Series: Reactive Love
Message: A Message from 1 Corinthians 13
Preacher: Jessyka Albert
Refresh: Open with prayer. Read or listen to Psalm 26:6-12.
Read: 1 Corinthians 13 - As you read in the ESV translation, note 1-3 insights/questions that arise.
Reflect: Before we understand the Church in Corinth, we must understand the city of Corinth. Corinth became a Roman colonia in 44 BC when Caesar stepped in to rebuild the city which had been previously destroyed. This cosmopolitan city on an isthmus near the bottom of Greece, was modeled on Rome. It became a hot spot, a hub for trade, production of goods, and a coincidental place for tourism. Being one of the largest cities in the Roman Empire, Corinth was dripping with money and influence. With that, Corinth was also dripping with immorality. Many scholars compare it to the New York City, Los Angeles, or Las Vegas of the ancient world. Or dare I say…the Boulder, Colorado of the ancient world. And along with the first century “Twitters” and “Googles” moving into Corinth, Paul decided this would be a great place to grow the Church!
Acts 18 shares with us about Paul’s time in the city of Corinth. He is on his second mission journey and has just left Athens. It has been a while since Paul has been able to settle down anywhere, and he makes Corinth “home for eighteen months (Acts 18:11). N.T. Wright indicates in his commentary Acts for Everyone (Part 2), that there are three reasons for this: 1) Paul made friends who worked the same trade he did. Along with spreading the gospel, Paul was also a tent maker. 2) He had not been forced or thrown out. 3) Paul receives a vision from God. The last vision Paul had was telling him to go to Macedonia (Acts 16:9), while this vision is one of encouragement, one of God’s own words: “Do not be afraid any longer, but go on speaking and do not be silent; for I am with you...for I have many people in this city” (Acts 18:9-10). Needless to say God valued Corinth before they even knew it, or cared.
Recalibrate:
Respond: Pray for eyes that seek value.
Research: Look up a map of Greece and the isthmus that Corinth was on. Read Acts 18 to get a better context of this letter to the church in Corinth.