03.05. An Examination of 1 Corinthinians 12-14
AN EXAMINATION OF 1 Corinthians 12:1-31; 1 Corinthians 13:1-13; 1 Corinthians 14:1-40 The epistle that we know as I Corinthians was Paul’s third contact with the Church in Corinth. The first contact was Paul’s visit to the city, resulting in the founding of the Corinthian Church (Acts 18:1-18). Paul spent at least eighteen months in this endeavor (Acts 18:11).
27 Only the Ephesian Church was the recipient of a longer apostolic presence.
About two years after his departure from Corinth, while he was in Ephesus, Paul received a troubling report. Certain strong, ambitious men had sought to elevate themselves over the church and the church had begun to manifest a variety of aberrant practices.
28 Paul wrote to Corinth, seeking to bring correction (1 Corinthians 5:9-11). This was his second contact with the church. We do not know the entire contents of the letter, because it was not preserved. Even so, 1 Corinthians 5:11 informs us of one of the issues addressed in Paul’s letter, But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler -- not even to eat with such a one.
26 There would have been some who would have disagreed. See Stanley Howard Frodsham, With Signs Following (Springfield, Mo, Gospel Publishing House, 1946 [a revision of earlier versions published in 1926 and 1928]), for substantiated reports of tongues in the last half of the 19 t h Century.
27 Two understandings of Acts 18:11 are possible, · The entire visit was eighteen months in length · Eighteen months refers to the time that Paul remained in Corinth after the church was founded 28 The Church in Corinth had become very carnal, suffering from internal strife and division based on personality cult, sexual misconduct of the worst type, disrespect for the Lord’s table, disorder in the exercise of the gifts of the Spirit, and false teaching that denied the clear doctrine of the resurrection of the body.17 Paul’s letter was not well received in Corinth. For one thing, those who were seeking to elevate themselves to places of authority sought to discredit Paul.
29 They tried to make his statements appear to be absurd by interpreting his letter as saying that Christians were forbidden from having any intercourse with immoral people.
30 To abide by that rule, Christians would have to go out of the world. The majority of the church had come under the influence of these slanderers and thus were at odds with Paul. However, there always was a Pauline minority. The Corinthians responded to Paul’s letter by sending him a letter, delivered by Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus (1 Corinthians 16:17). Chloe’s people also informed Paul about the Corinthian Church (1 Corinthians 1:11).
31 Even though we do not have a copy of the Corinthians’ letter to Paul, his response to the letter (the epistle we call, I Corinthians) provides information concerning its content. The Corinthians were not asking Paul to arbitrate between various factions, as some have assumed. Paul’s response implies that the letter was somewhat disrespectful, perhaps even hostile. It raised several issues concerning his authority and apostleship. One issue seems to have been whether or not Paul was a pneumatikos (pneumati>kov), a spiritual man.
32 The Corinthians, had come to view themselves as being spiritually superior. They had become enamored of Sophia 33 (divine wisdom), whereas Paul, with his poor rhetoric (at least that’s how they regarded it), was only capable of providing “milk.” They had moved on to headier stuff.
34 They also challenged some of the positions that Paul had taken. In I Corinthians Paul lashed out on one hand 35 and wrote conciliatory words on the other.
36 He declared that they were a carnal church: brethren, I could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ (1 Corinthians 3:1).This is the spiritual and emotional setting that surrounded Paul’s discussion of the proper conduct of the charismata in the assembly.
Six times in I Corinthians Paul introduces a topic with the words, Now concerning, 37 indicating that he is responding to something in their letter.
38 Such is the case with the discussion of the charismata (1 Corinthians 12:1).
We now turn to an examination of Paul’s statements concerning the charismata in I Corinthians Chapters 12-14.
29 I Corinthians Chapter Four reflects this condition 30 1 Corinthians 5:10 31 Chloe probably was an Ephesian business woman whose agents traveled to Corinth on business and visited the Corinthian Church while in the city. Upon their return to Ephesus, they told Paul about the divisions and aberrations that were developing in the Corinthian Church.
32 1 Corinthians 2:15 seems to be a sideswipe at them, stating that the pneumatikos (Paul) is not subject to anyone’s judgment 33 sofi>a 34 Thus, Paul’s argument in 1:17-2:5 35 Note, for example the sarcasm of 1 Corinthians 4:7-8 and 1 Corinthians 6:5 36 From the sarcasm of 4:7-8, Paul moves into tender images in 1 Corinthians 4:14 ff 37 peri< de38 1 Corinthians 7:1; 1 Corinthians 7:25; 1 Corinthians 8:1; 1 Corinthians 12:1; 1 Corinthians 16:1; 1 Corinthians 16:12 18 Chapter 12 In 1 Corinthians 12:1-31 Paul tries to get the Corinthians to understand that the local church is like a human body. There is diversity, interdependency, and unity in a body. This chapter echoes the lesson of Romans 12:1-21. The particular items that Paul discusses in this chapter tend to grab our attention with such force that we are prone to miss the central truth of the section. This is much like remembering all of the funny stories that a preacher told in his sermon, but forgetting the point that the stories were intended to illustrate. We must pay attention to the point that Paul makes in this chapter.