November 24 - I Corinthians 10-13
This is a very serious passage with an abundance of insights for us as believers. I pray that the Holy Spirit will speak to you clearly as you read and meditate on these verses. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration today, too.
Chapter 10 is challenging because Paul is really concerned with the sins of God's people. He refers to the Old Testament passages about Moses and the Israelites coming out of Egypt and traveling to the Promised Land, but the main point is that most of them did not please God. (v.5) Their sins were lust, idolatry, sexual immorality, tempting Christ, and complaining. I am afraid these same sins plague the church still today. We have not heeded the warnings of the Bible, but we must, or these sins will destroy the effectiveness of the church. We must flee idolatry. (v.14) We must realize that idols are demons or thing put in front of us by demons. (v.20) We must strive to live a life that does not give an offense to others. (v.32) If possible we must find a mature believer and imitate his or her life by the power of the Spirit. (11:1) If we lose our power because of sin, the church will be ineffective, and we will have to be punished for our sins like the Israelites were punished in the wilderness.
Chapter 11 begins by teaching God's order in creation. God created man first to be the leader. The woman is to be the responder, not the leader. This is a good order. It does not mean that women are inferior, because Christ is submissive to the Father; He is a responder, too. It is simply God's order for society, for the home, and for the church. If we break it, we cause harm to all three. Then, Paul explains the seriousness of the Lord's supper and taking it lightly. It should be a time of unity. It should be a time to confess sin. To take the supper selfishly in disunity is an affront to Christ and His death for our sins. He will punish us for this sin, even with death. (v.30) This shows us how serious our worship is to the Lord.
Chapter 12 begins a passage on the spiritual gifts. Each believer has gifts from the Spirit to profit the whole body of Christ. (v.7) The Corinthian Christians had many gifts, but they were trying to use them in pride and selfishness. Paul is explaining to them and to us that God can't bless the use of our gifts unless we act in love. That is why chapter 13 comes in the middle of this discussion. No one is better than anyone else based on what gifts he has. The Spirit gives us certain gifts as He wants, so we can serve God, not ourselves. It is so important for us to get this right. We can't serve the Lord fully without using our gifts, but we can't serve Him without serving in love, either. God is love. If we represent Him, we will have to show His love. Take some time to reflect on what God says about love in chapter 13. Does your love measure up? If not, let the Spirit empower you with God's love. His love is always perfect.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Corinthians 14-16.
Chapter 10 is challenging because Paul is really concerned with the sins of God's people. He refers to the Old Testament passages about Moses and the Israelites coming out of Egypt and traveling to the Promised Land, but the main point is that most of them did not please God. (v.5) Their sins were lust, idolatry, sexual immorality, tempting Christ, and complaining. I am afraid these same sins plague the church still today. We have not heeded the warnings of the Bible, but we must, or these sins will destroy the effectiveness of the church. We must flee idolatry. (v.14) We must realize that idols are demons or thing put in front of us by demons. (v.20) We must strive to live a life that does not give an offense to others. (v.32) If possible we must find a mature believer and imitate his or her life by the power of the Spirit. (11:1) If we lose our power because of sin, the church will be ineffective, and we will have to be punished for our sins like the Israelites were punished in the wilderness.
Chapter 11 begins by teaching God's order in creation. God created man first to be the leader. The woman is to be the responder, not the leader. This is a good order. It does not mean that women are inferior, because Christ is submissive to the Father; He is a responder, too. It is simply God's order for society, for the home, and for the church. If we break it, we cause harm to all three. Then, Paul explains the seriousness of the Lord's supper and taking it lightly. It should be a time of unity. It should be a time to confess sin. To take the supper selfishly in disunity is an affront to Christ and His death for our sins. He will punish us for this sin, even with death. (v.30) This shows us how serious our worship is to the Lord.
Chapter 12 begins a passage on the spiritual gifts. Each believer has gifts from the Spirit to profit the whole body of Christ. (v.7) The Corinthian Christians had many gifts, but they were trying to use them in pride and selfishness. Paul is explaining to them and to us that God can't bless the use of our gifts unless we act in love. That is why chapter 13 comes in the middle of this discussion. No one is better than anyone else based on what gifts he has. The Spirit gives us certain gifts as He wants, so we can serve God, not ourselves. It is so important for us to get this right. We can't serve the Lord fully without using our gifts, but we can't serve Him without serving in love, either. God is love. If we represent Him, we will have to show His love. Take some time to reflect on what God says about love in chapter 13. Does your love measure up? If not, let the Spirit empower you with God's love. His love is always perfect.
Tomorrow, I intend to read I Corinthians 14-16.