SERIES: “OVERCOMING OBSTACLES THAT OBSTRUCT OBEDIENCE”
TEXT: 1 CORINTHIANS 1:1-9
TITLE: “SETTING SOME THINGS STRAIGHT”
INTRODUCTION: A. Someone: “The church is like Noah’s Ark: If it were not for the storm on the outside,
no one could stand the stench on the inside.”
1. The Church at Corinth fit that description: it was a mess
--full of problems: divisions, immorality, pride, selfishness, pettiness, and much
more
2. Reports of these problems greatly distressed the apostle Paul
a. In fact, he mentions in this letter that he had already sent one letter before this
one concerning the problems at Corinth
b. In actuality, what we call 1 Cor. is actually 2 Cor.
3. Acts 18 describes the founding of the church at Corinth
a. Corinth as a city was a crossroads of commercial trade and pagan worship
--Situated in Corinth was the temple of Artemis hosting more than 1,000 temple
prostitutes
b. Paul spent somewhere between 18 months to 3 years getting this congregation
started and on the right foundation
c. However, the influence of the world was more attractive than the influence of
the Holy Spirit to many who called themselves Christian
B. The apostle Paul is harsh in his letter
--His harshness, however, is based on his love and concern for their spiritual well-
being
1. One commentator notes that Paul’s quarrel with the church at Corinth was a lover’s
quarrel
a. He loved them despite their problems
b. It was a love that grieved because they had failed to become everything that God
had intended and designed them to be
2. Paul understood that unless he loved the church, even a problem church like
Corinth, he could never help her overcome her problems and neither can we.
C. Maybe you’ve heard the old adage: “If you ever find a perfect church, don’t join. If
you do, you will spoil it for sure!”
1. Of course, we know that is no such thing as a perfect church
--All churches have problems of some sort because churches are made up of
imperfect people
2. The problems described in Paul’s communication to the Corinthians occur at some
time and in some way in every congregation
--It makes this letter a very profitable study for any congregation
3. As the apostle Paul teaches, whenever problems and difficulties arise, there are
some things that need to be set straight.
4. 1 Cor. 1:1-9 – “Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and
our brother Sosthenes, To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in
Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on
the name of our Lord Jesus Christ—their Lord and ours: Grace and peace to you
from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I always thank God for you
because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in him you have been enriched
in every way—in all your speaking and in all your knowledge— because our
testimony about Christ was confirmed in you. Therefore you do not lack any
spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. He will
keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord
Jesus Christ. God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ
our Lord, is faithful.”
I. SOME THINGS ABOUT PAUL
A. Paul is not just writing as a fellow Christian, a friend to those in Corinth, or even as founding preacher of
the church in Corinth
--He’s writes as someone who is “called” or “commissioned” to do the job set before him”
1. Paul’s authority and leadership came because of something outside of himself
a. It wasn’t something he decided but rather God decided and extended the invitation
b. The term translated as “called” means “chosen; appointed; by extension equipped and empowered”
for the job set before him
2. To what was he called?
a. to be an apostle – a leader; a preacher; a building block for the church
b. In the original language, an apostle was one who was “sent on a mission with authority and power
to accomplish said mission”
B. Paul’s calling gave him spiritual authority over those placed under his care
1. A church is in real spiritual trouble when the congregation will not follow the leadership God has set
into place
a. One of the major problems that Paul deal with in this letter is that there were those in the the
Corinthian church who either looked to themselves as the source for authority or they looked to
sources outside the church for authority
b. Paul is reminding them of the “chain of command” in any congregation
1). Christ is the head
2). Christ then calls men to serve as preachers, elders, and deacons
3). The authority comes from Christ, rests in Christ, and is Christ in all things
--The under-shepherds answer to the Head Shepherd – Jesus Christ – in all matters
c. Heb. 13:17 – “Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men
who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden for that would
be of no advantage to you.”
2. A church is also in spiritual trouble when its leadership fails to lead in the proper manner
--Either they won’t lead at all or lead in the wrong direction
a. I have a plaque that reads: “If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.”
b. My basic leadership philosophy is: “Lead, follow, or get out of the way!”
II. SOME THINGS ABOUT THE CHURCH
--Lot of things about the church in our text but here are most important:
A. Belongs to God
1. “church of God”
2. The price for it paid by the blood of the Son of God
B. “Sanctified” – “cleansed
1. Old stuff is washed away
2. Why do you want to roll in the same mud again?
3. “Called to be holy” – “set apart for service”
a. reserved for use by Christ Jesus
b. As Paul was called so to are they called to serve the Lord Jesus with their particular gifts and
talents
C. Part of something bigger than one congregation
1. What one local congregation does reflects on the church universal
2. “All those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ…”
D. Blessed with everything they need to succeed
1. v. 5 tells us that they had been made rich in spiritual blessings
2. vs. 7 says that they “lacked no spiritual gift”
E. Sometimes we look at ourselves here at First Christian and we remember a glorious past
--but we look at our current state and say, “We don’t have what we used to have
1. Even more than that, we look at other congregations and say, “We don’t have what they have.”
2. However, we need to realize that if we’ll depend on God, work the way He wants us to work, and do
the things He wants us to do, we don’t lack any resource to accomplish what God wants us to do.
--Phil 4:19 – “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”
III. SOME THINGS ABOUT JESUS CHRIST
A. Jesus Christ is Lord
--vs. 2 – “their Lord and ours…”
1. He’s in charge
2. He’s head over all things
B. Jesus Christ is coming again
1. vss. 7-8 – “Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ
to be revealed. He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our
Lord Jesus Christ.”
2. Acts 1:11 – “‘Men of Galilee,’ they said, ‘why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same
Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him
go into heaven.’”
3. Paul reminds us that things need to be set straight because the church belong to Christ and He’s
coming back and will hold us responsible for how we have handled things in the church and what
we’ve done with the salvation He’s provided for us.
CONCLUSION: A. The night of April 14, 1912 began as any other night for the many laughing
passengers abroad the huge ocean liner. The waters of the North Atlantic were cold but
the skies were clear. Music and dancing continued well into the night.
The captain and most of the crew had already retired to their bunks, when, without
warning, a huge iceberg ripped a gaping hole in the side of the Titanic. The press had
declared her unsinkable but the Titanic went down like any other ship. All that was
needed was some water inside its hull
B. This was the same problem in the Corinthian church.
1. The church was in the world just as Christ intended
2. But unfortunately, the world was in the church
--The world’s philosophies, the world’s morals, and the world’s priorities had entered
the hill of this ship of Zion and it was sinking fast!
C. Does your life seem like the Titanic?
--You thought you were going somewhere but something entered your life and kept you
from getting there?
1. Can you identify with this congregation at Corinth?
a. A lot of promise but not much in practice?
b. Full of the world and sinking fast?
2. Know that Christ is coming again
--Rev. 22:12 – “Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to
everone according to what he has done.”
