Paul’s Ministry in Corinth – Ten “Lepers” Healed

Serving – July/August 2022 – Grace & Truth Magazine

Paul’s Ministry In Corinth —
Ten “Lepers” Healed

In 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 the apostle Paul listed ten types of sinners some of the Corinthian believers had been before they were saved. The number ten represents man’s responsibility before God and His creation, as well as toward all human beings. The Epistle To The Romans doctrinally proves human failure, namely that all have sinned and find themselves without any remedy (1:28-32, 3:23).

However, many in Corinth repented of their sins when they heard Paul’s message about Christ crucified being the power and wisdom of God (1 Cor. 1:18-31). They received God’s wonderful grace and healing, as His Word convicted them. These individuals accepted the message of God’s salvation and were restored to Him. All this was the result of the ministry of our glorified Lord Jesus in heaven who, by His Spirit, was working through Paul, even though Israel as a nation still rejected their Messiah.

At the beginning of His earthly ministry, the Lord healed a leper – a miracle which proved He was the Messiah (Mt. 8:1-4). In fact, at that time the rabbis had listed several miracles the Messiah would do once He had come, to show He was God’s Messiah (Isa. 35:5-6). In the fullness of time He came (Gal. 4:4) and performed those miracles, but the leaders ascribed, or assigned, them to Satan and accused Jesus of being his instrument (Mt. 9:34, 12:24). Blasphemy! Even so, toward the end of His work on earth, through a few words, the Lord Jesus healed ten lepers, all at the same time. Only one of them, a Samaritan, went back to thank Him (Lk. 17:12-19). How sad!

Paul’s Ten Lepers In Corinth
The incurable disease of leprosy illustrates man’s condition as a sinner, without any possible remedy (see Jer. 17:9)1 – that is, apart from divine intervention, a work of God’s sovereign grace. The apostle used the term “unrighteous” (1 Cor. 6:9) to describe the Corinthian spiritual lepers in their general condition before God, which is true of all people – Jews and Gentiles (Rom. 3:10). Paul named ten specific sins, characteristic of their former condition, which demonstrated the tragic failure of our fallen race. Those ten confirm the truth of Romans 3:10-23 and describe it in frightening detail. The words in italics in the following list are cited from 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 (NKJV), with a few brief explanations or comments added. We should understand that every generation faces these issues even though the immediate context may greatly differ.

1. Fornicators – males or females who practice sexual immorality, often associated with idolatry (10:7-8).
2. Idolaters2 – worshipers of idols, but not limited only to statues or things of that nature.
3. Adulterers – married people involved in sexual activities outside of their marriage bond.
4. Homosexuals – persons of the same gender who have sexual relations with each other, usually in or outside of pagan temples.
5. Sodomites – those involved in another form of homosexual practice, at the time linked with pagan worship.
6. Thieves – individuals who take away what belongs to God or one’s neighbor, in various contexts.
7. Covetous – greed or lust, a form of idolatry (Eph. 5:5), infringing on God’s or people’s rights.
8. Drunkards – people lacking self-control when using alcohol (in itself allowed), causing one to be intoxicated.
9. Revilers – slanderers, deliberately rendering a false testimony about God or one’s neighbor.
10. Extortioners – swindlers, guilty of snatching things away from someone by strife or oppression, or forcibly taking away what does not lawfully belong to them (see 1 Cor. 5:9-13).

The types of behavior referred to in the above ten points characterized the Corinthians before their salvation. Paul taught that those things should never again be found among them as Christians (v.11). Why not? Because as believers, Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 6:11, they had been:

• Washed – through the blood of Christ (judicially, once for all) and the water of the Word3 (morally);
• Sanctified – set apart for God in this world (see Heb. 2:11, 10:10); and
• Justified – declared righteous by a holy and just God, as doctrinally taught in Romans 3–8.

These three aspects of an entirely new condition before God imply His sovereign intervention, based on Christ’s accomplished work on the cross, including His death and resurrection. The three are done:

• In the name of the Lord Jesus, who is absent from this earth but is at work as the Man in the glory;
• By the Spirit of our God operating on earth (1 Cor. 6:11) in and through the believers (3:16); and
• In believers made subject to God’s rights, brought in tune with God and introduced into His kingdom.

These actions of God’s grace apply to all believers and have a lasting impact on them, as God works in them. When He called them, the Corinthians’ condition was summed up as: there were not many wise, mighty or noble. Rather, they were weak, foolish, at the bottom of society, despised and even called nothing (1 Cor. 1:26-28). Nevertheless, saved and transformed, they now had become suitable and useful instruments of God’s grace.

The Heavenly Master Encouraged His Servant
“Now the Lord spoke to Paul by night by a vision, ‘Do not be afraid, but speak, and do not keep silent’” (Acts 18:9). The text says that it was “by night,” a time the enemy especially used to attack Paul. The same night, however, the Lord spoke to Paul, giving him the confidence and encouragement needed to continue his work. This account is not given to emphasize the fact that Christ appeared to Paul in a vision, or other details. Rather, it underscores the contents of the message the Lord gave him, speaking directly from the glory:

1. “Do not be afraid” – the Lord’s encouragement to Paul;
2. “Speak and do not be silent” – the Lord’s counsel to Paul;
3. “I am with you” – the Lord’s assurance to Paul;
4. “No one will attack or hurt you” – the Lord’s promise to Paul;
5. “I have many people in this city” – the Lord’s plan for Corinth (consider Acts 13:48).

Many in Corinth had been saved, and more would follow (18:10). Some of them we know by name: Sosthenes, Chloe, Crispus, Gaius, Stephanas with his household, Fortunatus, Achaicus (1 Cor. 1:1,11,14,16, 16:15,17). Gaius may be Justus (see Acts 18:7), who hosted Paul and an assembly in his home. Tertius was the brother in Corinth who wrote down the long Epistle To The Romans that Paul dictated. Besides him, we read about Erastus, the city treasurer, and the brother Quartus, mentioned together in giving greetings to the saints in Rome (Rom. 16:21-23). This passage shows that Timothy was with Paul when he wrote 1 Corinthians, as was Jason, Paul’s host in Thessalonica (Acts 17:7). Phoebe from Cenchrea, Corinth’s port city, is commended to the saints in Rome (Rom. 16:1). Aquila and Priscilla were with Paul in Ephesus when he wrote 1 Corinthians (16:19). They worked with him there (Acts 18:2-3), gathering much fruit for God – a great many people, as He had told Paul in that vision in Acts.

Paul The Overcomer
Strengthened by the Lord, Paul stayed for 18 months in Corinth, longer than in any other place on his missionary journeys thus far. Later, during his third journey, the apostle remained in Ephesus for about three years. Often finding himself in difficult situations – even impossible conditions – Paul was a true overcomer. Instead of becoming discouraged, he continued with the Lord’s help (1 Cor. 2:3-5; 2 Cor. 1:3-4). Scripture presents Paul as a true example for all believers.

Christians are exhorted to always put on the full armor of God (read Eph. 6:10-20). This is needed for protection against the wiles of the enemy, as we use the sword of the Spirit, God’s Word, for the Master’s interests, not for our own advantage! This is how we may be true overcomers as well, learning from Christ the great Overcomer (Jn. 16:33) and from Paul (2 Tim. 4:16-18). Our heavenly Lord is the Same, also today, to save, help and lead on. All praise and glory be to Him! GT

ENDNOTES
1. “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?” (Jer. 17:9 ESV).
2. Idols represent counterfeits of the true God and take away what is due to Him, causing people to lose respect for Him and for each other (read Rom. 1:21-32). Paul wrote Romans when he stayed at Corinth, toward the end of his third missionary journey (Acts 20:2-3). He witnessed paganism in many forms during his first visit there and again when writing Romans. Soon after Noah’s flood, idolatry was publicly introduced (Gen. 9–10) as described in Romans 1. God called Abram (Gen. 12) as well as the believers (1 Th. 1:9; Rom. 8:28) out of idolatry.
3. The water of the Word needs to be applied regularly, which implies continued self-judgment. Christ’s blood, however, must be applied only once, because His work cannot be repeated. It is sufficient for God and for the one who believes.

By Alfred Bouter