Read By All

DEVOTION

2 CORINTHIANS

READ BY ALL

2 Cor 3:1-3

3:1 Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? 2 You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody. 3 You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.

NIV

Are we known and read by everybody? Do we show that we are a letter from Christ? Are we the result of someone’s ministry, not written with ink but with the Spirit of the loving God, not on tablets of stone but on the tablets of human hearts? That is a tall order to fill. It certainly would imply that we are to live our lives as an open book, transparent so that everyone can read the gospel message in us. It would appear we should not live a private secluded life, withdrawn from the public square. If we are to be read by everyone it would be necessary for us to be out there available on the news stand, with our headlines so bold that it could not be missed by those passing by. Letters, such as the ones Paul writes, are written to influence the way the reader lives. Letters like these bring hope and peace to the reader if, of course, they are read with in open mind and heart. Should we not be that kind of letter as well? Should we not live in such a manner that we bring hope and peace? We should bring the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Christ to all those who read us with an open mind and heart. Our lives should be such that we write on the human heart of those we come in contact with. But we must be on the news stand. We must be out these living among those who need to read us. We must engage ourselves in the lives of those who need to know about Jesus. Sure it is nice to hang around other believers and worship God together; in fact, we should be that kind of letter to each other as well. Yet the fact still remains we need to be read by those who need the message of salvation because they are part of that “known and read by everybody”.  So we should be available to be read, actually we should encourage people to read us. That would mean we should live what we believe. Paul had said he became all things to all men so that by all possible means he might save some. It is true we should not become blatant sinners in order to connect with other sinners, but we should engage them on their own turf so to speak, as Paul did, so as by all possible means they might be able to read us and know the saving grace of God. We need to be read by all.