1 Corinthians 7:17-23 (NLT)
17 Each of you should continue to live in whatever situation the Lord has placed you, and remain as you were when God first called you. This is my rule for all the churches. 18 For instance, a man who was circumcised before he became a believer should not try to reverse it. And the man who was uncircumcised when he became a believer should not be circumcised now. 19 For it makes no difference whether or not a man has been circumcised. The important thing is to keep God’s commandments. 20 Yes, each of you should remain as you were when God called you. 21 Are you a slave? Don’t let that worry you—but if you get a chance to be free, take it. 22 And remember, if you were a slave when the Lord called you, you are now free in the Lord. And if you were free when the Lord called you, you are now a slave of Christ. 23 God paid a high price for you, so don’t be enslaved by the world.
What an awesome passage! I read this the other day and it really got me thinking. There seemed to be so much in it yet there was an initial reluctance to dive into it because the two words “circumcision” and “slavery” are used. The more I thought about it, though, I continued to be drawn to it and began to think about what I believe He was trying to teach me through it. This weekend I spent some time thinking about the true depths of His unfailing love. He loves me exactly for who I am! There is nothing I can do or not do that will make Him love me any more than He already does. He could have created me any way He wanted and with any qualities or characteristics. Hobby Lobby comes to mind. If you have ever been in there and looked in the painting section, there are more colors, canvases, and paint choices than you could possibly imagine. They even have crackle paint and glitter paint. The artist has an endless selection of the medium he/she is going to use to paint their subject. As many selections as there are, God has infinitely more! He undoubtedly used the exact colors He wanted to paint you and I! Each stroke of the brush wasn’t an accident and is essential to the total painting. It is easy to look at the finished painting and see beauty, but at a glance or in the middle of the process it can seem like nothing but paint. There are three primary colors in life! And through them all other colors are created. It is only through the course of countless strokes of life’s details that the Master reveals His completed project.
God loves us for who we are! The colors of our past are part of that. The strokes of color that might seem so dull or perhaps out of place are exactly where they should be. We just have to be willing to let Him keep painting and adding the color! One of the cool things about painting is that unlike drawing, there isn’t an eraser. With painting, the artist paints over it and the eyes that see it after the process is complete never know it was there. Perhaps this is what was meant by all things work for the good of those who love Him and are covered by the blood of the Lamb.
Father,
Thank You for loving us and accepting us just as we are. Thank You for completing us with Your countless strokes of love. Help us not to get caught up in the single strokes of the past but instead take heart in knowing that we are a work in progress and that every stroke plays a part in who You want us to be in the future. Thank You for loving us enough to paint us and complete us with Your unfailing love! Thank You for finishing the work You started! Amen
17 Each of you should continue to live in whatever situation the Lord has placed you, and remain as you were when God first called you. This is my rule for all the churches. 18 For instance, a man who was circumcised before he became a believer should not try to reverse it. And the man who was uncircumcised when he became a believer should not be circumcised now. 19 For it makes no difference whether or not a man has been circumcised. The important thing is to keep God’s commandments. 20 Yes, each of you should remain as you were when God called you. 21 Are you a slave? Don’t let that worry you—but if you get a chance to be free, take it. 22 And remember, if you were a slave when the Lord called you, you are now free in the Lord. And if you were free when the Lord called you, you are now a slave of Christ. 23 God paid a high price for you, so don’t be enslaved by the world.
What an awesome passage! I read this the other day and it really got me thinking. There seemed to be so much in it yet there was an initial reluctance to dive into it because the two words “circumcision” and “slavery” are used. The more I thought about it, though, I continued to be drawn to it and began to think about what I believe He was trying to teach me through it. This weekend I spent some time thinking about the true depths of His unfailing love. He loves me exactly for who I am! There is nothing I can do or not do that will make Him love me any more than He already does. He could have created me any way He wanted and with any qualities or characteristics. Hobby Lobby comes to mind. If you have ever been in there and looked in the painting section, there are more colors, canvases, and paint choices than you could possibly imagine. They even have crackle paint and glitter paint. The artist has an endless selection of the medium he/she is going to use to paint their subject. As many selections as there are, God has infinitely more! He undoubtedly used the exact colors He wanted to paint you and I! Each stroke of the brush wasn’t an accident and is essential to the total painting. It is easy to look at the finished painting and see beauty, but at a glance or in the middle of the process it can seem like nothing but paint. There are three primary colors in life! And through them all other colors are created. It is only through the course of countless strokes of life’s details that the Master reveals His completed project.
God loves us for who we are! The colors of our past are part of that. The strokes of color that might seem so dull or perhaps out of place are exactly where they should be. We just have to be willing to let Him keep painting and adding the color! One of the cool things about painting is that unlike drawing, there isn’t an eraser. With painting, the artist paints over it and the eyes that see it after the process is complete never know it was there. Perhaps this is what was meant by all things work for the good of those who love Him and are covered by the blood of the Lamb.
Father,
Thank You for loving us and accepting us just as we are. Thank You for completing us with Your countless strokes of love. Help us not to get caught up in the single strokes of the past but instead take heart in knowing that we are a work in progress and that every stroke plays a part in who You want us to be in the future. Thank You for loving us enough to paint us and complete us with Your unfailing love! Thank You for finishing the work You started! Amen