The Hope That Maintains The "Tone" Of Faith Is The Return Of CHRIST

 "From Paul, called to be an apostle of CHRIST JESUS, by the will of GOD, and from Sosthenes, our brother, to GOD's Church which is in Corinth; to you, whom GOD has sanctified in CHRIST JESUS, and called, to be holy, together, with those, who, everywhere, call upon the name of our LORD CHRIST JESUS, their LORD and ours.

Receive grace, and peace from GOD, our FATHER, and CHRIST JESUS, our LORD.

I give thanks, constantly, to my GOD, for you, and for the grace of GOD given to you, in CHRIST JESUS.  For you have been fully enriched, in HIM, with words, as well as with knowledge, even as the testimony concerning CHRIST was confirmed in you.  You do not lack any spiritual gift and only await the glorious coming of CHRIST JESUS, our LORD.  HE will keep you steadfast to the end, and you will be without reproach, on the day of the coming of our LORD JESUS.  The faithful GOD will not fail you, after calling you to this fellowship with HIS Son, CHRIST JESUS, our LORD." - 1 Corinthians 1:1-9 

(From Paul called to be an apostle.... to GOD's church which is in Corinth... with those who everywhere call upon the name of our LORD CHRIST JESUS.  With these three expressions Paul defends his authority.  He reminds the Corinthians, so easily entrenched in their rivalries, that they are part of a greater reality, the Universal Church of GOD.

Called to be holy.  You have to become holy, but you already are.  Holy, in the biblical sense, is the person or thing that belongs to GOD.  The baptized have been consecrated to GOD and form part of the people who belong to GOD, the assembly of the holy ones, which is the Church.

GOD's call does not allow them to remain as they are.  Their conscience readily adapted to the moral norms of their milieu, but now, GOD's call demands a renunciation of a certain vision of existence based on 'the natural.'  They will have to be orientated, as best they can, towards an ideal of life found in the person of CHRIST.

In CHRIST.  A single Greek preposition used by Paul is to be translated into English as in or through or with, according to the case.  "In CHRIST" has many meanings:

- We are sons and daughters of GOD, made after the image of the only Son of GOD, and GOD loves us in CHRIST.

- GOD the FATHER saves us through CHRIST.

- The FATHER calls us to share with CHRIST HIS inheritance.

- We have become part of the body of CHRIST; we live in CHRIST and have received HIS Spirit.

- The word "Christian," used for the first time in Antioch [Acts 11:26] to denote the disciples of CHRIST, was still not widely used; often in CHRIST means Christian.  So "marry in CHRIST" signified "to marry in a Christian way."

See Paul's acts of thanksgiving in verses 4-9: what certitude of riches present in a community where all is far from perfect!

In his advice to the Corinthians, Paul shows us how to act when reviewing the activities of our parish or our apostolic group.  Instead of being discouraged by the problems we face and accusing one another when something fails, the first thing to do is to remember what we already have in common.

These communities, in fact, like our own had to face their problems and their weakness.  Each generation of Christians must learn to follow JESUS and "build Church," or better still "be Church."

HE will keep you steadfast to the end.  The hope that maintains the "tone" of faith is the return of CHRIST.  The first Christian generation expected to witness HIS glorious coming: HE would judge the world and take HIS own with HIM [1 Thessalonians 4:13].)

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