Begin with 2 minutes of silence and stillness before God.

Paul is on a righteous roll and rightly so. The believers in Corinth have unfortunately given way to a multitude of sexual sins and are mishandling conflict in ways that Paul addresses directly.

That’s one thing I appreciate about Paul – he never leaves you wondering what he thinks! The Lord gave him such clear and deep convictions along with the authority to pen holy scripture that is as authoritative and true today as it was then. Praise God for Paul.

Through all of these issues and sins that Paul addresses, it’s easy for us to get caught up in the specifics. But let’s zoom out a bit.

Here are a few major takeaways:

1. When believers act in a way that does not reflect the righteousness and righteous standards of God, who really loses? Who is watching? The non-believers.

While believers should be the shining example of Christlikeness, when we mishandle conflict and ignore our sin issues, we significantly tarnish our testimony to the unbelieving world.

The issues here are not hypocritical, they are simply non-Christian. As Christians, we must pursue righteousness and be committed to growing in Christlikeness while always being keenly aware of those around us seeking Christ themselves.

2. When it comes to Godly marriage, let’s keep the mission of marriage in mind. Why do we even get married? To glorify God together, to make much of Him as a team/unit, and to strengthen our force when it comes to obedience. As we share with couples during their dating years and pre-marriage counseling, you know when he/she is “the one” when you fully believe that you can do more for the glory and kingdom of God together than you ever could on your own.

If that is never true, then don’t lock into marriage. How beautiful it is to be free from the responsibilities of marriage so you can be laser-focused on the work of God without the longing for sexual intimacy.

Longing for sexual intimacy? Enjoy it within God’s design – between one husband and one wife for life.

Here’s the bottom line – there is no place for ill motives or selfish gain inside a Godly marriage. When self enters the chat, it’s time to evaluate and surrender that marriage to the lordship of Jesus Christ.

3. Verse 11 should keep our focus. If not for the grace of God, where would we all be? Dead in sin. “But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.”

Let us never forget or belittle the work of Christ in our lives. And let’s live in a way that is worthy of His goodness to us.

Take 2 minutes to reflect in silence.

Reflection:

• What are you pursuing more than righteousness? Ask God to reveal the sin in your life and for the courage to make the right corrections.
• Does your sexual relationship(s) honor God? Ask God to give you the strength, courage, and conviction to honor Him with your sexuality. Ask Him to fix your eyes on His design for love and marriage.
• Ask God to help you remain aware of how your pursuit of righteousness impacts others – for their good and His glory.

Family Devo: 1 Corinthians 6 

By: Tina Bryant 

When partnering with your family to know, love, and follow Jesus, we strive to create and share content filtered by the Head-Heart-Hands model.

Head: the knowledge of God and His Word | Heart: the personal connection from scripture | Hands: a missional mindset 

Head

Paul had a lot of strong words for the people at the church of Corinth. In his letter, we read about some fighting and disagreements that the people in the church of Corinth had with each other. They were fighting with their brothers and sisters in Christ, so much so that they were trying to take each other to court over it! You’ve got to be pretty upset to take someone to court for something, so it was pretty serious. This wasn’t just some little brother and sister squabble over who gets a turn with the Nintendo Switch, or who gets to sit up front on the ride home, or who gets to go first on family game night. Not only were the people of the church of Corinth fighting with each other, they were fighting in front of people who didn’t know Jesus.  

Heart

We talked earlier this week about building a good foundation, well they were building with materials that weren’t good- fighting and bickering in front of people was setting a bad example of what it means to be a follower of Christ. Jesus wants us to forgive others, to love others. Do you think fighting with your brother or sister is a good example of Christ’s Love? Why or why not?  

Hands

In everything we do, we should do it in love. Love doesn’t mean that you don’t get angry, or sad because everyone has those feelings. It doesn’t mean that you never disagree with someone. What it DOES mean, is that WHEN you disagree, or you are upset with your family, even your church family it’s BECAUSE you love them, you work it out.  

Pray: Thank You, God, for loving us so much giving us Your Son, Jesus. Thank You for the lessons Jesus taught us with His life and for Your ability to work things out because we love You. Help us to love others the way that Jesus loved us and give us the wisdom to work well with our brothers and sisters, especially our brothers and sisters in Christ. Amen.