Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong. Let all your things be done with charity.
1 Corinthians 16:13-14 KJV
This is the concluding part of the first letter of Paul to the Corinthian church. A few of the words of today's extract bear emphasis:
Watch Ye: if there is no fear or danger, these words have no meaning. If there was no fear of being attacked, robbed or harmed, this charge does not make sense. A person who is on watch is given a mandate, an area or substance to focus on, and clear terms of engagement. S/he cannot get distracted by things happening outside his/her control. You simply focus on the bit you have been assigned to watch. When I take stock of what I have been given, or what has been committed into my hands, I know I must watch. I cannot afford to sleep off or become distracted. Watching takes time and effort, and calls for care, caution and restraint. Am I willing to pay the price required to be an effective watch over all that God has committed into my hands?
Stand Fast in the Faith: in addition to watching, I must also stand fast. The picture that comes to mind is that of a soldier on duty, who cannot afford to turn his/her back on the battle. In order to stand fast, you have to be properly dressed for battle. You don't come to war dressed in flowing garb; the circumstances of the battle determine the appropriate response. And where I stand also matters: it has to be in the faith, if my stand will also stand the test of time. Men have stood on principles and policies, but the principles died with them. If my life's focus will outlive me, it has to be based on something that lives on even when I am dead. What else could it be, if not the life of Christ? Only in Christ am I truly able to stand, and not only stand, but do so to the end of my time.
Quit you like men; be strong: I am called to act mature, to give out publicly the fruits of my private investment of time, resources and search of God. How do people know I am a man, mature and ready for the challenges of life? Isn't it by my actions? Words are cheap; anyone can make claims. But when I act, I reveal all that is in me. And how do I act like a man, and not be able to stand against evil in my day? How do I claim I am a man, when evil seems to thrive around me? Am I silent in the face of evil? Do I condone it simply because it does not directly affect me? Can I be counted on when it matters?
Charity/Love: and when the inner man is sorted, the outer can make sense. It is not a mistake that the outward impact is mentioned after the inner impact is settled. You can't get the order wrong and still expect to be all God intends. How do I love people for whom their interests do not align with mine? How do I see people the way God sees them, if I do not see them from God's perspective? How do I claim to stand for someone else when my own stand with God isn't right? How do I claim I love other people when the love of God has not been birthed in me? So, I see now that before I can flow out with all that God is, God has to first flow in and take all of me. Then can He be all that men see when they come in contact with me. He becomes the only person that my life reflects. When I stand, walk, speak or live, God flows out. Then my life has become a full reflection and discharge of all that God is. His time of favour is here.
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