1 Corinthians 6
OGC**Butler’s Comments
Chapter Six THE PROBLEM OF BASENESS AND BROTHERHOOD
IDEAS TO INVESTIGATE:**
What kind of grievances would Christian brethren have against one another? 1 Corinthians 6:1
Why does Paul insist that they not sue one another in civil court? 1 Corinthians 6:1 ff.
How could Paul advise Christians to accept being defrauded? 1 Corinthians 6:7
What has the list of depraved sinners to do with this context? 1 Corinthians 6:9-10
If a man joins himself to a prostitute is he married to her? 1 Corinthians 6:16
APPLICATIONS:
The Bible is vitally practical. It deals with the minutiae of human existence. God even expresses his will and wisdom for guidance in the matter of squabbles and grievances.
Christians must learn to settle grievances between themselves while on earththere will be no pagan civil courts in heaven.
Christians are called to allow (suffer) wrong to be done to them rather than cause wrong to be done to another or to Christ’s church.
One does not have to murder someone to go to helljust be greedy!
Homosexuality is not a disease; it is not congenital; it is not mental illnessIT IS SIN!
The most perverse sin may be forgiven if the sinner will trust the word of Christ and be washed, sanctified and justified.
There is no such thing as absolute freedomeven Christian liberty is limited to God’s revealed guidelines for goodness and helpfulness.
Any thing, habit or idea that would rule our conduct or dictate our way of thinking contrary to Christ’s will is unlawful for Christians.
Sexual intercourse is not the same as or even like eating food. It is not merely a physical function. It is psychologically intimate and essentially moral. It is spiritual!
Human bodies were created by God as instruments through which human beings might express love and adoration for their Creator. Although the flesh will eventually die, while it lives it is to be employed only for loving God.
Human beings, if they are willing, may have the honor of sharing their human bodies with the Spirit of Almighty God.
The apostle Paul’s teaching about the human body and its functions is as up-to-date as today’s newspaper!
APPREHENSIONS:
What is a grievance?
Why would Christians be suing one another in court?
How will saints be judging the world and angels?
Who are the least esteemed by the church?
Could Christians actually settle disputes with one another over property outside a civil court?
Why does having lawsuits with one another as Christians produce defeat?
Would you be willing to allow yourself to be defrauded by a Christian brother before taking him to civil court?
Sexual misbehavior excludes people from the kingdom of Goddoes financial misbehavior (thievery, robbery, greed)?
Can the sin of homosexuality be repented of and discontinued by accepting Christ?
What is meant by saying that some Corinthian homosexuals were washed, sanctified, justified?
What is meant by saying this was done in the name of the Lord Jesus?
How could all things be lawful for a Christian?
What condition is meant by the term, enslaved?
Why does Paul talk about food being meant for the stomach, etc.?
To what extent is a person joined to a prostitute when having sexual intercourse with one?
For what purpose did God make the human body?
How is every sin except sexual immorality outside the body?
How does the Holy Spirit dwell in the human body?
What is the price paid for us?
Does belonging to Christ mean we have no say about what we think and do? Who does have the say-so?
**Applebury’s Comments
CHAPTER SIX**
Analysis
A.
Paul shows the shame involved in brethren going to court before pagan judges (1 Corinthians 6:1-11).
He asks a series of questions to get them to consider their sinful practice (1 Corinthians 6:1-4).
a)
He indicates that such a thing was all but unbelievable by asking, Would any one you dare to do this thing?
(1)
It was a fact that one of them had a matter against another (his neighbor) in the family of God.
(2)
It was a fact that they were actually taking their differences before pagan judges to have them settled.
(3)
It was also a fact that they could have gone to a wise brother to get help when differences arose.
b)
He raises further questions to prove the issue that they could have settled their differences by laying them before wise brethren in the church.
(1)
The question was designed to lift their thoughts from their petty problems to an exalted view of the church: Don-’t you know that the saints shall judge the world?
(a)
He assumes that they should have known this.
(b)
He asks, If this is so, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters (the little differences that arise among brethren)?
(2)
Another question points to an even greater responsibility of the saints, Don-’t you know that we shall judge angels?
(a)
In asking the question, he assumes they should known this.
(b)
How much more easily can you judge things pertaining to this life (such as the differences between you)?
c)
He brings all the forces of these questions to bear on the problem before them :
(1)
He assumes that they must also accept the responsibility of deciding matters pertaining to this life.
(2)
He asks, Are you going to set one up as judge who has no standing in the church (one who is a pagan and an outsider)?
He answers the problem raised by the questions (1 Corinthians 6:5-6).
a)
He told them his purpose in the questions; it was to shame them for the thing they were doing.
b)
The shame of this thing is indicated by another question:
(1)
Isn-’t there one wise man among you who can decide a problem between brethren?
(2)
Apparently they were ignoring this possibility for brother was going to law with brother.
(3)
The shocking thing about it was this: they were displaying this weakness before unbelievers.
He shows why all this was wrong (1 Corinthians 6:7-11).
a)
Lawsuits with one another defeat the purpose of the church.
b)
Two questions suggest the better way:
(1)
Why not rather take wrong?
(2)
Why not rather be defrauded?
c)
He raises the question that suggests the importance of the saints-’ real possession in contrast to the petty things over which they were going to court before the pagan unbelievers.
(1)
He assumes that they did know about their inheritance in the kingdom of God.
(2)
He makes it clear that the sinners of all categories will not inherit the kingdom of God. This seems to imply that if they stooped to such practices as going to law before pagans to the shame of the church they would not inherit the kingdom of God.
(a)
He lists the kinds of sinners he had in mind: immoral persons, idolaters, adulterers, sensual persons; sodomites, thieves, covetous persons, and robbers.
(b)
He reminds them that some of them had been in these categories.
(c)
He shows them how they had escaped: They got themselves washed, they were sanctified, they were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. This should have reminded them that this sin of going to law to the disgrace of God’s saints was not to be tolerated.
B.
Paul shows them that they were to flee from the sins against the body which is a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:12-20).
He presents the principles upon which he bases his argument for the correct use of the body (1 Corinthians 6:12-17).
a)
He appeals to the law of expediency (1 Corinthians 6:12-14).
(1)
He states the law and its limitations:
(a)
All things have a lawful purpose in God’s plan for His creatures.
(b)
They may not, however, be used to enslave one.
(2)
He gives an example to show what he means:
(a)
Food is for the belly; the belly is equipped to handle food.
(b)
But both of them will God bring to naughtthey, in other words, have only a temporary value.
(3)
He applies the principle to their immoral conduct:
(a)
The body was not made to serve fornication; it was made to serve the Lord.
(b)
The Lord will care for the body for God who raised Christ will raise us up through His power.
b)
His second principle is based on the law of marriage, the two become one flesh (1 Corinthians 6:15-20).
(1)
He uses another series of questions to cause them to think on the problem:
(a)
Don-’t you know that your bodies are members of Christ? That is, they are members of the body of Christ, the church.
(b)
An utterly abhorrent thought is expressed in the next question, Shall I take the members of Christ’s body and make them members of a prostitute?
(c)
The application of the principle of unity: one body (with the prostitute); one spirit (with the Lord).
He gives instruction for overcoming the misuse of the body (1 Corinthians 6:18-20).
a)
He says, Flee from fornication.
b)
He tells why he says this:
(1)
All sins are without the body except the sin of fornication which is a sin against the body.
(2)
The all important reason: The body is a temple of the Holy Spirit.
c)
Therefore you are to glorify God in the body because you are not your own for you were bought with a price.
Questions
What was Paul’s attitude toward those in the church who were taking their differences to pagan judges for settlement?
How does the context explain neighbor as a reference to the brethren in the church and not pagan neighbors?
Is it possible for brethren to avoid differences between themselves at all times?
What are some of the causes of differences?
What principle did Jesus present to help prevent such differences?
What was the general opinion about pagan judges as to the possibility of obtaining justice in their courts?
Why were they called unrighteous?
What experience did Paul have with such judges?
What procedure did Jesus suggest to settle problems between brethren?
Before whom should the cases that arise between brethren be presented for settlement?
How are saints to judge the world?
What does Peter say about the good conduct of the saints in relation to the false charges of gentiles?
In what way were the church members reversing the procedure involved in their responsibility to judge the world?
What is meant by judging the smallest matters?
How are we to understand the fact that the saints will judge angels?
What happened to the angels that sinned?
Who are the principalities and powers mentioned in Ephesians?
In what way does the godly life of the church prove that Satan is wrong in opposing God who created man capable of choosing between right and wrong?
How does the reference to judging angels prove that it was wrong to go before pagan judges to have the problems of brethren settled?
Who are meant by the expression, those who are of no account in the church?
What kind of persons should be sought out to help decide problems between brethren?
In what way should he be wise?
Do these regulations about court action prevent church members from defending themselves in court against outsiders?
What is the more accurate translation of the word rendered defect?
How was the church being defeated by going to court before pagan judges?
Why better to take wrong or be defrauded?
Does this suggest that the Christian is to follow the way of passive non-resistance?
Why did Paul say, Be not deceived?
How does the saint’s lot in the kingdom of God help to conquer the desire to get what may not belong to him in this life?
Why are the brethren reminded that there are some who will not inherit the kingdom of God?
What sins had some of them been guilty of before they became Christians?
Why does Paul call this to their attention?
How are sins washed away in baptism?
What does sanctified mean?
What bearing does this have on their problem?
What does justified mean?
What bearing does it have on the problem of going before pagan judges?
What is meant by, in the name of the Lord?
What part does the Holy Spirit have in the acts of washing, sanctification, and justification?
How are we to understand what is implied by the expression, All things?
How does Paul apply the law of expediency to the issue of fornication in the church at Corinth?
How does Paul show that God has an eternal purpose for the body of man?
How has the Lord provided for the needs of the body?
What is meant by the statement that your bodies are members of Christ?
How does Paul use the law of marriage to explain his point about the sin of immorality?
What order did the apostle issue regarding fornication?
How does fornication become a sin against the body?
Do other sins affect the body? How?
What is said about God’s presence in those who keep His word?
What did Paul say about Christ living in him?
Through what does Christ dwell in the heart of the Christian?
What is said about the indwelling of the Holy Spirit?
Does indwelling imply miraculous powers?
How does indwelling of the Holy Spirit call for a holy life before God?
What Old Testament teaching helps to understand the expression, your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit?
How does Paul’s reference to Sin that dwelleth in me by way of contrast help to understand what is meant by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit?
What is required by way of character and conduct of the one in whom the Spirit dwells?
What price was paid for those in whom the Holy Spirit dwells?
For Discussion
Is the church of which you are a member actually glorifying God before the community?
If not, in what particulars is it failing to do so?
What practical suggestion can you make to correct any failure in this regard?
1 Corinthians 6:1-8
**Butler’s Comments
SECTION 1
Defrauders Are Not Brothers** (1 Corinthians 6:1-8)
6 When one of you has a grievance against a brother, does he dare go to law before the unrighteous instead of the the saints? 2Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you incompetent to try trivial cases? 2Do you not know that we are to judge angels? How much more, matters pertaining to this life! 4If then you have such cases, why do you lay them before those who are least esteemed by the church? 5I say this to your shame. Can it be that there is no man among you wise enough to decide between members of the brotherhood, 6but brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers?
7 To have lawsuits at all with one another is defeat for you. Why not rather suffer wrong? Why not rather be defrauded? 8But you yourselves wrong and defraud, and that even your own brethren.
1 Corinthians 6:1 Squabbles: Chapter six is very evidently continuing the train of thought from chapter five. The apostle had just dealt with judging and settling disputes which must be done within the kingdom of God. In chapter five the problem is sexual immorality; Christians are commanded to judge and take action to solve the problem. In chapter six the problem is Christians suing one another in pagan law-courts. And again, Christians are commanded to judge themselves and take the action necessary to bring about a solution.
The word grievance (RSV), or matter (KJV), is pragma in the Greek text. Pragma is the word from which we get the English words pragmatic and pragmatism. Its generic meaning is, work, deed, event, or occurrence. The word pragma is used frequently, however, in ancient Greek writings (Xenophon, Josephus, the payri) to denote a civil law-suit with someone. Pragma was the technical term for a litigation.
It is unfortunate that an arbitrary division of this context has been made by those who, centuries ago, numbered Chapter s and verses. Such division tends to divert attention away from the fact that Paul is still talking about the same fundamental problem. That problem is the irresponsibility of the ancient Corinthian congregation of Christians to maintain scriptural standards of righteousness, justice and mercy. We do not know with certainty what the grievances were between the brethren. They were probably disputes over properties. It is doubtful that they would have taken the case of the incestuous man to the civil courts for settlement. We do know that by the middle of the first century, A.D., Rome had saturated all her subjected provinces (which included Greece) with Roman law and its procedures. Of all ancient peoples the Romans were the most prone to litigation. Any man could make himself a prosecutor in a Roman court. Each party to a litigation deposited with the magistrate a sum of money (called sacramentum), which was forfeited by the losing party to the state religion. The defendant also had to give bail (vadimonium) as security for his subsequent appearances. The magistrate then turned over the dispute to a person qualified to act as a judge. If the defendant lost, his propertysometimes his personcould be seized by the plaintiff until the judgment was satisfied. Problems of ownership, obligation, exchange, contract, and debt took up by far the largest part of Roman law. Material possession was the very life of the Roman empire, and its provinces. This would be especially true in cosmopolitan and commercial Corinth. Ownership of property came by inheritance or acquisition. The making of valid wills was complicated with hundreds of legal restrictions. No heir might take any part of an estate without assuming all the debts and other legal obligations of the deceased. Acquisition came by transfer, or by legal conveyance resulting from a suit at law. Transfer (mancipatio, Taking in hand) was a formal gift or sale before witnesses and with scales struck by a copper ingot as token of a sale; without this ancient ritual no exchange had the sanction or protection of the law. Obligation was any compulsion by law to the performance of an act. It could arise by delict or by contract. Delicts or tortsnoncontractural wrongs committed against a person or his propertywere in many cases punished by an obligation to pay the injured person a sum of money in compensation. Obviously, there would be many grievances which might arise between Christian brethren engaged in the multiple vocations and businesses which would be present in the huge, sophisticated metropolis called Corinth.
1 Corinthians 6:1-6 Shamefulness: There are a number of reasons the apostle shames the Corinthians in this matter: (a) in verse one he uses the Greek word tolma which means presumptuous, audacious, bold (see its use in 2 Peter 2:10). They have presumed against the power of Christ to settle these disputes and have taken them to heathen judges; (b) Christians are to judge the heathen world, not vice versathey are showing their unworthiness to be Christians by declaring their incompetence to judge their own disputes. Just how are the saints to judge the world (1 Corinthians 6:2)? Christians living by faith in Jesus Christ in this present world are judging this world (declaring it to be condemned) by their obedience to God’s Word (see Hebrews 11:7). Every Christian who preaches or teaches the gospel pronounces judgment upon those who do not. There is no other way to deliver the gospel (see Revelation 14:6-7). But in a real sense, also, the resurrected saints will have some part in the eternal judgment of the lost world. Perhaps that judgment will be simply a vindication of Christian choices made on earth (cf. Luke 11:32), or maybe it will be some form of active participation with Christ as Christians rule with Him (see Revelation 2:26-27; Revelation 3:21) in eternity; perhaps both. Peter indicates that the godly behavior of the Christians, before their heathen contemporaries, will provide a vindication for the Christians should there be any charges made against them at the day of judgment (1 Peter 2:11-12; 1 Peter 2:15). Now, if these Corinthian Christians are incapable of acting like Christians toward one another and producing justice, are they not declaring themselves to be incompetent to fulfill their destiny to judge the world with justice? Shame upon them! (c) Christians are to judge angels; Paul does not say how or when; we would speculate this refers to the angels who left their first estate (rebelled against God in heaven) and are being held temporarily in the pits of nether gloom (2 Peter 2:4; Jude 1:6); Paul does say the manifold wisdom of God will be made known to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places through the church (Ephesians 3:10); it may be, as T. R. Applebury wrote: … the church is God’s means of demonstrating to the angels that rebelled. that some men will serve Him out of their love for Him. The church is made up of those who deliberately choose to do God’s will and refuse to do the bidding of Satan. If men can do this, angels certainly could have done so. The character and conduct of the saints then become a means of judging angels that sinned. (op cit pg. 105); if Christians are to judge these cosmic, spiritual and eternal matters, how much more are they obligated to discipline themselves to make proper judgments between themselves in this life! (d) They lay their brotherhood disputes before heathen judges who have no place in the church; Paul uses the Greek participle exouthenemenous which is translated by the RSV as those who are least esteemed but would be more properly translated as those who are rejected or condemned by the churchin other words the Corinthian Christians are asking judges who are alienated and opposed to the church to judge matters that would require a mentality and spirituality completely foreign to them; Shame upon them! (e) In so doing these Corinthian Christians are declaring to the world that the wisdom Christians are supposed to have is not as good as that of heathen judges; they cannot seem to find one of their own brethren wise enough to settle disputes between themselves; even brothers by natural birth are often able to settle disputes between themselves without recourse to civil law courts; but in Corinth it was Christian brother against Christian brother, and that in courts where unbelieving judges sat!
Christians should obey all the laws (which do not demand direct and certain disobedience against God) of their governments. All transactions requiring legal sanction by a civil government should be submitted to such sanction. And Christians are not prohibited from recourse to civil court when it is necessary to defend themselves against heathen accusers. At Philippi, Paul demanded his rights as a Roman citizen against ungodly and unjust treatment (Acts 16:37); he did the same before Festus (Acts 25:10). But Christian brethren should not have to bring civil suit against one another to obtain justice when there is a grievance. Let Christian brethren first do what is fair and honest and just; let them settle any dispute between themselves, then, if civil law requires it, let it be legally sanctioned in civil court. The law is for the ungodlynot for the godly (1 Timothy 1:8). Christians should never have to resort to civil law to arrive at what is fair, honest and just between themselves. Civil law should be resorted to only as a secondary sanction of the justice already accomplished between Christian brethren! And this is to apply in every area of Christian lifetransfers of property, accidental harm done, services performed, etc. In every circumstance the Christian’s first concern is not What will it cost me?Will I make a profit?Shall I accept responsibility for my error? but, Have I been fair, honest, and justHave I given what my brother rightly deserves?
1 Corinthians 6:7-8 Solutions: The apostle has already suggested (1 Corinthians 6:5) that since it appears they cannot settle these disputes between themselves, they should select a man among you wise enough to decide between members of the brotherhood. That would be the first suggestion to bring a solution to their incompetency. But who, among them, would be wise enough? He should be well-trained in what the Word of God says in the areas of ethical absolutes and principles. He should know what the Scriptures say about brotherly relationships. He should be old enough to have had much practical experience in the circumstances of life and interpersonal relationships. Ordinarily, it would be the responsibility of elders and/or evangelists (see epistles to Timothy and Titus) to arbitrate and bring about reconciliation between disputing Christian brethren. But any wise Christian should be able to function in this capacity.
The second solution Paul offers is that a Christian would be much better off to allow himself to be defrauded by a brother than to quarrel over grievances to the point of bringing suit in a pagan civil court. When Christians take one another to a heathen judge, rather than being able to settle between themselves, it smacks of some underlying greed or spirit of retaliation. Whether that be the case or not, two Christians suing one another in civil court is taken by the world to mean that Christians are no different than greedy and spiteful heathen. Paul clearly states that for Christians to sue one another in pagan court is defeating (Gr. hettema, loss, detriment, overthrow)it brings discredit on the church and the gospel. When Christians cannot settle a grievance between themselves, one of them should be willing to suffer personal abuse, injury or loss rather than let the church be defeated in its mission to bring men to Christ! That is not easybut that is what Christ, Himself, did! Nowhere does the New Testament say the Christian cannot appeal to the civil courts for redress and justice when he is wrongfully sued by an unbeliever. In fact, a number of scriptures (the clearest being Romans 12:14-21; Romans 13:1-7) tells the Christian that when he has done all he can to be at peace with all men. If an unbeliever persists in an unjust action, the Christian is to leave the wrath of God up to the civil authorities for execution.
But all members of the kingdom of God are expected to think and act as regenerated, reborn people. They should act toward one another as Jesus taught in the Sermon on The Mount. While force and law is for the ungodly, the Sermon on The Mount characterizes the citizens of God’s kingdom. The kind of brotherly love that would rather accept being defrauded by a Christian brother than to sue him in civil court is taught in a number of New Testament passages (see Colossians 3:12-13; Romans 15:1-2; 1 Peter 2:20; 1 Peter 3:8-15; Philippians 2:3-4). This is as relevant today as it was when Paul wrote it. The word of God abides forever!
1 Corinthians 6:1-11
Applebury’s Comments
Going to Court Before Pagan Judges (1-11)
Text
1 Corinthians 6:1-11. Dare any of you, having a matter against his neighbor, go to law before the unrighteous, and not before the saints? 2 Or know ye not that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world is judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? 3 Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more, things that pertain to this life? 4 If then ye have to judge things pertaining to this life, do ye set them to judge who are of no account in the church? 5 I say this to move you to shame. What, cannot there be found among you one wise man who shall be able to decide between his brethren, 6 but brother goeth to law with brother, and that before unbelievers? 7 Nay, already it is altogether a defect in you, that ye have lawsuits one with another. Why not rather take wrong? why not rather be defrauded? 8 Nay, but ye yourselves do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren. 9 Or know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with men, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you: but ye were washed, but ye were sanctified, but ye were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit of our God.
*Commentary
Dare any of you.*Paul had expressed surprise that church people neglect their duty remove the immoral person from their midst (1 Corinthians 5:1-2). But when it came to the matter of brethren actually taking their differences before pagan judges to the disgrace of the whole church, he suggested that such a thing was all but unbelievable. Had they so forgotten the divine nature and purpose of the church? He had clearly pointed this out in the opening statements of this epistle. They were the church of God, but one would never know by what they were now doing.
*having a matter against his neighbor.*Literally, against another; but the context shows that it is another in the family of God, for brother was going to court against brother. Our translation supplies the word neighbor to bring out this idea. Difference could be expected to arise even between brethren. Many differences that do arise, however, could be avoided by the simple practice of the principles of Christianity. Selfishness and a desire to get what does not belong to one are often at the root of such differences. The principle of forgiveness and recognition of the rights of others will often settle such differences. Jesus taught the disciples to pray, forgive our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. Perhaps greed and covetousness had led them to forget such practice.
*go to law before the unrighteous.*The pagan judge was looked upon, and rightly so, as being unrighteous. It was probably difficult, though not impossible, to obtain justice in such courts. Jesus tells of one such judge who feared not God, nor regarded man (Luke 18:4). Pilate was another such judge. He had examined the charges against Jesus and found Him innocent, but for fear of what the Jews might do, he consented to the crucifixion of our Lord. Before the multitudes, he took water and washed his hands saying, I am innocent of the blood of this righteous man. Then he scourged Jesus and delivered Him to be crucified (Matthew 27:24). Paul found the same situation when he was brought before Gallio in Corinth (Acts 18:15) and later before Festus (Acts 25:9-11). Certainly, the Corinthian brethren were aware of this, but they disgraced themselves and the whole church by taking their differences before these unjust judges.
*not before the saints.*Jesus had given the rule to follow in cases of difference between brethren (Matthew 18:15-35). The first thing was to go to the brother alone with a view to gaining the brother. If this failed he was to take one or two others with him in an effort to bring about a reconciliation. If this also failed, he was to tell it to the church. There was no suggestion here that would permit brethren to go to court before pagans. The saints should be able to settle their problems between themselves if they had proper regard for each other and for the sacredness and divine purpose of the church.
*the saints shall judge the world.*Paul had just asked the question, What have I to do with judging them that are without? It was not his business to regulate the conduct of those who were outside the church; God was judging them. How then shall the saints judge the world? Through the preaching of the gospel the saints do share in Christ’s rule in this age. And he that overcometh, and he that keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give authority over the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron, as the vessels of the potter are broken to shivers (Revelation 2:26-27). He that overcometh, I will give to him to sit down with me in my throne as I also overcame, and sat down with my Father in his throne (Revelation 3:21). Jesus indicated that the apostles would sit on twelve thrones in the time when men were being made new creaturesthe regenerationjudging the twelve tribes of Israel (Matthew 19:28). While this has to do with the work of the apostles in which the saints also share through their part in preaching the gospel, it is possible that it may suggest that this rule may extend to all the world since the gospel is to be preached in all the world. This, it must be admitted, is only a possible fulfillment of Paul’s statement about the saints ruling the world.
The conduct of saints is regularly expected to judge (by comparison) the conduct of the world. If some men can do what Christ requires, others can also. No man, then, can say that he is doing the sinful thing because he can-’t help it. Peter makes it clear that the good behavior of the saints, which the Gentiles behold, will answer the charges against them in the day of judgment (1 Peter 2:11-12). This can probably apply to situations of this life as well.
The point that Paul is making is this: Since your daily conduct will judge that of the world, why attempt to reverse the process by going to the unbelievers to decide your cases?
*are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?*Two different courts are under consideration. In one, the saints are acting as judges in the highest courts as they judge the world and angels through the preaching of the gospel. In the other, brethren are to handle cases pertaining to this life such as differences among themselves. If the saints are to sit in the higher courts, are they unworthy to sit in the courts that handle things of this life? Must those who are destined to act as judges in courts pertaining to angels seek a settlement of differences between brethren in the courts that are presided over by the unjust pagans who are not even counted among the believers.
*we shall judge angels.*Not only will saints judge the world, but they will also judge angels. Paul indicates that this will be true but does not state when or how it is to be done. This suggests that we should exercise caution in attempting to answer the problem.
All men will come before the judgment seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10). Will this be true also of angels? What of angels that sinned who are committed to pits of darkness until the judgment (2 Peter 2:4)? An interesting suggestion that may have some bearing on the issue is found in Paul’s statement that the manifold wisdom of God will be made known to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places through the church (Ephesians 3:10). The passage is difficult to understand. Who are the principalities and powers? They may be the heavenly hosts that surround the throne of God (Ephesians 1:20-21), or they may beand this is probably correctthe forces of wickedness that oppose Christ (Ephesians 6:12). If the latter is true, then the church is God’s means of demonstrating to the angels that rebelled against His authority that some men will serve Him out of their love for Him. The church is made up of those who deliberately choose to do God’s will and refuse to do the bidding of Satan. If men can do this, angels certainly could have done so. The character and conduct of the saints then become a means of judging angels that sinned.
The point to remember, of course, is that saints will be exalted to this highest responsibility and should therefore be able to take care of such little things as the differences that may arise among them.
*no account in the church.*Since they are to take care of matters that pertain to their own members, who is to act in the capacity of judge? Is it to be some unjust pagan? The very thought should have shamed the brethren who were doing this thing. Men who were not even members of the church were being asked to decide the problems of brethren.
It does not seem that this could be a reference to the least esteemed member of the church as if they were excusing themselves for going to the pagan judges by saying that they had no confidence in their own members.
*one wise man.*Surely there was one wise man among them who could decide these matters. Ordinarily, it would be the task of an elder or the minister. The point is, he is to be a wise man, one who is well trained in the Word and experienced in such life situations.
This does not prohibit the Christian from defending himself against attacks of those who are not brethren. At Philippi, Paul was unjustly treated, but he demanded that he be given his rights as a Roman citizen (Acts 16:37). When he failed to get justice before Festus, he exercised his right as a Roman and appealed to Caesar (Acts 25:10).
*a defect in you.*More accurately, defeat. Actually the church had already been defeated when it turned from brethren to pagans to settle its differences. They were defeated in their responsibility to judge the world and angels, for how could they act as judges in the higher courts if they couldn-’t settle matters of this life. They were defeated in their reputation in the community, for quarreling brethren would have no standing even among pagans, They were defeated in their mission, for they were to win men to Christ, but how could they do so when they practiced things that caused the outsiders to look down on them? They were defeated in their stand against Satan when they permitted such things to arise, for strife and division are not of Christ.
*Why not rather take wrong?*Rather than cause the church to be disgraced before the pagan community, a better way would be to take wrong or be defrauded. No personal injury or material loss could possibly justify an injury to the church which is a temple of God. Do the brethren count themselves and their possessions of more value than Christ and His church? Rather than let the church be defeated in its mission to bring men to Christ, why not suffer a personal injury or loss? Viewed from the standpoint of their inheritance in the kingdom of God, the things men quarrel over are trivial indeed. One stands to loose his inheritance by such quarrels.
*Be not deceived.*They were being led astray by the supposed importance of the things of this life. Paul calls them back to reality and truth by reminding them that no unrighteous person, inside or outside of the church, is to inherit the kingdom of God. He presents a long list of sinners to prove his point. It includes sins that were commonly associated with idolatrous worship. Adulterers, sensual persons, and homosexuals were guilty of sinning against the body. Drunkenness and abusive language often accompanied such sins. Thieves, covetous persons, and robbers had no lot in God’s kingdom. Were covetousness and a desire to get what did not belong to them motivating brethren to go to pagan courts?
*such were some of you.*The apostle does not say that all of them had been guilty of these sins before becoming Christians. Some of them had been. What they were now doing meant that they were going back to the state from which they had been rescued by the gospel of Christ. Peter has a word to say about such a thing: It were better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after knowing it, to turn back from the holy commandment delivered unto them. It has happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog turning to his own vomit again, and the sow that had washed to wallowing in the mire (2 Peter 2:21-22).
*ye were washed, ye were sanctified, ye were justified.*All three take place in the one act of baptism. Baptism is a washing, not just in water, but in the blood of Christ. Ananias told Saul to get himself baptized and wash away his sins because he had called on the name of the Lord (Acts 22:16). Water, of course, has power to cleanse the filth of the flesh (1 Peter 3:21), but God also assigns it a place in His plan to purify the soul by the blood of the Lamb (Ephesians 5:26; Hebrews 10:22). The blood of Christ blots out sin (Romans 3:25), and cleanses the conscience (Hebrews 9:13-14). The sinner reaches the blood of Christ when he is baptized into his death (Romans 6:3-5; Revelation 7:14).
Sanctification is separation from sin and consecration to the service of the Lord. It is accomplished by obedience to the command of Christ that brings the sinner to His blood which separates him from his sin. Peter says that you have purified your souls in obedience to the truth (1 Peter 1:22). But you were redeemed from the vain manner of your life with precious blood, as of a lamb, even the blood of Christ (1 Peter 1:18-19). John says, the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from all sin (1 John 1:7).
Justification means acquittal or pardon. It is the pardon granted by the merciful heavenly Father to the sinner who has committed himself to the Lord Jesus Christ by faith that is expressed in obedience to His Word. Much more then, being justified by his blood, shall we be saved from the wrath of God through him (Romans 5:9). In baptism, the blood of Christ washes away the sin and separates the sinner from his past life. Because of this, God pardons the sinner and removes his guilt. Repent ye therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out (Acts 3:19). God says, I will be merciful to their iniquities, and their sins will I remember no more (Hebrews 8:12). Pardon, of course, does not remove the fact that the believer has sinned. John says, If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us (1 John 1:10).
After listing various classes of sinners, Paul says, That’s what some of you used to be. Now that they have been washed, sanctified, and justified, they are to act accordingly. They should not permit covetousness nor any other sin to cause them to bring the church into disgrace by going to law before pagan judges.
*in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.*The washing, sanctifying, and pardoning were done in the name of Christ, that is, by His authority. These things were also done within the limits set by the Spirit of our Godthe Holy Spirit. The apostles spoke under the direction of the Holy Spirit when they stated the terms of pardon (John 20:21-23); Acts 2:4; Acts 2:37-39). There is no acquittal from sins outside the limits prescribed by the Spirit of God as revealed in the Word.
1 Corinthians 6:9-11
**Butler’s Comments
SECTION 2
Debauched Are Not Brothers** (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)
9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither the immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor sexual perverts, 10nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor robbers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.
1 Corinthians 6:9-10 Reprobation: Clearly, Paul is classifying those who are taking brotherhood grievances to civil courts as some of the unrighteous who shall not inherit the kingdom of God! The Greek word adikoi may be translated either unrighteous or unjustthe two English words mean the same. It is frightening to contemplate that those who would rather defraud a brother than be defrauded are categorized with the debauched but that is precisely what Paul is doing here.
Those who defraud are as abominable to God as the immoral, the idolater, the homosexual, the effeminate, the thief, the greedy, the drunkard, the reviler, and the robber. All these unrighteous ones (except the homosexual and the effeminate) are listed earlier by Paul as alien to the kingdom of God and unacceptable as citizens (1 Corinthians 5:9-13). The Greek word arsenokoites is a combination of arsen, male, and koite (Eng. coitus), sexual intercourse, and is translated homosexual. The Greek text here includes the word malakoi, literally meaning, soft to the touch, but used metaphorically in the New Testament to mean male effeminacy in a practicing homosexual. The word malakoi was used by classical Greek writers near the first century A.D. to denote catamites (men and boys who allowed themselves to be misused homosexually). Homosexual behavior is not sicknessit is sin! Why would the act of suing a Christian brother in a heathen court be counted such a serious crime by the apostle? Because it is a deliberate rejection of the very essence of God’s kingdom. It is a refusal of the principle of self-denial. Anyone who refuses to put self to death, allowing Christ to live in him, is not worthy of the kingdom (see Luke 12:13-31; Luke 14:25-33; Luke 16:10-15; John 12:20-25; John 15:12-14; Galatians 2:20; Galatians 5:13; Galatians 5:24-26, etc.). It is the love of Christ which is to control every Christian. Christians are never to consider one another from the world’s point of view (2 Corinthians 5:14-21). When Christians are unwilling to settle any grievance they have with one another, even if it means being defrauded, it means they are unwilling to surrender to the sovereign will of Christ and are not fit to inherit His kingdom. Paul told these Corinthian brethren they were being led astray (Gr. planasthe, wandering stars, planets), in their unmerciful, non-Christian actions of suing one another in heathen courts.
1 Corinthians 6:11 Regeneration: These straying Christians, in their present shameful, defeating, unrighteous behavior unfit for the kingdom, are reminded they do not have to remain disinherited. Some of them were once before living debauched and ungodly lives. Paul is warning them not to continue in this fallen condition, lest they be lost. It is possible to fall from grace after having once been washed, sanctified and justified (see Galatians 5:1-26). Paul considers them, in their present conditions, as unrighteous and not heirs of the kingdom. But he exhorts them (by inference) to repent and return to the state of being sanctified and justified.
It is well to note here that the order of the regenerative process harmonizes with what the rest of the New Testament says about it. First, the Corinthians believed and were baptized (washed), then they were pronounced sanctified and justified, (see Acts 2:38; Acts 18:8; Acts 22:16; Romans 6:5 ff.; Galatians 3:26-27; Colossians 2:12-13; 1 Peter 1:22-25). The Greek verb apelousasthe Isaiah 2nd plural aorist middle, and might be literally translated you were washed clean. The word is a combination of two Greek words, apo (from) and louo (washed). The verb louo and its various forms are often used metaphorically for baptism (see Acts 22:16; Ephesians 5:26; Titus 3:5; Hebrews 10:22). The believer’s obedience to Christ’s command to be baptized (see Matthew 28:18-20) is the initial and fundamental act of faith through which God has chosen to judicially declare a believer both sanctified and justified. It is at this point in the believer’s calling upon God that he has his sins washed away (Acts 22:16), is saved (1 Peter 3:21; Titus 3:5), is made a member of Christ’s church (Ephesians 5:26), is joined to Christ and justified (Galatians 3:23-29), is sanctified (Ephesians 5:26). Without surrender to the command of Christ and the Holy Spirit (through the apostles) to baptism there is no promise of cleansing, salvation, justification or sanctification.
While these Corinthian Christians had previously been baptized, sanctified and justified, they were not presently considered in a sanctified and justified state of the apostle. One who is aware that he is sinning, after having been once baptized, must appeal to the grace of God by repentance and prayer (Hebrews 10:19-25; 1 John 1:8-10; 1 John 2:1-6). To be an heir of the kingdom of God after initial admittance through belief and baptism, one must continue in sanctification and justification, which is done through daily repentance and prayer. Repentance is from the Greek word metanoeo which means changing the mind and actions. Sanctification is from the Greek word hagiasmos which means, set apart unto God, or dedicated to God. Justification is from the Greek word dikaiosis and means, to declare right, to declare innocent, to acquit of guilt. God is able to declare sinners innocent of guilt because Christ vicariously atoned for all sin upon the cross. This is established as a fact by the historical resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. But God cannot declare any sinner innocent who will not accept that declaration of grace. God has decreed that any sinner who wishes this free gift of grace (declaration of innocence from all guilt) must do so by believing Christ’s death paid for his sin and by submitting to the ordinance of baptism. When the sinner accepts God’s offer, on God’s terms, he is set apart to God’s will in his life. Of course, a washed, justified, sanctified person may renounce his inheritance and return to the former state of alienation and impenitence (2 Peter 2:20-22). That, says Paul, is what these Corinthians were doing by refusing to settle their grievances with one another on Christian principles.
In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God simply means these Corinthians had been previously washed, justified and sanctified under the authority of and by the agency of Christ and the Holy Spirit. That authority and that agency is the word of Christ in the apostolic message. There is no indication in the New Testament that the Holy Spirit operates or leads in any extra-Biblical manifestation in the matter of salvation, justification and/or sanctification. The Holy Spirit’s will in these matters is contained in and operates through His revealed Word. That Word is the Biblenothing less and nothing more! The oral teachings of Christ and the apostles were the first revelations of the Holy Spirit’s will for salvation, justification and sanctification. Later, their spoken doctrines were committed to writing. These apostolic documents have the same authority and power as their oral teachings did. These written words of the apostles (and the Old Testament before them) form the completed, canonized Word of Godthe will of the Spirit of Truth. They are all the world needs for salvation, justification and sanctification. Nothing must be taken away from these writings and nothing must be added to them. All things that pertain to life and godliness are in his precious promises (2 Peter 1:3-5).
1 Corinthians 6:12-20
**Butler’s Comments
SECTION 3
Defilers Are Not Brothers** (1 Corinthians 6:12-20)
12 All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be enslaved by anything. 13Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for foodand God will destroy both one and the other. The body is not meant for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. 14And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power. 15Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I therefore take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never! 16Do you not know that he who joins himself to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, The two shall become one flesh. 17But he who is united to the Lord becomes one spirit with him. 18Shun immorality. Every other sin which a man commits is outside the body; but the immoral man sins against his own body. 19Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God? You are not your own; 20you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
1 Corinthians 6:12-14 Perversion of Humanness: Brotherly love acknowledges there is a lawful purpose for all things which God has created, but using the body for immorality (including hatred, greed and unchristian lawsuits) is perverting and downgrading that which God made to be the residence of the Holy Spirit. The last section does connect to the beginning admonition concerning unchristian lawsuits. It teaches that Christians who become enslaved to their emotions and feelings and drag one another bodily before heathen tribunals for their ungodly purposes of greed and retaliation are prostituting themselves. When God created man and gave him a human body, it was intended that God’s Holy Spirit would dwell with each man in that body.
The apostolic principle, All things are lawful, but not all things are helpful. must be understood in its context. When a Christian brother defrauds you, it is lawful (you have the right) to sue him in a civil courtbut such action is not always helpful (or, edifying). Christians are to live above the plane of law in the kingdom of grace. Christians are not to seek their own good, but the good of their neighbors (1 Corinthians 10:24); they are not to look only to their own interest, but also to the interests of others (Philippians 2:4); they are to please their neighbors for their good, to edify them (Romans 15:2). Therefore, the Christian has the responsibility of denying any right he has to build people up in Christ rather than perverting these things to destroy people.
Some ancient Greek philosophers (especially the Gnostics) held that mind and thought were spiritual and holy while material things, including the human body, were impersonal and thus amoral. These philosophers taught that the natural, physical and material processes of life had no moral significance. Suing one another in court over physical and material things would have no moral implications according to this philosophy. Apparently some of the wise Christians of Corinth had decided to practice the philosophy of the Gnostics.
Paul had twice listed ways in which material things, including the human body, might be perverted (1 Corinthians 5:9-11; 1 Corinthians 6:7-10) and which would cause the Christian to forfeit his spiritual inheritance. That would include greed and robbery and reviling a brother in the matter of civil law suits. And it would most definitely include sexual promiscuity, which is the first subject in the context of Chapter s five and six.
So, as Paul wrote about Christians suing one another in heathen courts and assuming, like the Gnostics, that they might do as they pleased with material things without sinning, his thoughts were directed back to the subject of sexual promiscuity. Sexual abandon and all forms of unnatural perversion were the norm for most of first century Greco-Roman society. This is evidenced in ancient art and literature. We quote here from William Barclay:
The Greeks always looked down on the body.. That produced one of two attitudes. Either it issued in the most rigorous aceticism in which everything was done to subject and humiliate the desires and instincts of the body. Orand in Corinth it was this second outlook which was prevalentit was taken to mean that, since the body was of no importance, you could do what you liked with it; you could let it sate its appetites. What complicated this was the doctrine of Christian freedom which Paul preached. If the Christian man is the freest of all men, then is he not free to do what he likes, especially with this completely unimportant body of his? So, the Corinthians argued, in a way that they thought very enlightened, let the body have its way. But what is the body’s way? The stomach was made for food and food for the stomach, they went on. Food and the stomach naturally and inevitably go together. In precisely the same way the body is made for its instincts; it is made for the sexual act and the sexual act is made for it; therefore let the desires of the body have their way.
Another element in the heathen culture of Greco-Roman society Paul had to deal with was the matter of religion and human behavior. Heathen gods were what men made them. Naturally, when they disavowed the true God’s revelation of his infinitely holy character and exchanged that truth for a lie (Romans 1:18 ff.) they supplied their own human characteristics to gods of their own making. Religion, to the heathen, was, and still is, a way to appease, cajole, and prevail against their gods until the gods are won over to the human’s desire to do as he pleases. To the heathen, the human was relatively free to behave as he pleased so long as he did not anger the gods or the civil authorities. He could very easily appease the gods by making the right offerings and observing the superstitious rituals. So long as he paid his taxes, and did not participate in treason or revolution he could please the civil authorities. The Christian doctrine of freedom limited by morality and self-sacrifice was in absolute opposition to heathen selfishness. Thus, Paul sets out to clarify the doctrine of Christian freedom as opposed to the philosophy and practice of heathen permissiveness. It is the teaching of Christ and his apostles that everything God has created is good (Genesis 1:10; Genesis 1:18; Genesis 1:25; Genesis 1:31; Acts 10:15; 1 Corinthians 10:26; 1 Timothy 4:1-5) if used according to the precepts and principles revealed in God’s word. There is a created purpose for the human longing for justice so long as it is not allowed to degenerate into a spirit of exploitation, hatred and retaliation. There is a God-ordained purpose for the physical appetite for food so long as it is controlled and not allowed to degenerate into gluttony. There is a God-ordained purpose for the desire for sexual intercourse as long as the desire is not permitted to deteriorate into adultery, fornication and homosexuality. Sexual intercourse was created by God but he never intended it to be casual, amoral and promiscuous. The longings and desires of the human being created for this earthly life have their limitations. They are for the present world order. They are created by God in order to test, discipline and prepare men during this earthly probation for existence in the next life.
One of the principles under which these human longings are to be controlled is that while all things created by God are lawful, all things are not, in certain circumstances, helpful. Some things created by God, under some circumstances, are harmful. And, as Paul clearly says, whatever would enslave a person, under any circumstances, would be harmful. Food, drugs, sexuality, emotions, material possessionsall are lawful, good and helpful if controlled and limited by the revealed principles of God’s word. But even these good and helpful things become harmful if man allows himself to be enslaved, possessed and obsessed by them, or when he abuses them beyond the limitations of God’s directions. Paul uses the Greek word exousiasthesomai which is translated enslaved and means, more precisely, ruled over by. For the apostle it is Christ who rules over himnot his emotions, not food, not sexuality, and not material possessions. He is a slave to the will of Christ.
These Christians of Corinth, attempting to be sophisticated and follow popular Gnosticism, were apparently teaching that the appetite for sexual intercourse was merely a physical thing like the appetite for food. Paul makes it very clear that these two human functions do not belong in the same category. The statement, Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food is correct, so long as man is not enslaved by food and becomes a glutton. What a man eats, so long as he is not obsessed with food, has no spiritual significance. Jesus and his apostles made that clear: (a) food has no spiritual significance even if it has been sacrificed to an idol, because an idol is not god (see 1 Corinthians 8:1-13; 1 Corinthians 9:1-27; 1 Corinthians 10:1-33); (b) food has no power in and of itself to make a man spiritually clean or uncleanit is the attitude of the heart that makes clean or unclean (cf. Matthew 15:1-20; Mark 7:14-23); (c) human opinions as to which foods may be eaten and which may not is of no spiritual significance (Romans 14:1-4; 1 Timothy 4:1-4; Colossians 2:20-23) until someone attempts to make abstinence or indulgence a test of Christian fellowship. It is clear a man cannot be spiritually defiled by what he eats or what he does not eat, so long as it does no physical harm to the human body. There may be one exception to this in the Christian dispensation (see Acts 15:19-20; Acts 21:25). The human function of eating and digesting food is purely a physical process and has no spiritual significance. It is for this life only. When this life is over neither food or the human stomach, as we know them now, will continue to exist. But the body is different!
It must be clear that Paul is using the word body (Gr. soma) in a sense intended to mean more than flesh and bone and blood. The Greek word in the New Testament which most often means flesh and bone is sarx. Vine’s Expository Dictionary says of the New Testament usage of the word soma, or body:
SOMA. is the body as a whole, the instrument of life, whether of man living, e.g., Matthew 6:22, or dead, Matthew 27:52; or in resurrection, 1 Corinthians 15:44; or of beasts, Hebrews 13:11; of grain, 1 Corinthians 15:37-38; of the heavenly hosts, 1 Corinthians 15:40. In Revelation 18:13 it is translated slaves. In its figurative uses the essential idea is preserved.
Sometimes the word stands, by synecdoche, for the complete man, Matthew 5:29; Matthew 6:22; Romans 12:1; James 3:6; Revelation 18:13. Sometimes the person is identified with his or her body, Acts 9:37; Acts 13:36, and this is so even of the Lord Jesus, John 19:40 with John 19:42. The body is not the man, for he himself can exist apart from his body, 2 Corinthians 12:2-3. The body is an essential part of the man and therefore the redeemed are not perfected till the resurrection, Hebrews 11:40; no man in his final state will be without his body, John 5:28-29; Revelation 20:13.
Soma as Paul used it here means man in his total existence in this world. Man is more than body, but he is body. It is through the body that the personality, the spiritual man, functions and operates in relationship to God and his fellow man. It is difficult for people of western culture to think of the body as the person. We tend to think of the body as a group of fleshly organs that will die and decompose in the grave. It is true, Paul spoke this way of the stomach, but to the Oriental (eastern) mind (including the Hebrew) the term body most often was associated with the self. So, in this section, we might correctly paraphrase the apostle by using either the word self or man. Man is both body and soul (or spirit). In the New Testament soul describes man in his thinking, feeling, willing capacities; body describes man as an acting, functioning, personality living in this world in relationship to his Creator and other creatures. The body is the extension of and instrument through which the soul is expressed.
Man was not made for immorality. Man in his totality was made for the Lord. God made man to function and express self or soul in this existence through his body. Thus, the human body has, as it were, a spiritual purpose. In and through our bodies we are to serve and glorify Christ. Man, in his totalitybody and soulwas made to serve and exhibit truth, purity, holiness, and goodness (the character of God). Man was not made with a body to abuse it in selfish, hurtful, degrading and false practices. The stomach was made for good, but man in his totality was made for God. Paul is certainly aware that some men may make their bellies their gods (Romans 16:18; Philippians 3:19) so he is not saying in this text that there is no possibility of sinful abuse of the stomach and food. He is saying the Gnostic philosophy which says the sexual appetite is just like the appetite for food, a totally natural function, is false. He is saying man is not as free to satisfy the sexual desire as he is the desire for food.
The apostle had undoubtedly taught the Corinthians in his earlier visits that the Old Testament legislation about sinful foods had been fulfilled in the Gospel and they were free to eat anything that was not physically harmful. It is certain that he had previously taught them they were free in Christ from all opinions and superstitions of paganism. But now he sets out upon a five-chapter dissertation (ch. 6-10) concerning the limitations of Christian freedom. Clearly, the Corinthians had been twisting his earlier teaching about liberty to mean they were free to be totally abandoned to whatever fleshly appetite they might feel urged. Paul seeks to correct that by a concise and clear statement of the divine purpose for the human body.
1 Corinthians 6:15-20 Purpose of Humanness: The stomach was meant for food, but not for complete dietary abandon. Eating must be controlled. Gluttony is a perversion of the body and a sin. But in eating there is no intimate spiritual involvement with another person. Human sexual organs were meant for sexual intercourse. But they were not made to be given over to complete sexual abandon. Sexuality must be controlled. Sexual promiscuity is a perversion of the body and a sin. But there is more than mere physical function involved in sexual intercourse. In sexual intercourse two beings are spiritually or psychologically joined or united in a mutual purpose.
Paul begins his explanation of the purpose of humanness by declaring that Christians are supposed to have given their bodies (selves, persons) to be united in mutuality with Christ. Christians are to be joined, spirit, soul and body (in totality) to Jesus Christ. They are married to him (Ephesians 5:21-33). For the Christian to engage in sexual intercourse with someone to whom he or she is not married is not only unfaithfulness to the human spouse but is also unfaithfulness to Christ.
The person who joins with a prostitute (male or female) in sexual intercourse does more than perform a physical function. Two people who join in sexual intimacy undeniably unite psychologically or spiritually in a mutual purpose. Those who do so as married people are fulfilling a good spiritual purposethe will of God. Those who do so outside the marriage bonds are fulfilling a mutual, spiritual purpose of rebellion against the will of God. If we translate (or paraphrase) Paul’s use of the word body by using the word person or self, he would be saying, Do you not know that he who joins himself to a prostitute becomes one* person* with her? Sexual intercourse is the point in human relations at which two persons (not just fleshly bodies) are united in the ultimate human intimacy. There can be no other intimacy in human relations as deeply spiritual or as psychologically binding. Two thus joined become one! Legally, of course, there is more to marriage than the act of sexual intercourse. Spiritually and psychologically there is more to marriage than sexual intercourse. But both legally and spiritually, sexual intercourse is the act that consummates a marriage. A person who unites sexually with a prostitute (or in an act of adultery or fornication) is not legally married to the prostitute. Paul is not setting forth some technical law by which a person who joins in sexual intercourse to a harlot must forever after consider himself legally married to her. In fact, there are any number of persons, legally married having also consummated their marriage sexually, who are not one in other areas of marriage. Paul is saying here, with all the emphasis possible, that sexual intercourse is more than a physical function. Certain physical functions of the human body are instinctive and amoral. That is, when these functions operate they are neither good nor badman has no moral control over them one way or another. They operate whether he chooses for them to do so or not. Digestion is such an amoral physical function. With sexual intercourse that is not so. Man has been given moral choice and control over sexual intimacy. The Greek word de (translated but in 1 Corinthians 6:17) is a conjunctive particle marking the super addition of a clause, whether in opposition or in continuation, to what has preceded, and it may be variously rendered but, on the other hand, and, also, now, etc. We think 1 Corinthians 6:17 is a clause in continuation of what has preceded and not in opposition. Therefore, Paul is likening the intimateness of the Christian’s relationship to Christ to that of two persons engaged in sexual intercourse. The Christian joins himself intimately to Christ by choice. So the person who joins himself intimately (sexually) to another person does so morallyby choice. A Christian who joins intimately (sexually) with a prostitute has taken the body (person) purchased by the sinless blood of Christ, which has been intimately joined to Christ and made a dwelling place of the Holy Spirit, and joined it in rebellion against the will of Christ and the desecration of his glory. God created man to glorify his Son. Man was not given a human body to use as an instrument of rebellion. So Paul exhorts these Christians to make deliberate choice and take deliberate action to keep from sinning with their bodies. Because of modern connotations, the RSV translation Shun for the Greek word pheugete in 1 Corinthians 6:18 is not strong enough. The KJV and the ASV give it the more emphatic translation, Flee fornication. The Greek word porneia, translated fornication, may also be used generically for all immorality. No human being can begin to fulfill God’s purpose for having created him until he is willing to flee from all immorality.
The statement Every other sin which a man commits is outside the body; but the fornicator sins against his own body must be interpreted in this context. Paul is clearly teaching these Corinthians that sexual intercourse is more than a mere physical action. Divine revelation teaches that sexual intercourse is an intimate, spiritual and psychological union of personalities, much like the spiritual union of a Christian to Christ (it is, indeed, a marriage). He is not saying that other sins have no spiritual causes or consequences. He is simply saying that other sins do not unite one person with another in such a life-affecting way as fornication. The student should immediately read Proverbs 5:8-11; Proverbs 6:24-32; Proverbs 7:24-27. The spiritual intimacy of the sexual relationship, when perverted contrary to the will of God, results in the destruction of the personality; especially is the person inhibited from the spiritual goals for which God created him. This may be documented today from the experiences and files of counseling psychiatrists and clergymen.
A physical function of the body is temporary. It is of the flesh and will perish with the flesh. The use of some physical functions, however, is a spiritual matter. The use of most physical functions is a matter of moral choice. To use any physical function contrary to the revealed will of its Creator is immoral. All sins abusing the physical organs are outside the most intimate part of our personality except sexual abuse. Sexual sin is against the deepest recesses of the person inside! This is a solemn warning to those sophisticates of the world today who would seduce mankind with the ancient Gnostic philosophy that sexual intercourse is merely a physical function and may be practiced without obedience to the word of God.
In some way, when a human being gives his body to sexual intimacy with another being, he gives it as a residence to the personality of that other person. When sexual intimacy is given contrary to the will of God the body becomes a residence of the spirit of harlotry and prostitution. God wants man to give his or her body for the residence of the Holy Spirit. This is what a person vows to do when becoming a Christian. The whole man (which is what Paul means in his use of the Greek word soma, or body) is not to perish like food and the human stomach. Sexual promiscuity treats the whole man as if it were to perish! Sexual promiscuity destroys that which is eternal in manlove, faithfulness, honesty, orderliness, and righteousness. It is no accident that God symbolizes idolatry and unbelief as harlotry in the Old Testament, Sexual promiscuity and prostitution are so irresponsible, so exploitative, so degrading and dehumanizing in attitude and action. They treat the human body as a thing. That is why Paul said every other sin which a man commits is outside the body but the sexually promiscuous person sins against his own body.
Paul’s final explanation of and argument for the purpose of humanness concerns the human self or person (the whole man) as a potential residence of the Holy Spirit of God Almighty. Actually, it is presupposed by the apostle that God’s Spirit had already taken residence in the bodies of these Corinthian Christians. Just what does Paul mean by the question, Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God? What is the phenomenon known as the indwelling of the Holy Spirit? Let us first consider what, according to other New Testament passages, it cannot mean; (a) it cannot mean the power to perform miracles; that is specified in the New Testament as the baptism of the Holy Spirit and was promised only to apostlespassed on by the apostles to selected Christians of the first century only by the laying on of the hands of the apostles; some (e.g. John the Baptist) who were said to be full of the Holy Spirit never worked a miracle so far as we know; (b) it cannot mean supernatural illumination that enables those who have it to understand the scriptures; all men are created with the capacity to read human language and understand without divine illumination; the apostles were given, supernaturally, a revelation of the New will of God, but they delivered it to the whole human race in human language (see our comments on 1 Corinthians 2:1 ff.) and all sinners are expected to hear and read those apostolic words and believe before the Holy Spirit comes to abide with them; faith comes by hearing the word of Christ (Romans 10:17); there would be no point in preaching, no point in sinners reading the Bible, no point even in printing Bibles if every non-Christian must wait until he is sure he has the Holy Spirit in him before he can understand the revealed will of God.
The coming of the Holy Spirit of God and Christ to take residence in the human being involves more than understanding, acknowledging and obeying the revealed will of the Holy Spirit in the scriptures. Apparently, it is a supranatural action on the part of God but mystical to man (that is, a spiritual reality neither apparent to the senses nor obvious to the intelligence). The difference between those who will not be raised to eternal life with Christ and those who will is the indwelling presence of Christ’s Spirit (cf. Romans 8:1-11). The coming of Christ’s Spirit to reside in us is not something we earn or merit by our perfect obedience, but it is initiated by God’s Spirit because of his grace when we give him welcome by our love and faith.
Having said it is mystical to man, however, does not preclude the fact that we can understand, acknowledge in faith, and obey the directions revealed by the Holy Spirit providing the instrumentality through which God chooses to initiate his supranatural residence in people. God’s action may be mystical, but the directions through which he promises to act are not mystical. The Bible clearly teaches that faithful and loving response to the commandments of God, in any dispensation of time, will be acceptable as an invitation for the Holy Spirit to take up residence within a human being (cf. Psalms 51:10-12; John 14:15-24; John 15:1-11; Acts 2:38; Acts 5:32; Romans 8:5; Ephesians 3:17; 1 John 3:24; 1 John 4:12, etc.). So then, the way God’s Spirit dwells in a person is by a person’s intelligent, willing, loving submission to what God says by the Holy Spirit in the revealed Word so that what he thinks, determines, and feels is under the direction of the Spirit through the Word. In other words, the instrument or vehicle or channel through which the Holy Spirit enters and resides in our bodies (or persons) is his revealed and written Word. Apart from that process he will not function residentially in usnot initially and not continually. Clearly, Paul has been teaching from the very first of this epistle that the apostolic gospel is the exclusive matrix within which these Corinthians must be living in order to be assured of the communion (residence) of God’s Spirit. God’s Spirit does not reside within a person outside the communion of his Word. Christ stands at the door and knockshe will not force his way in to sup (reside) with any who are not believing and repenting (cf. Revelation 3:19-20).
The apostle turns metaphorically to the well known practice of slavery to show the emphatic subservience of the purchased one to his purchaser. It would be a familiar experience in the first century. The slave in the Greco-Roman world was chattel, purely and simply. Slaves were bought and sold as property, and masters held total sovereignty over them. Slaves gave total allegiance and obedience to their masters lest they be punished or slain without any appeal to civil courts or magistrates. The only purpose for a slave was to serve his master’s willtotally. For slaves who were purchased by good and beneficent masters, this could mean protection, security, dignity and even happiness (see the letter to Philemon). Paul preached and wrote a great deal about the good and beneficent Master, Jesus Christ. He always considered himself, and all other Christians, as having yielded both soul and body in slavery to Christ (cf. Romans 6:15-23). Since Christ has purchased all men through his vicarious atonement (cf. Acts 20:28; Hebrews 9:12; 1 Peter 1:18-19; Revelation 5:9), they are expected to yield, by faith, and be his slaves for righteousness. If Christ has paid our ransom, he owns us. He actually owns us twicefirst by right of having created us and second by right of having redeemed us.
The person who yields himself to become a slave of Christ has no rights of his own. He does not belong to himself but to Christ. The only rights a Christian has are those granted him in the revealed will of his Master, Jesus Christ (and that is in the Bible). Any attitude or action not found in Christ’s revealed will is not permissible for the Christian. See New Life Through Accepting Jesus-’ Death in Learning From Jesus, by Seth Wilson, pgs. 495-503, College Press.
We who have yielded to the redemption he obtained for us are his body here on earththe channels through which he works. We are instruments of his for accomplishing righteousness in the earth. Jesus, instead of being limited to one physical body as when he was here on earth, now acts through the bodies of his people in whom he lives. You will always find in the Bible that God works through a human body in this world. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:1-18). The Son came in a human body to offer himself as a perfect sacrifice (Hebrews 10:5-10). It was in a body that man sinned; it is in a body that we sin. It was in a body that the Son of man came to earth; it was in a body that he conquered sin which had conquered us. It was in a body that he died and rose again, and now, by his Spirit, he comes to live within the body of his people. Satan always works in this world through a body also. The only way he can thwart God’s purposes is to get a body surrendered to his use, available for his diabolic power and ugly purposes. This is the question of choice in a Christian’s life: shall he take that which has been purchased by Christ and made an instrument of the body of Christ, and give it to some unworthy use?that body, the means through which God’s will is to be done, and yield it to the rebellious purposes of Satan? If he does, he becomes one with the devil. But if he is yielded to the Lord’s Spirit, he is one with the Spirit of Christ. The same Spirit which enabled Jesus Christ to live day by day in a human body and never deviate from the will of God, never yield to all the tremendous temptations of the devil, will live in us and through us as our Strengthener, too. Joined to Christ, we are able to glorify God in the body. Joined to the devil, we glorify sin in our bodies.
Thus, Paul closes his exhortation (temporarily) against the seductive Gnostic sophistry that since the body is merely physical and every physical hunger (including the sexual hunger) an amoral, uncontrollable animal instinct, there is no moral guilt in sexual promiscuity. The Gnostic sophistry tried to ignore the sins of fornication, adultery and homosexuality by calling them simply physical functions like eating food. Paul replies that the human body was created for the Lord’s purpose, its destiny is to be resurrected for the Lord’s purpose, therefore, human bodies are members of God’s personhood. To prostitute a human body for physical purposes only (especially in sexual promiscuity like animals) would be to take what belongs to God and use it for the devil. The bodies of Christian people belong to Christ even more surely by their having professed to accept Christ’s redemption. Christians have been sanctified, body and soul, to glorify Christ by yielding up their bodies (and souls) in service to righteousness. It is a fundamental doctrine of the New Testament. We cannot go to heaven if we do not yield to it. The old Gnostic sophistry is flooding the earth again today and has even washed over the gunwales of the ship of Zioncarnality threatens to sink the church today. Christians must insist on the sacredness of the human body and its sanctification to the will of God, no matter how unpopular the doctrine may be.
Applebury’s Comments
Sins Against the Body (12-20)
Text
1 Corinthians 6:12-20. All things are lawful for me; but not all things are expedient. All things are lawful for me; but I will not be brought under the power of any. 13 Meats for the belly, and the belly for meats: but God shall bring to nought both it and them. But the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body: 14 and God both raised the Lord, and will raise up us through his power. 15 Know ye not that your bodies are members of Christ? shall I then take away the members of Christ, and make them members of a harlot? God forbid. 16 Or know ye not that he that is joined to a harlot is one body? for, The twain, saith he, shall become one flesh. 17 But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. 18 Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. 19 Or know ye no that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which ye have from God? and ye are not your own; 20 for ye were bought with a price: glorify God therefore in your body.
*Commentary
All things are lawful for me*.All things must be understood in the light of the context in which it is used. It cannot be assumed that Paul is suggesting that there is a place for such a thing as fornication. This and all other sins are proscribed by divine edict. The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). Therefore, I assume that Paul means that there is a lawful purpose for all things which God created, and that purpose is not to be perverted through sin. That’s why Paul declares that he will not be brought under the authority of anything. For example, there is a purpose for the appetite for food, but that appetite is not to be allowed to degenerate into the sin of gluttony. There is a divine purpose in sex, but the desire related to it is not to be perverted into the sins of fornication and adultery. God intended man to follow His instruction as to the purpose and use of food, sex, and all other powers with which man is endowed. Clear and specific regulations on all these matters are given in the Word of God for man’s own good.
*God shall bring to naught both it and them.*Some things have a time limit set for their usefulness. Food and the stomach have such a limit, that is, they are limited to this life. The body has an eternal purpose, however, for in it we are to serve and glorify the Lord in this life, and in the end He will raise up our mortal bodies which shall be changed into the likeness of the body of Christ’s glory (Philippians 3:20-21). This subject is discussed at length in chapter fifteen.
*not for fornication, but for the Lord.*God intended that man should have a family and that children should be brought up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. But the sins of immorality defeat the purpose of the Lord. We can glorify God in the body here by acting as Christians, and, in the glorified body of the resurrection, we can serve Him eternally.
*the Lord is for the body.*The Lord provided for all the needs of man in the beginning. He provided food, work, mental and spiritual activity, and gave him woman as his counterpart in every regard. The Lord set wonderful powers in the body. He created it with remarkable recuperative powers when disease strikes, and many other things too numerous to mention. The Lord is also for the body so far as its eternal destiny is concerned. In the grace of God, there is provision to conquer death, for as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
*your bodies are members of Christ.*This is a spiritual relationship, for he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit (1 Corinthians 6:17). By using the facts of the marriage relationship, the apostle is pointing out the nature of the sin of immorality. The twain shall become one flesh. The rule applied as well to immoral relationships of which some of them were guilty. Shall I take away the members of Christ, and make them members of a harlot? An utterly abhorrent thought. Yet this is exactly what some of them were doing. What an awful sin to so pervert the divine purpose of the body and destroy its relationship to the Lord. Therefore, Paul says, Flee fornication.
*he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.*There are two ways as indicated in this context in which this is done. The sin of fornication takes the body that belongs to Christ and makes it a member of the harlot. That is a sin against the body for, although it will raised from death, it will not be made to conform to the body of His glorya wonderful promise for saints only. Fornication is also a sin against the body because it is intended to be a temple of the Holy Spirit. Obviously, this can not be while the body is given over to sin.
Paul is not discussing the fact that sin can bring disease and death to the body. Bad as this is, the greater sin against the body is severing it from its holy purpose in relation to Christ and the Holy Spirit. Other sinsfor example, idolatrycould destroy this relationship too, but they are outside of the body, that is, they do not affect the body in the same way.
*your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit.*The fact that God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit dwells in the saints is clearly taught in the Bible. God is said to abide in them who keep His commandments. Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my word: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him (John 14:23). No man hath beheld God at any time: if we love one another, God abideth in us, and his love is perfected in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit (1 John 4:12-13). We know that God is in us because of what He has revealed through His Spirit in the inspired Word.
Paul speaks of Christ living in him. I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ liveth in me (Galatians 2:20). The Holy Spirit strengthens the inward man through equipping him with the whole armor of God so that Christ may dwell in the heart of the Christian through faith (Ephesians 3:16-17).
A number of passages mention the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwelleth in you, he that raised up Jesus from the dead shall give life also to your mortal bodies through his Spirit that dwelleth in you (Romans 8:11).
The real problem is to determine what is meant by the facts so clearly stated that God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit dwell in the Christian. One needs to be on guard here, for many fantastic claims that cannot be substantiated by Scripture or practical reason have been made through the ages since the Bible was written. Whatever may be implied, it does not mean power to perform miracles, for this power was given to the apostles when they were baptized in the Holy Spirit and to those upon whom they laid hands. It does not mean illumination that enables one to understand the Word, for God created man with the capacity to understand thought in speech and writing. God spoke through the apostles and caused them to write in a manner that can be understood without any further aid of divine illumination. By this understandable Word, of course, He sheds light on many things we need to know. But we must observe the correct rules of interpretation in order to benefit from the light of the Word (Psalms 119:105). It is clearly implied in every instance where it is mentioned that the one in whom the Spirit dwells is under obligation to live such a life of purity as to reflect glory on God. It implies the necessity of keeping God’s commands to love one another, to be crucified to the world, to overcome Satan by using the armor of God, and to flee from fornication which is a sin against the body. In other words, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit calls for a holy life before God.
The apostle is using metaphorical language when he says, Your body is a temple. A temple was a dwelling place for God. Pagans made a literal thing of this by making idols and setting them up in their temples. God’s presence in the midst of ancient Israel was represented by the cloud that covered the tent of meeting and filled the tabernacle (Exodus 40:34-35). Metaphorical language, it should be remembered, does not lessen the importance of the lesson that Christians are to conduct themselves in a manner that shows their awareness of the presence of God at all times. What a difference this would make in the life of the church today!
We may get some help in understanding indwelling by an interesting explanation Paul presents in Romans 7:15-20. He describes himself before he became a Christian by saying that he found himself doing things that he despised. Many a sinner has done the same thing. What caused him to do it? He says it was sin that dwelleth in me. Sin became the tyrant that caused him to obey its will. He, of course, was responsible for letting sin have such control. But the point is, he was doing what Satan wanted him to do. That is what indwelling meant in that case.
The indwelling of the Holy Spirit, then, may mean the intelligent, willing, loving submission to what God says by the Holy Spirit in the revealed Word so that what one thinks, determines, and feels is under the direction of the Spirit through the Word. That, of course, will require the Christian to read and search the Bible to know what it actually says and to conduct himself in accordance with the divine instruction. It is the Word that was revealed to the apostles through the Holy Spirit that is to direct the life of the follower of Christnothing mystical about this, but it is practical and understandable.
*ye were bought with a price.*That price is the blood of Christ (1 Peter 1:18-19; Ephesians 1:6; Romans 3:25). Then the Christian belongs to God and is under obligation to serve Him.
*glorify God therefore in your body.*Instead of serving sin and sinning against the body by robbing it of its rightful place in God’s plan for His creatures, you are to prove by your conduct that you belong to God and that His Spirit dwells in you.
Summary
The Corinthian church had failed to settle the problems between themselves; they were guilty of bringing their differences before non-Christian courts with the result that the church was brought into disrepute. The apostle’s amazement at such conduct is expressed in his question, Dare any of you who has a case against another take it to court before the unjust instead of settling it before the saints? That they were qualified to settle matters that belong to this lifethat is, things that belong to the lowest courtsis indicated by the fact that the saints are destined to judge not only the world but also angels. Since this is so, why should they go before those who are not even a part of the church but are a part of the group to be judged by the church to have such completely discredited persons settle their differences? They should have been ashamed. Surely there was some wise person among them who was capable of deciding between brethren so that brethren wouldn-’t have to go to court before unbelievers. This meant just one thing: The church was suffering defeat in its purpose and mission. It would have been better for them to suffer wrong or be defrauded. Actually they were being unjust and were defrauding their brethren. Paul reminds them that the unjustand it seems that this takes in both those in the church and those outside as wellshall not inherit the kingdom of God. In order that they might understand exactly what he meant, Paul presented a list of various types of sinners who will inherit the heavenly kingdom. Then he adds, Some of you used to be such sinners. As Christians, their conduct should be different. Therefore, he says, But you got yourselves washed, you were sanctified, you were justified. They had submitted to baptism and had gotten their sins washed away in the blood of Christ. As a result, the Lord had separated them from their sins and God, the Judge, had pardoned their guilt. The pardon was granted in the name of Christ within the limits set by the Spirit of God. Christ removes the guilt; the Holy Spirit, through the inspired apostles, reveals the terms of pardon. Continuing the discussion of their failures in duty, Paul now considers the law of expediency in relation to the use of the body. Instead of glorifying God in the body, some were using the body as an instrument of sin. There is a limit placed on things that are called lawful. God’s lawful purpose of things He created and powers He gave man can be abused. Paul argues that there is a lawful purpose for food and leaves the reader to imply the very evident conclusion that gluttony and drunkenness are sinful since they bring one under the power of food and drink. Hastening to the real issue, he says that immorality is an abuse of the body which was made for the service of the Lord, Since your bodies are members of Christ, it is unthinkable that you should make them members of a harlot. The law that makes the two one flesh applies in such a case also, but the one who serves the Lord becomes one spirit in relation to Him. The urgent command is given: Flee immorality. Always assume the attitude of one running away from this sin because fornication is a sin against the body which God intended to be the temple of the Holy Spirit. Since Christians are bought with the price of the blood of Christ, they are to glorify God in the body. Indwelling of the Spirit in relation to the Christian implies the necessity of living a holy lifeone separated from sin.