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1
Corinthians Chapter
Six
1 Corinthians 6
Chapter 6:1-11 treats the subject of wrongs. It was
shameful that those who were to judge the world and the angels should be
incapable of judging the paltry affairs of this world. Let the least esteemed
in the assembly be employed in this service. Rather should they bear the wrong
whereas they did wrong themselves. But the wicked and the unrighteous would
assuredly not inherit the kingdom. What a wonderful mixture we have here of
astonishing revelations
of a morality that is unchangeable whatever may be the
divine supremacy of grace
and of ecclesiastical order and discipline! The
assembly is united to Christ. When He shall judge the world and pronounce the
doom of the angels
she will be associated with Him and take part in His
judgment
for she has His Spirit and His mind. Nothing however that is
unrighteous shall enter into that kingdom
for in effect how could evil be
judged by any that took pleasure in it? Christians should not go to a worldly
tribunal for justice
but have recourse to the arbitration of the brethren-a
service which
as entering so little into christian spirituality
was suited to
the weakest among them. Moreover the proper thing was rather to suffer the
wrong. Be it as it might
the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom.
Judaism
which took pleasure in a carnal sanctity of outward
regulations
and the spirit of the world with conformity to its ways
were the
two dangers that threatened the assembly at Corinth-dangers
indeed
which
exist for the heart of man at all times and in all places. With regard to meats
the rule is simple: perfect liberty
since all is allowed-true liberty
in that
we are in bondage to none of these things. Meats and the belly
as in
relationship to each other
should both perish; the body has a higher
destiny-it is for the Lord
and the Lord for it. God has raised up Christ from
the dead
and He will raise us up again by His power. The body belongs to this
and not to meats.
But the doctrine that the body is for Christ decided
another question
to which the depraved habits of the Corinthians gave rise.
All fornication is forbidden. To us
with our present Christian habits of mind
it is a thing of course-to Pagans
new; but the doctrine exalts every subject.
Our bodies are the members of Christ. Another truth connected with this is of
great importance: if (by union according to the flesh) two were one body
he
who is united to the Lord is one spirit. The Spirit whose fulness is in Christ
is the same Spirit who dwells in me and unites me to Him. Our bodies are His
temples. What a mighty truth when we think of it!
Moreover we are not our own
but were bought with a
price-the blood of Christ offered for us. Therefore we ought to glorify God in
our bodies
which are His-powerful and universal motive
governing the whole
conduct without exception. Our true liberty is to belong to God. All that is
for oneself is stolen from the rights of Him who has bought us for His own. All
that a slave was
or gained
was the property of his master; he was not the
owner of himself. Thus it was with the Christian. Outside that
he is the
wretched slave of sin and of Satan-selfishness his rule
and eternal banishment
from the source of love his end. Horrible thought! In Christ we are the special
objects and the vessels of that love. We have here two mighty motives for
holiness: the value of Christ's blood
at which we are purchased; also the fact
that we are the temples of the Holy Ghost.
── John Darby《Synopsis of 1 Corinthians》
1 Corinthians 6
Chapter Contents
Cautions against going to law in heathen courts. (1-8)
Sins which
if lived and died in
shut out from the kingdom of God. (9-11) Our
bodies
which are the members of Christ
and temples of the Holy Ghost
must
not be defiled. (12-20)
Commentary on 1 Corinthians 6:1-8
(Read 1 Corinthians 6:1-8)
Christians should not contend with one another
for they
are brethren. This
if duly attended to
would prevent many law-suits
and end
many quarrels and disputes. In matters of great damage to ourselves or
families
we may use lawful means to right ourselves
but Christians should be
of a forgiving temper. Refer the matters in dispute
rather than go to law
about them. They are trifles
and may easily be settled
if you first conquer
your own spirits. Bear and forbear
and the men of least skill among you may
end your quarrels. It is a shame that little quarrels should grow to such a
head among Christians
that they cannot be determined by the brethren. The
peace of a man's own mind
and the calm of his neighbourhood
are worth more
than victory. Lawsuits could not take place among brethren
unless there were
faults among them.
Commentary on 1 Corinthians 6:9-11
(Read 1 Corinthians 6:9-11)
The Corinthians are warned against many great evils
of
which they had formerly been guilty. There is much force in these inquiries
when we consider that they were addressed to a people puffed up with a fancy of
their being above others in wisdom and knowledge. All unrighteousness is sin;
all reigning sin
nay
every actual sin
committed with design
and not
repented of
shuts out of the kingdom of heaven. Be not deceived. Men are very
much inclined to flatter themselves that they may live in sin
yet die in
Christ
and go to heaven. But we cannot hope to sow to the flesh
and reap
everlasting life. They are reminded what a change the gospel and grace of God
had made in them. The blood of Christ
and the washing of regeneration
can
take away all guilt. Our justification is owing to the suffering and merit of
Christ; our sanctification to the working of the Holy Spirit; but both go
together. All who are made righteous in the sight of God
are made holy by the
grace of God.
Commentary on 1 Corinthians 6:12-20
(Read 1 Corinthians 6:12-20)
Some among the Corinthians seem to have been ready to
say
All things are lawful for me. This dangerous conceit St. Paul opposes.
There is a liberty wherewith Christ has made us free
in which we must stand
fast. But surely a Christian would never put himself into the power of any
bodily appetite. The body is for the Lord; is to be an instrument of
righteousness to holiness
therefore is never to be made an instrument of sin.
It is an honour to the body
that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead; and it
will be an honour to our bodies
that they will be raised. The hope of a
resurrection to glory
should keep Christians from dishonouring their bodies by
fleshly lusts. And if the soul be united to Christ by faith
the whole man is
become a member of his spiritual body. Other vices may be conquered in fight;
that here cautioned against
only by flight. And vast multitudes are cut off by
this vice in its various forms and consequences. Its effects fall not only
directly upon the body
but often upon the mind. Our bodies have been redeemed
from deserved condemnation and hopeless slavery by the atoning sacrifice of
Christ. We are to be clean
as vessels fitted for our Master's use. Being
united to Christ as one spirit
and bought with a price of unspeakable value
the believer should consider himself as wholly the Lord's
by the strongest
ties. May we make it our business
to the latest day and hour of our lives
to
glorify God with our bodies
and with our spirits which are his.
── Matthew Henry《Concise Commentary on 1 Corinthians》
1 Corinthians 6
Verse 1
[1] Dare
any of you
having a matter against another
go to law before the unjust
and
not before the saints?
The unjust —
The heathens. A Christian could expect no justice from these.
The saints — Who
might easily decide these smaller differences in a private and friendly manner.
Verse 2
[2] Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world
shall be judged by you
are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
Know ye not —
This expression occurs six times in this single chapter
and that with a
peculiar force; for the Corinthians knew and gloried in it
but they did not
practise.
That the saints —
After having been judged themselves.
Shall judge the world — Shall be assessors with Christ in the judgment wherein he shall condemn
all the wicked
as well angels as men
Matthew 19:28; Revelation 20:4.
Verse 4
[4] If
then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life
set them to judge who
are least esteemed in the church.
Them who are of no esteem in the church — That is
heathens
who
as such
could be in no esteem with the
Christians.
Verse 5
[5] I
speak to your shame. Is it so
that there is not a wise man among you? no
not
one that shall be able to judge between his brethren?
Is there not one among you
who are such
admirers of wisdom
that is wise enough to decide such causes?
Verse 7
[7] Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you
because ye go to law one
with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? why do ye not rather suffer
yourselves to be defrauded?
Indeed there is a fault
that ye quarrel with
each other at all
whether ye go to law or no.
Why do ye not rather suffer wrong — All men cannot or will not receive this saying. Many aim only at this
"I will neither do wrong
nor suffer it." These are honest heathens
but no Christians.
Verse 8
[8] Nay
ye do wrong
and defraud
and that your brethren.
Nay
ye do wrong —
Openly.
And defraud —
Privately. O how powerfully did the mystery of iniquity already work!
Verse 9
[9] Know
ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not
deceived: neither fornicators
nor idolaters
nor adulterers
nor effeminate
nor abusers of themselves with mankind
Idolatry is here placed between fornication
and adultery
because they generally accompanied it.
Nor the effeminate —
Who live in an easy
indolent way; taking up no cross
enduring no hardship.
But how is this? These good-natured
harmless people are ranked with idolaters
and sodomites! We may learn hence
that we are never secure from the greatest
sins
till we guard against those which are thought the least; nor
indeed
till we think no sin is little
since every one is a step toward hell.
Verse 11
[11] And
such were some of you: but ye are washed
but ye are sanctified
but ye are
justified in the name of the Lord Jesus
and by the Spirit of our God.
And such were some of you: but ye are washed — From those gross abominations; nay
and ye are inwardly sanctified; not
before
but in consequence of
your being justified in the name - That is
by
the merits
of the Lord Jesus
through which your sins are forgiven.
And by the Spirit of our God — By whom ye are thus washed and sanctified.
Verse 12
[12] All
things are lawful unto me
but all things are not expedient: all things are
lawful for me
but I will not be brought under the power of any.
All things —
Which are lawful for you.
Are lawful for me
but all things are not
always expedient — Particularly when anything would offend my
weak brother; or when it would enslave my own soul. For though all things are
lawful for me
yet I will not be brought under the power of any - So as to be
uneasy when I abstain from it; for
if so
then I am under the power of it.
Verse 13
[13]
Meats for the belly
and the belly for meats: but God shall destroy both it and
them. Now the body is not for fornication
but for the Lord; and the Lord for
the body.
As if he had said
I speak this chiefly with
regard to meats; (and would to God all Christians would consider it!)
particularly with regard to those offered to idols
and those forbidden in the
Mosaic law. These
I grant
are all indifferent
and have their use
though it
is only for a time: then meats
and the organs which receive them
will
together moulder into dust. But the case is quite otherwise with fornication.
This is not indifferent
but at all times evil.
For the body is for the Lord — Designed only for his service. And the Lord
in an important sense
for
the body - Being the Saviour of this
as well as of the soul; in proof of which
God hath already raised him from the dead.
Verse 16
[16]
What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two
saith he
shall be one flesh.
Verse 17
[17] But
he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.
But he that is joined to the Lord — By faith.
Is one spirit with him — And shall he make himself one flesh with an harlot?
Verse 18
[18] Flee
fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that
committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.
Flee fornication —
All unlawful commerce with women
with speed
with abhorrence
with all your
might. Every sin that a man commits against his neighbour terminates upon an
object out of himself
and does not so immediately pollute his body
though it
does his soul.
But he that committeth fornication
sinneth
against his own body — Pollutes
dishonours
and degrades it to a
level with brute beasts.
Verse 19
[19]
What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in
you
which ye have of God
and ye are not your own?
And even your body is not
strictly speaking
your own even this is the temple of the Holy Ghost - Dedicated to him
and
inhabited by him. What the apostle calls elsewhere "the temple of
God
" 1 Corinthians 3:16
17
and "the temple of
the living God
" 2 Corinthians 6:16
he here styles the temple of
the Holy Ghost; plainly showing that the Holy Ghost is the living God.
Verse 20
[20] For
ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body
and in your
spirit
which are God's.
Glorify God with your body
and your spirit — Yield your bodies and all their members
as well as your souls and all
their faculties
as instruments of righteousness to God. Devote and employ all
ye have
and all ye are
entirely
unreservedly
and for ever
to his glory.
── John Wesley《Explanatory Notes on 1
Corinthians》
1
Cor. 6:1~8
A Spanish proverb says
“The Jews ruin themselves at their Passover; the
Moors
at their marriages; and the Christians
in their lawsuits.” In 1 Cor.
6:1~8
Paul decried legal disputes within the early church. What a sad
commentary it is that lawsuits among Christians have been so common as to
warrant a proverbial generalization.
Chapter 6. No Lawsuits
Everything Is
Permissible
Not To Be Mastered
I. Mistake to
Sue Against Each Other
II. Live a Holy
Life
III. The Body
Is a Temple of the Holy Spirit
── Chih-Hsin Chang《An Outline of The New Testament》
Chapter Six General Review OBJECTIVES IN STUDYING THIS CHAPTER
1) To see how brethren in Christ should settle their differences 2) To be impressed with the power of the gospel to transform the lives of people 3) To appreciate the proper use of our bodies in service to God SUMMARY
Having seen that the brethren at Corinth envy and divisions (3:3)
and that Paul frequently describes them asbeing "puffed up" (4:6
18)
it is not surprising that they were alsoguilty of the fault Paul deals with in this chapter: taking brethrento court before unbelievers. With an expression of shock and disbelief
he instructs them through a series of questions designed to help them see how absurd and wrong such a thing was (1-11). The latter half of the chapter deals with what must have been a majorproblem in a city like Corinth acceptable behavior with their bodies prior to becoming Christians isno longer acceptable
for even their bodies belong to the Lord
whoseSpirit indwells them
and who will one day raise them from the dead byHis own power. Therefore they should glorify God with their bodies (12-20). OUTLINE
I. TAKING BRETHREN TO COURT (1-11)
A. PAUL'S REBUKE OF THIS PRACTICE (1-6) 1. Dare they take their personal problems to be decided upon by the unrighteous? (1) a. When the saints will one day judge the world? (2) b. When the saints will one day judge angels? (3a ) c. How much more should they be able to judge matters of this life! (3b) 2. More rebuke in the form of questions (4-5) a. Do they seek the advice of those least esteemed by the church to judge? (4) b. Don't they have even one wise man among them who could serve as judge? (5) 3. The shame of it all: brethren suing each other before unbelievers! (6) B. FURTHER COMMENTS CONCERNING LAWSUITS BETWEEN BRETHREN (7-11) 1. It is bad enough that they had lawsuits to begin with! (7-8) a. It would be better to accept wrong and be defrauded (7) b. But no
they found themselves doing wrong and defrauding their own brethren! (8) 2. A warning and a reminder (9-11) a. The unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God b. They had been such
but had been washed
sanctified
and justified in the name of Jesus and by the Spirit of God (11) II. GLORIFYING GOD WITH YOUR BODY (12-20)
A. THE BODY IS FOR THE LORD (12-14) 1. What may be lawful may not be helpful
and should not overpower us (12) 2. The stomach may need food
but that need is only temporary (13a ) 3. The body
which is not for sexual immorality but for the Lord
will be raised up by the power of God (13b-14) B. OUR BODIES ARE TO BE MEMBERS OF CHRIST
NOT A HARLOT! (15-18) 1. Shall we take the members of Christ and make them one with a harlot? (15-16) 2. No
for we are to be one in spirit with the Lord (17) 3. Therefore flee immorality which is a sin against your own bodies (18) C. THE BODY IS THE TEMPLE 1. The body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is from God
and is in it (19a ) 2. You are not your own
you were bought at a price (19b-20a ) 3. Therefore glory God in your body (20b) REVIEW QUESTIONS FOR THE CHAPTER
1) List the main points of this chapter
- Taking Brethren To Court (1-11) - Glorifying God With Your Body (12-20) 2) What was the nature of the problem being discussed in the first partof this chapter? (6)
- Brethren taking each other to court
before unbelievers 3) What is Paul's solution to such a problem? (5)
- Find a wise man among brethren to decide the issues 4) What would have been better than displaying their differences beforethe eyes of the world? (7)
- For the one in the right to accept wrong
to be defrauded 5) What were some of the Corinthians before they became Christians?(9-11)
- Fornicators
idolaters
adulterers
homosexuals
sodomites
thieves
covetous
drunkards
revilers
extortioners 6) Though something may be lawful
what two other criteria does Paul mention which should govern our use of it? (12)
- Is it helpful? - Does it overpower us? 7) To whom does our bodies belong? (15)
- Christ 8) What is the body of one who is a Christian? (19)
- A temple of the Holy Spirit who is in them 9) What then should we do with our bodies? Why? (20)
- Glorify God - We were bought at a price
－－《Executable
Outlines》
No Lawsuits
Everything Is Permissible
Not To Be Mastered
I.
Mistake to Sue Against Each Other
1.
The Right of Judgment
2.
Seek Judgment Among Unbelievers
3.
Lack of Love
II.Live
a Holy Life
1.
Ten Kinds of Charges
2.
Sanctified and Justified
3.
Unite with the Lord
III.
The Body Is a
1.
Flee from Sexual Immorality
2.
Bought at a Price
3.
To Honor God
－－ Chih-Hsin
Chang《An Outline of The New Testament》