Category: Staying holy in an unholy world

Spiritual Washing with 1 Corinthians 1-3 with a Focus on 3:1-15

Author: Lisa Groen

Category: Unpacking the scripture

After reading again the first 3 chapters of 1 Corinthians, I have noted that unless the Christian is building the kingdom of God carefully, we are not following your will and might be wasting our efforts. 1 Corinthians 3:10b-15 tells us “But each person must be careful how he builds on it. 11 For no one can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, or straw, 13 each one’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each one’s work. 14 If anyone’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet only so as through fire.”

How I sincerely want to build in the Spirit with quality materials and not with wood, hay, or straw. Each time we read the scripture is the time to examine whether or not we have applied the scripture. Paul has taken some time in 1 Cor 3 in talking about jealousy, strife and comparison with those that seem to have a better deal in this life than we do. If we are not careful if our eyes are drawn to worldly goals, we run the risk of allowing for crooked building practices. Our building is only built right when we allow Christ to be our Chief Cornerstone, and aligning our building to fit rightly with Him!  1 Cor 3:1-3 tells us “And I, brothers and sisters, could not speak to you as spiritual people, but only as fleshly, as to infants in Christ. 2 I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to consume it. But even now you are not yet able, 3 for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like ordinary people?” It looks as if Paul is saying some of the root problems and the definition in part of being fleshly, are jealousy, strife and comparison, and that these things block our being able to take in the solid food of the word of God. So, now that we have a short running definition of worldly comparison we truly see that after the fleshly Christian misses taking in the solid food of the word of God, he is not nourished correctly, and his habits become off center. The work the Christian does when his habits are off center when he makes room for the world could build a building that will be constructed off center. It only takes a little veering off course for a whole building to become crooked. With this scripture, do you sense The Lord prompting you to examine your life to look for the glimpses, the sounds and signs of worldly jealousy, strife, and comparison? The scripture beckons me to ask if my life will pass the test. That comparison I observe is not the key to happiness and not the key to gauging where God would have me to stand.

Prayer: With the guidance of your word Lord, I turn my attention to your goodness, and I let these old pieces of worldly clothing fall away from me. May we remember the gift you have given us of being wise builders of your kingdom, and the gift of grace for valuing what is eternally valuable—the salvation of people! As we consider how to hold to the right perspective for building the kingdom, Lord please help us make room in our thinking of how to steer closer to Christlike values, and away from worldly values within every area of life. May the treasure we possess be You Lord and Your kingdom and may we keep You as the number one value of our lives. May 1st Corinthians 1-3 remind us of what would set us free whenever we might have our eyes on the wrong pursuits! Amen!

Keep on growing in the Word! LG

Prayer of Dependence on God-3

Author: Lisa Groen

The title of the song is a good one to follow to draw close to God-“Come ye Christians poor and needy”. With that posture let us look to the Lord in prayer:

Dear Lord, as we look about our country and see the brokenness, the abominations that the government is “forcing” us to accept as a freedom of choice, as we see the racial conflicts and the legalization of marijuana, the limiting of the police force, the harassing of children, and multitudes of other national grave problems, these things are a tap on our shoulders that our country has forsaken its first love. We need to look to the church to see if there is a weakness in us that may be a crack in our foundation. There is a cry from our children who know something is not right with society, and we along with much of the church have slipped in our opportunities to stand up and speak truth in the midst of these situations.

Lord, we know that you must prepare the soil of people’s hearts for the Word that is sown to go down deep into the soil, and for it to grow well and for the soil to be rich enough to sustain the healthy growth of the seeds of truth. As we fast today may you prepare the soil of the hearts of our loved ones, the hearts of the lost in our neighborhoods, and cities and in our governments, at a local and national level. We pray for hearts to be made ready to hear truth, and to hear just what you would speak to people from your Word dear Lord. We pray for hearts to be hungry for truth, and for people to seek to read the Bible. Oh Lord, may the fear of God grip people enough for multitudes in America and in our spheres of influence to seek, read, absorb, and look to your Word for direction and to honor Your word. May people think about your Word, and seek truth in the midst of our dark society. And with these prayers for the spiritual hunger for truth in the lives of people in our spheres of influence, we seek that our hearts too would be prepared with your truth, hoed, and weeded and cultivated with your Word, as we take in your Word and as it satisfies the spiritual hunger in us. Lord, may you open the right doors for ministry at the right time. May your love be in us to share and encourage others with, and may your light be in us as we seek you for spiritual life- that we may have life abundantly, nourish it in our hearts and protect it, and that our hearts would be a fountain welling up to eternal life and ready to be salt and be light and a fountain to the world around us that You alone are the giver of spiritual life and abundantly give us Eternal Life. 1 John 5:11, John 17:3

Amen.

Keep growing in the Word! LG