August 6, 2023
“But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means” (1 Corinthians 2:14 NLT). The one who has not been spiritually born again cannot understand spiritual things. They are still
August 5, 2023
“For I decided that while I was with you I would forget everything except Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2 HCSB). Why is it easier to invite someone to church than it is to invite them to follow Jesus? Talking about church is not the most comfortable thing in our modern
February 5, 2023
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1 Corinthians 6:12-20
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discipleship
How we view our bodies and how we use our bodies matters to God. How do you view your body? Do you have a love/hate relationship with your body? Do you struggle with your self-image because of your appearance? How much of your identity is connected to your body… its color, gender, height, weight, age, health, etc.? Have you ever wondered how God wants you to view your body? Does He call it evil or good? And what’s its real place in following Jesus? What’s God’s purpose for our bodies?
It just so happens that we’re not the first believers to struggle with questions about the body. The believers in Corinth had some of the same questions and God inspired Paul to respond to them. In the apostle Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, he responded to their questions about the body by challenging them to recognize God’s good and spiritual purpose for the body, so that they might submit their bodies to God for renovation. We can submit our bodies to God for renovation.
August 25, 2022
WHERE ARE WIDE-OPEN DOORS FOR THE GOSPEL TODAY? From this passage it appears that Paul was living in Ephesus when he wrote his first letter to the Corinthians. Ephesus was one of the great cities in the Roman empire located on the Aegean coast of Asia Minor in the country we now know as Turkey.
August 24, 2022
DON’T DIG UP IN DOUBT WHAT YOU PLANTED BY FAITH Be strong, immovable, always work with enthusiasm for the Lord. Why? Because of the resurrection and because whatever you plant in faith will grow and produce a harvest. The promise of eternal life should make us fearless in our focus. It should make us immovable
August 23, 2022
PASSING ON THE GOOD NEWS Paul made it clear to the Corinthians that the gospel he passed on to them was the same one that had also been passed on to him. This is the gospel by which he was saved and by which they too would be saved, if only they would believe. This
August 18, 2022
SELF-EXAMINATION AND THE LORD’S SUPPER Paul rebuked the Corinthians for coming to the Lord’s table without treating one another as members of the Lord’s body. Their disunity and selfish behavior flew in the face of the sacrifice of Christ which the Lord’s Supper represents. He challenged them to first “examine” themselves before taking communion. Self
August 15, 2022
CHRIST, OUR SPIRITUAL FOOD AND DRINK Paul reminded the Corinthian believers of the Exodus story. He recalled how all the Israelites ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual water, which in both cases, were typical of Christ. For as the manna was daily bread from heaven, so Christ is the “Bread of
August 14, 2022
THE CALL TO PREACH THE GOOD NEWS When I was young, my grandmother told me that she thought I was going to be a preacher when I grew up. I disagreed and insisted I was going to raise chickens with Papaw. Turns out, she was right. God called me to preach. But I do still
August 12, 2022
DON’T BE ABSORBED BY TEMPORARY CONDITIONS Are you weeping over a loss today? Be mindful that the Lord will soon wipe away every tear (Rev. 21:4), turning your mourning into dancing (Psa. 30:11). Are you rejoicing in your blessings today? Wonderful. Yet, let the One who blesses be the focus of your joy, rather than