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1 Corinthians 6 - Why is Sexual Immorality Different Than Other Sins?

1 Corinthians 6 - NIV Enduring Word Commentary Sexual Immorality 12 “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything. 13 You say, “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both.” The body, however, is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. 14 By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. 15 Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! 16 Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, “The two will become one flesh.” 17 But whoever is united with the Lord is one with him in spirit. 18 Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. 19 Do you not kno...
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1 Corinthians 5 - Should the Church Bless Same Sex Committed Relationships?

1 Corinthians 5 Enduring Word Commentary "I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— 10 not at all meaning the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave this world. 11 But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler. Do not even eat with such people. 12 What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? 13 God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked person from among you.” 1 Corinthians 5:9-13 Apparently sexual scandal in the church is nothing new in the church. Chapter 5 starts out an issue in which a man is sleeping with his father's wife. This would indicate that the woman was his stepmother. The fact that the verse (v.1) says " sleeping ", shows it is an ongoing relati...
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1 Corinthians 4 - Your Pastor Isn't Perfect And Neither Are You!

1 Corinthians 4 - NIV Paul’s Appeal and Warning 14 I am writing this not to shame you but to warn you as my dear children. 15 Even if you had ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. 16 Therefore I urge you to imitate me. 17 For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, my son whom I love, who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which agrees with what I teach everywhere in every church. Paul has a very sarcastic tone throughout chapter 4. He is confronting the pride in the Corinthian church as they regarded their leaders like Apollos, as better than for instance Paul or Peter.  By following Apollos they acted as if it made them more special. They also did not respect the fact that Peter and Paul were apostles, which gave them apostolic authority. Paul says,   Now, brothers and sisters, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benef...
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1 Corinthians 3 - Is Discipleship Optional?

1 Corinthians 3 - NIV Enduring Word Commentary 3 Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. 2 I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. 3 You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? 4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings?  This passage is great help for us, as we think about Christian discipleship, and what it means to become spiritually mature in Christ. Two of most consistent metaphors when it comes to becoming a mature Christian is the one Paul is using here. I.e. A baby growing up to move from being given milk to being fed with meat. He also uses an agricultural one. I.e. A seed growing to bearing fruit. Biblical stories include: "Parable of the Mustard Seed" (Mark 4), ...
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1 Corinthians 2 - The Key to Successful Preaching!

1 Corinthians 2 - NIV Enduring Word Commentary 2 And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God. 2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. 4 My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, 5 so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power. This is a very important passage because Paul dispels any notion that the effectiveness of his preaching ia anything else but the Holy Spirit working through him. Athens in Greece was the intellectual captital of the world at that time. The orators and philosphers gathered on a weekly basis to talk about spiritual and philosophical matters.  But Paul kept his message simple. He gave his testimony about God, which was based on the facts. Pau...
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1 Corinthians 1 - You Don't Lack Anything!

1 Corinthians 1 - NIV Enduring Word Commentary Overview of Paul's 1st Letter to the Corinthians Paul wrote this letter to the Corinthians about 55 A.D., 32 years after Jesus' death and resurrection. Corinth was an "isthmus", which means an island with five sides. It was a cultural center for many activities.  In the mid-1st century, Corinth was a booming, cosmopolitan metropolis. As the capital of the Roman province of Achaia, it was a major wealthy hub of commerce and diverse cultures. However, the city was also notorious for rampant materialism, hedonism, and pagan worship. - Got Questions.org       3 . There was much division in the Corinthians church over different issues most significant they began to choose one leader over against the over. I.e. Paul, Apollos, or Peter.        4. Paul also addresses many other specific questions the Corinthians had like: marriage, single, food offered to idols, and what true love really looks like.  ...
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Romans 16 - Women Leaders in the Early Church

Romans 16 - NIV Enduring Word Commentary 16 I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon[a][b] of the church in Cenchreae. 2 I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of his people and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been the benefactor of many people, including me.  3 Greet Priscilla[c] and Aquila, my co-workers in Christ Jesus. 4 They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.  5 Greet also the church that meets at their house.  Greet my dear friend Epenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in the province of Asia.  6 Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you.  7 Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among[d] the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.  8 Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord.  9 Greet Urbanus, our co-worker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys.  10 Greet Apelles, w...
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