Monday 5 May 2025
And so, brothers and sisters, I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but rather as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. (v. 1)
Background
Earlier in his letter to the Corinthians (1:10-17), Paul commented on divisions within the church at Corinth. The Christians had split into factions depending on who first shared the gospel with them. Some claimed they belonged to Cephas (Peter), others to Paul, others to Apollos, others to Christ. Apollos was another travelling evangelist, who is also mentioned in Acts (18:24-28). Paul is disturbed by this news. Disunity in the church is a denial of the good news of Jesus, who prayed that his disciples might be one, as he and the Father are one (John 17:21). It also takes the focus away from Jesus – it was not Paul who was crucified for the Corinthians.
In this passage, Paul comes back to his concerns about the disagreements within the church. His long exploration of Christian wisdom in chapter 2 led him to explain that this wisdom is available to the mature, those who love God. Perhaps his next words come as a surprise to the Corinthians. You, he says, are ‘infants in Christ’, able to receive only milk, not yet ready for solid food. Their immaturity is demonstrated by their divisions – they are squabbling children, not yet mature adults. It is telling that in Greek, the phrases ‘I belong to Paul’ and ‘I belong to Apollos’ place very strong emphasis on the word ‘I’ – ego.
Paul responds to their mistaken allegiances by locating authority where it really belongs: with God. God is the source of their new identity in Christ. God grows them as Christian disciples. He develops the metaphor of a field of growing plants (as Jesus does in the parable of the Sower, Mark 4:1-20). Seeds need to be planted, plants need to be cared for, but the mysterious process of growth depends on God. Paul recognises Apollos as his fellow-worker; his relationship with Peter is perhaps more complicated (Galatians 2:11-14). They have this in common, though: they all depend on the one God. The evangelists of the Early Church are God’s servants, collaborating in the mission to share the good news of Jesus Christ. Those who become disciples belong to God, not to any other disciple, however distinguished their ministry. Paul returns to this focus on unity with the image of the Church as the body of Christ (12:12-31): in the one Spirit we were all baptised into the one body. The Christians of Corinth are united by their baptism and owe allegiance to the one God.
To Ponder:
- From Paul's time to today the Church has struggled with disagreements and splits. What do you think Paul might say to the Church today?
- What kind of ‘solid food’ would you like God to give you to help you grow towards Christian maturity?
Bible notes author: The Revd Dr Caroline Wickens
Caroline has been a Methodist minister since 1992. She has worked in the West Midlands and as a mission partner in Zambia and Kenya. She is currently the Superintendent Minister of the Manchester Circuit.
(Originally published in 2023)