This morning, we are going to go back into the writings by the apostle Paul, but before I get to far ahead of myself, I want to make a point that I have found when I study the Word of God.
I have wrote in several earlier papers that there is a group of people that claim the Bible should ONLY be read and studied, using the King James Version.
I simply disagree with that statement. It isn’t written anywhere in God’s Word that the KJV is the dominate and only correct version written in the English language.
A point I want to suggest is I began writing this lesson using the AKJV. A very difficult version written in the English language. I found myself going to different sources to find what was written until I myself switched to the GNT version and I found where I understood what was written by the apostle Paul.
Remember, God gave us His Word, written in three different languages … Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic. If God didn’t see a problem using different languages, I am sure in His Omniscience, He knew everything was gonna be alright.
I am confident that God would suggest that we use a different version so we could clearly understand.
When us readers of the English language opt on reading different versions of the Bible, I think we should be careful and be sure we are reading what God actually wants us to HEAR.
Go back and forth between different versions and check and see if the writings are similar. Be wise and alert and say a little prayer and ask that God would guide you through His Word.
We are going to begin this morning, in 1 Corinthians.
Paul wrote this letter to the church in Corinth, a church that the apostle Paul knew very well.
In Acts 18, we read that Paul traveled to Corinth in his 2nd missionary journey.
Acts 18:1 ‘…After these things Paul departed from Athens, and came to Corinth…’ AKJV
It was in this book of Acts, chapter 18, when we read that Paul became angry with the stubbornness of the Jews and Paul made the remark that he was going strictly to the Gentiles.
Acts 18:6 ‘…And when they opposed themselves, and blasphemed, he shook his raiment, and said unto them, Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean: from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles…’ AKJV
The Jews were still convinced that their man-made religion, Orthodox Judaism, was the god they were going to worship.
Returning back to 1 Corinthians, Paul wanted for the church at Corinth to remain as one complete group and not divide themselves up into individual, man-made groups.
Remember this writing of Paul was back in the 1st century. Today it is the 21st century, there is a 2000 year difference. Just notice the changes that have occurred in that amount of time.
Back in the apostle Paul’s day, there was a synagogue in just about every major city, but today, go to any city in the United States and drive down Main Street and there might be 5, 6 or even 7 different man-made religions, all different denominations.
There might be a Catholic church, a Pentecostal church, a Baptist church, a Methodist church, and a church of Later Day Saints. There may even be a ‘non-denominational’ church which today has become its own denomination.
My point is, our man-made religions have all followed the church at Corinth and divided up into smaller groups.
Paul wrote the church at Corinth a letter, that addressed their difficulties.
One of the major difficulties in the church was their act of dividing themselves up into different divisions.
Paul wrote:
Acts 1
vs12 ‘…Let me put it this way: each one of you says something different. One says, I follow Paul; another, I follow Apollos; another, I follow Peter; and another, I follow Christ…’
vs13 ‘…Christ has been divided into groups! Was it Paul who died on the cross for you? Were you baptized as Paul’s disciples…’ GNT (Good News Translation)
What Paul was saying, it wasn’t Paul, Apollos, or Peter that makes any difference. Jump ahead to today, it doesn’t matter if it’s Catholic, Pentecostal, Baptist, Methodist, Later Day Saints or a non-denominational church, it was JESUS CHRIST that died on a cross to forgive us of our sins.
Paul faced the same difficulties in the 1st century just like we have today in our lives.
Here is a verse I found after I switched to the GNT version that made it so clear for me to see.
Acts 1:18 ‘…For the message about Christ’s death on the cross is nonsense to those who are being lost; but for us who are being saved it is God’s power…’ GNT (Good News Translation)
I remember one night, several years ago, I was doing a Bible study on Facebook LIVE, and I spoke against the Catholic church using the cross as an idol.
My FAITH doesn’t require me to nail a cross onto the wall so I can remember what Jesus gave up for me.
I don’t need to see a cross hanging in the front of a building, so that I can remember what Jesus did for me.
The remark I made that night had some of my Catholic relatives, very upset with me.
But the actual cross did nothing for me, it was the fact that Jesus kept Himself, up on that cross, to give up His life for me, to forgive me of all of my sins so that I could have the promise of Everlasting Life in heaven after I die and leave this world, that is what resonates in my soul.
There is POWER in that cross that Jesus died on for me. There is LIFE in that cross of Jesus.
No human being can express to me what that cross did for me, it took God speaking to me through His Word, that has me comforted every night when I close my eyes and go to sleep.
The Word of God is the POWER that each one of us has been given, ALL WE HAVE TO DO IS OPEN THE PAGES AND READ HIS WORDS.
All these different church denominations and still, there is ONLY ONE GOD … there is ONLY ONE JESUS CHRIST.
And yet, we find divisions.
Here are some wise words found in the Word.
1 Corinthians 3
vs21 ‘…Because of that, you should not be proud of any human leader. All leaders are there to serve you, as God’s people…’
vs22 ‘…Do not be proud of Paul, Apollos or Peter. We belong to you. All of this world, and life and death belong to you. The things of today and tomorrow belong to you. Everything belongs to you…’
vs23 ‘…you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God…’ EASY (Easy English Bible)
I am glad I switched versions for this lesson, unfortunately, this lesson in 1 Corinthians is probably going to take several weeks to complete.
Let’s continue.
Beginning in chapter 5, Paul speaks of the Immorality found in the church.
Acts 5
vs9 ‘…In the letter that I wrote you I told you not to associate with immoral people…’
vs10 ‘…Now I did not mean pagans who are immoral or greedy or are thieves, or who worship idols. To avoid them you would have to get out of the world completely…’
vs11 ‘…What I meant was that you should not associate with a person who calls himself a believer but is immoral or greedy or worships idols or is a slanderer or a drunkard or a thief. Don’t even sit down to eat with such a person…’ GNT (Good News Translation)
Paul writes to the BELIEVER in all thirteen of his epistles.
There were many struggles with the church in Corinth.
Divisions, sexual immorality, lawsuits against fellow Christians, questions about marriage and questions about food that was offered to idols.
Struggles that we could possibly find in our own lives today in the 21st century.
Us, as believers, we have to remember that we have God standing there in front of us.
All we have to do is pray and ask for HIS help.
Prayer doesn’t mean we have to get on our knees, or we have to stand up and take off our hats.
Prayer is communicating with the ONLY One that knows for sure, the correct answer to our problem.
1 Thessalonians 5:17 ‘…Pray without ceasing…’ AKJV
Jesus when He walked this earth, He constantly prayed to His Father in heaven.
We should copy His example.
There are a lot of times when we know the correct answer already, but we are to afraid to accept what we are thinking. I feel by praying, and I’m talking about speaking aloud to God, it is by us hearing what we are asking for that makes it easier for us to accept that answer we have already come up with.
Prayer is our stick that holds us up when we need assistance.
Prayer is that affirmation that God gives us to let us know we are going to be alright.
God, in His Inspired Word, He is telling us to PRAY WITHOUT CEASING.
Never stop. Never give up. Strive to be your best so that others when they see you, they will be able to see God in everything that you do.
Next week, we will pick up in chapter 15, the Gospel, our Promise for LIFE, the chapter of resurrection.
I want to invite you to follow me in my pursuit to follow in Jesus’ footsteps.
At the end of this lesson, I am attaching the reading plan I came up with that in 12 days, you can read the writings that Jesus CHOSE for us to HEAR as well as see the CHANGE that God made in the book of Acts.
I love ALL of y’all.
Here is a reading plan I’d like to suggest for the one searching to find God in the 21st century:
Day 1 – Galatians 1-6, 1Thessalonians 1-5
Day 2 – 2Thessalonians 1-3, 1Corinthians 1-8
Day 3 – 1Corinthians 9-16
Day 4 – 2Corinthians 1-13
Day 5 – Romans 1-10
Day 6 – Romans 11-16, Philippians 1-4
Day 7 – Colossians 1-4, Ephesians 1-6
Day 8 – Philemon 1, 1 Timothy 1-6, Titus 1-3, 2Timothy 1-4
Day 9 – Acts 1-7
Day 10 – Acts 8-13
Day 11 – Acts 14-20
Day 12 – Acts 21-28
The entire Bible, ALL SCRIPTURE has been given to us by God (2TIM3:16), but NOT ALL Scripture has been meant for us ALL to follow … we are told we MUST know how to RIGHTLY DIVIDE the truth of God (2TIM2:15).
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