Being the Church today

I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind— just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you— so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. 1 Corinthians 1:4-9

Over the next few posts, we are going to explore Paul's letter to the church in Corinth.  This was a cosmopolitan, diverse city.  It was a hub of activity.  Politically, they enjoyed a special relationship with Rome.  And before Las Vegas was a blimp on the radar, this was known as "Sin City".  People were wealthy from the pottery and earthenware produced there.  Paul arrived in 50 CE and spent about three years in the city forming the church and building relationships.  

The other initial comment is that when you read one of Paul's letters, we are reading someone else's mail.  I have always wanted to travel back in time and ask Paul directly what he thought of the letters of his included in the New Testament.  I wonder if he might say, "Corinthians, you included the letters to the Corinthians??  You should have read the last letter I sent Crete, that was a masterpiece!"  It is a good reminder when I preach, write, blog, or post...you never know what is going to catch on and have staying power.  As we read this letter, part of the power is that there is truth that can still speak to our life today.  We live in an increasing cosmopolitan, diverse world.  We live in a world of economic inequality, like Corinth.  We live in a world where faith, even though it is 2000 years old, still has challenges and conflicts; we debate and are as divided as we will see the Corinth church was.  So, this letter speaks deeply to our lives and to being the church today.

Paul starts all of his letters (with the exception of Galatians) by giving thanks.  Now usually, we confine thanksgiving to November, when we set out our turkeys and indulge in all things carbohydrate.  However, could you, right now write down a list of ten things you are thankful for?  For me it is:

1. Family

2. God's presence in my life

3. Health

4. The church I serve

5. Friendships that sustain me.

6. Our home

7. Food

8.  Laughter when reading a good book or watching a good movie

9.  The feeling after a four mile run

10.  And the opportunity to share ideas with others...

I could go on, but the point is that starting with thanksgiving is not exactly the way we live today.  I like to think of myself as a realist, which means that hope to be able to see the beauty and brokenness in myself and around me.  But the danger is that once you see the crack in something, it is difficult to stop seeing it or slip into thinking that everything is ruined.  In the coming posts, you will see that there is plenty of brokenness in Corinth.  They fight about everything!!  

And yet, can we hold onto the truth that Paul starts by thanking them.  Paul starts by saying they are not lacking in any spiritual gifts.  They have everything they need.  We live in a world that not only sees brokenness, but also likes to point that out.  Almost every evaluation I have had says, I need to delegate more or be less hard on myself.  I often want to cry out, "Thanks for that insight, Captain Obvious!"  However, that rarely makes the review go better.  What if you heard from someone, "You are not lacking."  If you are like me, you'd start to list all the ways you see yourself lacking, you'd counter the proposal.  And while I am far from perfect, I do believe God gives us the strength and courage to face what we need to face when we need to face it.  We have the gifts, but we are often afraid to be too vulnerable or that we might fail in order to step out on that wire.

So, was dive into 1st Corinthians, hold onto this invitation to give thanks and the invitation that the church you belong to has the gifts it needs for the faithful living out of today.  

God's blessings and peace ~