Latest / Cumberland Trace Church of Christ (Formerly Lehman Ave Church of Christ) / "A Study of 1 Corinthians" by Hiram Kemp - Part 8

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"A Study of 1 Corinthians" by Hiram Kemp - Part 8 · Cumberland Trace Church of Christ (Formerly Lehman Ave Church of Christ)

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Good morning. Got your Bible? Go ahead and turn it to 1 Corinthians
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chapter 11. That's where we're going to be today in our class, 1 Corinthians chapter
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11. This quarter we've been studying— Neil and I've been co-teaching this class together,
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dealing with the same mind and the same judgment, this idea of a unified theme
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through the book of 1 Corinthians. And In the previous
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weeks, at least the last 2 or 3 weeks, we've been dealing with a combined
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unit in the now concerning section dealing with the meat that's been offered up to
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idols. And in 1 Corinthians chapter 8 and verse 1,
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all the way through chapter 10 and verse 33, Paul starts talking about the question
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that evidently the Corinthians had asked him concerning the food that had been offered up
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to idols. And he says, now concerning things offered up to idols, and he goes
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through this long 3-chapter discourse that discusses how they ought to be,
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how they ought to deal with these matters of judgment, these matters of indifference,
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and how they can do it without surrendering the unity that Jesus
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died for them to have, and how they could be unified and be on the
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same page. The formal aspect of that specific discussion, the meat
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that had been offered up to idols, ends in chapter 10 and verse 33,
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where Paul says, so this is why basically I make myself a slave to everybody,
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and I put everybody's needs above my own so that I might save other people.
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And that's where it ends as far as chapter 10 and verse 33. But in
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your Bible, at least the newer translations definitely do this, the Greek New
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Testament does this as well, chapter 11 and verse 1 is probably
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right after chapter 10 and verse 33 and bracketed off from 11
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to. And the reason for that is Paul's final statement on this is actually found
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in 1 Corinthians 11 and verse 1, the famous passage where Paul says, be ye
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therefore, what? Imitators or followers of me, even as I also am
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of Christ. And so what we're about to study still goes along with that,
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But first, let me ask this. What do you think in your mind, what's the
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major takeaway from this section? 1 Corinthians 8 through 10,
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the meat offered up to idols, everything Neil talked about last week, did a great
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job talking about how our disposition and attitude ought to be toward others
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that may have these scruples. They may be weaker or more
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sensitive in conscience. What would you say is the major takeaway from this whole section?
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Don't be a stumbling block to your brother. Yeah, that's 1 Corinthians 8 and verse
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9. Paul says, don't be a stumbling block to anybody. What else? Andy?
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Yeah, people's souls are more important than anything else, especially our
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personal preference in matters of judgment. So yeah, don't be a stumbling block. People's preferences
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or people's souls are more important than anything else, especially our
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personal preferences. Anybody else? How would you summarize what Paul said up to this point
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in 1 Corinthians 8 through 10? Kim?
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Yeah, that's a great statement. Whether you eat or drink, whatever you do, do everything
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to God's glory and And if you can't do it to God's glory because it's
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creating division among the body, then you should abstain.
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Anything else? Put others before yourself. Rita?
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Yeah. Alicia? And I
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think Neil dealt with that last week great— greatly. Yeah, just because I can doesn't
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mean I should. Look at 1 Corinthians 10:24. I think this goes right alongside 1
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Corinthians 8:9 as the major thrust of this section. And I'll say
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in a minute why I'm harping on this and sort of bringing this up.
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But Paul says in 1 Corinthians 10:24, let no man seek his
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own good, but every man the good of his neighbor. The old King James says
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something like, let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth or well-being.
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And the idea is Christians should be willing— Christians
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must be willing to give up or to temporarily surrender,
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at least in the presence of other people, certain rights that they feel they
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may have for the good of the better— of the betterment of the group and
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for other people. So the thrust of this section is about, yes, don't be a
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stumbling block, and you be willing to lay down any of your own personal preferences
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for the betterment of the body as a whole. I bring that up because Paul's
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going to shift gears in 1 Corinthians 11. He's going to shift topics,
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but this idea about sacrificial service and putting others before
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yourself is still at the forefront of his mind, really all the way through chapter
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14 when he's talking about these spiritual gifts. This same principle that you put others
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above yourself And it's not about how talented you are, how gifted you are,
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how much money you have. All of that's going to be discussed, though he's going
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to do it through different lenses in chapters 11, 12, 13, and 14. The principles
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that Paul lays down in these matters of indifference are really going to carry us
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through the major doctrinal sections that remain in 1 Corinthians. So the last thing Paul
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says, 1 Corinthians 11 and verse 1, is, be ye therefore—
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in this section at least— be ye therefore imitators or followers of
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me, even as I also am of Christ. Now We typically quote this
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verse to say, Paul was an example. Be like Paul because Paul was
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like Jesus. That's true. I use the verse like that in preaching and in
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teaching, and I think just throughout our lives in a general sense, that's true.
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Paul was an apostolic example. Follow him like he follows Jesus.
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But in this context specifically, with the meat sacrificed to idols,
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what does Paul mean when he says, be imitators? Literally,
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be mimickers of me. Imitate me as I imitate Christ, as he's just
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talked about meat sacrificed to idols. In this specific context, what does he mean?
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Be followers of me. What do you mean be followers of Paul? What does he
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mean here? What had Paul done? What had Paul said about what
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he's done? He had personally given up
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rights. This wasn't just theoretical for Paul. Paul says, I could have received money for
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preaching the gospel, and he did on occasion, but not at Corinth. Paul had
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given himself as an example. In the text on the screen, 1 Corinthians 8:13,
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Paul says, I won't eat meat as long as the world stands if
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it's going to make my brother stumble. In 1 Corinthians 9:1-18,
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he talks about a host of other rights that he had given up. When Paul
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says here, be imitators of me, he's saying what I've called for you
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to do in chapters 8, 9, and 10 is not anything I haven't done myself.
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He's literally been an embodied example of this. Be imitators of
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me in this regard. Yes, throughout Paul's whole life, but especially in matters
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of judgment and putting others' needs above your own. And then this last part,
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even as I also follow Christ. What does that mean? It means
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Christ was the first person to give up his privileges and rights in order to
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serve. He set the mold for what Paul does. So when Paul says, I won't
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eat meat if it's going to make my brother stumble, or I'm not married and
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I didn't take financial contributions from you guys, Paul's actually saying, hey,
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the first person to show us what it means to yield or give
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up their rights for the benefit of other people was actually Jesus. When did
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Jesus do that? How did that happen? When he left heaven.
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Philippians 2. Yeah, Mike, you're right. Philippians 2:5-8, Paul says,
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let this mind be in you, sacrificial mind, which was also in Christ
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Jesus, who being in the form of God thought it not robbery to be equal
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with God, but made of himself no reputation. He emptied himself, took on the
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form of a servant, humbled himself, became obedient unto death,
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Even the death on the cross. Jesus is the first person to show us what
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it looks like to give up our rights for other people.
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Nobody made Him come here. He chose to do it because He loves us.
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Paul picks up on this as an apostle and does the same thing. And then
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he says to the Corinthians and then to the Cumberland Trace Church of
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Christ, hey, be imitators of me, even as I
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also imitate Christ. This doesn't just mean in a general sense, like be a nice
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person like Jesus, love your neighbor. All that's true, but especially in this regard,
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Being willing to say, you know, as Alicia mentioned, I could, but I won't for
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your sake. Who taught you that, Paul? Who taught Paul that? Jesus. And that's how
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he concludes this section. Nicole, go ahead.
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Yeah, a host of things Jesus had the right to do as far as a
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human being. He had a specific purpose in coming to earth as a human being,
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but yes, that would be one area and a host of others where Jesus surrendered
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rights so he could focus on the will of God. And so before we move
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on to the next part of 1 Corinthians 11, I just want to say there's
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a lot of ways you could mark whether or not your life looks like Jesus,
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and I think it'd be wrong to elevate any one of these above another because
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the New Testament gives A host of them, and all of them are important.
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But I think a litmus test for us as far as, all right, how close
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am I following Jesus, would be this: how often do I get out
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of my own way and let others have their way? And if you were able
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to come to the family retreat this weekend, Aubrey Johnson did our family retreat,
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and he did a great job talking about this, about servanthood and about putting others
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first. And I don't think this is the only test, but I think it's got
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to be on the list. Like, I read my Bible, I pray, I come to
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worship services, I love other people, But how many times in your life do you
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just regularly— has it just become a part of you that says, you know,
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I just genuinely, in matters of indifference in my family and
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my relationships, specifically in the local church, I'm willing to yield my rights for other
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people? Or are we the kind of people that say, I'm right about this,
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it's got to be my way or no way, to that degree? We still have
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work to do as followers of Christ, and Jesus is still working on shaping us
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into who he wants us to be. So Paul ends this section by saying,
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Hey, be imitators of me just like I imitate Christ.
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All right, now 1 Corinthians 11, we'll shift gears. 1 Corinthians 11:2-16,
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Paul's going to shift gears. In 1 Corinthians 11, he'll talk about 2 issues primarily,
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that is head coverings, and then he'll say some things in relation to
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the Lord's Supper. But just keep in mind, the context of this discussion
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hasn't changed as far as what's the major principle: put others
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above who? Above self. If you get that, you've got 1 Corinthians
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11 really through chapter 14 Though he's going to talk about spiritual gifts and prophecy,
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speaking in tongues, head coverings, the Lord's Supper. If you've got
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this principle with you from 8, 9, and 10, put others above yourself,
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you can plug in any issue and it'll become apparent to you what you
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should do. 1 Corinthians 11:2-16, we're going to read it in a minute,
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but we'll talk about head coverings. Let me say a word about the ancient city
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of Corinth and about head coverings. When you read 1 Corinthians 11 and when you
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read some of the contemporary literature around the first century, it's apparent in other places,
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but especially in Corinth, there was this social norm or
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this custom that women would wear head coverings as a part of
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their role in society to show basically, you could say,
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their submission to men and that sort of thing. And men would not
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cover their heads. This was just the general norm. Paul's going to say some things
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that I think do apply to the assembly in Corinth, but just really
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in everyday life in Corinth. And it would be wrong to limit what he's saying
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in 1 Corinthians 11 in ancient Corinth just to the assembly,
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Because Paul never says that. He's just saying in Corinth, in this society,
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one of the customs is women have their hair for a head covering,
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but also they would wear something on their heads to cover their heads, and men
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would not typically cover their heads. It's important to appreciate what Paul's
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about to say in this section is relegated to that first century context.
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It does have application for us and how we live our lives, but we gotta
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appreciate what's going on in Corinth so we don't wrest this passage from its context.
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And start applying it in an unhealthy way. But Paul's going to say some things
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about this custom and how the Corinthians ought to behave as a result of
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it. Let's read 2 down through— let's read 2 down through 8.
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Paul says, now I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain
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the traditions even as I delivered them to you.
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But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ,
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the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God.
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Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head.
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But every wife— and if you've got the ESV, that's what I'm reading, it keeps
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saying wife. This should probably be just translated women. I don't think Paul's talking
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about husbands and wives, he's just talking about the gender distinctions, men and women.
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So where you see wife, if that's in your translation, it's probably
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this word gune is probably better. Just translate it women in general. So he's talking
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about men and women. Verse 4, every man who prays or prophesies with his head
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covered dishonors his head, but every woman who prays or prophesies
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with her head uncovered dishonors her head, since it's the
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same as if her head were shaved. For if a woman will not cover her
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head, then she should cut her hair short. But since it's disgraceful for
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a woman to cut off her hair or shave her head, let her cover it.
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For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and
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the glory of God, but a woman is the glory of man. For man was
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not made from woman, but woman from man, and neither was man created for woman,
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but woman for man. All right, so let's notice verse 2 first. Paul starts
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out by saying, I commend you because you remember me in everything and you maintain
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the traditions even as I delivered them to you. When you read verse 2,
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Paul's going to talk about head coverings in 3 through 16 and what the Corinthian
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women ought to do specifically. But what stands out to you about verse 2?
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What stands out to you as you read verse 2 about Paul's communication with the
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Corinthians? 2 things stand out to me. You might not pick these 2, you might
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pick something else, but What do you notice about verse 2 first?
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Paul says, I praise you. Yeah, that's right, Robin. Paul says, I praise you.
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What kind of church was Corinth? Good or bad?
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Depends on what you're talking about, right? Sexual immorality. They got an F in that
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class, but they got some stuff right. So here's the thing. I think this
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is important because we tend to put Corinth in a box. The Corinthian church,
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man, they had problems. They did. But Paul says, hey, I praise you for
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what? What does he say? You remember me in what? And everything in
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the traditions I delivered them to you. Paul often did this to churches. He would
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say, hey, you're getting this right and I want you to know about it.
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You just start reading through Paul's letters. Romans chapter 1 and verse 8,
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Paul says, I'm praying for you all the time. I heard about the great things
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you're doing and I'm excited. Ephesians 1 and verse 16,
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Paul says, we pray for you and remember you every time. We want you
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to be encouraged and enlightened in the knowledge and wisdom of Jesus. Paul had never
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been to the church at Colossae. But in Colossians chapter 1:3-4,
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Paul says, every time we pray to God, we thank him because of you
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and your spiritual development. And even a church like Corinth, riddled with problems
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morally and doctrinally, Paul says, I praise you because
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you remember me and all the things. It's right to praise congregations,
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Christians, and other individuals for the things that they're getting right and that
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they're doing. And I think Paul shows us a model of what that looks like
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by praising the Corinthians even in the midst of their problems. The second thing though
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is they maintain, and Levi mentioned this, the what?
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Traditions. This says traditions aren't always bad.
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There are some traditions of men, and Jesus talked about this with the
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Pharisees. He said, hey, you guys teach as if they were doctrinal
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things, the traditions and the commandments of men, Matthew 15:7-9.
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But what does the word tradition mean?
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The word tradition just means something that's handed down. Now, we can create our
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own traditions and elevate them to the status of God, That would be a wrong
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thing. But there are divine and apostolic traditions that the apostles
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handed down to other people, and those things matter. And when the Christians
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kept those, that was important. So don't think of the word tradition as
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a bad word. This passage says certain traditions, and Paul's about to talk about one
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and really dealing with men and women and how they relate in society. And Paul's
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saying, I'm glad you all are holding fast to these traditions. 2 Thessalonians 2:15
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and 2 Thessalonians 3:6 are passages where Paul says,
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Keep the traditions, the handed-down teachings, as I've given them to
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you. So Paul's apostolic instruction, inspired of God, it was traditional,
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but the Corinthians were supposed to keep it and hold fast to it. So he
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starts his discussion about head coverings by mentioning in verse 3,
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the head of every man is Christ,
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the head of the woman is her husband, is the man, and the head of
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Christ is God. When Paul talks about being the head, he's talking
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about a word— it could mean superior rank. It could mean, hey, this person's
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above this person. So the head of every man, hey, is Christ.
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Christ is above you. The head of every woman is
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man, and the head of Christ is God. But this word kephalē,
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it could also mean something along the lines of the source of a person,
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where an individual gets their origination from. And I think that's how Paul is using
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the word in verse 3. Paul's saying, hey, the source of every man is Christ,
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and the source of a woman is man, and the source of
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Christ, at least as it relates to his earthly existence and coming here,
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is God. And Paul's making this statement about the hierarchy and
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the way things roll in created order and world because he's
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wanting to make a point to them about how these women in Corinth ought to
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respect the head covering custom. In verses 4 through 7, he says,
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because this is the case, every man who prophesies with his head covered
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dishonors his head. So, that means, hey, he dishonors Christ, the source
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that's above him, and personally, his own head and his role as a
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man in society. But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered
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dishonors her head. So, here's our problem with 1 Corinthians. There are several with this
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chapter. One, it's a challenging chapter, but here's the first thing,
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you and I don't live in ancient Corinth. So, we're kind of hearing one side
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of the conversation, but here's what I think is happening. Here's what it appears is
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taking place. Some of these women in Corinth, they become Christians.
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The culture in and around Corinth rolls this way. If you're a woman, your head
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is what? Covered with your hair and head covering.
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If you're a man, your head's what?
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Corinth was a metropolitan city. There's a synagogue there in Acts 18,
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but there's also a lot of Gentiles there. You can see that when you read
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this letter. It seems like some of these women have become Christians and started thinking
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to themselves, you know, that's the Corinthian custom, but I'm a Christian now and I
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don't have to what? I don't have to do that no more. I don't have
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to submit to that custom. I don't have to wear this head covering. Jesus hasn't
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said anything about it in the Bible. I can do whatever I want. I don't
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have to be bound by this custom. And Paul's saying, hold on, wait a minute.
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If everybody in the society is doing this, if this is a cultural norm and
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it doesn't violate New Testament teaching, it's dishonoring.
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You're being— and what did we talk about earlier? Don't be a stumbling— what?
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Don't be a stumbling block, not only to Christians, but also to people
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in and around society. Paul's saying, if you pray or prophesy with your
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head uncovered as a woman in ancient Corinth, he says, hey,
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you're dishonoring your head. That's going to be a problem. People are going to look
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on the church, look on Christians in a bad light, and I wouldn't want that
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to be the case. In verse 6, or at the end of verse 5,
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he says, if she won't cover her head, it's as if her head were completely
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shaved off. And in that culture, and people have said this, you can look this
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up, some people have said in ancient Corinth, A shaved head was a way that
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women in that culture would designate themselves as being a prostitute.
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Now, Paul would say, listen, I know you don't want to go to that extreme.
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I know a woman wouldn't want to shave her head and be associated with prostitution
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in and around ancient Corinth. So, women should do what?
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Wear the head covering. In verses 8 and 9,
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Paul makes an argument from creation, and he says, for man
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was not made from woman, but woman from man. Neither was man created
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for woman, but woman for man. Again, this is not
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about worth. It's not about value, but it is about
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a distinction in role. God made man and woman on what day of creation?
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6. But who did he create first? Yeah, he made man. Go to
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Genesis 2. Notice how Moses lays this out. Genesis 2:7.
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This was not a simultaneous creation where they were side by side. Paul is
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being specific in making this argument from creation when he says, that the woman was
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created out of the man. Genesis 2:7 says,
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the Lord— what was that? Oh, sorry, I thought somebody
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said something. The Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed
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into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living creature.
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But then when you get down to Genesis 2 and start reading in verse 18,
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the Lord God said, it's not good that the man should be alone. I will
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make him a helper fit for him. Now out of the ground the Lord God
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had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought
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them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man
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called every living creature, that was its name. The man gave name to all livestock,
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the birds of the heavens, to every beast of the field. But for
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Adam, there was not found a helper fit for him. So the Lord God caused
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a deep sleep to fall upon the man. And while he slept, he took one
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of his ribs, closed up his place with flesh. Verse 22, and the
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rib that the Lord had taken from the man, he did what? He made
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or built a woman and brought her to the man. So when Paul says woman
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was made for man, He's being literal. To be a helper,
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to be a sustainer, to be a supporter, to be alongside him, to be
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equal in status and in worth, but to differ in function.
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And in ancient Corinth, one of the ways that this distinction was made,
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it was through the head covering. And Paul's— the heart of Paul's argument is
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the women in ancient Corinth needed to respect this custom.
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The same argument's made, though he's talking doctrinally in 1 Timothy 2:11-13
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about women with their role in the local assembly. As not publicly preaching and
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teaching. He says, hey, Adam was first formed and then Eve.
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There's something in the created order that says something about the roles and the distinctions
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between men and women in society, and the Corinthians needed to honor that.
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How that was designated in ancient Corinth was the head covering, and Paul's
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basically saying, Christian women in Corinth, don't, don't buck against the system.
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All right, next he says the woman has a symbol of power and authority on
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her head because of the angels. In verse 10, he says, this is why a
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woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head because of the angels.
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A lot of people have made a lot of things about this verse, a lot
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of interpretations. What does Paul mean a woman should have a symbol of authority on
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her head because of the angels? I think what Paul's saying simply is this: angels
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have a role, and angels submit to who? God.
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They have a subservient role. They're in subjection, Hebrews 1:14 says.
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And Paul's saying, hey, if the angels even submit and stay in their place,
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Women, you have a role, and in society in ancient Corinth, don't go
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against that role by refusing to wear the head covering. Wear this on your head
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because of the angels. Let's read 10 down through 16.
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This is why a woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head,
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because of the angels. Nevertheless, in the Lord, woman is not
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independent of man, nor man of woman. For a man was— for a woman was
21:47
made from man, so man is not born of woman,
21:50
and all things are from God. Judge for yourselves, is it proper for a
21:54
wife to pray to God with her head uncovered? Does not nature itself
21:58
teach you that if a man wears long hair, it's a disgrace for him,
22:01
but if a woman has long hair, it's her glory, for her hair is given
22:05
to her for a covering? If anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no
22:09
such practice, nor do the churches of God. So, now that Paul has laid out
22:12
this argument by creation, he's going to appeal to the common sense of the Corinthians,
22:16
and here's what he says. In the end, it's not about who's
22:19
worth more, who's more important. You both depend on each other. Verses 12 through
22:23
13, he says, woman was made from man. That's how
22:26
it started in Genesis 2. But now how does a man come into the world?
22:30
He's got to be born of woman. Paul sometimes is accused
22:35
of being a male chauvinist and Paul didn't care about women, but nobody promoted
22:39
the status of women as far as by inspiration in the New Testament
22:42
more than the Apostle Paul. Nobody had more female coworkers alongside them than the
22:47
Apostle Paul. And if you want to know, what did Paul really think about women?
22:49
Maybe you hear something like this and you think, why this hierarchy? Why these ranks
22:53
and these roles? You're going to have to go to Galatians 3:26-29, where Paul
22:57
says, in Christ, there's neither male nor female, slave nor free.
23:00
You're all one in Christ. We're all the same in worth and in value,
23:04
but not in function. And there's a reason for that. And Paul says this mutual
23:08
dependency and cooperation between the genders reflects what God wants us to do.
23:12
The heart of what Paul's saying in 1 Corinthians 11 about the head coverings really
23:16
goes back to something in Deuteronomy 22 and verse 5, and it's this: men in
23:20
society ought to look like what? Men. And women in
23:24
society ought to look like what? Now, that's easy to say,
23:28
but in certain societies and cultures, there are certain ways where that's marked out.
23:31
If a man wears a skirt in America and walks into the assembly,
23:36
we're going to think something funny is going on. But if you're in Scotland and
23:39
you're wearing one and it's got that plaid, it's a little kilt,
23:43
then what? That's acceptable and it's different. Why?
23:47
It's a cultural custom. The principle doesn't change though, that God
23:51
has created the gender roles to be cooperative, working together, to complement
23:56
one another. And in society, however that's marked out where you live,
23:59
as a Christian, you should honor those roles and those distinctions. And in Corinth,
24:03
Paul's just Driving home this same principle. Don't go against the
24:06
system and make sure to practice this in a way that will honor God.
24:09
And then he says, basically, judge for yourselves based on these arguments from nature
24:13
in verses 13 through 15, what makes the most sense. What do you think Paul
24:17
means when he says in verse 14, does not nature itself
24:21
teach you that if a man wears long hair, it's a disgrace for him,
24:23
but if a woman wears long hair, it's for her glory? What do you think
24:26
that means? Does not nature itself teach you?
24:30
Some people might think this means, well, like, this is just the way the world
24:34
works. Like, nature itself is just telling you that men should have what
24:37
kind of hair and women should have— that can't
24:41
be it though. That can't be it. Paul can't be saying like it's just this
24:44
natural idea that men have— here's the reasons why,
24:47
and you could think of some others maybe, but here's some of the reasons why
24:51
we got to get nature in its proper context. Paul, when he says nature itself,
24:54
he means, hey, the society of Corinth. He doesn't mean like creation in
24:57
general just teaches you women have long hair and men have
25:01
short. The society and the nature of Corinth is telling you this is how things
25:05
ought to be, 'cause look around, this is what everybody's doing. This isn't just creation
25:09
in general for this reason: what's long hair and short? It's a subjective
25:13
standard. You start getting into how long is long, how short is short, you're never
25:17
going to be able to come up with an agreeable standard for everybody. In certain
25:20
cultures, what might be long to some is short to others. Russell?
25:24
Yeah, yeah. We love our wives like
25:29
the church, which the church is elevated to be
25:33
the bride of Christ. Just because a
25:38
woman was made from man doesn't make her any less than man.
25:42
Correct. Makes us as men want
25:46
to love our wives like Christ loved the church. But today
25:50
in this society, I believe it's a problem. People have a problem with
25:55
authority. They don't want to answer to anybody.
25:59
I think there's— I can't give you book, chapter, and verse— there's when man thinks
26:03
his ways are better than the Lord. There's a time, and I
26:08
think we're in that time. And I think 1 Corinthians shows they were in that
26:12
time. I just think this idea of submission in general has always been a struggle.
26:14
It's heightened in our day, but for sure it's always been the case. But as
26:18
far as the nature argument, you can't really figure out what's short or long.
26:21
Paul's talking about the nature in Corinth. Another reason why is because men did have
26:24
long hair sometimes in the Bible. What did God command Nazarites? You can't do what?
26:29
Sometimes God would say don't cut your hair. So you can't take 1 Corinthians and
26:32
say what Paul's saying applies to everybody because there are specific times where God— what
26:36
happened to Absalom? How did he die? He couldn't have had
26:40
a bald fade and done that because how did he get hung up by his
26:42
hair in 2 Samuel 14? Evidently, Absalom's hair was long enough. In fact,
26:46
the Bible says it was so long he had to cut it every year,
26:49
and they weighed it because he was so handsome and impressive. So on occasion,
26:52
men had long hair in the Bible. When Paul says, hey, nature itself, he's not
26:57
telling you, hey, this is just how it is in the world. He's saying in
26:59
Corinth. And here's another thing: God naturally allows men to grow long hair.
27:03
You go to some Samoan cultures and that sort of thing, their hair naturally grows
27:08
long. So saying nature itself, meaning God's wired it this
27:11
way, That's not the case. Paul's saying, in Corinth, this is how it is,
27:15
and I don't want you to go against these customs. And then in verse 16,
27:18
he ends by saying, if any man wants to be contentious, we don't have
27:22
any commandment in the churches of God. Meaning, if anybody wants to get in a
27:25
big argument about this, this is the culture in and around Corinth.
27:29
This isn't a matter to divide over in the local, local congregation,
27:32
local church. Just stick to the customs and the culture in Corinth and
27:36
be harmonious among each other. Now, before we talk about the Lord's Supper,
27:39
what are the practical takeaways from this as far as head coverings relate to us?
27:43
Number 1, this was a cultural practice in the ancient world,
27:46
and we shouldn't try to bind it today. It's mentioned nowhere else in the,
27:49
in the New Testament, and really nowhere else in the Bible.
27:52
When we went to Nigeria in March, the Nigerians take
27:56
this passage to be binding for all time. And so Brittany and Nadia, they told
27:59
us before we went, they said, listen, when you come over here in the church
28:02
assembly, Um, Nadia and Brittany always have to wear a head
28:06
covering. They said, now listen, it doesn't have to be like an elaborate or big
28:09
head covering, but you got to wear something on your head all the time.
28:11
And it was because of 1 Corinthians 11. We were going over there on the
28:14
mission trip. What's the principle in 1 Corinthians 11 really based on everything in
28:18
8, 9, and 10? Don't be a what? So guess what Nadia and Brittany did?
28:23
They wore the head covering. They didn't ask me for a Bible study, but if
28:26
they would have, I would have said, listen, based on this passage, You can't
28:29
bind this for all time because this is specifically about something
28:33
going on in Corinth. In fact, in Genesis 38,
28:36
Tamar wears a veil over her face, and what
28:40
is she wearing it for? She's wearing it to show herself
28:43
to be a harlot or prostitute. So, the idea that the head coverings always signify
28:47
dignity, you just can't bind this. This was a cultural practice from the ancient
28:51
world in Corinth, and it's not to be bound for all time. But if you
28:55
ever find yourself in a context, in a situation where people expects you to wear
28:58
it in keeping with the principles laid down in 8, 9, 10, and 11,
29:02
we should try our best not to be a stumbling block. It's not a matter
29:05
to divide over. Secondly, other New Testament passages show that women's heads were
29:08
sometimes exposed, at least to some degree, in the assembly. Paul says,
29:12
don't have braided hair or gold. If their heads were completely covered, it'd be no
29:15
way for Paul to know that in Ephesus or Peter in ancient
29:19
Asia Minor. And then we should be wise about cultural norms and expectations
29:23
that don't violate the will of God. Jackie Steersman,
29:26
he was the first, one of the directors of the Florida School of Preaching before
29:29
my time. And he used to say this about Christians and culture and customs.
29:32
If a custom doesn't violate the will of God and it's the norm in society,
29:37
he says, a Christian shouldn't be the first person to practice it or the last
29:41
person to give it up. We should try to find ourselves in the middle of
29:44
the line somewhere. But just because we're Christians, we shouldn't say to ourselves,
29:48
we're just gonna completely buck against society and go the other way and
29:51
end up being a stumbling block to our culture. In Corinth,
29:54
everybody's doing this. This is how they make the distinctions between men
29:57
and women, and the Corinthians should walk in lockstep with that,
30:01
is to not be divisive and ultimately to honor and to glorify God.
30:05
So I know you were really geared up for a conversation about head coverings this
30:09
morning, but that's 1 Corinthians 11:2-16. Any questions on this chapter?
30:13
Yes, Darryl. If you link it to 1 Timothy 2:9,
30:16
it's basically just an act of modesty. Yeah, yeah,
30:20
great point, great point. Yes, so Darryl says if you link it to 1 Timothy
30:23
2:9, 1 Timothy 2:9, it's really an act of modesty. And that's exactly right.
30:27
What is modesty? Don't dress in a way that would be what?
30:31
Provocative, or drawing unnecessary attention to who?
30:35
Yourself. And in ancient Corinth, to come into an assembly or out in public without
30:39
a head covering on, it would be to draw attention to yourself.
30:49
Heads in pagan worship. Yeah. So that was another cultural
30:53
thing that the Christians would have known. So that would also be another reason for
30:57
the Christian men to never cover their heads. For sure, for sure. And one last
31:01
thing on this, when you think about the head coverings in ancient Corinth, these probably
31:04
weren't just like little beanies. These weren't little bonnets. They were a head covering that
31:08
probably covered the entirety of a person, not just the head, but comes
31:12
all the way down. So sometimes people say we want to practice the head coverings
31:15
of ancient Corinth. And I've never seen anybody reproduce what
31:19
is actually going on in 1 Corinthians chapter 11, because the idea
31:23
of the head covering here was something that would just kind of come up.
31:25
Remember COVID when people wore like the face shields and the guards that came all
31:29
the way down to their stomach? Well, it was something like that. Seriously, that's kind
31:33
of what they would wear as far as the head covering, and that's not being
31:35
reproduced. So 1 Corinthians 11, Paul tells these Christians,
31:38
be of the same mind and don't divide. Now the Lord's Supper, 1 Corinthians 11,
31:42
17 through 34. Paul's going to give some instructions about the Lord's
31:46
Supper, and you'll see Paul's tone change from, hey, this is a matter of indifference,
31:50
don't divide over this, be harmonious, to Paul's getting to the heart of some things
31:54
here and talking about their misuse of the Lord's Supper.
31:57
1 Corinthians 11:17-34 is a well-known passage.
32:00
We sometimes quote 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 when
32:04
we talk about why we take the Lord's Supper, but what appears to be going
32:08
on in 1 Corinthians with the church at Corinth is They're having a
32:11
meal, a common meal, either before or after, or something.
32:15
The Corinthians are joining theirs in with the Lord's Supper. And it
32:19
appears, based on what Paul's going to say in this text, that the rich were
32:22
setting themselves apart from the poor. We're so rich, we can have such
32:26
a great feast and feast so sumptuously that they were gorging themselves,
32:29
putting themselves before other people, quickly dashing through the Lord's Supper
32:33
to get on to this meal. And when they engage in this meal,
32:37
it was apparent who was rich, who was poor, who was in, who was out.
32:40
And Paul's going to talk about this. Now, this isn't the first time it's been
32:44
introduced. Neil alluded to it in 1 Corinthians 10, where Paul's talking about, hey,
32:47
stay away from the idol's table because we have our own. But now in 1
32:51
Corinthians 11, he's going to talk about how do we honor God and one another
32:55
in the Lord's Supper. And let me just say, in case I don't get enough
32:58
time to say this, we tend to view the Lord's Supper in just
33:03
modern culture in general as a very individualistic
33:07
thing. We think about like, and you're going to see in 1 Corinthians 11,
33:10
I'm going to let Paul do the talking, but we think about like, I got
33:13
to examine myself. This is my time with me and God. I got to get
33:17
myself focused on me. I'm telling you, in light of this context, that's the exact
33:21
opposite of what Paul's arguing for. There is an individual aspect. Jesus died
33:25
for me. But in 1 Corinthians 11:17-34,
33:28
Paul's driving this reality home. Jesus died for us. And if Jesus
33:33
died for us collectively, it not only shapes us doctrinally in what we
33:37
believe, but how we actually engage in the very thing that Jesus said
33:41
we do to remember him. 1 Corinthians 11, look at verse 17
33:45
down through 22. But in the following instructions, I do not
33:48
commend you. So, if you write in your Bible, draw a line from verse 2
33:51
where he did commend them and praise them, but here the commendation,
33:54
it stops. He says, in the following instructions, I do not commend you.
33:58
Because when you come together, it's not for the better but for the worse.
34:01
For in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that
34:04
there are divisions among you, and I believe it in part. For there must be
34:08
factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized.
34:12
When you come together, it is not the Lord's Supper you eat, for in eating
34:15
each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry and another gets
34:19
drunk. What, do you not have houses to eat or to drink in?
34:23
Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing?
34:27
What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will
34:30
not. So the first thing Paul does is he talks about their misuse of the
34:34
Lord's Supper. So he had praised them previously, but now he says, I'm not going
34:37
to praise you about what you're doing here as it relates to this. He says,
34:40
when you come together, it's not for the better, but it's for the worse.
34:43
If you write in your Bible, look at verse 17, verse 18,
34:47
verse 20, verse 33, and verse 34. In all of those texts,
34:51
Paul's going to keep using this phrase, When you come— what?
34:55
When did the Christians come together? I know sometimes Acts 2:46,
34:58
they came together daily, every day, but in a worship context like
35:02
the Lord's Supper, when did they come together and how do we know? When did
35:05
they come together? Let's deal with that first. On what day of the week?
35:08
First day of the week. Another way to say it, we sometimes refer to it
35:12
as this day. What kind of day? The Lord's Day. We got that from Revelation
35:15
1:10. John talks about being in the Spirit on the Lord's
35:19
Day. So how do we know it's the first day of the week? A lot
35:22
of y'all said that the first day of the week. Where do we get that
35:24
from? Somebody said the Bible. Yes, that's a great answer.
35:27
Yes. Acts— y'all are here. We're like, well, we're here now somewhere.
35:31
Yeah, Acts 20 and verse 7. Acts 20 and verse 7.
35:34
Yes, Mike, and 1 Corinthians 16 and verse 2. In this very
35:38
book, Paul's going to say on the first day of the week when you're
35:41
already gathered together, set something aside. So this idea of, hey,
35:44
when you come together on the first day of the week, That's when early Christians
35:48
partook of the Lord's Supper, every first day of the week. He says, when you
35:51
come together, it's not for the better, but for the worse. In the first place,
35:54
I hear that when you come together, there are divisions among you, and I believe
35:58
it in part. So, Paul's heard from somebody that the Corinthians were divided, and he
36:02
says, hey, I believe this. There must be divisions among you that those that are
36:05
approved may be recognized. When you come together, it's not the
36:09
Lord's Supper you're eating. This was this common meal that they had fused together with
36:13
the Lord's Supper. He says, it's not the Lord's Supper that you eat, one goes
36:17
hungry and another gets drunk, what, don't you have houses to eat or to drink
36:21
in? What does Paul mean in verse 21 and 22? Don't you have houses to
36:24
eat or to drink in, or do you despise the church of God? What is
36:27
Paul telling them? The feast of
36:30
the meal they were having. And in relation to the Lord's Supper, what was Paul
36:33
saying? If you want to get that full, if you want to enjoy yourself sumptuously,
36:38
you should do that where? And not during the what?
36:43
Listen, Paul wasn't saying Christians can't eat together or
36:47
eat together in a church building, but he was saying in relation to the Lord—
36:51
and sometimes I've got some friends and I know some people, I've had some students
36:54
in preaching school, they're like, you know, I don't like the way we do the
36:57
Lord's Supper. I think the Lord's Supper needs to be like more of a meal
37:00
in this feast. In fact, Paul's arguing the exact opposite of that here. People are
37:04
like, I don't like the little wafer. I'm sure their piece was bigger. Paul's saying
37:07
right here, the Lord's Supper is not for you to get full.
37:10
So whatever concoction you've drawn up in your mind about the way ancient people partook
37:14
of the Lord's Supper, the little wafer we're doing is probably a lot closer to
37:18
what people did in the first century church. Because the Lord's Supper— I know sometimes
37:22
you don't eat breakfast and that cracker drops down into a pit of emptiness,
37:25
but the Lord's Supper is not about you getting full. It's not for
37:29
that purpose. Paul says if you come to the assembly for that reason, he says
37:33
you've got houses to eat and drink in. Christians in the first century met in
37:37
their homes. 1 Corinthians 16:19 will say this, and verse 9 will
37:41
say this. He's not saying Christians can't ever eat when they come together, but the
37:44
Lord's Supper is not a time to put our physical appetites
37:48
above the spiritual fellowship that should be taking place. He's saying,
37:51
hey, don't you have houses to eat and drink in? Don't despise the
37:55
church of God by putting the haves above the have-nots. And they were doing this
37:59
and desecrating the Lord's Supper as a result. Mike, go ahead. I'm just going to
38:02
make the basic point that you were kind of looking at,
38:05
is you have to remember that if you say that they
38:10
are to eat at home, well, they met in houses. Correct.
38:13
They worship in houses. Yeah. So they were eating at home. That's right.
38:17
So that's kind of a contradiction. That's right. Of how you're going to
38:21
satisfy that. You can't eat in the church building,
38:25
but you can eat at home. But if you're worshiping Yeah,
38:30
I think Paul's saying get full and satisfied separately if you're
38:34
going to desecrate the Lord's Supper. And he's not talking about whether or not Christians
38:36
can eat together. But let me say this, and we talk about this sometimes,
38:39
we'll say, yeah, Paul's not saying that you can't eat in the church building.
38:42
I think that's true, but I think we shouldn't lose a principle that we sometimes
38:46
get off on in relation to this. Paul is saying though,
38:49
there really is no time ever, like even when we have a fellowship
38:53
meal, that the primary purpose of the fellowship meal is to get full. We call
38:57
it a what meal? Well, we call it a fellowship meal. What we
39:01
do— somebody— potluck. Yeah, we call it a fellowship meal. We should be doing what
39:04
during that time? If you just came to eat, you could do that at
39:07
home. That's not really what this is for. Sometimes you come to a fellowship meal,
39:11
you don't talk to anybody. Well, Bible says I can eat with other Christians.
39:14
It does, but listen, the purpose of that coming together is actually to fellowship.
39:17
So if you get your plate and get your casserole and go sit over by
39:21
yourself, It's not a fellowship meal. And Paul is saying Christians
39:24
eating together has never been primary. We do everything with food. Listen, the primary
39:29
purpose of our getting together is not really to get full and gorge ourselves.
39:32
So I don't think we should lose that point. Paul's saying, hey, specifically in regards
39:36
to the Lord's Supper, make sure you guys stay unified. But having a fellowship
39:40
meal with no fellowship is an oxymoron. And Paul doesn't want us to do that.
39:44
He says, appreciate the way Jesus introduced the Lord's Supper, verses 23
39:48
through 26. For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you.
39:51
The Lord Jesus, on the night when he was betrayed, took bread, and when he
39:54
had given thanks, he broke it and said, this is my body, which is for
39:58
you. Do this in remembrance of me. In the same way also, he took the
40:00
cup after supper, saying, this cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this
40:05
as often as you drink it in remembrance of me. For as often as you
40:08
eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till he comes.
40:10
So, Matthew 26, Luke 22, Mark 14,
40:15
all these passages, Jesus institutes the Lord's Supper. And Paul's
40:19
recalling this here, and he's saying, hey, we do the Lord's Supper in remembrance of
40:22
who? Jesus. Notice he says on the night in which he was betrayed.
40:26
Why include that? I think he's saying, hey, the night Jesus was betrayed,
40:30
he instituted the Lord's Supper. Don't you guys betray him again
40:33
by doing in a way that doesn't please him. Jesus says, do this in
40:37
remembrance of me. And as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup,
40:41
you're proclaiming that Jesus is coming again. You've got to be mindful of
40:45
that when you partake of the Lord's Supper. And we can have a long discussion
40:48
about the kinds of things you and I should be thinking about when we partake
40:50
of the Lord's Supper. But at the heart of that, at the forefront of that,
40:53
has to include what Jesus did for every one of us.
40:56
Time's getting away. Let me say something about the rest of this, 27 through 34,
40:59
and then make some practical application. Whoever therefore eats
41:03
of this bread or drinks of this cup, the old King James has unworthily.
41:07
And some people have thought, well, I sinned this week. I can't take the Lord's
41:10
Supper. When Paul says in an unworthy manner, what does he mean?
41:15
He's not talking about your personal conduct, though that matters. He's saying what?
41:20
Being mindful of who? Christ and other people.
41:24
To eat or drink the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner means you're
41:28
guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. But let a person examine
41:31
himself, and then so let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup.
41:34
For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment
41:38
on himself. This is why many of you are weak and sick and some have
41:41
died. But if we judge ourselves, truly we would not be judged. But when
41:45
we are judged by the Lord, we're disciplined so that we may not be condemned
41:48
along with the world. So then, brothers, when you come together to eat, wait for
41:52
one another. And if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home so that when
41:55
you come together, it will not be for judgment. And about the other things,
41:57
I'll give directions when I come. Paul says, whoever eats and drinks
42:01
without thinking of others, you eat and drink condemnation to yourself. But let a person
42:05
examine himself. What does that mean? How have I treated other Christians in
42:10
this supper that's supposed to unite us? Look at verse 29.
42:13
Anyone who eats and drinks without discerning what? Now the King James and New King
42:17
James inserts the Lord's body. Newer translations
42:20
do this rightly and don't put this in there because the Greek text doesn't have
42:24
the Lord's body. If you eat and drink without discerning the body, what body
42:27
is that? The body of Christ. If you eat without
42:31
discerning the body, You eat and drink judgment on yourself.
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This means in the Lord's Supper, we should be looking backwards. Hey, this is what
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Jesus did for me. We should be looking around.
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This is who Jesus put me with. And then we should be looking
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forward. Jesus is coming again. Verse 26,
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until he comes, if you eat and drink without discerning the body,
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well, I'm just going to eat the Lord's Supper. I haven't been a good Christian
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this week toward my brothers and sisters in Christ. That's eating and drinking of the
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supper unworthily. Yes, think about Jesus' body, but in verse 29, when he says,
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not discerning the body, he's talking about, hey, the body of Christ.
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1 Corinthians 10:17, he says the bread represents us as Christians
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as Jesus' body, and we're Jesus' loaf as the body of
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Christ. So, what does this mean for us? Things to remember: when
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you take the Lord's Supper, think congregationally and not just individually.
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When you take the Lord's Supper, it's about you, examine yourself, but examine your relationship
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to other Christians. Also, Paul keeps saying, when we come together,
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listen, the Lord's Supper is a congregational endeavor.
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And I think we should think about how we take it. I know we got
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some customs and things. I just think we need to think about them. I think
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the way we sometimes do the Lord's Supper on Sunday night,
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and some people get up and they go out, I just think in light of
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1 Corinthians 11, we got to be thinking about, did Jesus want people
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to break off from the group and go off into their own private group and
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do the Lord's Supper that way? That was never— somebody said, well, what do I
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do if I didn't miss— I missed church Sunday morning? If a person can't come
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to the Lord's assembly, they would be exempt from the Supper. You don't have to
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have a makeup service for them, or maybe everybody takes it again at night.
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But the idea that, well, 2 or 3 people, when you come together,
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but these 3 people are going to go off and take the Lord's Supper by
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themselves, it's just a foreign idea to 1 Corinthians 11. 1 Corinthians
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11, the Lord's Supper is about when you congregationally come together. And everybody
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takes the supper together. We sing together, we pray together, we worship together. It's when
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we come together, and we can be condemned and condemn ourselves based on
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the way we partake. If we don't partake of the Lord's Supper in a way
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that honors God, we eat and drink judgment on ourselves. And lastly,
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we eat and drink thinking about the death, the burial. It's solemn, it's serious,
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but it's also a celebration until he comes.
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1 Corinthians 11:26. Thanks for a good Bible class. If you
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got any questions or any follow-up, you can talk to me about it after class,
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but Thanks for a good class and your participation.