Video

Acts Chapter Eighteen

(Outline continues from Day 329)

5. During Paul’s stay in Corinth, the Jews from the synagogue delivered Paul over to the Proconsul Gallio (Acts 18:12-17).
   1. Gallio refused to hear the case, having judged it to be an internal squabble among the Jews he had to put up with.
   2. Gallio was indifferent to the subsequent beating of Sosthenes (Acts 18:17; 1st Cor. 1:1).
6. Paul departed from Corinth, taking Priscilla and Aquilla with him (Acts 18:18-22).
   1. During his Corinthian stay, Paul had taken a vow (Num. 6).  This time being completed, he got a haircut and departed for Antioch (v.18).
   2. At Ephesus, Paul left Priscilla and Aquilla to minister to the positive volition, but he pressed on to Antioch (vv.19-22).
7. Paul’s “Third Missionary Journey” then begins (Acts 18:23ff.).
   1. Before Paul arrives in Ephesus, an Alexandrian Jew named Apollos was teaching the Scriptures (Acts 18:24-28).
      1. He was familiar with the baptism of John the Baptist, but not the baptism of Christ. He is a vivid example of an OT believer in need of a crossover into the Body of Christ.
      2. Priscilla & Aquila privately corrected his inaccurate message, providing him the information necessary to become a NT believer.
      3. Priscilla & Aquila then encouraged Apollos to go to Corinth, and help the believers there.

Acts Chapter Nineteen

1. Paul arrived at Ephesus, and finds twelve confused disciples (Acts 19:1-7).  Paul corrected their dispensational error, and ushered them into the Church.
2. Paul ministered for three months within the Ephesian synagogue, then relocated his ministry to the School of Tyrannus for two years out of an overall three year ministry (Acts 19:8-10 cf. 20:31).  During this time, 1st Corinthians is written and (while not the traditional view) also the prison epistles from this setting (Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, Ephesians).
3. Paul’s Ephesian ministry was a high-point for him (Acts 19:11-20).
   1. It featured tremendous miracles.
   2. It served to train many pastor-teachers, evangelists, and exhorter/comforters.
   3. Paul’s Ephesian ministry was also a period of intensified angelic conflict (Acts 20:19-20; 1st Cor. 4:8-13; 15:30-32; 16:8-9; 2nd Cor. 1:8-11; Rom. 16:3-5).
4. Guided by the Holy Spirit, Paul understood the geographic will of God to be a journey from Asia to Macedonia, Achaia, Jerusalem, and Rome (Acts 19:21-22).

(Chapter Nineteen continues on Day 336)

First Corinthians Chapter One

1. Paul addressed the saints in Corinth with a greeting of grace and peace, and gave thanksgiving to God for past blessings He provided in their local church (1st Cor. 1:1-9).
   1. Corinth Bible Church^✝︎ enjoyed the finest teaching (v.5).
   2. Corinth Bible Church^✝︎ enjoyed depth of knowledge (v.5).
   3. Corinth Bible Church^✝︎ possessed every spiritual gift in the Dispensation of the Church (v.7).
2. Paul then got down to business with an exhortation regarding divisions (1st Cor. 1:10-17).
   1. Church members were dividing over loyalty to particular teachers—Paul, Apollos, Peter, & Christ (v.12).
   2. Such human divisions confuse the real issue—the Gospel of Jesus Christ (v.17).
3. The Church is entrusted with the Gospel (“the Word of the Cross”) (1st Cor. 1:18-31).
   1. To the Jews, looking for signs, it is a stumbling block.
   2. To the Gentiles, in search of wisdom, it is foolishness.
   3. To the elect Church, it is power and wisdom.
   4. To the redeemed, it is the ultimate motivation for humility.
   5. To the redeemed, it is the grace message of humble boasting.

First Corinthians Chapter Two

1. Paul reminded the Corinthians that his ministry was not a shining example of human ability (1st Cor. 2:1-5).
2. New Testament Truth is the mystery doctrine of the Church, hidden from the diabolical opposition, but revealed through the Apostles for our glory (1st Cor. 2:6-9).
3. The Dispensation of the Church is blessed with the Holy Spirit’s ministry of spiritual instruction (1st Cor. 2:10-13).
   1. Our study of God’s Word is empowered by the Holy Spirit Who indwells each believer.
   2. The Holy Spirit empowers the transmission of God’s Word—speaking through the teacher.
   3. The Holy Spirit empowers the reception of God’s Word—hearing in the listener.
4. The contrast between believers and unbelievers is phrased in terms of “natural man” and “spiritual man” (1st Cor. 2:14-16).
   1. The natural man is the unbeliever who cannot understand spiritual truth.
   2. The spiritual man is the believer who, by grace, can understand spiritual truth.

First Corinthians Chapter Three

1. Although the Corinthians were saved (spiritual men), because of their carnality, they could not grasp spiritual truth (1st Cor. 3:1-3).
2. Habitual carnality stunts spiritual growth, and delays the rate at which solid food can be consumed (1st Cor. 3:2).
3. Paul returns to the division issue by showing how the Corinthians’ various teachers played their individual part in God’s overall plan (1st Cor. 3:4-9).
4. The ministry of Bible teachers is the edification ministry of building up believers (1st Cor. 3:10-15).
   1. Under the filling of the Holy Spirit, a minister’s labor is eternally valuable—purified by fire.
   2. Under the power of the flesh, a minister’s labor is eternally worthless—consumed by the fire.
   3. Every believer will be judged (Rom. 14:19; 15:2; 1st Cor. 10:23-24; Eph. 4:29), with fire testing each man’s work (1st Cor. 4:5).
   4. The issue is not salvation, but rather reward or loss of reward.
5. Our spiritual growth becomes more vital when we come to understand our position as a temple of God (1st Cor. 3:16-23).

First Corinthians Chapter Four

1. Paul addresses the divisive issue in terms of personal humility as faithful stewards (1st Cor. 4:1-8).
2. Paul demonstrates how the Apostles were the greatest example of enforced humility (1st Cor. 4:9-13).
3. Paul urged the Corinthians to remember the teaching they received when they first came to Christ (1st Cor. 4:14-16).
   1. He dispatched Timothy to review Paul’s previous doctrinal teaching (1st Cor. 4:17).
   2. He warned that his next trip to Corinth may not be a pleasant one for the Corinthians (1st Cor. 4:18-21).

✝︎ Pastor Bob’s nickname for the local church founded in Corinth. They didn’t really call themselves that.