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Daily Devotions

1 Corinthians

1 Corinthians 
Day 
Day 209

"I have fought with beasts at Ephesus..."

Text: 1 Corinthians 15:32

THE MANY BATTLES OF LIFE

There are many battles to be fought in life. Many of these are best described using metaphors.

“If, in the manner of men, I have fought with beasts at Ephesus,
what advantage is it to me? If the dead do not rise,
‘Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!'”
1 Corinthians 15:32

1. “If, in the manner of men, I have fought with beasts at Ephesus”

a) Paul spent a fairly long time in Ephesus.
b) In his farewell speech to the Ephesian Elders he mentioned being there for three years (Acts 20:31).
c) In his message, he used the phrase “savage wolves” (Acts 20:29).
d) The reference to fighting with “beasts” at Ephesus would most likely be metaphorical.

2. A clear example

a) When he was ministering in Ephesus, a riot broke out.
b) Demetrius, a silversmith made a sinister plot.
i) He gathered the silversmiths who made and sold idols of the local deity Diana.
ii) He persuaded others with similar interests to join in.
iii) Soon the whole city was filled with confusion, shouting out the name of Diana.
iv) It took the city clerk to calm them down; he warned them that they could be in serious trouble with the authorities, if they got too carried away (Acts 19:23-41).
c) Paul was in danger of being attacked and possibly killed by the raging mob.

3. “What advantage is it to me?”

a) Why would Paul put himself in jeopardy?
b) There would be no advantage at all to Paul, if death is all there is in life!

4. “If the dead do not rise, ‘Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!'”

a) Paul was aware of this so-called philosophy of life.
b) There were some who did not believe in the resurrection of the dead.
c) They believed that there is only life on earth!
d) The natural ramifications are obvious:
i) “Eat and drink”- These are the common pleasures of life.
ii) Since death is the only finality, why not just “eat and drink” as the focus of life?

Paul, of course, rejected this philosophy of life. He believed with all his heart and soul, that Christ rose from the dead, proving that there is a resurrection! Thus, he sought to live in this glorious hope of the resurrection of the dead. There was no fear of death, for Christ Jesus had conquered death.