What does 'we have no such custom, neither the churches of God' mean in 1 Corinthians 11:16?
In 1 Corinthians 11:16, the phrase means the churches have no custom of contentiousness or causing needless disputes. Paul tempers arguments over haircuts, contrasting prostitutes with Roman citizenry, and tells believers not to do anything that makes the outside world think the church is a bunch of kooks.
Les explains that God is a God of order, seen in Israel's organized camp movements and the prescribed temple worship, and even in the resurrection, where every man is in his own order. In verse 16, when Paul says if any man seem to be contentious—always causing problems and differing—he says, “we have no such custom, neither the churches of God.” Les suggests Paul is tempering the people's attitude about the haircuts of prostitutes compared to the haircuts of Roman citizenry. The point is practical: don't do anything that makes the outside world think you believers in the church are a bunch of kooks. That is the best way Les can put it.
But if any man seem to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches of God.
More Questions
What does it mean in 1 Corinthians 11:16 that if any man seem to be contentious we have no such custom?
In 1 Corinthians 11:16, 'if any man seem to be contentious' means a man who is always causing problems and always differing, and Paul says we have no such custom, neither the churches of God.
What does it mean to be a contentious person in 1 Corinthians 11:16?
A contentious man, in Paul's phrase 'if any man seem to be contentious,' is someone who is always causing problems and always differing.