# 1 Corinthians 01 đź“–: Divisions and the Cross
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> [!info] Table of Contents
> [[#đź“ś Scripture Text (NET)]]
> [[#đź“– Verse-by-Verse Commentary]]
> [[#🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights]]
> [[#🧠Chapter Summary]]
> [[#✝️ Christ in This Chapter]]
> [[#🔎 Key Observations / 🛟 Life Application]]
> [[#đź’¬ Discussion Questions]]
> [[#✍️ Key Verses to Remember]]
> [[#đź”— Related Passages]]
> [[#🙏 Devotional Reflection]]
> [[#đź“‚ Internal Notes]]
## đź“ś Scripture Text (NET)
(The NET Bible: New English Translation. Biblical Studies Press, 2005)
### Salutation
**Principle**: Being a Hard Conversation with Kindness.
[[#Verse 01.]] From Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Sosthenes, our brother,
[[#Verse 02.]]Â to the church of God that is in Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, and called to be saints, with all those in every place who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours.Â
[[#Verse 03.]] Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!
### Thanksgiving
**Principle**: God is faithful.
[[#Verse 04.]]Â I always thank my God for you because of the grace of God that was given to you in Christ Jesus.Â
[[#Verse 05.]] For you were made rich in every way in him, in all your speech and in every kind of knowledge—Â
[[#Verse 06.]] just as the testimony about Christ has been confirmed among you—Â
[[#Verse 07.]]Â so that you do not lack any spiritual gift as you wait for the revelationof our Lord Jesus Christ.Â
[[#Verse 08.]] He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.Â
[[#Verse 09.]]Â God is faithful, by whom you were called into fellowship with his son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
### Divisions in the Church
**Principle**: We are all under Jesus, not worldly leaders.
[[#Verse 10.]] I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to agree together, to end your divisions, and to be united by the same mind and purpose.
[[#Verse 11.]] For members of Chloe’s household have made it clear to me, my brothers and sisters, that there are quarrels among you.Â
[[#Verse 12.]] Now I mean this, that each of you is saying, “I am with Paul,” or “I am with Apollos,” or “I am with Cephas,” or “I am with Christ.”
[[#Verse 13.]] Is Christ divided? Paul wasn’t crucified for you, was he? Or were you in fact baptized in the name of Paul?Â
[[#Verse 14.]] I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius,Â
[[#Verse 15.]]Â so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name!Â
[[#Verse 16.]]Â (I also baptized the household of Stephanus. Otherwise, I do not remember whether I baptized anyone else.)Â
[[#Verse 17.]] For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—and not with clever speech, so that the cross of Christ would not become useless.
### The Message of the Cross
**Principle**: We all have a particular ministry.
[[#Verse 18.]]Â For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.Â
[[#Verse 19.]] For it is written, “**_I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will thwart the cleverness of the intelligent_**.” [[Isaiah 29]]
[[#Verse 20.]] Where is the wise man? Where is the expert in the Mosaic law? Where is the debater of this age? Has God not made the wisdom of the world foolish?Â
[[#Verse 21.]]Â For since in the wisdom of God the world by its wisdom did not know God, God was pleased to save those who believe by the foolishness of preaching.Â
[[#Verse 22.]]Â For Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks ask for wisdom,Â
[[#Verse 23.]] but we preach about a crucified Christ, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles.Â
[[#Verse 24.]]Â But to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God.
[[#Verse 25.]] For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.
[[#Verse 26.]] Think about the circumstances of your call, brothers and sisters. Not many were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were born to a privileged position.
[[#Verse 27.]]Â But God chose what the world thinks foolish to shame the wise, and God chose what the world thinks weak to shame the strong.Â
[[#Verse 28.]]Â God chose what is low and despised in the world, what is regarded as nothing, to set aside what is regarded as something,Â
[[#Verse 29.]]Â so that no one can boast in his presence.Â
[[#Verse 30.]] He is the reason you have a relationship with Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption,Â
[[#Verse 31.]] so that, as it is written, “**_Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord_**.” [[Jeremiah 09]]
## đź“– Verse-by-Verse Commentary
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## 🤔 Interesting Facts / Historical and Cultural Insights
1. Corinth was a major Roman colony. Rome destroyed the old Greek city in 146 BC, and Julius Caesar refounded it in 44 BC.
2. Corinth sat on a narrow isthmus between two ports, Lechaeum and Cenchrea, making it a hub of trade and travel.
3. Paul founded the church on his second missionary journey and stayed about eighteen months (Acts 18:11).
4. Paul most likely wrote 1 Corinthians from Ephesus in the mid-50s AD (16:8).
5. "Chloe's people" (1:11) were probably members of her household or business who brought news to Paul.
6. Sosthenes (1:1) may be the synagogue leader who was beaten in Corinth in Acts 18:17.
7. Crispus (1:14) was the synagogue leader in Corinth who believed with his whole household (Acts 18:8).
8. Greek culture prized rhetoric and philosophy, which helps explain why the Corinthians admired polished speakers.
9. Crucifixion was so shameful that the Roman orator Cicero said the very word should be kept far from the thoughts, eyes, and ears of Roman citizens.
10. In 1:19 Paul quotes Isaiah 29:14, and in 1:31 he draws from Jeremiah 9:24.
## 🧠Chapter Summary
> [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way.
## ✝️ Christ in This Chapter
Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God (1:24). He became for us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption (1:30), so all our boasting is in the Lord (Galatians 6:14).
## 🔎 Key Observations / 🛟 Life Application
> [!note] 🌱 Still growing. This section is on its way.
## đź’¬ Discussion Questions
1. The Corinthians divided into camps behind Paul, Apollos, Cephas, and Christ (1:12). What kinds of camps divide churches today?
2. The message of the cross is foolishness to some but the power of God to us (1:18). Why does the cross still offend people?
3. God chose what the world considers foolish and weak (1:26-29). How does that encourage you about what God can do through you?
## ✍️ Key Verses to Remember
- đź“– verse 9: God is faithful, and He called you into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
- đź“– verse 10: Paul urges the church to agree together and avoid divisions.
- đź“– verse 18: The message of the cross is foolishness to those perishing, but the power of God to those being saved.
- đź“– verses 23-24: We preach Christ crucified, the power and wisdom of God.
- đź“– verse 31: Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.
## đź”— Related Passages
- đź”— [[Acts 18#Verse 01.|Acts 18:1-11]] - Paul founds the church in Corinth (1:2).
- đź”— [[1 Thessalonians 05#Verse 24.|1 Thessalonians 5:24]] - God is faithful; fellowship with the Father and Son (1:9).
- đź”— [[1 John 01#Verse 03.|1 John 1:3]] - God is faithful; fellowship with the Father and Son (1:9).
- đź”— [[John 17#Verse 21.|John 17:21]] - That they may be one; of the same mind (1:10).
- đź”— [[Philippians 02#Verse 02.|Philippians 2:2]] - That they may be one; of the same mind (1:10).
- đź”— [[Acts 18#Verse 24.|Acts 18:24-28]] - Apollos ministers in Corinth (1:12).
- đź”— [[Romans 01#Verse 16.|Romans 1:16]] - The gospel is the power of God for salvation (1:18).
- đź”— [[Isaiah 29#Verse 14.|Isaiah 29:14]] - I will destroy the wisdom of the wise (1:19).
- đź”— [[Isaiah 33#Verse 18.|Isaiah 33:18]] - Where is the scholar? (1:20)
- đź”— [[Isaiah 08#Verse 14.|Isaiah 8:14]] - A stone that causes stumbling (1:23).
- đź”— [[James 02#Verse 05.|James 2:5]] - God chose the poor to be rich in faith (1:26-29).
- đź”— [[Jeremiah 23#Verse 05.|Jeremiah 23:5-6]] - The Lord Our Righteousness (1:30).
- đź”— [[Jeremiah 09#Verse 23.|Jeremiah 9:23-24]] - Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord (1:31).
## 🙏 Devotional Reflection
đź“ť SOAP: [[1 Corinthians 01 - SOAP|Harmony Not Unison]]
## đź“‚ Internal Notes