In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ (KJV)
Then: Paul finishes the "absent in body - present in spirit" thought by tying it to the presence of the Lord. He obliquely reminds them that where two or three are gathered together, the Lord is present. Then he explicitly states that his spirit is also there with the power of the Lord, the source of his apostolic authority to teach, direct and guide. Baker (p. 80) states that Paul is bringing in Jesus' teachings about discipline found in Matthew 18:15-20. Jesus finishes verse 17 with "Let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican." Paul expects the church to meet together, use the power of Christ's name and deal with this problem of immorality.
Now: Ocasionally small churches strictly follow Paul's directions, but today's people are more likely sent to receive counseling (Baker, p. 81). Most churches accept sin as a matter of course, don't expect a problem with eternal punishment, and stay on course with their priority of good works. There have been instances of secular media trumpeting transgressions and promoting the destruction of big name televangelists. Churches respond to PC diatribes in various ways.
Extra source: Cornerstone Biblical Commentary 1Corinthians (William Baker), 2 Corinthians (Ralph Martin & Carl Toney), ed. by Philip Comfort. Carol Stream: Tyndale House Publishers, c2006.
STOP WHINING!
4 years ago
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