The Radiant King Series

The Radiant King

Jesus is the source of the light that shines in the darkness. We need to have Jesus in us so that He radiates through us to pierce the darkness…

The Radiant King

Corinth was a rich city of commerce and culture. It was a town of great diversity with many peoples and religions represented. There were at least 26 sacred places (not all temples) devoted to the “gods many” and the “lords many”. Probably the third largest city of the Empire after Rome and Alexandria.

Paul’s Corinth was at once the New York, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas or the ancient world. – Gordon Fee

The first Epistle to the Corinthians, 1987 Eerdmans, Page 3

Greeting and Introduction (1:1-9)

General Teaching of Paul in the Church

· On Factions and Division (1:1-4:21)

· On Sexual Sin (5:1-13)

· On Lawsuits and Disagreements (6:1-11)

· On Moral Issues (6:12-20)

Teaching of Paul on Questions the Church asked about (7:1-16:9)

· Marriage, Divorce, and Celibacy (7:1-40)

· Eating Meat and False Worship (8:1-11:1)

· The Roles of Men & Women in the Church (11:2-16)

· The Lord’s Supper (11:17-34)

· Gifts of the Spirit (12:1-14:40)

· The Resurrection of the Dead (15:1-58)

· Collections and Offerings (16:1-4)

Final Words (16:5-24)

Here is what wer are going to to do...

Quick Scan

Drill Down

Take It Home

Let’s take a quick scan of 1 Corinthians 1...

Greeting

2 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: 3 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 1:2-3

Thanksgiving

4 I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. 5 For in him you have been enriched in every way—in all your speaking and in all your knowledge…

1 Corinthians 1:4-9

Stop being divided from one another

11 My brothers, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. 12 What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas”; still another, “I follow Christ.”

1 Corinthians 1:10-16

If we were in Corinth on a field trip we would see many different churches.

There would be the Pauline Church on one corner. Down the street would be the First Church of Apollos and a little ways across town would be the Assembly of Cephas – you’ve heard of them. They’re kind of wild because they believe they can walk on water!!!

This is not the way it’s supposed to be… Focus on Jesus – It’s all about Him.

Christ is the Wisdom and Power of God

22 Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

1 Corinthians 1:17-31

Now let’s Drill Down into 1 Corinthians 1:17-18

For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel--not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

We Live in a World with Two Faiths

There is faith in “sophia” – the wisdom of man

There are many Philosophies of man

· Some are built as political systems, which believe in a royal line of kings, of tribal loyalties, communism, fascism, Nazism, socialism, or even capitalism.

· Some are built on a foundation of humanism or a view of life without God including much of the animal rights movement – which treats abuse of an animal as the moral equivalent of a crime against a human being.

Peter Singer was appointed to the Ira B. DeCamp professor of bioethics at the University Center for Human Values, Princeton University. This is the man who says newborn babies are replaceable- his term; the man who says that they have no more value than snails-his comparison; the one who thinks people who burden society should be murdered- but he calls it "involuntary euthanasia." As he explains, the fact that a being is human is "not relevant to the wrongness of killing it."

Once at an academic convention J. Budziszewski was the designated "respondent" to a talk by another scholar about ethics. First he criticized theistic religions for being "biased" in favor of God. Next he criticized Enlightenment thinkers for having been "biased" in favor of man. Rejecting "bias," he proposed equal respect for all living things.