I Can't Help It

Do you give yourself a grade card on life? How do you do at work? Home? Family? Spiritual journey? Do you pass or fail?

Paul is one of the busiest writers of the New Testament. He writes lots of letters to the new churches sprouting up in the Mediterranean as word about Jesus starts to spread. He willingly admits he used to be against this new Jesus movement and hurt people in the process. But when God got ahold of him, he became a new person through the life-changing power of the Holy Spirit.

Did he go from a failing grade to a passing grade? Not really. We’d all fail if God’s was keeping a score card. We can’t do it on our own. God has already done it for us. Paul was confronted with that truth and embraced it. Paul came to realize he had nothing to offer God or people. It was the power of the Gospel truth that changed his life and his purpose in life. We read about it in 1 Corinthians 2:1-5:

"And so it was with me, brothers and sisters. When I came to you, I did not come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God.  For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling. My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power."

Paul’s point is that the message he speaks is not about his eloquence, personality, strength, or organizational skills. We should point out that it seems Paul did possess many gifts and talents. However, he can’t do it on his own and he knows it. People listened when he spoke, and he was committed to seeing the message being shared with as many people as possible. But that was not the power or influence of Paul. The power of the message is what God has done through sending Jesus to be the Savior of the world.

That power and presence is still with us through the Holy Spirit. He leads, guides, protects, instructs, and cares for us as he speaks truth to us through the Bible. The message is there for us. It’s ours. It can be our life story, and it is not based on our talents, looks, skills, or education. It’s all about what Jesus has done for us. For you. Embrace it. Celebrate it. Share it.