Today I Stumbled Upon...

...1 Corinthians 15

Today I thought I'd try a new approach to my Bible reading. Prior today, I usually approached my blog writing with a theme, question, or idea in mind and I'd search for Bible verses to help me answer/back up what I wanted to write about. Today I decided that I'd reverse the process. As I sat down with my Bible in one hand and my laptop in the other, I prayed that God would guide my reading and that His Spirit would speak to my heart as my eyes fell upon whatever reading presented itself. Now, this can work fine for quiet times, but I do not suggest you try this technique to answer questions like a Magic 8 ball... the Bible should be studied closely and purposely when seeking answers to specific questions, however if you're just wanting to explore God's word and let it "wash over you", sometimes random passages are refreshing.

Anyway, now that I have that prologue and disclaimer out of the way, why don't I share with you my thoughts on what I read today?

I let my Bible fall open to a random passage, which in this case happened to be 1 Corinthians 15. I read verses 1-33 and, let me tell you, there are some profound statements in this passage. The passage is basically Paul (formerly Saul) talking about the resurrection of Christ and what that means for the Christian faith. Without believing in the resurrection of Christ there is no faith. Our faith is pointless.

The verses that stood out to me most were the final few verses in the passage:

"...if there is no resurrection, "let's feast and drink, for tomorrow we die!". Don't be fooled by those who say such things, for "bad company corrupts good character." Think carefully about what is right, and stop sinning. For to your shame I say that some of you don't know God at all."

1 Corinthians 32-34 (NLT)

Paul was writing this to people who proclaimed to be believers in Christ. But these "believers" often questioned the validity of Christ's resurrection. For people who do not believe in an afterlife, there is no hope. Their hope lies completely in obtaining as much happiness as they possibly can in this life before they die and "fade away into nothingness"--or so they think. Christians should have a different kind of hope--a hope of life after death. We should be living our lives day by day to emulate Christ because of that hope. 

All too often we live like non-Christians---like people without hope. We get fooled into taking part in sinful pastimes because we get caught up in the "party hard while you can" mentality. We gossip, we fight, we booze and schmooze, we waste our money on material possessions, we become self-centered. We attempt to fill the void in our souls with empty pursuits... and I think anyone with half a brain can say that you can't fill emptiness with emptiness. 

Christians should be different! It should be obvious from the way we live that we have a Hope. We should live a life that reflects the love and joy of our faith. It is so very sad when people have to ask or are surprised to find out we're Christians. Paul makes it clear when he says that it is to their shame that he questions whether or not the "believers" he's writing to are actually believers at all. 

I don't want there to ever be a doubt in anyone's mind as to Who I put my faith in. I want to live my life so that there is no question that I believe in Christ and that my life has hope, by His grace. 

God,

Give me the strength and teachable heart necessary to live my life out loud for you. May I radiate your love. God I would be absolutely devastated and ashamed if someone was surprised to find out that I was a Christian. I want my life to be a reflection of your Son. 

Thank you,
Me