1 Corinthians: Not in VainSample

It’s very easy to forget that living for Jesus will often feel very ordinary and involve the most mundane moments of our lives. 

For example, after the note of triumph at the end of chapter 15, you could be forgiven for concluding that this final chapter is a bit of an anti-climax. It’s full of everyday details, and reads like a bit of a mash-up between a busy travel itinerary and a family’s annual Christmas letter. Why would Paul lessen the impact of chapter 15’s glorious vision of our future resurrection, by following it up with this? 

But as you look closer, notice how these little details reveal Paul’s priorities. Do you spot how the phrases and ideas echo the content of the previous chapter (15:9, 10, 13, 15–16, 22)? Paul’s gospel hopes and desires for the Corinthians are shaping his approach to everyday life, and this concluding chapter is evidence of that. 

If we rush past these verses, assuming they’re irrelevant historical particularities, then we miss out on the everyday reality of giving ourselves ‘fully to the work of the Lord’. This is the practical outflow of a heart set on trusting that our ‘labour in the Lord is not in vain’ (15:58). It’s a whistle-stop tour of how being willing to ‘die every day’ (15:31 esv) for the gospel effects the tiniest details of our lives. 

So as we finish in 1 Corinthians, consider the following everyday areas and ponder how our resurrection hope might change how you approach each of them: 

• How we budget and spend our pay-packet each week (vv. 1–4)? 
• How we make plans and the time we choose to give to others (vv. 5–9)? 
• How we welcome and support those set-aside to be pastor-teachers and evangelists (vv. 10–12)?
• Our under-the-surface attitudes as we go about our daily life routines (vv. 13–14)?
• Who we choose to look up to and who we model ourselves on (vv. 15–16)?
• Our willingness to proactively respond to the needs of others (vv. 17–18)?
• How much the welfare and flourishing of other Christians means to us (vv. 19–20)?

Reflection

Why not sit down with your weekly or monthly diary and prayerfully consider how living in light of the resurrection is going to impact your everyday routines and priorities?