It's easy to see the greetings at the end of the letter as superficial. But in them we see an affectionate grace that we are to receive ourselves and extend to others as God has to us in Christ. 

Application Questions: 

1. In what ways are you tempted to gloss over greeting? 

2. How can you extend an appropriately affectionate greeting to your brother or sister in Christ? 

3. How can accepting and embracing the grace of Jesus Christ help you this week?

Paul closes the book of 1 Corinthians with several short discussions on practical matters. But under these practical matters we find a deep theology. On three topics—money, plans, and church—we learn how to apply the gospel and find a better way to live in the practical issues of life. 

Application Questions: 

1. How does the gospel give you a new way to think about money? 

2. How does the gospel give you a new way to think about your plans? 

3. How does the gospel give you a new perspective on life as a Christian in Los Angeles?

Following Jesus is not easy, because He asks us to subordinate everything that competes with our love for Him. Our problem begins when we think that we can only follow Him with our imperfect love. When Jesus invites us to follow him, it is an invitation to give up our selfish love to receive his perfect love and when we do so that is when we find true happiness and eternal life.

Application Questions:

1. Why does Jesus want you to understand that to follow Him starts by loving Him the most?

2. How does the pursuit of your own happiness without Jesus can become an obstacle to follow him?

3. Why might not following Jesus be the greatest cost for an aspiring disciple?

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is victory over sin and death. We may still feel the sting of death in this life, but the victory of Christ allows us to say, "O death where is your sting!?"

Application Questions: 

1. How does the future Kingdom of God speak to your present life now?

2. What are ways you distract yourself or cope with the reality of death in this world?

3. What fear(s) do you have about death?

4. How does the victory of the resurrection speak to your fears?

In a chapter on our future resurrection, Paul anticipates an objection: how are the dead raised? Paul answers our skepticism and also brings us higher up and deeper in to the unimaginable glory of our future in Christ.

Application Questions: 

1. Do you fight to see the resurrection as realistic? If so, how do you handle that fight?

2. Does an acorn becoming an oak tree help you see the resurrection as rational? Why does Paul think it should? 

3. How often do you think about the power of the resurrection, in the future and in your life now? What might God be prompting you to do in light of this passage?

Paul shows us that the resurrection is a picture of our future. Those who belong to Christ will be raised as Christ was raised one day. Not only that, Christ will remake the heavens and the earth as a returning King claims his kingdom. Seeing this future gives you a hope that can make you incredibly secure, incredibly sacrificial, and incredibly honest in your life now.

Application Questions: 

1. When you think about heaven, what do you picture? How does the resurrection affect your vision of the future? 

2. Where could you use more security or more courage in your life? How does resurrection hope provide what you need to grow? 

3. Are you more prone to blind optimism or cynicism? How can resurrection hope make you both realistic and hopeful?

Paul puts all of his passion and skill into this final chapter about the resurrection so we might see its importance for our world and our lives. Before he starts in on the effects of the resurrection, he gives us three realities of the resurrection that serve as the foundation for its hope-giving, life transforming power. 

Application Questions: 

1. How much of a role does Jesus’ resurrection play in your life? 

2. Do you tend to think of the resurrection more as a theory or more as a fact? How does that impact you practically? 

3. How does the resurrection show Jesus’ transforming love for you? How have you experienced that personally? 

The gospel is of first importance because it is the center of God’s plan for all of creation. So what is the meaning of the gospel, and how do we see its majesty? 

Application Questions: 

1. In what way is the gospel “good news”? How are both words necessary to understand the meaning of the gospel? 

2. What makes the gospel majestic to you personally? How might you explore the majesty of the gospel more in your heart and life? 

In one of the most challenges passages in 1 Corinthians, we find a deep lesson in a difficult package. Paul’s commands to the Corinthians contain a rich and even beautiful understanding of how men and women complement each other in ministry. If we take time to listen to the passage closely and put it in conversation with the rest of Scripture, we find a better way for men and women in the church. 

Application Questions: 

1. How do you normally handle “tough” passages in scripture? 

2. Are you more likely to emphasize the differences between men and women or the similarities? How does the Bible challenge and enrich that perspective? 

3. How is the gospel necessary for us to understand and grow in a topic like this? 

4. What are some examples you’ve had of spiritual mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters in the church community?

How do we think about the Spirit and the church? Church is a place to expect the Spirit to move, typically through others around us—and not just Sunday services, but smaller gatherings throughout the week. Yet this isn't excess, emotionalism, or spiritual experience for its own sake—it's done in order, because it's done in love.

Application Questions: 

1. Do you expect God to be at work when you are gathered with the church community, on Sundays or throughout the week? 

2. What are different ways you can participate in the Spirit’s work when we gather as a church? 

3. Why is Jesus the heart of church gatherings? How can we focus more on him on Sundays and throughout the week?