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"Were Ye Baptized In the Name of Paul?" 1 Corinthians 1:13

Today I want to consider another great question of the gospel age. This question is found in the
New Testament "Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of
Paul?" (1 Cor. 1:13). The church of God at Corinth was divided. Look at the pitiful picture they
presented to the unbelieving world. They were not divided over societies or baptism. They were
divided over a very small thing-preachers. One group said: "We are of Paul." Another said: "We
are of Apollos." Still another said: "We are of Cephas." To paraphrase it into modern terms, one
set was saying: "We are Paulites"; another said: "We are Apollosites"; another groups'said: "We
are Cephasites." Did Paul approve of that? He did not! He said,

For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye
not carnal, and walk as men? For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are
ye not carnal? (1 Cor. 3:3-4).

In the midst of this division, another group simply said: "We are of Christ." William Barclay
punctuated the verse in 1 Corinthians 1:13 to read: "I am of Paul; I am of Apollos; I am of Cephas
but I belong to Christ." Some have argued that the group that said they were of Christ was a sinful
division no less than the others, but Adam Clarke said: "It is not likely in any sense of the word
that Christ could be said to be the head of a sect or party in his own church."

What was wrong with wearing these names? Why was it wrong for them to wear the names of
Paul, Apollos and Cephas? Why did the apostle Paul say that they were "carnal" (fleshly, or
worldly-minded) in wearing these names? They were glorying in men. In was sinful then, and it is
sinful now. I want you to think about this in the light which God gives: If it was wrong to be a Paulite
then, don't you think it would be wrong to wear some man's name from the pages of history? If it
was wrong to wear the name of Apollos, then what is the argument, what is the defense, for
wear­ing any other human name?

You will observe from Paul's answer that he disliked people wearing his name as much as he did
people wearing the name of Peter, or Cephas. The Scriptures tell us that Jesus became the
Author of our salvation, and the head of the church through his suffering upon the cross (Heb.
2:10), so Paul reasons that if he is to be the head of a rival party, he should not only have been
crucified for his followers, but such a sacrifice should have been able to cleanse sin and bring
salvation, as in the case of Christ. The very thought is preposterous! Paul reasons that if he is to
be installed as head of a religious body, then his followers have been improperly baptized
because they should have been baptized into his name instead of the name of Christ. Since they
had been baptized into Christ, how could they be­come members of Paul?

Please observe Paul's unspoken conclusion which is certainly suggested by his rhetorical
questions. Since Paul was not crucified for you, and since you were not baptized in the name of
Paul, you have no right to wear his name. It is as though he is saying: "Why do you want to be
Paulites, Apollosites, and Cephasites? Why not honor the Christ, who died for us, and into whose
name we are baptized?"

My friends, I would like to ask you today: "Is Christ divided? Was the man whose name you wear
crucified for you? Were you baptized into his name?" If the answer is "No" to those questions,
then may I ask: "Why do you wear the human name?" All we have to do is to substitute the names
in our history books for the names of these preachers, and we will see the very condition existing
today that existed at Corinth, which was condemned by the apostle Paul.
Does It Make a Difference?

Some tell us in these modern times that it makes no difference what name you wear. Webster:
"The title by which any person or thing is known or designated." How could we communicate
without names? When you go into a store, everything there has a name, and the easiest way to
get what you want is just to tell its name. Look all around you. Do you see anything or any person
that does not have a name? That should show the importance of a name.