Which Cup

 

DEVOTION

THE 1^ST LETTER TO THE CORINTHIANS

WHICH CUP

1 Cor 10:18-22

18 Consider the people of Israel: Do not those who eat the sacrifices participate in the altar? 19 Do I mean then that a sacrifice offered to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? 20 No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord's table and the table of demons. 22 Are we trying to arouse the Lord's jealousy? Are we stronger than he?

NIV

These words remind us of the words of our Lord,

Matt 6:24

24 "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.

NIV

How can we live in both worlds at the same time, yet in some respect that is what we are doing? Our citizenship is in the kingdom of God, yet we reside in the kingdom of the prince of the air, Satan. Our bodies are here in this world, but we, our true self, the spirit that resides in this temporary tent, our bodies, live in the kingdom of God. We cannot be partners with the world and be partners with Christ. How does this work? What does it look like to partner with Christ and the world at the same time? Is it possible we do not really comprehend how much we seem to participate in the affairs of the world? We do actually live in it, but then we are not supposed to be of the world. We do need to work to make money to buy the needed things of life. We need someplace to live and food to eat, clothes on our backs, and in this society, most of us need a car to get to work. Then we need all the stuff whatever stuff that is. We also need all the activities of life, whatever those are. But, if we get so focused on all that money-making and storing up for that someday, like that rich farmer did who had to build all brand new barns, then we might be in danger of having our focus on the kingdom of this world rather than on the kingdom of God. That is not to say we are, but we could if we get way too invested in this world, then try to live in both, have one foot in the world and one foot in the kingdom of God, ride the fence, so to speak, or as Paul puts it, drink from both cups. Are there other ways that we can drink from both cups other than the trying to serve two masters in regard to money and God, or is the money thing just an example of all that is wrapped up in being part of this world, living for self in some way? We certainly pray about our needs, as we are told to.  Are prayers usually about some kind of physical need or want or some comfort, or peace of mind, or something to do with our life here in this world. Our focus is usually on our situation, our life, or the life of someone we know, and their needs. But it is mostly about this life in the here and now. But then Jesus said we should pray and even his example that we use includes words about giving us our daily bread, however, that is the only physical thing, as the rest is about life in the kingdom of God, Hollowing His name, asking we live as if we are in the kingdom, that is, His will be done here as it is in Heaven. Asking Him to deliverer us from evil, the kingdom of the world, and asking Him to forgive us as we forgive others. The main focus of this prayer of Jesus is about the kingdom of God, not the kingdom of this world. So then, we need to see that we cannot be partakers of both kingdoms, we cannot have citizenship in both. There can be no double-dipping, one in the cup of God, one in the cup of demons. Yes, we have to live here because this is where God created for us to live, this earth was created for us to live in, but to walk with God, not with man. So the question remains, who are we walking with? From which cup do we drink?