1 Corinthians 1:1-17
Be Still: Lord Jesus, as I enter into your Word today and prepare for you to speak to me, would you bring stillness to my body and peace to my mind. Amen.
Read: 1 Corinthians 1:1-17
He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. (v. 8-9)
Encounter: When it comes to DIY in our house, I frequently overestimate my abilities. A few months ago, I tried to replace the valve in our toilet. But, during the repair, I forgot to put the seal back between the cistern and the toilet. So, when it came to taking the new valve for a test drive, the water that would usually flush the toilet ended up flowing out from the cistern onto the floor! It wasn’t a proud moment for me.
All too often, I fall into the trap of believing that it’s up to me to ‘fix’ myself - I see bits of me that are still broken and in need of redemption only to think, ‘I need to get round to fixing that.’ It’s for this reason that I find Paul’s writing in 1 Corinthians 1 so comforting. Even though the Corinthian church was a mess (and that’s putting it mildly), Paul opens his letter by describing their sanctification (the process of becoming like Jesus) as an event in the past. How can that be? Paul knows that the Corinthian church is a car crash. I’m tempted to think that Paul is describing sanctification in the past tense because he knows that eventual state is so certain. It’s not a certainty because of us but because of God’s faithfulness to us. Paul goes on to say in 1 Corinthians 1:8-9 that ‘He will also keep you firm to the end… God is faithful.’
Apply: Perhaps, like me, you breathe a big sigh of relief when you read these verses. Is there a part of you that you feel embarrassed or ashamed about and are trying to fix? Perhaps this is a moment to hand that over to Jesus and to choose to trust in his faithfulness to you.
Devote: Lord Jesus, thank you that my transformation into your likeness is not down to me. Help me to trust in your unfailing love and the certainty that you are making and you will make me like you.