Having laid the foundation for the book of 1 Corinthians in our first two messages, we looked at the church as first a loving, and then united, community. As we begin our expositions, we see in the first three verses a typical salutation, in that it identifies the author and his recipients. Paul, writing under apostolic authority, identifies his recipients as, “the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints” (1 Cor 1:2). It is interesting, even ironic, that Paul begins by counting the Corinthian Christians as sanctified, as it is this very same people that he is about to soundly rebuke for their worldliness, sin, and ungodly practices. Though they seem so carnal and worldly in the way they mimic partiality to secular leaders, use secular courts, dine in pagan temples, and live in sexual immorality, they are yet set apart from this perishing world. Their identity, which for many in the church was still being derived from their status in society (free, slave, Jew, Gentile, rich, poor, male female) is rather found in Christ and established in light of the Gospel. And a significant part of this letter is devoted to help the Corinthian church understand their true identity that they might reflect it in their behavior inside and outside the church.
Holiness should be a trademark of the church; it should be typical of our life with one another. We live in the world, but not of it. And our holiness is derived from the Holy One who has loved us, purchased us, and indwells us. It is our calling then to be holy, for God is holy, and we must display His holiness to this world.
