1 Corinthians 6:1-11 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs,
Today’s passage is 1 Corinthians 6:1-11. Let’s go!
1 Corinthians 6:1-11 (NIV)
1 If any of you has a dispute with another, dare he take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the saints?
2 Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases?
3 Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life!
4 Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, appoint as judges even men of little account in the church!
5 I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers?
6 But instead, one brother goes to law against another–and this in front of unbelievers!
7 The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated?
8 Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers.
9 Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders
10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
11 And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
On verses 1-11: In 1 Corinthians 6:1-11 Paul tackles another problem in his church: apparently some of the Christians in his church at Corinth were having such severe conflicts that they were suing each other in court. Paul writes (and I’m paraphrasing here), “Why do that? Why air out your dirty laundry in front of others and give Christians a bad name by suing one another — and in front of a non-Christian judge no less! If you couldn’t resolve this matter between yourselves as Christian brothers, could you not have at least found another Christian brother or sister whom you trust to help mediate this situation? Shouldn’t you as a Christian rather be wronged and cheated by your fellow Christian than to be suing them in court and dragging Christ’s name in the mud in the process?”
What’s the lesson for us here? Always consider what kind of impression your words and actions give to others regarding Jesus Christ. Sometimes we can get so caught up in our conflicts and disputes with other brothers and sisters in Christ that we lose sight of the big picture. In trying to show that we are right and they are wrong, we give our non-Christian onlookers the impression that Christians are no different from the people of the world. We forget that people are watching how we treat one another. If we can’t forgive and can’t let go of our hurts, then doesn’t that show that our Christian faith is useless?
That’s why Paul reminds the people in his church of who they are and of the new life they have in Christ: whereas their sins had separated them from God, but “you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (v11). Praise God that regardless of what our past was like and how many mistakes and messes we have made, and even though our sins separated us from God completely, we have a brand new start in Jesus Christ.
When we remember who we are in Jesus Christ, we will be less prone to going back to our old life and acting in ways that are contrary to our God-given identity.
Heavenly Father, thank You that in Jesus Christ I have a new beginning. I pray that I would not just act based on how I feel, especially when angry, but that I would give careful thought to what my actions and words tell others about the God that I worship and the faith that I profess.
