Episode Synopsis:As a cosmopolitan city and home to many varieties of Greco-Roman paganism, Corinth was a cutting edge place for first century fashion and culture. From what we know regarding the city’s ethos at the time, there was growing tension between traditional gender roles and a desire for women to express themselves in non-traditional ways long associated with polite Greco-Roman society. One obvious way to show this quest for personal freedom was for a woman to wear her ha...

Episode Synopsis:We’ve come to 1 Corinthians 10:14-11:1, as Paul wraps up his discussion of idolatry. In the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, Christian believers drink the cup of blessing and eat the broken bread–described by Paul as a participation in Christ’s body and blood. Since so many in Corinth were still hanging on to remnants of their pagan past, from what Paul says here it seems many were still attending both the Christian sacrament as well as pagan sacrifices. To t...

Episode Synopsis:If you have ever wondered what it would be like for Paul to teach you how to read and understand the Old Testament in light of the coming of Jesus Christ, in 1 Corinthians 10:1-13, the apostle does exactly that. The birth of Israel stems from deliverance from their bondage in Egypt, followed by the Passover, and then the Exodus through the Red Sea before heading into the Sinai wilderness on their way to the promised land of Canaan. For Paul, this is an important p...

Episode Synopsis:If we were to find Paul’s notes for an upcoming lecture on “my philosophy of ministry,” we would probably find the words of 1 Corinthians 9:19–23,"For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I becam...

Episode Synopsis:The church in Corinth was plagued by factions. One source of division was ethnicity–the church was made up of Jews, Greeks, Romans, and likely a number of other nationalities. Then there were the factions formed by church members who identified with Paul, Peter, or Apollos, as their favorite teachers. There were also deep cultural divisions between the wealthy and the poor who found it difficult to socialize with one another even within the body of Christ.&n...

Episode Synopsis:In 1 Corinthians 7:17-40, Paul teaches what I call the “you can’t unscramble eggs” doctrine. What should a new Christian do when they come to faith in Jesus Christ? Do they quit their current “secular” job to devote themselves full-time to Jesus Christ and to the work of ministry? Should they rush into marriage to avoid the lusts of the flesh? Or conversely, should they seek to end an engagement because the time of the end might be drawing near? ...

Episode Synopsis:Paul’s Gentile mission was a huge success. A number of new churches were established throughout the eastern Mediterranean world–including fast growing churches in important cities such as Corinth, Thessalonica, and Ephesus. But with the spread of the gospel into a previously unevangelized world dominated by Greco-Roman culture and religion, came a whole set of pastoral problems–problems which were not specifically addressed in the Old Testament or in the teaching ...

Episode Synopsis:Sex and marriage were pressing issues in Corinth. Gentiles who came to faith in Jesus Christ during Paul’s Gentile mission were learning the biblical sexual ethic for the first time. Grounded in the creation order, the Ten Commandments, and the teaching of Jesus, it did not take long for the Corinthians to understand that sex was not merely a pleasurable bodily function, but biblical sexuality has a strong moral foundation. That meant that much of the common...

Episode Synopsis:It has been said that prostitution is the world’s old profession. In reality, tending a garden and naming animals is. But if you lived in first century Corinth you lived in a city well-known for its prostitutes and rampant sexual immorality. This creates a difficult situation for Christians who live there and who have been taught by Paul that sexual relations are limited to marriage.Paul has learned that some in the Corinthian church justified using the serv...

Episode Synopsis:Corinth was a booming city with lots of new money and great stress upon the power and prestige that goes with it. One way to enhance your public image was to take advantage of those who had something you wanted or needed, or to shame a rival or get a leg up on someone you didn’t like, was to sue them in civil court. Corinth was a very litigious place with one citizen complaining that there were far too many lawyers in the city. The legal system in Corinth wa...

Episode Synopsis: When passing through Ephesus, where Paul was living at the time, members of Chloe’s family informed Paul of a situation in the Corinthian church of such a serious nature that Paul is taken aback.  A man in the Corinthian church (presumably known to the church but unnamed by Paul) is cohabiting with his father’s wife.  Such conduct was scandalous to the point that even the sexually libertine Greco-Roman pagans were offended by it.  While the man’s conduct was shameful, what...

Send us a Text Message. Episode Synopsis: Paul expressed a fair bit of righteous anger in his letter to the Galatians–calling those taken in by false teachers foolish people who have been all-too easily bewitched by false teachers.  In 1 Corinthians 4, the apostle again expresses his frustration, speaking sarcastically of those who think of themselves as rich (when they are poor), and as kings who act as though they rule the church (when they are not).  But Paul will have none of it.  It...

Episode Synopsis: So what will it be?  Milk or meat?  Are the Corinthians spiritual toddlers?  Or are they mature Christians?  Since they are being drawn to the factions forming within the church (“I follow Paul,” “I follow Apollos”) it is clear that no matter how mature they think they are, in reality they are immature.  Their lack of progress in Christian maturity provokes a response from Paul who challenges the Corinthians to consider who they are in Christ and how that should impact the...

Episode Synopsis: Paul did not come to Corinth as a typical sage, sophist, or philosopher.  He was an unimpressive rabbi and made no attempt to embrace Greco-Roman rhetorical techniques to keep an audience entertained and wanting more.  Paul’s mission to the Gentiles was not about him, it was about the message he preached, Christ and him crucified.   When Paul arrived in Corinth he was weak and fearful.  He impressed no one with his charisma or eloquent speech.  But he did know that the...

Episode Synopsis: The cross of Jesus Christ is utter foolishness to those who are perishing in their sins.  Yet, Paul tells the Corinthians that through message of the cross God reveals his wisdom and power.  In the closing section of the first chapter of his first Corinthian letter, Paul explains how and why the preaching of Christ crucified confounds all those who seek mere human wisdom from sages, holy men, philosophers, prophets, and gurus across the ages, all of whom claim to be...

Episode Synopsis: Paul has gotten some rather bad news.  Members of Chloe’s family (presumably people Paul had known from his time in Corinth) had come to Ephesus (where Paul was currently laboring).  They informed him of serious troubles back in Corinth.  People were quarreling to the point that factions had developed in the church, with various groups identifying as followers of Paul, while others claimed to be loyal to Apollos, or to Peter.  Some even claimed to be merely followers of...

Episode Synopsis: In the opening 9 verses of Paul’s first Corinthian letter, Paul sets the stage for what is to come.  Although he was in Corinth for some eighteen months and knew many of those to whom he is writing quite well, his apostolic authority was being challenged by some in the congregation.  Paul must address this matter by reminding the Corinthians of his apostolic office and calling. Although we might expect a stern rebuke given what Paul has heard about what was going on in...

Episode Synopsis: Paul’s first Corinthian letter was written to deal with divisions in the Corinthian church.  He’s received a letter from the Corinthians asking him about how to deal with the Greco-Roman pagans around them, as well as how to handle professing Christians who either did not understand, or implement the apostle’s instructions.  In Ephesus, where Paul was residing, someone who had just come from Corinth passed on to Paul the news that the Corinthians had misunderstood his...

Episode Synopsis: I’m very excited to kick off season three of the Blessed Hope Podcast because we are taking up one of the most interesting and challenging letters in all the New Testament–Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians.  This is a letter which is practical in the best sense of the term and we will spend a great deal of time going through it in some detail. One of the first things we will notice in Paul’s First Corinthian letter is that he is not writing a systematic treatise (as...

Episode Synopsis: The first time I heard the term “optimistic amillennarian” was in seminary, when a student asked one of the professors whether they were postmillennial or amillennial.  The professor said he admired much about postmillennialism, but thought amillennialism was the biblical view.  But after saying that, he blurted out, “well, maybe, I’m optimistic Amillennial.”  That started quite a discussion among the students, with the postmillennial students pressing the amillennial...

Episode Synopsis: The mere mention of the Antichrist conjures up all kinds of spooky movie images, demonic plot lines, and eerie special effects–all designed to play upon our fears of a satanically inspired, menacing figure doing their master’s bidding.  The list is long, but a few examples should help–The Omen (with the brat antichrist child, Damien), and the sequels, then came Rosemary’s Baby, 11-11-11, the Devil’s Advocate, and a host of others fit in this genre.  Throughout the...

Episode Synopsis: Whenever you discuss biblical eschatology and the end times, you must address the future of Israel and the Jewish people.  The subject is greatly complicated by the fact that along with the longstanding biblical debates over Israel’s future, there is also the complicated history of Zionism.  The unprecedented events surrounding the establishment of a Jewish state first conceived in the Balfour Declaration in 1917 (as a consequence of the Great War), came to fruition with...

Episode Synopsis: From the moment of our Lord’s ascension into heaven (as recounted in Acts 1:8) Christians have expected the Lord’s bodily and imminent return.  Both Jesus and the apostles had a fair bit to say about his return as well as those signs which would precede the end.  So, from the dawn of the church, until now, some two thousand years removed from our Lord’s life and ministry, Christians have eagerly expected the Lord’s return.  What are these signs of the end, and how are we...

Episode Synopsis: I am not a fan of jigsaw puzzles–I don’t have the patience to put them together, and I am too easily distracted by the shapes of the various pieces.  So, I lose sight of the big picture, and then I get frustrated and attempt to jam pieces into the puzzle where they don’t fit. Many people have the same trouble with the Bible.  Why do we need to see the big picture?  Why can’t we just get to the signs of the end (the individual pieces)?  What should we expect to happen...