The Power of the Cross

1 Corinthians 4:14-21

"I do not write these things to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became you father in Christ Jesus through the gospel. I urge you, then, be imitators of me. That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in even church. Some are arrogant, as thought I were not coming to you. But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills and I will find out not the talk of these arrogant people but their power. For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power. What do you wish? Shall I come to you with a rod, or with love in a spirit of gentleness?"

It has been a long time since I've written. I've had family visiting for the past two weeks. And on top of that the Lord has been doing some work in my heart. (you can read more about that in the update of Conquering: Revisited) So, in light of the absence, I want to give a quick recap of where the Lord has brought me so far in 1 Corinthians. The majority of these first four chapters have been about opening the eyes of the Corinthians to the divisions they were  creating in their church body. These divisions had been caused, mainly, by the peoples' pride. They wanted to make themselves something special by associating with "the best" teacher. So Paul, Apollos, Cephas, even the name of Christ became banners that they tried to raise higher than all the rest. Paul as been reminding them of the need for unity in Christ. He has also been showing them again and again how it is their insignificance that unites them. Not one of us is special. We are all wretched and in need of the same Savior, Christ, so no one can boast. 

Now, we pick up in Chapter 4 Verses 14-21. Paul, is about to get really practical with the church but first he wants them to know what the last four chapters have been for. His goal i s not to shame the church but rather he calls them "beloved children." Paul wants them to know that he writes out of love. And we also know that he writes in love because he continues to point them to the place of change. The Cross. Paul only has the authority to speak to the Corinthians "in Christ Jesus through the gospel". That is the place all our power comes from. Paul says when he comes back to the church he will find out what the arrogant really have to say. In other words, do they just talk or do they have the power to back up their pride. 

I love to read Oswald Chambers "My Utmost for His Highest". Today's devotion reminded me of this verse. He said:

 "We have to concentrate on the great point of spiritual energy- the Cross, to keep in contact with that center where all the power lies, and the energy will be let loose." 

Even in the Christian world, we are so likely to be full of arrogant or empty talk. We talk about living good lives, lives that are happy, lives are holy, lives that are free. But if we are not talking about the Cross we have no power to live by. No hope to see change. No joy or blessings. Because it's just talk. "For the Kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power." May we know the power of the Cross daily, and may it change our lives. For our good and His glory. 

What makes you so special?

1 Corinthians 4:6-13

"I have applied all these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, brothers, that you may learn by us not to go beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up in favor of one against another.  For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it? Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich! Without us you have become kings! And would that you did reign, so that we might share the rule with you! For I think that God has exhibited us apostles as last of all, like men sentenced to death, because we have become a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men. We are fools for Christ's sake, but you are wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You are held in honor, but we in disrepute. To the present hour we hunger and thirst, we are poorly dressed and buffeted and homeless, and we labor, working with our own hands. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered, we entreat. We have become, and are still, like the scum of the world, the refuse of all things."

Let's talk about something we ALL deal with. Pride. At first read, you may not understand that pride is what Paul is getting at. I mean, as I first read it, I was really confused. Where was the switch? When did Paul begin to envy the Corinthians? Wasn't he calling them babies a few chapters ago? And now they are wise? Nope! Don't worry. Paul isn't changing his mind. He is just being sarcastic. Or, as Bible commentators call it... ironic. The truth is, Paul is putting the Corinthians on major blast. He is calling them out for walking around like they are the coolest thing ever. Like they have it all together. Like they are kings. 

Paul uses himself and Apollos as examples. Saying that if the Corinthian church really looked at the Word of God and followed the example of the leaders they themselves were elevating, they would not put on such airs. Paul asks them "who sees anything different in you?" This isn't a challenge to be set apart from the world, it's the Greek way of saying "what makes you so special?!" In the next passage we are reminded of the love God has for us. But for now, what I really want us to get is that nothing we have is by our own merit. "What do you have that you did not receive?" 

Again, in my study this week, I listened to a message by Alistair Begg. He admonished his listeners to see themselves in light of who God is. God is everything. We are nothing. The more we love who He is, the more we know how little we have. The more we recognize that without His grace we fall so flat. We don't even fall, because we never made it off the ground to fall back to. "We have become, and are still, the scum of the world". No one likes being called scum. But take a moment to contemplate the perfect holiness, the vast power, the complete justice, the immovable faithfulness, the unconditional love, and the infinite being of God. Now... tell me... what makes you so special? We are nothing. All we have have been given by grace. Next week I'm so excited to talk about where we get grace. At the cross by the love and power of God. That we would live to praise Him because He is worthy!  But today, I am striving to let go of my love of self, for my good and His glory. 

"Accordingly, two cities have been formed by two loves: the earthly by the love of self, even to the contempt of God; the heavenly by the love of God, even to the contempt of self" 

~ Saint Augustine The City of God

Of Babies and Bean Sprouts

1 Corinthians  3:1-9

"But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human? What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building." 

When first reading this passage I saw two very different images. The first of a baby needing  to be swaddled and fed and taken care of. It is not yet ready for big people food, it still has a lot to learn. The second of a field with workers in it. They are all working for the harvest. Each has an appointed task but the credit for the harvest goes to God. Two very different pictures. But I think there is a link between them. And I believe it is something we need to grasp in order to mature in the Lord. 

Neither babies or sprouts stay small for long. They grow and change and develop. They become something that in the end bears only a slight resemblance to the first stages of their life. None of us would argue that the sprout grows itself. It does not plant itself. It does not water itself. It can not produce its own sunlight and it has very little say in the speed it grows or what it grows up to be. We know that God makes plants grow by His grace. In the image of the field we identify more with Paul and Apollos (the workers) than we do with the plants but the reality we (as the Chruch) are the field here. And we are the baby too. And just like the sprout the baby does not grow itself. And that is where the link fits. "God gave the growth". How often are we ok with the idea that is God that brings us to salvation, but after that, after we are born again we are on our own? It's just not true. We strive so hard to stretch ourselves straining for that inch of growth. But when I look back at my own life, the times I grew the most where when I was resting. When i was simply basking in the light of my God. My God who give growth. He is the one that matures us. It is His goodness that molds us and makes us into spiritual people. 

I'm amazed that again my reading has brought me back to the idea that God does these amazing things for me. Salvation. Redemption. Sanctification. Glorification. And it has NOTHING to do with me. Maybe the Lord is trying to drive something home (you think?). I'm excited to keep reading see how He continues to remind me of His unique goodness. I pray that He will use this study to bring growth in my life for my good and His glory. 

My Weakness

1 Corinthians 2:1-5 

"And I, when I came to you brothers, did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message where not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God."

Confession time. This week I have very little desire to post. I slacked on my study in the last few days. I have been really very busy and am tired and would like to sleep. It is finally Friday and I feel it. Usually, when it comes time to post, I have spent at least a few hours preparing: reading, outlining, praying, talking things over with Jake. Usually, I am pretty excited to share (or maybe show off) what the Lord has been teaching me. I feel like I will be well spoken and my words will convict and I will be a blessing to those who read me. It's just like the Lord to bring me to a place where I feel completely inadequate the week I learn about the insignificance of man next to the power of God. 

This passage is a continuation from the last chapter. Paul explained how the foolishness of the gospel message makes much of God's wisdom and about how the insignificance of the people God chooses makes into nothing the lofty of the world. Here, Paul remarks on the fact that it is his own weakness that reveals the power of God. 
Pride is such a simple sin. One minute a preacher can be stoked on how beautiful Jesus is. The next he is trying to think about how best to present that beauty to others. And the next, he is relying on his own eloquence to reveal that beauty to the hearts of man. Men of God through history have had good intentions (saving lost souls) but rely on so many things other than the Spirit to touch the world. Whether it's through fear, logic or even promises of an easy life, we so easily place the burden of salvation on our own shoulders. 

Paul goes in the opposite direction. "I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified".  The gospel is wonderful on it's own. It does not need special words to make it powerful. Paul even says that he spoke in words that seemed unwise and impossible so that if people heard and responded it would be "in demonstration of the Spirit and of power". Again this is all for one reason. That in doing so Paul would not be seen at all. That in talking in this way, in laying down his own pride, people would come to see God as He really is. Powerful! The Corinthians found it easy to follow men because of outward style. But we are called for follow God and rest in His power. The only power that calls us, saves us, and seals us for our good and His glory. 

God is Faithful

1 Corinthians 1: 4-9

"I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you were enriched in Him in speech and all knowledge - even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you - so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord."

When I read this passage my heart stands up inside me and screams "Look at all the AMAZING things God does for you!!! Look at how AWESOME you get to be, and it has NOTHING to do with you!" I feel like that is the basic idea behind what Paul is telling this church. He loves them, he is grateful for them, he thinks they are pretty cool. But, he gives them none of the credit for it. Everything we are is in Christ and everything that we have to be grateful for is because He is faithful.

Paul lays out their life in Christ. First, he is grateful to God "because of the grace of God that was given (them) in Christ Jesus". He is grateful for their salvation. He is glad that they are saved by the grace of God and that this is His work, not theirs (Eph. 2:8). Paul is also grateful that they are "enriched in Him" and "not lacking in any spiritual gift". I'm so blown away but this. God doesn't save us and then walk away from us. It's not as if He says, "cool! now I'll see you in 40 years. Good luck with your life, I hope you make me proud. I guess we'll see on that judgment day how you did." No! If He did I don't think any of us would be surprised. I mean the majority of the church walks around as if that is what they believe anyway (I know I do). Instead, He has equipped us with what we need to glorify Him. He as made us lacking in nothing and it is Him that sustains us till the end. It is the Lord who will present us to Himself "guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ". He saves us, He sanctifies us, He glorifies us. He does it all! Look at all the AMAZING things God does for you!!!

These are some pretty splendid promises. They are massive and our lives depend on them. Paul completes his thanksgiving by remind us why we will not be disappointed. "God is faithful". He is. Always. And the assurance we are given is our salvation. It was by God that you were called to salvation, "into the the fellowship of His Son". When I look back at my salvation I recognize how much I was running in the opposite direction. But God called me. He was irresistible. He was stubborn. He was faithful to me when I was completely faithless. That is how I know He will do what He says. Because He as already done such amazing things for me. He has already done it all, and He will complete my journey to Himself for my good and His glory.

Jesus, Mommy and Me

This week my mom came down from Santa Clarita to visit me. It was an unexpected visit. I happened to have some time off work and she wanted to see some friends in the area so she popped down for the day. We sat by my pool, we drove to Old Town, we got lost on the way, we ate dinner at Miguel's Cocina, we got to talk and laugh and just be together and it was wonderful. I have always enjoyed hanging out with my mom. She is one of my dearest friends. We kinda click the way that besties do. Lately, though, i have found it especially wonderful to discuss my Savior with my mom. I feel like the Lord is teaching my mom and i some of the same things right now. He is revealing Himself to us in many of the same ways and sharing it with one another has been so sweet.

We got on the topic of the Gospel together. When was the last time you did that? Discussed the Gospel with someone. Not just in the sense of evangelism but dwelled together on how Christ, God incarnate, came into the world, lived perfectly, as no one else ever could, died on the cross taking the just penalty for your sin and mine, and imputing to us the merited honor He Himself earned in said perfect life, thereby satisfying God's wrath and gracing us with righteous standing before our Maker, and He is victorious over sin and death demonstrated by His resurrection from the grave and His ascension to the right hand of the Father. When was the last time you considered in your conversation what this glorious occurrence means for your life today? I've been thinking a lot about this lately. My view of the place of the Gospel in my life has changed considerably this past year. I attend a church where the Gospel is preached weekly for the benefit of believers and unbelievers alike. And it is beautiful!

My mom and i discussed this change in my perspective.  The more i dwell on this, the more i talk about it with other people, the more i see it in my time in the word. For example the other day i was reading Hebrews and this verse stood out to me, "But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called "today", that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin." (Hebrews 3:13) How do we exhort one another daily to combat deceit? We tell one another the truth. The truth of the glorious Gospel of God. The truth that changes lives. I have a friend who told me about the importance of "gospeling" people in your life. Who ever thought of making the Gospel of verb? But what she means is telling others about how the life, death, and resurrection of Christ applies to the situation they are in. And it always does. The Gospel changes everything. I'm learning this a little more each day. I hope it is something i make a habit of sharing for our good and His glory.