1 Cor. 1:18-2:5

Jews demand a sign, but who are we to demand anything of God?

Gentiles seek wisdom, but how are we able to understand the mind of God?

We preach Christ crucified—if we preach anything else, we are foolish, selfish, and powerless.

I don’t find much comfort in verses 26-28 in terms of my abilities. Sounds like God chose a bunch of losers to serve him. I guess that means we all fit in pretty well. However, the key to living in the body of Christ is recognizing your place—a sinner and a loser saved by grace.

So that none can boast. God really does want all the glory and credit. How much glory do I give him every day? How much credit do I steal from him every day?

Jesus is our righteousness, holiness, and redemption. How do these fit together? Righteousness means we are ‘right’ before the law and free of judgment; holiness means we are set apart for God’s task, ‘right’ in relationship with God. Redemption means we were made right through a price—the sacrifice of Jesus. Unless our guilt is paid for, we have no hope of being made right.

Thank you, Jesus, and all praise to God, for your redeeming work on the cross. I am not worthy of your gift, but you have healed me and saved me. My boast should always be in you, O God. My pride should always be in you and Christ. I know nothing without you. I can do nothing of eternal value without you. All praise and glory to you, My God and my Savior. Thank you Spirit for revealing these truths. Amen.

1 Cor. 1:10-17

I find that Paul’s clarity on his mission is very refreshing and unsettling. It is refreshing to know exactly where he stands. It is unsettling because he is so sold out to the Gospel message and to Jesus that he almost seems too radical. Is it possible to be too radical for Christ? I mean, if you are truly sold out to Jesus and his message—not political or selfish undertones—can you be too radical? A follow up question: How far does Christ want us to go?

I am also amazed at what happens in churches when we get into the “cult of personality” (cue the 80s rock song here). Paul clearly calls on all Christians to put away hero worship and focus all devotion on Christ. Once again, Paul wants human agenda out of the way. For him, the most important aspect of Christianity is Christ. Go figure!

An interesting note: Paul says he did not call me to baptize, but to preach. Did Paul associate baptism with local pastors? Is he saying that he is called to be an evangelist-preacher, and that others are supposed to baptize and build the local church? If so, then God must call individuals to serve in specific functions. So, what is your specific role in the church, and are you doing it to the best of your ability?

After reading 1 Cor. 1, my prayer today is this: Father, let me totally focused on your Gospel today. Let your son be the center of my thoughts, so my Christianity will be full of Christ. Give me the grace and power I need to fulfill the unique calling you have given me. Thank you for reminding me that church is not about me, but about you. Teach me to worship you and you alone. And help me to point others to you.

Thank you. Amen.

1 Cor. 1:1-9

Ok. That was easy for me to get online and see the passage. A couple of thoughts:

I appreciate Paul’s thankfulness for his church, and I want to express my gratitude to God for SHBC and the calling he has given me to be here.

I think it is really cool to see that God has equipped us with every gift that we need to function as a Christian. That also means that there are no excuses.

God is faithful, and he will endure forever. If we are his, then we will endure as well—what a great promise!

Reading 1 Corinthians

From April 28-May 30, I would like to invite you in reading the book of 1 Corinthians. I have provided a list of readings below, and all that is required of us is to read the material daily and email each other with comments or insights. Just to make it fun, let’s say that everyone has to check in once a day and at least acknowledge the reading. You can be as in-depth or simple as you like. The reading will go 5 days a week, excluding Sat. and Sun.
If you want to go on line to read the passage, check out http://www.biblegateway.com/. You can quick search the specific passage you are looking for, and even find different versions to read for more understanding. Check it out and let me know what you think.

1 Corinthians
April 28 1 Corinthians 1:1-9 (Monday)
29 1:10-17
30 1:18-2:5
May 1 2:6-16
2 3:1-23
5 4:1-21 (Monday)
6 5:1-13
7 6:1-11
8 6:12-20
9 7:1-16
12 7:17-40 (Monday)
13 8:1-13
14 9:1-27
15 10: 1-22
16 10:23-11:1 (Monday)
19 11:2-16
20 11:17-34
21 12:1-11
22 12:12-31
23 13:1-13
26 14:1-25 (Monday)
27 14:26-40
28 15:1-11
29 15:12-34
30 15:35-58
31 16:1-24