But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
-1 Corinthians 15:57
Every year my family sits down at the table on Thanksgiving and takes part in a special tradition. Before the gravy is poured and the turkey is passed, each member of the family shares something that they are thankful for from the previous year.
Whether it is a new job, a baby that has been born, or that one simply made it through another year, this annual thankfulness tradition has become a mile-marker in our lives. Each year we look back on the previous year’s Thanksgiving and remember all the ways that God has been faithful to us in our lives!
In his first letter to the Corinthian believers, Paul taught that each believer’s life should be one marked with thankfulness and gratitude. However, Paul went a step further and instructed the church exactly what they should be thankful for – our victory in Jesus Christ.
What victory is that? Simply put, when Jesus went to the cross for our sins and rose again from the dead, He finally defeated the very things that keep us enslaved – sin and death.
Every temptation, anxiety, fear, and doubt that plagues our lives each day can be traced back to one thing – our fallen nature and sin. Yet in Christ Jesus, we are released from that sin and death forever, and we are free to live the lives that God created us to live!
When we see that every battle has been won by the blood of Jesus, we truly have something to be thankful for. How will you show that thankfulness and gratitude to God today? How will you live your life knowing that truth today?
Questions For Reflection on 1 Corinthians 15:57
#1 Today’s devotional has been all about the concept of true thankfulness! Take some time to write down some areas of thankfulness and gratitude in your own life, and pray to God in joyfulness over those areas!
#2 Paul writes that in Jesus we have true victory! Think of your life and some of the areas where you need to find a victory that only comes in Jesus’s power.
Prayer
Lord God, I thank You for Your love for me. When I was far from You, Your love still came to find me and draw me back to Your love. I want to respond to You today in thanksgiving and praise for all that You have done. Thank you for sending Your Son Jesus, who became sin for me – that I may live in true victory through salvation!
Natalie Regoli is a child of God, devoted wife, and mother of two boys. She has a Master's Degree in Law from The University of Texas. Natalie has been published in several national journals and has been practicing law for 18 years.