Text: 1 Corinthians 1:3-9, The Message
3-6 May all the gifts and benefits that come from God our Father, and the Master, Jesus Christ, be yours. Every time I think of you—and I think of you often!—I thank God for your lives of free and open access to God, given by Jesus. There’s no end to what has happened in you—it’s beyond speech, beyond knowledge. The evidence of Christ has been clearly verified in your lives.
7-9 Just think—you don’t need a thing, you’ve got it all! All God’s gifts are right in front of you as you wait expectantly for our Master Jesus to arrive on the scene for the Finale. And not only that, but God himself is right alongside to keep you steady and on track until things are all wrapped up by Jesus. God, who got you started in this spiritual adventure, shares with us the life of his Son and our Master Jesus. He will never give up on you. Never forget that.
Meditation:
Paul began his letter to the Corinthian church by telling those disciples that he was thankful to God for the grace He gave them through Christ.
That grace resulted in benefits that Paul called enrichment in speech and knowledge of every kind, as well as their testimony of Christ and the presence of spiritual gifts, as they waited for Christ.
Questions that arise when reading these texts include: 1) What “benefits” from knowing Christ have come and continue to come to you as you progress in the Christian way? 2) How much do you think about and anticipate the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ?
Poetry:
Where Cross the Crowded Ways of Life
by Frank Mason North, 1905
Where cross the crowded ways of life,
where sound the cries of race and clan,
above the noise of selfish strife,
we hear your voice, O Son of Man.
In haunts of wretchedness and need,
on shadowed thresholds fraught with fears,
from paths where hide the lures of greed,
we catch the vision of your tears.
O Master, from the mountainside,
make haste to heal these hearts of pain;
among these restless throngs abide;
O tread the city’s streets again;
Till all the world shall learn your love,
and follow where your feet have trod;
till glorious from your heaven above
shall come the city of our God.
Prayer:
Dear God, thank You for sending Jesus, Who was the great example of a man Who walked in spirit and truth and Who waited upon God. A man with a servant-heart and a desire to do Your will. Thank You for Jesus, Who throughout His life, demonstrated Himself to be a person that would wait on You in every situation and do only those things that He heard from You.
Father, in the power of the Holy Spirit, I pray that I too may learn how to wait on You and quietly rest in Your will. Lord, I want to be emptied of self so that I may be filled with You. A life that is led by the Spirit. A life that seeks to do Your will. A life that waits in patient expectation on You.
For to You belongs all power and wisdom and majesty and strength, and without You I can do nothing. Help me to follow the example of Jesus and it is in His name I pray,
Amen.
Activity:
The theme of this week’s Advent meditations is Waiting. There is a time element to this theme. Time stands still. We wait. So for this activity, take the time to write a letter to someone you love that would enjoy a handwritten letter from you. Send it by snail mail.