“Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders
to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also”
– 1 Corinthians 1:16 –
In 1 Corinthians 16 we observe the following:
- Paul and the brethren of Corinth were sensitive to those in need and wanted to help them. That is why they set apart a weekly offering (vv 2,3).
- Paul strengthened the faith of the church by providing guidance on how to live the Christian life (vv. 13, 14).
- Paul accompanied and trained church leaders (vv. 10, 11, 15-18).
- Paul encouraged the church to be attentive and conscious of the challenges of a Christian life, to strengthen each other, to base actions on love, and to involve everyone in the mission and recognize their participation (v. 13).
The church is made up of imperfect people. That is why our greatest example in the church is not the leadership or the faithful members; the greatest and best example is Jesus Christ.
Marcos Rafael Blanco Belmonte, in his poem “The Sower,” summarizes the need to develop a persevering leadership which integrates people and resources to fulfill the mission:
“One autumn afternoon I went up to the mountain and as I watched the sower sowing, I watched smiling. Ever since men existed on the earth none have toiled with such determinantion!
“I plant flowers, pines and sycamores; I want to fill this hill with fronds; I want others to enjoy the treasures that these plants will give when I die.
” ‘Why so much effort in a day’s work without seeking reward?’ I said. And the madman murmured, with his hands on the hoe: ‘Perhaps you think that I am mistaken; perhaps, being a boy, you are really amazed by the enormous impulse that ignites my soul; for those who do not work, I work and struggle; if the world does not know it, God understands me!’…
“That is why, when I contemplate the world and am sad, I strive and impose on myself such a rough job, and I know that my humble example is worth a lot, though poor and modest it seems and is.
We must fight for those who do not fight! We must plead for all those who do not implore! We must make those who do not listen to hear us! We must cry for all who do not cry!
We must be like the bees in the hive, that make for all sweet honeycombs.
We must be like the water that flows serenely, offering the whole world fresh streams. We must imitate the wind, which plants flowers, both in the mountain as in the plain. We must live life sowing love, with our sight and our soul always looking upward.”
Said the madman, and with noble melancholy, through the thicket of the mountain he continued climbing, and as he lost himself in the shadows, kept repeating:
“We must live sowing. Always sowing!”
God bless you…