Home
Bible Study© Rightly
Dividing the Word of Truth
Established
November 2008 (2
Timothy 2:15)
www.2Tim215.Net {Published
weekly on Friday}
This
is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to
be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 1Timothy 2:3-4
1 Corinthians (Lesson 19)
Welcome back to
HBS.
********
Introduction
to 1 Corinthians 6
In
this chapter our Apostle Paul begins by reproving the Corinthians for taking
their judicial matters before the pagan courts, or magistrates, instead of
settling their differences among themselves.
Ancient Athens was a litigious society and a covetous attitude quickly
spread throughout the region. Often the central
motivating issues were monetary gain, pride, or revenge, or a combination of
these. From Paul’s perspective the
motive and purpose of the court case is important, not just the basis of the
case. Angry and greedy Christians appearing in an
open pagan court presented an adverse
testimony to the unbelieving community. Paul
wants these folks to know that their witness is crucial to all those who still don’t
know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.
When
I was a young boy growing up in Indiana America’s favorite pastime was
baseball. People will say this isn’t
true today. They’ll suggest that either football
or NASCAR knocked baseball of its pedestal long ago. But I don’t think America’s #1 pursuit is any
of the above. Any idea what it is? It’s
litigation. The criminal justice system
in America is big business. Have you
noticed how many lawyers there are in the yellow pages or are currently
advertising on T.V.? Litigation has also
become great entertainment just as it was in ancient Athens. Turn on your T.V. and you can tune into
people’s lives and view their dirty
laundry being aired to the public.
Case
in point: two years ago my wife and I
had a legal dispute with a landowner and we filed a small-claim suit in local
court. One day the telephone rang. It was Judge Judy inquiring about our case. We gave her a quick run-down on the facts of
the case and then she asked us if we would be interested in appearing on her
program… She maintains a home in the
county where we filed the suit; she told us she keeps track of the court cases
being filed there – that’s how she came across our names and our case. We
declined her offer. After some
deliberation, the landowner finally decided not to go to law, and we settled our claim, dismissing the lawsuit.
The
legal frenzy in this country and elsewhere is being driven by some of these
favorite slogans: “I know my rights,” I don’t
have to put up with your nonsense,” “You
owe me,” and “Everybody else is doing
it…” I
dare say our national motto changed a long time ago from, “In God we Trust,”
to: “I’ll see you in Court.” In many
ways, America mimics the Corinthians of old…
Please
open your Bible at 1 Corinthians 6:1 and I’ll meet you there.
Lawsuits
Discouraged
1 Corinthians 6
1: Does any one of
you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go
to law before (who)
the unrighteous (this means wicked unbelievers)
and not before the saints (or
Believers in the church).
The
word case in the Greek language is Pragma (pronounced: prag’-mah), a noun neuter, and means – that which has been done, a deed, a matter
at law that is a suit. We know from
historical accounts that the Greeks were culturally prone to litigations and the
same could be said of the Romans. The
Corinth of Paul’s day was not Greek it was Roman.
The
Greek word for neighbor is Heteros (pronounced: het’-er-os), an adjective, and in keeping
with the text it means - another of the
same kind; a fellow Believer. We
know this is accurate because it fits with Paul’s phrase at the end of this
verse: before the saints. The
word dare in the Greek is Tolmao (pronounced: tol-mah’-o), a verb, and it means to presume. Paul uses this word to give emphasis to this question.
Now,
as for Paul statement: (How) dare (any one of you choose) to go to law – back at 1 Corinthians
5:13 Paul said that the Corinthians were not to judge unbelievers; God does this (Romans 2:16; James 4:12; 1 Peter
4:5). This being the case, why would
they presume to go to law before the
unrighteous, to be judged by them in full view of the pagan world?
Paul
is upset and this is the reason. The
Corinthians were degrading God’s Temple
(the church). In Paul’s day, legal
hearings constituted a large part of the entertainment business in an ancient
Greek city. These proceedings weren’t
held in private rooms, behind closed doors, with a small audience in attendance,
such as we have today. The courtroom was
in the public square or the marketplace.
In Athens, Greece (Corinth was undoubtedly similar), a legal dispute was
brought before a court known as “The Forty.”
The Forty selected a public arbitrator, who had to be a citizen in his
60th year, to hear the case.
If it still wasn’t settled it went to a jury court, which consisted of
201 citizens (if the case involved less than a certain amount of money, say
$1,000 today), and 401 citizens (if greater than $1,000). Some public juries were as large as 6,000
citizens all over the age of 30.
It
goes without saying that in a Greek city every man was a lawyer of sorts and
spent a good deal of their time deciding or listening to cases. Moreover, when someone hauled a Believer into
court, they weren’t just settling a dispute; they were holding God’s Church
itself up to public scrutiny and ridicule.
Paul is concerned about the selfish arrogance
of these people. The Corinthians were publicly
airing their “dirty laundry” throughout
the city. These lawsuit-happy Believers were
oblivious as to what the outside world was
thinking and saying. This flies in the
face of Paul’s plain exhortation that they should live their lives remembering
who they are in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 4:25, 29-32; Colossians 1:10, 3:12-17).
At
1:2 Paul identified these Corinthians as saints. At 1:5-7 he said, that in everything you were enriched in Him, in all speech and in all
knowledge… not lacking in any gift. In
chapter 2:14-16 he said they have the
mind of Christ. Therefore they have
in their body of Believers all the necessary resources to settle these disputes.
Starting
in verse 2, Paul continues with three more questions, all of which are designed
to demonstrate how foolish it is for the Corinthians to air their legal
disputes before the unbelieving judges of the world. He does this by using
future end-time realities to motivate the Corinthian’s thinking in regard to
present-time activities.
1 Corinthians 6
2: Or do you not know that the saints (Believers) will judge the (unbelieving) world? If the world is judged by you, are you not competent to constitute the smallest courts?
3: Do you not know that will judge angels? How much more matters of this life?
If the world is
judged by you, are you not competent to constitute the smallest courts? Paul directs his biting sarcasm to those
who claimed to have superior wisdom. These
baby Believers, who claimed to have
so much spiritual insight, in reality did not know how to manage the smallest
dispute.
Or do you not know that the saints (Believers) will judge the (unbelieving) world?
Believers,
by the grace of God, are destined to judge
both unbelievers and angels with righteous judgment. As the twelve apostles of the kingdom will
one day reign with Jesus Christ on earth (Matthew
19:28), and as overcoming Believers from the Great Tribulation (the last
3 ½ years of the Tribulation period) will be given authority over the nations
(Revelation 2:26), Believers will judge,
and reign with the Lord Jesus Christ, not on earth, but over the earth, much as the principalities and powers in heavenly places do today (Ephesians 2:1-7; Daniel 10:12, 13,
20-21, 12:1). This is why Paul was able
to write in 2 Timothy 2:12a: If we endure, we will also reign
with Him; and he could assure his protégé Timothy: The
Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His
heavenly kingdom… (2 Timothy 4:18).
As
to Believers judging angels without
a doubt Paul is speaking of Satan and his rebellious angels (Isaiah 14:12; Luke
10:18; Revelation 12:3-9). Paul writes
in Ephesians 1:20-21: that Christ was raised from the dead and seated
at God’s right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule
and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in
this age but also in the one to come… And
in Ephesians 2:6 Paul declared that Believers have been raised up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in
Christ Jesus. Therefore, when our
Lord judges unbelieving men, women,
and angels in the future the Corinthians (and us) will have a part in
this.
Believers
are of a higher spiritual order than the angels even though the majority of
Believers trapped in this fallen world don’t
realize their spiritual standing (1 Corinthians 13:12). Angels were created as servants of God and of
redeemed humanity (Hebrews 1:14). It is
humanity that is created in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26-27),
and not the angels. It is for humanity
that Jesus Christ gave His life and not the angels (Hebrews 2:14-16).
Let’s
move on to verse 4.
1 Corinthians 6
4: So if you have
law courts dealing with matters of this life, do you appoint them as
judges who are of no account in the church?
Depending
on the Bible you’re currently holding, verse 4 comes off sounding either like a
question or a command from Paul. Most of
our English versions that translate 6:4 as a question presume that Paul is
speaking of unbelieving judges. However,
I read verse 4 as a command from Paul and this is how the NIV and KJV
translators present it. If accepted in
that light, this verse would then read and I’m paraphrasing of course: “Therefore,
if you have disputes about such matters, appoint as judges even men of little
account in the church!”
The
term no account takes us back
to Paul usage of the terms the base
things of the world and the despised, the things that are not,
so that He may nullify the things that are, to confound the world’s wisdom so that God Himself will
receive the glory and the honor (1:28).
The least of God’s people are more adequate, because of God’s imparted
wisdom and His resources (the Holy Spirit being one), to deal with life’s
problems than the best educated and experienced unbelieving secular judge and
jury.
Let’s
move on to verses 5-6:
In
verses 5-6, Paul uses sarcasm in rebuking the Corinthians. He even warns them in advance that it’s
coming.
5: I say this to your shame. Is it so,
that there is not among you one wise
man who will be able to decide between his brethren?
6: But brother goes
to law with brother, and that before unbelievers?
I say this to your shame (NASB); Awake to righteousness, and sin not; (KJV);
Come to your right mind, and sin no more
(RSV). I often use multiple Bible
translations while researching these Bible lessons; I’ve presented these so you
can see how they vary.
Paul
uses the word shame twice in this
letter (15:34). This word appears several
times in the N.T. but it doesn’t denote the same meaning as it does here. The word shame
in the Greek language is translated into English from the word Entropen from the word Entrope, which literally means – “turning in upon oneself.” Entrope is (pronounced: en-trop-ay’), noun Feminine. Our English word “Entropy” is derived from
this word, or the dissipation of energy, i.e. the Second Law of Thermodynamics,
which the scientist Clausius, in 1865, used to help demonstrate to be a
universal law of science… For example,
as I age, my physical human systems will eventually run down and cease to
function as they once did.
Here
Paul uses the word shame from the
root word Entrepo (Strong’s #1788),
in both these instances, which in the bad sense, means “confound;” and, as I already pointed out, Entrope signifies “turning in
upon oneself.” Therefore our Apostle
Paul was moving the Corinthians to be “confounded”
and to “turn in upon themselves” in shame.
He was moving them to entropy –
he decreased them, so that they would see their sin. (One has to get their head out of the clouds,
so to speak, in order to see the “light of day” or the spiritual truth.)
Throughout
this letter Paul has been chastising the Corinthians who have been guilty of arrogance and boasting in hopes of deflating their egos. In verse 5, Paul aims to humble them with his
pen and the Holy Spirit’s assistance. I’m
paraphrasing again, “Seriously, you can’t find one wise man in the church to judge legal matters?” “I
thought you guys had your act together.”
“Do you really need to take
your legal affairs outside the church?”
“Come on now.” “Isn’t there at
least one of you capable of judging legal matters?”
Paul’s
point should be clear even to these baby saints. Any Believer that is striving to be
Christ-like (walking with the Lord daily) is not only more capable but is a far
better option than taking their case before an unbeliever in a secular court of
law. After all, we have the mind of Christ (2:16) and therefore our motivation is
(or should be) love (1 Corinthians 13), which would be the absence of monetary gain, pride, and revenge (or
should be) and as Believers we have the desire to see the guilty person restored
to fellowship. Secular judges and juries
are not interested in these things.
Let’s
go to verses 7-8.
1 Corinthians 6
7: Actually, then,
it is already a defeat for you, that you have law-suits with one
another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded?
8: On the contrary,
you yourselves wrong and defraud.
You do this even to your brethren.
Please
note in this passage Paul isn’t referring to doctrinal disputes but to personal
disputes, involving material or worldly
gain. Secular judges are not going to
have a firm grasp on spiritual matters (Acts 18:13-15). So, when Paul said that in taking their brethren to court over personal matters they
were in effect losing their cases by default; they had already lost them, spiritually speaking they were defeated before their cases were even
tried because no matter who wins the lawsuit the gospel has suffered in the
process. Much more would have been
gained had they opted to accept the wrong
and “turned the other cheek” when defrauded. This would have greatly enhanced their
spiritual growth and their stature within the community. But, Paul says, “You yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this
even to your brethren. In verse 8 Paul is saying that Believer’s
rights are not as important as the reputation and mission of God’s Church.
Before
moving on I need to clarify something.
Paul did not say that Believers were to refrain from using the secular
court system. He had a high regard for
the Roman justice system (Acts 18).
During Paul’s time in Corinth, the Jews dragged him into court before
the proconsul Gallio; accusing Paul of treason, of preaching a religion that
would undermine Roman authority. Gallio
listened to the case and said, “No, this
is a minor religious dispute and it has no place in a court of law.” So, Paul himself benefitted from the fairness
of Roman justice.
In
1 Corinthians 6, Paul is dealing with civil disputes between individuals and
not criminal cases requiring legal action.
In Romans 13:3-4, Paul makes it quite clear that secular civil law
courts are not only valid but also needed in a fallen world, since these folks
tend to be arrogant and vicious in their selfishness. Therefore, God has provided a way to enforce
relative social justice and to check the attitude of the fallen, by force if
necessary, a.k.a. the sword.
Let’s
move on to verses 9-11.
1 Corinthians 6
9: Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not
inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived;
neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor
homosexuals,
10: nor thieves,
nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor
revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.
11: Such were some
of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified
in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.
When
our Apostle Paul speaks of the unrighteous
(unjust) in 6:9, he is not speaking of some carnal members of this church
in Corinth. Instead, Paul uses this term
as a description of unsaved, unregenerate, lost people. We know this because the term unrighteous is clearly defined for us
in the context of this chapter. At verse
1 Paul said: “Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to
go to law before the unrighteous (unjust) and not before the saints?”
Paul
has clearly established two groups for us:
1)
The unrighteous (the unsaved).
2)
The saints (the saved).
We
are now seeing these same two groups in verses 9-11. In verses 9-10 we have a description, of
sorts, of the unrighteous (the
unsaved) in which the Corinthians were called
out of, yet still live in. The unrighteous (the unsaved) will not inherit the kingdom of God. Do not
be deceived.
In
verse 11 we have those who are sanctified
and justified. These are the saints (the saved) who will inherit the kingdom of God. There is no such thing as a saint who will not inherit the kingdom
of God, contrary to some people’s opinion on the subject (Romans 8:1).
The
reason the Corinthians and every Believer is righteous is not because they have persevered in walking closely
with Jesus Christ each and every day and therefore have “earned” a place in His
kingdom. Every Believer is righteous and will inherit the kingdom
of God because they have been justified freely
and this made possible by the Grace of God (Romans 3:24)! They are seen as perfectly clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ (Genesis
3:21; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Galatians 3:27; Job 29:14; Isaiah 61:10).
Paul
is affirming the Corinthian’s security or right-standing with God, in Christ
Jesus, in spite of their sins. Our
heavenly position and eternal standing with God, in Christ Jesus, is never
based on how well we’re doing down here, or on our achievements, but always and
only on Jesus Christ’s finished work of the cross, and our willingness to accept this on faith.
(To
be continued)
©
Copyright 2011
GJ
Heitzman’s Ministry
All
Rights Reserved
No comments:
Post a Comment