1 Corinthians 1:10 Commentary and Bible Study

We have noted that there were problems in the church at Corinth, but these can be horrendously exaggerated and sometimes are. Corinth was a good church, and although many of the troubles were serious, they mostly affected a minority of people. On the whole the church was sound and good and earnest and zealous, because the apostle says so, and his commendations are very strong, so we must have balance. But nevertheless, there were problems and the first problem to be mentioned is that of cliques or divisions in the church: parties within the church following particular preachers, supposedly. Why is this the first problem? Is it the most serious? After all, you would think that the incestuous man of 1 Corinthians 5 or the doctrinal problem concerning the resurrection were more fundamental than the party spirit or the divisions, but the apostle Paul begins with this. Is it really the worst of their problems? Well in many ways it is, because this particular problem does involve the majority. It is as if most of the people were in one group or another. So it disfigures the entire fellowship. It is of course the root of many other problems, and while the church is divided up other problems cannot be dealt with. It takes away love from the fellowship Christ's first commandment, especially for his people, that they love one another. It steals Christ's authority. Different people are vying to promote individuals as the chief teacher, and that, apart from one group, takes from the sole authority of Christ. There is only one authority in the church. It isn’t a preacher, or any kind of leader; it is Christ. Most of all, the apostle will argue, it eclipses the power of the cross of Christ, so it is a tremendous problem. ‘That ye all speak the same thing.’ That’s not about everything. We have got our legitimately differing views about all sorts of things, and our different reactions. But when it comes to the things of God; when it comes most of all to the gospel; when it comes to Christ who is going to be the subject of these verses, we all speak the same thing. We are his children; we believe in Calvary; we believe in the doctrines of the Bible, and there should be no divisions among us, literally ‘splits’. In their case there were splits because they lined up behind different teachers; in our case, it could be any number of other things: views about different things which divide and come between us. It could be divisions about ethnicity, which have absolutely no place. ‘But that ye be perfectly joined together.’ There’s something rather beautiful in what follows here – perfectly joined together, in the same mind and in the same judgement. Actually when you look behind the words, you have got the whole of the human personality here. You have all three component parts of human personality here: the mind, the reasoning faculty; the heart, the affections; and the will, the volitional aspect. The idea behind the words ‘perfectly joined’ is fitted together, repaired and at one, but it is something which involves love and affection for each other. So the affections are hinted at here. ‘In the same mind’, thinking the same way: the power of reason is there. ‘And in the same judgement’ or sentence. It is the idea of a judge making a decision. So it is the volitional part of us. This oneness should join the whole person.