ICS Daily Devotions
Advocating for Peace in the Body of Christ
1 Corinthians 3:1-3 And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able; for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?
There was strife and division in the church of Corinth because people were taking sides between Paul and Apollo. There was disunity in the camp, the people were striving and division broke out. The Apostle Paul had to rebuke them to stop the strife and division because Christ’s body cannot be divided. He called them carnal, ruled by the flesh! He called them spiritual babies.
“Mere men” refers to natural men who have not been born again and still have the sin nature dominating their lives. Therefore, the people who are yet to be saved will be dominated by envy, strife and division because sin is self-centered. There is no peace when strife and division exists in a church. We are called to be peacemakers especially when we are spiritually matured!
The Apostle Paul is saying that carnality should not exist among Christians especially in the church! It is the work of the flesh and the instigation of the devil when there are envy, strife and divisions. Therefore, we need to watch out and do not allow any of these signs to happen. When there is strife and division means that there is chaos and lack of peace in the situation. Sometimes people tend to be talebearers, murmur and complain about the church rather than taking time to pray for the pastor in charge and the entire church. Nobody wins except the devil in such situations because it is he who comes to steal, kill and destroy!
Be a peacemaker! Be a person who unites the body of Christ and prevents it from losing its testimonies to the people in the world. This is the reason why ICS chooses to focus on the cross, outreach and missions rather than the possible differences amongst us. We should always continue to cultivate a culture of being a peacemaker in the church. We should also continue to be a strong advocate for peace in relationships that personifies the kind of character that God has.
Sermon Series: Peacemaker
