THE

FIRST EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS.

AFTER his visit to Athens, in the course of his first journey through Greece, Paul came to Corinth ;1 and took up his abode there with Aquila, one of his countrymen, who had been forced by an edict of the emperor Claudius to depart from Rome. There he preached" the gospel of the kingdom." The Jews opposed themselves and blasphemed; so that after a while he thought it right to leave their synagogue, and teach elsewhere. Still the seed was not sown in vain. Some fell on good ground.

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Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord with all his house; and many of the Corinthians hearing believed, and were baptized."

Thus was laid the foundation of the Corinthian church: to which, after an interval of five or six years, Paul addressed this epistle, written during his second residence at Ephesus.

1 A. D. about 54. See Acts xviii. 1-11.
See chap. xvi. 8; and Acts xix. 1.

LECTURE XLVI.

CAUSES OF THANKFULNESS IN THE CORINTHIAN

CHURCH.

1 COR. i. 1-9.

1. Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,

2. Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

3. Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

That a Christian company was raised at Corinth, is great proof of the divine power which attended the preaching of the apostles. Corinth was a city noted even among the heathens for luxury and licentiousness. Its inhabitants might have furnished that picture which St. Paul draws of the heathen generally in his epistle to the Romans, as being "full of all unrighteousness." And such had been some of those whom Paul now salutes as members of a religion which required them, "denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, to live righteously, soberly, and godly, in this present world." Because" the Lord had opened their hearts, to attend to the things spoken of Paul;" had caused them to "arise, and wash away their sins, calling upon the name of

3 See ch. vi. 9–11.

the Lord." So that he could address them, as sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints; called here to "have their fruit unto holiness, and the end, everlasting life." Jesus Christ came into the world "to call sinners to repentance." These had obeyed the summons: and instead of being now, as formerly, "enemies of God through wicked works," were in a state to enjoy grace and peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

Though Paul had many things to speak of, which deserved not praise but blame, he first acknowledges the comfort which he had in their faith, and the thankfulness which he had reason to feel on their account.

4. I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ;

5. That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge;

6. Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you:

7. So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:

8. Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

9. God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

He rejoices, that the testimony of Christ was confirmed in them.

That testimony is, that he is the author of salvation to all them that believe; that "God has given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son."

The testimony here, is the same as the record in St. John: (1 Ep. v. 11,) here, τό μαρτυριον : there, ή μαρτυρία.

Now this testimony was confirmed, in the first place, when Jesus showed by his works that God was with him. The works that he did bore witness to his truth. As he said to the leper whom he had cleansed, (Matt. viii. 4,) "Go thy way, show thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them."

The same testimony was confirmed in the apostles, when the promise which had been made was fulfilled on the day of Pentecost; (Acts xi. 4;) and

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they began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." The words of Jesus were fulfilled, who had declared, "Ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence."

The testimony of Christ was confirmed in Paul himself, when his hardness of heart and unbelief was subdued, and he who had been a persecutor, and a blasphemer, and injurious, became a preacher of the faith which before he destroyed.5

And so the testimony of Christ was confirmed in these Corinthians, when they turned from their heathen vanities to serve the living and true God: and when, having embraced the faith, they received the gifts which are granted to faith: when they were enriched in all utterance: able to discourse of things which it had not entered into the heart of man to conceive, until God revealed them: enriched in all knowledge; able to understand those heavenly truths, which are not communicated to man by " flesh and blood," but only the "Father who is in heaven" discloses. It is the promise of the Gospel that these

5 Acts i. 5.

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signs shall belong to them that believe; signs that accompany salvation." And this promise was fulfilled, when the Corinthian disciples were endowed with knowledge of divine truth, and with power to utter what they knew. There was no proof of God's favour which other churches had, and they had not. They came behind in no gift: and this was an evidence of the love of God towards them, and might encourage them to wait for the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, to accomplish all his promises, and put an end to all their trials. What they had already experienced, gave ground of confidence that He who had called them, and whose call they had obeyed, would confirm them unto the end, that they might be blameless in the day of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Be blameless. Those are blameless who have done no wrong. In this sense no man living shall be justified. But they are also blameless, who are unblamed: "whose unrighteousness is forgiven, and whose sin is covered:"" to whom the Lord will not impute sin.” 6 And such was the hope which these enjoyed, who had been called unto the fellowship of Jesus Christ. Neither was it a hope which would disappoint, like many of those shadows which men pursue, and find them vain. God is faithful, by

whom they were called. By thus choosing them as objects of his mercy, he had testified his love: and it was love which should neither change nor fail.

Rom. iv. 6, 7.