Sermons on 1 Corinthians (Page 2)
Knowledge and Love
As Christians we know the ultimate truth. There is one God, revealed to us in Jesus Christ, and besides Him there is no other. Knowing this truth however, can make us arrogant to the point where we treat others with less knowledge with contempt… this is never the point of Christian knowledge. Pastor Ben unpacks how we are to let our knowledge be ruled by love.
Sex, Singleness, Marriage & Divorce (Part 2)
Pastor Joe continues to unpack 1 Corinthians 7 and Paul’s teaching around our most intimate relationships and how we are to view them in light of our conversion to Christ.
Sex, Singleness, Marriage & Divorce (Part 1)
The arrival of the gospel in Corinth didn’t make everything suddenly rosy… in fact it created messy situations where new believers found themselves with new ethics, new desires and new freedom and yet they were still in the midst of their old city, culture and relationships. This is especially true in the areas of sex, singleness, marriage & divorce. Pastor Joe helps us navigate this messiness by unpacking Paul’s wisdom.
A Plea for Sexual Purity
The sexual ethic of the city of Corinth was not dissimilar to our sexualised world today. So it was vital that the new church didn’t let the sins of the city frame the way they thought about sex. Pastor Ben unpacks the way the gospel both calls us to, and fuels, sexual purity.
A Plea for Harmony
Culture is formed into the likeness of its leaders. And as we have heard, the Corinthian leaders were caught up in power struggles amongst one another. So it shouldn’t surprise us that members of the Corinthian church were struggling against one another. Paul highlights this problem and why it is so destructive in the church.
A Plea for Holiness
Paul’s fatherly love and concern for the Corinthian church leads him to uncover a heinous sin that is flourishing in the life of one of their members. But Paul will spend most of his time not berating the sinner, but challenging the church’s response to him. In this message we examine how the church needs to respond to willing and unrepentant sin.
The Despised Leader
Everyone loves to win. Everyone loves a winner. So in the church, we generally want to think that we are winning in the world. And we want our leaders to win in the world as well, to gain influence and respect. But Paul challenges this ideal as he unpacks what the life of the Apostles was really like.
A Plea for Maturity
Pride has a way of making us think we are better than we are. This also impacts the way we view our faith… we all tend to think we are more mature or spiritual than others. This was certainly the case in Corinth, as the various factions each believed they were better Christians than the others. But Paul challenges their maturity and calls them to a more realistic vision of who they are.
Unnatural Wisdom
People strive for success by seeking out every bit of information and instruction they can find in the world. The church in Corinth was seeking the success of the church through seeking the wisdom of Corinthian society. Paul redirects their focus to the foolish message of the cross, the true wisdom of God.
Preaching the Crucified Christ
It is hard for us to imagine the message of Jesus being considered as weak and foolish… but that is exactly how people received it in the city of Corinth. How can anybody worship a crucified leader? But Paul never departed from this foolish message, and he calls us to cling to it as well.