1 Corinthians 5:1-13
Healthy church requires honesty. Paul writes a tough chapter on the overall health of the church. He brings up an example of a member of the church who is living a sexually immoral lifestyle. He makes the point that as a body of believers, if one part of the body is living in outright sin, it is unhealthy for the rest of the body. The church of Corinth was ignoring, if not even boasting in this man’s presence as if all was right and good in the community. 
As a body of believers we are asked to call sin for what it is within other believers so as to restore them back to truth. This way the entire body remains healthy. One of the many reasons God created us to be in community is so we are able to keep one another healthy in the body of Christ. 
Paul reminds us that it is important and healthy to openly rebuke, as well as encourage other believers with truth, not just opinion. He makes it very clear we cannot call out non believers in their sin. They can not receive that judgement from us, only God can do that. Paul writes in Colossians 4:6 we are to walk in wisdom towards outsiders, always gracious and seasoned with salt. We are to answer each non believer with the wisdom of the Holy Spirit and the example of love and grace Jesus has shown us. 
To create and foster a healthy community it is important to challenge each member of the body. As Paul said back in 3:6-9, we are to water others, so God can grow them. In encouragement and in rebuke in the midst of sin, God can grow each member. Each member is also called to treat others outside of the body with the love of Christ, just as He showed us before we became part of the body.

1 Corinthians 4:1-21
Paul regards himself and all teachers of the gospel as servants of Christ. He challenges us to look at ourselves and see that we are not to be lifted up above anyone else. We are to be so humble in our teaching and in our walk, that we are to not even judge ourselves, let alone judge others. Pride can be found in all judgement. That does not mean we are found innocent no matter what we do. What Paul is saying, is only our Lord God can judge ourselves and others. 
We are to look to scripture and the Holy Spirit to discern God’s judgement upon our actions. He will bring light to all things hidden and disclose purposes of the heart. We are asked to stay true to what is written, so not to pass our own opinion or judgement on actions and ways of ourselves and others. 
Paul chides us in saying that we have ALL because of our Heavenly Father, so how could we ever boast in anything we have, because all was given. At the foundation of all talents and things, we find a generous Father who enables us to have them and cultivate them. 
Paul goes on to say that we must be careful in placing our belief and glory in the teacher, because the teacher is nothing without the Father. Teachers are meant to be a reflection of our great Creator of all. We have a Creator who is more humble than any could ever be, yet more powerful than we could ever understand. 
Each of us who are followers must be weak, so Christ strength shines from us, must be held in low worldly regard so to honor, allow ourselves to be reviled, so we can bless like Christ. Keep walking even in persecution and in slander. All of this so the glory of Christ can be revealed through us without any of us taking credit. 
Paul recognizes that the apostles are important tools of Christ and walk uniquely in His presence. He asks each of us to be imitators of him, because he imitates Christ. This way we remind others of the way of Christ. Paul concludes with, “The kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power.” Guess who is a part of of that kingdom, US, we HAVE THE POWER because of God and the authority of Jesus to be victors every day, in every season. The kind and humble always overcome, because love has overcome all.

1 Corinthians 3:1-23
Paul begins by addressing the Corinth church by calling them out as infants in their faith, unwilling to grow and being completely self centered. The church body was stagnant in their faith and were actively living as though they were pagan, while still preaching the gospel. The church wasn’t acting as a body of Christ but rather as a worldly body reveling in selfish sin. The church was operating out of pride and jealousy of on another and could not bear fruit because of it. 
Paul reminds us that as believers and teachers of the word, we are asked to plant and water seeds of the Spirit wherever we go, and especially within our own community. We have to talk the talk and walk the walk in encouragement and in rebuke within our circle of people. He is sure to mention though that we do not take any credit for the growth which takes place within the body, that only God can grow each of us. 
Our job as those who lay the foundation for growth within the body of believers and non believers is to always lay a solid foundation of Christ. That way at the depth of the person, there sits Jesus holding everything up, not us as people. God builds the rest. His interest is if in our faith, if we are able to walk in humility recognizing that all we can do to produce a healthy body of believers, solely lays in the ability to point it all to Christ, not ourselves. 
We have an important duty as fellow workers with God to make sure everything always points to Jesus so God can grow people and their foundation is in our Savior. Paul goes on to say, that because of Jesus as our foundation and God doing the growing, we are each a holy temple of God. Our bodies have God’s Spirit residing within us. We have to be reverent of our bodies and other people. We are each a holy temple of God and should treat one another as such. 
Paul concludes reminding us that God is the only wise one here and that ALL comes from Him. He asks us to realize and understand that worldly wisdom doesn’t lay foundations of eternal value or allow for humility before God. We have to remember that the world belongs to us, but we belong to Christ, and He belongs to God. God is over all and in all.

1 Corinthians 2:1-16
We are to pursue the secret and hidden wisdom of God with all our hearts, but how do we do that? 
Paul has come to the community of Corinth walking in humility with God. He didn’t look to gather followers through his own wisdom and observation of the people. He had no interest in wowing people with his own intellect. 
He wanted the words of his lips to only profess the Kingdom of God, not the kingdom of man. Paul was so intentional in how he approached the duty of spreading the gospel, that he ‘trembled in fear and weakness’ (2:3) because he had no interest in the gospel spreading because of his own wisdom. He was sold out to relying on the Holy Spirit working through him. 
Paul speaks of the secret and hidden wisdom of God which we are to pursue with a steadfast heart. Paul refers back to Isaiah 64:4 and 65:17 with the words, “What no eye has seen, now ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.” 

From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides you, who acts for those who wait for him.

Isaiah 64:4

If you go back and read those two chapters as well as those verses in Isaiah you will see the mystery of how God works being prophesied through Isaiah in Jesus coming for our eternal redemption. Our righteous deeds without Christ are like polluted garments. Without Jesus our works on this earth are as valuable as dirty clothing unable to be worn. We are so loved.
The miracle of Jesus will forever be a mystery to us on earth. Our God is so great and so generous, He has given us His Spirit so we may know Him. As Paul speaks about the depth of knowledge we have gained, he tells us how important the relationship we have with the Holy Spirit is. The quality of our relationship directly affects our perceived access to the Heavenly Father on a daily basis. I say perceived because we unknowingly throw worldly walls and priorities up in front of us and the Spirit. 
Only the Spirit can bring deep wisdom and truth to our lives. The Spirit searches the depths of our Father and each of us, bringing revelation to our souls. In order for us to know where God calls us and know where our feet are to walk, we must invest as number one priority each day, our relationship with the Holy Spirit. What relationship is greater than that with our Heavenly Father who blessed us for all time with Jesus.

For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind.

Isaiah 65:17

1 Corinthians 1:1-31
Paul is calling out the Corinthian church for not walking with Jesus and basically operating out of the flesh. Today it’s so true of us as a body of believers and is definitely an uphill battle to attempt to walk with the Spirit every minute of every day. Paul’s words are striking and really call us to strip ourselves of worldly wisdom and pride thinking somehow we as people are who lead people to the gospel. In reality Jesus leads people to the gospel. 
Paul makes a statement about being sent to preach the gospel, not just baptize people; doesn’t want to be known for acts of baptism. Why? Because yes baptism is great, but that’s not where it truly counts, or where you gain an active follower of Christ. He challenges us to bring Jesus with us wherever we go, not in human wisdom but by the Spirit. Wisdom is not what connects hearts to Christ, His crucifixion is what changes the heart. It is a change of the heart, not the mind, which is the job of the Holy Spirit within people. God doesn’t call us to be ‘wise’ or all knowing to be followers of Christ or bring people to Christ. He made the world’s wise, foolish by redeeming us through the simple act of Jesus death and resurrection. Simple in the sense that all we have to understand at our most basic level is that OUR GOD died for us. He humbled himself before His people, His creation, to the lowest of low and set that as the bar. 
Jesus calls us to love others so well that all they could do is see it as divine, in the midst of our sin. 

The reward for humility and fear of the Lord is riches and honor and life.

Proverbs 22:4