Yesterday was tough. We had to look a huge aspect of our culture\u2014 consumerism\u2014in the eye and see how it affects our churches and us. It plays out in our attitude toward leaders, Sunday worship services, and each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Paul\u2019s been pushing against the Corinthians\u2019 consumeristic mindset. He\u2019s adamant that the Corinthians shouldn\u2019t use Christian leaders as a leg up or a spiritual crutch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But it begs the question, what should <\/em>we expect from the Christian celebrities and leaders in our lives? What should our attitude be towards them?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Take a minute to read through 1 Corinthians 4:14\u201317.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n 14<\/sup>I am not writing these things to shame you, but to warn you as my beloved children. 15<\/sup>For even if you had ten thousand others to teach you about Christ, you have only one spiritual father. For I became your father in Christ Jesus when I preached the Good News to you. 16<\/sup>So I urge you to imitate me. 17<\/sup>That\u2019s why I have sent Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord. He will remind you of how I follow Christ Jesus, just as I teach in all the churches wherever I go.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n What does Paul tell the Corinthians to do in verse 16?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Why would Paul tell them to imitate him?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It sounds like an arrogant statement when Paul said to imitate him. But Paul\u2019s getting at the same big idea we\u2019ve been tackling so far in 1 Corinthians\u2014choosing to risk our own interests and live the Spirit-led life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Paul has already been living out the \u201cfoolish\u201d life he\u2019s calling the Corinthians to imitate. He\u2019s given several examples throughout the first four chapters. In 1 Corinthians 4:8-13, he details how difficult it\u2019s been.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 8<\/sup>You think you already have everything you need. You think you are already rich. You have begun to reign in God\u2019s kingdom without us! I wish you really were reigning already, for then we would be reigning with you. 9<\/sup>Instead, I sometimes think God has put us apostles on display, like prisoners of war at the end of a victor\u2019s parade, condemned to die. We have become a spectacle to the entire world\u2014to people and angels alike. 10<\/sup>Our dedication to Christ makes us look like fools, but you claim to be so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are so powerful! You are honored, but we are ridiculed. 11<\/sup>Even now we go hungry and thirsty, and we don\u2019t have enough clothes to keep warm. We are often beaten and have no home. 12<\/sup>We work wearily with our own hands to earn our living. We bless those who curse us. We are patient with those who abuse us. 13<\/sup>We appeal gently when evil things are said about us. Yet we are treated like the world\u2019s garbage, like everybody\u2019s trash\u2014right up to the present moment.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n He\u2019s not saying, \u201cImitate me because I\u2019m awesome.\u201d He\u2019s saying, \u201cFollow my lead as I choose this crazy, upside-down life Jesus called us to.\u201d He desperately wants the Corinthians to give up their selfish act and embrace everything he\u2019s taught them about Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So here\u2019s what we can take away from Paul\u2019s words: We should learn from other Christians. We don\u2019t have to live exactly as they do. But we can apply the principles we learn from them to our lives. We do need to be careful to choose the right people\u2014 those who are actually choosing to live selflessly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Who are some of the influential Christians in your life?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n What have they done to show you how to put other people before yourself?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n We also need the right attitude. Other Christians aren\u2019t God. They aren\u2019t the ones causing us to grow. And they aren\u2019t to be used as weapons against other Christians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pick one of the people you listed in the previous question and take a few minutes to evaluate your attitude towards him or her.<\/strong> Have you idolized that person?<\/strong> If he or she were to leave your life today, how would it affect you?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n As we imitate other Christians who are obedient to Jesus, the hope is that we\u2019d also become role models for fellow believers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As we close today, take some time to think about your life. Would you say you live in a way that\u2019s worth imitating<\/strong> What if the people in your life\u2014your friends, coworkers, or kids\u2014acted just like you?<\/strong> Would they be more like Jesus?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Reflect upon how would people mimic Christ in your life. Write out a prayer to God about your answer. Ask him to help you live a life worth imitating.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Text your response to the above prompting questions to your group and\/or share it as a comment below<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Yesterday was tough. We had to look a huge aspect of our culture\u2014 consumerism\u2014in the eye and see how it affects our churches and us. It plays out in our attitude toward leaders, Sunday worship services, and each other. Paul\u2019s been pushing against the Corinthians\u2019 consumeristic mindset. He\u2019s adamant that the Corinthians shouldn\u2019t use Christian […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"\n Welcome!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Welcome to the book of 1 Corinthians. As we study this letter, we\u2019ll step into ancient Corinth while reading the words Paul wrote to the fledgling church. We\u2019re going to see that, like all churches, the Corinthian church wasn\u2019t perfect. They had a problem. A big problem. And it grew to such an epic proportion that it poisoned the church in various ways. Paul wrote to provide the antidote. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In this study, we\u2019re going to explore Paul\u2019s solution to both the problems in Corinth and in us. Through his words, we\u2019ll learn more about Jesus\u2019s plan for a people who live radically different lives than the world around them. But we\u2019ll also take a hard look in the mirror and ask the Spirit to point out our own self-centered attitudes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Reading the Bible isn\u2019t just something we do to impress people or to check off on a to-do list. It\u2019s about getting to know God. It\u2019s about shaping every minute of our lives to reflect Jesus. It\u2019s about thinking differently in the power of the Spirit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n So as we approach each week, we\u2019ll focus on one main idea. That main idea will point us to change how we think, feel, and act. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This week, we\u2019ll see that resolving relational disunity begins in our hearts because division is a symptom of self-focus. From this main idea, we have three goals: <\/p>\n\n\n\n First Corinthians will take us on a journey. We\u2019ll look at the struggles of one of the first local churches in all of history. We\u2019ll see that the Corinthians weren\u2019t much different from us. And we\u2019ll realize that Paul\u2019s words to them still ring true today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But before we jump into 1 Corinthians, spend a few minutes writing out a short prayer to God. Ask him to use this study to change you. <\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n Open up your Bible to 1 Corinthians. Go ahead and read the entire first chapter. As you read, ask yourself this question: What was the problem in the Corinthian church?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n 1 Corinthians 1:1\u201331 (ESV): <\/p> 1\u00a0Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes, \u201cI will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.\u201d<\/p> 20\u00a0Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21\u00a0For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. 22\u00a0For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23\u00a0but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24\u00a0but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25\u00a0For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.<\/p> 26\u00a0For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27\u00a0But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28\u00a0God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, 29\u00a0so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. 30\u00a0And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31\u00a0so that, as it is written, \u201cLet the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n The Corinthian church suffered from division. We\u2019ll see it all throughout the book. The struggling church fought over leadership, spiritual gifts, food, marriage, and theology. Since the theme of disunity runs throughout the letter, it\u2019s tempting to think that was the church\u2019s problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But it wasn\u2019t. Disunity was only a symptom of a far more insidious\u2014and common\u2014 disease. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Did you catch the real issue that was going on in Corinth? It was selfishness. They were so consumed with themselves that they tried to solve their problems their own way, held on to their culture, and, as a result, blasted chasms between them and other Christians.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n No one likes to admit to selfishness\u2014 especially people who claim to follow Jesus. But it often sneaks into our lives in ways we don\u2019t readily see. And then it spills over in ways we never expect. For the Corinthians, their selfishness led to severe divisions in the church. What is it for us? We\u2019ll spend the rest of the study unpacking that very question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now that we know the main problem Paul\u2019s tackling in 1 Corinthians, take a moment to be honest with God. Write down any fears or concerns you have about confronting the problem of selfishness. Ask God to use this study to turn your gaze to him.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-223918","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1corinthians"],"yoast_head":"\n
2\u00a0To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:
3\u00a0Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4\u00a0I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, 5\u00a0that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge\u2014 6\u00a0even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you\u2014 7\u00a0so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8\u00a0who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9\u00a0God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
10\u00a0I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. 11\u00a0For it has been reported to me by Chloe\u2019s people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. 12\u00a0What I mean is that each one of you says, \u201cI follow Paul,\u201d or \u201cI follow Apollos,\u201d or \u201cI follow Cephas,\u201d or \u201cI follow Christ.\u201d 13\u00a0Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? 14\u00a0I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15\u00a0so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name. 16\u00a0(I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) 17\u00a0For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.
18\u00a0For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19\u00a0For it is written, <\/p>