Journal #5
I really enjoyed reading 1 Corinthians during this past unit. It is a book that I very often read bits and pieces from, but do not typically take the tame to read straight through. I have been finding it notably refreshing to read the entirety of Bible books in this study, and doing so with 1 Corinthians was no exception. My main takeaway from reading Paul 's letter can be summed up in this question: Where is your focus? The culture that Paul was writing to in Corinth was very self-absorbed; highly concerned with their own customs, traditions, methods, beliefs, and desires. It is clear, however, that Paul was yearning for this people group to live unto something far beyond themselves. Paul wanted the church to stop focusing on themselves and look to Christ. Over and over again, the apostle called the Corinthians to choose an eternal focus, rather than a temporary one; a spiritual focus, rather than the physical; a faith focus over a works/law focus; a focus on the glorification of Christ rather instead of man. …show more content…
I love the focus that Paul places on the newness and presrevation found in Christ. Despite where you might have come from (rampant sexual immorality, greed, selfishness, and pride if you were the church at Corinth), Jesus Christ can make things new. It was awesome for me to watch the transition from the "1 Corinthians" church of sin to the "2 Corinthians" church of repentance. 2 Corinthians 12:9 hit me really hard this unit, when Jesus spoke to Paul saying: "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." (ESV) I struggled a bit to understand this passage. How could this omnipotent God have His power made perfect through...weakness? Through failure? Through termoil? Why? It seems so paradoxical...maybe even boardline contradictory! Yet what I am beggining to grasp is that the glory of God really is most manifested in those who the world often sees as
I really enjoyed reading 1 Corinthians during this past unit. It is a book that I very often read bits and pieces from, but do not typically take the tame to read straight through. I have been finding it notably refreshing to read the entirety of Bible books in this study, and doing so with 1 Corinthians was no exception. My main takeaway from reading Paul 's letter can be summed up in this question: Where is your focus? The culture that Paul was writing to in Corinth was very self-absorbed; highly concerned with their own customs, traditions, methods, beliefs, and desires. It is clear, however, that Paul was yearning for this people group to live unto something far beyond themselves. Paul wanted the church to stop focusing on themselves and look to Christ. Over and over again, the apostle called the Corinthians to choose an eternal focus, rather than a temporary one; a spiritual focus, rather than the physical; a faith focus over a works/law focus; a focus on the glorification of Christ rather instead of man. …show more content…
I love the focus that Paul places on the newness and presrevation found in Christ. Despite where you might have come from (rampant sexual immorality, greed, selfishness, and pride if you were the church at Corinth), Jesus Christ can make things new. It was awesome for me to watch the transition from the "1 Corinthians" church of sin to the "2 Corinthians" church of repentance. 2 Corinthians 12:9 hit me really hard this unit, when Jesus spoke to Paul saying: "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." (ESV) I struggled a bit to understand this passage. How could this omnipotent God have His power made perfect through...weakness? Through failure? Through termoil? Why? It seems so paradoxical...maybe even boardline contradictory! Yet what I am beggining to grasp is that the glory of God really is most manifested in those who the world often sees as