1 Corinthians 9: A Story about Selflessness and What Matters Most

1 Corinthians 9:19-"For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more."

Paul's statement in verse 19 shows a description of Christ. He was free from everyone and did not have to make the sacrifices that he did to redeem mankind, but he made himself servant unto each of us. The Savior's act of the atonement shows one of His characteristics-absolute selflessness. Throughout His life, Christ did not think of Himself, but always about those who were around Him. Even after He suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane and again on the cross, He thought about helping others when He healed one of His captor's ears and then forgave those who put Him on the cross. 

This selflessness is an attribute of Christ that is being fought against today. Today's world is all about doing what is best for you. The world says that you are "free from all men", so why would you bind yourself down? Why would you get married and raise a family, why would you try taking time out of your busy day to help others, or spend time and money taking care of your elderly parents when you are free? Why would you choose to do anything other than roam the world and live your dreams without any other cares? But the world's message is in direct opposition to what Christ's message is, who "made [himself] a servant unto all."  

At the end of his statement, Paul says that "I made myself a servant unto all, that I might gain the more." How could you gain more when you are serving others? This question goes back to the age old question, how do you gain happiness? I think you can gain more happiness by giving part of your life to others, whether it is through service or through developing meaningful relationships that might make you less free in terms of the world. The happiness that can come from these things can make you more free than you could be by following what the world says will give you freedom.

Just remember in life not to spend too much time on the things that aren't going to last (even if they seem as if they will bring you more freedom) that you miss out on the things that do last and can bring much joy into your life.

For more on this subject, here's a talk that is somewhat related, especially the first portion about spending time with those that we love.

1 Cor. 6:19-20: A Story about Loving your Body

"What? Know ye not that your body is a temple of the Holy Ghost, which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore, glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." (1 Cor. 6:19-20)


This scripture passages is now probably one of my new favorites. It is just so powerful. Your body is a temple. Your body is sacred. Your body is a place for the Holy Ghost to dwell. Think on that for a minute.

Did you notice Paul's first word in this passage? He says, "What?" To me, it almost sounds as if he is shocked that the people he is writing to do not known the worth of their bodies. I wonder what he would say today. He would probably start out with this very expression, but possibly with a few explanation marks.

There, perfect.

With all that goes on in the media today, with the constant message of how your body should look and how you need to change yourself to be beautiful, Paul's message needs to be heard now more than ever. And believed. Your body is a gift. It's a gift from Christ, who "bought it with a price". Don't take this gift and treat it like garbage, don't look in the mirror and loathe this gift and wish it looked like someone else's. Take care of this gift. Embrace it. Love yourself. 

The other part of Paul's message that I love is that your body does not define you. Your body is a gift, but it is not who you are. No matter what condition your body is in, whether it has carried you through rough times that you now wear the mark of or the body that you were given is not as perfect as you would like, remember that it does not define you. You are not your body. You are so much more. Your soul, how you live your life, how you treat others...that is what defines you.

Moral of the Story: You are one of God's children and he loves you. You should try to love yourself as well, because you are magnificent. By caring for your body, both physically and through the way you look at it, you can glorify God who gave you that gift.

P.S. If you haven't ever watched the short film "The Butterfly Circus", you definitely should. It's one of my favorite videos and is simply inspiring. 

Acts 16: A Story of Listening to the Lord

In chapter sixteen, we come upon Paul on his second missionary journey. He has been preaching the gospel and comes upon what might be considered a rough patch. As Paul and his companions continue their journey to find more people to teach, they come upon one decision after another that they are told by the holy ghost is not the right way to go. First, they try to go towards Asia (not modern day Asia, but more in the area of Turkey) and then they decide to go towards Bythinia, but they are told no. This is a situation that I would find frustrating. They likely put thought into where they should go and came to a decision, but when they asked for the Lord's guidance, they got no for an answer. However, they were patient and listened to the Lord and did not go to these locations. They start trekking the direction that has not been forbidden to them by the Spirit, and then Paul is given a vision in which he is told to go to Macedonia. They then (in verse 10) immediately acted on God's word to them and started heading towards Macedonia. I think that this is a great example of what each of us can do in our lives. When we keep on trying to come up with different paths to go down in our lives, we need to follow these missionaries' examples and be patient and continue to listen to the Lord. And when we are told that a direction is right, we need to immediately act on that direction before that revelation begins to fade and we begin to question it.


This being said, acting on what we are told when we listen to God will not necessarily be easy. It wasn't easy for Paul and his companions. They completed their journey to Phillipi, the main city in Macedonia, and they did not immediately have success. They had to wait days for anything to happen with their preaching of the gospel. Would this have been tough? Yes. Would it have caused Paul or any of his companions to doubt the revelation that they had had from God? It probably would have caused me to rethink it some. However, these missionaries still remained faithful to the revelation they had received and, because they did, the gospel was able to go into what is now Europe. I think that the moral of this story is that if you listen to the Lord and have faith in what he tells you to do, no matter how hard it can be at times, good will always come out of it. And you'll get to grow closer to God and become a better listener in the process!