The Apostle Paul authored the Corinthian Letters, which were written to the believers at the church in Corinth. 1 Corinthians 1 begins with Paul introducing himself as an Apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God. He also addressed the audience as sanctified people called to be saints.
Before Paul’s introduction is completed, the intended audience is notified of their calling. They are called to be set apart, just as we, the current audience of Paul’s letter, are. This introduction sets the tone for both believers then and now to honor God's call on our lives to be holy.
Paul then began to thank God for the spiritual gifts given to the believers at Corinth. He stated that they were “enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge” and that they “came short in no gift.” He states that God is faithful and will confirm them to the very end, where they will be blameless in the Lord Jesus.
The Corinthians had everything they needed in speech, knowledge, and gifts to carry out the will of God. I am sure this was encouraging to the believers. They were amongst the first believers in the Body of Christ, and they may’ve been unsure as to whether they were living lives pleasing to God or if they were even equipped to live God-pleasing lives.
Paul’s assurance confirmed to them that they had everything they needed from Christ. This is a soothing reassurance for us as well. We, too, have everything we need to carry out God's will in our lives. And yet, this letter was written to the Corinthians because they had failed to completely live as a church pleasing to God.
Having everything we need to be godly does not equate to actually being godly. A baker can have every ingredient necessary to bake a cake, but they will not have a dessert if they don’t actively mix and prepare what’s before them. Likewise, we have everything we need to be in God's will, just as the Corinthian Church, but if we don’t actively love God and one another by adhering to his commands, then we will not please the Lord.
One way the Corinthians failed to please the Lord was through divisions within the church. Some of the believers professed that they were baptized by Paul, others said they were baptized by Apollos, while others professed baptism by Cephas or Peter. This caused cliques and division within the church that should not have been. They were all baptized into Christ; therefore, Christ should have been the only person glorified.
Unfortunately, it is still easy for us to misplace glory today. Undoubtedly, Paul, Apollos, and Peter carried a measure of power through the gifting of the Holy Spirit. So, when the Corinthians witnessed them operating in the authority God gave them, it captivated them. It fascinated them to the point that they incorrectly attributed glory to the apostles that was due to God.
Let us learn from their mistakes. It is still fascinating to see men and women of God operating in their God-given gifts. However, we are never to give them the glory that is due to God. We are of Christ, and every good and perfect gift comes from above. We may acknowledge one another in what God has called us to do, but we are never to boast in anything or anyone outside of Christ.
Paul continued his letter by stating that this message—the gospel—is foolishness to those in the world, but to believers, it is the power of God. He stated that God does not call the mighty, prudent, and noble, but rather, he calls the foolish things of the world to put the wise things of the world to shame. We see that this is true if we observe those who were called in scripture. God called Gideon and Saul, who were the least of the tribes of Israel. He called David and Jacob who were the youngest (thus culturally weakest) of their families. God chose Abraham, a pagan; Esther, an orphan; Paul, a persecutor of Christians; and last but certainly not least, he called Jesus who lived in the lowly city of Nazareth—so lowly that when Jesus was professed to be the Messiah, it was asked, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (John 1:46).
This is foolish to the world. God exalting the humble, using the weak, and calling second-best as first is pure foolishness to those in the world. But it is how God receives glory. The final verse of this chapter reads: “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.” Using the lowly and seemingly foolish things of the world is a wise way to ensure that God receives all his due praise so that man cannot glory in his own strength, royalty, or intellect but that he may glory in the Lord alone.
And so, while it may not make sense to the world why God operates as he does, it should make sense to us believers. It may be foolish to some that God chose Paul out of all people to preach to the same people he persecuted, but it makes sense to me because it illustrates God’s saving power. It may not make sense to some that Jesus was the Son of God, born of a virgin, equipped to perform all manners of miracles, and yet humble enough to die for the sins of the world. But it makes sense to me because it demonstrated his sovereignty and love for us all.
Many things about our faith may not make sense to some people, including believing without seeing, dying to our own desires, and the call to love all, even those who do not love us. It may also seem silly to the world that we have been anticipating Jesus's second coming for the last 2,000+ years, and he has yet to return. However, we know he hasn't returned yet because our Lord is patiently waiting for more souls to come into repentance (1 Peter 3:9).
These things are foolish beliefs and concepts to the world, but they make sense to me, and if you are my fellow brother or sister in the Body of Christ, then I know they make sense to you as well. May we do our part in reaching more souls, so that it will make sense to others as well.
May God bless you and keep you. Until next time, take care.
Quin Arrington is a Christian wife, mother, writer, and author with both fictional and non-fictional books available on Amazon at www.amazon.com/author/quinarrington
Thank you for your time. God bless!
Comentarios