Key Word : saints

1 Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,

Called to be an apostle, and the phrase will of God, are references designed for those in Corinth who may have questioned Paul’s right to speak authoritatively (cf. 1 Cor 9:1). He had not taken this honor to himself, but had a divine commission for it. It was proper at any time, but necessary now, to assert his character, and magnify his office, when false teachers made a merit of running him down, and their giddy and deluded followers were so apt to set them up in competition with him. They were trying to vilify his person and ministry, 2 Cor 10:10. The most faithful and useful ministers are not secure from this contempt. It was not Paul’s pride, but faithfulness, at this juncture, to maintain his apostolic character and authority.

Sosthenes "of safe strength" our brother (lit., the brother) may designate the ruler of the synagogue mentioned in Acts 18:17,. The definite article may mean nothing more that that he was a well-known Christian. If, this is the Corinthian Sosthenes of Luke's account, then the beating he received from the Greeks was a blessing; he became a Christian!

2 Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

The church is the church of God, not of Cephas, or Apollos, or even Paul (cf. 1 Cor 1:12). Sanctified in Christ Jesus introduces an important doctrine, yet one very much misunderstood. The Greek word hagiazo means "to sanctify," not in the sense of "to make holy," but in the sense of "to set apart" for God's possession and use (cf. John 17:19). Christians are not sinless, although they should sin less The use of the perfect participle here refers to positional sanctification. Christians are saints now, not by human canonization, but by God operating in their lives. Paul's aim in the letter was to bring the Corinthians' practical life into more definite conformity to their position in Christ. With all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours does not extend the address to all Christians, but guards against the tendency to confine the teaching to Corinth only (cf. 1 Cor 4:17; 7:17; 11:16; 14:33,36), a further confirmation of the oneness of the universal body of believers.

3 Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

The familiar grace and peace refer to grace and peace in the Christian life.

charis -graciousness; especially the divine influence upon the heart, and eirene peace (literally or figuratively); by implication, prosperity:

4 I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ;

The word eucharisteo--- to be grateful, i.e. to actively express gratitude (towards); KJV - (give) thanks That Grace of God which is also responsible for the spiritual gifts mentioned later.

5 That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge;

Utterance probably includes more than the gift of tongues (cf. 1 Cor 12:8-10,28-30) since it uses the Greek word LOGOS and not glossalia The Corinthians had a wide assortment of utterance gifts (see 14:26).

6 Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you:

The Greek word testimony refers to the fact that the missionaries, besides proclaiming the truths of the gospel, had borne witness to the power of these truths. Confirmed bebaios stable (literally or figuratively)

There were signs and wonders and gifts of the Holy Ghost, by which God did bear witness to the apostles, both to their mission and doctrine to the Corinthians(Heb 2:4), so that the more plentifully they were poured forth on any church the more full verification was given to the apostles doctrine the more confirming evidence they had of their divine mission.

7 So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:

The result of the Corinthians enrichment is that they come behind in no gift. While the word charisma, translated gift, has a wide variety of meanings, it probably here refers to spiritual gifts in the technical sense (cf. 12-14). Waiting, a strong double compound word, meaning to wait ardently or eagerly, expresses the believers' attitude as they use the gifts in God's service.

8 Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Confirm was used in Koine Greek as a technical legal term referring to a properly guaranteed security (ibid., p. 138). They have God's guarantee that they shall be in his presence at Christ's return. Blameless -------egkaleo to call in (as a debt or demand), i.e. bring to account means "unimpeachable". "The implication is not merely the acquittal of a charge but the absence of a charge or accusation against a person.

9 God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

Everything is grounded on the fact that God is faithful. Fellowship has as its primary thrust the concept of having a share in, then a common share. Thus, all believers have a share in Christ and, consequently, a share in one another. This is the hinge upon which Paul attacks the party spirit, the climax of the attack being reached in 1 Cor 3:21-23.