The church at Corinth was a seriously troubled
church. Infected with sexual immorality, split by factions that dragged each
other into court, and crippled by abuse of the spiritual gifts, this church was
in need of radical spiritual surgery. Though true believers, the Corinthians
had a lot of growing up to do. They had to stop following the immoral, selfish,
and contentious ways of their pagan neighbors in Corinth, the notoriously
immoral city of that day. One can sense the disappointment of a hurt father in
Paul's stern words for the Corinthians. Yet Paul, like a surgeon, diagnosed the
problem and aimed his efforts straight
at the source: pride and a lack of true love in the church.
Author and Date:
First Corinthians twice names the Apostle Paul as its
writer (1:1, 2; 16:21). Paul's authorship of First Corinthians is almost unanimously accepted
throughout Biblical scholarship. One of the earliest witnesses to Paul's
authorship of the book was Clement of Rome (c.A.D. 95)
Most likely Paul wrote the letter while he was
ministering at Ephesus during his third missionary journey. In 16:8, Paul said that he would
remain in Ephesus until Pentecost. This, coupled with Acts 20:31, indicates that he wrote it
in the last year of his three year stay in Ephesus, sometime in the spring of
A.D. 56. The Corinthian church would have been about four years old at that
time.
Historical Setting:
Corinth was in important city in ancient Greece. Geographically,
it was an ideal hub for commerce between Italy and Asia. Along with the flow of merchandise, Corinth received travelers
from both east and west, creating ethnic
diversity among the city's inhabitants. Although Corinth was ransacked by the
Romans in 146 B.C., it was rebuilt by Julius Caesar in 46 B.C. Roman control of
Corinth allowed them to dominate east-west commerce as well as the Isthmian
Games (9:24-27), which were surpassed in importance only by the celebrated
Olympic Games.
Corinth's commercial success was rivaled only by its decadence. The immorality of Corinth was so well known that
Aristophanes coined the Greek verb Korinthiaazomai (meaning "to act like a
Corinthian") as a synonym for sexual immorality. Greek plays of the day
often depicted Corinthians as drunkards and reprobates. The Corinthians drew
attention to their lewdness through their worship of Aphrodite, the goddess of
love and beauty. Yet Corinth was also a strategic location for the propagation for the gospel. The
city's corrupt nature made for a unique opportunity to display to the Roman
world the transforming power of Jesus Christ.
Acts 18:1-18 records the founding of the Corinthian
church. Paul visited Corinth on his second missionary journey, after leaving Athens. This initial visit
probably occurred in the fall of A.D. 52. Paul, Silas, Timothy and Luke had
left Troas for Macedonia about eight months earlier and had started churches in Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea. Luke remained at Philippi, and Silas and Timothy at Thessalonica, while
Paul journeyed on to Athens. Paul's ministry at Athens proved disappointing, perhaps leaving him discouraged as he entered Corinth, where he made tents
during the week and preached in the synagogue on the Sabbath. After the Jews of
Corinth rejected Paul's message, he began to reach out to the Gentiles. He
ministered in Corinth for eighteen months, eventually establishing a church. Thins church, like
the city, had a mixture of nationalities. Though some Jews had been converted,
most of the believers were Gentiles (12:2).
While the Corinthian church reflected the city's
multinational character, it also mirrored some of Corinth's immorality. The sharp
tone of First Corinthians results from Paul's urgent desire to get the church
back on course.
Purpose:
First Corinthians is a reply to two letters. Paul had
left the Corinthian church under the leadership of Aquila and Priscilla in the spring of A.D. 53 to
continue his second missionary journey. On his third journey, during his stay
in Ephesus, he received two letters from the Corinthian believers. One was a
disturbing report from the household of Chloe (1:11). The report detailed
the divisions and immorality in the church. These problems arose because the
young Corinthian church had failed to protect itself from the decadent culture
of the city. The immaturity of the Corinthians had given way to sectarian
divisions. The believers were identifying themselves of followers of specific
Christian leaders rather than the followers of Christ (3:1-9). They were also
dragging each other into court (6:1). Their desire to sue each other rather
than settle their disputes within the church betrayed their immaturity and misplaced
trust in human wisdom. Sexual immorality had become a problem in the church in
spite of a previous letter (that has not been preserved) in which Paul warned
against it (5:9-11). The second letter Paul received was a set of questions
that Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus had brought from Corinth (16:15-18). The
detailed questions were about marriage and singleness (7:1-40) and Christian
liberty (8:1-11:1). Paul wrote First Corinthians to answer both letters and to
give some additional instructions. He taught about decorum in worship services
(11:2-16), the solemnity of the Lord's Supper (11:17-34), and the place of
spiritual gifts. Though the Corinthians were very gifted, in their ministry and
pride they had abused their gifts. Paul reminded the Corinthians that gifts
come from God (12:11) and are to unify and edify the church (12:24,, 25; 14:1-4). In
conclusion, Paul corrected a doctrinal matter by writing the New Testament's
most detailed explanation of the resurrection of Christ and Christians
(15:1-58). Even thought the church was riddled with problems, Paul ended his
confrontational letter with a note of hope. The Corinthians could have victory
over sin and death because Jesus in His death and resurrection had already
decisively obtained it (15:57).