Latest / A Chapter a Day Bible Reading / August 20 - 1 Corinthians 10

Transcript

August 20 - 1 Corinthians 10 · A Chapter a Day Bible Reading

• 0:11
  Hello friends, it's Sean here. It's Tuesday, it's the 20th of
• 0:16
  August and thanks for inviting me into your day.
• 0:20
  I wonder what you've been up to or what you are getting up to,
• 0:23
  whatever that is. I hope it's a good one, and
• 0:26
  whether or not it's a good one, well, if it's a good one, it's
• 0:29
  about to become a great one because we are going to read one
• 0:32
  of these wonderful chapters that is just so rich.
• 0:36
  You know, here we have Paul, who comes out of this rich tapestry
• 0:42
  of Jewish heritage and history, who now speaks to the next
• 0:47
  generation of God's people. Who are these Gentiles in this
• 0:52
  city far away who are just trying to work out how do they
• 0:56
  live according to God's plans? So this is one of those
• 0:59
  wonderful chapters that brings in that heritage and applies the
• 1:04
  lessons learnt to that new space that they find themselves in.
• 1:08
  And it echoes forward to us and our lives.
• 1:12
  And there's some good advice for us in here as well.
• 1:16
  So we will open our ears, open our hearts and say, come Holy
• 1:19
  Spirit, convict us and show us more of who you are as we read
• 1:24
  this. And what is left to say other
• 1:28
  than let's read it? Let's read together First
• 1:30
  Corinthians chapter 10. I don't want you to forget, dear
• 1:45
  brothers and sisters, about our ancestors in the wilderness.
• 1:48
  Long ago, all of them were guided by a cloud that moved
• 1:52
  ahead of them, and all of them walked through the sea on dry
• 1:56
  ground, in the cloud and in the sea.
• 2:00
  All of them were baptised as followers of Moses.
• 2:03
  All of them ate the same spiritual food, and all of them
• 2:07
  drank the same spiritual water, for they drank from the
• 2:11
  spiritual rock that travelled with them, and that rock was
• 2:16
  Christ. Yet God was not pleased with
• 2:19
  most of them and their bodies were scattered in the
• 2:21
  wilderness. These things happened as a
• 2:24
  warning to us so that we would not crave evil things as they
• 2:29
  did, or worship idols as some of them did.
• 2:33
  As the scriptures say, the people celebrated with feasting
• 2:37
  and drinking and they indulged in Pagan revelry and we must not
• 2:43
  engage in sexual immorality of some of them did causing 23,000
• 2:48
  of them to die in one day. Nor should we put Christ to the
• 2:52
  test as some of them did and then died from snake bites.
• 2:58
  And don't grumble as some of them did and then were destroyed
• 3:02
  by the Angel of death. These things happened to them as
• 3:06
  examples for us. They were written down to warn
• 3:10
  us who live at the end of the age.
• 3:14
  If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall.
• 3:18
  The temptations in your life are no different from what others
• 3:22
  experience, and God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation
• 3:27
  to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, He will
• 3:31
  show you a way out so that you can endure.
• 3:36
  So, my dear friends, flee from the worship of idols.
• 3:41
  You are reasonable people. Decide for yourselves if what
• 3:45
  I'm saying is true. When we bless the cup at the
• 3:48
  Lord's table, aren't we sharing in the blood of Christ?
• 3:53
  And when we break the bread, aren't we sharing in the body of
• 3:57
  Christ? And though we are many, we all
• 4:00
  eat from one loaf of bread, showing that we are one body.
• 4:06
  Think about the people of Israel.
• 4:09
  Weren't they united by eating the sacrifices at the altar?
• 4:13
  What am I trying to say? Am I saying that food offered to
• 4:17
  idols has some significance or that the idols are real gods?
• 4:22
  No, not at all. I'm saying that these sacrifices
• 4:26
  are offered to demons, not to God.
• 4:29
  And I don't want you to participate with demons.
• 4:32
  You cannot drink from the cup of the Lord, and from the cup of
• 4:36
  demons too. You cannot eat at the Lord's
• 4:39
  table and at the table of demons too.
• 4:43
  What? Do we dare to rouse the Lord's
• 4:46
  jealousy? Do you think we are stronger
• 4:48
  than He is? You say I'm allowed to do
• 4:52
  anything, but not everything is good for you.
• 4:56
  You say I'm allowed to do anything, but not everything is
• 5:00
  beneficial. Don't be concerned for your own
• 5:04
  good, but for the good of others.
• 5:08
  So you may eat any meat that is sold in the marketplace without
• 5:11
  raising questions of conscience. For the earth is the Lord's and
• 5:15
  everything in it. If someone who isn't a believer
• 5:20
  asks you home for dinner, accept the invitation if you want to
• 5:24
  eat whatever is offered to you without raising questions of
• 5:27
  conscience. But suppose someone tells you
• 5:31
  this meat was offered to an idol.
• 5:34
  Don't eat it out of consideration for the conscience
• 5:37
  of the one who told you. It might not be a matter of
• 5:40
  conscience for you, but it is for the other person.
• 5:45
  For why should my freedom be limited by what someone else
• 5:48
  thinks? If I can thank God for the food
• 5:52
  and enjoy it, why should I be condemned for eating it?
• 5:57
  So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for
• 6:01
  the glory of God. Don't give offence to Jews or
• 6:05
  Gentiles or the Church of God. I too try to please everyone in
• 6:11
  everything I do. I don't just do what is best for
• 6:14
  me, I do what is best for others so that many may be saved.
• 6:30
  Jesus, thank you for the freedom we have in you.
• 6:34
  Thank You that it is entirely upon Your death and resurrection
• 6:40
  and the free gift of Your grace to us that our eternal well
• 6:47
  being, salvation and guarantee is based.
• 6:51
  It has got nothing to do with what we do and the regulations
• 6:56
  we follow and the rules we perfectly abide by.
• 7:00
  But Lord, as we live in that freedom that You offer us and
• 7:05
  that we are not held ransom to the old ways that Wood forest us
• 7:10
  to comply with the set of regulations to earn Your
• 7:13
  forgiveness, but it now is a free gift through everything
• 7:18
  you've done for us, Jesus. But as we live in this freedom,
• 7:23
  may we live in a way that gathers our brothers and sisters
• 7:28
  and brings them with clear consciences toward you and all
• 7:34
  that you offer us. Thank you, Jesus, for your
• 7:37
  freedom, and thank you for the community in which you place us
• 7:43
  places that need your love and need your grace.
• 7:48
  So help us be thoughtful and mindful ambassadors of you and
• 7:53
  your Kingdom. We pray all of this in your
• 7:58
  name, which alone brings freedom and grace.
• 8:02
  Amen.