Joel Russell-MacLean

“Afflicted in every way—disputes without and fears within”

Paul wrote these words thousands of years ago in a letter to the first Christians in the city of Corinth. They resonate today. We are surrounded by disputes in our cities, our country, and in our churches. Anxiety seems to live within all of us to varying degrees. And eventually, even our bodies and minds begin to fail us, suddenly or gradually. 

We groan under our burdens, longing for the world and our bodies to be healed. 

Paul used the troubles in the lives of the Corinthians to point to God. God was present moment by moment in their lives, and God is a god of consolation. Daily grace from the Holy Spirit sustained them. There was Jesus to look at, to know, and to follow. And there is a new world coming. 

“We do not lose heart.”

Paul repeated these words to encourage the Corinthians and us to continue removing sin from our lives. Paul calls us to keep loving and serving each other and the world, in imitation of the Triune God. Therefore, he ended with this blessing:  

“The grace of the Lord Jesus, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all, forever. Amen.”