Corinth was a confident, modern and self-assured city, proud of its image and thoroughly pagan. It was a miracle of God's grace that the seed of the gospel had taken strong root in such potentially hostile soil. But the young and tender plant was in grave danger of being choked by the suffocating pressures of a godless environment, and the deceitfulness of sin still at work in the hearts of believers.
In the Apostle Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, he teaches his readers how the gospel, in which they have believed, must now shape their life-style, within the church and the community. What does it mean to be 'spiritual' in a truly Christian sense? Where do God's power and wisdom lie and how are they to be experienced? What is the relationship of knowledge to behavior, of truth to love, and of love to life?
Additionally, the letter deals with a host of other practical issues from immorality and lawsuits in the church, to the significance of the Lord's Supper, the use of spiritual gifts and the evidences for the resurrection of the body. Always intensely practical, this letter provides both rich teaching and an accessible model of how, as 21st century Christians, we should understand and deal with very similar problems and issues which still divide Christians today. Let's Study 1 Corinthians provides a practical guide to the understanding and application of one of the key texts of the New Testament.
