Thursday, February 5, 2026
Scripture Readings
- Primary Reading: 1 Corinthians 15-16
Key Verse
1 Corinthians 15:42 — “So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption:”
Devotional Thought
What does this passage ask of you today? It asks you to stand firm on a fact: the tomb is empty. Paul writes to the Corinthians as one who delivered the gospel he himself received — that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose the third day. He lists the witnesses by name: Cephas, the twelve, more than five hundred brethren at once, James, all the apostles, and last of all Paul himself, “as of one born out of due time.” These were not vague rumors; they were living testimony, most of them still alive when Paul wrote.
In February, many of us feel the long gray of winter. The garden lies dormant, the trees look dead, and Easter seems far off. Paul reaches into that dullness with the imagery of seed and harvest: what you sow is not quickened except it die, and God gives it a body as it pleases Him. The resurrection is not wishful thinking; it is the pattern written into creation itself. And if Christ be not raised, Paul says plainly, our faith is vain and we are yet in our sins. Everything hangs on this.
Yet Paul does not stop at doctrine. He moves to daily life. “Be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” He tells the Corinthians to lay by in store on the first day of the week as God has prospered them, to receive Timothy without fear, to submit to the household of Stephanas who addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints. Resurrection hope produces resurrection labor.
Notice the tenderness at the end. Aquila and Priscilla salute the church in their house. Paul writes the salutation with his own hand. He says, “My love be with you all in Christ Jesus.” The man who wrote of death swallowed up in victory also cared about collections for the poor, travel plans, and a holy kiss. So let this day be lived in that same spirit: watching, standing fast, quitting you like men, being strong, and doing all things with charity.
Reflection
- Paul says if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain and you are yet in your sins. Does your daily hope rest on the empty tomb, or on circumstances that shift with the weather?
- Paul labored more abundantly than they all, yet said it was the grace of God with him. Where are you tempted to take credit for what only grace has done?
Prayer
Lord God, we thank You for the gospel we have received and wherein we stand: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day. Thank You for the many witnesses, and for the grace that made Paul what he was. Keep us steadfast and unmoveable, abounding in Your work, knowing our labor is not in vain. Awake us to righteousness and sin not. Let all our things be done with charity, until that day when this corruptible puts on incorruption and death is swallowed up in victory. In the name of our risen Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.