Below are 11 main points that blessed me from Brother Zac Poonen's study on 1 Corinthians in his "Through the Bible" series. Lord Holy Spirit, make these life in us through your grace.
1. Be a Nobody - 1 Corinthians 3:7 - Paul says about himself and Apollos, "We are nobodies". We are nothing". That's why they could work together harmoniously. Two nobodies can work together easily. It is when one of them thinks that he is a somebody that problems arise. A church where everyone, from leader down to the newest convert, is just a zero, will be the best church in the world.
2. Only Quality Matters At The End - 1 Corinthians 3:13-14 - In the final day, it will be quality that matters, not quantity. Are you producing something that will last forever? That's the question that must always be on our minds. Am I building the way God wants me to build - with the principles that Jesus taught?
3. Be A Faithful Servant
- 1 Corinthians 4:2 TLB - "The most important thing about a servant is that he does just what his master tells him to". It is not a question of how much you do, but whether you do only what the Lord tells you to do - and in the way He wants it done. For that, you have to wait on God and ask Him, "Lord, what do you want me to do? I want to do only that."
4. Have A Father's Heart - 1 Corinthians 4:14-15 - A true servant of God is a father. He does not shame people. Teachers may shame their students, if the student does something wrong. A good father, however, will never shame his child, even if he does something stupid. But the proportion of fathers to teachers in Christendom is about 1:10,000.
5. Focusing On The Profitable - 1 Corinthians 6:12 - Out of 100 things (in life), 70 things may be unlawful. So, we should not do any of them. But we can do any of the remaining 30 things that are lawful. But out of those 30 things, only 10 may be truly profitable spiritually. A whole hearted Christian will do only those 10 things. But a halfhearted Christian will choose from any of the 30 lawful things. If you want to be a useful servant of God, you will need to be disciplined and cut out some of those unnecessary items from your daily routine and spend more time in the things of God. A wholehearted Christian will use his time and money only in profitable ways. We must learn to make the right choices. The secret of a godly life lies in the choices we make.
5. Living By The Principle of Love - 1 Corinthians 8:9,13 - If you live by the principle of love, you will be concerned about others all the time. To glory in our knowledge and to do what we like, unconcerned about what effect it has on others is the selfish way in which the heathen live. "When you cause your brother to stumble, you sin against Christ" (1 Corinthians 8:12).
6. Disciplining Our Body - 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 - The apostle Paul - the man who established many churches, wrote Scripture, healed the sick, raised the dead, and preached so many wonderful sermons - feared lest he be disqualified. So he kept his bodily passions under control. Don't ever imagine that because God has used you so much, He will definitely take you into His kingdom. Paul did not think so. God looks at our life primarily and not at our ministry.
7. We Are Never Tempted Beyond Our Ability - 1 Corinthians 10:13 - God will never allow us to be tempted beyond our ability. No temptation can ever come into our lives that will be too much for us to deal with. This is what assures us that we can overcome every temptation and be victorious in every trial. There is a way of escape in every temptation and that is to ask God to give you grace to overcome.
8. Doing All Things For The Glory Of God - 1 Corinthians 10:31 - We have a wonderful guideline to find God's will in all areas where Bible is silent. "Whatever you do, do all for the glory of God." Whenever you are in doubt about God's will in any matter, ask yourself, "Can I do this for the glory of God?" If you feel that you cannot do it for God's Glory, then don't do it. This verse must be the principle by which we live all of our life.
9. All The Gifts Are Equally Needed In the Church - 1 Corinthians 12:16, 28 - In the body of Christ, all the gifts are equally needed. So we must never try to do someone else's ministry. Cooperate with them instead. Once you see this great truth, it will deliver you completely from all jealousy, competition and unrest.
10. Let All That You Do Be Done In Love - 1 Corinthians 16:13 - If we obey this word, we can never go wrong. That is how we can all do our part to build our local church.
Link to the "Through the Bible" book: https://www.cfcindia.com/books/through-the-bible
Links to the sermon series messages on 1 Corinthians:
Part 1 - https://www.cfcindia.com/through-the-bible/1-corinthians1
Part 2 - https://www.cfcindia.com/through-the-bible/1-corinthians2