1 Corinthians 5:6–10

“Your boasting is not good. Don’t you know that a little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough? Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened batch—as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with the old bread leavened with malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people—not at all meaning the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave this world.”

A little yeast spreads throughout the whole batch of dough. It is very wrong to boast about worldly things. We must exalt and boast in Jesus Christ, who gives us life and every grace. Following the desires of the flesh and boasting about people are the yeast of malice and wickedness.

We must prevent the old yeast that destroys Christians from spreading throughout the church. Our lives can be preserved only when we eat the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. The bread that contains none of the world’s yeast is the word of Jesus. The Lord’s commands to forgive one another, abandon evil words and actions, and forsake idols and greed are the bread of life.

Anyone who has eaten bread mixed with the yeast of the world must repent immediately. Whenever we sin, we must repent. Anything done outside the word of Jesus is sin. If church members entertain immoral thoughts, exploit others, worship idols, or live according to the ways of the world, they must be warned. We must prevent evil yeast from spreading throughout the church.

The teaching that once a person is saved, that person is eternally saved regardless of how he lives is never the truth of the Bible. Even God’s people will be rejected by the Lord if they become corrupted by the world. Therefore, they must repent quickly and return to Jesus. Those who trust human doctrines and refuse to repent will go to hell. Only the word of Jesus is the bread of life that saves the soul. Human doctrines and knowledge are evil yeast that destroys church members.

Christians who refuse to lay down their pride and continue to live selfishly have also fallen into evil yeast. One church member who is filled with pride and greed can bring disorder to the entire church. When church members hate one another and refuse to forgive, the yeast of Satan has already spread throughout that church.

When a church member severely disrupts the church, that person must be put out of the church. All worldly people live in sin, but they do not know God. Therefore, we must continue to preach the gospel of life to unbelievers. They must also believe in Jesus and live lives of obedience and repentance so that they may be saved. However, we must strictly warn those who have learned God’s word but continue to live wickedly without repentance.

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1 Corinthians 5:11–13

“But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or slanderer, a drunkard or swindler. Do not even eat with such people.

What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside. ‘Expel the wicked person from among you.’”

If someone claims to be one of God’s people but is greedy, worships idols, slanders others, becomes drunk, or exploits people, you must neither associate nor eat with that person. Such church members oppose God’s will and are heading toward destruction. People who have become this corrupt spread evil and filthy sins throughout the church.

Allowing those who corrupt church members to remain in the church is not the love of God. God’s love forgives a corrupt person when that person repents. Continuing to commit evil sins without repentance and corrupting others is the work of Satan.

Those who do Satan’s work among the church members must be warned in the name of Jesus. If they still refuse to listen, they must be put out of the church. Protecting church members from destruction is the true love of Christ.

All human beings are sinners. Even those who believe in Jesus are not perfectly righteous. God’s children rarely commit extremely wicked sins, but they may sometimes speak and act according to the thoughts of the flesh. When this happens, they must repent immediately and correct themselves. This is a normal life of faith.

However, those who continually commit detestable sins and refuse to repent have fallen into slavery to Satan. Those who severely oppose God also corrupt other church members. Therefore, they must be put out of the church so that God’s people may be protected. The Lord’s servants have the responsibility to govern the church according to God’s will.

The claim that we must never point out or rebuke the sins of church members because God is love is a false human doctrine. Every sin must be repented of and corrected. Otherwise, everyone involved will perish. Anyone who severely dishonors God’s holy name and still refuses to repent must be put out of the church.

Those who have become extremely corrupt must be handed over to Satan so that they may suffer. Occasionally, people recognize their sins through severe suffering, repent, and are saved shortly before death. The Bible describes such people as being saved as though through fire.

1 Corinthians 3:15

“If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss but yet will be saved—even though only as one escaping through the flames.”

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1 Corinthians 6:1–5

“If any of you has a dispute with another, do you dare to take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the Lord’s people? Or do you not know that the Lord’s people will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases?

Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life! Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, do you ask for a ruling from those whose way of life is scorned in the church? I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers?”

This passage rebukes believers for arguing with one another and bringing lawsuits before worldly courts. Paul rebuked them for seeking judgment from the ungodly when problems arose between believers. Here, “the ungodly” does not simply condemn individual judges in worldly courts. It refers to the standards of worldly judgment that do not know God’s word or the wisdom of the Holy Spirit.

Believers are those who have received forgiveness of sins through the blood of Jesus and have become God’s people. Therefore, they must not fight with greed, anger, and hatred as worldly people do. They must first repent and seek God’s will.

Paul says that the saints will one day judge the world and even judge angels. This does not mean that believers may live carelessly now. Rather, those who will participate in God’s kingdom in the future must learn to judge even small matters correctly according to God’s word while living on this earth.

Those who hope to enter heaven cannot live by hating, deceiving, and suing their brothers and sisters. Jesus commanded us to forgive our brothers and sisters, love our enemies, and treat others as we would like them to treat us. Therefore, problems between believers must first be resolved by examining their own sins and repenting of greed, pride, and anger.

This passage teaches that there must be wise people within the church. However, this wisdom is not worldly knowledge or eloquence. It is the wisdom that fears God’s word, identifies sin as sin, and leads people into repentance, forgiveness, and obedience.

When church leaders and members depart from God’s word, even small problems are taken before worldly courts, and the shame of the church is exposed. Believers must not dishonor God’s name before the world.

Therefore, believers must not fight against one another. They must resolve their problems within the church through the wisdom of God’s word and the Holy Spirit. Even when they have been wronged, they must first examine themselves before the Lord, repent of whatever must be repented of, and forgive whatever must be forgiven. Believers are people who look toward heaven.

When someone who claims to look toward heaven sues and hates a brother or sister because of worldly greed, that is not the fruit of faith. True faith is not merely saying, “Lord, Lord.” It must be demonstrated in daily life by loving brothers and sisters, abandoning sin, and obeying the Lord’s word.

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1 Corinthians 6:6–10

“But instead, one brother takes another to court—and this in front of unbelievers!

The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated? Instead, you yourselves cheat and do wrong, and you do this to your brothers and sisters.

Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men, nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”

It is not right before the Lord for God’s children to accuse and fight against one another in order to gain more worldly possessions. The Lord teaches that it is better to yield to a brother or sister in the faith. We have the responsibility to devote our bodies and hearts to keeping the Lord’s word and pleasing Him.

Christians who commit unrighteousness and refuse to repent cannot enter heaven. Do not be drawn away by worldly greed or fall into Satan’s temptation. A person may stumble for a moment, but that person must immediately repent and return to the Lord’s word. Those who trust human doctrines, continue living in sin, and die without repentance will not inherit the kingdom of God.

The sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, those who lust after men or women, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, slanderers, and swindlers cannot enter God’s kingdom. Therefore, they must repent and turn away from every sin. Merely confessing sin with the lips without turning away from a sinful life is false repentance.

Even after a person has abandoned these sins, that person may fall into the same sins again when faith becomes weak. When this happens, the person must sincerely repent again and fight desperately to cut off that sin. The Lord desires to see genuine transformation as we struggle and make every effort to abandon sin. Repentance spoken only with the lips, without a change of life, has no value.

God’s children must strive to fulfill His kingdom and righteousness. God created human beings to fulfill His kingdom, but humanity became corrupt. Therefore, God laid humanity’s sins upon Jesus Christ and set people free from sin. This grace is redemption from sin.

Christians who have been redeemed from sin through the blood of Jesus must thereafter live only to fulfill God’s kingdom and righteousness. A life that fulfills the Lord’s kingdom and righteousness acknowledges the Creator God as Lord, forgives and loves others, abandons evil and filthy sins, and lives in goodness.

Faith is not a human theory or doctrine. Faith is the practical act of serving and loving God and one’s neighbors. The faith taught by the Bible is not merely descriptive; it is active faith demonstrated through actions.

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1 Corinthians 6:11–14

“And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, and you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

‘I have the right to do anything,’ you say—but not everything is beneficial. ‘I have the right to do anything’—but I will not be mastered by anything. You say, ‘Food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both.’ The body, however, is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. By His power God raised the Lord from the dead, and He will raise us also.”

When people who lived sexually immoral lives in the world believe in Jesus and repent, they are cleansed by the blood of Jesus and begin to receive the guidance of the Holy Spirit. God declares those who repent and obey according to the Lord’s word to be holy and righteous.

No one can condemn those whom God has declared righteous. God ultimately decides who is a sinner and who is righteous. All judgment belongs to God alone, and the division between heaven and hell is entirely in God’s hands.

Before the apostle Paul knew Jesus, he severely persecuted those who believed in Jesus and greatly hindered the salvation of many people. However, after he believed in Jesus, he lived only for the Lord and even gave his life for the preaching of the gospel. God acknowledged such a man as righteous. All Christians have received this same kind of grace.

However, Christians who abandon the Lord’s word and live according to the ways of the world will perish. Church members who follow the desires of the flesh and refuse to repent will face the Lord’s judgment and eventually perish. Even if they once confessed Jesus as their Savior, those who abandon their faith can never enter heaven.

A person may be praised by many people and become very popular, but if that person violates the Lord’s will and refuses to repent, that person will face the Lord’s judgment. The standard of salvation belongs to God alone.

The only way of salvation is to believe that God came as Jesus Christ and died on the cross, to obey His word, and to repent of every sin. Nothing can replace this way of salvation.

God will bring all worldly things to an end. Food is for the stomach, and the stomach is for food, but our bodies ultimately exist for God. Living in sexual immorality and greed is living for Satan. God’s children must not become corrupted by the world. Whenever they fall into even a small sin, they must recognize it immediately and abandon it.

Just as the Holy Spirit raised the crucified body of Jesus from the dead, He has also brought our spirits, which were dead in sin, back to life. Those who obey the Lord’s word, repent, and keep their faith to the end while living in this world will receive new resurrection bodies on the last day and enter heaven.

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1 Corinthians 6:15–20

“Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ Himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never! Do you not know that he who unites himself with a prostitute is one with her in body? For it is said, ‘The two will become one flesh.’ But whoever is united with the Lord is one with Him in spirit.

Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually sins against their own body.

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”

The body of a Christian is a member of Christ. Jesus is the head, and God’s children are united with one another to form the body of Christ. Therefore, when Christians commit sexual immorality, they sin by defiling the body of Christ. Anyone who unites with a prostitute becomes one body with that prostitute.

The Holy Spirit has come to those who believe in Jesus. A body in which the Holy Spirit dwells is the temple of God. Those who defile the holy temple will rightly face God’s judgment. Therefore, Christians must abandon immoral thoughts, words, and actions. Whenever filthy thoughts enter their minds, they must immediately repent and cut them off.

Other sins are committed outside the body, but sexually immoral people sin against their own bodies. Our bodies do not belong to us. Our bodies, in which the Holy Spirit dwells, are the temple of God, and that temple belongs to God. Therefore, we must not defile what belongs to God.

Because of sin, all human beings were destined for destruction. However, because Jesus received the punishment for humanity’s sins, we can be cleansed from every sin by His blood and begin walking toward heaven. Therefore, Christians who are heading toward heaven must make every effort not to fall again into the filthy sin of sexual immorality.

Our bodies must be used to glorify Jesus Christ, who restored our lives. However, because of the human doctrine that teaches that one act of repentance automatically removes even every future sin, countless Christians commit sexual sins without even repenting.

God bought us back with the price of Jesus’ blood when we were destined to perish because of sin. Having been rescued from destruction, we must make every effort not to fall again into sins that lead to destruction. However, our souls dwelling in corruptible bodies are not yet perfect.

The shoots of sin arise within us every day. Whenever this happens, we must cut off filthy thoughts through the power of the Holy Spirit and keep ourselves clean by being washed through the blood of Jesus. We must not allow sin to take root within us.

Those who leave sin unchecked will eventually become slaves of sin and Satan and will be rejected by God.