This page gives you ready-to-use study questions for 1 Corinthians 6, with answers and discussion notes you can use in a small group, a Sunday class, or your own personal reading. Paul addresses lawsuits between believers, the seriousness of sexual sin, and the truth that your body belongs to the Lord. Each section below moves from what the text says, to what it means, to how to live it.
1 Corinthians 6 at a Glance
The chapter opens with Paul rebuking Christians in Corinth for taking disputes between brothers and sisters to unbelieving courts. He reminds them that God’s people will one day share in judging, so they should be able to settle small matters among themselves. He then lists the kinds of wrongdoing that characterize those outside God’s kingdom, while reminding them that they have been washed, sanctified and justified in Christ.
The second half turns to the body. Paul answers slogans that were being used to excuse immorality, insists that the body is meant for the Lord, and argues that sexual sin is a unique offense against one’s own body. He closes by saying the Holy Spirit lives in the believer and that they were bought at a price, so they should glorify God in body and spirit.
Observation Questions
Use these questions first, before anyone offers an opinion. Ask the group to point to the words on the page and resist explaining yet. Let silence sit for a moment so that quieter members can speak.
1 Corinthians 6:1-3
1 Dare any of you, having a matter against his neighbor, go to law before the unrighteous, and not before the saints? 2 Don’t you know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? 3 Don’t you know that we will judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?
(WEB)
This short block opens the chapter with Paul’s rebuke and his reminder that the saints will judge the world. Reading it aloud sets the tone for the whole discussion. It helps the group hear the logic Paul uses before they move to application.
1 Corinthians 6:9-11
9 Or don’t you know that the unrighteous will not inherit God’s Kingdom? Don’t be deceived. Neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor male prostitutes, nor homosexuals, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor extortionists, will inherit God’s Kingdom. 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, and in the Spirit of our God.
(WEB)
These verses contain the list of wrongdoing and the declaration of what God has done in believers. Reading the list and the word “washed” back to back helps the group feel the contrast Paul intends. It also keeps the discussion from dwelling on sin without pointing to grace.
1 Corinthians 6:12-13
12 “All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are expedient. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be brought under the power of anything. 13 “Foods for the belly, and the belly for foods,” but God will bring to nothing both it and them. But the body is not for sexual immorality, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body.
(WEB)
Here Paul quotes the slogans and responds to them, and reading this aloud lets the group hear how he argues. It is a useful passage for discussing freedom and self-control. The short length makes it easy to revisit during the session.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
19 Or don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.
(WEB)
These closing verses name the Holy Spirit’s indwelling and the price paid for believers. Reading them near the end of the study gives the group a clear theological anchor. They also prepare the group for the closing prayer.
1 Corinthians 6:15-17
15 Don’t you know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them members of a prostitute? May it never be! 16 Or don’t you know that he who is joined to a prostitute is one body? For, “The two”, he says, “will become one flesh.” 17 But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit.
(WEB)
This passage uses the image of union with Christ and union with a prostitute to explain the seriousness of sexual sin. Reading it aloud helps members see how Paul connects bodily life to spiritual reality. It is best read calmly, with time afterward for questions.
Memory Verse for 1 Corinthians 6
A Closing Prayer for the Group
Father, we thank you that we have been washed, sanctified and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus. We confess that we often treat our bodies as if they were our own, and we ask you to remind us that we were bought with a price. Help us to be people who settle our disputes with humility, who refuse to be mastered by lesser things, and who honor you with our bodies. Fill us with your Holy Spirit, and let our conversations and choices this week show that we belong to you. Amen.
