If you had one last thing to say to your family and friends, what would you say? What would you want them to know? That’s where we find Paul in this section of 1 Corinthians. He’s in the last paragraphs of his letter. He has one last shot to drive his message home.
Paul closes by addressing people by name and giving the Corinthians some specific instructions. Go back through 1 Corinthians 16:5–24. Of the people Paul mentions, who stands out to you? Why?
5 I am coming to visit you after I have been to Macedonia, for I am planning to travel through Macedonia. 6 Perhaps I will stay awhile with you, possibly all winter, and then you can send me on my way to my next destination. 7 This time I don’t want to make just a short visit and then go right on. I want to come and stay awhile, if the Lord will let me. 8 In the meantime, I will be staying here at Ephesus until the Festival of Pentecost. 9 There is a wide-open door for a great work here, although many oppose me.
10 When Timothy comes, don’t intimidate him. He is doing the Lord’s work, just as I am. 11 Don’t let anyone treat him with contempt. Send him on his way with your blessing when he returns to me. I expect him to come with the other believers.
12 Now about our brother Apollos—I urged him to visit you with the other believers, but he was not willing to go right now. He will see you later when he has the opportunity.
13 Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong. 14 And do everything with love.
15 You know that Stephanas and his household were the first of the harvest of believers in Greece, and they are spending their lives in service to God’s people. I urge you, dear brothers and sisters, 16 to submit to them and others like them who serve with such devotion. 17 I am very glad that Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus have come here. They have been providing the help you weren’t here to give me. 18 They have been a wonderful encouragement to me, as they have been to you. You must show your appreciation to all who serve so well.
19 The churches here in the province of Asia send greetings in the Lord, as do Aquila and Priscilla and all the others who gather in their home for church meetings. 20 All the brothers and sisters here send greetings to you. Greet each other with a sacred kiss.
21 Here is my greeting in my own handwriting—Paul.
22 If anyone does not love the Lord, that person is cursed. Our Lord, come!
23 May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with you.
24 My love to all of you in Christ Jesus.
1 Corinthians 16 (NLT)
Paul’s final words point back to the big idea we’ve talked about in 1 Corinthians. As Christians, we should put other believers before ourselves. Paul has been doing it all along—he’s traveled and preached so others could become Christians and grow as disciples.
He wants the Corinthians to act in the same way. He admonishes them to have the courage to put other believers first and to do it all in love.
More than any other passage we’ve read, this chapter reminds us that 1 Corinthians is a letter. Paul wrote to specific people who would have read the entire letter in one sitting. Carve out some time this week to read the entire letter in one go. Afterward, take a moment to reflect on your experience.
What did you notice in that reading that you hadn’t so far in our study? What did you discover about the character of God? Write your concluding thoughts and share it with the group
Text your response to the above prompting questions to your group and/or share it as a comment below
One thing I noticed in the reading today is in verse 18. In it, Paul states to show appreciation to all who serve so well. I don’t think I necessarily think of showing appreciation for things like that so that is one thing I would like to be better at doing is showing appreciation for those who serve well. Overall, what I learned from the study is the importance of love being the primary driver in all things that we do. If we are able to do this, we can avoid divisive issues that plagued the Corinthian church. In addition, when love guides us, it can also help us to navigate topics and potential other issues that may pop up in our Christian walk. I pray that God’s love would be the guiding beacon for my life.
Reading 1 Corinthians taught me a lot about temptations and serving. This last chapter is more about reminding us to love our brothers and sisters in Christ. We should welcome God’s believers no matter where they are from. We should show appreciation to those who serve. Paul reminded us to be strong in faith, be ready, and do everything with love. Which reflects on what we learn on temptations and serving. Beside that, I think the book is very covered.
Verse 15-16 stuck out to me because Paul chose a specific group of people to mirror our actions to. He said that this particular household had dedicated their lives to God’s people and submitting themselves who have a deep appreciating for God. In response, I should look at people who honor God and mirror their actions as well. I pray that God continues to work in me as I go about my daily life and find ways to humble me and depend on Him more. I pray that during times of hardship that I am able to rely on Him more rather than in my own strengths. Amen.
Verse 9 “There is a wide-open door for a great work here, although many oppose me.” This stood out to me as Paul saw opportunity, an open door, in the face of opposition. Even when the reality of the situation was there were few doors open, he still spun it around into a positive by seeing that as a reason for great work to be done for the few with open doors. I think often we start off discouraged as Christians in such a diverse, local community as we assume those around us are set in their beliefs and have closed the door to us. But Paul shows us here that work can still be done and the door is wide open for us to work even with those that oppose us. I’m rambling the same thing over and over I feel, but the gist of what I felt was that I found Paul’s optimism here encouraging for me.
Verses 13-14 stood out to me in the reading today-“Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong. And do everything with love.” These statements from Paul also summarizes the overall encouragements he had for the church of Corinth. As we wrap 1 Corinthians, we can also be encouraged by these verses to live selflessly to point others to God and His love.