Enriched in Jesus Christ (1)
In 1 Corinthians 1:4-5 Paul has this to say. “I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in him you have been enriched in every way.” He goes on to give some illustrations of how they were enriched (see 1:7). But for all God’s generosity to them, many of the Corinthians were spoiled brats (compare 3:1-3 and elsewhere) though it didn’t need to be that way.
Does our giftedness enrich or impoverish our personalities and congregations? Apart from the love that rises out of a covenant relationship with Jesus Christ and so takes its character from him—apart from that everything is nothing! See 1 Corinthians 13:1-3. There can be giftedness without love but there can be no Christlikeness without it and if love of Christ is present, not only are we socially and spiritually useful, any lack of particular gifts becomes irrelevant.
No one ever came to Christ and discovered he/she was robbed. In Christ there is only enrichment and he who was rich became poor that we might be rich (2 Corinthians 8:9). It’s true that many who came to Christ discovered that their lives became harder and, sadly, thinking they were cheated they walked away; but those that have stayed the course have found they lost nothing and gained everything.
With his eye on certain present and past leaders Jesus said that they were robbers whose business turned out to be stealing and destroying but he, the Christ said, came to give fullness of life (John 10:8-10). In Jesus Christ there is only enrichment.
But it is only in him that the Christian and a church is truly enriched.
©2004 Jim McGuiggan. All materials are free to be copied and used as long as money is not being made.
Many thanks to brother Ed Healy, for allowing me to post from his website, the abiding word.com.