April 20, 2023

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 1:10-11 – “He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.”

What it means

This is from the apostle Paul as he shares with the church at Corinth some of the dire challenges that he and his team faced trying to maneuver around and share the gospel.  If we look back a few verses in 8-9, he tells of difficulties that they had to deal with in Asia.  While he isn’t specific, it must have been hard beyond imagination – verse 9 says “Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death”…so pretty intense stuff.  But…as we have shared before in church…there are times when God allows us to experience hardships in our lives, if for no other reason, that we may learn to rely on Him and His power more and more.  We’re a self-sufficient, proud, stubborn people, and we like to handle everything in and of ourselves, but at the end of the day, we’re only human.  We weren’t built to be able to handle everything ourselves.  We need the direct intervention of an almighty, all-powerful God.  And Paul gets this – the first part of verse 10 he shares “He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again.”  In other words, we can trust Him – He is faithful, and promises to take care of His children.

What it means to me

Paul is also mindful to reveal the cause of his optimism – the power of God, no doubt, but also being buoyed and strengthened by the power of his friends’ prayers lifted on his behalf.  And, he recognizes the power of prayer, and is grateful for them – “Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.”

Thankfully, I see it with each one of you as well…just like Paul, you get it.  You understand the power that we all have at our disposal, and it’s just a prayer away from being able to tap into it.  God does some pretty amazing things when His people take the time to pray to Him…thank you for continuously reminding me of that fact.

Love you guys, see you in church on Sunday!

In Christ,

Brian