1 Corinthians 6:1-8
1: Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints?
2: Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? If the world is judged by you, are you not competent to constitute the smallest law courts?
3: Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more matters of this life?
4: So if you have law courts dealing with matters of this life, do you appoint them as judges who are of no account in the church?
5: I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not among you one wise man who will be able to decide between his brethren,
6: but brother goes to law with brother, and that before unbelievers?
7: Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded?
8: On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren.
Paul reproved the Corinthians for their inability, or unwillingness, to handle matters of dispute within the church—among other believers. Paul told them that the world, and angels, were to be judged by them, so why was it that they couldn’t even settle disputes among themselves, but instead went before the unrighteous heathen in a court of law? Why were they not presenting these cases before the saints? Was there not one wise man among them who could make a decision between two who disagreed?
In Paul’s mind, it was unthinkable to bring a dispute before an unrighteous judge. How would he be able to judge according to God’s wisdom and justice? Paul went further to say that even the fact that the disputes couldn’t be settled between the two parties involved in the first place, but had to go before a third person at all, was wrong. Someone should have taken the higher road and allowed themselves to be wronged by their brother in the love of God. Instead, they both were intent on wronging and defrauding their brother in Christ.
Remember, Paul had called them infants and fleshly back in chapter three. If one is to be mature and wise in God’s sight, he must be able to properly judge right from wrong. Every believer needs to come to this place, to take their own feelings out of it, and judge as God would. Yet even for those who are too immature to do this, we at least need to have a wise one among us who can.
2: Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? If the world is judged by you, are you not competent to constitute the smallest law courts?
3: Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more matters of this life?
4: So if you have law courts dealing with matters of this life, do you appoint them as judges who are of no account in the church?
5: I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not among you one wise man who will be able to decide between his brethren,
6: but brother goes to law with brother, and that before unbelievers?
7: Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded?
8: On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren.
***
Paul reproved the Corinthians for their inability, or unwillingness, to handle matters of dispute within the church—among other believers. Paul told them that the world, and angels, were to be judged by them, so why was it that they couldn’t even settle disputes among themselves, but instead went before the unrighteous heathen in a court of law? Why were they not presenting these cases before the saints? Was there not one wise man among them who could make a decision between two who disagreed?
In Paul’s mind, it was unthinkable to bring a dispute before an unrighteous judge. How would he be able to judge according to God’s wisdom and justice? Paul went further to say that even the fact that the disputes couldn’t be settled between the two parties involved in the first place, but had to go before a third person at all, was wrong. Someone should have taken the higher road and allowed themselves to be wronged by their brother in the love of God. Instead, they both were intent on wronging and defrauding their brother in Christ.
Remember, Paul had called them infants and fleshly back in chapter three. If one is to be mature and wise in God’s sight, he must be able to properly judge right from wrong. Every believer needs to come to this place, to take their own feelings out of it, and judge as God would. Yet even for those who are too immature to do this, we at least need to have a wise one among us who can.
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