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?

 

One Loaf

 

DEVOTION

THE 1^ST LETTER TO THE CORINTHIANS

ONE LOAF

 

1 Cor 10:14-17

14 Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry. 15 I speak to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. 16 Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? 17 Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.

NIV

We are still in this warning about eating food and drink that is sacrificed to idols. Of course, in Corinth there were actual temples to idols and people did make offerings of food those their idols. It is also possible that in much the same way that we give thanks to the Lord for the food on our table, they gave thanks to their idols in much the same manner. Paul is going to go on and talk about participation with the Lord’s Supper and with the supper of idols, that we cannot do both, but we will get to that. It is just that the point he makes here is related to what he says after. However, we should consider this idea of partaking in the body and blood of Jesus. The significance of what Paul is saying is that we should all be one body because we all partake in the one loaf, Christ. Unfortunately, it seems we have divided ourselves up into many and cannot even agree on what kind of loaf we partake in. Sure, we may all talk about Jesus, but it would seem that there are various views of who Jesus is and what it means to be a Christian. At least, whichever view we have, there are many of us with that view and we do gather around the Lord’s Table to partake in some form of communion. Within that context, we who gather around the same table should be one body and not a disjointed one, but a whole-body all working together for the purpose of the Lord. This appears to be happening for the most part in the church. This is a good thing and we have overcome for the most part. We know that in the Corinth church there were some Jews and some gentiles, some richer and some poorer, and a class society existed. So there would have been a natural division which Paul encourages to put aside in the church, that all are one because all partake in the one loaf. It is sad that today, although we may not have a class society, we still have a class society in some form. We also have seen the church spilt itself in two over certain issues. We have also seen members leave a church because of arguments or over hurt feelings, or bad blood, so to speak. The refusal to forgive, pride, arrogance, jealously, and envy have all played their part in causing chasms in the church, among those who should be one because of partaking in the one loaf. It seems the Church in Corinth was having trouble getting along with each other, and it seems not much has changed throughout the years. Will we ever learn that we are one because we partake in one loaf?

A Way To Stand

 

DEVOTION

THE 1^ST LETTER TO THE CORINTHIANS

               A WAY TO STAND

1 Cor 10:11-13

11 These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. 12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall! 13 No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

NIV

Paul continues to warn them and it also serves as a warning to us that we can use the Old Testament events of the Israelites as an example of how life can, with all its entrapments, happen to us. We have to always be aware, and that is not too difficult, that we are human and frail. When we get into the attitude of pride, thinking that we are so holy and righteous and that sin has absolutely no temptation on us, we are in grave danger. Paul warns us that we should be careful if we think we are standing firm. If we think we are being should good Christians, doing everything right and doing nothing wrong, we only deceive ourselves and dishonor our confession of faith. We are not able to stand up against all temptation in our own strength. It is just not possible in our frail human condition. When Paul says that when we are tempted, that God will provide a way out so that we can stand up under that temptation, he is not saying that God will give us a way to not sin, or not fail to temptation on occasion, for that would mean that we could live a life absolutely free of sin and if that is the case, we have no need whatsoever for Jesus to have died in that cross for us. If we can rely on God to make us able to resist all sin, then God could have and would have done so all along for all mankind and there would never have been a need for Jesus to leave heaven. That is not what Paul is saying at all. Rather, that point is that we do have Jesus. God has provided Jesus so that we can stand up under the temptations that so easy entangle us. That is those moments of our failure, of our not resisting every temptation that is common to all mankind, we can rest assured that Jesus took that into account on Calvary. How could we possibly think that when we become a Christian that we never sin anymore? How can we be so prideful? Ah yes, pride does come before the fall. Yes, we are not to fall back into that sinful life we once lived. Of course, we have heard some Christians say there have been a Christian all their lives from the moment of their birth into a Christian home and they never ever lived a life of sin and thus never had a moment in time they can point to when they accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior, for they did evidently did so in their mother’s womb. It seems inconceivable to us to think that before they could talk, that they confessed with their mouth and believed in their heart that Jesus died for their sins and thus were saved. The point is that we all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ. How can we boast in our flesh? We can only boast in Jesus, it is not by the works of our flesh that we are saved, but by faith in Jesus. That is we cannot boast in the works, in the living without sinning at all. We cannot boast that we are free of all sin, or that we never fall into temptation. We can only boast that we have faith in Jesus and that we have been redeemed and forgiven in Christ. It is true that if we leave Jesus behind then we are in real danger, and we will receive that penalty of death. But as long as we remain in Christ then we are saved and have that provision of God and thus a way to stand.

Living Contently

 

DEVOTION

THE 1^ST LETTER TO THE CORINTHIANS

LIVING CONTENTLY

1 Cor 10:6-10

6 Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. 7 Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: "The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry."   8 We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did — and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. 9 We should not test the Lord, as some of them did — and were killed by snakes. 10 And do not grumble, as some of them did — and were killed by the destroying angel.

NIV

Paul is still talking about what happened to the children of Israel when God delivered them out of slavery in Egypt. In other words, what happened to them should serve as a lesson to us as we travel on our journey from slavery to sin to the Promised Land that Jesus promised he would prepare a place for us and come back to take us there. We should not turn our hearts to evil things as they did. Although Paul did not outline the exact things the Israelites did that angered the Lord enough to cause twenty-three thousand of them to die, and there is no record of that number in either Exodus or Numbers that match that number, we have to assume there was some record that Paul was aware of that is not recorded for us. Nevertheless, the point is taken. We should keep ourselves from turning our hearts against the Lord. The one event that could be an example is when all they had was the manna from heaven to eat. Many started to wail to Moses about it and kept reminding him that at least in Egypt they had meat and fruit to eat, not just this same stuff every day. So God met with Moses and he told him he would give them meat for a month. It is an interesting account, but the point was that when all the quail showed up, and they were feasting on it before they could even swallow it, a great plague broke out among them and many died because of it. This turning our hearts to evil carries the meaning of being discontent with what the Lord has provided for us and always wanting more and more, lusting after things we should not lust after. This could be included in making idols, which is easy enough to idolize certain things or people, or groups of people. Grumbling against the Lord is simply not the way to live in this new creation colony. Learning to be content in this journey is the key to a successful life in Christ. But at the same time learning to keep ourselves from being distracted by all the things in this life. The Corinthian people were getting themselves in trouble over this food offered to idols. Some were eating and others felt guilty if that did, so Paul was telling them to stop causing the weaker brother to sin. Here we should pay more attention to this as well. It is about our desires that can cause a distraction to others. If we are to be an example to others believers as well as be a witness to unbelievers, then we should be careful not to idolize something or someone other than God. In other words be content with the manna God supplies, thus living contently.

The Journey

 

DEVOTION

THE 1^ST LETTER TO THE CORINTHIANS

THE JOURNEY

1 Cor 10:1-5

10:1 For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. 2 They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. 3 They all ate the same spiritual food 4 and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.   5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert.

NIV

There is more to what Paul has to say about this situation that happened in the wilderness journey from Egypt to the Promised Land. First, we should recognize that the church in Corinth did have some converted Jews, those who accepted Jesus as the Messiah. Although we know that it has been some years since Paul was there and that he worked alongside Priscilla and Aquila making tents, perhaps in a small shop along one of the working-class streets and that is where they met and preached to so many of the pagans. However, there was also a Jewish community in Corinth and therefore a synagogue where Paul would have gone to share the good news about the Messiah, Jesus. So the church may well have been a mix of the poorer working-class people converted from Paganism and some Jews who may have been wealthier, even business owners. This is why the church was in such a mess and in need of Paul giving answers to many questions regarding so many issues. Here he reminds them of the early period of the Israelite peoples' journey and how God provided manna and water, both spiritual food that represented Jesus. Although they had everything they needed, even God himself leading them and meeting with Moses to give them instructions as to how to live, they continued to live in a manner that did not please God. We only have to see the golden calf as an example of their impatience with God, and want an idol. Paul is going to use this as an example to show them and us that we should not try to make any of our own idols as we get impatient with answers to our prayers, as Paul is going to put it, set our hearts on evil things. We are also in this same journey from being in bondage as the Israelites were, except our bondage was to sin. Just as God delivered them out of slavery to the Egyptians, He has delivered us out of slavery to sin.  We too are now on this journey to the competed Promised Land that Jesus went to prepare a place for us. We have a place in the Promised Land, the New City of Jerusalem which will come down from Heaven on the new earth. We have also been given this spiritual food, we have the body and blood of Jesus, the rock of our salvation. We have also been sealed with the Holy Spirit as a guarantee that all this being true and it is ours, as long as we continue on the journey following the leading of our God and leave our idols behind, or rather not get distracted along the way, and make new idols because we cannot wait for God to provide all we need. Therefore, we should learn this lesson as well and simply live to please the Lord, whatever that looks like along this journey, for we are still on the journey, we have not yet arrived, so we should not get too settled, as this world is not our home, we are just passing through, our treasures are laid up beyond the blue. The angels beckon us from heaven's open shore and we can’t feel at home in the world anymore.

The Finish Line and the Prize

 

DEVOTION

THE 1^ST LETTER TO THE CORINTHIANS

THE FINISH LINE AND THE PRIZE

1 Cor 9:24-27

24 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. 25 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. 26 Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27 No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

NIV

Training ourselves is the key here, but what exactly does the training consist of? Paul talks about training his body, making it his slave in order not to be disqualified for the prize. He has been talking about eating food that had been sacrificed to idols and that idols mean nothing as there is only one true God. He also has been talking about having freedom in Christ, but that if that freedom caused a weaker believer to engage in the same freedom Paul has and feels guilty or shame for doing it, then Paul says he will not exercise his freedom. What he says here is that he is in control of his own freedom and it does not control him. This is not about food and drink, although that might play some role in it, it is more about having self-control over all aspects of our lives. As we have thought before, many believers have this stigma regarding controlling what they drink and think alcoholic beverages are evil but will overeat themselves into obesity, or eat foods that are extremely unhealthy. Others cannot control their thoughts or attitudes and consequently their words, which are both harmful to themselves and those they speak to or about. This sort of living is what Paul says is aimlessly runner about, and not even runner toward the finish line. The whole idea of our running is to cross the finish line. In the case of a physical race, only one gets the prize, but in our case, we all can have the crown of life, the prize for just finishing the race. This means we have to be in the race, and on the right racecourse. Oh, sure there are going to be some hurdles along the way, and what may look like high jumps and others we will need to pole vault over. The race might even take on the persona of a triathlon and we may have to swim through rough waters or bike up and over steep hills, but the race will go on and nothing will deter us from crossing the finish line. Yes, we can get distracted by a smoother path, or by some cotton candy along the way, that is those temptations that can cause us to either delay our running, or to run aimlessly in circles. Self-control and this includes all aspects of our life, is one of the fruit of the Spirit and as we run or keep in step with the Spirit, he will lead us right to that finish line and the prize.   

Becoming All Things

 

DEVOTION

THE 1^ST LETTER TO THE CORINTHIANS

BECOMING ALL THINGS

1 Cor 9:19-23

19 Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. 23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.

NIV

To become all things to all men seems a little contrary to being a Christian, at least from our modern-day concept of Christianity. It seems we withdraw from the world, shaking free from all its trappings, and the sinful behaviors the world so readily accepts. Why would we hang around a bunch of sinners, or become like them in order to reach them for Christ? Why would we want to hang around a group of Christians that are bound to all the rules and regulations of their making, or want to pretend to abide by their rules, in order to gain some of them to Christ? Why would we want to pal around with some weak Christians, well, maybe those are the same as the ones bound by their rules, weak and missing the fullness of Christ, just to bring them into the abundance of Christ? From what Paul is saying here, he did not actually become like them in all their behaviors and attitudes, but also he did not harass them about their practices or condemn them, holding to his own being, but appearing to be like their faith. With the Jews, he practices the law, the rites, the ceremonies, going to the temple or the synagogue. When he was with the gentiles, it is not that he worshipped their idols, but at the same time, he lived within their customs, their style of dress, even to some extent their beliefs regarding religion, at least not condemning them, so as to be able to talk freely and acceptable about Christ. This is why we cannot withdraw from any, so that we may bring them to the fullness of Christ. We have been called to go forth into the world, and that means go forth, not isolate ourselves, but go out into the world of all peoples, and live among them, accept them as a creation of God who may have gone a different way then we have, and travels a different road than the one we are on, but still, they need to see Jesus in all His fullness, in all his grace and mercy and love. This is to the Jew, or the Orthodox law-bound Christian, and to the Christian whose faith is weak and lives a crippled life, so to speak, and to the unbelievers who have yet to understand the joy of knowing Jesus. So in that sense we as we go, we need to be who we truly are, but live in such a manner we do not cause them guilt or shame for how they believe, being a friend, a companion, an example of the love of Christ, so as to show by our lives the Jesus we want them to know. So in that sense, we too should become all things to all men.