Category: Thoughts and Meditations

“Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.” – 1 Corinthians 16:13-14

What incredible final advice as Paul concludes his letter to the troubled, yet promising churches of Corinth! Yes, they had serious problems caused by bringing the culture of the day into their churches rather than maturing believers to live like Jesus. Yes, they had struggles, squabbles, and injustices based on social divisions and spiritual gifts that demonstrated they still hadn’t fully realized all the wondrous aspects of the Gospel. Nonetheless, they still had the Gospel and the Holy Spirit living within them, so they had everything they needed to reform their churches – and so do we!

There was no problem in the church then (or today) that couldn’t be handled by this advice:

– Be watchful. Be alert to the error of bringing the assumptions and values of the prevailing non-Christian culture into Christ’s bride. Don’t let it happen! Be on guard against compromising the Word of God to suit the social mores.

– Stand firm in the faith. Following Jesus is hard and unpopular. It was then, it is today. Don’t bend the faith to minimize opposition. Stand firm in the faith. Proclaim Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and the only way to be reconciled with God in Heaven!

– Act like men. Grow up! Grow to Christ-like maturity. Don’t whine, complain, or fuss like a bunch of babies. Don’t act like children comparing whose spiritual gifts or talents are better. Don’t choose teams within the faith based on Christian celebrities. Act like Jesus!

– Be strong. Taking up your cross daily, denying yourself, and following Jesus requires strength that only Christ can provide. So nurture your spiritual life to tap into the strength God has given you in Him. Then take up your cross daily, deny yourself, and follow Jesus!

– Do everything in love. Seriously. Do everything in love. If you’re doing all the other stuff but it isn’t done in love, you aren’t actually following Jesus. In fact, you’re almost certainly undermining the Kingdom of God. Love!

“Every way of a man is right in his own eyes,
but the Lord weighs the heart.”
– Proverbs 21:2

We have an extraordinary ability to convince ourselves that whatever we’re doing or want to do is right. We can rationalize just about anything and we need to recognize that terrifying ability lest we be captured by it. As Christians, we even pick and choose Bible verses or popular teachers to twist Scripture and reassure ourselves that we’re in the right, that up is down, and that wrong is right (or that right is wrong if we’re trying to avoid doing something God wants).

God isn’t convinced by any of it! He isn’t convinced by sophistry, semantics, or sleight-of-hand. He isn’t distracted, persuaded, or worn down. God knows why we want to do what we want to do. And if what we want to do is sin, He knows that we want to do it because we are sinful. God knows your heart. He knows your mind. And He isn’t swayed by artful and false reasoning to justify any sin under the sun.

To live a life that truly follows Jesus, stop listening to your own persuasive reasons justifying sinful action or inaction. Get on God’s page instead! The best way to do that is to be a regular reader of the Bible. Don’t be content to let others read for you. Read God’s Word yourself every day, day after day, year after year. Each day, hold God’s Word up to yourself as a mirror. Are you doing what God plainly teaches and values or are you avoiding, evading, and ignoring God’s will and word?

Ask for God to speak to you through His word. Ask God to reveal to you how He sees your heart. Stop listening to yourself and stop listening to the culture as you and they argue for things clearly against God’s will. Listen to the Lord!

“So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.” – 1 Corinthians 15:42-44

This is what we look forward to in Christ! As followers of Jesus, we too will rise from the dead as He has. Our resurrection won’t merely be a raising of our spirit (though our spirit goes to be with the Lord immediately when we die). Rather, our ultimate and eternal future is to be raised as a spirit in a resurrected, perfected, glorious body!

When our bodies are raised, they won’t ache, creak, or groan. They will not grow weak, break down, or betray us. They will be glorious. They will be eternal. They will be powerful. We don’t know exactly what all that means or looks like, but we’ve been promised that we will be like Jesus on that day (1 John 3:2).

So take heart, during long seasons of aching and groaning, of weakness and frustration with your perishable body. Don’t despair. Don’t lose hope. This time will pass. What lies ahead for followers of Jesus is unimaginably wonderful! In that moment, the darkness of life in a fallen world will fade away amidst the brilliant beauty and wonder of resurrection, renewal, and God’s eternal presence.

“Do not say, “I will repay evil”;
wait for the Lord, and he will deliver you.”
– Proverbs 20:22

Life in a fallen world can be extraordinarily frustrating! We see injustice and evil and not only desire to change those things (a good and godly desire), but we often long to see the wrongdoers punished. Unfortunately, that won’t always happen quickly or even during our lifetime. This strains our limited patience. Our spirit easily grows resentful of the seeming success of people who cut corners, take advantage of others, or leave a wake of destruction behind their selfish, immoral, or criminal pursuits. It can be tempting to take matters into our own hands, but we must resist that temptation!

Though it’s hard to wait, we must trust in God’s ultimate justice. Yes, we should work for justice and change. Yes, we should work for and desire just government and laws. But we must always do so in a manner that glorifies God. We’re called to be patient and trust in God, even when we see little evidence of His activity. Vengeance isn’t our personal responsibility. As God’s people, Scripture assures us over and over again that there will be an ultimate and eternal reckoning for those who practice evil.

God will repay evil. God will deliver His people. There will be a day when all evil is judged and cast into hell forever and there will be a day when the people of God will be welcomed into His presence forever. We must not rush God, try to force His hand, or give up waiting for Him. Wait for the Lord and He will deliver you!

“But earnestly desire the higher gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way. If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” – 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:1

Paul wrote this letter to an extremely gifted and talented church that was ripping itself apart! They needed to pursue the more excellent way of love. The church was divided, prideful, spiritually immature, and deeply influenced by the prevailing secular culture outside the church. As is usually true with 1 Corinthians, this sounds exactly like the modern American church!

Today we have easy access to amazing scholars, incredible Bible study resources at our fingertips, extraordinarily talented preachers and teachers, and a surplus of Christian leaders with vast platforms and loud voices exerting influence. But where’s the love? Too often, Christ-like love that’s humble, patient, gracious, kind, steadfast, and truly caring is missing altogether.

Without losing our theological rigor and passion for the Bible, our churches need a fresh encounter with Christ’s love. As Christians, we’re supposed to be leading with love rather than anger, condemnation, or legalism. Of course, we must teach and preach right doctrine, affirm God’s design for the world and human flourishing, and reach the lost with the good news of Jesus Christ. However, the way we do those things must be grounded in genuine, practical, sacrificial, costly love. Without love, our wonderful teaching and preaching is just an ungodly cacophony that benefits no one other than Satan!

Are you eagerly desiring the higher gift of love? Are you walking in the more excellent way of Christ? Is Christ’s love the theme of your life?