1 Corinthians Session 3 | Pleading for Unity 1 Corinthians 1:10–17, 3:1-9 DIVISIONS IN THE CHURCH…. Unity in the body of Christ is critical to advancing the gospel. Ultimately, sin breaks unity. It always has. Division in the body of Christ produces no good fruit, and cyclically widens as the flesh is fed by more sin. In Romans 12, Paul says do not be conformed to the patterns of this world. When I take a step back and observe patterns in and of this world, one touches every corner of this planet inhabited by mankind: division. People are divided. Anger and hatred between factions based on race, gender, status, religion, political party, food preference, doctrinal stance, school choice, and more exist. Division is a pattern you don’t have to look very far to see. So, when Paul says in Romans not to be conformed to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewal of the mind, that includes division, especially amongst the body of Christ. Galatians 3:28 [28] There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. Paul desperately longs for unity in the Church, oneness in the body, and so before talking through sin issues, he says don’t be divided. Big Ideas: 1. Specific Words for a Specific Appeal 2. Who Do You Follow? 3. The Relationship Between Sin and Division 4. Ingredients for Unity 1 Corinthians 1:10–17 [10] I 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] For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. [12] What I mean is that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.” [13] Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? [14] I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, [15] so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name. [16] (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) [17] For 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. (ESV) 1. Specific Words for a Specific Appeal Appeal: To make an earnest request or plea. To beg for with urgency or anxiously. Brothers (and sisters) Paul pens this letter intentionally. He has spent days, if not weeks crafting this letter to the church because of the church's beauty and purpose in advancing the gospel. He chooses his words carefully, and so addresses the church as a family. If Christ has redeemed you by grace through faith in His finished work of death and resurrection, then you are a part of God’s family. There is familial unity between us not based on the merits of our flesh or physical heritage, but on the very Spirit of God who indwells us. By the name of People use statements like this to express urgency, but also authority. What authority did Paul have to correct this group of messy people? Who backed him up? Why should the church receive his correction, and listen to his appeal? Why didn’t Paul just say I appeal to you to stop being so sinful? Because it’s not about Paul! It’s not about any man but One! They are already struggling with positional idolatry, so he doesn’t want to add fuel to the fire. Instead, he redirects authority where it truly belongs. Our Lord Jesus Christ Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” Jesus is the head of his Church. He has the final say. And, as these are Church issues, Paul leans on him. “Based on and for the glory of our JESUS CHRIST, here’s what I urgently ask” OUR Lord Jesus Christ. We are all members of the body of Christ. He is our Lord, not just mine, not just yours. Brothers and sisters, fellow family members of God, Jesus Christ is our Lord. He has all authority and he has united us in himself and given us his Spirit. Based on His authority and for His glory, I urgently, even anxiously, beg and plead with you to… Agree It is ok to have a preference different from your brother or sister. You and I can still walk in unity whilst not agreeing on a lot of different things. Paul is not saying agree on everything robotically. This word ‘agree’ means, ‘to speak the same, have a uniform testimony.’ To keep the main thing the main thing. To say unashamedly and together, “I follow Christ.” Disagreements differ from division. But disagreements fueled by PRIDE rather than simple preference or misunderstanding, along with those left unsubmitted to the authority of God’s word can and often do lead to division. That there be no divisions among you, One, if not the most damaging result of sin found first at the fall is Division: Schisma: a split, division. A rent, as in a garment. Separation. At the fall, that act of rebellion, that sin against a holy God was such a big deal that it created a cosmic schisma, an eternal division that ripped us apart from the wellspring of life, from the presence of God, from light himself and cast us into a deserved darkness, bound us for an earned death, and birthed a nature in every person born of Adam that is rent apart from God and from one another. Ephesians 2:13–20 [13] But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. [14] For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility [15] by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, [16] and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. [17] And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. [18] For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. [19] So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, [20] built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone (ESV) 2. Who Do We Follow? 1 Corinthians 1:11-13 [11] For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. [12] What I mean is that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.” [13] Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? (ESV) There were factions present in the church in Corinth based on who followed who. These men are not the issue. He addresses the saints following a christian instead of Christ. We are drawn to certain people based on charisma, status, their influence in our lives, and other good reasons. When our foundations are built apart from the Cornerstone himself and instead upon a man, agenda, feeling, etc., a litany of divisions born of the flesh begin to rip apart the bride. 2 Timothy 4:1–4 [1] I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: [2] preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. [3] For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, [4] and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. James 4:1–3 [1] What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? [2] You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. [3] You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. Today if we don’t keep our eyes fixed on Christ as the only one worth following, we may be found guilty of division by saying divisive statements similar to, “I’m a Calvanist. I follow Luther. I’m a Baptist. I like the sound of this worship more so I’m going to jump ship and go there.” We must not lose sight of the Savior, of Christ himself and instead follow a christian or movement or theological leaning we prefer. Doctrine is SO important, but it was never meant to divide the bride, but to unite. 1 Corinthians 3:1-4 [1] But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. [2] I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, [3] for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? [4] For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human? So, is following anyone other than Christ unbiblical? Should we get rid of leadership structures in the Church? No. We must protect the integrity of biblical Church governance. Biblical leadership, governance, shepherds, and overseers are absolutely necessary for the health of the church, as is every member not in leadership. But the purpose the word gives leaders is to not amass our own followers, but this: 1 Corinthians 4:1 “This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.” 1 Corinthians 3:5-6 [5] What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. [6] I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. Those called to leadership are stewards. Watering and sowing, but never claiming the power to grow. To those under biblical leadership in the Church, be weary to connect your growth with a church leader, but with the Spirit of God who is actively working in you, sanctifying and transforming your entire self through the seeds faithfully planted and watered by others in the church. Ultimately, sin divides. And divisions widen without intentional repair. I see a correlation throughout the rest of the book between sin and division. 3. Sin and Division ● Sectarianism - divides relationships ● Sexual Immorality - divides families and relationships. ● Drunkenness - divides families and relationships, hurts the body ● Envy/Jealousy - strains and divides relationships ● Fighting / quarreling - strains and divides relationships ● Lack of love - divides relationships ● Disorder in worship - divides relationships, focuses on man ● Comparison - causes envy and strife, which divide relationships ● Lawsuits - divide relationships ● Hypocrisy - destroys trust, which divides relationships Galatians 5:1 [1] For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. Division. Di - meaning twice or two Vision - direction, goal. Proverbs 29:18: where there is no vision, people cast off restraint, run wild, perish, and are unrestrained. 4. Ingredients for Unity ● One vision Ephesians 4:1–6 [1] I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, [2] with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, [3] eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. [4] There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—[5] one Lord, one faith, one baptism, [6] one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. (ESV) ● Humility Matthew 20:25–28 [25] But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. [26] It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, [27] and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, [28] even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (ESV) ● Abide in Christ John 15:4–5 [4] Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. [5] I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. (ESV) ● Love the bride. Jesus does. 1 Peter 4:8 [8] Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. (ESV) TAKE AWAYS: 1. Who are you following? Is it Christ, or another Christian? 2. Is there division among you? 3. First, go and be reconciled, then come and offer your gift.