Sermon: Lawsuits in the church

1Cor. 6:1 Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints?
1Cor. 6:2 Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? If the world is judged by you, are you not competent to constitute the smallest law courts?
1Cor. 6:3 Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more matters of this life?
1Cor. 6:4 So if you have law courts dealing with matters of this life, do you appoint them as judges who are of no account in the church?
1Cor. 6:5 I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not among you one wise man who will be able to decide between his brethren,
1Cor. 6:6 but brother goes to law with brother, and that before unbelievers?
1Cor. 6:7 Actually, then, it is already a defeat for you, that you have lawsuits with one another. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be defrauded?
1Cor. 6:8 On the contrary, you yourselves wrong and defraud. You do this even to your brethren.
1Cor. 6:9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals,
1Cor. 6:10 nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.
1Cor. 6:11 Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.

In this passage, Paul is very frustrated with the church, and it can be seen by the number of questions he has on their behavior. We will briefly look at Roman Law, as well as why Paul is so frustrated. The fact that we live in a lawsuit happy culture should provide numerous application for us in the 21st Century.