01. Contentions (1 Corinthians 11:16-17)
• 1 Corinthians 11:16 seem is δοκέω (ŏkĕō), a thinking word, means *to be of the opinion*.
• contentious is φιλόνεικος (ŏnĕikŏs), from ílos, a friend or loving, and íkos, a contention, dispute, war, thus it means one who loves conflict, only found here.
• custom is συνήθεια (ēthĕia), *a custom or common practice*, found 2x in the Greek Scriptures (John 18:39; Corinthians 11:16).
• the churches of God (cf. 1 Corinthians 10:32) this phrase means each of the local assemblies.
**
• Paul writes that there no such custom** when it comes to being contentious Romans 16:17 that those who cause divisions** should be marked and avoided.
• 1 Corinthians 11:17 that I declare **unto you is παραγγέλλω (ĕllō), from á, to the side of, and ággelos, messenger, thus it means to make an announcement to one nearby.
• I praise you is ἐπαινέω (ĕpainĕō), from í, *upon*, and éō, to praise, meaning to bequeath or give praise upon someone (cf. Romans 15:11; 1 Corinthians 11:2).
**
• ye come together** is συνέρχομαι (ĕrchŏmai), from ún, together with or together, and érchomai, to come, thus meaning to come together, to meet with someone.
• Paul writes that when the Corinthians gather for public worship, sadly it is **not for the better, but for the worse.**
02. Divisions (1 Corinthians 11:18-19)
**• 1 Corinthians 11:18 I hear** is ἀκούω (ŏuō), *to hear*, but in context Paul writes that he understands or knows.
• divisions** is σχίσμα (schisma), schism, division, or tear, or in this case factions amongst the assembly (John 7:43; 1 Corinthians 1:10-12; 3:3; 5:1; 6:1; 12:25). Paul's method of dealing with schisms in the local assembly is to remove the bad theology.
**• 1 Corinthians 11:19 there must** is δεῖ (ĕi), means *it is inevitable*.
• heresies is transliterated from the Greek, αἵρεσις (ĕsis), from éō, to choose, select.
• The Greek is not as narrow as it is in English, for in Greek it means a differing opinion regarding religion but still be part of the body, where their belief is a variation from what is generally acknowledged as authoritative and can also be defined as a sect. This word differs from ísma, schism, which is a complete ripping apart and from. Heresy can lead to a schism. We see examples in the Greek Scriptures: Acts 5:17; Acts 15:5; Acts 24:5; Acts 24:14; Acts 26:5; Acts 28:22; 1 Corinthians 11:19; Galatians 5:20; 2 Peter 2:1.
**
• which are approved** is δόκιμος (ŏkimŏs), means proving authentic. From this we get docimasy, which in Ancient Greece was the judicial method used to evaluate candidates for office or citizenship. It was a detailed examination of a person to determine their quality and character. Nowadays it is used in metallurgy to assay metallic ores and found in 2 Tim 2:15.
**
03. Celebrating the Lord's Supper (1 Corinthians 11:20-22)
• 1 Corinthians 11:20 **This coming together is in reference to the agape feasts (Jude 12). Jude 12 spots is σπιλάς (spilas), meaning *rocks that are washed by the sea*, and here it is used as an illustration of stones hidden in the food at the agape feasts. Jude uses this to describe these dangerous men who sow dangerous doctrine, and who can eat without fear because they know where the stones are hidden in the food, so as not to break their teeth.
• Paul is writing that at these social meals of the early assembly, they would eat their Agape Feast which was then followed by the celebration of the Lord's Supper. According to custom, each person/family would bring their own provisions to eat, so while the wealthy would have more than enough, the poor sometimes had little to nothing. Thus divisions, sects developed in the Corinthian assembly because of this.
• Paul writes in 1 Cor 10:15--18 that the Lord's Supper is to be done in unity with one another.
**
• Yet the Corinthian assembly was incapable of fully partaking because of the divisions (1 Corinthians 11:**18) and heresies (1 Corinthians 11:19) that was prevalent in the assembly.
• Because of the dissension in the assembly, when they celebrated the Lord's Supper, all they were essentially doing is having some bread and wine as there was nothing spiritual behind it.
• 1 Corinthians 11:21 taketh before is προλαμβάνω (ŏlambanō), from ó, before, and ánō, to take, thus it means to overtake, take before another (Mark 14:8).
**
• At the Agape Feast, the rich who brought a lot of food and drink were gorging themselves and getting drunk while the poor barely had anything to eat!
• 1 Corinthians 11:22 The Church of Christ uses this passage to forbid people from eating in the church itself.
• But what Paul is saying here is that when each local assembly gathers for a monthly potluck or meal, that meal should not be used as a tool to shame them that have not**.
• This feast was supposed to be an Agape Feast, not a glutton-filled feast with divisions.
