Sanctified in Christ Jesus
"to the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling, whith all who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours. . .." 1 Corinthians 1:2
In reading through the letter of 1 Corinthians, you can really hear the concern and love that Paul has for these people. He has been a year and a half with them. Which was an unusually long time for him to stay in one place. He has developed a love and concern for them. And even though he will address many problems in this letter, the overwhelming tone in the first few verses is positive. In the last part of verse 2, he indicates he is not just writing to them, but to all who call upon the name of our Lord.
Despite the fact that there are divisions and lawsuits and sins in the church of Corinth, Paul reminds them of who they are in Christ. They are those who are sanctified. The word "sanctified" here means to be "set apart" for God's own possession or use. In other words, God has a purpose and a plan for their lives and works for them to do. He has called them out of something, but also towards something. Much like it says in Ephesians 2:10
"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, whcih God prepared beforehand,, that we should walk in them."
I like also how Paul reminds them that one day God will confirm them. This is due to God's faithfulness and not because of what they have done. The word confirm here is a technical legal term which means a guarantee security. That though there is sin in the church now, one day Paul says that they will be blameless verse 8 or chargeless. Romans 8:1 is one of my favorite verses and it says this also.
"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Romans 8:1, NASV
Paul also refers to them as "saints by calling" verse 2. The hierarchy of the church had not yet been fully developed where there was popes and bishops and other leaders. The church did not call one group saints and another group lesser christians. All of those in the church, from the most mature to the carnal were "saints" due to the redeeming work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Those who are born again are looked at in the heavenly kingdom as redeemed, forgiven and cleansed. There is no more mention of past sins because they have been dealt with. While there is also a sense in which we submit ourselves daily to Christ and take up our cross and follow Him. We have to keep in mind that our redemption is assured because of the work of Jesus on the cross and resurrection.
It's always good to stop and remember during the Christmas season the birth of the Lord Jesus into a human body. It needs to be remembered though that he came for a reason. He came to redeem what is lost and to use each believer to do the work of his kingdom. He came for a reason and he sends us out for a reason. And the good news is that if he can work through such an immature group as the Corinthian church then he can also work through us. In fact, as we look into chapter one we see that God delights in using the have nots that he might nullify the things that are 1 Corinthians 1:28.
In reading through the letter of 1 Corinthians, you can really hear the concern and love that Paul has for these people. He has been a year and a half with them. Which was an unusually long time for him to stay in one place. He has developed a love and concern for them. And even though he will address many problems in this letter, the overwhelming tone in the first few verses is positive. In the last part of verse 2, he indicates he is not just writing to them, but to all who call upon the name of our Lord.
Despite the fact that there are divisions and lawsuits and sins in the church of Corinth, Paul reminds them of who they are in Christ. They are those who are sanctified. The word "sanctified" here means to be "set apart" for God's own possession or use. In other words, God has a purpose and a plan for their lives and works for them to do. He has called them out of something, but also towards something. Much like it says in Ephesians 2:10
"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, whcih God prepared beforehand,, that we should walk in them."
I like also how Paul reminds them that one day God will confirm them. This is due to God's faithfulness and not because of what they have done. The word confirm here is a technical legal term which means a guarantee security. That though there is sin in the church now, one day Paul says that they will be blameless verse 8 or chargeless. Romans 8:1 is one of my favorite verses and it says this also.
"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Romans 8:1, NASV
Paul also refers to them as "saints by calling" verse 2. The hierarchy of the church had not yet been fully developed where there was popes and bishops and other leaders. The church did not call one group saints and another group lesser christians. All of those in the church, from the most mature to the carnal were "saints" due to the redeeming work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Those who are born again are looked at in the heavenly kingdom as redeemed, forgiven and cleansed. There is no more mention of past sins because they have been dealt with. While there is also a sense in which we submit ourselves daily to Christ and take up our cross and follow Him. We have to keep in mind that our redemption is assured because of the work of Jesus on the cross and resurrection.
It's always good to stop and remember during the Christmas season the birth of the Lord Jesus into a human body. It needs to be remembered though that he came for a reason. He came to redeem what is lost and to use each believer to do the work of his kingdom. He came for a reason and he sends us out for a reason. And the good news is that if he can work through such an immature group as the Corinthian church then he can also work through us. In fact, as we look into chapter one we see that God delights in using the have nots that he might nullify the things that are 1 Corinthians 1:28.
