put the puzzle together by concentrating on the picture of the man. Finishing the puzzle quickly, the boy told his father, "See? When you get the man right, the world is right."
That was the lesson for the Corinthian Christians--watch, be on guard, wake up spiritually. When people’s hearts were right, then the church would be strong. Likewise, we should follow Paul’s advice to be watchful. Take a look inside. Am I spiritually aware? How is my focus? In this time when there is national turmoil all around me, have I internalized the spiritual truths about God’s care and protection? Do I remember and really believe His promises in the face of uncertainty? How am I at depending on God and not myself?
In our Bible studies, we have repeatedly seen glimpses in the Old Testament of the mighty armies of God arrayed in the spiritual realm to help and protect His children. A few months ago, in our study through the New Testament book of Hebrews, we learned that the chief job of angels is to serve us. How focused am I on these truths? When I hear of yet another danger arising from terrorism in our country, do I remember God’s love and protection?
2. Stand firm in the faith
God is telling the Corinthians literally to stand fast, persevere, do not deviate in their faith and trust. The meaning is deeper than our usual understanding of believing and trusting. In the context of the rest of his letter, Paul is telling the Christians in Corinth to stand firm in the truth that has been revealed to them, stand firm in all that Christ is and all He represents, the faith which was once for all delivered (Jude 3) to the church.
Like the Corinthians, we live in a culture in which truth is regarded as relative. Our society waffles at the concept of objective, unyielding spiritual truth. It is dedicated to spiritual and ethical pluralism. The same environment existed in the Corinthian culture, and the Corinthian Christians brought that attitude into the church itself. They wanted their spiritual truths to be acceptable in society; they believed pagan religious ideas around them offered some strengths; they argued among themselves which Christian leader’s ideas were the best and developed factions within the church.
We find a similar situation in the church at Ephesus, in which Christians were carried about by every wind of doctrine (Ephesians 4:14). In truth, Paul in the first century was already dealing with factionalism, which is a term we might substitute for denominationalism, in the church. And because of the factionalism that rose from lack of spiritual watchfulness and firm stand on the truth, the church was weak.
In the centuries since, we sadly observe this trend continued, and the truth, which was delivered once and for all time to us 20 centuries ago, has a less-effective impact than it could have. Hundreds of Christian denominations exist, and the world observes us contending not for the faith alone, but debating the fine points. Sometimes it seems the gospel message of salvation and relationship with God is secondary to the desire to win doctrinal debates.
If we are to be the witnesses God wants us to be, and if we are to have the relationship with God that He wants for us, then we must follow Paul’s admonition to stand firm in the faith.
3. Be men of courage
This phrase literally translates Act like men. God wants us, in the midst of our spiritual watchfulness and our commitment to stand firm in the truth of the faith, to act courageously as Christians.
The cultural allusion here is of an experienced soldier of the first century, a picture of courage gained from being proven on the battlefield. The admonition to be courageous as Christians spoke volumes to the Corinthians, because Paul is telling them to forget the strong expectations of the culture around them to accept or acknowledge the cultural pluralism of the society. To be men of courage spiritually would be unpopular, perhaps even unacceptable, behavior in first century Corinth. It could mean loss of stature in society, perhaps loss of jobs and economic opportunities, and loss of friends among the pagans.
Yet Paul wants them to achieve the standard that God has set. He is telling them they know the truth, and now they must do the truth courageously. This is consistent with his earlier instruction to them not to be children in their thinking, but to be mature (14:20). Spiritual maturity demands courageous application of the truth, unfettered support of what we know is spiritually true and the standards that are true, and bold opposition to what we know is false.
4. Be strong
This literally is translated be strengthened. It is in the passive voice, as opposed to the first three admonitions of the passage. When Paul tells his readers to be on guard, to stand firm, and to be people of courage, he is telling them things they are to do. When he tells them to be strong, however, he is referring to a willingness to allow God to strengthen them--something God does to them and for them, not something they can do for themselves. The instruction is to submit to the strengthening power and work of our Savior.
Once again, we turn to Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, where he states it more completely: Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might (Eph 6:10). I said earlier that this is not something we do ourselves, but something God does to us. But there is something we must do--we must submit ourselves to Him so He can make us strong in the faith and the truth. We submit, and He fulfills His promise to strengthen us.
And what is the strength He gives us? In the immediate Corinthian context, it is the strength to stand firm in spiritual knowledge and truth and to courageously apply spiritual truths in our lives. Come to think of it, it’s the same context for us in 21st century America--in the face of spiritual and ethical pluralism in the extreme, we must stand firm in spiritual knowledge and truth and apply them with courage. Our part is to be on guard, to recognize and know what is spiritually right and wrong, and to act with courage. God’s part is to strengthen us.
5. Do everything in love
Now, Paul brings us full-circle, back to the basis or foundation for how Christians should live and act. We seem to encounter this time after time in our Bible studies. Doing everything in love is another way to say we should be like Christ--reflect His love for us in our love for Him and in our love for each other. Christlikeness is the foundation for every decision we make, every action we take, every interaction we have with each other, as well as our interactions and relationships with unbelievers.
In the context of this letter to the Corinthian Christians, Christlikeness is the solution to their problems as individuals and as a church. This phrase, Do everything in love, incorporates the Christian’s life of serving God unreservedly and putting others above ourselves. For the Corinthians, it meant no more feuds, no more spiritual show-offs, no more lawsuits between Christians, the elimination of pride and arrogance in the church’s leadership, no more gluttony and drunkenness during the fellowship meal--in short, applying this principle of love for Christ and love for each other meant a radically different church, sold out to Christ and untainted by the world.
As we come to the end of our study of 1 Corinthians and prepare to begin our study of 2 Corinthians next week, it is striking how consistent God is in showing us how to live and apply the gospel message. For us in the 21st century church, the cultural context of the message may be somewhat different, but at the same time the context and the message are also remarkably the consistent: our goal is to be like Christ!
