Bible Study 7/5

1 Corinthians 7:1-16

Here Paul answers some of the Corinthians' questions about marriage. Some of his points:

1) The gift of marriage is a gift of God (v.7)

2) If one wishes to remain single and is able to with self-control, it is good. In fact, Paul wishes that all could be like him (knowing that it is not possible). The implication is that Paul is more fruitful in his service for the Lord because of no other obligations.

3) Divorce is against the will of God.

4) If one finds himself married to an unbelieving spouse, they should not divorce them, but should not stop it if their spouse separates from them.

Bible Study 7/2

Proverbs 20:15-30

v.23 "Unequal weights are an abomination to the Lord, and false scales are not good."

I am sure proverbs like these, which there are several, were directed primarily in the culture to those who would cheat others in the marketplace. However, I think you could also draw from it the idea of having a "double standard" - partiality, if you will.

v.21 "An inheritance gained hastily in the beginning will not be blessed in the end."

v.24" A man's steps are from the Lord - how then can man understand his way?"

- We are not meant to know the future.

1 Corinthians 6:1-11

Paul sandwiches this section on lawsuits between believers between two sections on sexual immorality, leading one to infer that the grievances they had related to matters of sexual wrongdoing. Paul says, in the first place, that to even have a lawsuit is already a defeat. Why not rather suffer wrong, he says. In the next place, the Corinthians were wrong by taking their case before unbelievers, implicitly saying that they submitted themselves to their judgment, when Paul says in fact that the saints will be the ones to judge the world, even angels. It is not good to submit a civil case between believers before an unbelievers' judgment.

Bible Study 7/1/10

Proverbs 20:1-15

The importance of avoiding angry or non-constructive arguments:

v.3 "It is an honor for a man to keep aloof from strife, but every fool will be quarreling."

v9 - "Who can say 'I have made my heart pure, I am clean from my sin?'" - No one.

For the excessive sleeper:

v.13 - "Love not sleep, lest you come to poverty; open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread."

1 Corinthians 5

Paul turns from factions to address another serious problem within the church - open, public, and blatant sexual immorality by someone who professes to be a believer. Paul treats this problem as very serious - the Corinthians are treating it arrogantly. I assume that means that they are taking advantage of the grace that they are living under to not take it seriously. Paul's judgment is that they should be removed from the gathering and fellowship of believers, in order that they make progress toward salvation. How could this punishment accomplish that? The only thing I could think of is allowing them to face the consequences of their choices would help them to come to a point of brokenness and desperation. Allowing them to continue in the fellowship of grace would not be beneficial for them, because they are taking advantage of it.

Paul then clarifies that he is not saying that the Corinthians should not associate with the sinners of this world - that would be impossible (though some throughout history have made a go at it). He says that this applies only to those who claim to be "brothers" - believers - the church is to judge the gross immorality that exists within the fellowship.

Bible Study 6/29

Proverbs 19:1-16

There are quite a few proverbs today contrasting the poor and the wealthy. On the one hand, they stress that it is better to live in poverty and have knowledge and wisdom than to be a fool and have everything. On the other hand, with poverty comes loneliness - "a poor man is deserted by his friend."

v. 11 "Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense."

1 Corinthians 3

In v.1-4, Paul talks about how he has to treat the Corinthians like infants in Christ, as if they were still "people of the flesh" because that is what they were acting like in promoting these factions, even though they were "sanctified in Christ Jesus." Paul refutes the factions by reminding them that spiritual leaders are God's servants; they have different roles, but it is God who causes all the growth (and therefore gets all the credit).

He turns from this to talking about the manner in which spiritual leaders and teachers build into people. The foundation that must always be laid is Jesus Christ - the gospel. After this, Paul emphasizes that the spiritual formation must be of quality to survive, not shallow or of bad quality or error.

Another rebuke against those promoting the factions is found in v.16-17. Since the Corinthians are God's temple, are holy and must be unified, these factions are actually attempts to destroy God's temple. He warns that if anyone attempts this, God will destroy him.

His final warning - v21, "let no one boast in men." Especially in those who think they are wise (in eloquence and philosophy). The reason is because ALL of these men are the Lord's servants, and the Corinthians have everything they need in Christ.

Bible Study 6/28

Proverbs 18

There is quite a lot packed into this chapter.

v.1 - "He who isolates himself seeks his own desire; he breaks out against all sound judgment."

- Referring to a pattern of isolation; a nonwillingness to engage the world. It is a selfish and unwise way to live.

v.2 "A fool takes no pleasure in understanding; but only in expressing his opinion."

- I'm sure we've all known and/or have been this person in a conversation or meeting. All we can think about is getting our point across, regardless of listening to someone else. This person is called a fool.

v.13 "If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame."

- Making a judgment without listening or carefully considering a matter.

v.15 - "An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge."

- There is some irony in that it is the intelligent (knowledgeable?) man who seeks to acquire knowledge. He knows the value of it. Knowledge is not for the intelligent few, but any who would seek to be wise. In our day, this is a good exhortation to read.

v.24 "A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother."

- What is the difference between the friend and companions? It could only be that the many companions were mere acquaintances, or were more concerned about what they were getting out the relationship. This is an exhortation to be and to seek a true friend.

1 Corinthians 2

Paul's proclamation of the gospel to the Corinthians was based solidly in the life and death and resurrection of Christ; it was not made complicated by philosophy or dependent solely on logic. His basis of truth was a God-dependent base and not a man-dependent one. He trusted in the Spirit to confirm this seemingly foolish testimony with demonstrations of power. The reason he did this was so that their faith would not be based in "the wisdom of men" but "the power of God." If their faith was based in the "wisdom of men" it would be weak.

For the remainder of chp. 2, Paul discusses the wisdom that comes from God's spirit, and not from man's logic. We are able to understand spiritual truth because we have "the mind of Christ" - the Spirit of God opening our minds to understand. Those who do not have the Spirit of God are not able to understand spiritual truth, and consider it foolish. Specifically, they are not able to understand the gospel and its implications. They are instead dependent on a warped way of understanding the world, based in their own independence from God.

Bible Study 6/26

Proverbs 17: 15-28

v.22 - "A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones."

In this proverb, it is interesting that the joyful heart is not the result of the medicine, but the medicine itself. What it is good medicine for? Depression? Good health in general? The opposite, a crushed spirit, dries up the bones - sucks life and energy out of a person. A joyful heart, then, gives life and energy to the person by contrast. So, it is good medicine for feeling like you are not alive and always tired or lacking energy.

v.27 - "Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding. v.28 Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent."

1 Corinthians 1:18-31

Paul redirects the Corinthians arrogance through factions by pointing them back to Christ as supreme as both the power and wisdom of God. The message of God's redemption through Jesus's sacrifice on the cross is foolishness to those who live by worldly values and wisdom - those whose minds have been darkened in their understanding.

It is interesting to think about how this passage uses the word "wisdom". I think we can go back to vs. 17 "words of eloquent wisdom" to get an idea of what he means by it. He doesn't seem to be referring to the general wisdom of how to live in God's world as outlined in the proverbs. Rather, he seems to be referring to the world's fascination with the rhetorical ability of public speakers and the arguments of philosophers. These may have the power of persuasion, but the "word of the cross" has true power to save.

By understanding this distinction between the world's words of eloquent wisdom and the wisdom of God in the word of the cross, the Corinthians could move towards healing in their factiousness.

Bible Study 6/25

Proverbs 17:1-14

v.14 - "The beginning of strife is like letting out water, so quit before the quarrel breaks out."

1 Corinthians 1:1-17

Speaking of quarreling... already in these first 14 verses we know a little bit about the situation at Corinth. We know that while Paul was there, he preached the gospel and it was received by some there. As they received it, they received the gift of the Holy Spirit, which manifested itself in various spiritual gifts of speech and spiritual knowledge in the church. Paul gives thanks for this.

But there is a problem. There seem to be disagreements, and serious enough to the point where factions are forming, the rallying point being the teachings of the men they follow - Paul, Apollos, Cephas, and Christ. Paul begins his refutation of this by appealing for unity and pointing out the ridiculousness of such factions - all of us follow Christ as Lord. He then talks about his own specific role in the formation of their church (preaching the gospel) and begins to make a transition to talking about the manner in which he preached, which was not with "words of wisdom".

Some inferences that could be made from this already is that a basis for these factions is the eloquence of the teaching of the various leaders and that one way Paul might speak to this is talking about the various important roles that all of these leaders play in the formation of the church.