1 Corinthians 1

The book of 1 Corinthians, chapter 1
Greetings from Paul
This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be
An apostle of Christ Jesus, and from our brother Sosthenes

I am writing to God's church in Corinth, to you who have been
Called by God to be his own holy people. He made you holy by means
Of Christ Jesus, just as he did for all people everywhere who call
On the name of our Lord Jesus Christ—their Lord and ours. May
God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace

Paul Gives Thanks to God
I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has
Given you, now that you belong to Christ Jesus. Through him
God has enriched your church in every way—with all of your eloquent
Words and all of your knowledge. This confirms that what I told
You about Christ is true. Now you have every spiritual gift you
Need as you eagerly wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ
He will keep you strong to the end so that you will be free from
All blame on the day when our Lord Jesus Christ returns. God
Will do this, for he is faithful to do what he says, and he has
Invited you into partnership with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord

Divisions in the Church
I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, by the authority of our
Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be
No divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought
And purpose. For some members of Chloe's household have told me about
Your quarrels, my dear brothers and sisters. Some of you are saying
"I am a follower of Paul." Others are saying, "I follow Apollos,"
Or "I follow Peter," or "I follow only Christ." Has Christ been
Divided into factions? Was I, Paul, crucified for you? Were any of
You baptized in the name of Paul? Of course not! I thank God
That I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius
For now no one can say they were baptized in my name. (Oh yes
I also baptized the household of Stephanas, but I don'
T remember baptizing anyone else.) For Christ didn't send me
To baptize, but to preach the Good News—and not with clever
Speech, for fear that the cross of Christ would lose its power

The Wisdom of God
The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for
Destruction, but we who are being saved know it is the very power of
God. As the Scriptures say, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise
And discard the intelligence of the intelligent." So where does this
Leave the philosophers, the scholars and the world's brilliant
Debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish. Since
God in his wisdom saw to it that the world would never know him
Through human wisdom, he has used our foolish preaching to save those
Who believe. It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven
, And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. So when we
Preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the
Gentiles say it's all nonsense. But to those called by
God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the
Power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of
God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God'
S weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength

Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the
World's eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. Instead
God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those
Who think they are wise, and he chose things that are powerless to
Shame those who are powerful. God chose things despised by the world
Things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing
What the world considers important. As a result, no one
Can ever boast in the presence of God. God has united you
With Christ Jesus. For our benefit, God made him to be wisdom
Itself. Christ made us right with God. He made us pure and
Holy, and he freed us from sin. Therefore, as the Scriptures
Say, "If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord."