Sessions with Corinthians: Lessons for the Imperfect

Pages with related products. See and discover other items: There's a problem loading this menu right now. Learn more about Amazon Prime. Get fast, free shipping with Amazon Prime. Get to Know Us. English Choose a language for shopping. Explore the Home Gift Guide. Amazon Music Stream millions of songs. Amazon Advertising Find, attract, and engage customers. Amazon Drive Cloud storage from Amazon. Alexa Actionable Analytics for the Web. AmazonGlobal Ship Orders Internationally. Amazon Inspire Digital Educational Resources.

Amazon Rapids Fun stories for kids on the go. Amazon Restaurants Food delivery from local restaurants. ComiXology Thousands of Digital Comics. East Dane Designer Men's Fashion. Shopbop Designer Fashion Brands. Withoutabox Submit to Film Festivals. Paul needed to differentiate himself from them once again. The irony is on the surface. Yet, crafty fellow that I am, I caught you by trickery! Titus did not exploit you, did he?

Did we not act in the same spirit and follow the same course? We have been speaking in the sight of God as those in Christ; and everything we do, dear friends, is for your strengthening. This is not just a defense, says Paul -- as if he needed to defend himself to them! He has gone into detail to help bring them understanding and clarity and therefore strengthen them.

Sometimes maturity comes through hard lessons. Paul shifts gears again. He has established afresh his apostolic credentials. Now he warns them that he will fully exercise his apostolic authority to set things in order when he comes again. When I return, he is saying, I won't be that "meek" Paul that you might expect me to be. Not so, says Paul. You have serious sin in your midst that you haven't dealt with.

If you were to be honest, how many of these would you find prevalent in your congregation -- not just in one or two people? Their presence indicates a dysfunctional congregation, a kind of organizational sickness.

Michael D McCullar (Author of Basics of Theology)

How can a "love offensive" begin to change the spirit of a dysfunctional congregation? What is the role of church discipline in a dysfunctional congregation? Many who have sinned earlier and have not repented of the impurity, sexual sin and debauchery in which they have indulged. Sometimes I've heard people minimize sexual sins as no worse than any other sin -- probably to justify their own practices. Friends, we have to take seriously God's word. In a previous letter, Paul taught this church:. Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. God will forgive the repentant, but not those who continue in these known sins without any real struggle to leave them. What does he mean that God will "humble" him? But Paul is incapable of correcting without feeling and expressing the pain in his heart that his children in the Lord have been recaptured by previous sins and haven't repented.

You never believe your parents when they say, when preparing to spank you, "This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you. That's what's going on here. Paul has shared his heart.

• First Corinthians - Bruce N. Fisk - Google Книги.
• ;
• Upcoming Events;

Now he prepares them for an official hearing before the whole church and the judgment of those who persist in sin. He is quoting from the Mosaic Law that established procedures in Israelite criminal hearings:. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.

It's kind of like a police officer reading a person being arrested his "Miranda rights. Now he continues his warning with a verb used to refer to the warnings uttered by the Old Testament prophets [] -- warnings that were fulfilled in terrible finality upon God's sinning people:. I now repeat it [] while absent: On my return [] I will not spare those who sinned earlier or any of the others, 3 since you are demanding [] proof [] that Christ is speaking through me. Paul says he won't be lenient at the trial.

Well, this will be that proof! Earlier in the letter it seemed like Paul was on the defensive, taking pains to explain himself. But clearly he is on the offensive now. Christ will act with power through me when I come, says Paul. Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God's power we will live with him to serve you. Paul is alluding here to the Corinthians' perception that Paul is weak when he is with them, but only powerful in his letters Up to this point it seems clear that the Corinthians had been examining Paul -- and perhaps the "super-apostles" -- with regard to their credentials as true apostles.

• Told You So: The Big Book of Weekly Columns.
• Account Options?
• !
• Product details;
• Покупки по категориям.
• ;

Now Paul turns the tables on them. You should be examining yourselves, he says, not me.

Small Groups

Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you -- unless, of course, you fail the test []? Notice that being "in the faith" and "Christ Jesus is in you" are two sides of the same coin, both ways of saying that a person is an authentic Christian. Paul expects that when they see their own faith, they'll realize that they are in Christ precisely because of Paul, their Apostle, and that for this reason he doesn't "fail the test. Not that people will see that we have stood the test but that you will do what is right even though we may seem to have failed.

Whether or not I am proved genuine, says Paul in verse 7b, I want you to do what is right. Barrett says, "Paul is not out to get a verdict in his favor at any cost, but wishes the truth, whether it is favorable to him or not, to prevail. This is what we pray for, that you may become perfect. His goal is not for himself, but for their perfection or maturity [] in Christ.

It's for this very reason -- that he seeks their best interest -- that he writes this sometimes forceful letter, so that they can get back on course without his having to intervene severely in person. Paul's purpose is to build them up, not condemn them, but they need to understand that he bears apostolic authority from God. Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you. The Corinthian church has been in some chaos and disagreement, with some siding with the "super-apostles" and others siding with Paul. He calls them to unity and peace.

In America, men don't usually show affection to other men with a kiss, though the expression exists in parts of Europe, the Middle East, and elsewhere.

Sessions with Corinthians : Lessons for the Imperfect by Michael D. McCullar (2004, Paperback)

However, we see kissing several times as an expression of affectionate greeting and respect in Luke's gospel:. Paul wants his greeting to them to be conveyed with the affection of a kiss at the conclusion of several of his letters, [] but with the qualification of a "holy kiss," that is, a kiss without any erotic implications. Why is a warm familial greeting so important in a healthy congregation? Why do people sometimes resist being greeted warmly?

Paul concludes with a unique Trinitarian blessing, often used in formal benedictions in our day. It isn't often in the New Testament that you see all three members of the Godhead spoken of in this co-equal way all together. The other main references are:. Chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood Jehovah's Witnesses and Oneness Pentecostals claim that since the word "Trinity" isn't used in the Bible, the concept can't be real.

As I have written elsewhere, the New Testament can't be understood properly without some understanding of the relationship between the three members of the Godhead: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. While we're foolish to pretend that we really understand God in Three Persons, yet this is the best explanation we have that is based on the evidence of the New Testament. At times, 2 Corinthians has been a turbulent letter because of the rocky relationship caused by false apostles between the apostle and his converts.

But it has been rich. Because of Paul's ministry to the deficiencies of the Corinthians, you and I are richer. We have understood some of God's abundant gifts: Father, thank you for this wonderful letter that has blessed me so much over these last months. Thank you for maturing me as I've studied and meditated and prayed and pondered.

Account Options

Thank you for all the glorious riches you have bestowed on us in Christ Jesus. Thank you for your patience with us, who are at once new creations and yet still growing creatures that seek your perfection. In Jesus' name, we thank you.

1. .
2. .
3. Seasons They Change: The Story Of Acid And Psychedelic Folk.
4. Robot Walker.
5. .
6. Brian Boru: Emperor of the Irish;

A vision is where a deity permits a human being to see, either of the deity personally or of something else usually hidden from mortals. The basic meaning is "of something that cannot be expressed, since it is beyond human powers, inexpressible. Here it means, "something that must not be expressed, since it is holy, not to be spoken" BDAG , 2. It disturbs our theology. Dana and Julius R. KJV translates it here as "to us-ward," clumsy but evocative.

Here it means, "a sign or distinguishing mark whereby something. Two possible translations are: So in our passage, where it occurs in the plural, it is either "disputes" or "outbreaks of selfishness" BDAG The verb is also used similarly in 1: Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else" Galatians 6: Also 1 Corinthians 9: Also used in this sense in Also 1 Peter 5: A single copy of this article is free.

Do not put this on a website. See legal, copyright, and reprint information. To be notified about future articles, stories, and Bible studies, why don't you subscribe to our free newsletter, The Joyful Heart , by placing your e-mail address in the box below. We respect your privacy and never sell, rent, or loan our lists. Please don't subscribe your friends; let them decide for themselves. My books are available in paperback and Kindle from Amazon. Wilson's Books Donations Sitemap. Also available in e-book and paperback.