Daily Manna (Coffee with Jesus)

A joyful heart + A cheerful giver = A demonstration of God’s love.  Do the math. If we promise an offering then we must follow through as God directs.  Even when pushed to the limits, the outpouring of generosity from the Macedonian churches for the relief of the poor in Jerusalem came from hearts of pure love for God and others. 

Love God.  Love Others.  These two greatest commands of God, according to Jesus, are the foundation for all other commands of God.  It is God’s love that breeds our generosity from gratitude for all that God did to save us through His Son, Jesus.  God’s love is unlike any other love the world can muster.  His love in us compels us to love Him back once we realize all He has done for us.  God designed us with a longing for His love so we are not fully satisfied until we know God who is love. (See 1 John 4)

God’s love drives us back to Him, the One and Only God, who created all, owns all, and is in all.  God then gave His One and Only Son to save all!  It is no wonder that when believers truly realize all that God has done; we beg for ways to give back what God has given to us to help others know God and His love.

2 Corinthians 8, The Message

The Offering

^1-4 Now, friends, I want to report on the surprising and generous ways in which God is working in the churches in Macedonia province. Fierce troubles came down on the people of those churches, pushing them to the very limit. The trial exposed their true colors: They were incredibly happy, though desperately poor. The pressure triggered something totally unexpected: an outpouring of pure and generous gifts. I was there and saw it for myself. They gave offerings of whatever they could—far more than they could afford!—pleading for the privilege of helping out in the relief of poor Christians.

^5-7 This was totally spontaneous, entirely their own idea, and caught us completely off guard. What explains it was that they had first given themselves unreservedly to God and to us. The other giving simply flowed out of the purposes of God working in their lives. That’s what prompted us to ask Titus to bring the relief offering to your attention, so that what was so well begun could be finished up. You do so well in so many things—you trust God, you’re articulate, you’re insightful, you’re passionate, you love us—now, do your best in this, too.

^8-9 I’m not trying to order you around against your will. But by bringing in the Macedonians’ enthusiasm as a stimulus to your love, I am hoping to bring the best out of you. You are familiar with the generosity of our Master, Jesus Christ. Rich as he was, he gave it all away for us—in one stroke he became poor and we became rich.

^10-20 So here’s what I think: The best thing you can do right now is to finish what you started last year and not let those good intentions grow stale. Your heart’s been in the right place all along. You’ve got what it takes to finish it up, so go to it. Once the commitment is clear, you do what you can, not what you can’t. The heart regulates the hands. This isn’t so others can take it easy while you sweat it out. No, you’re shoulder to shoulder with them all the way, your surplus matching their deficit, their surplus matching your deficit. In the end you come out even. As it is written,

Nothing left over to the one with the most,
Nothing lacking to the one with the least.

I thank God for giving Titus the same devoted concern for you that I have. He was most considerate of how we felt, but his eagerness to go to you and help out with this relief offering is his own idea. We’re sending a companion along with him, someone very popular in the churches for his preaching of the Message. But there’s far more to him than popularity. He’s rock-solid trustworthy. The churches handpicked him to go with us as we travel about doing this work of sharing God’s gifts to honor God as well as we can, taking every precaution against scandal.

^20-22 We don’t want anyone suspecting us of taking one penny of this money for ourselves. We’re being as careful in our reputation with the public as in our reputation with God. That’s why we’re sending another trusted friend along. He’s proved his dependability many times over, and carries on as energetically as the day he started. He’s heard much about you, and liked what he’s heard—so much so that he can’t wait to get there.

^23-24 I don’t need to say anything further about Titus. We’ve been close associates in this work of serving you for a long time. The brothers who travel with him are delegates from churches, a real credit to Christ. Show them what you’re made of, the love I’ve been talking up in the churches. Let them see it for themselves!

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Paul expressed confidence in the Corinthian church. He asked them to complete their collection for the Jerusalem church, which they had promised a year before.  “Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver,” –with an attitude of gratitude.  (2 Corinthians 9:7) 

Paul gave the Corinthians two examples of generous giving: the Macedonian churches and Christ. We should give according to our abilities, voluntarily and generously. God gives to us so that we can share with others. Paul encourages the believers that the power they have in God is stronger than Satan’s power.

We will have many tests and financial trials that will cause us to think twice about our giving.  So, always ask for God’s wisdom and guidance in giving.  We step out in faith by God’s wisdom to give out of what God has given to us to manage.  Paul gives good advice to the people as they decide how and what to give: ^“Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t have.” 2 Corinthians 8:12.

We need to avoid making a show of our giving at all costs!  I am reminded of Jesus’ observation of the poor widow who “two mites” quietly while others gave coins that crashed into the vessel to draw attention to themselves.  “Look at me” offerings are not acceptable to God according to Jesus.  “’Truly I tell you,’ He said, ‘this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.’”—Jesus, Luke 21-3-4, NIV

Giving shows unity of God’s purposes.  Paul had other blessings in mind besides the material assisting of the poor. He wanted this offering to strengthen the unity of the church as the Gentile churches shared with the Jewish congregations across the sea.

Giving because of the grace of God.  The Macedonians gave enthusiastically. Their giving was voluntary and spontaneous. It was because of grace, not pressure. They gave because they wanted to give and because they had experienced the grace of God. Grace not only frees us from our sins, but it frees us from ourselves. The grace of God  opens our hearts and our hands. Our giving is not the result of cold calculation, but of warmhearted jubilation!

Do the math once more:  A joyful heart + A cheerful giver = A demonstration of God’s love. 

Lord,

Thank you for the gift of giving instilled into our being as growing believers who are redeemed.  Help us to live joyfully as the redeemed, grateful for your generous gift of salvation.  Cleanse our hearts, renew our minds, change our behaviors, refresh our souls, and restore the joy and peace of you in us and us in you—loving you back and loving others like you love us.

In Jesus Name, Amen

When all goes well in life, sometimes we are lulled into thinking we are in control of life. Pride will seep into our being as we rely on this false sense of security based on our own abilities alone.  But then something unexpected happens to challenge every part of our being.  Immediately we become dismayed, discouraged, distrustful and ultimately distressed.  We live in an imperfect world full of people with different ways of thinking and doing.  We are bound to be challenged by each other when we get in the way of the lives of others. 

Sometimes life takes a turn when you or a are loved one becomes gravely ill.  Not knowing what to do and having little to no control over it causes panic which leads to distress.  It shows on our faces while causing our hearts to beat quicker and our bodies to be on full alert.  We tremble as thoughts of the worst that could happen invade our minds.

Sins causes distress in all kinds of ways.  Our sin affects not only us, but brings distress to all those who live life alongside us.  Sin that is ignored unsettles our minds and hardens our hearts.  Sin left unattended and unrepented breeds like an out-of-control cancer causing more sins of pride, jealousy, envy, and arrogance to rise to defeat us.

So, what is “good distress”?  Paul explains—

2 Corinthians 7, The Message

With promises like this to pull us on, dear friends, let’s make a clean break with everything that defiles or distracts us, both within and without. Let’s make our entire lives fit and holy temples for the worship of God.

More Passionate, More Responsible

^2-4 Trust us. We’ve never hurt a soul, never exploited or taken advantage of anyone. Don’t think I’m finding fault with you. I told you earlier that I’m with you all the way, no matter what. I have, in fact, the greatest confidence in you. If only you knew how proud I am of you! I am overwhelmed with joy despite all our troubles.

^5-7 When we arrived in Macedonia province, we couldn’t settle down. The fights in the church and the fears in our hearts kept us on pins and needles. We couldn’t relax because we didn’t know how it would turn out. Then the God who lifts up the downcast lifted our heads and our hearts with the arrival of Titus. We were glad just to see him, but the true reassurance came in what he told us about you: how much you cared, how much you grieved, how concerned you were for me. I went from worry to tranquility in no time!

^8-9 I know I distressed you greatly with my letter. Although I felt awful at the time, I don’t feel at all bad now that I see how it turned out. The letter upset you, but only for a while. Now I’m glad—not that you were upset, but that you were jarred into turning things around. You let the distress bring you to God, not drive you from him. The result was all gain, no loss.

¹⁰ Distress that drives us to God does that. It turns us around. It gets us back in the way of salvation. We never regret that kind of pain. But those who let distress drive them away from God are full of regrets, end up on a deathbed of regrets.

^11-13 And now, isn’t it wonderful all the ways in which this distress has goaded you closer to God? You’re more alive, more concerned, more sensitive, more reverent, more human, more passionate, more responsible. Looked at from any angle, you’ve come out of this with purity of heart. And that is what I was hoping for in the first place when I wrote the letter. My primary concern was not for the one who did the wrong or even the one wronged, but for you—that you would realize and act upon the deep, deep ties between us before God. That’s what happened—and we felt just great.

^13-16 And then, when we saw how Titus felt—his exuberance over your response—our joy doubled. It was wonderful to see how revived and refreshed he was by everything you did. If I went out on a limb in telling Titus how great I thought you were, you didn’t cut off that limb. As it turned out, I hadn’t exaggerated one bit. Titus saw for himself that everything I had said about you was true. He can’t quit talking about it, going over again and again the story of your prompt obedience, and the dignity and sensitivity of your hospitality. He was quite overwhelmed by it all! And I couldn’t be more pleased—I’m so confident and proud of you.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Distress that leads us immediately back to God is good!  Life on earth will bring distress as we work together with other uniquely designed by God people.  We are created differently but there is no need to be divisive. 

Division in the Body of Christ called “church” immensely grieved and distressed Paul.  The church was distressed and hindered in her growth by the abrasive actions of others.  God is grieved when “His kids” do not get along.  Jesus, is Head of the church; but when the church loses sight of the sacrifice He made for us; He is grieved.  When we disobey God’s Holy Spirit by allowing ourselves to be distracted and deceived by evil’s schemes to divide us, we grieve the Holy Spirit. But God provides a way to turn it all around when our distress drives us back to Him!

“You let the distress bring you to God, not drive you from him. The result was all gain, no loss,”Paul joyfully replies!  He reemphasizes his joy with, “Distress that drives us to God does that. It turns us around. It gets us back in the way of salvation. We never regret that kind of pain. But those who let distress drive them away from God are full of regrets, end up on a deathbed of regrets.

PAUSE TO PRAY—

Are we living our lives with no regrets?

Does our distress drive us to God or keep us farther away from Him?

When troubles and challenges of life come do we throw up our hands and quit, dig in and try to solve the issues by ourselves because of our pride, or do we humbly fall to our knees and call on the Name of Jesus? 

Do we fully and completely rely on and obey the One who knows all, created all, and is in all?

Sins, left unchecked, compound with interest daily.  This is a “savings” that must be depleted daily!  This saving of sins plan only leads to loss and regret. What are saving?  Does our distress lead us back in the way of salvation—which is all gain?

Lord,

I want to live with no regrets.  Cleanse my heart, renew my mind, refresh my soul with your new mercies, and continually restore the joy and peace of your salvation at work in me.  I’m yours.  I believe.  I’m listening.  May the distresses of this life always lead me to your saving grace, unlimited help, with compassions that fail not.

In Jesus Name, Amen

It is a natural tendency to go where the light is brightest so we can see better.  This trait is embedded into our being so much so that we catch ourselves looking for something we lost in places brighter and lighter as opposed to looking in the dark.  If something is lost in the dark, we adults will first acquire a tool of light to shed a beam on the dark places as we look for what is lost.

I giggle even now as I remember a time when my mom once told me to look for a needle that had dropped to the floor while she was sewing a garment on her machine.  I was a young child who was trying to obey, but I was looking in all the wrong places.  She had dropped it near her but I was looking where I could see better—in the light!  She asked why was I looking across the room.  I told her the light is better; it’s too dark under the machine—a child’s logic!

Sometime we go through life looking in all the wrong places for what is lost. Even as believers, we can get sloppy with our serving with attitudes and behaviors that are dark and worldly.  Lost people are looking for Light.  When we show late or not at all we cause frustration in God’s work of helping people find, believe, and follow Jesus.  Paul reminds his Corinthian friends to stay focused on Christ, God helping them.  Jesus is the reason we live and breathe.  Jesus is the why we worship.  It is Jesus we seek as we listen and learn from God’s Word. 

So, Paul takes a minute to remind all believers that we are God’s instruments of His Light in this dark world.  He does this often in his letters to the churches!  This passage is no exception.  God is in all the details of our lives—He even delights in them!  “Our work as God’s servants gets validated—or not—in the details.” 

Jesus is the Light of the world.  Follow the Light.  Stay in the Light.  This is the one time that looking for what you’ve lost makes perfect sense to look only in the Light—where you can see better!

2 Corinthians 6, The Message

Staying at Our Post

^1-10 Companions as we are in this work with you, we beg you, please don’t squander one bit of this marvelous life God has given us. God reminds us,

I heard your call in the nick of time;
The day you needed me, I was there to help.

Well, now is the right time to listen, the day to be helped. Don’t put it off; don’t frustrate God’s work by showing up late, throwing a question mark over everything we’re doing. Our work as God’s servants gets validated—or not—in the details. People are watching us as we stay at our post, alertly, unswervingly . . . in hard times, tough times, bad times; when we’re beaten up, jailed, and mobbed; working hard, working late, working without eating; with pure heart, clear head, steady hand; in gentleness, holiness, and honest love; when we’re telling the truth, and when God’s showing his power; when we’re doing our best setting things right; when we’re praised, and when we’re blamed; slandered, and honored; true to our word, though distrusted; ignored by the world, but recognized by God; terrifically alive, though rumored to be dead; beaten within an inch of our lives, but refusing to die; immersed in tears, yet always filled with deep joy; living on handouts, yet enriching many; having nothing, having it all.

^11-13 Dear, dear Corinthians, I can’t tell you how much I long for you to enter this wide-open, spacious life. We didn’t fence you in. The smallness you feel comes from within you. Your lives aren’t small, but you’re living them in a small way. I’m speaking as plainly as I can and with great affection. Open up your lives. Live openly and expansively!

* * *

^14-18 Don’t become partners with those who reject God. How can you make a partnership out of right and wrong? That’s not partnership; that’s war. Is light best friends with dark? Does Christ go strolling with the Devil? Do trust and mistrust hold hands? Who would think of setting up pagan idols in God’s holy Temple? But that is exactly what we are, each of us a temple in whom God lives. God himself put it this way:

“I’ll live in them, move into them;
    I’ll be their God and they’ll be my people.
So leave the corruption and compromise;
    leave it for good,” says God.
“Don’t link up with those who will pollute you.
    I want you all for myself.
I’ll be a Father to you;
    you’ll be sons and daughters to me.”
The Word of the Master, God.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

“Your lives aren’t small, but you’re living them in a small way.”

We can always count on Paul to give us not only a “should” but “how” to live in the Light of God’s love and behave in ways that please God.  As soon we believe Jesus, repent of our sins to Jesus, God’s Holy Spirit comes to live inside us—the “temple” in which God now resides.  God’s Holy Spirit then guides us to how to live this new life!

How to live that helps not hinders as we serve together in the Light:

• Show up on time together as we serve.  This alleviates frustration of last minute adjustments.
• Rely on God to help us in all the details of serving Him by serving others who need God.
• Listen and learn from each other who are dedicated to God as servants.
• Stay alert and faithful—no matter what is happening around us.
• Be at our best and do our best to honor and please God in all we think, say, and do.
• “Leave corruption and compromise for good” says God who validates us in the details. Through good times and bad, tears of joy and of pain—be honest, tell the Truth, seek to be holy, God helping us. 

“I want you all for myself. I’ll be a Father to you; you’ll be sons and daughters to me.” –God

Pause to prayerfully consider and evaluate;

Am I living too small? 

Do I put limits on my serving?  Do I limit God’s work in me?

Do I really believe what God says to be really real? 

What would living in the “wide, open spaciousness” of God look like for me?

Lord,

Cleanse our hearts, renew our minds, refresh our souls with your new mercies for today, continually restore the joy and peace of you in us and us in you.  Guide all that we think, say, and do today.  Open our hearts to all you want us to see, hear, feel, touch, and experience.

In Jesus Name, Amen

When we are seeking help to locate a product in a store, we look for someone wearing a badge signifying they are an employee.  When seeking advice when purchasing a new appliance, we look for a representative who is wearing the polo shirt with the store’s colors.  It’s a bonus if we see someone with “manager” embroidered on their shirt, right?!  It’s a confidence builder to know they have been trained if they are a manager. 

Think about it, we want a representative to tell us the truth about what we need so we can make a wise decision.  We want someone who knows what they talking about.  It’s even better when representatives tell us they bought the product we are interested in and then relate to us their experience of owning it along with testimonials of how it meets their needs.  That settles it!  We buy in because of someone “in the know.”

Who knows better than God!  Who knows better than whom God sends? God offers a new way of life when we believe in Jesus, His Son.  God wants us to love Him back. It is God’s desire that no one perish.  God wants His best for us.  So, God sent His Son, His best, to save us.  This sacrificial act of love is the Way, the Truth that gives Life.  “God settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other,” proclaims Paul.  God now commands us to be Jesus’ representatives to show and tell of the offer of new life that comes as a gift to anyone and everyone who believes!  We’re God’s employees!

Pause to prayerfully take it all in…then read Paul’s encouragement to us.

2 Corinthians 5, The Message

 ^1-5 For instance, we know that when these bodies of ours are taken down like tents and folded away, they will be replaced by resurrection bodies in heaven—God-made, not handmade—and we’ll never have to relocate our “tents” again. Sometimes we can hardly wait to move—and so we cry out in frustration. Compared to what’s coming, living conditions around here seem like a stopover in an unfurnished shack, and we’re tired of it! We’ve been given a glimpse of the real thing, our true home, our resurrection bodies! The Spirit of God whets our appetite by giving us a taste of what’s ahead. He puts a little of heaven in our hearts so that we’ll never settle for less.

^6-8 That’s why we live with such good cheer. You won’t see us drooping our heads or dragging our feet! Cramped conditions here don’t get us down. They only remind us of the spacious living conditions ahead. It’s what we trust in but don’t yet see that keeps us going. Do you suppose a few ruts in the road or rocks in the path are going to stop us? When the time comes, we’ll be plenty ready to exchange exile for homecoming.

^9-10 But neither exile nor homecoming is the main thing. Cheerfully pleasing God is the main thing, and that’s what we aim to do, regardless of our conditions. Sooner or later we’ll all have to face God, regardless of our conditions. We will appear before Christ and take what’s coming to us as a result of our actions, either good or bad.

^11-14 That keeps us vigilant, you can be sure. It’s no light thing to know that we’ll all one day stand in that place of Judgment. That’s why we work urgently with everyone we meet to get them ready to face God. God alone knows how well we do this, but I hope you realize how much and deeply we care. We’re not saying this to make ourselves look good to you. We just thought it would make you feel good, proud even, that we’re on your side and not just nice to your face as so many people are. If I acted crazy, I did it for God; if I acted overly serious, I did it for you. Christ’s love has moved me to such extremes. His love has the first and last word in everything we do.

A New Life

^14-15 Our firm decision is to work from this focused center: One man died for everyone. That puts everyone in the same boat. He included everyone in his death so that everyone could also be included in his life, a resurrection life, a far better life than people ever lived on their own.

^16-20 Because of this decision we don’t evaluate people by what they have or how they look. We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know. We certainly don’t look at him that way anymore. Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life emerges! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins. God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them. We’re speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he’s already a friend with you.

²¹ How? you ask. In Christ. God put the wrong on him who never did anything wrong, so we could be put right with God.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

When we say yes to Jesus, we are given a “new life” to live.  As begin to transform from our old ways to living a newly created life, we discover the pure, unconditional love for all people that Jesus demonstrated become a part of our being. God’s Holy Spirit is changing us from the inside out.  We begin to see life from God’s perspective.  The more we realize the depth of love God has for us, our love for others deepens.  As our intimacy with God grows, we are given a glimpse of what it will be like to live with Him forever in heaven! 

As believers, we represent Jesus Christ?!  Humbling and a bit sobering, right?  Say it out loud.  “I represent Jesus in all I think, say, and do.”  It could mean the difference of life or death for anyone I meet as a rep! In fact, God’s Holy Spirit helping us, it is our work as a representative of Christ to tell others of His saving grace, great mercy, that is a gift to us all because of God’s relentless love for everyone in the world!  We must tell the world that by repenting of our sins to Jesus, He totally forgive us and sets us free from death with a written guarantee of eternal life!  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16 

We are His Light in a world of darkness.  Hide it under a bushel basket? No!  Paul gives us the words to say while God’s Holy Spirit guides us with power to say them;

“God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins. God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them. We’re speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he’s already a friend with you.” 2 Corinthians 5

Lord,

The Message is clear.  We are your ambassadors of your love, mercy, and grace.  You have miraculously saved us to tell others so they will know how to be saved by your grace and experience your great love and mercy.  Make us aware of those in need of a Savior then help us realize the opportunities you are providing to tell your story of redemption for your glory and their salvation.  Give us the right words at the right time that will be helpful to reconnecting others to you.  Thank you for saving my soul and making me whole.  I love to tell your story!  You settled it with me!

In Jesus Name, Amen

In everything give Him thanks, give Him thanks.
In everything give Him thanks.
In the good times praise His name;
In the bad times do the same;
In everything give the King of Kings all the thanks.

(Written by Donna Alley)

Praise God when people mock our faith in Him and our resolve to live in His ways?  How unlike the world this is!  But isn’t that the Message of Christ? Bad times are opportunities to tell people about God.  Bad times will happen in our lives which bring us closer to God as we depend less on our human selves and more on his supernatural power!  Jesus also prayed for us to be sent by God to reconcile (reconnect) people to God by telling His story of redemption to all people.  Paul is one of those called to passionately do just that—speak the Truth even while under trial and torture, like Jesus suffered, so that others will know Him and be saved by His grace.  Paul knows that the hard times serve as a way for God to work His good into this imperfect world in which we live.  (See also Romans 8:28)

2 Corinthians 4, The Message

Trial and Torture

^1-2 Since God has so generously let us in on what he is doing, we’re not about to throw up our hands and walk off the job just because we run into occasional hard times. We refuse to wear masks and play games. We don’t maneuver and manipulate behind the scenes. And we don’t twist God’s Word to suit ourselves. Rather, we keep everything we do and say out in the open, the whole truth on display, so that those who want to can see and judge for themselves in the presence of God.

^3-4 If our Message is obscure to anyone, it’s not because we’re holding back in any way. No, it’s because these other people are looking or going the wrong way and refuse to give it serious attention. All they have eyes for is the fashionable god of darkness. They think he can give them what they want, and that they won’t have to bother believing a Truth they can’t see. They’re stone-blind to the dayspring brightness of the Message that shines with Christ, who gives us the best picture of God we’ll ever get.

^5-6 Remember, our Message is not about ourselves; we’re proclaiming Jesus Christ, the Master. All we are is messengers, errand runners from Jesus for you. It started when God said, “Light up the darkness!” and our lives filled up with light as we saw and understood God in the face of Christ, all bright and beautiful.

^7-12 If you only look at us, you might well miss the brightness. We carry this precious Message around in the unadorned clay pots of our ordinary lives. That’s to prevent anyone from confusing God’s incomparable power with us. As it is, there’s not much chance of that. You know for yourselves that we’re not much to look at. We’ve been surrounded and battered by troubles, but we’re not demoralized; we’re not sure what to do, but we know that God knows what to do; we’ve been spiritually terrorized, but God hasn’t left our side; we’ve been thrown down, but we haven’t broken. What they did to Jesus, they do to us—trial and torture, mockery and murder; what Jesus did among them, he does in us—he lives! Our lives are at constant risk for Jesus’ sake, which makes Jesus’ life all the more evident in us. While we’re going through the worst, you’re getting in on the best!

^13-15 We’re not keeping this quiet, not on your life. Just like the psalmist who wrote, “I believed it, so I said it,” we say what we believe. And what we believe is that the One who raised up the Master Jesus will just as certainly raise us up with you, alive. Every detail works to your advantage and to God’s glory: more and more grace, more and more people, more and more praise!

^16-18 So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times, the lavish celebration prepared for us. There’s far more here than meets the eye. The things we see now are here today, gone tomorrow. But the things we can’t see now will last forever.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

“There’s far more here than meets the eye.” Paul knows that Jesus did not give up on him.  So, to become more like Jesus, we must not give up, become quiet or timid about who Jesus is, but keep moving by His direction even when we don’t fully see the “big picture” but trust that it will be revealed.  We know that it will be worth it all when we see Jesus face to face! 

We also know for certain that Jesus “sent us” on a mission in this world to tell His story for His glory and for our good.  It is by His “unfolding grace,” given to us daily—in all the details of our lives—that makes life worth it all!  Jesus is Life!  Jesus is not only Savior but He must be Lord of our lives.

Most of us have read and heard it preached that as believers we are “in the world” but not “of the world.”  But we must be careful how we think about this directive.  Jesus is not directing us to be a holy huddle but heaven sent to go and tell, teaching others about who He is and what He has done for all of us! 

David Mathis, editor of “Desiring God” writes;

“Jesus being “not of the world” isn’t the destination in these verses but the starting place. It’s not where things are moving toward, but what they’re moving from. He is not of the world, and he begins by saying that his followers are not of the world. But it’s going somewhere. Jesus is not huddling up the team for another round of kumbaya, but so that we can run the next play and advance the ball down the field.

Enter verse 18: “As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.” And don’t miss the surprising prayer of verse 15: “I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.” Jesus is not asking his Father for his disciples to be taken out of the world, but he is praying for them as they are “sent into” the world. He begins with them being “not of the world” and prays for them as they are “sent into” the world.

So maybe it would serve us better — at least in light of John 17 — to revise the popular phrase “in, but not of” in this way: “not of, but sent into.” The beginning place is being “not of the world,” and the movement is toward being “sent into” the world. The accent falls on being sent, with a mission, to the world — not being mainly on a mission to disassociate from this world.

In Paul’s writings, he seems to have this same emphasis.  Paul is daily allowing himself to being molded and shaped by Jesus, the Master of his life, to be sent to tell even if it means trials and torture, going through good times and bad.  He emphasizes this perspective when he writes;

“Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith. I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!” Philippians 3:8-11, NLT

Press on…

“I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” Philippians 3:12-14, NLT

Believe and be saved. 

Be still and know that He is God. 

Be encouraged. 

Press on…

Lord,

Life throws curve balls that distract us and disappoint us. But you are with us always, reminding us of Your Holy Presence that does not leave us.  We know that you know what lies ahead and that you will work good from the bad as we press on toward you.  Cleanse our hearts, renew our minds, refresh our souls with your new mercies, and continually restore the joy and peace of us in you and you in us as we tell others about you.  I believe, in good times and bad, I give you thanks.

In Jesus Name, Amen

Paul compared the glory of Moses’ old covenant to the glory of Christ’s new covenant, which is far better. He explained that when someone turns to the Lord, they find freedom and reflect God’s glory. He noted that God’s light shining in our hearts is a treasure for the world to see.

As we gaze upon the Lord’s glory, his Spirit frees us and transforms us more and more into his likeness.  We cannot do this for ourselves, God does this miraculous transforming work through His Holy Spirit who comes to reside in us.  Christ is our confidence, therefore, who tore the veil to reveal His glory forever.

2 Corinthians 3, The Message

^1-3 Does it sound like we’re patting ourselves on the back, insisting on our credentials, asserting our authority? Well, we’re not. Neither do we need letters of endorsement, either to you or from you. You yourselves are all the endorsement we need. Your very lives are a letter that anyone can read by just looking at you. Christ himself wrote it—not with ink, but with God’s living Spirit; not chiseled into stone, but carved into human lives—and we publish it.

^4-6 We couldn’t be more sure of ourselves in this—that you, written by Christ himself for God, are our letter of recommendation. We wouldn’t think of writing this kind of letter about ourselves. Only God can write such a letter. His letter authorizes us to help carry out this new plan of action. The plan wasn’t written out with ink on paper, with pages and pages of legal footnotes, killing your spirit. It’s written with Spirit on spirit, his life on our lives!

Lifting the Veil

^7-8 The Government of Death, its constitution chiseled on stone tablets, had a dazzling inaugural. Moses’ face as he delivered the tablets was so bright that day (even though it would fade soon enough) that the people of Israel could no more look right at him than stare into the sun. How much more dazzling, then, the Government of Living Spirit?

^9-11 If the Government of Condemnation was impressive, how about this Government of Affirmation? Bright as that old government was, it would look downright dull alongside this new one. If that makeshift arrangement impressed us, how much more this brightly shining government installed for eternity?

^12-15 With that kind of hope to excite us, nothing holds us back. Unlike Moses, we have nothing to hide. Everything is out in the open with us. He wore a veil so the children of Israel wouldn’t notice that the glory was fading away—and they didn’t notice. They didn’t notice it then and they don’t notice it now, don’t notice that there’s nothing left behind that veil. Even today when the proclamations of that old, bankrupt government are read out, they can’t see through it. Only Christ can get rid of the veil so they can see for themselves that there’s nothing there.

^16-18 Whenever, though, they turn to face God as Moses did, God removes the veil and there they are—face-to-face! They suddenly recognize that God is a living, personal presence, not a piece of chiseled stone. And when God is personally present, a living Spirit, that old, constricting legislation is recognized as obsolete. We’re free of it! All of us! Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESOND?

We respond with grateful hearts with humbled positions of surrender and praise to the God of glory who came to set us free from our sins and give us life eternal—all because of Jesus!

What does this transformation look like?

Prayerfully consider the devoted, committed follower of Jesus we want to be. What qualities do we want to have? More compassion? More conviction? More courage? What attitudes do we want to discontinue? Greed? Guilt? Endless negativity? A critical spirit?  We need help! 

Here is the good news. We can transform but only with God’s help.  God will help us transform daily, even hourly, from the person we are to the person we want to be—indeed, the person God made you to be.

As Paul has learned and now teaches others; we can live “with ever-increasing glory” (v.18) from the God of glory who intimately loves us and delights in all the details of our transforming lives!  It all began with God giving us Jesus to save us along with His Holy Spirit to help us transform as we trust and obey—one day at a time until we see Him face to face.

Lord,

Thank you for cleansing our hearts, renewing our minds, transforming our behaviors, refreshing our souls daily with your new mercies, and restoring the joy and peace of you in us and us in you.  Thank you, Jesus, for your obedience to seek and to save us without condemnation but by your love for us.  Lead us, Holy Spirit.  I’m yours, dear Lord.  I’m listening.

In Jesus Name, Amen

When God calls us to do a new thing in a new place, He equips us daily until it is completed.  As pastors come to Him at the beginning of each new day, in Jesus Name, God encourages us with His wisdom and strength as we face trials, disputes between people, along with financial, physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual challenges that try to trip us up as we serve this world who needs Jesus. 

The vocation of pastor to a group of people coming from all walks of life is not for the faint of heart who are impressed by the position but for those men and women who are sold out to God, fully committed to Him.  Above all, is the love of God completing His work in us who compels us to obey the will of God.  “We love Him because He first loved us,” writes John. (1 John 4:19) It is this deep love that leads us to trust and obey the call of God.  It is this love that leads us to boldly proclaim Truth—

Jesus, Son of God, our Messiah, was sent to earth by God to seek and to save the world by dying for our sins.  He rose again on the third day to prove who God is and how much He loves us.  Jesus is our hope of eternal life.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” John 3:16-17

Being a pastor is not like any other vocation on earth.  To be called of God for a very specific task of pastoring a church or churches in which God has sent us to serve is like sending a loyal soldier to the front lines of battle with the enemy to protect his family.  The enemy of God works hard to distract the people who believe in Jesus and have committed themselves to love God alone.  Our enemy still uses his age-old tricks over and over again to destroy what Jesus died to save—our very souls.  Jesus was, is and always will be the Victor over this enemy.  The enemy hates Jesus for this victory over death—his best tool of destruction.  He fights all the harder these days to take down what God has redeemed.  He comes to stir the Body of Christ with distractions, illusions of good, with sly ways of dividing us.  He deceives us on every level which leads to distrust in each other as well as with God.  Pastors must be on their toes, expecting evil to pounce, armed with God’s Truth to muzzle the Liar.

Paul is that pastor.  He has a pastor’s heart filled with God’s love as he helps the Corinthian church deal with a person who evil is using to cause division in God’s church.  Paul’s love for the Corinthians oozes from his heart as he writes to them… 

2 Corinthians 2, The Message

^1-2 That’s why I decided not to make another visit that could only be painful to both of us. If by merely showing up I would put you in an embarrassingly painful position, how would you then be free to cheer and refresh me?

^3-4 That was my reason for writing a letter instead of coming—so I wouldn’t have to spend a miserable time disappointing the very friends I had looked forward to cheering me up. I was convinced at the time I wrote it that what was best for me was also best for you. As it turned out, there was pain enough just in writing that letter, more tears than ink on the parchment. But I didn’t write it to cause pain; I wrote it so you would know how much I care—oh, more than care—love you!

^5-8 Now, regarding the one who started all this—the person in question who caused all this pain—I want you to know that I am not the one injured in this as much as, with a few exceptions, all of you. So I don’t want to come down too hard. What the majority of you agreed to as punishment is punishment enough. Now is the time to forgive this man and help him back on his feet. If all you do is pour on the guilt, you could very well drown him in it. My counsel now is to pour on the love.

^9-11 The focus of my letter wasn’t on punishing the offender but on getting you to take responsibility for the health of the church. So if you forgive him, I forgive him. Don’t think I’m carrying around a list of personal grudges. The fact is that I’m joining in with your forgiveness, as Christ is with us, guiding us. After all, we don’t want to unwittingly give Satan an opening for yet more mischief—we’re not oblivious to his sly ways!

An Open Door

^12-14 When I arrived in Troas to proclaim the Message of the Messiah, I found the place wide open: God had opened the door; all I had to do was walk through it. But when I didn’t find Titus waiting for me with news of your condition, I couldn’t relax. Worried about you, I left and came on to Macedonia province looking for Titus and a reassuring word on you. And I got it, thank God!

^14-16 In the Messiah, in Christ, God leads us from place to place in one perpetual victory parade. Through us, he brings knowledge of Christ. Everywhere we go, people breathe in the exquisite fragrance. Because of Christ, we give off a sweet scent rising to God, which is recognized by those on the way of salvation—an aroma redolent with life. But those on the way to destruction treat us more like the stench from a rotting corpse.

^16-17 This is a terrific responsibility. Is anyone competent to take it on? No—but at least we don’t take God’s Word, water it down, and then take it to the streets to sell it cheap. We stand in Christ’s presence when we speak; God looks us in the face. We get what we say straight from God and say it as honestly as we can.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

The steps Paul counseled the leaders to take:

1. Counsel the one causing division.
2. Show them Truth and the consequences of not following Truth.
3. Forgive the one.
4. Pour on God’s love.

Wow, seems easy and simple, right?  But this is a tedious process that requires generous love and obedience to God’s wisdom with everyone involved seeking after God’s maturing character traits:  love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control—the fruits of His Holy Spirit working within us. (Galatians 5:22-23)

God also opens doors of opportunity for us to tell His story of redemption for those He is preparing to hear the good news!  May His love lead us!  Like Paul, “We stand in Christ’s presence when we speak; God looks us in the face. We get what we say straight from God and say it as honestly as we can.”  It is His love for us and growing in us that keeps us focused on His will.  What a responsibility—but oh, what a privilege!

Lord,

You are God and we are not.  Your love us far more than we deserve, yet you love us still.  You demonstrated this love, by saving us from our sins and removing them completely.  Thank you for they way you love, counsel, challenge, comfort, encourage, lead, and guide us each day.  May our first thought of the day be your love.  May your love in us be a sweet fragrance to others seeking real love that never gives us on us.

In Jesus Name, Amen

“Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.” Ephesians 4:32

When we pray asking for God’s will to be done, we must realize what that means.  When God answers, are we ready with obedient, grateful hearts?  Do we pray asking God to bless our plans?  Are we okay with God changing or altering our plans?  We are created to be creative with ideas to steward well what God has so graciously given to us.  We were created with higher thinking than animals.  We were given brains with skills to solve problems, build and repair, and to plan while counting the costs. 

We were “made in the image of God” but we are not God.  They are many ways to declare God glory, many details of life that give God praise, many plans that seem like the best to pursue, but God decides and confirms the final blueprint to follow to achieve His purpose and plan for His glory and for our best.  All that is good comes from God.

Paul was sent on a special mission by Jesus to tell His story of redemption.  How that mission is achieved is planned by Paul and his fellow believers who work hard to complete the work God has given them to do in Jesus Name.  However, Paul also knows that the “best-made plans” of men alone cannot compare to the will, purpose, and plan of God.  Paul has learned to yield to God’s final yes, no, or wait as he lives his life to please God first and only.  Not everyone he meets agrees…

2 Corinthians 1, The Message

^1-2 I, Paul, have been sent on a special mission by the Messiah, Jesus, planned by God himself. I write this to God’s congregation in Corinth, and to believers all over Achaia province. May all the gifts and benefits that come from God our Father and the Master, Jesus Christ, be yours! Timothy, someone you know and trust, joins me in this greeting.

The Rescue

^3-5 All praise to the God and Father of our Master, Jesus the Messiah! Father of all mercy! God of all healing counsel! He comes alongside us when we go through hard times, and before you know it, he brings us alongside someone else who is going through hard times so that we can be there for that person just as God was there for us. We have plenty of hard times that come from following the Messiah, but no more so than the good times of his healing comfort—we get a full measure of that, too.

^6-7 When we suffer for Jesus, it works out for your healing and salvation. If we are treated well, given a helping hand and encouraging word, that also works to your benefit, spurring you on, face forward, unflinching. Your hard times are also our hard times. When we see that you’re just as willing to endure the hard times as to enjoy the good times, we know you’re going to make it, no doubt about it.

^8-11 We don’t want you in the dark, friends, about how hard it was when all this came down on us in Asia province. It was so bad we didn’t think we were going to make it. We felt like we’d been sent to death row, that it was all over for us. As it turned out, it was the best thing that could have happened. Instead of trusting in our own strength or wits to get out of it, we were forced to trust God totally—not a bad idea since he’s the God who raises the dead! And he did it, rescued us from certain doom. And he’ll do it again, rescuing us as many times as we need rescuing. You and your prayers are part of the rescue operation—I don’t want you in the dark about that either. I can see your faces even now, lifted in praise for God’s deliverance of us, a rescue in which your prayers played such a crucial part.

^12-14 Now that the worst is over, we’re pleased we can report that we’ve come out of this with conscience and faith intact, and can face the world—and even more importantly, face you with our heads held high. But it wasn’t by any fancy footwork on our part. It was God who kept us focused on him, uncompromised. Don’t try to read between the lines or look for hidden meanings in this letter. We’re writing plain, unembellished truth, hoping that you’ll now see the whole picture as well as you’ve seen some of the details. We want you to be as proud of us as we are of you when we stand together before our Master Jesus.

^15-16 Confident of your welcome, I had originally planned two great visits with you—coming by on my way to Macedonia province, and then again on my return trip. Then we could have had a bon-voyage party as you sent me off to Judea. That was the plan.

^17-19 Are you now going to accuse me of flip-flopping with my promises because it didn’t work out? Do you think I talk out of both sides of my mouth—a glib yes one moment, a glib no the next? Well, you’re wrong. I try to be as true to my word as God is to his. Our word to you wasn’t a careless yes canceled by an indifferent no. How could it be? When Silas and Timothy and I proclaimed the Son of God among you, did you pick up on any yes-and-no, on-again, off-again waffling? Wasn’t it a clean, strong Yes?

^20-22 Whatever God has promised gets stamped with the Yes of Jesus. In him, this is what we preach and pray, the great Amen, God’s Yes and our Yes together, gloriously evident. God affirms us, making us a sure thing in Christ, putting his Yes within us. By his Spirit he has stamped us with his eternal pledge—a sure beginning of what he is destined to complete.

²³ Now, are you ready for the real reason I didn’t visit you in Corinth? As God is my witness, the only reason I didn’t come was to spare you pain. I was being considerate of you, not indifferent, not manipulative.

²⁴ We’re not in charge of how you live out the faith, looking over your shoulders, suspiciously critical. We’re partners, working alongside you, joyfully expectant. I know that you stand by your own faith, not by ours.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Paul began his letter with a doxology of praise for God and His Son who saved us! He certainly could not sing about his circumstances, but he could sing about the God who is in control of all circumstances. Paul had learned that praise is an important factor in achieving victory over discouragement and depression.  Paul reiterates to the weak Corinthians that whatever the Father did for Jesus when He was ministering on earth, He is able to do for them (and us) today. Paul made plans but God had the final say.

In hardship, the Corinthians forgot what Paul told them about how Jesus saved them from their sins and set them free to live as new creations in Christ.  They left the “joy of their salvation” behind and fell back to their old ways, culture, and traditions.  As “babes” in the faith, they were disappointed that Paul was not able to visit and tell them what to do and be; therefore, their weak faith in Christ faltered. 

Our lesson:  Yes, we’re in this together, however, we learn that our faith and connection to God was made possible by Jesus Christ alone.  People do not save us.  Only Jesus saves us.  We cannot stand firm by relying on mere men and women whom God is perfecting on their journey.  We cannot rely on God’s church of imperfect people to save us.  As imperfect people who are learning and growing, we can only point people to Jesus—the only one who is perfect.  We worship, praise, honor God, not men and women.  We help each other in good times and bad—always looking to God!

Our faith is built in God alone!  No matter what happens around us, it is ultimately God who rescues us.  Our Hope is Jesus who reconnected us to God by His death for our sins.  God’s Plan.  God then raised Jesus to new life, giving us life eternal.  “For God so loved…”

Second Corinthians was written less than a year after 1 Corinthians. Paul wrote because he was delayed in his visit to Corinth. People were upset.  Leaders criticized.  Paul began explaining his actions among the Corinthians by reviewing his relationship with them.  God’s comfort and deliverance are certainties, even in the middle of difficult trials. We can confidently rely upon God as we make our plans.  God never fails. God loves even the details of our lives.  Trust God.

There is no yes-and-no about Jesus Christ. He is God’s “eternal yes” to those who trust Him. Jesus Christ reveals the promises, fulfills the promises, and enables us to claim God’s promises!  Where God guides us, He provides for all who surrender to His plan.

God enables us to enjoy the blessings of heaven in our hearts today! Because of God’s Holy Spirit living within and guiding him; Paul was able to have a clear conscience and face misunderstandings with love and patience. If you live to please people, misunderstandings will depress you; but if you live to please God, you can face misunderstandings with faith and courage in the One who gives life!

We plan—God decides.

Lord,

We are your sheep who need to listen for your voice and follow without hesitation.  You are the sin remover, problem solver, healer, comforter, and great Counselor.  You lead and shepherd us to what is best for us.  You live within us, never leaving us. Why trust anyone or anything else but you?  All I am is yours.  Take me, cleanse me, renew my mind, transform my behaviors, and restore the joy of you in me and me in you.  I lean on your wisdom to take me where I need to go and tell me what you want for my life.  Make your desires for me be the desires of my heart.  Thank you, Lord.

In Jesus Name, Amen

You might think we who grew up in the south to west regions of our country have long goodbyes—and you would be right!  It’s definitely a process.  Our goodbyes would begin in the house, saying, “We really need to get on the road now.” Then our visiting family and friends will finally rise from the couches or dinner table, signaling the beginning of the goodbye process.  As kids, we knew the adults would spend at least another hour in conversation, so play continued. 

Growing up in this culture of long good byes, I remember when my uncle and his family who lived out of state would come to visit for a few days.  After meals together, games played, world problems solved, the last day of their visit would involve the final goodbyes.  People today would look upon this scenario and think, are you not going to see them ever again?!  (Smiling) Everyone, adults and kids, would follow visiting family members out the door with, “Do you have everything you need for the trip home?”  It was considered disrespectful not to follow them out the door and to offer help for the trip home.  So, we would often send food for their journey.  It’s just what you did. 

Just as they were calling their kids to get in the car, someone would say, “Hey, did you hear about Joe and his family and trouble they had last month?”  This was just an opener for more conversation that would lengthen the good bye.  We kids knew the cues.  We would automatically begin another game to play while the grownups talked more, knowing it would be at least another hour before they were called the final time in a louder, more meaningful voice, to finally get in the car.  When families who are believers know the love of God and have the love of God in them, the expression of that love is similar to these types goodbyes, all in the Name of Jesus.  My visiting uncle was a pastor, so the goodbyes also included a prayer for safe travel home. 

The way Paul finishes this letter of goodbyes to the Corinthians, with hopes of seeing his dear friends again, reminds me of the love expressed and felt in my family.  Jesus’ followers become closer still because all is said and done in the precious Name of Jesus who died and rose again to bring all who believe into the family of God.  Jesus’ work on the cross and rising from death in victory over death reconciled (reconnected) us back to God and to each other. 

Love God, Love Others—in Jesus Name.  Who we are and all we do begins with His love in us.  Know God, know love. If we don’t know God, we don’t know love, says John. (1 John 4:7-8)

The longer our goodbyes—the deeper our love is for each other and for Jesus, our Master. Can I get an amen?!

1 Corinthians 16, The Message

Coming to See You

^1-4 Regarding the relief offering for poor Christians that is being collected, you get the same instructions I gave the churches in Galatia. Every Sunday each of you make an offering and put it in safekeeping. Be as generous as you can. When I get there you’ll have it ready, and I won’t have to make a special appeal. Then after I arrive, I’ll write letters authorizing whomever you delegate, and send them off to Jerusalem to deliver your gift. If you think it best that I go along, I’ll be glad to travel with them.

^5-9 I plan to visit you after passing through northern Greece. I won’t be staying long there, but maybe I can stay awhile with you—maybe even spend the winter? Then you could give me a good send-off, wherever I may be headed next. I don’t want to just drop by in between other “primary” destinations. I want a good, long, leisurely visit. If the Master agrees, we’ll have it! For the present, I’m staying right here in Ephesus. A huge door of opportunity for good work has opened up here. (There is also mushrooming opposition.)

^10-11 If Timothy shows up, take good care of him. Make him feel completely at home among you. He works so hard for the Master, just as I do. Don’t let anyone disparage him. After a while, send him on to me with your blessing. Tell him I’m expecting him, and any friends he has with him.

¹² About our friend Apollos, I’ve done my best to get him to pay you a visit, but haven’t talked him into it yet. He doesn’t think this is the right time. But there will be a “right time.”

^13-14 Keep your eyes open, hold tight to your convictions, give it all you’ve got, be resolute, and love without stopping.

^15-16 Would you do me a favor, friends, and give special recognition to the family of Stephanas? You know, they were among the first converts in Greece, and they’ve put themselves out, serving Christians ever since then. I want you to honor and look up to people like that: companions and workers who show us how to do it, giving us something to aspire to.

^17-18 I want you to know how delighted I am to have Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus here with me. They partially make up for your absence! They’ve refreshed me by keeping me in touch with you. Be proud that you have people like this among you.

¹⁹ The churches here in western Asia send greetings.

Aquila, Priscilla, and the church that meets in their house say hello.

²⁰ All the friends here say hello.

Pass the greetings around with holy hugs!

²¹ And I, Paul—in my own handwriting!—send you my regards.

²² If anyone won’t love the Master, throw him out. Make room for the Master!

²³ Our Master Jesus has his arms wide open for you.

²⁴ And I love all of you in the Messiah, in Jesus.

Lord,

Thank you for your love that you instill in our hearts as we love you with all that is in us.  It is your perfect love that grows our love for each other, forgiving each other, and holding nothing back.  Your love builds our trust in you.  Your love strengthens our faith.  Your love causes us to be more generous in our giving and loving of each other. Thank you for teaching us how to love like you love us—full of grace and mercy—lavishly and generously!  And the best of all?  “Goodbyes” here are “hellos” there with you forever!

In Jesus Name, Amen

One day when Heaven was filled with His praises
One day when sin was as black as could be
Jesus came forth to be born of a virgin
Dwelt among men, my example is He
Word became flesh and the light shined among us
His glory revealed

Living, He loved me
Dying, He saved me
Buried, He carried my sins far away
Rising, He justified freely forever
One day He’s coming
Oh glorious day, oh glorious day!

Because of their culture, the Corinthians did not believe in the resurrection. Instead, they thought only the soul would rise from the dead, leaving behind the body. Because Jesus rose from the dead, we have hope, salvation, victory, and purpose. We can be confident in faith and diligent in work for him.  Paul passionately explains with probing questions to retrain their thinking: “…how can you let people say that there is no such thing as a resurrection? If there’s no resurrection, there’s no living Christ.  

Listen and learn…never forget that one day, we, too will rise from death to life in Christ because of His glorious resurrection in victory over death forever!  We live forever because He lives!

1 Corinthians 15, The Message

Resurrection

^1-2 Friends, let me go over the Message with you one final time—this Message that I proclaimed and that you made your own; this Message on which you took your stand and by which your life has been saved. (I’m assuming, now, that your belief was the real thing and not a passing fancy, that you’re in this for good and holding fast.)

^3-9 The first thing I did was place before you what was placed so emphatically before me: that the Messiah died for our sins, exactly as Scripture tells it; that he was buried; that he was raised from death on the third day, again exactly as Scripture says; that he presented himself alive to Peter, then to his closest followers, and later to more than five hundred of his followers all at the same time, most of them still around (although a few have since died); that he then spent time with James and the rest of those he commissioned to represent him; and that he finally presented himself alive to me. It was fitting that I bring up the rear. I don’t deserve to be included in that inner circle, as you well know, having spent all those early years trying my best to stamp God’s church right out of existence.

^10-11 But because God was so gracious, so very generous, here I am. And I’m not about to let his grace go to waste. Haven’t I worked hard trying to do more than any of the others? Even then, my work didn’t amount to all that much. It was God giving me the work to do, God giving me the energy to do it. So whether you heard it from me or from those others, it’s all the same: We spoke God’s truth and you entrusted your lives.

^12-15 Now, let me ask you something profound yet troubling. If you became believers because you trusted the proclamation that Christ is alive, risen from the dead, how can you let people say that there is no such thing as a resurrection? If there’s no resurrection, there’s no living Christ. And face it—if there’s no resurrection for Christ, everything we’ve told you is smoke and mirrors, and everything you’ve staked your life on is smoke and mirrors. Not only that, but we would be guilty of telling a string of barefaced lies about God, all these affidavits we passed on to you verifying that God raised up Christ—sheer fabrications, if there’s no resurrection.

^16-20 If corpses can’t be raised, then Christ wasn’t, because he was indeed dead. And if Christ weren’t raised, then all you’re doing is wandering about in the dark, as lost as ever. It’s even worse for those who died hoping in Christ and resurrection, because they’re already in their graves. If all we get out of Christ is a little inspiration for a few short years, we’re a pretty sorry lot. But the truth is that Christ has been raised up, the first in a long legacy of those who are going to leave the cemeteries.

^21-28 There is a nice symmetry in this: Death initially came by a man, and resurrection from death came by a man. Everybody dies in Adam; everybody comes alive in Christ. But we have to wait our turn: Christ is first, then those with him at his Coming, the grand consummation when, after crushing the opposition, he hands over his kingdom to God the Father. He won’t let up until the last enemy is down—and the very last enemy is death! As the psalmist said, “He laid them low, one and all; he walked all over them.” When Scripture says that “he walked all over them,” it’s obvious that he couldn’t at the same time be walked on. When everything and everyone is finally under God’s rule, the Son will step down, taking his place with everyone else, showing that God’s rule is absolutely comprehensive—a perfect ending!

²⁹ Why do you think people offer themselves to be baptized for those already in the grave? If there’s no chance of resurrection for a corpse, if God’s power stops at the cemetery gates, why do we keep doing things that suggest he’s going to clean the place out someday, pulling everyone up on their feet alive?

^30-33 And why do you think I keep risking my neck in this dangerous work? I look death in the face practically every day I live. Do you think I’d do this if I wasn’t convinced of your resurrection and mine as guaranteed by the resurrected Messiah Jesus? Do you think I was just trying to act heroic when I fought the wild beasts at Ephesus, hoping it wouldn’t be the end of me? Not on your life! It’s resurrection, resurrection, always resurrection, that undergirds what I do and say, the way I live. If there’s no resurrection, “We eat, we drink, the next day we die,” and that’s all there is to it. But don’t fool yourselves. Don’t let yourselves be poisoned by this anti-resurrection loose talk. “Bad company ruins good manners.”

³⁴ Think straight. Awaken to the holiness of life. No more playing fast and loose with resurrection facts. Ignorance of God is a luxury you can’t afford in times like these. Aren’t you embarrassed that you’ve let this kind of thing go on as long as you have?

^35-38 Some skeptic is sure to ask, “Show me how resurrection works. Give me a diagram; draw me a picture. What does this ‘resurrection body’ look like?” If you look at this question closely, you realize how absurd it is. There are no diagrams for this kind of thing. We do have a parallel experience in gardening. You plant a “dead” seed; soon there is a flourishing plant. There is no visual likeness between seed and plant. You could never guess what a tomato would look like by looking at a tomato seed. What we plant in the soil and what grows out of it don’t look anything alike. The dead body that we bury in the ground and the resurrection body that comes from it will be dramatically different.

^39-41 You will notice that the variety of bodies is stunning. Just as there are different kinds of seeds, there are different kinds of bodies—humans, animals, birds, fish—each unprecedented in its form. You get a hint at the diversity of resurrection glory by looking at the diversity of bodies not only on earth but in the skies—sun, moon, stars—all these varieties of beauty and brightness. And we’re only looking at pre-resurrection “seeds”—who can imagine what the resurrection “plants” will be like!

^42-44 This image of planting a dead seed and raising a live plant is a mere sketch at best, but perhaps it will help in approaching the mystery of the resurrection body—but only if you keep in mind that when we’re raised, we’re raised for good, alive forever! The corpse that’s planted is no beauty, but when it’s raised, it’s glorious. Put in the ground weak, it comes up powerful. The seed sown is natural; the seed grown is supernatural—same seed, same body, but what a difference from when it goes down in physical mortality to when it is raised up in spiritual immortality!

^45-49 We follow this sequence in Scripture: The First Adam received life, the Last Adam is a life-giving Spirit. Physical life comes first, then spiritual—a firm base shaped from the earth, a final completion coming out of heaven. The First Man was made out of earth, and people since then are earthy; the Second Man was made out of heaven, and people now can be heavenly. In the same way that we’ve worked from our earthy origins, let’s embrace our heavenly ends.

⁵⁰ I need to emphasize, friends, that our natural, earthy lives don’t in themselves lead us by their very nature into the kingdom of God. Their very “nature” is to die, so how could they “naturally” end up in the Life kingdom?

^51-57 But let me tell you something wonderful, a mystery I’ll probably never fully understand. We’re not all going to die—but we are all going to be changed. You hear a blast to end all blasts from a trumpet, and in the time that you look up and blink your eyes—it’s over. On signal from that trumpet from heaven, the dead will be up and out of their graves, beyond the reach of death, never to die again. At the same moment and in the same way, we’ll all be changed. In the resurrection scheme of things, this has to happen: everything perishable taken off the shelves and replaced by the imperishable, this mortal replaced by the immortal. Then the saying will come true:

Death swallowed by triumphant Life!
Who got the last word, oh, Death?
Oh, Death, who’s afraid of you now?

It was sin that made death so frightening and law-code guilt that gave sin its leverage, its destructive power. But now in a single victorious stroke of Life, all three—sin, guilt, death—are gone, the gift of our Master, Jesus Christ. Thank God!

⁵⁸ With all this going for us, my dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don’t hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Peter, an eyewitness to the empty grave and devoted follower of Jesus, writes;

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” —1 Peter 1:3

Max Lucado, Encouraging Word Bible, writes;

“Others offer life, but no one offers to do what Jesus does—to reconnect us to his power. But how can we know? How do we know that Jesus knows what he’s talking about? The ultimate answer, according to his flagship followers, is the vacated tomb. Did you note the words you just read? “A living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade.” In the final sum, it was the disrupted grave that convinced the maiden Christians to cast their lots with Christ. “He appeared to Cephas [Peter], and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time” (1Corinthians 15:5–6).

“Can Jesus actually replace death with life? He did a convincing job with his own. We can trust him because he has been there—done that!”

PAUSE TO PONDER—

How does the promise of the resurrection and life eternal with Jesus make a difference in how you feel about your life today?

Be confident and less fearful today in your faith because of what Jesus has done. He broke the power of death so that you might have eternal life with him.  “All fear is gone…because He lives!

Lord,

You are indeed my living hope!  I pray that we never forget that you were raised to life to prove your love, power, and Lordship over all the earth.  May we never forget your love that will carrying us through this life and into the next where there will be no more pain, tears, or divisions—only peace and joy expressed in worship by all of your creation who believe and follow you.  I am one of them.  I believe. I love you with all my heart, mind, and soul.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!

In Jesus Name, Amen

One day the trumpet will sound for His coming
One day the skies with His glories will shine
Wonderful day, my Beloved One bringing
My Savior Jesus is mine

Living, He loved me
Dying, He saved me
Buried, He carried my sins far away
Rising, He justified freely forever
One day He’s coming
Oh glorious day, oh glorious day
Glorious day
Oh glorious day

(Glorious Day, written by Mark Hall / Michael Bleecker; Sung by Casting Crowns)