Confronting Brokenness in the Church

Paul left the church a treasure in the letter he wrote to the Christian community in Corinth-the letter we call 1 Corinthians. Sure, Paul was writing with a first-century audience in mind and likely assumed that the second coming of Christ was imminent, but we still benefit from the teachings we find in this letter. By reading it, we gain a rare glimpse not only of Paul's teachings on how to be the church, but also of the difficulties our brothers and sisters of the first century faced. We should avoid the temptation to dismiss this book as merely a record of a church that once was and is no longer. The words of Paul reach across the centuries to call us to repentance and unity. As Paul struggles with his beloved brothers and sisters who have failed time and again in Corinth, we can easily hear how Paul might struggle with us even today. Paul's original audience struggled with divisions, arguments, jealousy, and sin. They debated what to believe and how to live. The church in Corinth was pressed in on all sides. It was fragile and given to quarreling. In many ways, the Corinthian Christians were struggling even to remember the most basic things Paul had taught them about following their Lord Jesus. Yet Paul refused to write off these beloved brothers and sisters. Instead, he wrote them a letter in which he promised his undying love for them, even going so far as to name them as his children. Through all of their failures, Paul refused to abandon them to the world, for in them dwelled the spark of God's love that Paul had seen work miracles in many places. Paul confronted the brokenness of this beloved church in Corinth. It was a congregation that was still worth fighting for. Such a timeless message is fresh and relevant in Christian communities all over the world who are also worth fighting for. With Paul, we learn to confront the brokenness of our beloved church.