Walking down the street in the ancient world would be an eye opening experience for anyone. Using the video lectures from Professor Joel Fredrich’s seminary class on 1 Corinthians we will walk through the ancient world and use Paul’s pen as our eyes and ears. Paul offers encouragement and rebuke to a young congregation that had so many blessings and so many struggles. The parallels to our modern age are striking. Check out the introduction and lesson study guides below. The class will be offered at 9 am every Sunday. As of March 2020 we have gone virtual! Use THIS link to join us!
Lesson 1 Introduction – The Greek World of the Apostles
Lesson 2 – 1 Corinthians Outline
What topics are covered in 1 Corinthians? If you are drawing a blank this next lesson is for you. Our second lesson of our video study of 1 Corinthians will wet your appetite for some Bible study. The topics are incredibly useful and timely.
Lesson 3 – Letters = Epistles
“Dear, mom, camp is great! Love, Timmy” We don’t write letters too often these days, do we? Communication is instantaneous. Email, texting, and free VOIP around the world has made communication free and easy, but in the ancient world people still wrote letters. In fact, we could marvel that God picked that time and not the present as the fulfillment of the ages to spread his message of forgiveness in Jesus. We jump into the first 12 verses of Paul’s letter to the Corinthians in this lesson.
Lesson 4 – Group Life
What does it mean to be baptized into someone’s name? Was there a danger that people though Paul was whom they were being baptized into?! What about the wisdom of God? How can it be a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles? We’ll consider what the Apostle Paul has to say on the matter and look at a few different angles before we settle on what it is that our God is communicating to us in 1 Corinthians 1:12-25
Lesson 5 – Different Philosophy
Professor Fredrich sends some time on the extended reading offered in the previous lesson. Where do the different branches of Christianity find their authority? The easy answer to the Christian might seem to be the Bible, but as you will see, it’s not so simple for many. What roll does wisdom play in the gospel? Specifically, what about wise speech? The Greeks loved their orators. It sounds like Paul didn’t hold a candle to them. And that’s ok.
Lesson 6 – A Hidden Gospel
Where can we find the gospel? Can we find the secret things of God at the top of a mountain? How about the bottom of the sea? Where would God hide his secret truths of love and forgiveness? He didn’t! The are found in the Bible. Anyone can read it at any time. That said, some people believe that it is “hidden” there because you can’t find it in nature or in the sinful heart of man.
Lesson 7 – Reward of Grace
Wait a minute… Paul’s said there was rewards for faithful service to God? How is that possible? I thought everything was a gift of God’s grace. We’re saved by grace alone. In this lesson we’ll sort out the difference between justification and sanctification AND what it all means for the faithful builder of the church. Will your work stand the test of fire on the last day?
Lesson 8 – Weight of the Ministry
Servants can have great responsibility. With that comes accountability! This is true for servants of the Gospel too. Paul is finishing up a section where he talks about how he is worried only what God thinks of his ministry. Does the servant care if his master is pleased with his work and the neighbors complain? Not really. Does the master care if the servant thinks he is doing a good job, but really isn’t (not, at least, to the master). There were complaints about Paul’s work. Watch how he defends his ministry and gives all of us a great way to see if what we are doing is pleasing to God.
Lesson 9 – Gospel Hardship
The life of the Apostles was not glamorous. When Paul wrote to the Corinthian churches he speaks of the hardships he endured happily for the sake of the gospel and God’s people who were blessed by his work. He went hungry and thirsty, lived in rags, treated brutally, and was homeless. God does not call us to that ministry today, but Paul’s defense is instructive to us.
Lesson 10 – Pride Goes Before
The pride of the Corinthian Christians was a source of trouble. They became blind to sins that made even the pagan world around them blush. Paul uses the opportunity to apply Matthew 18 to the church in a very public way. Join us this Sunday – a little early – at 9 AM for this video Bible study and a window into an ancient world that isn’t so different from the one we live in today.
Lesson 11 – Church Discipline
How should we handle the sticky situations of church discipline? What if the person is a family member? Can I eat lunch with them? Can I sleep in the same bed?? We’re married! What if the person was my bowling partner – that last example was one that Professor Joel had to face in his ministry. Paul works through some of these for us in lesson 11.
Lesson 12 – Homosexuality
The sin of homosexuality was on full display in the ancient world. Yet, Paul had no problem pointing out the inconsistency of sin with a life that embraced the Christian walk following God’s will. Homosexuality is too often treated as the chief of sins in some Christian circles today. Satan will use any vice he can wiggle under our noses. Join us, a little early, this Sunday at 9 AM as we study 1 Corinthians 6. Professor Joel Fredrich will lead us into the original language of Greek in this New Testament study.
Lesson 13 – To Marry or Not To Marry
Is it better to not marry? What exactly is Paul getting at in chapter seven of his first letter to the church in Corinth? The fledgling congregation in that ancient city was facing many of the same problems that exist in America today. Join us as we look into the original language and see what out God has to say.
Lesson 14 – Marriage Counseling
What does it take to make a marriage work? The Apostle Paul dives directly into that subject in chapter 7 of his first letter to the Corinthian church. Why does Paul say that he’s telling the church, but really it’s the Lord, in one breath and in the next he’s giving a command, but not the Lord? How did marriage counseling work in the ancient world? Is it really any different from marriage counseling today? We’ll tackle all these questions and find answers directly from the original Greek text.
Lesson 15 – Single Life
We’ve spent the last month in our early study looking at God’s gift of marriage. This week, as we get into the second half of 1 Cor 7 we’ll see what our God has to say about those who aren’t married.
Lesson 16 – Meat For Lunch
Would you ever eat meat that was sacrifices to an idol? That’s kind of a loaded question. Would that mean you were participating in idol worship? Would the witness be a stumbling block to others? At what point do you take a stand on the gospel? How do you clearly take a stand on the gospel? The topic of meat sacrificed to idols doesn’t sound very useful until you realize that we face these grey areas almost daily!
Lesson 18 – Take The Pay
Should pastors really be taking a salary? Paul was leading a tent ministry. Shouldn’t the rest of Christendom follow his lead? No. We’ll touch on this sticky topic in lesson 18 of our study from 1 Corinthians.
Lesson 19 – All Things to All People
Chapter 9 gives us a glimpse into what Paul is thinking. Why would he call himself a slave to the people that he served? We’ll find out his motivation that kept him going everyday in an unforgiving ancient world. \
Lesson 39 – If Christ Has Not Been Raised
“If Christ has not been raised…” That’s not a question that I would like to entertain. It’s one that the Apostle Paul spends a lot of time on in the 15th chapter of his first letter to the church in Corinth. The topic of the resurrection is a timely one since it is the Easter season. Join us as we consider what life would have been like if Christ has not been raised. The reality is that many people go through life unaware of the resurrection or the incredible impact in has on everyday life.