Sometimes it\u2019s good to get back to the basics. In the final chapters of 1 Corinthians, Paul draws the church back to its roots. He reminds them of what he first taught them when he visited their city years before. It all comes back to the gospel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Read 1 Corinthians 15:1\u20139.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 1<\/strong> Let me now remind you, dear brothers and sisters, of the Good News I preached to you before. You welcomed it then, and you still stand firm in it. 2<\/strong> It is this Good News that saves you if you continue to believe the message I told you\u2014unless, of course, you believed something that was never true in the first place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 3<\/strong> I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. 4<\/strong> He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. 5<\/strong> He was seen by Peter and then by the Twelve. 6<\/strong> After that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. 7<\/strong> Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles. 8<\/strong> Last of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also saw him. 9<\/strong> For I am the least of all the apostles. In fact, I\u2019m not even worthy to be called an apostle after the way I persecuted God\u2019s church.<\/p>\n1 Corinthians 15 (NLT)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Summarize Paul\u2019s explanation of the gospel in your own words.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n What idea is at the center of the gospel according to Paul?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The resurrection is the foundation of our faith. Paul wants the Corinthians to remember that truth. He goes out of his way to prove it\u2019s true by bringing up all the people who saw Jesus after he rose from the dead. Hundreds of men and women witnessed him. In other words, believing in the resurrection isn\u2019t foolish\u2014it\u2019s the very thing we stand upon as Christians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Jesus\u2019s resurrection, though, isn\u2019t the only thing we buy into when we say he\u2019s alive. Since he\u2019s risen, it means we too will be raised to new life. It also means that even though we might die before Jesus returns, that\u2019s not the end of our story. We will rise to meet new life one day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But for some reason, many people in the Corinthian church didn\u2019t believe Christians would rise again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Read 1 Corinthians 15:12\u201319.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 12<\/strong> But tell me this\u2014since we preach that Christ rose from the dead, why are some of you saying there will be no resurrection of the dead? 13<\/strong> For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. 14<\/strong> And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. 15<\/strong> And we apostles would all be lying about God\u2014for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can\u2019t be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. 16<\/strong> And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. 17<\/strong> And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. 18<\/strong> In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! 19<\/strong> And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n What are the consequences that come with denying the resurrection?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n If we deny that Jesus will one day return and resurrect Christians who\u2019ve died, we essentially deny that Jesus is alive. His resurrection points to our future. If it didn\u2019t happen, then when we die, we just die. We make God and the witnesses of Jesus\u2019s resurrection liars. And we have no hope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s why Paul drives home his point about the resurrection to the Corinthians. They believe Jesus is alive\u2014if they didn\u2019t, they wouldn\u2019t be Christians. That means they must believe they will live again when Jesus returns. It\u2019s a non-negotiable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n All our hope rests on the fact that when we die, we\u2019re simply closing our eyes on the temporary and will open them to the eternal.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Spend some time journaling about the resurrection, specifically about the future resurrection when Jesus returns. What fears or questions do you have? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Since death on this earth isn\u2019t the end of our story, how does the resurrection shape the way you think about dying?<\/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":" Sometimes it\u2019s good to get back to the basics. In the final chapters of 1 Corinthians, Paul draws the church back to its roots. He reminds them of what he first taught them when he visited their city years before. It all comes back to the gospel. Read 1 Corinthians 15:1\u20139. 1 Let me now […]<\/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-224052","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1corinthians"],"yoast_head":"\n\n
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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>