Examination of 1 Corinthians 10 and 11, with special reference to the Lord's supper:implications for the Methodist Church in Kenya

Abstract

This thesis is an examination of 1 Corinthians 10: 14-22 and 11: 17-34. The findings from the examination were applied to the practice and meaning of the Lord's Supper in the Methodist Church in Kenya. In chapter one, we looked at introductory matters such as the statement of the problem, potential benefits of the study, presuppositions, methodology, and delimitations. In chapter two, we looked at the historical, geographical, social and textual contexts of the Lord's Supper. This included the background of the Corinthian Church, the origin ofthe Lord's Supper as well as meal- eating in the time of Paul. Also a general survey of the book was done to establish the textual context of the Lord's Supper. Chapter three is an exegesis of the 1 Corinthians passages, with due attention to all issues of hermeneutical interest in order to establish Paul's teaching about the Lord's Supper. In chapter four, we examined by way of exegesis how Paul related the Lord's Supper to the judgment of God. In other words, for what was God judging the Corinthians? Chapter five is a summary of the examination of the two passages. The principles from the research were applied to the African situation of the Methodist Church in Kenya. A conclusion was then drawn.