The Greeting to the Corinthian Church

I was reading 1 Corinthians 1 last night when an interesting thought came to my mind. I really like how Paul got to the point of the epistle in a very quick and subtle way.

"Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus..." - 1 Corinthians 1:2

The Corinthian church was one that was known for having problems with spiritual maturity and separation from the world. Paul would elaborate on sanctification throughout the book, but he pointed out the truth of sanctification by the time you get to just the second verse.

The word "sanctify" comes from the Greek word hagiazo which means: to make holy, to consecrate. God has made us holy in Christ. He has consecrated us, or set us apart from the world, in Christ. If a Corinthian Christian only got to read the first two verses of the epistle, he would get the point Paul was trying to make.

This church needed more sanctification in their lives. I find it interesting what Paul said in the very next verse.

"Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ." - 1 Corinthians 1:3

This was a very common greeting found near the beginning of almost every epistle in the New Testament. You can this greeting, or one almost exactly like it in Romans, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, 1 and 2 Peter, 2 John and Revelation. You see, it wasn't just Paul who used this greeting, Peter and John used it as well. The point is that every church and every Christian must daily increase in sanctification. How is this accomplished? By the grace and peace of God. That's why the writers of these epistles stress the need for these gifts in our lives.

"For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men. Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world..." - Titus 2:11-12

There is a very scary view of grace that is infiltrating Christian circles today. It is the view that says God's grace gives me the license to do whatever I want. That couldn't be further from the Biblical definition and purpose of grace. If God's grace is truly at work in our life and we are submitting ourselves to it, it will teach us to deny ungodliness. Read Romans 6 for another great Biblical definition of grace and a description of its purpose in our lives.

"Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thankgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." - Philippians 4:6-7

I've heard it said that the battle of the Christian life is fought on your knees. The reason that many Christians lose battles all the time is because they were never fighting in the first place. The peace of God is a direct and promised result of prayer. That peace then keeps our hearts and minds. The Greek word for keep means: to watch in advance, to mount guard, to protect. The peace of God literally guards your heart and mind from the influence of the world, the flesh, and the devil.

Do you see the correlation between the grace and peace of God and sanctification? I thought it was interesting how nearly all the epistles started off with the writers' desire for these sanctifying gifts of God to be present in the lives of every believer they were writing to.