Grace Community Church, Arlington, TX

Paul first went to Corinth around AD 50-51 during his second missionary journey. In the book of Acts we see that he went to Corinth after leaving Athens.

He stayed there for about 18 months, teaching the Word of God and establishing the church.

Later, Paul’s co-workers—Timothy, Titus, Apollos-also visited Corinth, often relaying to Paul news of a deteriorating situation. The problems were numerous: deep divisions, sexual immoralities, suspicions about Paul and his motives, and the visits of people Paul called ‘super-apostles.’ Touting their own credentials and belittling Paul.

Paul deals with many things, including the prizing of rhetorical ability, the love of wisdom, prostitution practices, marriage, celibacy, meat markets, divisions, pagan temples, worship practices, speaking in tongues and prophecy, baptisms for the dead, and visions of the third heaven.

In Paul’s day, Corinth had a population of about 80,000. Corinth, as a busy port-city, had a transient population with everyone from philosophers and merchants to sports’ fans. The Isthmian Games were hosted in Corinth, causing even more people traffic. Its economy was largely dependent on services offered to travelers.

Even by the pagan standards, the city of Corinth became so morally corrupt that its very name became synonymous with debauchery and moral depravity. To “corinthianize” came to represent gross immorality and drunken debauchery.

Paul wrote the letter we know as 1 Cor from Ephesus in AD 55, while he was on his 3rd missionary journey. He wrote in response to two things: First, he wanted to answer several written questions from the Corinthians about marriage and celibacy, food sacrificed to idols, and spiritual gifts.Second, he also wrote in response to disconcerting news from Apollos and several church leaders about divisions, incest, lawsuits, women inappropriately dressed, disorder in worship, and denials of the resurrection.

Paul writes to correct their behavior and teach them how to live as followers of Christ in the midst of such a pagan culture.

Some of Paul’s most important revelations to the church come to us from this letter to the Corinthians.

1. Divisions in the Church (Ch. 1–4) Paul addresses divisions in the church.

2. Moral Disorders in the Church (Ch. 5–6)

3. Marriage and Christian Freedom (Ch. 7–10)Paul gives guidance on marriage, singleness, and celibacy. He also addresses issues like eating food sacrificed to idols, teaching that believers should use their freedom responsibly and avoid causing others to stumble. And that they should not take other Christians to court.

4. Worship and Spiritual Gifts (Ch. 11–14)Paul corrects improper practices in worship and the Lord’s Supper. He teaches about spiritual gifts, emphasizing that all gifts should build up the church and be used in love.

5. Love as the Greatest Gift (Ch. 13)The famous “Love Chapter” describes true Christian love, and how powerful that love is.

6. The Resurrection (Ch. 15)Paul explains that Christ’s bodily resurrection is central to the gospel. And because Jesus rose from the dead, believers, too, will be raised to eternal life.

7. Final Instructions (Ch. 16)Paul closes with practical matters—offering for the saints, travel plans, and final encouragements to stand firm in faith and act in love.

*The most important doctrine in this letter is the truth about the bodily resurrection of Christ and our future resurrection bodies (Ch 15).
*The most important command in this epistle is to pursue love. 1 Cor 14:1 Pursue love!

The Apostle Paul says that apart from love, all of our ministry, all of our service, all of our sacrifice accomplishes nothing, makes us nothing, and gains us nothing when we stand at the judgment seat of Christ. Love is that thing which, if you have it, you don’t need much else. If you don’t have it, not much else matters.

1 Corinthians 13:4–7, Paul defines love by describing love. He shows us what love is by showing us what love does. 1 Cor 13:4 Love is patient, love is kind. Patience is the attitude of love and kindness is the action of love.

Then he gives us eight things that love doesn’t do.

Next, he gives us five things that love does do.

He says love bears all things. The word that’s used here, “stego”, is used for soldiers guarding a fortress. It means to bear up under the weight of opposition.

Ill: In Robertson and Plummer’s excellent exegetical commentary on I Cor... They paraphrase these verses in this way:
When love has no evidence, it believes the best.
When the evidence is adverse, it hopes for the best.
When hopes are disappointed, it still courageously waits.

Love never stops believing, never stops hoping, never gives up. And then it goes on to say that “Love never fails”. Could it be that if we don’t give up on somebody, if we keep believing the best and hoping the best, that might actually help turn them from failure to success in some way?

Ill: In 1968 there was a Harvard psychologist named Robert Rosenthal. He published a study, which is now very famous and it is called “The Pygmalion in the Classroom Effect.”What they learned is that if we believe in people; if we have high hopes for people; if we don’t give up on people, it can dramatically impact the outcome of their lives.

Never give up on the ones you love. It does make a difference in the outcome. Keep believing in them. Keeping hoping for the best. Never give up.

Ill: There was a famous painting of a chess game in the Louvre, in Paris. One character looked like an ordinary man and the other character looked very much like the devil. And the title of this paining is “Checkmate”.

Paul Charles Morphy, a world chess champion saw it and pointed out that it’s titled “Checkmate,” but the title is wrong. The title misreads the board because in reality “the king still has a move. And that move changes the game. Once the King makes His move, that changes the entire game.”

There have been a lot of people throughout history that felt like they were in checkmate. Their situation seemed pretty grim and hopeless. And the devil seemed to be watching and laughing. But the truth of the matter is that the king still had one more move, and once the King makes His move, that changes the entire game.

Abraham and Sarah
Joseph, the son of Jacob
Moses
Joshua
Samson.
Ruth
David
Daniel
Jesus Christ

I know that some of you feel like you are in checkmate today. The enemy thinks he has got you and he is laughing about it. And you have even begun to believe that he has got you too. But it isn’t over. It may look like checkmate, but it’s not. The devil may be laughing, but it isn’t over. The king still has one more move, and once the King makes His move, that changes the entire game.

And some of you have a loved one in your life that you have given up on. You have been so disappointed and hurt by the choices that they have made. It looks like checkmate to you. It looks like the enemy has won that one. And you have decided to just accept it as the way it is. Checkmate. Game over. Lost that one.

But I want you to know that it’s not over. It’s not checkmate. Because The king still has one more move, and once the King makes His move, that changes the entire game.

So, you got to keep Believing today.
You got to Keep Hoping today.
You got to Keep Enduring today.
Because love never fails!

Ill: In 1968 there was a Harvard psychologist named Robert Rosenthal. He published a study, which is now very famous and it is called “The Pygmalion in the Classroom Effect.” What they learned is that if we believe in people; if we have high hopes for people; if we don’t give up on people, it can dramatically impact the outcome of their lives.