Unity and Power
A reading for Monday, April 25, 2016: 1 Corinthians 1:10-18.
Love for and faith in Christ is the ultimate unifier. If nothing else, we can say that Jesus was for all people, no matter who they were or where they came from. Jesus loved the saint and the sinner, the Jew and the Greek, the broken and the lost and the outcast. The power of Jesus was in loving all.
Yet, even in Paul's age there were Christians who missed the message of unity. It's human nature to seek affinity with one particular group or experience. We want to align ourselves with those that agree with us or speak our particular version of reality. Paul would have none of it!
Truth is the gospel operates from a position of grace and forbearance. Unity comes when we place our ultimate allegiance in Christ, and take the position he took when it came to others, outsiders, and outcasts. Our power is in loving any and all that Christ loved. "For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God."
Love for and faith in Christ is the ultimate unifier. If nothing else, we can say that Jesus was for all people, no matter who they were or where they came from. Jesus loved the saint and the sinner, the Jew and the Greek, the broken and the lost and the outcast. The power of Jesus was in loving all.
Yet, even in Paul's age there were Christians who missed the message of unity. It's human nature to seek affinity with one particular group or experience. We want to align ourselves with those that agree with us or speak our particular version of reality. Paul would have none of it!
Truth is the gospel operates from a position of grace and forbearance. Unity comes when we place our ultimate allegiance in Christ, and take the position he took when it came to others, outsiders, and outcasts. Our power is in loving any and all that Christ loved. "For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God."
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