Tuesday October 21, 2014

Read 1 Corinthians 1:1-2, 1 Corinthians 6:11, Hebrews 10:10, Col 3:5.

 The Church at Corinth was a mess, to say the least. Just a quick perusal of the letter shows that they were divided over minor issues. They had factions forming around different leaders and each group vied to be the best. They bustled to be the most spiritual in the church. They rejected the Apostle Paul’s authority and apostleship. He just wasn’t as good as some of their “super Apostles”. They were taking each other to court and were suing each other. Infidelity among marriages was common place and some even boasted in their ‘sexual freedom’. They ate food that had been dedicated to idols and some were even getting drunk at church while the Lord’s Supper was being celebrated.

Paul addressed this broken & worldly church as ‘those sanctified in Christ’.  Even though they hadn’t proven to be as sanctified as us, Paul still calls them ‘sanctified in Christ’. The word ‘sanctified’ is the same Greek word that is used in Colossians 1:2 (namely, holy). Context decides which one is best to use. As we’ve already seen, sanctified means to be ‘set apart’. Being set apart was not uncommon in Paul’s day. All religions had a setting apart. The question or issue was to whom or to what you were set apart. Christians are set apart exclusively to the Lord through the work of Christ Jesus at the cross.

If we are to understand how Paul can call this messed up church ‘sanctified/ holy’ we need to understand several aspects of holiness. Positional holiness is a term used by theologians to refer to our standing in Christ. From the moment we are granted faith in Christ, our sins are removed/forgiven. God sees us through Christ and thus as though we are perfect. We stand in a position of holiness. 1 Cor 6:11 and Heb 10:10 speak of our position in Christ. Notice that they are past actions completed by Christ at the cross. They are in no way dependant upon anything we have done or will do. Positional holiness, once granted by God through faith in Christ, cannot be undone or removed.

Progressive holiness is the present work of the Holy Spirit in our lives whereby we become increasingly set apart from sin and worldliness. Progressive holiness is as much by the grace of God as our salvation but here we cooperate with God. The Bible talks about striving for holiness, about taking off the old and putting on the new and so on. Read Colossians 3:5 as an example of progressive holiness. Progressive holiness grows as we read the Word and seek to live it out in our daily lives. It matures as we relate to God through prayer. It develops as we fellowship together and sharpen each other as iron sharpens iron.

The Church at Corinth was positionally holy. However, in their every day sanctification, they had a long way to go. But let’s not judge them for we are all in the same boat. We are all holy before God and we all have a long way to go.

Prayer:

Use the Bible passage from today and the reading notes to write down your prayer points before you pray.

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Adoration:

Confession:

Thanks:

Supplication:

¥ Pray that our cell groups would be havens of holiness - growing in understanding of our positional holiness and encouraging and spurring each other to great heights of daily holiness.

¥ Ask the Lord to bless the work of Shiloh ministries in India by providing them with all they need for their daily work. Pray that many would come to Christ in faith through their work.

Walk Moment:

Progressive holiness grows out of our love for God. Grow in love for God and you’ll grow in holiness.

 Discussion Questions

1.  Explain how positional and progressive holiness sit together. Can you illustrate this?

2. Read Galatians 1:8. Paul never condemns the brothers at Corinth but speaks very very very harshly to the brothers at Galatia. Why is this?

3.  If a so called believer cares little about progressive holiness, what would this suggest about their positional holiness?

  Discipleship Moment For Girls

Intro: Imagine a bride walking down the aisle, beautifully dressed but with a stain on her train! YUK! When Christians choose to sin, it’s like that stain. God wants us to grow in holiness and has done everything needed to make us holy!

Discuss a particular sin or issue you have struggled with. Discuss how you felt after confessing that sin/struggle to God.

Read  1 Corinthians 6:9-11

What has God done for us in Christ Jesus?

What does it mean to be washed?

Pray together that God would show you the joy of being washed in Christ as well as the joy of striving daily to be holy.

 Discipleship Moment For Boys

Intro: Imagine! You’re about to pick up the girl of your dreams for a date. As you are about to knock on the door, you notice a stain on your clean white shirt!  YUK! When Christians choose to sin, it’s like that stain. God wants us to grow in holiness and has done everything needed to make us holy!

Discuss a particular sin or issue you have struggled with. Discuss how you felt after confessing that sin/struggle to God.

Read  1 Corinthians 6:9-11

What has God done for us in Christ Jesus?

What does it mean to be washed?

Pray together that God would show you the joy of being washed in Christ as well as the joy of striving daily to be holy.