Entrusted with the Mystery

By Samantha Rodriguez

“Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.”—1 Corinthians 4:2 (NIV)

Have you ever been entrusted with a specific job or with guarding a special item? If you have, you know what it feels like to have the pressure of that responsibility. One instance I can think of in my own life is when I was entrusted with a master key for my residence hall. This master key unlocked every single room in the building, and there was only one of these keys. If I ever lost it, then it would cost me a lot of money, as well as the trust placed in me. Thankfully, every time I used the key, nothing happened to it and I was able to return it to its spot safe and sound in our key box. Nonetheless, I still knew there was weight to this responsibility and privilege.

I wanted to paint this picture for you because today’s Scripture highlights the fruit of the Spirit: faithfulness. Some characteristics of a faithful person include them being constant, trustworthy, and loyal. These are big words that require a lot from us, and we’re imperfect and flawed human beings who cannot possibly live up to these expectations on our own. That’s why this is a fruit of the Spirit. We must continue to root ourselves in Christ, soak in His Word and in prayer, and let the Holy Spirit transform our hearts by pruning sinful areas in them so we can grow and produce faithfulness. But how can we practice faithfulness? What does Scripture tell us we’ve been entrusted with?

Well, if you read the verse right before our Scripture today, you’ll see that is says, “This, then, is how you ought to regard us: as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed” (1 Corinthians 4:1 NIV). We must explore some of the context before we can fully grasp the kind of faithfulness we’re called to practice in this passage. Paul is reminding the Corinthian church of their new identity as servants of Christ who’ve been entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed in recent times. There are a few different references to these “mysteries” in Scripture, but the main one Paul is most likely referring to here is the mystery of Christ’s redemption.

In 1 Corinthians 1:18 (NIV), Paul claims that “the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” This mystery we’ve been entrusted with is that of the gospel because it doesn’t make sense that the perfect, mighty, and righteous God of the universe would die to save and redeem His people who aren’t even all going to love Him in return, let alone love Him with the same perfection. His love is perfect and incomprehensible, though, and that is why we need it! We need to be reconciled to our God because of the sin that separates us from Him, and the good news is that God made a way for us because we couldn’t on our own! That’s why Paul says in Colossians 4:3 (NIV) that this message is “the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains.”

So, I beg the question, will you be a faithful steward of this gospel message we have? You’ve been entrusted with life-changing news, so what will you do with it?

Pause: Have you ever considered yourself to be entrusted with the mystery of Christ’s redemption? How does today’s devotion make you feel in light of this gift?

Practice: Today, be faithful to the gospel and share it with someone. Perhaps it’s someone at work or a stranger in the grocery store, or perhaps it’s simply a reminder to give to your spouse, friend, or child. Proclaim Christ’s redemption in some way today and worship Him for it!

Pray: Dear heavenly Father, You are so mighty and kind. Your wisdom surpasses all the wisdom of us here on earth to the point where it may seem foolish to us. I ask You to help me to never regard your gospel as foolish and that You open the eyes of those around me who still see it that way. Help me to be a faithful steward of this message so it will continually change my heart and so I can share it with others whenever I get the chance to! Amen.