Paul’s Ministry in Corinth - 260301

SPEAKER A 00:00:00 - 00:02:48 Hello, I'm Rosemary Malkiewycz. Welcome to Let God Speak. We might wonder how messages to a church in ancient Greece could be relevant today. Human nature is much the same as it has always been. Today we start a new series on the Apostle Paul's 2 letters to the Corinthians and begin a discussion on how the problems that Paul encountered in ancient Corinth are strikingly familiar to us today. On our panel today, we have Cassie Sollano. And Alan Fisher. Welcome to both of you. But let's begin with prayer. Father in heaven, thank you that we can come and discuss your Word today. Please speak to us through the Holy Spirit of the truth that is in your Word, especially as we look at 1 and 2 Corinthians and the letters that Paul wrote to them to try and help them with their errors. So bless us, speak through us, and speak to us, I pray in Jesus' name. Amen. In this program, we will explore Paul's ministry to the church in the city of Corinth. But first, let me read in the Bible from Acts 18:1-3. It says, after these things Paul departed from Athens and went to Corinth. And he found a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to depart from Rome. And he came to them. So because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and worked, for by occupation they were tentmakers. So Paul spent around 18 months in Corinth as a self-supporting missionary, working as a tentmaker because that was his trade. And we will dig into Paul's letters to the Corinthians over the next few weeks, and we'll see what the issues were that they had in their church. But Cassie, Despite all the problems, what was the central focus in Paul's letters to them? SPEAKER B 00:02:48 - 00:03:19 Well, Paul's unswerving focus and his mission was winning people to Christ. And we read that very clearly in 1 Corinthians 2:2 where he says, for I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And this was a stark contrast to his focus before his conversion. He was transformed from this persecutor to this preacher of righteousness. Uplifting Jesus similarly should be our focus today. SPEAKER A 00:03:19 - 00:03:49 That's right. I have another verse I want to read, and it's 1 Corinthians chapter 1 and verse 1. So if we're going to read the book, we need to go to the beginning. Paul writes, Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother. So, Alan, Paul introduces himself as an apostle of Jesus Christ, and what does that mean? SPEAKER C 00:03:49 - 00:04:25 Well, the word apostle, the English word, comes from the Greek word apostolos, which means one who is sent. And Paul saw himself as having been sent by God, a divine calling. In, if we go to Galatians, the first verse in chapter 1, he says, Paul, an apostle, not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father. And the same in 1 Corinthians, in the very first verse, he says, Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ. SPEAKER A 00:04:25 - 00:04:36 Hmm, that's right. Jesus had called him. So Cassie, the question then comes, had Jesus ever actually met Jesus? Had Paul actually ever met Jesus? SPEAKER B 00:04:36 - 00:05:03 Oh well, we can be very confident he'd heard of Jesus, that everyone else in Israel had heard of him at the time of Jesus' ministry. So Paul must have too. But we read in 1 Corinthians 15:8, then last of all, he was seen by me also as one, as by one born out of due time. So Paul writes of many who saw Jesus after His resurrection. And then he says he finally saw Him as well. SPEAKER C 00:05:03 - 00:05:04 Hmm. SPEAKER B 00:05:04 - 00:06:04 And the first time Paul met Jesus was on the road to Damascus. And this is when this conversion occurred for Paul, when he was going there to actually persecute Christians. So I'd like to read Acts chapter 9, verses 3 to 6, where we read about that. And it says, as he journeyed, he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? And he said, who are you, Lord? Then the Lord said, I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads. So he, trembling and astonished, said, Lord, what do you want me to do? Then the Lord said to him, arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do. So one commenter even makes a good point that Paul was going to Damascus to take prisoners, but he himself became a prisoner of Jesus Christ. SPEAKER A 00:06:04 - 00:06:20 That's right, and that's exactly what happened, and that's fantastic. His conversion is so great. So in 1 Corinthians chapter 1, Alan, do we see a Christ-centered approach to how Paul was writing to the Corinthians? SPEAKER C 00:06:20 - 00:07:40 Yeah, indeed, it's full of mentions of Jesus Christ. We look at the first verse, it says, Paul called to be an apostle through Jesus Christ. And in the second verse, he speaks about the church of God, those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus. And he mentions a bit further on in the same verse about how they, they call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Verse 3 says, Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. And verse 4, he mentions how he thanks God for the grace that was given to them by Jesus Christ. And all through these first 9 verses, it's mentioned over and again. Verse 6, he speaks about the testimony of Christ. Verse 7, he says they're eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. And verse 8, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. And verse 9, he speaks about how God has called them into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ. So there's 9 mentions of Jesus in those Multiple mentions of Jesus in those first 9 verses. SPEAKER A 00:07:40 - 00:07:57 And that's just the beginning of the chapter, or the beginning of the letter. There's even more in chapter 1 where Christ is directly mentioned. It's wonderful, isn't it? So Cassie, give us some background about Paul being in Athens before he went to Corinth. SPEAKER B 00:07:57 - 00:08:38 Right, well, Paul went to Athens because he had to flee Berea where there was a public uprising due to his preaching. And we find in Acts 17:17 that this was different as he arrived. Therefore he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentile worshipers, and in the marketplace daily with those who happened to be there. So in Athens he preached in the synagogue and in the marketplace, and then was taken to Areopagus, which was the ruling group of Athens. There he took a rather philosophical approach to the men of Athens, as they're called. And at all times through this and in every place place he was, he proclaimed Jesus. SPEAKER A 00:08:40 - 00:08:43 So Alan, did he have success in Athens? SPEAKER C 00:08:43 - 00:09:36 Well, only limited success. He had some success. We read here in Acts 17 starting at verse 32, when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked while others said, we will hear you again on this matter. So Paul departed from among them. And so he didn't get all that good a reception, but we do read in verse 34 that, however, some men joined him and believed. Among them was Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them. They had trouble with his idea of the resurrection because they'd been influenced by The Greek philosophers Plato and Socrates who believed in the immortality of the soul and this didn't fit with the idea of a resurrection. SPEAKER A 00:09:36 - 00:10:01 Yes, and unfortunately Plato and Socrates' ideas have permeated even Christianity today, haven't they? So when I, I read 1 Corinthians 1:1-3, there's a mention in chapter 2 of Aquila and Priscilla. That Paul went to stay with as tentmaker in Corinth. And so who were they? What was their background? SPEAKER B 00:10:01 - 00:11:21 Well, Aquila and Priscilla were Jews, and I'll just remind us of those 2 verses. So Acts 18:2-3 say, and he found a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to depart from Rome. and he came to them. So because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and worked, for by occupation they were tentmakers. So it's clear that they had been living in Rome but were forced to leave there. And when they came to Corinth to ply their trade, Paul went, oh, that's what I do as well. So he stayed with them and worked in the same trade as they did. And they actually accepted Christianity and began traveling with Paul when he left Corinth. And in his letter to the Romans, Paul even calls them his fellow workers in the spreading of the gospel. And we find that in 1 Corinthians 16:19. So I'll just find that, which says— It says, the churches of Asia greet you. Aquila and Priscilla greet you heartily in the Lord with the church that is in their house. And we see here that when Paul wrote his first letter to the Corinthians, he included a greeting to them from Aquila and Priscilla and the church in their house. SPEAKER A 00:11:21 - 00:11:23 Yes, because they knew them very well. SPEAKER B 00:11:23 - 00:11:23 Yes. SPEAKER A 00:11:23 - 00:11:53 Because they had been converted while they were in Corinth. Paul was very good at his job of bringing converts to Christ. So we can see that. So, Alan, before we go any further with the introduction of Paul's letter to the Corinthians, Let's learn a little bit more about Corinth itself. So what significance was, was there for Corinth geographically? It was— it had quite an interesting setting. SPEAKER C 00:11:53 - 00:12:28 Yeah, it's very interesting. Corinth was located on an isthmus, a sort of a narrow strip of land between 2 larger masses of land, and thus it could have a port on each side of the The isthmus, and this made it a very prosperous place. It was a rival to Athens in prosperity. It was the major port in that eastern part of the Mediterranean. And so it was the ideal place. It was a Roman city. It was the ideal place for the gospel to be established and spread out to other places. SPEAKER A 00:12:28 - 00:12:31 Because the ships would be coming from all around the world, wouldn't they? SPEAKER C 00:12:31 - 00:12:32 Yeah, it's a center of transport. SPEAKER A 00:12:33 - 00:12:40 So the gospel could be spread easily. So what was the moral climate in Corinth, Cassie? SPEAKER B 00:12:40 - 00:13:50 Oh, well, we can read it from exactly what Paul says. He describes it in 1 Corinthians 5:9-11, the problems he saw in the city and in the church as well. And he says, I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people, yet I certainly did not mean sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner— not even to eat with such a person. So he's got quite a list going there. So it seems that that moral ambiguity that was in Colossians generally affected the church as well. That's when he's talking about the brother. There was a general tolerance of the immoral practices that were in society. And of necessity, the church needed to mix with those people, or how else would they witness and then win people to Christ, which was the purpose? But they were not to tolerate those practices inside the church. And that's in Paul's list. SPEAKER A 00:13:50 - 00:13:51 Hmm. SPEAKER B 00:13:51 - 00:13:52 Definitely. SPEAKER A 00:13:53 - 00:14:04 those bad things will come in if we associate in close relationship with people who are doing them. So what was the religious climate in Corinth, Alan? SPEAKER C 00:14:04 - 00:14:56 Well, if we go to chapter 8 and look at verses 4 to 6, he talks about the food that was sold in the market there. He says, therefore concerning the eating of things offered to idols, We know that an idol is nothing in the world, and there is no other God but one. For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth, as there are many gods and many lords, yet for us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we live. So, you know, as it says here, there were many gods and many lords, so-called, and the food that was sold in the market had often been offered. SPEAKER B 00:14:56 - 00:14:57 Mm. SPEAKER C 00:14:57 - 00:15:25 Offered to these so-called gods. And as well as that, Corinth, as has already been mentioned, was well known for sexual deviations and permissiveness. There was the temple of the god Aphrodite on the mountain behind the town, the Acrocorinth. And we're told that there were many ritual prostitutes. I read that there were 1,000 in this temple. SPEAKER A 00:15:25 - 00:15:26 Wow. SPEAKER C 00:15:26 - 00:15:36 And so this was an attraction for all that sort of thing. And it was openly practiced in Corinth. And that's why Paul had to warn the believers there to keep clear of all this sort of thing. SPEAKER A 00:15:36 - 00:15:55 Well, now that we've established a bit of background to Corinth, we can get more of an appreciation for Paul's letter. So when— now that we've done that, did Paul preach to both the Jews and the Gentiles in Corinth? Because that's what he usually did, but what did he do in Corinth? SPEAKER B 00:15:55 - 00:16:35 Yes, he did. So let's read Acts 18:4, and it says, and he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath and persuaded both Jews and Greeks. And when the Bible says that he preached to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ in Acts 18:5, when Silas and Timothy had come from Macedonia, Paul was compelled by the Spirit and testified to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ. This points to the fact that Paul proclaimed Jesus as the promised Messiah or Anointed One the Jews were expecting. This visit to Corinth took place during Paul's second missionary journey. SPEAKER A 00:16:35 - 00:16:47 Very good. And so, Alan, we know that Paul then preached to both Jews and Gentiles, but were both groups responsive to his preaching? Were they positive? SPEAKER C 00:16:47 - 00:17:57 Well, the Jews weren't very pleased with it. There was Resistance from the Jews. Following on from the verses that Cassie just read in chapter 18 of Acts, and as she read, when Silas and Timothy were come, Paul was compelled by the Spirit and testified to the Jews that Jesus is Christ. But when they opposed him and blasphemed, he shook his garments and said to them, you're be on your own heads. I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles. And so they treated him badly, opposing him and blaspheming. But we read in verse 8, it wasn't all bad news. It says, Then Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his household. And many of the Corinthians hearing believed and were baptized. baptized. And so what seemed to be an unpromising outlook turned out well. There was many of the Corinthians who believed, including Crispus and all his household. SPEAKER A 00:17:57 - 00:18:10 Excellent. It's good to know that some people accepted the truth when they heard it. But Cassie, it seems also that Paul became discouraged, but God sent him a message. And what was that? SPEAKER B 00:18:10 - 00:18:31 Yeah, well, we can continue reading in Acts 18, when verses 9 and 10 tell us exactly what that message was. Now the Lord spoke to Paul in the night by a vision, do not be afraid, but speak and do not keep silent, for I am with you and no one will attack you to hurt you, for I have people in this city. SPEAKER C 00:18:31 - 00:18:32 Hmm. SPEAKER B 00:18:32 - 00:18:53 So Jesus assured Paul that I'm with you. And Jesus said that he had many people in that city who would be converted by Paul's preaching. So he knew that there would be other people. This direct revelation of Jesus greatly encouraged him when he was discouraged, and so much so he stayed there for another year and a half. SPEAKER A 00:18:53 - 00:19:04 Isn't it wonderful? God is good. So can we rely on Bible promises when we need help, just as God gave Paul a promise then, Alan? SPEAKER C 00:19:04 - 00:19:45 Yeah, well, I think of the words of Jesus when he gave his people their commission to go to all the world. He said, I am with you always. And when we look back at the book of Isaiah, Isaiah 41:10, he says, fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen Yes, I will help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. And so we can take this promise, fear not, the angels are with us. So if God's with us and the angels are with us, why should we be afraid? SPEAKER A 00:19:45 - 00:20:02 That's right. God always tells us, do not be afraid. And so Paul left Corinth, but after he left, he had reports reports of bad things happening there, unfortunately. So what reports did he hear, Cassie? SPEAKER B 00:20:02 - 00:21:08 Well, Paul was in Ephesus when he wrote the first letter, and I'd like to take us to 1 Corinthians back again. And in chapter 1, verse 11, we read, for it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe's household, that there are tensions among you. So Paul spent chapters 1 to 6 addressing terrible issues that had been reported to him by Chloe's household. And these included factions, immorality, legal actions, and prostitution. And Paul's appeal came straight from his heart. And we can read that just in the verse beforehand in 1 Corinthians chapter 1, verse 10. Now I plead with I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. So he didn't want there to be divisions in the church, and he addressed questions that the church had raised from chapter 7 onwards. SPEAKER A 00:21:08 - 00:21:19 Alan, that, that makes us ask the question, are those the types of things we see in the church and in the world today? SPEAKER C 00:21:19 - 00:22:04 Yes, certainly. The church isn't all sinless saints. There's forgiven sinners and those who are becoming saints. And so with this in mind, there'll always be issues like this that have to be addressed. And so that makes Paul's messages to the church at Corinth very applicable and very timely for our day. And so in the second book of Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, we read too about how the church was influenced by the culture of the city and of the time. And so the remedy for that has always been and always will be to understand the Great Controversy and the gospel and to focus on Jesus. So yes, we've got the same I SPEAKER A 00:22:06 - 00:23:34 think one of the problems that we have in the world today is that we don't recognize the Great Controversy as it is being played out in our own individual lives and what Satan is doing to trap us or entrap us and stop us from following God and to sin against God and to not just sin once, but to continue going downhill in that sin. And Paul was, you know, as we will go further through 1 Corinthians, Paul is trying to point out to the people that you are being entrapped. This is not what God would have you to do. This is not God's way. And he is trying to help them them to come out of that because of these different behaviors were not acceptable. And we have this situation where what is happening in the world can too easily come into the church as we make ourselves familiar with the people in the world in, in too familiar a way. We need to be helping other people. But when we become too familiar, then we fall into a trap, don't we, Cassie? Yeah, it's very difficult. And also because it was such a cosmopolitan city. SPEAKER B 00:23:34 - 00:23:41 Oh, and it's— I think we're so connected now that it's so much easier to understand or be exposed to what's going on. SPEAKER A 00:23:41 - 00:24:55 Exactly, because we are a very cosmopolitan country in Australia, and the world is just a mix of people from everywhere. And that's what was happening in this little micro area of Corinth with those 2 ports on either side of this isthmus. And they had a lot of trade going in and out and people coming from all around the world that it was very easy for them to be influenced by all different gods and, and different belief systems. And so then that would change the way of the church as those influences would not only come in through association, but because a lot of the people in the church may not have given up some of those ways themselves when they joined God. But in developed countries today, we are bombarded with the news of what's happening around the world. on television, on the internet, and crime and corruption and more are just everywhere. So Cassie, can we keep ourselves true to God despite being immersed in today's society? SPEAKER B 00:24:55 - 00:25:28 Yes, I'm sure we definitely can, and I think the most important thing is to turn back to God's Word and to study that. So I'd like to read from John 17:15, that the prayer of Jesus is is so important to keep in our minds. And that says, I do not pray that you should take them out of the world, but that you should keep them from the evil one. So Jesus has very clearly said that it is possible, so we don't have to be worried about that. That we can be in the world, but the world does not have to be in us. SPEAKER C 00:25:28 - 00:25:29 Um-hmm. SPEAKER B 00:25:29 - 00:25:45 And even in James 1:27, it tells us that part of the pure religion of God is to remain unspotted by the world. And Paul is a very good example of that, giving up the world and being totally surrendered to Jesus. And that should be our goal as well. SPEAKER A 00:25:45 - 00:26:51 Well, it goes on further. You read from John 17:15 where Jesus said that not to take us out of the world but not to let us be partaking of the world. He went on straight after that in verse 16. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Thy truth, for Your Word is truth. And as You sent Me into the world, I have also sent them into the world. So Jesus sends us into the world to reach people. But He's not telling us to become part of the world. As Christians, we've come out from the world to be separate. Be ye separate. And so we are not to go back into the world to get people. We are to give ourselves wholly to God and reach into the world and pull them out. So if we can picture it being that way. Thank you, Cassie. Thank you, Alan. SPEAKER B 00:26:51 - 00:26:51 Thank you. SPEAKER A 00:26:52 - 00:27:59 this is such an important thing to begin discussion on this book. So Paul loved the churches that he established during his missionary journeys. And his love for them reveals God's love and care for us today. Paul remained faithful to Christ and to his converts regardless of the problems the churches presented to him. Paul faced challenges with Corinth but met those challenges with mercy, grace, and when needed, stern rebuke. Over the next few weeks, we will delve in deeper into how Paul did this in his Corinthian letters. His example will help us know how we should react to difficulties we face today, especially within the church. We're glad you joined us today on Let God Speak. If you are blessed by these programs, friends to tune in as well. Remember, all past programs plus teachers' notes are available on our website, 3abnaustralia.org.au. If you have any questions or comments, you can email us. And God bless you, and we'll see you next time. SPEAKER B 00:27:59 - 00:28:31 You have been listening to Let God Speak. Let the Bible Speak, a production of 3ABN Australia Television. To catch up on past programs, please visit 3abnaustralia.org.au. Call us in Australia on 02 4973 3456 or email [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you. SPEAKER B You have been listening to let God speak, a production of 3ABN Australia television. To catch up on past programmes, please visit 3abnaustralia.org.au. Call us in Australia on 02 4973 3456. Or email [email protected]. we'd love to hear from you.