Christianity Oasis Forum

[cimi]

WEDNESDAY MAY 20


GUARD YOUR FOCUS

READ:
HEBREWS 12:2
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That's my disciple," I once heard a woman say about someone she was helping. As followers of Christ we are all tasked with making disciples__sharing the good news of Christ with people and helping them grow spiritually. But it can be easy to focus on ourselves instead of Jesus.

The apostle Paul was concerned that the Corinthian church was losing its focus on Christ. The two best-known preachers in those days were Paul and Apollos. The church was divided: "I follow Paul." Well, I follow Apollos!" They had begun focusing on the wrong person, following the teachers rather than the Savior. But Paul corrected them. We are "God's fellow workers." It doesn't matter who plants and who waters, for only God can give the growth. Christian share "God's field, God's building" (1 COR. 36:9. The Corinthian believers didn't belong to Paul nor to Apollos.

Jesus tells us to go and make disciples and to teach them about Him (MATT. 28:20). And the author of the book of Hebrews reminds us to focus on the Author and Finisher of our faith (12:2). Christ will be honored when we focus on Him; He is superior to any human being and He will meet our needs. C.P. HIA

**Father, I confess that it is easy to shift my focus from You to less important
things. Thank You for putting people in my life that help point me to You. Help
me point others to You in a way that makes You more and me less.________________________
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Put Jesus first.

*******************************Today's Bible Reading __ 1 Corinthians 3:1-9*******************************
1 And I, brethren could not speak to you as to spiritual
people but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. 2 I fed
you with milk and not with solid food; for until now
you were not able to receive it, and even now you are
still not able; 3 for you are still carnal. For where there are
envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and
behaving like mere men? 4 For when one says, "I am of Paul,"
and another, "I am of Apollos," are you not carnal?

5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers
through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one?

6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. 7 So
then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters,
but God who gives the increase. 8 Now he who plants and he
who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward
according to his own labor. 9 For we are God's fellow workers;
you are God's field, you are God's building.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>INSIGHT<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Apollos first appears on the pages of the
New Testament in the book of Acts, where it says he was "born
at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures"
(18:24). Though he spoke of Jesus boldly in the synagogue, his
understanding of the Scriptures was incomplete, so he received
training from Aquila and Priscilla (v.29). Apollos is discussed in today's
text as someone who had developed a strong following among
believers in Christ (v.COR. 3:4). He is mentioned favorably by Paul in
Titus 3:13 when he urged Titus to help Apollos on his journey.