1 & 2 Corinthians – Page 5

1 Corinthians 14:26-40 – Unity in the Community

There are some troubling words in today’s reading—especially for the ladies! We’ll ponder all that, but it seems Paul is still trying to keep the church community in alignment with God’s desire for unity. By setting parameters and expectations for worship, Paul is helping the growing congregation from being a chaotic hot mess trying to do it all!

Paul includes some pretty specific guidelines for the use of spiritual gifts as well. We can all agree that it appears our gifts should work to nurture and bless the congregation. When you look around at your church friends, do you see how God has gifted them each differently? Is everyone using their gifts?

1 Corinthians 14:1-25 – What Gift Is Best?

Read 1 Corinthians 14:1-25

dove flying above an open Bible with light coming from God's word

Paul has been explaining to the Corinthians about spiritual gifts, and he showcases two in this reading: tongues and prophecy. Remember, choosing our gifts is not up to us. The Holy Spirit oversees that and will select the appropriate gift for each of us. We can certainly pray for gifts we hope for, but we may not always get what we want.

I have known people in my life with these gifts. I’ve experienced hearing people praying in tongues and have always been mesmerized by that, wishing I had the gift of interpretation to understand what the Spirit was saying. Wouldn’t it be cool to know what the Holy Spirit found important to pray about? Those must be some very powerful prayers!

1 Corinthians 13:1-13 – It’s All About Love

Read 1 Corinthians 13:1-13

1 Corinthians 13:13 But the Greatest of these is Love.

This is how we ended the last reading. “But now let me show you a way of life that is best of all.” Now we know what Paul was referring to. It’s all about love. This is probably a familiar passage, especially if you’ve attended a wedding. What better setting than a wedding to review God’s ideal way of life! It sets up the newlyweds for success and reminds us all how love works.

We are called to love one another, and Paul describes for us what that looks like. Love is one of those words that gets thrown around a lot for things, like “I love chocolate.” While I am very much a fan of chocolate and will choose chocolate over pretty much any other flavor if given a choice, “loving” it in a Biblical sense doesn’t quite fit.

1 Corinthians 12:12-31 – Could I Be a Mouth?

Read 1 Corinthians 1:12-31

We are all parts of the body of Christ. I love the imagery Paul uses to help us understand we are all important. We all have a role to play. I said “mouth” for me because God is using me to “speak up” and help people remember to connect with him and his word. But really, I’d be doing the same thing I’m doing even if I was a big toe!

All kidding aside, I love how Paul affirms everyone. In our day and age when sensitivity is at an all time high, this is a particularly good message. Don’t you love when you stumble upon real life solutions within the pages of the Bible? The body of Christ must have all the different parts, and each part is equally important! When we live a truth like that, we can’t help but be more loving to others.

1 Corinthians 12:1-11 – Have You Opened Your Gift?

Read 1 Corinthians 12:1-11

The Holy Spirit is so generous! Not only are we gifted with special abilities to further the kingdom, we are drawn to Jesus, recognizing that he is Lord because of the Holy Spirit’s influence in our lives. The gifts we are given are designed especially for us. “There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord.”

When we realize how we have been gifted, we can use our gifts to serve God and others in our kingdom fellowship. It’s usually not too hard to figure out how we’ve been gifted. Start by looking at what you are good at or what gives you joy when you do it. What are some of those things for you? Are you using them to help build up God’s kingdom?