Day 5 – From Ruins to Redemption (Corinth)

Today we wrapped up our portion of the journey in Greece by visiting the remarkable city of Corinth, a place where Scripture seems to rise from the stones themselves.

It was here that the Apostle Paul spent a year and a half during his second missionary journey, and it was to this city that he later wrote two of his most personal and corrective letters: 1 and 2 Corinthians. Corinth is one of those places that allow you to open your Bible and have its pages come alive. Every turn offers a window into the world behind the text through its inscriptions, geography, and archaeological remains.

As we walked through the ancient marketplace (the agora) and stood before the bema, where Paul likely stood trial, the stories of Scripture were no longer just words on a page, they were tangible, visible, and real.

The First Lesson - Grace that Chooses the Unlikely

We began our time remembering the history of this city. Once a major powerhouse of the ancient world, Corinth was utterly destroyed by the Romans in 146 BC. The city was razed to the ground, its inhabitants killed or enslaved, and its treasures taken to Rome. and lay dormant for nearly a century. For nearly a century, the site lay largely desolate. Then, in 44 BC, Julius Caesar refounded it as a Roman colony. It was a city made up largely of three groups: one-third slaves, one-third freedmen (former slaves), and one-third retired soldiers.

There was no “old money” here. No aristocratic heritage. It was a city of climbers, strivers, and self-made individuals.

It’s into that context that Paul wrote:

“Brothers and sisters, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose…” (1 Corinthians 1:26–27).

How fitting that Paul reminded the Corinthians, and us, that God delights in choosing the unlikely. His grace reaches into the broken, the overlooked, and the undeserving, redeeming us not because of who we are, but because of who He is. Corinth’s very foundation echoed that truth: a city of “nobodies” that became a beacon for the gospel.

The Final Leason - Run to Win

We closed our time standing at the ancient starting line of the Corinthian racecourse, an area connected to the nearby Isthmian Games, second only to the Olympics in prominence. Paul would have known these competitions well; his imagery in 1 Corinthians 9 draws directly from them:

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize… Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training… They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.” (1 Corinthians 9:24–25)

Standing there on the line, we could almost hear the echoes of the runners before us, focused, disciplined, and determined. Paul’s challenge was clear: train yourself in godliness.

We were reminded today that God’s grace calls us, but our response requires discipline. The Spirit empowers us, but we must still train, persevere, and run faithfully.

Paul once told the Philippians, “I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me” (Philippians 3:12). That was the echo of Corinth for us. God has taken hold of us; now we run to take hold of Him.

Tomorrow, we leave Greece behind and follow Paul to Rome, the city where he would finish his race. But today, as we stood on that ancient track, we were reminded that we, too, are in the race. We are called by grace, strengthened by the Spirit, and running toward the prize that will never fade.

Pressing on toward the goal, 

Jerrell