Encouraged and encourager

1 Corinthians 16:13-24

¹³ Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong. ¹⁴ And do everything with love.

¹⁵ You know that Stephanas and his household were the first of the harvest of believers in Greece, and they are spending their lives in service to God’s people. I urge you, dear brothers and sisters, ¹⁶ to submit to them and others like them who serve with such devotion. ¹⁷ I am very glad that Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus have come here. They have been providing the help you weren’t here to give me. ¹⁸ They have been a wonderful encouragement to me, as they have been to you. You must show your appreciation to all who serve so well.

¹⁹ The churches here in the province of Asia send greetings in the Lord, as do Aquila and Priscilla and all the others who gather in their home for church meetings. ²⁰ All the brothers and sisters here send greetings to you. Greet each other with a sacred kiss.

²¹ Here is my greeting in my own handwriting—Paul.

²² If anyone does not love the Lord, that person is cursed. Our Lord, come!

²³ May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with you.

²⁴ My love to all of you in Christ Jesus.

Paul finishes his letter to the Corinthians by exhorting them, or if you like, to encourage them to be strong and courageous. Then he also sends the greetings of other co-workers to them.

The thing that strikes me about Paul writing this letter is that I don’t think it could have been an easy process to find the right words to encourage yet correct them as required. The greetings from fellow co-workers reminds me of Psalm 133, “How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!” Or a way I’d put that, is, it’s a touch of heaven here.

There is something about working with other people to shared goals and vision, alluded to in the title of one of Tolkien’s books, “The Fellowship of the Ring”.

Two questions spring to mind:

• How are you allowing others to minister to you through friendship?
• How are you intentionally being a blessing to those you know who are ministering to others needs?

Lord, help me be thoughtful and a blessing to others I know who are ministering to others for you.

Also, give me the grace to recognise when I need to let friends minister to me.

Written by Dave Moore