1st Letter of St. Paul to Corinthians
Title: Paul founded the church in Corinth
during his second missionary journey (Acts 18:1-18). That’s where he met Sosthenes
– the co-author of the epistle (1:1). Also, this is not the first letter of
Paul to the congregation in Corinth (5:9).
Date of
writing: Most likely
St. Paul wrote it either between the second and third missionary journeys or when
the third journey already began. It should be dates around 50-52 AD.
Structure: based on Lockwood, 1 Corinthians
(CPH, 2000), pp. viii-xi
a. 1:1-17, Epistolary Opening
Word of the
Cross is the basis for…
b. 1:18 –
4:21, …the Church’s Unity
c. 5:1 – 7:40,
… the Church’s Holiness
d. 8:1 – 11:1,
… the Church’s Freedom
e. 11:2 –
14:40, … the Church’s Worship
f. 15:1-58, …
the Congregation’s Hope
g. 16:1-24,
Conclusion
Main
themes:
The power of
the Cross
Church’s
unity
Maturation of
a believer(s)
God’s order
reflected in Christian marriage, worship etc.
Eschatological
expectations
Main
Characters:
Paul,
Apollos, Cephas (Peter), Timothy
Pharisees
vs. Sadducees (see ch. 15, cp. Acts 18:12 for the usage of the “Jews”).
Reflection
in other parts of the Bible:
The whole
theme of chastity is based on the acceptance of the prohibitions set in Torah
(Lev. 18).
The
introduction to the worship section Paul uses the Exodus story as a point of
reference (10:1-13).
The usage of
the Words of institution (11:24-25) shows that Sp. Paul knew the Last Supper narrative.
Most likely from Luke (Lk. 22:14-23). But he also refers to the events that
happened after the resurrection of Jesus that might not be recorded in the
Gospels (15:7).
To
understand the theology of tongues it is important to know the historical
background of the sign Isaiah refers to (14:20-25 – Is. 28:11,12).
Lutheran
teaching:
The
distinction between natural and spiritual man (2:14) is a foundational passage
for discussion in Augsburg Confession (XVIII:2; XX:36), Apology (II(I):30,
XVIII:73), Smalcald Articles (III, III:18), and Formula of Concord (Epitome
II:2, SD II:5, 10, 71) which establish the distinction between the freedom of
the will in the civil realm and the restoration of the spiritual righteousness
of a man.
Not
surprising that 1 Cor. 10 and 11 is used for the description of the Lord’s
Supper. Smalcald Articles (III, VI:1,5), Large Catechism (V:50, 69, 83), etc.
make explicit remarks to the institution of the Sacrament of the Altar.
Lutheran
hymnody:
LSB 621 –
Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence
LSB 854 –
Forth in Thy Name, O Lord, I Go
Relevancy
of the Book:
Even thou St.
Paul write the epistle about two thousand years ago, the problems and
challenges of the Church are still the same. The unity, the maturation of the
members, the proper order in the worship, etc. Which can lead us to despair –
nothing improves, or it can teach us that satan has very limited number of
temptations. We can/are able to learn from the past and apply the lesson for
our current situation.
Memory
verses:
3:16 – Do
you know that you are God’s temple, and that the Holy Spirit dwells in you?
(cp. 6:19-20).
No comments:
Post a Comment