BUSINESS the Lord Jesus ChristjS unity—they were a unit with the Church of Christ as a whole —“both their Lord and ours.” - (c) The Greeting (i. 3). “Grace” and “peace” are Greek and Hebrew salutations. Grace refers to the source, and peace to the consummation of the blessings of the gospel. The favor of God leads to peace of mind. Note the equality of Jesus Christ, the Son, with God, the Father, in which fact lies an argument for the deity of Christ/ Note also the emphasis placed upon the person and name of Jesus Christ. No less than ten times in the first ten verses is the name of the Lord Jesus Christ spe cifically mentioned. 2. T he T hanksgiving (i. 4-9). In these verses the apostle gives thanks for the grace of God in Christ Jesus (i. 4, S) and for the exemplification of the gospel in their lives (i. 6), and particularly with regard to certain gifts of speech and wis dom (i. 7). The gifts of speech and wis dom, or utterance and knowledge are men tioned because of their utility and useful ness in the propagation of the doctrines , of Christianity. The Corinthians had many gifts, but they seemed to lack some of the graces. We should not forget that a man may have all the graces even though he may not have all the gifts. It is clear from the New Testament teaching that the Holy Spirit does confer gifts upon the believer, even though not necessarily changing his temperament. The grace of God both develops and bestows gifts; The presence of so many gifted ones in the Corinthian church showed that a characteristic of their meetings was the presence and power of the Holy Ghost. Would that it were so today! And yet what abuses followed (cf. chap. xiv). One cannot but be impressed with the mention of the second coming of Christ in connection with the gifts of the Spirit here referred to (i. 7). Would it be going too far to say that the attitude of earnest look ing, of assiduous waiting, or “waiting it out,” as the Greek word literally | means, for our Lord Jesus Christ is to be consid-
704 THE KING’!: sense : First, it is instantaneous and takes place at conversion, and as such is the separating of the sinner from sin unto righteousness, and from the world unto God (cf. vi. 11; 1 Peter i. 2; Hebrews x. 10). Second, sanctification is used in the progressive sense—that is to say, we grow in grace (2 Peter iii. 18; Colossians iii. 10; Ephesians iv. 23, 24) and “follow after . . . sanctification” (Hebrews xii. 14). Third, sanctification will be completed when we shall be presented before the Father in that great day (cf. 1 Thessalonians v. 23 R. V.). Believers, then, being saints, should manifest sanctification ■ in life. This epistle insists upon such sanctification of life, or else exclusion from the church: “But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one not to eat” (v. 11). The believer is perfectly sanctified in his standing before God; he is growing in sanctification in his state here upon the earth; he is sanctified at the time of his regeneration (vi. 11). He is sanc tified;'he is being sanctified; his sanctifica tion will be completed at the coming of our Lord.1 “The church of God which is at Corinth . . . with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both their’s and our’s” (i. 2). The church at Corinth is b u t'a part of the Church uni versal. No one church or congregation has a monopoly of faith or of the graces and gifts of the gospel. The message is for believers in every place. We are to understand by these words that the spirit ual gifts which were enjoyed by the Cor inthian believers were not limited to that church (cf. iv. 17; vii. 17 y x. 16; xiv. 36, 37 ; xvi. 1). Four things are mentioned in connection with the Corinthian believers : Consecra tion—“sanctified in Christ Jesus” ; holiness —“called of God to be saints;” solidarity —they were part of the church universal —of “all that in every place call upon
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