Note:  The planned release of a subscription-based program is planned for the fall of 2024.  Much on the functionality available in the free version of the program can still be accessed.  Immanuel Bible Church has a licensing agreement with Logos, so details of what additional features or resources will depend on how those options are finalized.  The details below regarding basic functionality will likely still apply, but more advanced features and an expanded library will likely require one of the subscription options.  Here is a link for details.

Logos Bible Software is a tool that combines a digital resource library indexed to an integrated set of tools and features that support the study of scripture, theology, biblical events, places, and things, and original languages.  Its broad functionality and potential cost can be intimidating.  One of the most common questions we see on the Facebook Group Logos Tips and Tricks is from overwhelmed newcomers asking:  When getting Logos, where do I start? 

Three Considerations for Using Logos
As you start on your own Logos journey, I have three (3) considerations that will impact how you use and leverage Logos for your particular needs followed by three (3) tips to quickly get started. 

First, consider how you plan to use Logos
Logos is designed to support anything from basic, personal study to advance original language research and seminary analysis – in a way that can save you time in Bible study.  For those that would just like an interlinear translation (e.g. modern language translation keyed to the underlying Greek and Hebrew texts), Starter and above Logos packages provide a nice integrated toolset that maps language to commentaries, lexicons, Bible dictionaries, and other translations. 

Basic Study Objectives
If you have very basic study objectives, a preferred bible translation and the Faithlife Study Bible will easily get you started.  Logos adds to this set by making it easy to open/compare different translations and linked access to the baseline Lexham Bible Dictionary.  The Logos 10 expanded Factbook Tool also represents an excellent feature to easily drill down on details related to biblical persons, places, things, and events.  A basic set of resources will provide background on most topics, but the level of detail or getting different perspectives will be limited.    If you are brand new to the bible, then the Bible Study Guide is one of several structured workflow tools that guide you through a traditional study process and link you to applicable Logos features related to a specific passage. 

Group Teaching & Lesson Development
If you are teaching a small group or larger bible study, plugging into multiple translations and several solid commentaries will help with the efficiency and quality of your preparation.  The Passage Study Guide is a helpful aid to organize your personal library and display relevant material against a passage in a matter of seconds (commentaries, word usage, cross-references, harmonies, etc.).  Additional guides associated with theology, exegesis, word study, and topics are also available and can assist in more in-depth study.   Base package options now become more important given the need for additional depth of study available through these more robust libraries. That said, you can still target a small set of high-quality resources with a smaller library if you know exactly what you need.

More Advanced Study and Research
For original language study, you don’t have to be a seminary professor or pastor.  Anybody can study the underlying Greek and Hebrew language details with resources and tools available for Logos.  The Bible Word Study is under the Guide menu and can also be accessed with a right-click on a specific word (that brings up a tailored Context Menu).  Selecting a word and initiating the Bible Word Study enables in-depth details of individual words and their use.  Advanced search features also allow you to filter, tag, and assess the contextual use of original language elements.  The Text Comparison tool shows multiple versions of the same passage to quickly see how different translations cover a specific word or verse. 

Second, consider how the different Logos software platforms will support your reading, study, and research objectives. 

Desktop vs Web-based Option
The desktop application provides the most powerful means to efficiently access Logos as a study tool.  For taking sermons or conference notes, I use my Microsoft Surface Pro.  With desktop functionality, my verse references allow me to quickly jump to that location or hover over the hyperlink to see the full verse in my preferred bible.  Right-click access via the Context Menu gives quick access to verse, word, and search options. 
While I prefer the Desktop, I’ve been amazed at how the web-based application (https://app.logos.com) has progressed over the past four years.  For my basic, daily study it more than meets my need to access my preferred bible, daily devotional, prayer resources, and a personal prayer list.  Commentaries are easily accessible if I decide to look at one or several different exegetical or application perspectives. 

Mobile Options
While mobile device options continue to grow and give me access to my entire library along with popular features, I most efficiently navigate Logos for serious study by using the desktop application. My iPad does provide an excellent tablet option for reading and highlighting individual resources, but lacks the full feature set and easy menu access.  Mobile options continue to expand with more training and videos to support their use.  I don’t preach, so I can’t comment on use as part of sermon prep and delivery.

Third, consider the appropriate size of your library
Library size will determine the extent and diversity of your study.  The power of Logos lies in the ability of software features to access, sort, and organize the details associated with your indexed personal library.  With Logos, you can quickly dive into a detailed theological topic or biblical passage study in seconds—allowing you to efficiently scan a broad range of material and focus your study. 

Do you need a big library?
Does Logos need thousands of resources to be useful?  Not at all, but it will limit the depth and range of your indexed results for passage and themed study.  Don’t be afraid by getting started small and looking for tailored resources that fit your interest and study goals.  I’ve built my library based on package discounts, monthly sales, and selective purchases—often purchasing a deeply discounted book that is part of a series.  I normally add 30+ resources to my library each year just by taking advantage of periodic free offerings of Logos resources and Faithlife eBooks from recurring giveaways. 

Which Package Level Should I Buy?
It really depends on what you would like to do with Logos.   For a diverse and robust library, I think a generic Silver Package is a solid option and you can expand.  The Gold package will include the full feature set.  The feature set details and how you plan to use the software will really drive the final decision.  I would consult with a knowledgeable person who understands Logos and your specific goals to drill down on comparison options. 

Three Quick Hints for Getting Started

OK.  Now that we’ve talked about considerations related to your planned use of Logos, the different platforms available, and the issue of library size, the question of getting started is next.  This topic deserves its own article to discuss basic functionality, essential elements, and cool features.  For now, I have three recommendations for getting started for new Logos users. 

First, watch—and re-watch the Logos QUICKSTART videos. 
The Morris Proctor QUICKSTART video series are short video starter sessions produced by Morris Proctor and are available in all Logos packages.  QUICKSTART is the BEST way to initiate your use of Logos.  This 90-minute series won’t cover all the Logos desktop details but is an excellent overview and a great choice if you need a refresher I would recommend you try to duplicate the exercises and re-watch the videos to reinforce popular tools and features You should also consider signing up for Moe’s monthly webinars.  Available free of charge, these live sessions cover a specific topic and are made available for a limited time for anyone that registers.  They are excellent.  I personally subscribe to MPSeminars for access to hundreds of Moe’s videos and recordings of weekend live-training sessions

Second, get familiar with the terminology. 
Find and review references that help get familiar with the Logos views, icons, and menus.  I could not find a good comprehensive review of Logos terminology, so I built my own notes and published a video.  The Logos 9 Getting Started - YouTube is a quick introduction video that reviews jargon associated with the instrument panel (main menu), the Logos 9 panel menu, and their embedded icons.  Please continue to get familiar with the terms by watching this video or other Logos training options. QUICKSTART also uses the same terminology, so those videos reinforce the use of terms and features.

Third, tap into your own personal helpdesk.  
For Facebook users, consider joining the Logos Tip and Tricks group (Logos Bible Tips and Tricks | Faithlife | Facebook).  This group has over 10,000 members and is an awesome place to ask both very basic and extremely advanced questions.  Don’t struggle for 30 minutes to find a very basic feature when folks are happy to answer questions on this page.  I’ve been part of the group for four years and it is a terrific helpline—a community of believers helping each other with topics ranging from the very basic to Greek geek speak.  Can’t figure out what you did to turn off your resource scrolling feature? In a couple of minutes, someone will tell you to look at the column setting in the panel menu. 

I hope you have found these considerations and hints helpful as you are getting started on your own Logos journey. Logos is an amazing tool to support biblical literacy and spiritual growth, but like any capability with extensive capabilities, you need to get familiar with the functionality, be comfortable with the terminology, and patiently practice using the tool.

​Kirk

"For Christ did not send me to see how many I could baptize, but to proclaim the gospel!  And I have not done this by the persuasiveness of clever words, for I have no desire to rob the cross of its power!" (I Corinthians 1:17, Phillips translation)
 
Remember last week's lesson on the first nine verses of I Corinthians, where the apostle Paul established in no uncertain terms his authority as an apostle called to speak out directly to the Corinthians about "problems" in the "church of God" at Corinth--problems that required "reproof and correction," and believers that needed "instruction in righteous living"!  And this by hearing (and receiving!) the inspired word of God so that, as "men of God," they might be "equipped for every good work" (in accordance with II Timothy 3:16-17)!  He declared that they were "enriched in everything they needed" to live a life pleasing to the Lord!  They now just needed to apply it to their lives!  And so, our lesson last night began with the first of 16 "exhortations" that Paul would give in his epistle to the believers at Corinth, whom he addressed as "brothers"!  And "saints"!
 
Here's how he began (in verse 10): "Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all (in his best "southern" draw!) agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment. For I have been informed, by Chloe's people, that there are quarrels among you..."!  
 
There were apparently separate groups of believers living in different parts of the city who met together in separate "house churches," which resulted in a kind of rivalry, and pride, that sprung up between them, with some associating themselves, and understandably so, with Paul who founded the church in Corinth and spent a year and a half preaching and teaching there!  Others, of the more intellectual set, perhaps, identifying themselves more with Apollos who was an eloquent speaker and gifted apologist for the faith.  Still others, probably Jewish believers, who looked to Cephas, or Peter, who was recognized as the chief disciple of Christ!  While still others piously claimed to be "of Christ," considering themselves better, maybe more spiritual, but in so doing separating themselves from the others!
 
Paul was obviously alarmed by these divisions and immediately took himself out of the competition!  "Is Christ divided?" he asked?  "Were any of you baptized in my name (rather than in Christ's name)?" He even "thanked God that he had not baptized anyone, besides Crispus and Gaius" and, "O yes, the household of Stephanas" (who I Corinthians 16:15 identifies as among the first converts in the province of Achaia)!  And he couldn't even remember if there were others that he baptized!  He wasn't keeping score!  And he made it clear that "Christ hadn't called him to baptize but to preach the gospel"!  And "not in the cleverness of speech, that the cross of Christ would not be emptied of its power"!  From this it is clear from Paul's teaching that baptism, while an important ordnance of the church, wasn't a necessary part of a believer's salvation!  And that nothing, in his way of thinking, should ever take away the emphasis on the "message of the cross"!
 
And this gives more basis for understanding why Paul issues his first "exhortation" as one calling for the "unity of believers"!!
 
Exhort?  I Corinthians 1:10, in the NASB, says, "Now I exhort you, brethren!" The KJV reads: "Now I beseech you, brothers...!"  The ESV says, "I appeal to you, brothers...!"  Phillips says, "Now I do beg you, my brothers...!"  And I don't have the NIV account, but I was surprised to learn that, regardless of the translation, the word actually comes from the Greek word "parakaleo," which is the verb form of "paraclete," used to describe the "Comforter," or the Holy Spirit. who "comes along side to help"!  So Paul, rather than coming down "like a hammer," as we earlier suggested, is actually "coming alongside them," as a brother and "fellow believer" to encourage the Corinthians!  Which best describes the real spirit and character of the apostle Paul!  The "law" demands!  But love and grace "beseech"!  "I beseech you, brothers!  I appeal to you, brothers!  I beg you, by the name of the Lord Jesus Christ (Phillips says) ...that you not allow yourselves to be split up into parties"!
 
MacArthur notes that the fact that Paul begins his 16 chapters of exhortation with this gives some idea of how important "unity of believers" is to God Himself!  Because, he says, it reflects not only on our relationship with each other, but on our relationship with Christ!  And that therein lies the credibility of our testimony, and therein lies the joy of our ministry together"!  
 
Constable observes that "it's the most crucial issue, not because quarrels were the most significant error in the church, but because the nature of this particular strife has its root cause in false theology--which exchanged the theology of the cross for a false triumphalism that went beyond, or excluded, the cross"!  (In other words, "bad theology leads to bad behavior!")
 
Calvin wrote that "there's nothing more out of keeping for Christians than their being divided from each other; for the most important principle of our religion is this, that we be in concord among ourselves"!
 
Ephesians 4:1-3 says, "Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance to one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace!"  Wow!
 
Philippians 1:27 says, "Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear of you that are standing firm in one spirit with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel!"
 
And Psalm 133:1 puts it this way: "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity!"
 
And songs and hymns that come to mind too!  "Bless be the tie that binds, our hearts in Christian love; the fellowship of kindred minds, is like to that above..."  And more!
 
And did you know that the story behind that great hymn of the faith, "The Church's One Foundation," was composed as a primary answer to the division that was taking place within the Church of Africa!  You have to sing it to see the connection!
 
And, an old favorite that fits so well with this lesson: "I'm so glad I'm apart of the family of God...joint heirs with Jesus as we travel this sod...for I part of the family, the family of God!"  Go ahead and sing it!
 
In His intercessory prayer to the Father for His disciples, just prior to the cross (in John 17), Jesus prayed that they would be "sanctified in the truth...and that those also who would believe in Him through their word (like us!) would all be one, just as We are one... that the world may know that You sent Me!"
 
And, in Acts 2, we see how it worked!  We read that, after the day of Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit, the early believers had "singleness of heart and one mind and met together daily and shared in common love...day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house...taking their meals together with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people...and (here's the bottom line!) the Lord adding to their number day by day those who were being saved"!
 
And so, we see the importance of, and the intended purpose behind the connection between the message of the cross and the unity of believers!
 
Constable notes "this is the burden of Paul's letter to the Corinthians and the theological presupposition behind every imperative that we'll come across as we continue our study of I Corinthians...and that with this Paul is fully launched on his epistle...with the message of the cross setting his thoughts and language in motion"!
 
And so, men of the Bible!  Fellow MOBsters! Unite!
 
Lowell 

"God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord!" (I Corinthians 1:9)
 
Paul begins his epistle to the Corinthians pretty much as he begins all his epistles--identifying himself as being "called as an apostle of our Lord Jesus Christ, by the wlll of God"!  To establish up-front his authority as an emissary of the Lord Jesus Christ, and there by God's appointment!  Saying, in effect, "I'm an apostle!  Listen to me! I'm speaking here with authority, and what I'm about to say (or write!) comes directly from Jesus Christ Himself by the will of God, for that's my calling"!  This declaration was particularly important for this epistle because its message was "corrective" in nature!  And so resisting him and his message, as they might be tempted to do, was the same as resisting God"!  (So says Constable!)
 
Paul, an apostle?  He wasn't one of "the 12," specifically chosen by Christ to be with Him during His earthly ministry and to whom He would entrust the establishment of the church!  He wasn't there when Christ "comforted" His disciples by promising them (in John 14:8-17) that upon His death He would "ask the Father, and He would give them another Helper (the Holy Spirit), who would be with them forever;" nor when (in Matthew 28:18-20) He gave them the Great Commission; nor when He appeared to His disciples one last time, after the resurrection, promising that they would "receive power when the Holy Spirit would come upon them...and be My witnesses...;" nor when (in Acts 1:9-11) His disciples saw Him "ascending to heaven"!  And, lastly, he wasn't there on the "day of Pentacost" (in Acts 2), which ushered in the "apostolic age!
 
Rather, he was a persecutor of the church that would be established!  And Acts 9:1 says that "while he was still breathing out threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord...on the road approaching Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him; and he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?  And he said, 'Who are you, Lord?'  And He said, 'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting, but get up and enter the city, and it will be told you what you must do"!  You know the rest of the story!  How a disciple named Ananias was told in a vision from God to minister to him!  "Go, for he is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel"!
 
And so, Paul became an apostle!  And the Scriptures confirm this!  
 
In I Corinthians 9:1, Paul asks: "Am I not free?  Am I not an apostle?  Have I not seen Jesus our Lord?  Are you (the Corinthian believers) not my work in the Lord?  ...For you are the seed of my apostleship!"
 
And in I Corinthians 15:8, after listing the ones to whom Christ appeared after His resurrection, he says, "...And last of all, as if to one untimely born, He appeared also to me!"  But then goes on to say that he was "the least of the apostles, and not fit to be an apostle, because he persecuted the church"!
 
And so, along with introducing himself to the Corinthians, he also calls Sosthenes, "our brother"!  Who was Sosthenes?  Acts 18 indicates that he was at one point the leader of the synagogue in Corinth after Cripus, the former leader, had become a believer!  Sosthenes apparently brought Paul before the judgment seat following the demands of the Jews, but was later "beaten" by them, after Gallio, the proconsul, threw out the case against Paul!  Apparently Sosothenes didn't do the job of making the case!  Then, interestingly, as MacArthur notes, by the time Paul writes I Corinthians, Sosthenes had become "a brother"!  Wow!  God works in wondrous ways!
 
Notice that Paul doesn't refer to the church which is in Corinth as "the church of the Corinthians," but as "the church of God which is at Corinth"!  And he's not referring to the church as a building but as a "community of believers"!  "Those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling, with all who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord, and ours"!  Wow!
 
"Saints"!  One of Paul's favorite words, used 60 times in his epistles!  Referring to all those who are "in Christ"!  J. Vernon McGee says "all of mankind is divided between "saints" and "ain't"!  MacAthur points out that we need to understand that there's a difference between someone's "position" and his "behavior"!  Between his "standing" and his "state"!  The Corinthians were saints and "holy," and "sanctified" because they believed in Christ, not by the way they lived!  They had not yet made their life match their position!  They had not yet become who they are!  
 
And that explains why Paul is writing this epistle, and why beginning with verse 10 he begins to "exhort" them for living the way they were!  They needed to become aware that the basis for the exhortations of their behavior was the fact that they were "saints"!  They needed to be "de-corinthianized"!  Or, as MacArthur puts it, "the fact of who we are is the premise upon which the word of God bases the fact of what we ought to be"!
 
So, be ready for next week's lesson, as Paul begins to "drop the hammer"!  (So to speak!)
 
But before we get there, Paul writes about the "benefits--past, present, and future--of being saints!  So the Corinthians (and all of us too!) would want to realize them!  Paul writes in verses 4-9 (in the Phillips translation): "I am always thankful to God for what the gift of His grace in Christ Jesus has meant to you--how, as the Christian message has become established among you, He has enriched your whole lives, from the words on your lips to the understanding in your hearts.  And you have been eager to receive His gifts during this time of waiting for His final appearance.  He will keep you steadfast in the faith to the end, so that when His day come you need fear no condemnation.  God is utterly dependable, and it is He who has called you into fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ, our Lord!"
 
What are the benefits of being a saint, according to this passage?
 
They come in three dimensions and cover all periods of our lives--past, present, and future!  In the past, there's grace!  In the present, there are gifts!  And in the future, there are guarantees!  Our past is forgiven, our present is taken care of, and in our future there are guarantees!
 
God's grace!  Unmerited, and undeserved favor!  "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is a gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one can boast!" (Ephesians 2:8-9)  And why did He do it?  Titus 2:14 says, "Who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds"!
 
This grace equips us to do good deeds--in the present!  Verses 5-7 says "that in everything you were enriched in Him, in all speech (utterance!) and knowledge, even as the testimony concerning Christ was confirmed in you, so that you are lacking in any gift..."!  
 
Colossians 2:10 says, "...and in Him you have been made complete"!  And II Peter 1:3 say, "Seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godlines through the true knowledge of Him who has called us by His own glory and excellence"!
 
And so Paul is telling the Corinthian believers that they have all that they needed to live a life pleasing to the Lord, and that by God's grace they were given (the gifts of) speech and knowledge in order to testify of their faith in Christ to others, and to edify the church!  (The problem was that they were using the gifts they were given and this explains again why Paul will use the remaining epistle to "exhort" them to change!)
 
But the best is yet to come for the Corinthians, and for all the saints of God, in every place (verses 7b-8 say), as they "await eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will also confirm you to the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ..."
 
And how can we be sure?  Verse 9 says (because!) "God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord"!
 
And that sets the scene and provides the basis for how Paul will pick up with His exhortations, beginning in verse 10--in next week's lesson!
 
Until then...
 
May God be with you all,
 
Lowell 
 

Welcome fellow-MOBsters to our study of I Corinthians!
 
So why, you might ask, should we be involved together in studying the book of I Corinthians?
 
Well, most basically, because it's God's inspired Word--II Timothy 3:16-17 says, specifically "breathed out" and revealed to us, and for us, by God through holy men of God who spoke as they were "moved" by the Holy Spirit!  And "profitable" (as KJV puts it!) for "doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect (meaning "mature"), thoroughly furnished unto all good works"!  The Phillip's translation says "the Scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching the faith and correcting error, for resetting the direction of a man's life and training him in good living...the comprehensive equipment of the man of God, and fit him fully for all branches of his work"!  And so, the inspired Word of God is "profitable"!  "Useful!"  And, although not specifically cited, necessary!  We couldn't do without it!
 
The apostle Peter wrote (in II Peter 1:16-17): "For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty.  For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to HIm by the Majestic Glory, 'This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased'--and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain!  So, we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.  But know this first that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God!"
 
And so, why should we, as MOBsters, study and share together His Word?  Hebrews 10:223-25 say: "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deed, not forsaking our own assembling together, as the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as we see the day drawing near"!  We meet together as "brothers"!
 
And what better book of the Bible to study--for such a time as this--than the book of I Corinthians which was written by the apostle Paul "to the church which is at Corinth," specifically to address various questions and issues which concerned early believers, some of whom required "reproof and correction," which would prove "useful" to them, for training them in how to live!  Questions and issues which have confronted and challenged believers (and the Christian church) down through the ages, and which are relevant, and even moreso for consideration by believers (and the Christian church!) in our day!
 
So, what do we know about the city of Corinth during the time of Paul, that provides the context for his epistle?

• The city of Corinth was located on a high plateau on a narrow strip of land, called an "isthmus," on the southwest part of Greece, about 40 miles west of Athens.
• It was a thriving, prosperous, strategically-located city in New Testament times!
• All north and south overland traffic, including that to and from Athens, had to pass through Corinth, and through its harbors flowed the commerce of the world, leading it to prosper as a major commercial center not only for most of Greece, but for much of the Mediterranean area, including North Africa, Italy, and Asia Minor!
• The Isthmian games, sponsored by Corinth, and held in the city were one of the two most famous athletic events of that day, the other being the Olympics!
• The Acropolis, with its famous temple dedicated to Aphrodite, the goddess of love, stood on a 2,000 foot high mound overlooking the city and became the center for pagan worship--housing, we're told, a thousand priestesses, ritual prostitutes, who each night, came down into the city to ply their trade with foreign visitors and local men!
• All causing great human trafficking, and resulting in the adoption of the vices of the world, and in a Corinthian culture so morally corrupt that its name became synonomous with debauchery and moral depravity!
• And so, to "corinthianize" came to represent gross immorality and drunken debauchery!

It was to this city--at once the New York, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas of the anxient world--that Paul was called to evangelize!
 
So, what do we know about the founding of the church of Corinth?  Acts 18 describes in some detail, how the apostle Paul first arrived in Corinth on his second missionary journey, meeting and staying with Aquila and Priscilla who, like himself, were tentmakers by trade, but also committed believers!  Verse 4 describes Paul "reasoning in the synagogue every Sabbath, trying to persuade Jews and Greeks," and verse 5 says that "when Silas and Timothy came down from Macedonia, Paul began devoting himself completely to the word, solemnly testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ"!  He spent a year and a half there preaching the gospel, and "many believed and were baptized, including Crispus, the leader of the synagogue"!  And the church was established and thrived!   But not without great opposition from the Jews, who (verse 12 says) "with one accord rose up against Paul and brought him before the judgment seat, while Gallio was proconsul at Achaia."  Accusing him of "persuading men to worship God contrary to the law"!  Paul must have been discouraged, even tempted to leave, but verse 9 says "the Lord appeared to him in a night vision and said, 'Do not be afraid any longer, but go on speaking and do not be silent; for I am with you, and no man will attack you in order to harm you, for I have many people in this city"!  Wow!
 
Paul would eventually leave Corinth and take Aquila and Priscilla with him back to Ephesus, where they would meet Apollus, "an eloquent man" who had been a follower of John the Baptist, and who (Acts 18:24-26 says) "after having been taken aside and had the way of the Lord explained to him more clearly (by Aquila and Priscilla!) became "mighty in the Scriptures"--and would follow Paul and become the second teacher/preacher of the church of Corinth!
 
It was from Ephesus that Paul would later write the epistle of I Corinthians!  What, you might ask, was the occasion and purpose for Paul's writing?  I Corinthians 1:11 says that he had been informed "by Chloe's people that there are quarrels among you,with some of you saying, 'I am of Paul,' and others, 'I am of Apollos,' and 'I of Cephas,' and 'I of Christ!'  Has Christ been divided?" Paul asks!" In addition, various passages indicate that he also wrote his first epistle to address certain specific issues that the Corinthians themselves had written to him about, e.g, concerning marriage, in I Corinthians 7; about "eating things offered to idols," in chapter 8; and about spiritual gifts, in chapter 12!  And more!  (Paul, the man!  The pastor!  The apostle would come to "resemble the pastor/teacher faced with the care of the church on the firing line of Christian warfare," the Bible commentator, S. Lewis Johnson, Jr. wrote!)
 
And so it was obviously written to address problems and issues in the church, with a major emphasis on "reproof and correction, along with training in Christian living," rather than on doctrine (as emphasized in Romans and Galatians)!  Concerned first and foremost with "ecclesiology"!  (John Neal said that "church life can become a messy business"!)
 
But what's the overall theme of I Corinthians?
 
Constable writes that one phrase in Corinthians 1:2 suggests the basic theme of the book, that being "the church of God which is at Corinth"!  The church of God, composed of "believers"!  And the city of Corinth, characterizing "the world"!  Two distinct and opposing entities with which the whole epistle deals!
 
Constable goes on to write: "The church of God is a community of people who share the life of God, are under the governing will of God, and cooperate in the work of God! The city of Corinth was ignorant of the life of God, governed by self-will, and antagonistic to the purposes of God!  These two entities stand in vivid contrast to one another and account, Constable maintains, for the conflict that we find in the epistle"! 
 
Constable further notes that the "atmosphere" of the epistle is Paul's concept of the responsibilities of the church in the city.  The church was commissioned to carry the gospel to the city--to "invade" the city--but because it was a "carnal" church, the "spirit of the city," and the Corinthian cultural influence of intellectual influence, instead, invaded the church!  Intellectual permissiveness led to the lowering of moral standards, and with the extreme immorality of the culture, and the unsaved citizens caught up with the worship of Aphrodite on the mountain, which they viewed as perfectly acceptable conduct, there developed a "live and let live" philosophy which characterized the city but, sadly, even crept into the church!  The church always fails, Constable writes, "when it becomes conformed to the maxims, methods, and manners of the city (or the world!) in which it lives!  But it succeeds when it stands separate from the city and touches it with its supernatural healing life"!  
 
MacArthur similarly notes that "the most serious problem of the Corithian church was "worldliness, and an unwillingness to divorce the culture around them; and that many of the believers could not consistently separate themselves from their old, selfish, immoral, and pagan ways"!  Which was why Paul found it necessary to write to correct this, as well as to command the faithful Christians not only to break fellowship with the disobedient and unrepentant members, but to put them out of the church!
 
And so, while the major thrust of this epistle is on "reproof and correction," rather than on doctrine, Paul (according to MacArthur) "gives seminal teaching on many doctrines that directly relate to the matters of sin and righteousness," recognizing that "wrong living results from wrong belief.  Sexual sins, for example, including divorce are inevitably related to disobeying God's plan for marriage and the family; and proper worship is determined by such things as recognition of God's holy character, the spiritual identity of the church, and pure partaking of the Lord's supper"!  As we'll discover, Paul will also emphasize "the message of the cross" (which the Corinthian church apparently had abandoned), divine versus human wisdom, the work of the Holy Spirit, sanctification of believers, spiritual gifts, the theology of love, and the doctrine of the resurrection, among other topics!  All of which "establish foundational truth for godly behavior"!
 
Constable ends his commentary with a fitting challenge!  "We live in a cultural climate very similar to the one in which the Corinthian church lived.  It's a culture characterized by intellectual pluralism, situational ethics, and personal selfishness!  We face the same challenge the Corinthian believers did.  Consequently, what this epistle reveals is extremely relevant for us!  We have responsibility for how people in our city think, how they live, how they behave, and whom they glorify!  What they need is the message of the cross delivered in the power of the resurrection!  This is the message of hope that "the city" needs to hear! Consequently we need to be firm, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, knowing that our labor is not in vain in the Lord!"
 
 One more thing!  I Corinthians has some great verses that address many of the key issues and concerns that faced the church of Corinth, and that are just as relevant in our day as they were in Paul's day!  Verses that we'll be citing in our study, which are well worth memorizing, and which we'd do well to commit to living by!  To list a few (Forgive my exclamation marks!  They do have a purpose!):

• I Corinthians 3:16--"Do you not know that you are a God's temple and and that God's Spirit dwells in you?  If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him, for God's temple is holy, and you are that temple!"
• I Corinthians 6:18-20--"Flee from sexual immorality!  Every other sin that a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body!  Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God!  You are not your own, for you were bought with a price.  So glorify God in your body!"
• I Corinthians 10:12-13--"Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed that lest he fall!  No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man.  God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation He will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it!"
• I Corinthians 13:13--"But now faith, hope, and love abide; these three, but the greatest of these is love!"
• I Corinthians 15:20-22--"But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.  For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead!  For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive!"
• I Corinthians 15:57-58--"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!  Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain!"

So, are you ready as we plunge into I Corinthians?
 
May God be with you all til we meet again!
 
Lowell