PASSING ON THE BATON OF FAITH The apostle Paul’s teaching concerning the Lord’s Supper was faithfully passed on from the Lord to the church at Corinth. Paul reminded them that his authority as an apostle came from the Lord, as did his message. Having established his credibility, he corrected the unworthy practices of the Corinthians
HAVE YOU NEGLECTED GOD’S HOUSE? After Nehemiah completed the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem, he was recalled by King Artaxerxes. When he obtained leave from the king and returned to Jerusalem, he found that those he had left in charge had not kept their promise to support the house of God. Many of its
ONE BREAD, ONE BODY The apostle Paul instructed the Corinthians concerning the significance of sharing the Lord’s Supper together. He told them that those who remember the sacrifice of Christ’s body and blood in the Lord’s Supper are also giving recognition to their oneness as members of Christ’s body. Just as we eat from one
SERVANT EVANGELISM The apostle Paul described his approach to sharing the gospel as becoming “a slave to everyone, in order to win more people” (1 Cor. 9:19). In other words, he sought to find common ground with his hearers when sharing the good news. When Paul was in Athens, he used their monument to
ARE YOU ATTENTIVE TO THE WORD AND WORSHIPING TOGETHER? Nehemiah led a group of Israelites back to Jerusalem to rebuild its broken down walls. They had lost their nation and freedom to worship 70 years earlier when the Babylonians had invaded. Jerusalem was destroyed and its people and wealth were carried away. But after 70
YOUR RIGHTS ARE LIMITED BY YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO LOVE OTHERS Our freedom in Christ does not relieve us of our responsibility to consider others, especially new believers. In Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, he was concerned about those who felt free to eat meat offered to idols without consideration of those who would be tempted
WHEN MAY THE LORD BE FOUND? David wrote of a time when his unconfessed sin weighed heavy on him. He finally decided to stop trying to hide his iniquity and to confess his sins to the Lord. When he did, the Lord heard his prayer and forgave him. Experiencing the Lord’s forgiveness himself, David urged
LIVING OUT YOUR NEW IDENTITY IN CHRIST After admonishing believers in Corinth for suing other brothers in court, rather than handling things within the Church, Paul reminded them that they had a new identity in Christ. He listed some of their former identities, which were really marked by their favorite sins. Identities like: “Fornicators, idolaters,
REJOICE, FOR GOD SEES YOUR AFFLICTION This Psalm of David teaches us to choose gladness and worship, while giving our troubles to God. David wrote that God had “seen” his trouble. In other words David had stopped thinking about his affliction and had given it to God for His consideration. This was how the
FAITHFULNESS IS SUCCESS Paul called himself a “steward of God’s mysteries” (1 Cor. 4:1). A steward is a manager who serves on behalf of the owner. Managers in business are judged by their success. But Paul said that stewards of God are judged by their faithfulness. In God’s Kingdom, faithfulness is success. It’s not