What do you think of when you hear the word weakness?
Is it a positive word or a negative one?
How does weakness relate to faith?
This week, we are starting a summer series called Letters to the Churches. Every week this summer, we will cover one of Paul’s letters from beginning to end!
First up is 1 Corinthians, which teaches us how our weakness displays the power of God. The Corinthians had drifted pretty far from Christ in their lifestyle, and they were using a misunderstanding of the cross and resurrection to justify their behavior. They thought that their spirits had already been glorified so that what they did with their bodies no longer mattered. They celebrated this glorious “freedom” in ways that made even their non-Christian neighbors blush (1 Cor 5:1)!
At the root of the Corinthians’ lifestyle problems was a misunderstanding of the cross and resurrection. Paul reminds the Corinthians that Jesus was not crucified in glory—he was crucified in weakness. God’s work in us is not complete: someday, we will be resurrected like Jesus with a glorious body. Until then, we follow Jesus in weakness. This weakness displays the power of God.
Comments