Paul wrote to Corinth — the Las Vegas of the ancient world. A wealthy port city infamous for sexual immorality, idol worship, and excess. Even the phrase “to Corinthianize” became slang for living without restraint.
And the church there? They were struggling. Paul had to confront things like:
Sexual immorality so public and extreme that even the surrounding culture was scandalized (1 Corinthians 5:1).
Believers treating prostitution like it didn’t matter spiritually (1 Corinthians 6:15-16).
Christians taking each other to secular courts instead of pursuing reconciliation (1 Corinthians 6:1-6).
People turning the Lord’s Supper into something selfish and chaotic (1 Corinthians 11:21).
Jealousy, rivalry, and division tearing at the body (1 Corinthians 3:3).
Flirting with idolatry and blurring lines God was calling them to take seriously (1 Corinthians 10:14-21).
Paul didn’t sugarcoat the stakes. He warned them plainly:
“Do not be deceived…” and then he named the kinds of lives that, if clung to without repentance, are incompatible with inheriting the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 6:9-10).
But this is what makes Paul sound like Paul: he tells the truth and he refuses to use it as a sentence of exile.
He still addressed them as those “sanctified in Christ Jesus” (1 Corinthians 1:2). And right after that list of sins, he reminds them:
“And such were some of you. But you were washed… you were sanctified… you were justified…” (1 Corinthians 6:11).
In other words: yes, holiness matters. Yes, sin destroys.
And also: grace is real. Change is possible. The gospel doesn’t just expose—it restores.
Some cities never change. Neither does grace.