Introduction to 1 Corinthians

This coming Sunday we will find out who wrote the book, when it was written and why. We will also cover the first 17 verses of chapter one. These verses set up the themes written about in the book.

Sunday we covered Exodus 35 and 36:1-7. This is the account of Moses giving God's instructions to the people from God for building the tabernacle. It was refreshing to read about the people willingly bringing offerings day after day until they had to be stopped.

What a natural outpouring. When we have returned to the Lord after repenting of sin and fall before Him in worship, the thing we want to do is offer Him whatever we have. Interestingly, work was involved. They brought the materials and worked to make them into the items God ordained. I think we often fail to understand that what we do for God with our resources (that He gave us--remember where the people got what they had!) is real work. It is not always enjoyable and is sometimes tedious. Just because it's not fun doesn't mean it's not worth doing.

What was built as a result of their giving? A place of worship. Giving always leads to worship. It's a cycle that never ends and keeps on giving back to us.

The following chapters detail the work and chapter 40 ends the book by telling us that God inhabited the tabernacle with His glory.