Fights & Schisms

1 Corinthians 1:10-17 1 Corinthians 1:10-12 “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. What I mean is that each one of you says, ‘I follow Paul,’ or ‘I follow Apollos,’ or ‘I follow Cephas,’ or ‘I follow …’” 1 Corinthians 1:12-17 “‘Christ.’ Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name. (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not …” 1 Corinthians 1:17 “with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.” (ESV) The Players/Factions

‘Each one of you says, ‘I follow Paul,’ or ‘I follow Apollos,’ or ‘I follow Cephas,’ or I follow Christ.’ Is Christ divided?” (1:12) The Paul Group • Converted under the preaching of Paul himself. • Charter members of the Corinthian church. • Paul was called the missionary to the Gentiles and these are likely Gentile converts. • Paul did not speak with “eloquent” wisdom. The Apollos Group • Apollos was known for his great rhetorical skills. • Drawn by his powerful preaching, these were the educated and distinguished believers. Acts 18:24-25 “Now a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was an eloquent man, competent in the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus.” (ESV) The Cephas Group • No indication that Peter had ever visited Corinth, but his ties to Jerusalem gave him clout among the Jewish Christians. • These were those who doubted Paul’s Apostleship. The Christ Group • They divided because they were too spiritual to get caught up in the division of those less spiritual than themselves. The Problem

“I appeal to you … that there be no divisions among you … For it has been reported … that there is quarreling among you” (1:10-11) Divisions (schisma) • To split or divide • Used 8x in N.T.—most often of the tearing of a garment. • Used 3x in 1 Corinthians John 17:17-21 “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth. I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (ESV) Quarreling (eris) • Strife, discord, contention, quarrel • Used by the Greeks for battle Rhetorical Questions • Is Christ divided? Rhetorical Questions • Is Christ divided? • Was Paul crucified for you? Rhetorical Questions • Is Christ divided? • Was Paul crucified for you? • Were you baptized into the name of Paul? Ephesians 4:4-6 “There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” (ESV) 1 Corinthians 12:13 “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free— and all were made to drink of one Spirit.” (ESV) The POSTURE “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment” (1:10) Not the Only Christians • In Essentials—Unity • In Nonessentials—Liberty • In All Things—Love For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God 1 Corinthians 1:18, ESV Fights & Schisms

Fights & Schisms empty the cross of its power. Division destroys.