Welcome to The Daily, where we study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, every day.

Read more about Project23 and partner with us as we teach every verse of the Bible on video.

Our text today is 1 Corinthians 4:21.

Paul ends the chapter with a question that sounds like a loving father sitting down after a long, difficult day:

What do you wish? Shall I come to you with a rod, or with love in a spirit of gentleness? — 1 Corinthians 4:21

This isn't a threat. It's an invitation. Paul isn't eager to discipline them; he's eager to restore them. His heart is essentially saying, "Don't make this harder than it has to be."

And isn't that exactly how so many of us relate to God? We resist. We push back. We defend ourselves. We dig in our heels. Instead of confessing, we explain. Instead of yielding, we argue. And eventually, God has to use the "rod"—that loving, corrective pressure that wakes us up. Not because He's angry, but because He refuses to let us drift into destruction.

But Paul is showing us a better path—the path of restoration.

Humility invites gentleness. Repentance invites tenderness. A softened heart invites God's nearness. We often assume God is eager to be harsh, but Scripture tells a different story:

God would rather restore you than correct you. He would rather embrace you than discipline you. He would rather speak softly than press firmly.

Paul's question becomes God's question for you: "How do you want me to come to you?"

If you respond with a humble, teachable heart, He comes with love. If you respond with pride and resistance, He comes with correction. Not because He wants to, but because sometimes correction is the only thing that shakes us awake.

Don't make God use the rod when He's offering restoration.

If you feel conviction today, that is God's kindness. If you feel warned, that is His mercy. If you feel nudged toward obedience, that is His love. Paul pleads with the Corinthians—and God pleads with us—to choose the path that invites gentleness.

Choose restoration.

DO THIS:

Humble yourself before God today. Ask Him, "Is there anything I'm resisting that You're trying to restore?"

ASK THIS:

1. What area of my life would cause God to approach me with correction rather than gentleness?
2. Have I misunderstood God's discipline as His anger?
3. What step of repentance could open the door to restoration?

PRAY THIS:

Father, soften my heart before You. Don't let me push things to the point of the rod. Help me choose humility so I can experience Your restoration instead of Your correction. Amen.

PLAY THIS:

"Come Thou Fount"

Welcome to The Daily, where we study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, every day.

Read more about Project23 and partner with us as we teach every verse of the Bible on video.

Our text today is 1 Corinthians 4:18-20.

Some in Corinth were puffed up—loud, confident, full of opinions. They acted as if Paul would never return, and even if he did, they imagined they could stand toe-to-toe with him. Paul answers with calm clarity:

Some are arrogant, as though I were not coming to you. But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I will find out not the talk of these arrogant people but their power. For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power. — 1 Corinthians 4:18–20

Paul is done with the noise. He's not coming to evaluate their words—he's coming to see their lives. Big talk is cheap. Real power isn't.

We live in a world drowning in words—content, opinions, debates, arguments, and theological posturing. The Corinthians did too. But Paul reminds them that the kingdom of God doesn't advance through intellect that merely informs or through language that elevates the ego. It advances through power—the kind that transforms.

God isn't impressed by vocabulary, clever arguments, or spiritual branding. Those things often feed pride more than faith. What He looks for is the unmistakable evidence of the Spirit—a power that softens hard hearts, produces repentance, crucifies ego, heals broken places, strengthens the weary, and transforms character from the inside out.

You can imitate style, tone, or theological vocabulary. But you cannot imitate the power of God flowing through a surrendered life.

What we're after isn't the allure of power—it's the ability to see real power when we encounter it. You recognize it in people who spend time with God, who carry peace you can't manufacture, who walk in humility that confronts pride, who speak with quiet authority born from obedience, and who display fruit that only the Spirit can produce. You can sense it. You can't always explain it. But you know: this person walks with God in a way I need.

That's what Paul is after. That's what the Corinthians were missing.

You don't measure a life by what it says, but by what it carries.

Talk says, "Look at me." Power says, "Look at Christ." Talk elevates self. Power reveals the Spirit. Talk feeds ego. Power grows humility.

Paul isn't coming to hear speeches. He's coming to see surrender. That's what God desires from us, too.

Let your life carry more weight than your words.

DO THIS:

Take five quiet minutes to ask God, "Where is talk overshadowing true spiritual power in my life?" Let Him highlight one place where surrender needs to deepen.

ASK THIS:

1. What talk have I trusted more than transformation?
2. Do people experience Christ's power or just my opinions?
3. Who in my life carries real spiritual power—and what can I learn from them?

PRAY THIS:

Father, free me from empty talk and spiritual performance. Fill me with Your power—the kind that transforms my character and carries Your presence into the world. Make me a vessel you can use. Amen.

PLAY THIS:

"Holy Spirit"

Welcome to The Daily, where we study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, every day.

Read more about Project23 and partner with us as we teach every verse of the Bible on video.

Our text today is 1 Corinthians 4:17.

Some people talk a good game. Timothy lived one.

Paul had a big problem in Corinth—a proud, divided church drifting from the way of Christ. So he doesn't just write another paragraph. He doesn't send a rebuke. He sends a person.

That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church. — 1 Corinthians 4:17

Timothy wasn't a random choice. He was the right man, in the right moment, with the right life.

• Paul met him in Lystra as a young man known for sincere faith (Acts 16:1–2).
• He was raised by a godly mother and grandmother (2 Tim. 1:5).
• Paul invited him into ministry early (Acts 16:1–3).
• Timothy proved faithful through suffering, travel, pressure, and conflict (Phil. 2:19–22).
• Paul trusted him so deeply that he sent him to tough churches—Philippi, Thessalonica, Ephesus… and now Corinth (1 Thess. 3:1–2).

So why send him?

Because Timothy didn't just know Paul's teaching—he knew Paul's ways. He lived the gospel Paul preached. Timothy is who Paul would be if Paul were standing in the room.

The Corinthians didn't need more clarity. They needed more example. A humble one. A faithful one. A consistent one. A fellow worth following.

We all need examples like Timothy… and we're all called to become examples like Timothy. Not perfect. Just faithful. Steady. Growing. Becoming the kind of person who makes it easier for others to follow Jesus.

Be a fellow worth following.

And here's the truth: You can be. Not by being impressive. Not by being flawless. But by walking closely with Christ until your life naturally points others toward Him.

God can shape you into the kind of person others look to for strength, courage, and clarity. The kind of person who lifts prayer burdens, speaks truth gently, and carries the presence of Christ into every space.

You don't need a platform. You don't need a title. You just need a faithful life.

Let God form you into a fellow worth following.

DO THIS:

Choose one area of your life where you want to grow into someone "worth following." Invite God to shape you—and someone you trust to sharpen you.

ASK THIS:

• Why did Paul trust Timothy so deeply?
• What qualities in Timothy do I need to grow in?
• Does my life help others follow Christ more clearly?

PRAY THIS:

Lord, form in me the kind of life others can follow. Make me faithful, steady, humble, and true—like Timothy. Shape me into a fellow worth following. Amen.

PLAY THIS:

"Lead Me to the Cross"