A Gift with Multiple Parts

El Roi, The God Who Sees Devo Image
“It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: ‘Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.’”—1 Corinthians 1:30–31 (NIV)  Have you ever received a gift that comes with multiple parts? For example, a gift basket with various foods, a new phone with a charger and headphones, a Barbie doll with multiple outfits, a football with flags and a pump, decorative lights or a drone with batteries. Gifts that come with multiple parts are normally both exciting and relieving because those parts are usually necessary to make the gift enjoyable! When we think about the gift Jesus gave us through His life, death, and resurrection, we can think of a gift with multiple parts that are each necessary, gracious, and beautiful!  This is just a glimpse of what we see in today’s passage. Paul reminds his audience that because of God’s grace and Christ’s sacrifice, Jesus has become wisdom for us. He is wisdom personified! By us having the wisdom of God (Jesus Himself), we can understand and experience the following concepts as part of Christ’s gift!
  • Righteousness: The state of being in proper relationship with God. In Christ, we go from being counted as unclean and stained by sin to being made clean and counted as righteous by the blood of Jesus. This allows us to enter a relationship with Jesus that is intimate and personal!
  • Holiness: Consecration and sanctification; to set apart for holy transformation and holy use by God. In Christ, we go from being unholy to holy. Being counted as righteous, now we’re able to be set apart by God for holy transformation as He molds and shapes us more into His image for the rest of our lives!
  • Redemption: A deliverance or ransom. Renewing something that was broken, finding something that was lost, and bringing something back to its original owner. In Christ, we go from being separated from Him in our own brokenness to being rescued by Him, healed of our brokenness, and brought into the light. And even though we still struggle with the effects of such sin and darkness in ourselves and the world, there is hope and power in the Holy Spirit to continue forging ahead in this journey.
Now that we’ve broken down the three concepts Paul talks about in this Scripture, we can understand why he claims we should boast in them! The Greek word used for boast is kauchaomai, which means to rejoice in or to glory in someone or something (StepBible.org). Throughout the Bible, especially the New Testament, we’re frequently warned not to boast in ourselves or anything we’ve done. Instead, Paul encourages us in his letters to boast in the Lord because He is the only one worth publicly glorifying and rejoicing in unashamedly. Therefore, just like Paul quoted from Jeremiah 9:23–24, if anyone should boast, we should boast in the Lord because He graciously made all these things available to us. Jesus is our righteousness, our holiness, and our redemption!  Pause: Take a moment today to reflect on the above three concepts. Consider what it means for you to be made righteous, holy, and to be redeemed by your Creator and the Lord of all the universe. Practice: In view of this beautiful and abundant gift we’ve received from Christ, our only appropriate response should be to worship! Take time today to specifically thank God for the gifts we reflected on and worship Him through grateful prayer, journaling, or song. Pray: Jesus, thank You so much for buying my redemption, my holiness, and my righteousness. Thank You for bridging the gap through Your sacrifice so that now sin and death have no grip on me! I want to center my life around this new identity You have given me. May I walk in Your righteousness, holiness, and redemption today and every day honoring You in the way I love You and others. I am Yours! Amen.
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