Bunker Hill Community Church

In the middle of 1 Corinthians 10, Paul returns to the question the Corinthians raised back in chapter 8 about eating meat offered to idols. The Corinthians treated the issue as purely physical: meat is meat, and idols are nothing, so eating in a pagan temple seemed harmless. Paul refuses to stay at that level. He reframes the debate spiritually, showing that the context of a meal matters—participation in those temple feasts carried with it a kind of fellowship with the spiritual powers being honored there. Once you see the ritual and its meaning, the whole argument changes. Paul sharpens the contrast by comparing the pagan table with the Lord's table. The Lord's Supper publicly declares our covenantal union with Christ and with one another; it says, "I belong to Jesus." A pagan feast that functions as worship declares the opposite. The issue at stake is loyalty: you cannot belong to both tables. That's why Paul's language is so strong—he wants the Corinthians to recognize that what looks like a private, harmless choice actually signals whose rule they live under.

1 Corinthians 10:13 assures believers that God provides a way out of every temptation so we need not yield to sin. But read in the context of chapters 8–10—Paul's response to the controversy over meat offered to idols and his warning in verse 12 about spiritual overconfidence—the verse takes on sharper pastoral force. Chapter 10 opens with Israel's unfaithfulness and the spiritual ruin that followed their lack of faith; verse 13 stands in contrast with the declaration, "God is faithful." Israel's temptations were, in God's providence, tests of their faithfulness, and they failed those tests by "tempting Christ" and by complaining. The same dynamic shows up in our lives: when we respond to trials by grumbling or by demanding proof of God's goodness, we reveal a lack of genuine trust. Yet God has already provided a way of escape for every temptation—through his Word, through prayer, by the Spirit within us, and by the fellowship of other believers. The promise is sure, but our part remains: God is faithful to provide the way out; we must be faithful to take it.

That Sunday morning, the women went to the tomb expecting a dead Messiah and instead found an angel and an empty grave. On their way to tell the disciples, they met the risen Jesus. Their responses—fear at first, then joy after the angel's word—are exactly how ordinary people react when they encounter the God‑man who has conquered death. That mixture of awe and gladness only deepened when Jesus himself appeared. Hearing the news, they ran to tell the others; they could not keep such life‑changing news to themselves. And when Jesus met them, they fell at his feet in worship. That fear‑turned‑joy, that urgent witness, and that immediate worship is the pattern for everyone who has truly met the risen Lord.

The Triumphal Entry looks like a celebration—palms, cloaks, shouts welcoming the Messiah—but Luke gives us a sharper picture: Jesus wept as He saw Jerusalem's blindness. His very first act in the city was to cleanse the Temple, exposing worship turned into commerce and revealing the nation's real spiritual condition. The same crowd that hailed Him would soon abandon, deny, and demand His death, and the closest followers would scatter under pressure—Peter's three denials make that painfully clear. Yet the gospel meets that failure with mercy: the humble King who rode the colt goes to the cross as our substitute, rises in vindication, and pursues those who failed—appearing to frightened disciples, restoring Peter, and calling sinners by name. So here's the question for us: is our praise for who He truly is, or only for what He gives? If you've failed, the good news is this: the King comes looking for the lost and offers free, restoring grace.

Paul's point in 1 Corinthians 10 is sharp and urgent: the fact that you belong to the visible congregation does not prove you belong to the true people of God. He points to the Exodus generation—people who experienced God's presence, miraculous deliverance, and daily provision—and shows how most of them still failed. They were "under the cloud," passed through the sea, baptized into Moses, fed with manna, and given water from the rock (which Paul identifies with Christ). Yet, as Hebrews 3 makes plain, outward participation did not equal inward possession: many who shared in God's acts nevertheless hardened their hearts and "believed not," and so did not enter God's rest. Paul's warning is that the heart is revealed by what we love and the patterns that govern our lives. Israel loved the world more than God; Hebrews 3 calls that condition "an evil, unbelieving heart." Thus, Paul's blunt charge in 10:12—"Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall"—is not merely about a stumble in the Christian life but about the danger of apostasy and unbelief. The practical demand is urgent: examine yourselves by God's standards. True faith shows itself in love for God and sacrificial love for others; anything less is a dangerous presumption.

Every Christian agrees that prayer is vital, yet people define it in many different ways. Scripture shows that prayer is essentially worship—an act of giving God our honor, praise, and submission rather than a technique for getting what we want. Too often prayer is treated like a supernatural vending machine that will deliver whatever we demand if we say the right words or perform the right rituals; James 4 warns that this mindset corrupts our motives and borders on idolatry and blasphemy. True prayer is about entering God's presence, learning who He is, and aligning our will with His. It acknowledges our dependence and invites God to shape us; as C. S. Lewis observed, "Prayer doesn't change God; it changes me."

At the end of 1 Corinthians 9, Paul urges believers to "run the race so as to win." He directs this challenge to the Corinthian church—a congregation far more interested in satisfying their appetites than in loving their brothers. To correct their perspective, Paul draws on an image they knew well: the Isthmian Games held right in their own city. Just as athletes embraced sacrifice and strict discipline to compete, so those who truly belong to Christ will demonstrate the spiritual discipline necessary to run the Christian race. Paul's implication is unmistakable: those who are genuinely running will show the marks of runners—self‑control, perseverance, and a willingness to deny the flesh. Those who lack such discipline reveal that they are not truly in the race at all. To drive the point home, Paul uses himself as the example. He disciplines his body and brings it under control because he refuses to become a contradiction—a preacher whose life invalidates his message. He fears being "disqualified" (adokimos), a word he uses elsewhere to describe what is false, counterfeit, or not proven genuine. In other words, Paul is calling us to examine ourselves. The motivation to run—and the evidence that flows from that motivation—reveals whether our salvation is real. True believers run with discipline. Those who do not run at all show they were never runners to begin with.

In 1 Corinthians 9:15–23. the Apostle Paul shows how he uses his own life as the clearest example of Christian love willingly limiting Christian liberty. Though he had every legitimate right as an apostle—including the right to financial support—Paul joyfully surrendered those rights so that nothing in his life would hinder the gospel or give anyone an excuse to dismiss his message. He explains that his calling compels him to preach, not for personal gain but as a steward entrusted with God's truth, and that his greatest "reward" is the ability to offer the gospel free of charge. Paul then demonstrates how he adapts himself to Jews, Gentiles, and even the "weak," not by compromising truth but by removing unnecessary barriers so that he "might by all means save some." His entire approach models Christlike servanthood: though free from all, he made himself a servant to all for the sake of winning souls. As believers, we need to examine our motives, surrender personal freedoms when they hinder others, and embrace a lifestyle where love—not liberty—governs behavior, all so that the gospel may be seen clearly in our lives.

In the final verse of 1 Corinthians 8, Paul declares that he is willing to give up whatever personal freedom is necessary if it will prevent him from placing a stumbling block in the path of another believer. As chapter 9 opens, Paul moves from principle to personal example. He demonstrates that his commitment to surrendering his rights is not theoretical—it is the way he actually lives. In the first half of the chapter, Paul lays out a thorough, multi‑faceted argument showing why ministers of the gospel have a legitimate biblical right to be supported financially by the church. He appeals to everyday illustrations, to common practice among the other apostles, and to clear Scriptural precedent. As an apostle, he is fully entitled to this support—that is his claim. Yet Paul makes it equally clear that he and Barnabas voluntarily chose not to exercise that right, so that no one could ever question their motives or misunderstand the true reason behind their ministry.

In 1 Corinthians 8 the immediate question is about meat offered to idols, but Paul refuses to let the debate stay merely dietary. He redirects the Corinthians to the controlling principle of Christian living: love. The problem in Corinth was not ignorance of doctrine but the misuse of doctrine—liberty had been elevated above love, knowledge above conscience, and personal pleasure above the spiritual good of others. As a result, those who claimed freedom were, in practice, building others up in patterns that led away from Christ rather than toward him. Paul issues a sober warning: the influence of the strong can become the occasion for another's spiritual ruin—even apostasy—if exercised without sacrificial care. He closes the chapter by modeling the remedy: true love willingly surrenders rights for the sake of others, a posture he embodies by refusing to insist on his own liberties when they would harm a brother. That example prepares the way for chapter 9, where Paul explains how he repeatedly gave up his rights to win and protect souls.

Many Christians have appealed to 1 Corinthians 8 to justify almost any behavior they believe falls within their Christian liberty—often pointing to their understanding of freedom in Christ, the dangers of legalism, and our release from the rituals of the Law. While those truths are indeed important, Paul insists they are never more important than love. The Corinthian believers elevated their spiritual knowledge above the call to love one another, and Paul confronts them directly, showing that knowledge without love does not produce maturity but pride. Christian liberty was never meant to be exercised in isolation from the command to love. Our first priority is to love our brothers and sisters, and that love must become both the motivation and the limitation in how we use our freedom. Liberty governed by knowledge alone inflates self; liberty governed by love builds up the church.

To understand self‑defense biblically, we have to start where Jesus starts. In Matthew 16:24 He says, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." That single command reshapes every question about the use of force. Our decisions must flow from the priorities Jesus gives us—valuing the lives of others above our own, valuing life above property, and guarding the testimony of the gospel. Scripture does not forbid all use of force, but it insists that any force we use must be governed by God's truth and carried out in a spirit of love, just like every other aspect of the Christian life.

Hebrews 11 tells us about a number of Old Testament saints who had extraordinary faith and accomplished great things in following God. But one name stands out among them--Enoch. There is very little in the Bible about Enoch, other than what we read in Hebrews 11 and in Genesis 5 where he is listed among those who lived before the flood. But even then, there is very little recorded about what he did other than this one statement: "He walked with God." That is why he is remembered among the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11. Enoch's life teaches us that God does not measure faithfulness by the extraordinary acts of faith that we accomplish for Him; He is pleased with those who walk with Him in the ordinary, everyday moments of life on a consistent basis.

Questions like "Is it biblical for a Christian to use lethal force in self‑defense?", "Should believers serve in the military or law enforcement?", and "Is all killing wrong?" are often debated among Christians. Unfortunately, these discussions are frequently driven more by emotion than by careful attention to Scripture. Yet the Bible provides clear principles that, when considered together, form a solid framework for addressing these issues. Any biblical discussion of self‑defense or pacifism must begin with Jesus' teaching in Matthew 16:24–25. There. He declares that those who try to save their own lives will lose them, and those who willingly lose their lives for His sake will find them. Although Jesus' primary focus is eternal life, this principle also shapes the Christian's approach to personal safety, sacrifice, and the use of force. In other words, before we can talk about defending life, we must first understand how Christ calls us to value life—our own and others'—in light of the cross.

Isaiah 9:1-7 prophesies the coming King who brings hope to the people of Israel suffering at the hands of their oppressors in the Old Testament, but also to all who believe today. This promised king can only be Jesus Christ, who fulfills every detail of this prophecy. He is the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, and the Prince of Peace, who will bring true shalom to the world when he sits on HIs throne in Jerusalem during the Millennial Kingdom. His kingdom is an eternal kingdom, which cannot fail, as all earthly kingdoms do and will. Unless we recognize this King and bow to Him now, we will not be part of His kingdom in the future.

Isaiah's prophecy in chapter 9 to a beleaguered and oppressed Israel would have been a ray of hope in an otherwise dark existence. The promised Messiah who would be King gave them hope for the future, since this King would be different than any other they had ever experienced. This was demonstrated in the royal names ascribed to Him, which demonstrated HIs character and the kind of kingdom which He would establish. Carrying the government of all creation on HIs shoulders, Christ would truly be the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Father of Eternity, and the Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 9 is God's promise to Israel to send a king who would deliver them from oppression and bring them joy. This news was especially needed at the time it was given, a time of oppression and war, a time of spiritual darkness and despair. Into that darkness God shone His Light, the promise of a delivering king, giving His people hope. That King was Jesus, who was born in Bethlehem and spent much of his ministry in Galilee, the very place that suffered the greatest oppression in Isaiah's day. Yet, most of Israel did not recognize Him as the fulfillment of God's promise, since he did not bring immediate political deliverance from Rome. In Isaiah's announcement that a "child is born", he demonstrated that this king would be human, but in saying that a "Son is given", he emphasized the divine nature of this king.

Luke 2 records for us the event which we celebrate at Christmas - the birth of Jesus Christ. Up to that point, this was the greatest event in the history of mankind, yet there were many who missed it. Not only did they miss its occurrence, but they missed its meaning, and from these ones we can learn some important lessons about Christmas. First, the Innkeepers missed Christmas because of their busyness and indifference. Second, Herod missed Christmas because of his fear of losing his power and position. Third, the Pharisees missed Christmas because their religious knowledge prevented their recognition of the Messiah.

Many modern Christians think that the Old Testament is not relevant to the Church Age. If the church exists for the purpose of exalting Jesus Christ as its head and Savior, then that view of the Old Testament is irrelevant. IN Luke 24:44, Jesus said that all of the Old Testament, including the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms, were written ABOUT HIM. Not only is the Old Testament relevant to modern Christianity, it is also crucial in helping us to get a clear picture of who Jesus Christ is, both historically and theologically. Beginning in Genesis 3, when God promises to send a Redeemer who will crush the serpent's head, all the way through the Minor Prophets, ending with Malachi, God continues to reveal more information about the Messiah, until it becomes painfully clear that no other man could fulfill that promise other than Jesus Christ.

Pastor Ross provides Scriptural answers to questions submitted by the congregation of Bunker Hill Community Church. Questions include: 1) Should a Christian attend a homosexual wedding, and should they let a homosexual couple stay in their home? 2) What does 1 Corinthians 11:14 mean when it says that "it is a shame for men to have long hair," and that it is something that even nature teaches us? 3) Is there any type of foreshadowing of the Millennial Kingdom in the Bible or in history? 4) Is the prophesied messenger of Micah 3 and 4 John the Baptist or someone else who will appear in the end times? 5) Do events and conditions of today in the realm of religion and technology point to a quickly approaching rapture of the church?

In Luke 17, we read about Jesus'healing of ten lepers. While all ten received the gift of healing, only one returned to give Jesus thanks and worship. This narrative demonstrates the great contrast between true thankfulness and the lack thereof. There are three aspects about true thankfulness that we can learn from this account: 1) True Thankfulness recognizes the source of the mercy received; 2) True thankfulness responds with worship and humility; and 3) True thankfulness reflects true saving faith. Gratitude is not an option--it is God's will for all believers through all circumstances. A spirit of ingratitude betrays a heart of pride. Therefore, Christians, of all people, should live in gratitude for God, spreading that gratitude to others as a testimony of the greatness of God's mercy bestowed upon us.

Every year, the congregation of Bunker Hill Community Church submits questions about the Bible to Pastor Ross. This year, the questions included the following: 1) Is every unbeliever a "pig" in the eyes of the Lord according to Matthew 7:6? How does this work with evangelism? Also, should we not be rejoicing when we are attacked for the name of Christ instead of being concerned about avoiding it? 2) In Matthew 10:14-15, Jesus said to his disciples that if a town rejected their message, they were to "shake the dust off their feet" before moving on to the next town. Does this apply to us when we witness to people today? What if it is a close relative and we do not want to give up on them? 3) What does the New Testament teach about a Christian exercising self-defense? 4) What does Deuteronomy 25:4 mean when it says, "You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain"?

The Christian life is not a life of ease and comfort. We are called by God to "fight the good fight" as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. In order to effectively fulfill our mission, we must meet four qualifications of a good soldier; 1) We must recognize the spiritual warfare we are in; 2) We must be ready to endure suffering, since that is part of the battle; 3) We must not be entangled with the things of this world that would distract us from our mission; and 4) We must demonstrate absolute loyalty to our Heavenly Commander through obedience.

In 1 Corinthians 7:36-38, the Apostle Paul addresses a question regarding a man and "his virgin." While the debate continues about whether the man in question is the father or a betrothed fiancé, the context and language steer the meaning toward a father and his virgin daughter. Paul's inspired guidance is that whether the father chooses "to give" his daughter in marriage, or whether he keeps her from marriage, in either case, he does well. The implication is that the father has authority over the marriage of his daughter in the if, who and when. This implication begs the question, then, about how much authority a father had over his daughter in Paul's day and whether that authority has changed today in Christian families. While there is not a lot taught about this issue directly in Scripture, especially in the New Testament, there is enough Biblical substance to say that God's structure of familial authority has not changed from Paul's day to ours.

Through 1 Corinthians 7, the Apostle Paul addresses marriage, divorce, celibacy, and singleness in the context of the Christian life. His overall message throughout the chapter is that, regardless of your marital state, you should remain as you are for the purpose of serving the Lord. God has chosen for us our present circumstances for a very specific purpose, and we must not seek to change our status or position, looking for greater opportunity. Singleness is no exception to that rule. In the last half of Chapter 7, Paul lays out five reasons why staying single as a believer may be an advantage over being married.

IN 1 Corinthians 7:17-24, Paul explains a foundational principle of Christian life in Christ--remain as you are. He gives that command three different times within a passage of eight verses, emphasizing its importance. The idea behind this command was not that one should keep sinning and living in a sinful lifestyle after being saved, but that salvation is not a mandate to motivate us to change all the circumstances of our lives. Paul says that the very circumstances we are in at the present are what God has called us to--it is God's will that we be in the exact circumstances we are in. The point is that we are to "bloom where we are planted," not waiting for a change in circumstances to start serving God, but obeying and serving where we are now. Paul then uses 2 examples to illustrate his point: circumcision (ethnic identity) and slavery (social position and status). Neither of these was hypothetical to Corinthian believers, so the point would have been clearly understood.

In 1 Corinthians 7, Paul is answering questions posed to him by the believers at Corinth. In verses 10-16, he deals with three different scenarios related to marriage: 1) a marriage where both spouses are believers; 2) a marriage where one spouse is an unbeliever and wants to continue in the marriage; and 3) a marriage where one spouse is an unbeliever and wants to leave the marriage. In the first instance, Paul relies on the direct teachings of Jesus for his answer. In the two cases where one spouse is an unbeliever, he relies on the Holy Spirit's direction to guide people about God's will for them in these circumstances. The underlying principle in all cases is that, as believers, we need to consider marriage as a lifelong commitment on our part, no matter the circumstances.

In 1 Corinthians 7, the Apostle Paul addresses specific questions about marriage and celibacy. The Corinthian believers had taken his teaching about sexual purity to the point of practicing celibacy within marriage, thinking that made them more spiritual. Paul corrects that thinking, saying that sexual intimacy between husband and wife was not just necessary but obligatory, as something that each spouse owed to the other. His teaching on this point centered on the principle that each spouse has no control or authority over their own body, but rather that each spouse controls the other's body. Thus, physical intimacy is more about giving than receiving, as each spouse surrenders to the other's needs. Then Paul turns to celibacy, saying that while his preference is that the unmarried remain as they are, both marriage and celibacy are according to God's will and God's gifting for each person.

At the end of 1 Corinthians 6, Paul warns Christians about the dangers of sexual sin. The foundation of his argument is that as believers in Christ, we have been unified with Christ in both spirit and body. To be joined together in sexual union with someone other than your spouse is to defile the union with Christ, as you are "joined with a harlot." Sexual sin is more than just a physical sin; it has a spiritual aspect in that it destroys the picture that the physical union in marriage is supposed to be of the union of Christ and His church (Eph 5:27-32). And then Paul says that sexual sin is unique both in its character and consequences, because it is a sin "against your own body." Ultimately, he reminds us, our bodies are not ours in the first place. They belong to God, since He bought us, and they are the "temple of God's Spirit" who dwells within us. Defiling the temple of our body through fornication is akin to the desolation of abomination that the antichrist will bring into the Temple during the last days. The solution to avoid sexual sin is simply to "Flee fornication." Run away as fast and as far as possible.

Two terms that most Christians are familiar with are Christian liberty and holiness. But it isn't certain whether most Christians have a biblical view of either. As Paul addresses the church at Corinth about their rampant immorality in 1 Corinthians 6, he bases his entire argument on a proper understanding of Christian liberty and holiness, which the Corinthian church had perverted for their own purposes. The issue at the center of it all was whether the physical body, or the outward conduct, was really all that important when it came to holiness, since "man judges by the outward appearance, but God knows our hearts." Many believers, both then and today, put minimal emphasis on the outward expression of holiness, and anyone who does is labeled a "legalist." Yet in 1 Corinthians 6:12-20, Paul reminds us that what we do with our bodies does matter, since our bodies "were made for the Lord" and it is our BODY in which the Holy Spirit of God dwells. Therefore, what we do with our bodies as believers is just as important as what is happening in our hearts as we continue the Christian journey.

Charlie Kirk's death was a clear call by God for Christians to step up and "fill the gap." As we consider Charlie's testimony and life of faith, and bold witness for Jesus Christ we are reminded of several truths that God wants us to learn as believers: 1) Grief and Joy walk hand in hand; 2) The Christian life is a spiritual battle against Satan and his demons, not one against people; 3) God's plan for some Christians is martyrdom and death; and 4) God is calling for individual believers to step up. God has taken one of His own home to heaven, but He is asking, Who will stand in the gap?

The Bible tells us that the Christian life comes with adversity, so the question is not IF but WHEN. And when adversity does explode into our lives, how will we respond as professing believers? Paul explains what our response should be in Philippians 4:4, "Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice." But finding joy in the midst of adversity is more easily said than done...unless our faith is truly fixed in Jesus Christ. Faith is about knowing the truth of God's character and promises, to the point that it affects how we live and respond to circumstances. The Bible tells us five things that we can know that will help us to find joy even in the midst of adversity.

At the end of 1 Corinthians 6, Paul includes a list of sins that define those who will not inherit the Kingdom of God: fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, effeminate, abusers of themselves with mankind, thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, extortioners. What is interesting, though, is that this list is tacked onto the backend of Paul's condemnation of believers suing other believers in court. The principal lesson of that condemnation focuses on unforgiveness, through which Paul is saying that unforgiveness is among the list of sins that define an UNSAVED person if it is the general pattern of their life. Since true believers have experienced the unfathomable forgiveness of God in salvation, they will, by their new nature in Christ, be more willing to forgive than to claim their own rights. This principle is clearly illustrated in Christ's Parable of the Unforgiving Servant.

While most Christians are familiar with the Lord's Prayer, many neglect to practice one of the foundational principles encapsulated in that prayer: forgiveness. We say, "Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors." It's like Jesus is telling us: "Don't just soak up God's grace—pass it along." Holding onto grudges blocks the very mercy we're craving; letting go brings freedom. And when we pray to be led away from temptation and delivered from evil, we're recognizing that forgiveness shields our hearts and renews our spirit. This simple prayer wraps the gospel into six short lines: worship God, depend on him, extend mercy, and trust him to guide your steps and guard your heart.

The culture of first-century Corinth was defined by three things: immorality, philosophy, and the legal system. All three were considered to be everyday parts of life by the Corinthians, and all three were used as avenues of entertainment. When Paul addresses believers taking other believers to court in 1 Corinthians chapter 6, it is set against this backdrop. The problem was that the Corinthian believers had brought the culture of the world into the church and were proud of it. Paul challenges them with 9 rhetorical questions, all of them stemming from truths that these believers should have already known. The crux of his argument hinges on the fact that secular "unjust" judges are not qualified to execute justice according to God's law, and so Christians should not be relying on the unrighteous of the world to decide civil disputes between believers. Paul goes on to emphasize that the church has been provided with everything we need in Christ to settle these kinds of disputes between brothers, since we have God's truth and the guidance of His Spirit. His conclusion is that true victory in a dispute between brothers is found in a willingness "to be defrauded" as the matter is settled in forgiveness rather than in a court-ordered restitution.

In 1 Corinthians 5, Paul uses the situation of open incest being tolerated by the church at Corinth to emphasize the need for faithful and biblical church discipline. Following the teaching of Christ in Matthew 18, Paul outlines the procedure that should be followed in removing from the fellowship of the church one who is living as an unbeliever. Through delivering them "to Satan for the destruction of the flesh," they might be brought to restoration through repentance. The foundational principle of church discipline is that because God cares about the holiness of His church, so ought we to make it a priority as well, and church discipline is the process of removing "leaven" before it affects the entire church.

At the end of 1 Corinthians 4, Paul tells the Corinthian believers that he will be sending Timothy to them as an example of what he wants them to be in their Christian lives. He goes on to rebuke them for their arrogance in proclaiming themselves to be mature Christians while living without any evidence of the power of God in their lives. In verse 20, he sums his point up perfectly: "For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power." By insisting that the kingdom's heartbeat is evidenced in power, not in words, Paul throws down a personal challenge: if our gatherings, our sermons, and our devotions lack clear evidence of God's presence and might, we have settled for empty religion.

One might assume that a life of ministry guarantees material prosperity, widespread acclaim, and social prestige. Yet in 1 Corinthians 4, the Apostle Paul dismantles this illusion by comparing the ministry to a public procession into the arena—at best a spectacle, at worst prey for wild beasts. He portrays the ordinary experience of a minister of Christ as one marked by hunger and thirst, inadequate clothing, harsh treatment, and homelessness. Far from indicating divine neglect, these trials underscore the very point Paul makes: God's power is most fully manifested in human weakness. And because the essence of ministry has not changed since the apostolic era, those who take up their cross to follow Christ should likewise expect hardship, discomfort, and a total dependence on God's sustaining strength.

One of the most egregious issues in the Corinthian church was the division that was caused by spiritual pride. Corinthian believers exalted themselves as being more spiritual than others in the church, creating a power struggle that destroyed fellowship. Paul pointedly rebukes them for their pride, and in 1 Corinthians 4:6-8, he uses himself and Apollos as examples of what they ought to be as servants of God. He demonstrates that the very things they claimed as markers of spiritual maturity were exactly what proved their spiritual immaturity.

In 1 Corinthians 4, the Apostle Paul describes ministers of God as servants and as stewards. Then in verse 2, he says that the qualification of a steward is that they must be found to be faithful or trustworthy. Faithfulness is judged against the absolute standard of God's faithfulness, so no man will be perfect. But what matters is consistency in the things that matter to God. That is why Paul goes on to say that true faithfulness is not judged by man--God is the judge. Only God knows the motivations and intentions of the heart, and it is God's praise that servants should desire rather than the praise of men.

As Paul is describing the proper view to have of ministers in the church ( pastors, elders, teachers, etc.) in 1 Corinthians 4, he first chooses the term servant (under-rowers) to demonstrate that they should not be lifted up and exalted. But then he uses the word "steward," which shifts the viewpoint significantly. A steward is one who has been appointed to be the manager or supervisor of the master's household. That would include oversight of properties, goods, systems, money, and even other servants. With that management responsibility, the steward is also given authority by the master to make sure everything is carried out according to the master's will. This is exactly the role to which God has appointed pastors and elders in the church. They are to steward the "mysteries of God," which Paul reveals in Ephesians to be the message of the gospel and the church of Christ. Therefore, even while operating as a fellow servant in the church, an elder has been given by Christ the responsibility of faithfully delivering the whole counsel of God, guarding it against error, and shepherding the flock, and the authority to carry out those responsibilities according to Scriptural principles and mandates.

One of the major problems in the Corinthian church was the division caused by loyalty to human teachers. Paul addresses this issue in chapters 1 and 3, and then revisits this issue again at the beginning of chapter 4. After giving the negative command at the end of chapter 3, "Do not boast in men," he gives the affirmative command in verse 1 of chapter 4: "Regard us as servants." In that one word, servants, a unique Greek term used nowhere else in Scripture, Paul gives the picture of ministers of the church being "under-rowers," akin to slaves below decks in a galley ship, pulling the oars at the command of the captain. The main point that comes out of that word that Paul wants us to understand is that the ministers of God in the church did not choose that position for themselves. They were gifted and appointed by God, and as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 9:16, they are under "compulsion" to fulfill that ministry, since that is the single unique mission in life to which God has called them and commissioned them to do.

The biggest problem in the Corinthian church was division and disunity, fostered by pride. They could not agree on the best teachers, and they could not even agree on what constituted truth. Most of the problems they had were based on wrong thinking, which Paul addressed directly in the first three chapters of 1 Corinthians. At the end of chapter 3, he summarizes everything he has taught them so far, focusing on four things that would help to avoid division in the church: having a correct view of truth, of teachers, of life and the world, and a correct view of Jesus Christ. If they could agree on these essentials, unity could be maintained. The same is true for churches today.

Twice in 1 Corinthians, Paul reminds believers that we are the Temple of God. The first is in chapter three, verses 16-17, where he says that the church as a whole is the Temple of God, and because God's Temple is holy, we should be holy as a community. The reason for that holiness is that we are the dwelling place of God's Spirit. With that statement, Paul then gives this warning: whoever defiles that Temple of God, God will destroy. Since each believer is part of that overall Temple, then each believer is responsible for what they bring into the church through their own personal lives. If it defiles your own personal holiness, then it defiles the church as whole. Therefore, every believer is accountable for the holiness of the church and how their life affects it positively or negatively.

Hebrews 11 provides for us a list of people who are examples of the faith. the events that are given are not one time occurrences of faith, but demonstrate that these people persevered in faith through their lifetime. This list is preceded by that statement at the end of chapter 10 that "the just shall live by faith." So faith in a Christian's life is not defined by his great achievements, but by the everyday small moments of life in which faith in God is demonstrated, even in circumstances and instances which we do not understand.

In 1 Corinthians 3, Paul tells us that Christ is the only true foundation of the church and of our Christian lives. On that foundation, every believer in Christ has the opportunity to build, not constructing their own life, but building up the church. Paul says we can choose from two categories of materials with which to build - that which is of eternal value (gold, silver, precious stones) or that which will perish (wood, hay, stubble). Only that ministry that brings eternal value to the church will survive the fire of testing and will yield eternal rewards to the servant.

The true church of Christ is built on the foundation of Jesus Christ. There are many who call themselves part of the church, yet they have laid a foundation of ideology, humanitarianism, social justice, or an imaginary Jesus of their own making. These are not part of Christ's church, since they have laid a false foundation of "sand" which will crumble. The only valid foundation for any church must be the Jesus Christ of the Bible, God come in the flesh, born of a virgin, perfectly sinless in his human existence, crucified on the cross for our sins, dead and buried in a tomb, resurrected bodily the third day, ascended to His Father in heaven and now sitting on the right hand of God. That Jesus alone is the foundation of the church, of Christianity, and the One in whom we must believe for salvation.

The Fifth Commandment in Exodus 20 tells us to "Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee." Paul echoes that command in Ephesians 6:1-3 in a section of Scripture that deals with submitting ourselves to one another. Interestingly, that command is not qualified depending on whether our parents are good or bad, so it is a command that is still binding on all of us. How we honor our parents may be a little different form person to person, but here are a few suggestions: 1) Obey them under the authority structure of the family that God ordained; 2) Encourage them; 3) Forgive them; 4) Speak well of them; 5) Seek their wisdom; 6) Care for them; 7) Pray for them.

In 1 Corinthians 3, Paul admonishes the Corinthian believers for their spiritual immaturity and then explains to them what true spiritual maturity is. First of all, the characteristics of spiritual maturity are manifest through a believer's service and ministry, since that is what we have been called to as Christians. Through Paul's example, then, we see that spiritually mature believers demonstrate humility in their ministry, demonstrate specific obedience to God in their ministry, and demonstrate unity in their ministry.

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is not just the central tenet of the Christian faith; it is the power that makes the Christian faith possible. Everything that Christians believe in and hold to finds its substance in the fact that Jesus came out of the tomb after being dead for three days. The resurrection is the power of God that conquered sin, and it is the power that enables believers to live a holy life. The resurrection is the power that overcomes spiritual death and reconciles us to God in new life. And the resurrection is the power that conquers physical death, with the promise that as Jesus came bodily out of the grave, so too will all those who find their life in Him. No wonder the Apostle Paul closes his discourse on the resurrection by saying, "But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."