But I appeal to you, Brothers, by the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to agree in what you profess, and not to allow divisions to exist among you, but to be united-of one mind and of one opinion.

But God chose what the world counts foolish to put its wise men to shame, and God chose what the world counts weak to put its strong things to shame,

And God chose what the world counts poor and insignificant-- things that to it are unreal-to bring its 'realities' to nothing,

It is what Scripture speaks of as-'What eye never saw, nor ear ever heard, what never entered the mind of man-even all that God has prepared for those who love him.'

For what man is there who knows what a man is, except the man's own spirit within him? So, also, no one comprehends what God is, except the Spirit of God.

What, I ask, is Apollos? or what is Paul? Servants through whom you were led to accept the Faith; and that only as the Lord helped each of you.

Now what we look for in stewards is that they should be trustworthy.

Therefore do not pass judgment before the time, but wait till the Lord comes. He will throw light upon what is now dark and obscure, and will reveal the motives in men's minds; and then every one will receive due praise from God.

All this, Brothers, I have, for your sakes, applied to Apollos and myself, so that, from our example, you may learn to observe the precept-'Keep to what is written,' that none of you may speak boastfully of one teacher to the disparagement of another.

For who makes any one of you superior to others? And what have you that was not given you? But if you received it as a gift, why do you boast as if you had not?

But come to you I will, and that soon, if it please the Lord; and then I shall find out, not what words these men use who are so puffed up, but what power they possess;

What do you wish? Am I to come to you with a rod, or in a loving and gentle spirit?

To deliver such a man as this over to Satan, that what is sensual in him may be destroyed, so that his spirit may be saved at the Day of the Lord.

What have I to do with judging those outside the Church? Is it not for you to judge those who are within the Church,

Do not deprive each other of what is due-unless it is only for a time and by mutual consent, so that your minds may be free for prayer till you again live as man and wife-lest Satan should take advantage of your want of self-control and tempt you.

I should wish every one to be just what I am myself. But every one has his own gift from God-one in one way, and one in another.

I think, then, that, in view of the time of suffering that has now come upon us, what I have already said is best-that a man should remain as he is.

What I mean, Brothers, is this-The time is short. Meanwhile, let those who have wives live as if they had none,

What we eat, however, will not bring us nearer to God. We lose nothing by not eating this food, and we gain nothing by eating it.

Therefore, if what I eat makes my Brother fall, rather than make my Brother fall, I will never eat meat again.

Do not you know that those who do the work of the Temple live on what comes from the Temple, and that those who serve at the altar share the offerings with the altar?

What is my reward, then? To present the Good News free of all cost, and so make but a sparing use of the rights which it gives me.

I speak to you as man of discernment; form your own judgment about what I am saying.

What do I mean? you ask. Than an offering made to an idol, or the idol itself, is anything?

No; what I say is that the sacrifices offered by the Gentiles 'are offered to demons and to a Being who is no God,' and I do not want you to share with demons.

Have you no houses in which you can eat and drink? Or are you trying to show your contempt for the Church of God, and to humiliate the poor? What can I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this matter I cannot praise you.

This being so, Brothers, what good shall I do you, if I come to you and speak in 'tongues,' unless my words convey some revelation, or knowledge, or take the form of preaching or teaching?

And so with you; unless, in using the gift of 'tongues,' you utter intelligible words, how can what you say be understood? You will be speaking to the winds!

What, then, is my conclusion? Simply this-I will pray with my spirit, but with my mind as well; I will sing with my spirit, but with my mind as well.

If you bless God with your spirit only, how can the man in the congregation who is without your gift say 'Amen' to your thanksgiving? He does not know what you are saying!

What do I suggest, then, Brothers? Whenever you meet for worship, each of you comes, either with a hymn, or a lesson, or a revelation, or the gift of 'tongues,' or the interpretation of them; let everything be directed to the building up of faith.

If there is no one able to interpret what is said, they should remain silent at the meeting of the Church, and speak to themselves and to God.

Of preachers two or three should speak, and the rest should weigh well what is said.

What! did God's Message to the world originate with you? or did it find its way to none but you?

If any one thinks that he has the gift of preaching or any other spiritual gift, let him recognize that what I am now saying to you is a command from the Lord.

But it is through the love of God that I am what I am, and the love that he showed me has not been wasted. No, I have toiled harder than any of them, and yet it was not I, but the love of God working with me.

Again, what good will they be doing who are baptized on behalf of the dead? If it is true that the dead do not rise, why are people baptized on their behalf?

If with only human hopes I had fought in the arena at Ephesus, what should I have gained by it? If the dead do not rise, then-'Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we shall die'!

Some one, however, may ask 'How do the dead rise? and in what body will they come?'

That is what is meant by the words-'Adam, the first man, became a human being'; the last Adam became a Life-giving spirit.

On the first day of every week each of you should put by what he can afford, so that no collections need be made after I have come.