DAILY TEXT, From today Monday February 6, There is jealousy and fights between you (1 Cor. 3:3).

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Monday February 6

There is jealousy and fighting among you (1 Cor. 3:3).

What do the examples of the disciple Apollos and the apostle Paul teach us? Both had tremendous knowledge of the scriptures and were well-known and influential teachers. Furthermore, both of them had helped make many disciples. But neither of them saw the other as a rival (Acts 18:24). In fact, some time after Apollos left Corinth, Paul urged him to return (1 Cor. 16:12). Apollos was using his abilities in the best way: to preach the good news and strengthen his brothers. We can also be sure that Apollos was a humble man. For example, there is no indication that he was offended when Aquila and Priscilla "explained to him the way of God more accurately" (Acts 18:24-28). The apostle Paul was well aware of the good work Apollos was doing. But he didn't feel threatened by him. In the advice he wrote to the Corinthian congregation, we can see that Paul was humble, modest, and reasonable (1 Cor. 3:4-6). w21.07 18-19 pars. 15-17.

How did Gideon respond to the men of Ephraim?

Gideon humbly said to the men of Ephraim: “And what have I done compared to what you have done?” He then gave them a specific example of how Jehovah had blessed them. As a result, "they calmed down" (Judg. 8:2, 3). Gideon was willing to put aside his pride in order to maintain peace among God's people.

What do we learn from the Ephraimites and from Gideon?

What does this story teach us? From the Ephraimites, we learn that we should not place more importance on protecting our honor than on honoring Jehovah. From Gideon, householders and elders can learn that if someone is upset with them for something they did, they should try to see things from their perspective. They can also congratulate you on something you have done well. For that humility is needed, especially if it is evident that the other person is wrong. But keeping the peace is far more important than proving we're right.

What problem did Ana have, and what did she do?

Let's also see the example of Ana. She was married to a Levite named Elcaná, who loved her very much. But Elcaná had another wife, whose name was Peniná. He loved Ana more than Peniná. However, "Peniná had children, but Ana had none." Peniná "always made fun of her to make her feel bad", to the point that "Ana ended up crying and did not eat anything" (1 Sam. 1:2, 6, 7). Even so, the Bible does not indicate that Hannah in any way attempted to take revenge on Peninah. Rather, she opened her heart to Jehovah and trusted that he would help her. We don't know if Peniná changed her attitude. What we do know is that Ana recovered and maintained her inner peace, since the Bible says that "sadness disappeared from her face" (1 Sam. 1:10, 18).

What do we learn from Ana's example?

What do we learn from Ana's example? If someone tries to compete with us in any way, let's remember that we can control how we will react. We don't have to let ourselves be provoked. Instead of paying evil for evil, let's try to make peace (Rom. 12:17-21). Even if the other person does not change, we will maintain inner peace.

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