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Paul Series: My Last Post

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Last September, I started a series on Paul’s letters with plans to go through a chapter a week from Romans through Philemon. As I’ve been studying his letters in Romans and Corinthians, I’ve felt for the last couple months God has been leading me in a different direction than I had originally thought. Studying 2 Corinthians 2 this week opened my eyes to what God has been speaking to me all along. In verse 12-13, Paul wrote, “Now when I came to Troas for the gospel of Christ and when a door was opened for me in the Lord, I had no rest for my spirit, not finding Titus my brother; but taking my leave of them, I went on to Macedonia” (NASB).

 

Paul Series “2 Corinthians 1”

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We continue with our study of Paul’s letters this week with 2 Corinthians 1.

Paul writes:

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the church of God which is at Corinth with all the saints who are throughout Achaia:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ. But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer; and our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort.

v. 1-7 (NASB)

 

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 16”

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This is the last message in Paul’s letters in 1 Corinthians. We will continue studying Paul’s letters with 2 Corinthians in two weeks. We end our study today with 1 Corinthians 16.

Paul writes:

Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I directed the churches of Galatia, so do you also. On the first day of every week each one of you is to put aside and save, as he may prosper, so that no collections be made when I come. When I arrive, whomever you may approve, I will send them with letters to carry your gift to Jerusalem; and if it is fitting for me to go also, they will go with me.

v. 1-4 (NASB)

The KJV for the second verse reads “Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him…” Everything God asks us to give away, whether it be money, love, forgiveness, etc., we can be sure that He has first given it to us. We are more willing to give when we are not in lack. If we lack receiving God’s provision for our needs, we will be less willing to give to meet someone else’s needs. If we lack receiving God’s forgiveness for our mistakes, we will be less willing to forgive others for their mistakes. We have to receive from God before we can give to others.

 

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 15”

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We continue our study of Paul’s letters this week with 1 Corinthians 15. In this chapter, Paul talks about Christ’s resurrection and the resurrection of the dead. He explains that if there is no resurrection of the dead, as some of them were saying, then Christ would not have been raised from the dead. Christ died for our sins because we were dead in our sins, and He was raised to life for our redemption, as Colossians 2:13-15 explains, “When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross” (NIV).

 

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 14”

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We continue our study of Paul’s letters this week with 1 Corinthians 14. In the last chapter, Paul talked about possessing God’s “agape” love, which we have by receiving and remaining in His love. Paul begins chapter 14 instructing the Corinthians to pursue God’s “agape” love, but also to be eager to possess spiritual gifts in order to share His love with others.

Pursue love, yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy. For one who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God; for no one understands, but in his spirit he speaks mysteries. But one who prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation. One who speaks in a tongue edifies himself; but one who prophesies edifies the church. Now I wish that you all spoke in tongues, but even more that you would prophesy; and greater is one who prophesies than one who speaks in tongues, unless he interprets, so that the church may receive edifying.

v. 1-5 (NASB)

 

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 13”

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We continue our study of Paul’s letters this week with 1 Corinthians 13. In the last chapter, Paul talked about the different Spiritual gifts God bestows upon His children. He ended the chapter saying, “And I show you a still more excellent way.” In chapter 13, He explains that the more excellent way is love.

Paul expresses:

If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.

v. 1-3 (NASB)

It says if we do not have love, it profits us nothing. The word translated as do not have is echó, which means “I have, hold, possess.” The word translated as love is agapé, which means God’s kind of love: “selfless, unconditional, sacrificial.” To possess God’s love, we must receive and remain in His love. We can’t give something we don’t have. If we are not seeking Him to be filled with His love, we will have nothing to give to others.

 

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 12”

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We continue our study of Paul’s letters this week with 1 Corinthians 12.

Paul begins talking about the different Spiritual gifts God bestows upon His children.

Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware. You know that when you were pagans, you were led astray to the mute idols, however you were led. Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is accursed”; and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, and to another the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit; to another faith by the same Spirit, and to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, and to another the effecting of miracles, and to another prophecy, and to another the distinguishing of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills.

v. 1-11 (NASB)

 

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 11”

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We continue our study of Paul’s letters this week with 1 Corinthians 11.

Paul begins exhorting the Corinthians to imitate him as he is of Christ. He then uses an example of the customs of their time (hair length and head coverings) to clarify that they are to honor and give glory to Christ, not to him or anyone else. He corrected them for this earlier in 1 Corinthians 3 when they were arguing about who they would follow. Paul’s telling them to follow his example in following Christ.

 

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 10”

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We continue our study of Paul’s letters this week with 1 Corinthians 10. Paul begins warning the Corinthians to learn from the Israelites’ example and not make the same mistake they did when they displeased God and were overthrown in the wilderness.

Paul begins:

For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea; and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and all ate the same spiritual food; and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ. Nevertheless, with most of them God was not well-pleased; for they were laid low in the wilderness.

v. 1-5 (NASB)

We often think God is displeased with us because we make mistakes and mess up often. But that’s not true. God called King David a man after His own heart, even though he was a murderer and an adulterer. God said, “I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he commits iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men and the strokes of the sons of men, but My lovingkindness shall not depart from him, as I took it away from Saul, whom I removed from before you” (2 Samuel 7:14-15, NASB).

 

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 9”

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We continue our study of Paul’s letters this week with 1 Corinthians 9. In the last chapter, Paul talked about serving those who are weaker in faith by avoiding anything that would hinder them and cause them to stumble and fall into sin.  I shared Philippians 2:5-11 last week, and how we are instructed to have the same mindset as Jesus: “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.”

Paul continues chapter 9 admonishing the Corinthians to follow his example, as He followed Christ’s example, of serving one another in love.

Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord? If to others I am not an apostle, at least I am to you; for you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.

v. 1-2 (NASB)

 

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 8”

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I am sorry this message is a week late. I was having trouble with my blog, website, and internet last week, as well as a few other issues. It seems when the devil attacks, he hits you from every angle. But praise God, He is greater! God worked it all out. He is faithful!

Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

1 John 4:4 (KJV)

We continue our study of Paul’s letters with 1 Corinthians 8. Paul’s message in this chapter is similar to what he wrote in Romans 14, when he spoke to the Romans about accepting those who are weaker in faith and not putting a stumbling block or obstacle in the way of our brothers and sisters.

He begins the chapter:

Now concerning things sacrificed to idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies. If anyone supposes that he knows anything, he has not yet known as he ought to know; but if anyone loves God, he is known by Him.

v. 1-3 (NASB)

 

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 7”

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We continue our study of Paul’s letters this week with 1 Corinthians 7. Last week, in 1 Corinthians 6, Paul talked about sexual immorality in the church. In this chapter, he teaches how to avoid sexual immorality in and before marriage.

• Concerning the married, Paul writes:

Now for the matters you wrote about: “It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.” But since sexual immorality is occurring, each man should have sexual relations with his own wife, and each woman with her own husband. The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. The wife does not have authority over her own body but yields it to her husband. In the same way, the husband does not have authority over his own body but yields it to his wife. Do not deprive each other except perhaps by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. I say this as a concession, not as a command. I wish that all of you were as I am. But each of you has your own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.

v. 1-7 (NIV)

 

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 6”

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We continue our study of Paul’s letters this week with 1 Corinthians 6. Last week, in chapter 5, Paul talked about a case of incest in the church and how God gave them authority to judge the one caught in sin.

For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? But those who are outside, God judges.

1 Corinthians 5:12-13

In chapter 6, Paul continues addressing problems that were not being dealt with and judged by the church. Instead they were taking their cases against one another to the world’s court to be judged by them. They trusted the authority and judgment of unbelievers over believers. 

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 5”

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We continue our study of Paul’s letter this week with 1 Corinthians 5. It was reported to Paul that there was sexual immorality, incest, going on in the church and nothing was being done to stop it.

It is actually reported that there is immorality among you, and immorality of such a kind as does not exist even among the Gentiles, that someone has his father’s wife. You have become arrogant and have not mourned instead, so that the one who had done this deed would be removed from your midst.

For I, on my part, though absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged him who has so committed this, as though I were present. In the name of our Lord Jesus, when you are assembled, and I with you in spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus, I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

 v. 1-5 (NASB)

Paul Series “1 Corinthians 4”

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We continue our study of Paul’s letters this week with 1 Corinthians 4. In the beginning of Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, Paul said he had been informed there were quarrels among them about who they belonged to. They said they were either of Paul, Apollos, Cephas, or of Christ. In chapter 3, Paul told them that the one who plants or the one who waters is nothing, but it is God who causes the growth.

Paul begins chapter 4 instructing them to regard him and his fellow workers as servants of Christ, trustworthy stewards delivering them the truths from God.

Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. In this case, moreover, it is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy. But to me it is a very small thing that I may be examined by you, or by any human court; in fact, I do not even examine myself. For I am conscious of nothing against myself, yet I am not by this acquitted; but the one who examines me is the Lord. Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men’s hearts; and then each man’s praise will come to him from God.

v. 1-5 (NASB)