First Day Patrick Cooley

Now that Paul has reminded the Corinthians of the fact of their calling and that God has and is keeping them safe and has provided them with the spiritual gifts necessary to prove His divine presence in their lives, here in chapter one verse ten the apostle jumps headlong into addressing issues facing the congregation—most of which are ones that their forgetfulness and pride have helped to cause. 
Paul wrote his letter to the Galatians because they were willfully laying aside the gospel of Christ’s faithfulness in order to take up the practices of the law of Moses, in spite of the effort that Paul has put in to plant the church. To put this another way, the Galatians are abandoning salvation through faith. His letters to the Thessalonians were to help them remain faithful to the gospel of Jesus Christ while being surrounded by other religions and people telling them to abandon their faith. 
Here, Paul is writing to the Corinthians to tell them to get their acts together—to pay attention to what they are doing to and how they are treating one another. We see this from the very beginning:
“10 Now I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment.11 For I have been informed concerning you, my brothers and sisters, by Chloe’s people, that there are quarrels among you. 12 Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, “I am with Paul,” or “I am with Apollos,” or “I am with Cephas,” or “I am with Christ.” 13 Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? 14 I am thankful that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one would say you were baptized in my name! 16 But I did baptize the household of Stephanas also; beyond that, I do not know if I baptized anyone else. 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made of no effect.”
I guess that there is nothing new under the sun. Paul doesn’t make this a command; he doesn’t tell the Corinthians that the only allowable response are the words, “How high?” The apostle appeals to them by the authority that has been given to him by Jesus to choose to be of one mind and seeking a common goal. 
We discover that Paul is aware of the situation because of a report from “Chloe’s people.” The Corinthian congregation has become divided into factions that are based upon the person who performed any particular baptism. Paul tells the church that these divisions are dangerous because they will result in “the cross of Christ [being] made of no effect.” And indeed, this is the same risk we face even today. 
But what’s the big deal about caring who baptizes someone? I mean who wouldn’t want to be baptized by Billy Graham? Well, I guess Paul, because for him the importance of the act itself—and by extension who performs it—isn’t nearly as important as what results from it: unity of—or being made completer in—mind and judgement. This unity is key to the Corinthians’ ability to remain faithful to the life of Christ Jesus. 
Hear me out. 
Paul wrote to the Galatians that his life was no longer his. He had died with Jesus on the cross, had been buried with Him in the tomb, and had risen with Him on the third day. “I no longer live, but it is Christ who lives in me.” In short order, Paul will pen his letter to the Romans in which he will expend plentiful, expensive ink explaining to a factioned church the purpose of Christ’s cross—that is: Jesus died to overcome death which had entered the world because of Adam’s pride. 
The First Man sin was that he made life about himself, about his identity, wants, and needs; it was no longer about the Creator and source of life. The Roman church will divide along et

1 Corinthians CHAPTER ONE PART I
Thank for listening to the First Day podcast. I am so happy to be a part of your spiritual journey. Please don’t hesitate to reach out; if you have any questions send them to connect@firstday.us. I want to ask that you share this podcast with others if you have found it helpful in your growth as a disciple and journey with Chirst. I am hoping to have an average of seventy listeners per week by the end of 2024. Thank you for your help in growing the podcast. Now on with Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians.
“1Paul, called as an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, 2 To the church of God which is in Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling, with all who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours: 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
It was typical to begin letters with the sender’s name. Paul doesn’t call himself by the  Jewish version of his name, Saul. There is no evidence that his name was changed due to any moment of conversion. Rather, as was the convention of his day, the apostle used different versions of his name depending upon the audience or context. 
Sosthenes may well be the former head of the Jewish synagogue in Corinth—also called Crispus—who was beaten before the proconsul Gallio’s tribunal. This incident was reported in Acts 18. He had come to believe Christ was the Messiah and had brought many Corinthians to believe, too. Sosthenes’ relationship with the Corinthian church is not described, but considering Paul mentions him at all indicates a meaningful relationship between the church and the former Jewish leader. 
Paul declares that he is “called as an apostle of Jesus Christ”. Also note that in the very next verse, Paul states that the Corinthians, too, have been “called as saints”. What, then, does it mean to be called? In current usage, we use the word ‘calling’ synonymously with the word ‘vocation’, but here, it seems, Paul means it to be more broadly and meaningfully utilized. Paul’s authority is, therefore, grounded in the eternal, the divine, and cannot be revoked by anyone. This is similar to his description of his calling to the Gospel that he gives to the Galatians. To be called isn’t just about one’s career path—or abandoning them all together. This calling is specifically stated to be “by God’s will” and not by any other person’s whims.
Indeed, Paul didn’t earn a dime from fulfilling his call in Corinth: He worked as a tentmaker or leather worker if you recall from the last episode. No. To be called means so much more than working in an occupation you love or are have skill in. With this in his introduction, Paul is making this letter not only one specifically concerning Corinth but also one intended for the whole Church. 
Calling is about the meaning and purpose of one’s life and not how that person earns a living. For what gives rise to a saint if it is not the willingness to lay down one’s life for what is more meaningful? In Christ not only have the Corinthians been called to live as saints, Paul tells them, but so have “all those in every place who call on the name of Jesus Christ”. Joel 2:32 comes to mind: “But everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved, for some on Mount Zion in Jerusalem will escape, just as the LORD has said. These will be among the survivors whom the LORD has called.” All of Christ’s followers call upon this same Lord. 
I can’t help but think that Paul has found it necessary to remind the Corinthians of this fact—that they are one with every other believer because of the culture of Corinth—for theirs is a city known for its greed and its citizens’ desire for social advancement and advantage. 
In verse three, the apostle offers the Corinthians God’s grace and peace before offering a thanksgiving to God

1 and 2 Corinthians were written by Paul c.55 and 56 CE, respectively. 
Corinth was located on an isthmus connecting the Peloponnese to the rest of Greece. The port of Lechaeum was 1.5 miles north on the Bay of Corinth and Cenchraea (sen’-kre-e) was about seven miles to the east on the Saronic Gulf, placing it at a crossroads of two trade routes. By the time of Paul’s letter, the city’s history could be divided into two distinct periods: one thoroughly Greek and another Romans. 
Corinth was destroyed in 146 BCE by Rome and many of its citizens were killed or sold into slavery. It was reestablished by Julius Caesar just over 100 years later in 44 BCE—partly as a retirement community for Roman veterans—and became a commercial and political center in later years. Corinth was the capital of the senatorial province of Achaia and the seat of the proconsul from 29 BCE onward. 
It was a multicultural city of about 100,000 people, both Roman and Greek; Corinth’s population had a high percentage of freedmen from Rome, according to Strabo. (Geog. 8.6.23c) These liberti formed a separate social class in Roman society who were former slaves that had been freed by their masters. Some liberti were quite wealthy and educated. Roman culture, law, and religion were dominant from the city’s re-founding, though not exclusively so, and Greek was likely the lingua franca. Remember that much of the Roman Empire had been Hellenized. In fact, coinage from the time has been discovered that utilize both Greek and Latin script. 
“Because there was no landed aristocracy in the new Corinth, there arose an aristocracy of wealth.” (Carson & Moo, 420) Inescapable was the Roman practice of patronage and the corruption that went along with it. Roman patronage was based on a relationship between a patron and a client—each obliging themselves to the other. The patron being of a higher social status or, at least, possessing greater wealth, power, and prestige than the client would promise support and favors in exchange for the client’s loyalty or service when called upon. It’s not hard to imagine that such arrangements can create as many problems as they can create opportunities. Corinth was a place rife with ambition and greed—perhaps providing some explanation for the Corinthian church’s spiritual immaturity—which may have been understandable if Paul hadn’t stayed with them for as long as he did. Corinth was known for its wealth, luxury, immorality, and the viciousness of its residents. It would be great, however, if it were only about money.
Like their brothers and sisters in Thessalonica, the Corinthian Christians were presented with religious alternatives that were incompatible with their faith in Jesus Christ and the gospel that Paul had preached to them. There were at least two statues of Dionysus in the city’s agora, and the cult of the Egyptian goddess, Isis, was particularly strong. Likewise, the Greek deities of Demeter and Persephone—the goddesses of the fertility of the earth and the queen of the underworld, respectively—and Apollo, Hermes, and Poseidon had temples refurbished or built in their honor by the Romans. (Sacra Pagina vol 7, 1 Corinthians, 22) And although there has been no physical evidence yet discovered of any Jewish synagogue being present in the city, there is evidence for it found in the literature of the day.
In Acts 19 we learn that Paul preached in Corinth for the first time during his second missionary journey. He worked in the city as a tentmaker or a leather worker and was hosted by Aquila and Priscilla—Jewish, Christians from Rome, exiled by Claudius. Paul arrived in the city after experiencing great difficulties in Philippi (Acts 16)—where he was punished for his message and had to flee for his life—and after then escaping similar treatment in both Thessalonica and Berea (Acts 17). 
Initially, the apostle was trepidatious, but following a vision of a safe and successful missi

Paul asks for the Thessalonians prayers for his mission and others' and for them to pray for their tormentors. 

Paul reminds a worried Thessalonian church to trust in their salvation.

Paul gives to the Thessalonians the roadmap of the end of days.