1 Corinthians 6:1

1 Corinthians 6:1 says, Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust, and not before the saints?  Paul asked a very good question of the believers at Corinth, and it remains a very good question for followers of Christ today, and that is how do we as Christians, as brothers and sisters in Christ, go to government magistrates to settle small matters between ourselves.  Matthew Henry states that for the bigger disputes that going to the government magistrates is expected, but are not all matters concerning the things of this world small and insignificant?  As followers of Christ, what dollar value do we place between a small and a big dispute?  The lost of the world love to report about one group of believers in the same fellowship suing another group.  This certainly does not provide a good witness to the world.  If followers of Christ need secular officials to judge disputes between them, then how can we claim to be able to declare the actions of those outside the church as wrong.  If we must rely on the government to settle our disputes, then how can we claim that only Christians through the leadership of the Holy Spirit know what is right and wrong in the eyes of God?  I believe that the church has surrendered much of its role in the world to the secular government, and that is usually based on material things.  In verse two Paul asks, Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?  Through our relationship with Christ, we are to judge the world.  Once more, the word saints does not mean some group of super Christians, but it means all born again believers in Christ.  We are to judge the world, not based on our criteria but based on God's.  When we have a dispute with a neighbor, the members of the church should be best qualified to judge that dispute. We, if we really accept the Lordship of Christ, should be willing to surrender the matter to the judgment of the church.  It is better as a follower of Christ to walk away with nothing in the world than to walk away with everything at the cost of our witness to Him.  Verse three asks, Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?  I believe Paul was asking how we are going to be able to judge heavenly things if we cannot judge small worldly disputes.  Too often, it is because of earthly disputes that we lose our spiritual witness.  Christians will become divided over some rule of order that has nothing to do with presenting the gospel, and they will often go so far as no longer even being civil to one another, and Satan rejoices.  When we have disputes, we should bring them to the church and then accept the decision of the church.  In verse four, Paul says, If then ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church.  I believe Paul was saying that those viewed as the lowest in the church, though there should really be none viewed that way, were better qualified to judge their disputes than were the powers of the world who were not God's people. Verse five states, I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you? no, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren?  Paul told the Corinthian Christians that they should be ashamed that they couldn't find even one person in the congregation wise enough to judge earthly matters.  I believe we too often want to separate the world into the secular and the spiritual, and we do not seem to understand that as followers of Christ that all that matters is the spiritual.  All the things of the earth will remain when we go to be with God, so why do we put such value on them that we allow them to destroy our witness for Christ ?  Verse six states, But brother goeth to law with brother, and that before the unbelievers.  When Christians fight with each other, the world is watching and will be sharing that news with everyone around them.  Verse seven says, Now therefore there is utterly a fault among you, because ye go to law one with another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? why do ye not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded?  Paul stated very clearly that it would be better to take the wrong and even be defrauded than to go to the government authorities to attempt to gain the things of this world.  In verse eight Paul denounces their attitude stating, Nay, ye do wrong, and defraud, and that your brethren.  Paul was speaking specifically to Christians who allowed the things of this world to become too important to them.  We often want to place the blame on another Christian and demand satisfaction from the rulers of the world instead of humbly surrendering everything to God.  We need to always place our spiritual witness above our material possessions.