The Cross’ Invitation to Integrity + Deep Fulfillment
1 Cor. 6:9–20
Break Bread
Enjoy the company of each other. Eat together with gratitude. If possible and/or if no food, take communion together. Ask highs and lows of the week.
Worship (Worship through a Psalm)
Transition to a space friendly for deep engagement. Worship through a Psalm
We are going to start a time of worship. For worship instead of singing songs, we are going to use a Psalm (the Israelite’s “Spotify” for worshiping God). This is how we’re going to do it. We are going to pick a Psalm. And each of us will read aloud 2 verses aloud. After it is read, we will spontaneously say a prayer of praise in response to what is read. When we feel led to continue (or after 1-2 min, we will continue onto the next 2 verses until the Psalm is complete.
Suggested Psalms:
Psalm 100
Psalm 8
Psalm 19
Psalm 92
Psalm 145
Have One Person Read this Background Aloud
Paul’s discussion of sex and sexuality in 1 Cor. 6 is controversial in our modern culture. But the topic of sex and Paul’s remarks upon it in 1 Corinthians 5–7 were more controversial in Corinth than they are in our modern time. Greece is a country of angular peninsulas and right in the center was Corinth. Anyone who wanted to go from Northern Greece to Southern Greece, or East to West by sea, has to pass through a 4-mile isthmus, in the middle of which was Corinth. Either you go several miles and weeks around Greece, or you can just unload your cargo in that isthmus, cart it across four miles and then continue on your way, saving yourself hundreds of miles and a nice chunk of cash.
There was so much sexual activity in Corinth that the word “Corinth” became a verb in the ancient world: “to Corinthianize” was to have sex with anything you could get your hands on. There was a ridged skyline on the way up to Corinth with an elevated structure, the Acrocorinth, which held a Temple dedicated to the worship of the goddess of sex and erotic love, Aphrodite. Every night in Corinth, over 1,000 temple prostitutes would descend the Acrocorinth to have sex all over the city. If this sounds a little like the dark side of Vegas, we’re starting to get the picture, but in some ways it’s even darker. When we think of ‘prostitutes’ we commonly think of adult women. But in Corinth it was both males and females, many of whom were teens or even younger, and all of whom were sex slaves owned by the Temple. Now you know what that extra chunk of cash saved was used for. Corinth was a culture of money and sex first and foremost, and as such, it was also a culture of financial exploitation and sexual exploitation, both of which Paul calls to account.
In Corinth, the view of the body was so low such that sex was without restraint irrespective of who/what/when. In America, our culture’s views of the sexuality are not too far off along with our culture’s conclusions. Paul sees these misalignments with the intention of God, the maker and designer of our bodies and is responding to a wildly sexual culture (Corinth). In that response, there is an invitation and challenge for us Americans who live in not too far of a reality.
The Biblical view, as talked about in our sermon, places a uniquely “high view” of the body. It is not just a vessel for pleasure, but a vessel to host the Spirit of God and to love God. Compounded with the foundation of us being made in God’s image, biblical sexuality offers a radically different and more freeing invitation for the world to enter into.
The topic of sexuality is a sensitive one especially one in our culture. That being said, it is critical to engage and wrestle with the Bible’s stances of sexuality because of how much damage and confusion exist in our world. We are encouraged to approach the scriptures with an open mind, humility, and graciousness towards everyone’s journey towards Christ.
Group leaders along with everyone participating are encouraged to foster an environment of a shared journey, seeking to take out the “plank out of my own eye” before “looking at the speck in the eyes of others”. Let’s pray and ask God to help us hold our own thoughts captive and to instead speak to us with love and truth.
[Prayer]
Reading
Go in a circle and read the passage taking it a few verses at a time
1 Cor. 6:9–20
Afterwards, leave 30-60 seconds for silent reflection on the reading
Do this Practice Tonight
Go around and try to summarize what is going on in the passage.
Discuss any of the Following Questions (or add your own!)
What word or phrase or idea in the passage caught your attention?
Paul views the body as sacred and a “temple of the temple of the Holy Spirit”. This is a vast difference than both the Roman/Greco culture of the day and the American culture in which we live in. In what ways does our culture fall short of this view of the body?
Part of living in American culture is the belief we have a right and freedom to our personal fulfillment. This forms the foundation into our culture’s views on sexuality. How does our identity in Christ challenge / reposition that?
Implicit in the passage is an invitation to inherit the kingdom of God. In what ways can I help bring people to the kingdom of God, even as we are ourselves, in age of great sexual obfuscation?
Paul dedicates a whole chapter speaking about sexuality in the Corinthian church. What do you perceive is the importance of aligning our ideas of sexuality with God’s ideas in our discipleship journey?
What is God saying to us through this passage?
Is there an action I feel called to take this week?
Consider these questions in same-gender groups
What’s an area of sexuality where I feel challenged by the Bible?
What areas in my sexuality do I need to grow in to represent my true identity in Christ?
Is there an action I feel called to take this week?
Suggestions for Practices for the Week
Journal at the start of the day with the prompt: “Lord, in ways how do you want to grow my sexuality to reflect Christ’s character?
Who do I need to talk to to grow in this area?
Leaving Together
Say goodbye Stand at the door with a blessing and a hug