1 Corinthians 1:1-9: a reflection

1Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, 2to the assembly of God which is at Corinth—those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called saints, with all who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ in every place, both theirs and ours: 3Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 4I always thank my God concerning you for the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus, 5that in everything you were enriched in him, in all speech and all knowledge— 6even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you— 7so that you come behind in no gift, waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8who will also confirm you until the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9God is faithful, through whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Paul opens his letter to a troubled, divided church, and yet he begins not with rebuke but with thanksgiving. He addresses them as those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, and he thanks God for the grace given to them, for the way they have been enriched in Christ with speech and knowledge and every gift. Before he corrects their many failings, he reminds them who they are in Christ and what God has already given them.

The heart of the greeting is a promise about the future: God will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. And Paul grounds it in God's character: God is faithful, by whom you were called into fellowship with his Son. Notice where the confidence rests. It is not in the Corinthians' consistency, which was shaky, but in God's faithfulness. The One who called them will be the One who keeps them to the end.

This is a steadying word for anyone who fears they will not make it, that their weak and inconsistent faith might finally fail. Paul roots the assurance not in your reliability but in God's. The God who began his work in you and called you into fellowship with his Son is faithful, and he will confirm you to the end. When you doubt your own staying power, rest on his. He who called you will keep you, because God is faithful.

Lord, you called me into fellowship with your Son, and you promise to keep me to the end. When I fear that my weak and inconsistent faith might fail, remind me that my assurance rests not on my reliability but on your faithfulness. You who began your work in me will complete it. Thank you that you are faithful, and hold me firm to the end. Amen.