Weekly Sermon Reflection Questions

1 Corinthians 15-16 discusses the certainty (15:1-34) and nature (15:34-58) of Christ’s resurrection, and the readiness of giving (16:1-4) that forms the shape of church life (16:5-24).

The Greeks in the Greek city of Corinth did not believe in the resurrection of the dead. They sneered at Paul when he preached on the resurrection of Christ (Acts 17).

In 1 Cor 15:1-49, Paul addresses the Church of Corinth who had allowed pagan beliefs and the practices of the Imperial Cult to sway them from their conviction in the resurrection of Christ.

Prophecy is not necessarily foretelling the future, it is also forth-telling or speaking forth God’s will for present circumstances. In many cases, prophecy does not contain predictions about the future. The biblical test is whether the prophecy is fulfilled or not. The apostle Paul encouraged the Corinthian church to prefer prophecy to tongues. However, there is a place for both, as well as other gifts, if they are made intelligible and exercised in an orderly manner.

Christians are to eagerly desire spiritual gifts to build each other up. Usually attention is drawn to the more spectacular ones such as healing, prophesy or speaking in tongues. Paul addresses this issue and reminds the Corinthian church not to allow gifts to be a divisive issue but to always focus on the giver rather than the gift.

The prophet spoke God’s promise to an anxious people seeking relief – exiled by God to Babylon for their sinful rebellion. God promised to gather them back after 70 years. (29:10) In the meantime, they were to “call on Him” in prayer so that He “will be found” when they sought Him “with all their heart”.

God wants to move us into a deeper walk with him, a deeper experience of His grace and a deeper manifestation of His power. Instead of dwelling on what we lack, let us embrace the potential of what we possess. Our God is a God of movement (Genesis 1:2, Acts 2), but we often feel stuck, leading to frustration.

An issue faced by the Corinthian church was they were judging each other by what spiritual gifts each had, rating some gifts as more important than others. Paul addressed this issue in three chapters including chapters 12 and 13.

Paul addressed the issue of spiritual gifts to the Corinthians, especially where it affected their public worship.  Coming together as a church, they had confusion and disagreements because of the different levels of Christian maturity. 

Today’s sermon looks at the first 2 of 3 issues in corporate worship – 1) head covering, 2) holy communion, 3) use of spiritual gifts. Use of spiritual gifts will be covered in later sermons.

Worship is about honoring God, and the focus of worship should rightly be on Him.

The eating of meat sacrificed to idols was contentious in the Corinthian church. While such meat could be consumed if its origin was unknown, the apostle Paul absolutely forbade the consumption of such meat in the context of an idolatrous worship in a pagan temple.

The experience of failing is a wake-up call and Paul also warned the Corinthian church of their presumption and demanded their exclusivity. 

In 1 Cor 8, Paul addressed the issue of whether meat that has been offered to idols can be eaten in temples, at home or at social events. Was it even permissible for Christians to purchase them even though it would be difficult to identify the source of meat that had been sacrificed to idols? Would rituals taint food? What about more overtly religious rites in temples? Ch 8-10 introduced the concept of laying down our rights for the sake of love and unity.

Laying down our rights is an anathema to the world. We think we are entitled to have everything our own way. However, it becomes problematic when it leads to an inability to see beyond our own needs. Paul shares valuable insights on how to lay down our rights for the sake of the Gospel.

Joyfully freed in Christ and eagerly anticipating His return will determine how accountably we live for God, whether married or single. 

Right after Paul talks about sexual immorality in 1 Corinthians 6, he moves on to address another issue faced by the church in Corinth, namely marriage and singlehood. There appeared to be two extreme views on sexuality: one being that sex was simply a bodily appetite that needed to be met while the other was a denial of sexual needs. Right after Paul talks about sexual immorality in 1 Corinthians 6, he moves on to address another issue faced by the church in Corinth, namely marriage and singlehood. There appeared to be two extreme views on sexuality: one being that sex was simply a bodily appetite that needed to be met while the other was a denial of sexual needs. In this chapter, Paul mediates between these extremes as he discusses marriage and singleness…

Today we live in a hyper-sexualized culture — heavily influenced by the west which is obsessed with sex. Parents are concerned that our children are exposed to sex at an increasingly younger age. Many of us struggle with the perversions of sex, such as lust and masturbation. Unfortunately, many of us are shameful and silent about it. Some others may no longer believe that the gospel can redeem us from our sexual struggles, or are ignorant of the rich insights that God has about sex. This silence prevents us from understanding sexual holiness and brokenness and its impact on our faith. The Christian writers Albert Mohler, Timothy and Kathy Keller and Sam Allberry provide some answers.

Society today has distorted the beautiful gift from God – sex.  During Paul’s time, the Corinthian church was dealing with multiple issues that threatened to divide it and the message of the Gospel.  The Corinthian church not only tolerated the city’s culture that was immersed in sexual promiscuity but seemed proud of their broadmindedness.  Sex was just a physical act, devoid of any consequences.  Our society today does not seem to have changed much either. 

In 1 Cor 5 Paul turns his attention to church discipline. He has heard that a certain man is sleeping with his stepmother and the real shame is that there is no outrage! The congregation appear to be proud of their tolerance and broadmindedness. Paul finds this deeply disturbing and addresses four areas of church discipline.

READ | SERMON NOTES Summary | Why do we need discipline in church? What happens when we don’t discipline? How do we balance relationships and trust with Christian values and beliefs? Having a theology of Christian discipline(theory) aims to guide

Looking for wisdom in all the wrong places? That was how the Corinthian church quarrelled divisively when worshippers sought to follow the wisdom of certain human leaders they chose to align with.

The apostle Paul was a deeply learned and articulate man, yet he knew that the world could not know God through human wisdom. (v19-21) Paul was not suggesting that we leave our human knowledge and wisdom aside. Rather, his concern was how we can go about applying our human intellect.

The first letter to the Corinthians reveals real issues that affect families, churches and communities. The letter aims to show the church how to love and serve God. Written by Paul, it is addressed to the church based in Corinth, a cosmopolitan and morally corrupt city. Paul had founded the church and lived there from 50-51AD but subsequently heard about many troubling issues in that church. Hence, the letter aimed at addressing these issues.

The church in Corinth was full of cliques, the rich kept to themselves and the poor were left alone.  There was little church discipline, people lack morals and discipline and were unwilling to submit to authority and even questioned Paul’s apostleship.  There was also a lack of humility and consideration for others.  In general, the Corinthians were keen in the dramatic gift of the spirit and lacked love rooted in the Truth.  What was the surprising start then?

Paul’s letter to the Philippians was one of the four “Prison Letters” which Paul wrote when he was held in prison.  His words in v21 seem jarring for “living is for Christ and dying is gain”.  These words do not seem to make sense for a person in prison with the prospect of death.  Did Paul make a mistake?  The reverse might seem more coherent: To live is freedom!  To die is Christ!  How can we declare to live is Christ during tough moments? 

This familiar story is about the determined men who broke a hole in the roof because they had great faith that Jesus would miraculously heal their friend! When we work together, we can do more! As a team, we can achieve our mandate of making disciples and encountering the power of the Gospel! Our shared faith has the potential to bridge the gap between generations and bring about restoration.

Christianity is centred on the person and work of Jesus Christ. His public ministry lasted around 1200 days, but only 50 of those days are recorded in scripture. The accounts were carefully selected to reveal to us who Jesus Christ is. The apostle John said, if we had told you everything Jesus did, the whole world cannot contain the books that could be written about what Jesus did…

Apostle Paul mentored Timothy as a young pastor. Raised in a godly family, Timothy was taught scriptures by his grandmother Lois and mother Eunice from young, laying the foundation for Timothy to become a pastor. It takes a village to raise a child. Wesley Methodist Church is like a village with different generations of worshippers. Each has a part to play in lifelong discipleship.

Share the vision of Wesley YM: Youths transformed into the likeness of Christ, to know God and respond to Him with growing faith and obedience.