#DailyDevotion You Have Been Sanctified & Called Holy By Our LORD Jesus Christ
1 Cor. 1:1-3 I PAUL, APOSTLE OF CHRIST JESUS, called by God’s will, and Sosthenes, my fellow Christian, 2to God’s church in Corinth, made holy by Christ Jesus and called to be holy, with all who anywhere call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours —3may God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.
When I was a young Christian, I was deceived by a group of Christians into thinking they were the true Church because of their name. There were several sects which practice this deception. Well I don’t know if they all did it to deceive. But one particular one said the true Church always was identified by the name Church of God in name of place. Now our translation here didn’t follow the King James and instead translates it, “God’s church in Corinth.” Then there is Church of God in Christ. But the name isn’t important. What matters is, what does this Church teach?
Now, Paul in most if not all his letters identifies himself as an apostle. An apostle is one who is sent by Jesus, with Jesus’ authority and Jesus’ teaching. He does so also in this letter to the Corinthians. Paul is not self-appointed. Jesus told him to go and Jesus spent several years teaching Paul in the wilderness after his conversion.
Now Paul in his greetings to the Corinthians says something important about them that also applies to us and if we believe will save us a lot of uncertainty and heartache. He tells them and us we are made holy by Christ Jesus and are called to be holy. That is we are sanctified in Christ Jesus. This is not something we have done. This is something the Holy Spirit has done and is doing to us through our baptism into Christ Jesus (Rom. 5), the preaching of Jesus’ Word, and the reception of the Sacrament of the Altar. So now you and I can take a big sigh of relief. We are already saints of God in Christ Jesus by God’s work in us.
Even “called to be holy” isn’t something we are told to do. Called and holy here are actually adjectives in the Greek. So the first holy is a perfect, passive, participle—that means it is something that happened to us in the past, completed action that has an ongoing effect. There is no verb “to be” in the text. So it is just “called holy” and adjective pile up. Now it isn’t like somewhere else in the New Testament we aren’t commanded or told to be holy or to live holy lives. But it isn’t here. The Corinthians, as messed up as they were, are sanctified and called holy “with” everyone who calls upon the name of the LORD Jesus Christ. We are not individual Christians doing our individual things. We are one holy body of sanctified, called/elected holy people with all other sanctified, called/elected holy people.
Such people call upon the name of our LORD Jesus Christ. He is our LORD and theirs. Together we call upon his name as he has invited us to do, as it is written in Psalm 50, “15Call Me in time of trouble! When I rescue you, you should honor Me.” Jesus told us in John 16, “24So far you haven’t asked for anything in My name. Ask and you will receive and your joy will be complete.” Calling upon his name, we receive what Paul blesses us with, God’ peace and grace.
Heavenly Father, we thank you for calling us to be your holy people from before the foundation of the world in Christ Jesus. Grant us faith in this calling so we may indeed live holy lives before you with your grace and peace, through Jesus Christ, your Son our Lord who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit. Amen.