Sunday | Fruits of an Authentic Ministry | August 30

August 30: Sunday — Fruits of an Authentic Ministry

Bible Focus

• 2 Corinthians 3:1–9
• Galatians 3:8
• 1 Corinthians 2:2
• 2 Timothy 1:9

Summary

• Authentic ministry is seen in the changed lives of those who receive the gospel.
• The Corinthian believers were like a letter from Christ because their lives showed His work in them.
• Their changed lives were not the result of human ability, but of God’s power working through the ministry.
• Paul did not take credit for their transformation because he knew that God was the source of his ministry.
• The gospel was not new in the New Testament because God’s grace had always been His way of saving people.
• Abraham received the same gospel by faith, showing that salvation has always been based on God’s promise.
• The Old and New Covenants show two different responses to the same gospel.
• One response depends on human efforts, while the other trusts God’s grace to change the heart.
• The Corinthians’ changed lives showed the fruit of God’s grace and confirmed that Paul’s ministry was a ministry of the Spirit that gives life.

Question

• What evidence can others see in my life that Christ is working in me?

Answer

• A changed character, a changed attitude, and a life shaped by God’s grace can show that Christ is working in me.

Reflection

• If my life were a letter from Christ, what would others read in it?

Takeaway

• Let God’s grace change your life, so that others can see Christ through the way you live.