1Corinthians 10: 1 – 13

March 14, 2023

Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,

2 Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

3 Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

4 I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ;

5 That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge;

6 Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you:

7 So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:

8 Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

9 God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

10 Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

11 For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you.

12 Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.

13 Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?

Two important messages here; first, if someone is preaching a gospel that doesn’t line up with what we know about all that Jesus told us – walk away. We tend to think of ‘false gospel’ as something from long ago but unfortunately, it is still being spread today. A lot of it can be found on YouTube, for instance though not there alone. Be very careful where you get your religious news, commentary, entertainment, and information.

Second, we accept one baptism and one only. It doesn’t matter what kind of a person the priest is who baptizes you; the priest is at that moment a representative or agent of Jesus and in that moment your relationship with God is sealed. The same thing is true about Holy Communion – when we receive the Body and Blood, it isn’t the man in the collar who offers it to you, it is the representative of Christ who administers the Communion. If you find you belong to a Church which has become apostate, by all means find a new Church but don’t ask or expect to be baptized again – that’s like saying the first one didn’t ‘take’. You were baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. You are “we are very members incorporate in the mystical body of thy Son, which is the blessed company of all faithful people” (BCP, pg. 83)

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