I Corinthians 3:17

If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are (KJV)

Then: Think through the meaning of defiling the temple - of sinning -- and the starkness of this sentence strikes believers with guilt and shame. For all sin and fall short. Paul writes of the extreme black and white contrast between purity and failure. On its surface and standing alone, Paul's statement is very hard, adamant. Thankfully, God provided the way out, but the ultimate implacable result of defiling the temple which holds the Spirit of God is destruction. Followers do have a choice. Continue --or repent and be forgiven. Paul has to focus on the end game which is his call to teach the gospel. Any church deviating from the foundational principles needs to know doctrine, discipline and correction. Paul writes what he has to to effect change.

Now: We need both sides of a coin to understand what following Christ means. To stay only with the soft, gooey presentation that God is love is reassuring and comforting to all who have expienced the misery of living without him and of doing life their own way. They don't normally need reminders of the consequences of sin. In this verse Paul talks about the final extreme, the end where disobedience and self-will overwhelm the Holy Spirit which had been invited into the believer's soul and is so out of control, the Lord's only choice is to exact judgement. The foundation will survive, but nothing else will.

Temple of God - I Corinthians 3:16

Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? (KJV)

Then: Most Christians don't do temples, but Corinthians did. Every temple had a deity with its images everywhere (Thiselton, p. 316). Think Apollo, Aphrodite and Octavia. What about the Christians? They met in someone's large house. Corinthians needed this explanation on two levels. First, theological. Paul speaks to the entire group for "you" is plural, but temple is singular. The Spirt of God resides in the corporate community and "temple" is a metaphoric explanation (Collins, p. 161). Second, practical. They'd just heard that buildings can be destroyed by fire, so too could temples be burned. Christians were a spiritual temple, whose Lord could never be destroyed. In the tongue lashing they could still take comfort that the Lord them so much he sent warnings of their transgressions.

Now: We understand that each individual is also a temple of God. This is the verse Christians cite, but actually, that specific meaning comes later in 6:1 (Collins, p. 161). "Know ye not" or "Don't you know" is the first of ten times Paul uses the phrase. Thiselton (p. 316) points out that its use means Paul cares deeply that believers know a fundamental principle. Actions detrimental to the Spirit cannot stand - especially when they are magnified in the corporate body and threaten the standing of the whole church, not just an individual.

Extra Source: The First Epistle to the Corinthians: a commentary on the Greek text by Anthony C. Thiselton (Authentic Media, c2000) online at http://books.google.com/books?id=IHG_DNLpmroC&dq=1st+Corinthian+commentaries&printsec=frontcover&source=in&hl=en&ei=W9fQSpC1GILplAfHiumoCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=11&ved=0CB8Q6AEwCg#v=onepage&q=&f=false
First Corinthians by Raymond F. Collins and Daniel J. Harrington (Collegeville MN: Liturgical Press, c1999) online at http://books.google.com/books?id=c4VXq9fKoRwC&dq=Sacra+Pagina+and+1st+Corinthians&printsec=frontcover&source=in&hl=en&ei=NqEJS7XzEITklAeejdiEBA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=11&ved=0CDUQ6AEwCg#v=onepage&q=&f=false

I Corinthians 3:2

I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able (KJV)

Then: After 18 months of Paul's one-on-one teaching and even after five years (Baker, p. 55) of experience, the Corinthians are still toddlers in the faith. What can Paul do since they have not listened to the Holy Spirit and waste time bickering with each other? The divide between where they are and where they should be is so significant, they are unable to carry out the mission of a church. Actually all Paul can do is provide revelations of insufficiency and encouragement to change. Change and growth come through individual convictions and relationship with the Holy Spirit. But Paul's teachings are throughout this letter are key to starting the process and providing measurement standards.

Now: This verse contains the classic standard of comparison which believers and church leaders use time after time, year after year, as a measure of spiritual growth. Where do believers stand? How do they measure up? Which practices reveal knowledge of the Word, its application, and ultimate purpose? Both poles are seen here - the maturity of Paul and the immaturity of the Corinthians. That's why all scripture is useful for inspiration and teaching.

Extra source: Cornerstone Biblical Commentary 1 Corinthians (William Baker), 2 Corinthians (Ralph Martin & Carl Toney), ed. by Philip Comfort. Carol Stream: Tyndale House Publishers, c2006.

1 Corinthians 1:26

For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called (KJV)

Then: Called to be Christians, the Corinthians are bickering over who had the greatest preacher. Fitzmyer calls that a scandal (p. 136 & 151). He sees verses 18-21 as showing the impact (which Paul identifies) within the church and its public reputation as two problems. The self-status of the Corinthians is putting the church at risk. Paul needed them to go back and reevaluate their individual personal relationships to the Christ who had died for their sin. Without Christ were they wise? Mighty? Noble? That's the starting point for individuals and for groups wanting to serve the Lord.

Now: If you only stick with the personal message of Paul's letter, everything he says relates to a believer's spiritual growth. If you broaden it to local congregations, parts of Paul's letter apply to one season of a church's growth and parts to another. Everything Paul says can be taken as warnings. Be on the lookout for the church's reputation in a community. Be on the lookout for interpersonal relations within a congregation. Always remember Christ, who he was, what he did, and his love for us. Growth follows.

Joseph A Fitzmyer First Corinthians: a new translation with introduction and commentary (New Haven CT: Yale University Press, c2008). http://books.google.com/books?id=W3b-mWk1SxoC&dq=Corinthians+introduction&printsec=frontcover&source=bl&ots=fMjYisa8HV&sig=5Pr-s91r1P4zUIBQyyXFDX6IlP8&hl=en&ei=uqUBS76pK9KGlAfEg52ZCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CBQQ6AEwBThG#