Putting Jesus First: Overcoming Church Divisions

First Corinthians begins with Paul giving thanks for the believers in Corinth, because God has enriched them in Christ with “all kinds of speech and with all knowledge.” Paul does not flatter them with empty words. Paul names real grace before he names real problems, because Christ has truly been at work among them.

Acts 18 places Paul in Corinth, a major crossroads of the Mediterranean world. Corinth’s port-city life brought money, cultures, religions, travel, and a kind of “anything goes” spirit into one place. That worldly culture eventually sneaks its way into the church, the way worldly practices and worldly philosophies always try to work their way into God’s people, sometimes obviously and sometimes more subtly.

First Corinthians then turns quickly to the first big problem, divisions in the church. Paul appeals “in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ” that there be no divisions, but that the church be united in mind and thought. Chloe’s household has reported quarrels, and the quarrels have taken the shape of teams: “I follow Paul,” “I follow Apollos,” “I follow Cephas,” and “I follow Christ.”

Acts 18 shows Apollos as a learned man, strong in the Scriptures, fervent, accurate, and teachable. Priscilla and Aquila help him understand the way of God more adequately, and Apollos later becomes a great help in Corinth. The problem is not that Paul, Apollos, or Peter are bad leaders. The problem is that a good gift has become a source of division.

The Corinthian habit of admiring public speakers and philosophers has wormed its way into the church. The people are treating church leaders the way the culture treated famous speakers, picking favorites and forming followings. Paul refuses to play that game. Paul asks, “Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul?”

The cross stands over every secondary thing. Paul says Christ sent him to preach the gospel, not with wisdom and eloquence, “lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.” When the church puts preferences, personalities, politics, music styles, decorations, or minor theological debates in first place, the cross gets treated as secondary. But Christ belongs in first place.

Paul later says that Paul planted, Apollos watered, but God made it grow. Leaders are servants. God is the one who gives life. The church is God’s field, God’s building, God’s temple, and God’s Spirit dwells in its midst. Unity in the church comes from mature believers putting Jesus first, because Christ cannot be divided.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Unity is not uniformity Unity does not require every believer to think exactly the same about every secondary issue. Uniformity belongs to cults, but Christian unity belongs to people who know which truths are held in a closed hand and which questions can stay in an open hand. The church can disagree about many things without letting those differences become dividing walls. [50:31]
• 2. Secondary things can drain power Paul refuses to let eloquence, charisma, and rhetorical skill become the center, because those things can empty the cross of its power. Even good gifts become dangerous when they take the place that only Christ should occupy. The church loses spiritual clarity when personality, preference, or style becomes more fascinating than the crucified Lord. [54:05]
• 3. Christ cannot be divided Paul’s question, “Is Christ divided?” cuts through every faction and favorite-team spirit in the church. The cross does not create competing camps around Paul, Apollos, Peter, or any other leader. Christ’s body cannot be treated like a fan base, because the one crucified for believers is the only rightful center. [53:08]
• 4. Leaders are only servants Paul planted and Apollos watered, but God made things grow. That image protects the church from making celebrities out of servants and from confusing usefulness with ultimate importance. Faithful leaders matter, but God alone gives life, growth, and fruit. [55:32]
• 5. God’s temple must stay whole Paul calls the church God’s temple, not merely a collection of religious individuals. Division is serious because God’s Spirit dwells among the gathered people as a holy dwelling place. The unity of the church is not sentimental niceness, but reverence for what God has made sacred. [56:24]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [30:25] - Youth Camp Reflections
• [32:22] - Day in the Park and Metro Relief
• [33:42] - Returning to First Corinthians
• [35:07] - Grace, Speech, and Knowledge
• [36:31] - The Problems in Corinth
• [37:03] - Unity Comes From Putting Jesus First
• [37:45] - Corinth as a Cultural Crossroads
• [41:07] - Paul Names the Divisions
• [42:15] - Paul, Peter, and Apollos
• [45:42] - Corinth’s Culture of Famous Speakers
• [48:48] - Warnings Against Church Factions
• [50:31] - Unity Is Not Uniformity
• [53:08] - Is Christ Divided?
• [55:32] - God Makes the Church Grow

Bible Reading

1 Corinthians 1:10-13
“I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought. My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, ‘I follow Paul’; another, ‘I follow Apollos’; another, ‘I follow Cephas’; still another, ‘I follow Christ.’ Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul?” [41:29] [41:57] [53:23]

1 Corinthians 3:5-9
“What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.” [55:27] [55:32] [55:41]

1 Corinthians 1:4-5
“I always thank my God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in him you have been enriched in every way—with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge—” [35:28]

Acts 18:24-28
“Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John. He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately. When Apollos wanted to go to Achaia, the brothers and sisters encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him. When he arrived, he was a great help to those who by grace had believed. For he vigorously refuted his Jewish opponents in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Messiah.” [42:58] [43:18] [44:00]

Observation questions

1. In 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, what specific signs of division does Paul name in the church at Corinth?
2. What details in Acts 18:24-28 help explain why some people might have been drawn to Apollos as a leader? [43:07]
3. In 1 Corinthians 3:5-9, what different roles do Paul, Apollos, and God each have in the life and growth of the church? [55:41]
4. What kinds of things were named as the sort of secondary issues churches can divide over? [50:03]

Interpretation questions

1. Paul gives thanks for the Corinthians before addressing their problems. What does that suggest about the way believers should view a church that has real weaknesses but also real grace? [35:07]
2. Paul asks, “Is Christ divided?” Why is that question so powerful when a church starts organizing itself around personalities, preferences, or favorite leaders? [53:23]
3. Paul says he did not want to preach with wisdom and eloquence “lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.” How can good things like skill, charisma, or style start to compete with the message of the cross? [54:05]
4. Paul calls leaders “only servants” and says God is the one who gives growth. How does that change the way a church should think about gifted leaders? [55:32]

Application questions

1. It is easy to notice division in other people before noticing it in oneself. In what kinds of conversations is there a temptation to stir up a team spirit—around leaders, politics, music, ministry preferences, or something else? [49:10]
2. Unity is not uniformity. Are there any open-hand issues that have become closed-hand issues in personal attitudes lately? What would it look like to hold those differences with more humility while still loving truth? [50:52]
3. Christ must stay in first place over every secondary thing. What secondary issue is most likely to distract the heart from Jesus right now—personality, style, politics, preferences, or being right? [53:08]
4. Leaders are servants, not the center. Is there any tendency to put too much weight on a certain teacher, preacher, author, podcast, or church personality? How can gratitude for helpful leaders stay healthy without becoming unhealthy attachment? [48:48]
5. The world’s habits can quietly work their way into the church. What parts of the surrounding culture seem most likely to shape the church in the wrong way right now? [40:29]
6. The church is God’s temple, and God’s Spirit dwells in its midst. How would relationships change if fellow believers were regularly seen not as obstacles or opponents, but as people joined together in a holy dwelling place of God? [56:24]
7. Mature believers put Jesus first so that the church can stay united. What is one practical step that could help protect unity this week—repenting of a harsh attitude, refusing gossip, reaching out after disagreement, or praying for someone viewed with frustration? [57:25]