Twin City church of Christ Blog
“Apr 10, 2024 - Serve Jesus Where You Are”
Categories: 2024 Reading DevotionalsServe Jesus Where You Are
Reading: 1 Corinthians 7:17-24
The gospel of Jesus means change. Often we hyperbolically declare that “everything must change” when we become Christians. The Corinthians seem to struggle with this thought—wondering whether following Jesus means that I need to leave my marriage, my job, or be circumcised. Paul reassures them: “Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches”(1 Cor 7:17). And again, “Each one should remain in the condition in which he was called”(1 Cor 7:20). We don’t have to change everything; we can serve Jesus right where we are.
Paul gives examples. Whatever your circumcision status was when you believed in Jesus, don’t change it (1 Cor 7:18-19). If you were a bondservant, “do not be concerned about it”(1 Cor 7:21). If you can be free, do so, but you can serve Jesus right where you are. “So, brothers, in whatever condition each was called, there let him remain with God”(1 Cor 7:24). The applications to marriage (his topic in this chapter) are obvious: just stay where you were when Jesus called you, not assuming you need to divorce or get married (see v. 27). Serve Jesus where you are.
We must learn to appreciate “the life that the Lord has assigned” to each one of us. Our lives can seem so boring and ordinary that we believe some radical change is necessary to fulfill our purpose. Often this thought is born of our own pride and desire for significance. Serve Jesus where you are, trusting that he has “assigned you" the life that you have. Paul’s words also caution us against thinking that there is more we have to do or become before God is pleased with us. Circumcision would not get us closer to God. Following Jesus as a bondservant does not give us second-class status in the kingdom. Jesus has already accepted us by obedient faith. Instead of some dramatic, radical gesture, serve Jesus where you are.
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One Thing to Think About: What does the “life that the Lord has assigned” to me look like?
One Thing to Pray For: Contentment with my current state of life
