It’s all gift, everything single thing! "My Life"
I Corinthians 4:7 “For what give you the right to make such a judgment? What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?”
Paul is talking to the Corinthians about his relationship with them and seems to be commenting on some of the red flags that have been raised in their prior correspondence. Its as if the Corinthians are slipping into the trap of thinking that they are some how responsible for who they are and their life. Paul knows that this kind of thinking eventually leads to a self righteous practice of faith that takes the glory away from Jesus and points it toward themselves. After all the Corinthians are a group of people that have a pretty good life; they’ve always had their needs supplied for and never really experienced a poverty stricken life. Paul reminds them that the life they have is a gift; they did not choose to be a Corinthian; and the fact that through Jesus Christ God has chosen to offer them a new life in the Kingdom is also a gift. Its as if they think that they some how earned their life they live in the world that will inherently suggest to them that they also earned their way into the kingdom of God.
This is such an important text for me to read today. I live in a culture that breads and promotes self righteousness; it is the vision of capitalism. That on my own doing I can create the kind of life that I desire; hence my success or failure is tied to my own work drive and commitment. The result is that I become my own God and I can never accept the gift of Jesus Christ because to do so would be to admit that my own drive and commitment is not good enough and to admit that my drive and commitment is not good enough is to admit that I am a failure and in the world of capitalism that equals a loss. However, in the world of the gospel admitting that it is not my own power, that I am not responsible for my success; admitting that there is something seriously wrong with my life and the world around me is absolutely necessary to experience the life that God is offering through Jesus Christ. This admission simply says, God I know that everything I have is a gift and that the only way I can be restored back into relationship with you is through another gift. I receive the gift of Jesus and I welcome you continuing to provide for my life because I know that nothing is done on my own. Not only does the gospel open my eyes into my own life but also helps me to see others through a different lens especially as I look at the brokenness of the world.
Lord, thank you for my life today; thank you for the gift of my life. All that I have and am belongs to you. Thank you for the gift of Jesus Christ; continue to transform my life into what you desire and give me the grace to never forget that it is all gift. Amen!
Through Jesus I have a life beyond my wildest dreams!
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