Authentic Living

/ kwameowusubaafi

1 Corinthians 4:17

New International Version (NIV) 

For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, my son whom I love, who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which agrees with what I teach everywhere in every church.

For Meditation

  1. How do you authenticate a product? With all the claims companies make in commercials to promote their products, how does one distinguish the genuine from the fake ones? And isn’t it refreshing when, under close scrutiny, the performance of a product matches its claims?
  2. Is it not true of Christianity? Don’t you know that in the eyes of the world around us, the claims of Christianity are measured by the quality of our lives in Christ? In other words, don’t you know that our profession of faith in Christ is authenticated by the evidence of our way of life in Christ?
  3. Is that not what the Holy Spirit says through Paul in 1 Corinthians 4:17? Can we also say with confidence that our close associates will testify before people that our way of life in Christ Jesus agrees with what we profess everywhere and in every situation?
  4. Does our walk match our talk, as the saying goes? For isn’t that the only time we can encourage others to imitate us, as Paul urged the Corinthian saints to do (16)? And what was Paul’s confidence in making that claim, except for his “way of life in Christ” (17; 11:1)?
  5. For example: Didn’t Paul bless those who cursed him, as Jesus did? Didn’t he endure persecution? Did he not answer with grace, those who slandered him (12-13)? Are these not Christ-like? So, why couldn’t he claim that his way of life in Christ Jesus agreed with what he taught “everywhere in every church”?

I pray we can make this claim today to the glory of God.

So: Out of His glorious riches, may the Lord “strengthen you with power through the Holy Spirit, in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your heart through faith” (Eph. 3:16); and may He, “encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word” (2 Thess. 2:17) in Jesus, amen!

Shalom

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