Monday 9 March 2026
I rejoice, because I have complete confidence in you. (v. 16)
Background
When Paul went to Corinth he found a thriving commercial cosmopolitan city, beset by many unhelpful influences. He stayed there for 18 months fighting pagan practices, idolatry and sexual immorality which in Corinth was generally held to be acceptable through the influence of the worship of Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of free love.
It must have been a mammoth task for Paul to convert the people of Corinth from their worship of many gods to the teaching of Jesus and to monotheistic Christianity. But the converts too must have faced enormous difficulties in remaining faithful to the teaching of Paul in the face of how they had been brought up, and the unfettered freedom offered by Aphrodite compared to the Christian holiness advocated by Paul.
A scandal in the Corinthian church had prompted Paul to instruct its members to drive out the offender from their community, in effect to excommunicate him (1 Corinthians 5). Paul's no nonsense approach encouraged the Corinthians to clean up their act, and when Titus visited them later, he was able to report back to Paul that the community's behaviour and general attitude were much improved.
Despite the forceful way in which Paul had had to deal with the scandal in his previous letter, he was clearly moved by the respect and affection with which the Christian community at Corinth still regarded him. Paul responded by assuring them of his complete confidence in them (7:16).
A happy outcome to a very difficult situation!
To Ponder:
- What circumstances might decide a local church to excommunicate one of its members?
- How far can safeguarding training make such a case unlikely?
Prayer
Support us, Lord, in days of our calamity, and guide us in all that we do this day. Amen.
Bible notes author: Alan Sharp
Alan Sharp lives in St Albans where he is a member of both his local Methodist church and his parish church. He has been a local preacher and a church organist and choirmaster for over 60 years. He writes a monthly article on hymn tunes for The Methodist Recorder.