First, we see that we must purge out the old leaven to become a new lump without leaven; it is also clearly stated that Christ is the Passover Lamb, and even for a believer who has committed sexual immorality, there is still hope that his spirit may be saved. Second, we see that more is required of those within the church than of those outside it. Third, it states that believers should not sue against one another, but rather a wise brother should act as an arbitrator among the saints, and they should be willing to suffer a loss. Fourth, it discusses examples of how the unrighteous cannot inherit the kingdom of God, as well as the issue of homosexuality. Finally, it addresses the principle that “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable,” and urges believers not to commit sexual immorality but we are to be united with the Lord and become one spirit with Him. It emphasizes that we were bought at a great price, so we must glorify God in our bodies. We also addressed the so-called “trichotomy” is correct, which is hidden within the title, and cited two previous articles.
Please note that this article is an expansion of the topicwise Bible study held on Sunday (8/9/26). Unless otherwise specified, verses refer to those in NASB95. If this article refers previous articles, they can all be found on our website, ‘https://a-christian-voice.com/’; click on ‘Understanding Spiritual Life’.
1. Get rid of the old yeast so that you may be a new batch of unleavened bread
“It is actually reported that there is immorality among you, and immorality of such a kind as does not exist even among the Gentiles, that someone has his father’s wife. You have become arrogant and have not mourned instead, so that the one who had done this deed would be removed from your midst. For I, on my part, though absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged him who has so committed this, as though I were present. In the name of our Lord Jesus, when you are assembled, and I with you in spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus, I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough? Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”(1 Corinthians 5:1-8)
Right from the start, the example given clearly refers to a case of sexual immorality—specifically, a man who took his stepmother as a wife. Why is his wife? We can understand this by looking at how Paul handled the matter. He said, “You have become arrogant and have not mourned instead, so that the one who had done this deed would be removed from your midst.”(1 Corinthians 5:2) Therefore, this is not a capital offense of sexual immorality, because the Scripture makes it very clear: “If there is a man who lies with his father’s wife, he has uncovered his father’s nakedness; both of them shall surely be put to death, their bloodguiltiness is upon them.”(Leviticus 20:11) But this is clearly prohibited by the Law: “A man shall not take his father’s wife so that he will not uncover his father’s skirt.”(Deuteronomy 22:30) Therefore, it is clearly a grave sin, and the one who commits it must be expelled. Furthermore, “In the name of our Lord Jesus, …with the power of our Lord Jesus, I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.”(1 Corinthians 5:4-5)
Even so, he still hopes that this person will repent and be saved, for he knows full well that “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”(1 John 1:9) Although sins may be forgiven, sometimes punishment in this life is absolutely unavoidable, just as the Old Testament Scriptures say: “‘Fear not, O Jacob My servant,’ declares the LORD,‘And do not be dismayed, O Israel; For behold, I will save you from afar And your offspring from the land of their captivity.
And Jacob will return and will be quiet and at ease, And no one will make him afraid. ‘For I am with you,’ declares the LORD, ‘to save you;
For I will destroy completely all the nations where I have scattered you,
Only I will not destroy you completely. But I will chasten you justly And will by no means leave you unpunished.’”(Jeremiah 30:10-11)
A prime example of someone who absolutely must be punished while still alive is King David. When he used the hand of an Ammonite to kill Uriah the Hittite and then took Uriah’s wife as his own, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Behold, I will raise up evil against you from your own household; I will even take your wives before your eyes and give them to your companion, and he will lie with your wives in broad daylight. Indeed you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel, and under the sun.’””(2 Samuel 12:11-12) He truly repented; he even wrote Psalm 51 and gave it to the choirmaster to sing. In it, he said, “For I know my transgressions,
And my sin is ever before me. Against You, You only, I have sinned
And done what is evil in Your sight,
So that You are justified when You speak And blameless when You judge. Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me.”(Psalm 51:3-5) By the way, the end of this passage also confirms what we mentioned earlier: that people are born with sin.
Then it says, “In the name of our Lord Jesus, when you are assembled, and I with you in spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus.”(1 Corinthians 5:4). Paul was so busy that it would have been impossible for him to know the exact time of every one of their gatherings, so this refers to what he did for the church in Ephesus, namely, “…while making mention of you in my prayers.”(Ephesians 1:16)
Note that the term “spirit” is used here: “…so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.”(1 Corinthians 5:5). This is because Paul is speaking of believers; when they are justified by faith, their spirit is saved, and they receive a new spirit and the indwelling Holy Spirit, as the Scripture says: “Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.”(Ezekiel 36:26-27) If this person does not repent, he has forsaken his salvation of his own accord, and his spirit can no longer be saved. We discussed this point in detail previously in “1201 Working with God to have life, faithfulness and judgment, and power – 1Co(3)1-(4)21” under the section “2. Working together with God to have our lives.” Please refer to that article.
He is indeed concerned that a little leaven can leaven the whole lump, just as he has consistently said, “A little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough.”(Galatians 5:9) We must purge out the old leaven to become a new lump without leaven: “Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”(1 Corinthians 5:8) Here, too, it is clearly stated that Christ is the Passover Lamb. The Old Testament Passover was a shadow, while the New Testament points to Christ as the true Passover Lamb. Do we not see yet another clear proof that “the Old Testament is the shadow, and the New Testament is the reality”?
2. Higher standards for believers than for non-believers
“I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? But those who are outside, God judges. Remove the wicked man from among yourselves.”(1 Corinthians 5:9-13)
This passage clearly illustrates that more is required of those within the church than of those outside it. Consider these verses: “For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? But those who are outside, God judges. Remove the wicked man from among yourselves.”(1 Corinthians 5:12-13) Just as the Scripture says, it is only by leaving the world that one can avoid having fellowship with all the sexually immoral. This is also what Jesus prayed for while He was on earth: “I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one.”(John 17:15) If all Christians were to leave the world, how could the Great Commission ever be fulfilled?
3. Believers should not sue one another but should be willing to suffer loss
“Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? If the world is judged by you, are you not competent to constitute the smallest law courts? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more matters of this life? So if you have law courts dealing with matters of this life, do you appoint them as judges who are of no account in the church? I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not among you one wise man who will be able to decide between his brethren, but brother goes to law with brother, and that before unbelievers? Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded? On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren.”(1 Corinthians 6:1-8)
Paul’s logic is very clear. He says, “Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more matters of this life?”(1 Corinthians 6:3) Therefore, do not let the unrighteous judges of this world—whom the church despises—judge matters of this life; rather, let a wise brother act as an arbitrator among the saints. This leads to the point that believers should not sue one another but should be willing to suffer a loss. The reality, however, is the opposite: “On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren.”(1 Corinthians 6:8) The Corinthian church at that time had many problems; this was just one of them. Please note that there is no mention here of whether believers may bring lawsuits against non-believers, because the Scripture makes it very clear: “But those who are outside, God judges. …”(1 Corinthians 5:13). Who is to say that God is not using you to judge that outsider? However, you must be extremely cautious and absolutely certain about this, because, conversely, who is to say that you yourself are not being tempted?
4. Examples of how the unrighteous cannot inherit the Kingdom of God and homosexuality
“Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.”(1 Corinthians 6:9-11)
We know these examples of how the unrighteous cannot inherit the kingdom of God, but we must understand that these are merely examples, not an exhaustive list, because those who cannot inherit the kingdom of God are not limited to these. Another passage says, “Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”(Galatians 5:19-21)
The verses in Galatians 5:19-21, apart from the mention of “homosexuals,” the other items listed—such as adultery—clearly refer to acts of unrighteousness; we need only clarify the point regarding “homosexuals.” This passage explicitly states that homosexuality is a sin: “…God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error.”(Romans 1:26-27)
God cannot tolerate such sins. The Scripture makes it very clear: “You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination.”(Leviticus 18:22) And there is a penalty: “If there is a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act; they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltiness is upon them.”(Leviticus 20:13) We know that “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne;
Lovingkindness and truth go before You.”(Psalm 89:14) Indeed, God revealed His righteousness through such laws, and in the New Testament, He revealed His love even more fully.
The New Testament states, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”(John 3:16-18) God loves the world, regardless of whether a person is homosexual or not. Therefore, if a person believes in the Lord—regardless of whether they were previously homosexual—they can receive eternal life. For when a person truly has faith, that faith will be accompanied by deeds, as the Scripture says, “Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.”(James 2:17) Such a person of faith will certainly repent, and “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”(1 John 1:9) You can find examples of this on YouTube. For instance, there is a man who testifies that he was once a homosexual, but later became a Christian and went on to become a theology professor.
Some might say, “I was born homosexual.” Even so, know this: “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.”(Philippians 4:13) Although it may take some time, He can take away what you call your “innate nature.” The conclusion is we must separate the person from their actions: we must love homosexuals with Christ-like love, but we must also abide by what the Bible says and not love their sinful acts.
Finally, let’s look at the last verse: “Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.”(1 Corinthians 6:11) As we’ve said before, “I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able.”(1 Corinthians 3:2) Therefore, being “washed, sanctified, and justified” refers to the process of justification by faith. When we accept Jesus, we are washed by His blood and sanctified in that very moment; thus, we are declared righteous by God. This is only the beginning; from then on, we must walk the path of sanctification until we are conformed to the image of Jesus.
5. All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable
“All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything. Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, but God will do away with both of them. Yet the body is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body. Now God has not only raised the Lord, but will also raise us up through His power. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take away the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? May it never be! Or do you not know that the one who joins himself to a prostitute is one body with her? For He says, “The two shall become one flesh.” But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him. Flee immorality. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”(1 Corinthians 6:12-20)
Right at the beginning it says, “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.”(1 Corinthians 6:12) Then an example is given: “Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, but God will do away with both of them. …”(1 Corinthians 6:13) Indeed, these things are all within the body and are subject to decay. This reminds me about Jesus’ words: “…Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.”(Matthew 4:4) This is spiritual food, which will never perish.
Then it says, “…Yet the body is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body.”(1 Corinthians 6:13) It is clear that sexual immorality does not glorify God; this is evident we shouldn’t do this in the statement, “For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”(1 Corinthians 6:20) That is why it is said that the body is for the Lord.
Why is it that the Lord is also for the body? When Christians are justified by faith, they already possess a new spirit and the indwelling Holy Spirit, just as Ezekiel prophesied: “Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.”(Ezekiel 36:26-27) Therefore, at that time, the spirit had already been saved. It was not a revival of the old spirit, but the presence of a new spirit.
The redemption of the body will take place at the Lord’s return, as the Scripture says: “For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.”(1 Thessalonians 4:15-17)
Since human beings are composed of spirit, soul, and body, as the Scripture plainly states, “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”(1 Thessalonians 5:23) In fact, this is not the only passage that states this; if we examine both the Old and New Testaments together, we will see that when a person dies, the spirit departs first, followed by the soul, and once the soul has departed, the person is dead. We previously discussed this point in detail in “1056 Healing a hemorrhage woman, resurrecting a daughter, and sending the twelve -The image of Jesus (11),” under the section “2. The resurrection of the daughter of Jairus.” Please refer to that article.
When we are unable to completely resist the Holy Spirit’s prompting, the body we possess consists only of the physical form guided by the soul. Our body is, after all, “…from it (ground) you were taken; …And to dust you shall return.”(Genesis 3:19) Therefore, the body is perishable, but the soul is eternal, as the Scripture says, “When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained; and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?””(Revelation 6:9-10)
In other words, in this present age, we must ensure that our souls “Do not quench the Spirit.”(1 Thessalonians 5:19), and even when there is no moving of the Holy Spirit, we must allow our souls to stand on God’s side—just as in the beginning, before Adam sinned, when he had God’s thoughts as his own, for he was created in God’s image, as the Scripture says, “God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”(Genesis 1:27) Therefore, in this present age, the Triune God desires to win back our soul so that it may, as in the beginning, be subject to the Holy Spirit’s leading. Since the body is subject to the soul, the Lord is also for the body.
We know that “Now God has not only raised the Lord, but will also raise us up through His power.”(1 Corinthians 6:14) This is precisely what was mentioned earlier: the redemption of the body will take place at the Lord’s return. We believe this now, and at that time we will see God’s mighty power. Now, “so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.”(Romans 12:5). We absolutely must not be united with a prostitute to become one body with her, for as previously stated, sexual immorality does not glorify God; rather, we are to be united with the Lord to become one Spirit. The term “Spirit” is used here because it is common to the Triune God. The Holy Spirit is Spirit, and the LORD is Spirit, as this Scripture says, “God is spirit, …”(John 4:24). He also has a body; otherwise, Moses could not have seen His back, as this Scripture says: “Then the LORD said, “Behold, there is a place by Me, and you shall stand there on the rock; and it will come about, while My glory is passing by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock and cover you with My hand until I have passed by. Then I will take My hand away and you shall see My back, but My face shall not be seen.””(Exodus 33:21-23) When Jesus became incarnate, He was like a human being and, of course, had a spirit, and a soul and a body. When He returned to Heaven, He is one of the Triune God and is Spirit.
Know this: “…Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body.”(1 Corinthians 6:18) We also know even more clearly that, as stated in 1 Corinthians 3:16 and reiterated here, the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. In other words, as the Scripture plainly states, “…we are the temple of the living God; …”(2 Corinthians 6:16). It is very clear: “Flee (sexual) immorality. …”(1 Corinthians 6:18). Instead, we are to be united with the Lord and become one spirit with Him.
Finally, we will briefly discuss what was mentioned earlier: that a person is composed of spirit, soul, and body. As implied in the title of this discussion, the so-called “trichotomy” is correct. We previously discussed this point in “1193 Strengthen, God’s and brotherly love, rapture, and watchfulness – 1 Thess.(3)1–(5)28” under the section “6. Do not repay evil with evil, and the trichotomy.” Please locate that article and the other detailed article mentioned therein.
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