THE REALITY OF DIVISION, V.10-17 (They were wrongly following men)

When God saved us, He made each of us a new creation in Christ Jesus. I am so thankful because that means I am not only given a new beginning but also that the Spirit of God has placed me into the Body of Christ. My position in Christ is secure. An assembly gathered in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ to Him is made up of those who are "brethren"—family members. The function of a body and a family is guided by the head. When one person in a family begins to speak against what the family agrees is part of its identity, it causes division. When division persists, it can develop into a schism where differing opinions lead to a sect. This has been a serious issue among God's people almost from the start of this Church Age. The assembly at Corinth was at the "division" stage and quickly moving toward schisms that led to sectarianism—following men instead of God.

Christian unity isn't based on everyone doing things exactly the same way. A similar appearance doesn't indicate internal unity. True unity involves oneness in purpose and the same goal, which is reached through mutual love for each other and for the Lord. Respect is given to everyone despite outward differences. If we let disagreements over doctrines or loyalties to different people overshadow our unity, divisions can occur. Remember, we are part of the body of Christ, who is not divided in any way. Our faithfulness to Him helps us to consider one another in love, to “provoke” one another to do what is right, and to dedicate ourselves to understanding and promoting the Christian faith. Different opinions should never cause us to break fellowship.

The "contentions" or quarrels among the saints at Corinth were because they focused their attention on the messengers rather than on the message of the Word of God. Unfortunately, this is still common today. When people fix their eyes on the Lord's servants—their personalities, abilities or lack thereof, or their style of presentation—what could have been a great blessing often becomes a cause of division. The variety of God-given gifts is meant to benefit His people. The Corinthians had a history of teachers and philosophers promoting their own "wisdom" and arguing over different opinions. The saints of God were divided over the same kind of reasoning.

There were four groups of believers in Corinth who were divided over the personal preferences of different individuals. The last group claimed to be the only one truly belonging to Christ. In a serious way, they demeaned Christ by placing Him on the same level as Paul, Apollos, and Cephas. Some followed Paul because he was the one who brought the Gospel along with others and served as the chief spokesman. He preached the message of salvation by grace alone, and the blessings resulting from the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ had been experienced by believers in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Apollos was apparently quite articulate and may have had an imposing way of presenting himself and the message he preached. Peter would have been respected and recognized as one of the twelve who had journeyed with the Lord for three and a half years and had opened the Gospel to the Gentiles. Then there were those with a lofty opinion of themselves who made Christ out to be the head of the schism they were part of, rather than the One the Gospel was about. How terrible is the divisive spirit when we focus on men instead of on the Lord Himself!

It is very important that we as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ never belittle any of our brothers nor exalt ourselves. The Gospel message is simple, and we should not use the privilege of preaching to promote ourselves in any way. Doing so would nullify the message of the cross: the suffering, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Because of his leadership in spreading the Gospel, Paul was aware of the danger of giving the impression through baptism that he had special authority. It is possible to make a person appear to be something they are not and to distort what an event or ordinance truly signifies. Baptism is the public testimony of an individual's commitment to live a new life in Christ and for Him. When we are immersed into the Body of Christ, that act has nothing to do with the will of mere mortal man. Public baptism serves as outward evidence that a person has trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and has committed to Him as Lord.

Crispus was a recognized leader, and Gaius was probably the man whose house the assembly gathered in. Differences in personality, gifts, calling, and service are all necessary for effective unity. Avoiding anything that elevates one person above another shows an understanding that a person's value and work do not depend on others' opinions or perceptions but on submission to Christ as Lord. Believers in a scripturally gathered assembly need to support and commit to full fellowship in Christ. Contentions among believers stem from a spirit that is not Christlike. Usually, disagreements in an assembly arise from those who prefer certain personalities, teaching styles, or preaching over others.

It is only through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that we are saved, and it is by His grace that we are privileged to serve Him. Unity in service requires reverence and godly fear as we serve Him by serving others. God’s salvation doesn’t conform to what the world considers important, yet it is more significant and valuable than anything else in the world.

There were believing slaves in Corinth as well as those who were considered wise by the opinions of people—likely teachers and leaders in business and government. God, in His sovereign wisdom, chooses people who are weak and despised to teach and “confound the mighty” in His kingdom work. The purpose of such gifting is so that no human being can claim a superior position or authority. All believers in our Lord Jesus Christ are who we are, only because of Him, who is our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption.

It is not men’s fame or accomplishments that we should tell those around us who need the Savior. It is the cross of Christ and what Christ endured that make the message of the Gospel so urgent to proclaim to others. The cross signifies the death of the very worst kind, which the Savior Himself experienced to pay the price for our sins. We are to speak of it when we speak of Him who paid the price of sin for each one.

It is not enough to sing hymns so sweet that they speak of the work of redemption for sin, which is so great, but also to make it non-confrontational. We must speak plainly so that lost souls will seek the Lord and come in repentance to the Savior. The Lord Jesus Christ and the work He achieved on the cross remain the focus, the key to the Gospel. When we tell “of the cross of Christ” to people, I must emphasize the urgency of the message so that the hearers will humble themselves in contrition and accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.

The cross brings joy to those who come to the One who died there when they recognize that Jesus died for me. Let me stay faithful to the preaching of the cross and to my God, so that when I proclaim the cross, I speak in a way that lost souls will be drawn to the Savior for refuge.

The message is to stop the division. v.18-25 Take notice of the contrast between God’s power and man’s wisdom – The Cross. “Preach”: the Gospel, the cross, Christ crucified. v. 18. The revealed truth of the cross: foolishness (silliness) or power (dynamite, authority) Wisdom (spiritual recognition). v. 19. Israel had departed from God and yet professed they were true. “Draw nigh with lips, but their heart is far away,” Isa.29. v.20. Wise (Greek scholar); Scribe (Jewish scholar); Disputer (arguer); God has made human wisdom foolish. v. 21. Men could only find God through what was preached. v. 22-23. Jews (sign); stumbling block (offense); Greek (wisdom); silliness – power and wisdom. v. 24-25. The “called”: power – not recognized, vanquished evil. Wisdom – not discerned, that in death Christ accomplished what man can’t do alive.

Those who are unsaved are perishing whether they realize it or not. To many, it seems foolish to believe that Christ's death on the cross can do anything for them. They cannot comprehend how such an act could be considered the “power of God.” That’s because it contradicts all human ideas of a sensible way to be freed from the effects of sin and death. “Dying to save me from death?! How foolish it is to believe that!”

God's wisdom is revealed through the message of the Gospel. Human wisdom considers it foolish that Christ not only died for our sins but was also raised from the dead. Many today oppose the teaching that Jesus is the only Way, the Truth, and the Life, and that His death alone paid the price for our sins. People still try to make themselves acceptable to God by doing good and being good to others. Others faithfully observe church ordinances, believing that these activities will make them acceptable to God. All human efforts to reach God fall short of the divine perfection that is required. The righteousness God demands only comes from personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is a false but common belief that salvation must be earned and is an experience we undergo. To some, it involves going forward and saying a prayer. Others believe they are saved simply by answering some questions correctly. For others, it is making a public declaration of faith. People naturally resist confronting their sin and the eternal consequences of sin in hell and the lake of fire. Taking responsibility for their own sin is difficult because many want to think they are “not that bad.” When someone admits their personal guilt, genuine repentance toward God can occur, allowing them to place their faith solely in the Lord Jesus Christ. This leads them to the One who freely offers salvation by His grace through faith.

The Jews stumbled over the Person and work of Christ because they wanted a great, dramatic, miraculous sign like fire from heaven as proof that the Lord Jesus Christ was their Messiah. They did not accept the "sign of the prophet Jonah." They wanted to see the power returned to Israel, reminiscent of the glory days of David and Solomon. The Greeks laughed at the cross work of Christ, thinking it was foolish that acceptance of God is based on salvation that includes not only the death of Christ for sin but also the resurrection of the Savior from the dead.

Worldly conceptions based on human wisdom and what is considered prudence leave debaters with nothing to say against the wisdom and holy beauty of God’s grace freely given to those who believe in Him. God’s plan of salvation does not follow the priorities of the world or the ways of man’s religion. The value of salvation far surpasses anything human minds can comprehend. However, we are able to weigh the evidence we have of God’s salvation and His holiness, which allows us to make wise choices.

We understand and accept what we know, see, and read through faith. Children and weak-minded people can make choices based on faith. Even the most intelligent and well-educated individuals must come to Christ by faith, just like everyone else. There is nothing we can do to earn salvation, and we cannot logically comprehend the infinite love, mercy, grace, and wisdom of God. We can only accept what He has done for us and enjoy the warmth of divine forgiveness.

Human wisdom is usually based on personal experience or what wiser people tell us. This becomes foolish and should be rejected in light of the reasonable and just redemption price paid for sin by a perfectly just substitute on behalf of the unjust. God reveals this wonder through the message of “Christ crucified.”

Paul called on the experts, the interpreters, and the philosophers to explain how they came to know God through their fields of expertise. None of them truly knew God. Those who heard the Gospel, the message of the cross, and the preaching of Christ crucified—and believed in the Lord Jesus Christ—experienced God's wisdom and salvation. Some people are very impressive when they speak but have little substance. The message is what truly matters. The message of the cross leaves no room for a middle ground.

Crucifixion clearly shows who a person trusts and what they will defend. These are the ones who are "the called." They are not divided into Jews and Greeks. Jews who believe know that the Lord Jesus Christ is the power of God. Greeks who believe know that He is the wisdom of God. They had been searching for wisdom and found it in a Person. The Jews realize that the only life-changing power is in Christ. Those who appear foolish to others because they have simply accepted God's offer of salvation and trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior are the wisest of men. Those who see the death of Christ on the cross as a weakness must accept the blessing from that redemptive work as far stronger than anything humans try to do to earn eternal life.

Those who are called and respond to God's call through the Gospel follow Him whom they trust. The “power of God” is the message of Christ on the cross, and we are saved from wrath through Him. When we know the Savior personally and understand God, we have eternal life through the “wisdom of God” that allows us to truly know Him. Those who have believed are in fellowship with His (God's) Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who died for us. We demonstrate this in baptism, identifying ourselves with the death, burial, and resurrection of our Savior. Now, both Jews and Gentiles are united into one spiritual body because of our union with the Lord Jesus Christ.

What may seem foolish and weak to unbelievers is actually wiser in its concept, scope, and lasting impact than man’s best efforts to attain true wisdom. Natural man has not comprehended the legal perfection, absolute justice, full meaning, and all-encompassing scope of salvation and eternal life that God provides. God is the source of our relationship with Christ, and He is the reason it is accessible to us. By entering into that relationship, our union and identification with Him enable us to receive knowledge and wisdom from God (Col.2:30). We are brought into right standing with Him (2 Cor.5:21) and made holy (1 The.4:3-7) because the penalty for our sins has been paid by our Lord Jesus Christ.

Remember why you were called. v. 26-31