I always thank my God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus.
1 Corinthians 1:4 NIV
Paul started many of his letters by expressing thanksgiving for those he was writing to. This is easy to understand for churches with which he had a good relationship, like the churches at Philippi or Thessalonica. Or for those he had heard good things about, like Colossae.
But Corinth was a different matter. He had spent at least a year and a half with them (Acts 18:11), proclaiming the gospel, teaching the believers, and establishing the church there. You would expect that this church would be one that would embrace him wholeheartedly.
But the church in Corinth was divided. Some still looked to Paul. Others held a variety of other teachers in greater honor. And false teachers were leading some within the church to follow them. As you read Paul’s letters to the church at Corinth, you will find them filled with correction and instruction.
And yet, Paul told them, he always thanked God for them. Despite the issues he was having with them, he recognized the grace of God given to them in Christ Jesus. They did not see eye on many things. But they were fellow believers, and Paul thanked God for that.
The church at Corinth is like the Church of today in miniature. Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and a multitude of Protestant denominations. Each with its own distinctives in faith and practice. Distinctives that we all too often allow to divide us.
But we can, and should, thank God for all of those who have received the grace of God given in Christ Jesus, despite our differences. While we may squabble sometimes within the family, what ties us together is greater than our differences.
If you are a child of God, you are my beloved brother or sister in Christ. And I thank God for you.
