Day 2

Scripture to Read: 1 Corinthians 3:3–5

God had Paul write to the believers in Corinth concerning their fleshly behavior in 1 Corinthians 3:3–4, “for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men? 4 For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not mere men?” God wanted the Corinthian Christians to understand that they were allowing themselves to be controlled by their fleshly desires and that they were not being submitted to God and His Holy Spirit in them. God had Paul point out that they were jealous of one another and quarreled with each other. God had Paul also point out that they were saying things like, “I am a follower of Paul,” or, “I follow Apollos.” But no one said, “I am a follower of Jesus.” Since they were quarreling over who they were following, God led Paul to remind them of who he and Apollos were in 1 Corinthians 3:5, “What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one.” God had Paul challenge them by asking, “Who are we anyway?” God had Paul remind them that he and Apollos were servants of God and that God used them to share the Gospel of Christ with them, and that is how they came to surrender to Christ as Lord and Savior. As Christians, we must understand that we are servants of God the Father through Christ because His Holy Spirit lives in us.

Challenge & Application

Why is it so important to guard our hearts from giving in to our fleshly desires? What is the problem with elevating people to a place of honor when it comes to the Lord’s work?

Don’t forget to pray using the A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) method!

Devotionals from this week

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Day 1

As Christians, we know that we are in a daily battle with choosing to give in to our fleshly desires or choosing to walk in the Spirit. This spiritual battle occurs within us every day, and we must choose to crucify our flesh and walk with our Lord. The believers in Corinth were struggling with their fleshly desires. God had Paul write this t...

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Day 2

God had Paul write to the believers in Corinth concerning their fleshly behavior in 1 Corinthians 3:3–4, “for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men? 4 For when one says, “I am of Paul,” and another, “I am of Apollos,” are you not mere men?” God wante...

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Day 3

God has commanded every believer to make disciples. Jesus gave us His command in Matthew 28:19–20 and in Acts 1:8. We must lead others to know and follow Jesus. God had Paul write in 1 Corinthians 3:6, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth.” God used Paul to remind all Christians that we can only cast seeds of righteousn...

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Day 4

As Christians, our lives must be built on the foundation of Christ alone, for any other foundation will lead to disaster. As God led Paul to write, we read in 1 Corinthians 3:10–11, “According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man must be careful ...

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Day 5

Since we have Christ as the foundation of our lives, we still have to make critical daily decisions on how we walk with our Lord. That is what God had Paul bring to light in 1 Corinthians 3:12–13, “Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each man’s work will become evident; for the day ...

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Day 6

We know our body is going to die, but God wants us to take care of it. If anyone should be concerned about how they eat, exercise, what they drink, and so on, it should be Christians. God had Paul write in 1 Corinthians 3:16–17, “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 17 If any man destroys the ...

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Day 7

God had Paul remind the believers in Corinth, and us, of this truth in 1 Corinthians 3:21–23, “So then let no one boast in men. For all things belong to you, 22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come; all things belong to you, 23 and you belong to Christ; and Christ belongs to God.”...

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