Be Still and Know Daily Bible Devotion

1 Corinthians 9:19,22-23
Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible…To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.
I love meeting people who are passionate about something, whatever it is. It may be their love of horses or of a particular football club, or their devotion to gardening. You sense that their whole life is tuned into their passion. Paul was clearly passionate about people finding salvation in Jesus, and here he gives us a very clear insight into how he was wired. He lets us see his strategy for spreading this amazing message: getting alongside people whatever their background or their way of life. Whether they were a Jew or a Gentile, weak or strong, he would look for the common ground as a starting point for him to share the good news of Jesus.
It's always the most incredible privilege to talk with other people about Jesus, but the conversation will never get anywhere unless we can find common ground. Paul’s intention was never to force his faith on another person, and it should not be ours. But he was passionate about giving everyone a chance to hear just how great God is, and that would surely be a great objective for all of us.
Question
In what way can you find common ground with the people you see regularly who don’t know Christ?
Prayer
Thank you, Lord, that we have such good news to share. Amen

1 Corinthians 4:16-17
Therefore I urge you to imitate me. For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, my son whom I love, who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which agrees with what I teach everywhere in every church.
The disciples learned how to follow Jesus by looking at His example. They saw how He responded to the constant demands of His ministry. They saw His kindness and patience and how He welcomed every kind of person. They were often shocked by the things that He said and by the sorts of people with whom He spent His time.
Paul didn’t have the privilege of observing Jesus’ ministry, but he recognised the crucial importance of people learning by example, and he offered his life as one to be imitated. How else would people learn how to put Christian teaching into practice? In our verses today, he tells the Corinthian church that he is sending his young friend Timothy to them so he can remind them of Paul’s example.
I suspect that we would all become rather coy at the thought of people copying our example. But every day, as we live for Christ, we are being watched. There is no way in which we can hide away, so we need to ensure that we are setting a good example which is well worth following.
Question
Who will be looking at your life today, and what example will you be setting?
Prayer
Dear Lord, thank you for all the people who have set a good example for me to follow. Help me live a life which will help others to follow You. Amen

1 Corinthians 3:5-6
What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe – as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.
Think for a moment about the Christian leaders that you have known. I’ve been a Christian a long time and I could easily come up with a long list of leaders who have helped me to understand the Christian message. I am so grateful to God for them. To be honest, I can remember very few words that they have spoken even though I must have heard thousands of sermons. However, I can easily remember how they lived their lives – their sincerity, kindness, humour, love, compassion, thoughtfulness and their strength of faith. Their godly example still lives with me.
It is important that we should love and support our Christian leaders, but it is vital that we don’t exaggerate their importance. Their role is simply to point to the God whom they serve. All leaders are frail and vulnerable like the rest of us. They are on the same rollercoaster of life as us, and they have their ups and down. We need to rejoice in their good days and forgive their bad ones but ensure that our focus continually is supremely on the One whom we all serve.
Question
What have you learned from the leaders that you have known?
Prayer
Loving Lord, thank you for all the leaders that You have used to teach and support me in my Christian faith. But most of all I thank you that You are the one who, by Your Spirit, enables me to grow. Amen

1 Corinthians 2:1-3
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.
I once heard about a church that regularly visited the houses nearby. They sent out people two by two and many people got involved. A young girl nervously agreed to join in. She went to one house and a large man came to the door asking in a gruff voice what she wanted. She struggled to speak and then, in a quivering voice, she blurted out: “I’ve come to tell you that Jesus loves you.” The man didn’t know what to say, so he slammed the door in her face. He went inside and slumped into a chair weeping. He could hardly believe what had just happened. He thought deeply about the bravery of the young woman and out of curiosity he went to church, where before long he made a commitment to follow Christ.
I love that story because God often speaks through our weakness more easily than through our strength. That was certainly Paul’s experience. Most of us feel unsure of ourselves when we are given the opportunity to speak about our faith, but we are often at our most powerful when we are feeling nervous and weak.
Question
Can you think of a time when God used you particularly powerfully in a time of weakness?
Prayer
Lord, help me to be willing to speak up for You, even when I am feeling weak and tongue-tied. Amen

1 Corinthians 1:18
For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
Paul was absolutely sure that the cross of Jesus stood right at the heart of his life and ministry. Nothing was more important than the fact that God showed His perfect love for us by sending Jesus to die the most excruciatingly painful death for us. It was, if you like, the lens through which Paul saw everything. So Paul was determined to take every opportunity to speak about the cross.
But Paul was more than aware that the message of the cross sounded like nonsense to many people. The Greeks were looking for wisdom. They were very happy to listen to carefully reasoned arguments and to enter into learned debate. But the idea of a man dying at the hands of the Romans, showing that He was totally powerless and completely beaten by His enemies, didn’t sound at all wise. It sounded like foolishness. And to the Jews, Jesus’ own people, there was a fundamental problem. In Deuteronomy it was specifically stated that anyone who hung on a tree was cursed by God (Deuteronomy 21:23). The cross was, therefore, a total stumbling-block for Jews. It made belief almost impossible.
Paul was well aware of how foolish and problematic his message appeared. But he didn’t try to change it to make it sound acceptable to his hearers. He simply declared that if you want to know the power and wisdom of God there is only one place to look – to the cross of Jesus.
Question
What does the cross mean to you personally?
Prayer – Thank You Lord that when you went to the cross you showed us the full extent of Your love. Amen