Discussions in the 7th chapter of 1st Corinthians on marriage have exposed several issues facing the church militant. They include: Is it appropriate for Christians to use birth control or contraceptives? Who is meant for? What are the differing views of the church from time past on the topic? And when is it right to apply such methods and applications? In today's Bible studies, we put these questions on the board to arrive at a Biblical stance in the face of such socio-cultural issues facing the church today.

As we progress deeper through the verses of chapter 7 in the book of 1st Corinthians, Paul continues to expound on the issue of marriage to the Corinthian church, emphasizing its importance and yet reminding them of the main focus, Christ, irrespective of a believer's status. We build on Paul's instructions and position the church today and how it fares with the various implications of this text in our lives.

How are believers to handle instances of divorce? And what is the expected state of a believer even in cases of separation? What are believing spouses supposed to do with unbelieving spouses? All these questions form the discussions the Apostle Paul addresses to the Corinthian church in this portion of the chapter. He helps them navigate these issues that apply to us as Christians, even in today's world.

As we open the seventh chapter of 1st Corinthians, Paul delves properly into the issue of marriage and singleness. Paul emphasizes that both are gifts, and neither has an advantage over the other. In the opening nine verses, Paul builds on what a Christian marriage entails, the certain needs that exist, and how to glorify God in marriages. We draw from the text to apply it to us today and how a lack of these needs can be hindering for a sanctified marriage.

In the second portion of 1st Corinthians Chapter six, Paul moves on from disputes between believers to the case of sexual immorality amongst the Corinthians. He cautions them against sexual immorality: their bodies were no longer their own, because they belonged to God, and God in their bodies as His temple meant that they ought to be pure, glorifying Him with their bodies.

How are we as Christians expected to resolve civil disputes between one another? To institute long cases of retribution against each other or to actively seek to restore fractured relationships between us?

In today's Bible studies, we see how a lack of knowledge of identity, the church, the cross, and the world led to a disorder in dispute resolution in the Corinthian church. We also tackle the questions of what to do in instances of criminal situations and where unbelievers or believers from other denominations are involved in disputes.

What is church discipline? Who gets involved in the process? Of what use is it? What is the motive behind church discipline: restoration or retribution for sins? In today's service, we run through the biblical practice of church discipline as God's means of sanctification, running through the discussions and questions tackled during this week, all bordering on this pivotal topic.

Church discipline is stemmed from a place of love, contrary to the popular belief that it is a means of punishment. Alongside preserving the purity of the church, it is a means of grace to help reform believers. In today's Bible study, we use1st Corinthians 5 to refresh our hearts on the need to be our brother's keepers of the faith and also tackle questions that border around church discipline in the Question & Answer Session as we close the chapter.

In the second part of our session on understanding what church discipline is, we take a glance through Acts 2 to understand what a biblical church is and what it means to be a church member in order to get a clear picture of the context of application for God's means of grace to purify his church: church discipline.

The concept of church discipline is foreign to the church today, and yet it is a scriptural doctrine, a means of grace. Today we take excerpts from Benjamin Keech's "The Glory of the True Church" to further understand the Biblical concept of the church on membership, order, and discipline in a time where it is a strange phenomenon to a lot of 21st-century Christians.