Shaped in Tension Pastoral Reflections on 1 Corinthians: Preface

Shaped in Tension

Pastoral Reflections on 1 Corinthians: Preface

I. Why Now?

Every generation of the church faces its own moments of tension.

Two thousand years ago, Corinth was a prosperous yet complex port city. Greek philosophy, Roman power, and Eastern religions converged there, making it a crossroads of culture and values. The early Corinthian church lived within this environment of competing forces. Believers from different social classes, languages, and religious backgrounds gathered into one community. This brought great potential, but also planted the seeds of division and misunderstanding.

Today, though we live in a different age, our churches often find themselves in strikingly similar circumstances. When language congregations guard themselves against one another, when ministries compete for limited resources, and when younger and older generations struggle to understand each other’s values, we are not far from Corinth.

II. Seeing Corinth, Seeing Ourselves

Paul received troubling news: the believers in Corinth were aligning themselves with different spiritual leaders—

“I belong to Paul,” “I belong to Apollos,” “I belong to Cephas (Peter),” “I belong to Christ” (1 Cor 1:12).

In that cultural setting, following a teacher was not only a theological preference but also a matter of social status, rhetorical style, and cultural identity. It was more than admiring different pastors; it became a way of defining one’s worth and drawing the line between “us” and “them.”

Yet Paul did not respond with a new plan for resource allocation, nor did he argue which group was most correct. Instead, he asked a piercing question: “Is Christ divided?” (1 Cor 1:13). His concern was not primarily about positions but about identity. Unity, Paul reminds us, is not a negotiated compromise—it is the identity into which we have been called from the beginning.

We do not belong to a particular leader, department, or group. We belong only to the Lord who was crucified for us.

III. Why We Must Hear Again

In recent years, our church has walked along three paths:

• Intergenerational discipleship – inviting all ages to worship and journey together, while challenging us to lay down preferences and truly listen.

• Diversity and unity – seeing differences of language, culture, and ministry not as threats but as opportunities for mutual completion, though this requires deeper trust and love in the midst of limited resources.

• Family culture – calling us to let faith permeate daily values, choices, and conversations, not remain confined to Sunday pulpits or classroom walls.

These visions are beautiful, yet they also expose our struggles. Without the gospel, we are left with little more than systems of negotiation and calculations of resources. Tensions will only intensify, for the real problem is not methods but the state of our hearts.

IV. The Purpose of This Series

This series is not simply exegetical notes. It is intended as a pastoral journey.

1. To read Scripture carefully – paying attention to context and background so that we avoid proof-texting.

2. To engage our present situation – allowing ancient texts to shed light on contemporary struggles and hopes.

3. To return to the cross – making the gospel the core of our unity, renewal, and shared journey.

My prayer is that through this series brothers and sisters may grow in three capacities:

• Biblical literacy: seeing the flow of thought and hearing Paul’s logic.

• Discernment: resisting fragmented or biased teachings.

• Life connection: allowing Scripture to enter family, ministry, and community.

V. A Letter Across Time

Paul’s letter to the Corinthians addressed their immediate problems, yet it also speaks across the centuries to us.

In a diverse and tension-filled world, our calling is not to secure the strongest position, but to return to Christ. It is Christ who reshapes our identity, who teaches us how to walk together amid differences, and who makes us one family in love.

May these reflections serve as a letter across time, leading us back to the cross, where we are shaped together by Christ.

—Pastor. Antony

(For a helpful overview of 1 Corinthians, readers are encouraged to view the Bible Project introduction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUBZoT9hD-o)

Footnote：

1. Gordon D. Fee, The First Epistle to the Corinthians (NICNT), p.3–5.

2. Kenneth E. Bailey, Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes, p.42–45.

3. Anthony C. Thiselton, The First Epistle to the Corinthians (NIGTC), p.129–132.

4. Joseph A. Fitzmyer, First Corinthians (AYB), p.121–124.

5. Gordon D. Fee, The First Epistle to the Corinthians, p.47.

6. Peter Scazzero, The Emotionally Healthy Church, p.87.

7. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together, p.21.