"And Such Were Some of You" (1 Corinthians 6.9-11)

⁹Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, ¹⁰nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. ¹¹And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11 ESV)

Context (v.1-8)

These verses speak of lawsuits among believers; the prevalent issue being the actions and character of believers. There was a practice among these Christians of mimicking the world in bringing lawsuits against each other. The upcoming verses shed light on why the practice is wrong.

The Excluded (v.9-10)- Excluded from God's Kingdom

• Those who have not forsaken a lifestyle of sin are slaves to their sin (Romans 6.16, "Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?" ESV)
• Those who are slaves of sin will not enter Heaven

The Empowered (v.11)- Empowered by God as His children

• And such were some of you: a defined change; a transformation. (Romans 12:1-2, "I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. ² Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." ESV)

• BUT YOU WERE:
• washed- a spiritual cleansing from sin’s power
• sanctified- a break from sin, being “set apart” related to being made holy
• justified- being judged as righteous by God by Christ’s righteousness
  

• ...in the name of the Lord Jesus and the Spirit of our God
• Salvation’s work is found only in Christ’s name (Acts 4:12) and through the Spirit of God: “we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18 ESV).