1 Corinthians 11:1-16, Showing honor

It pleases me that you continue to remember and honor me by keeping up the traditions of the faith I taught you. All actual authority stems from Christ.

In a marriage relationship, there is authority from Christ to husband, and from husband to wife. The authority of Christ is the authority of God. Any man who speaks with God or about God in a way that shows a lack of respect for the authority of Christ, dishonors Christ. In the same way, a wife who speaks with God in a way that shows a lack of respect for the authority of her husband, dishonors her husband. Worse, she dishonors herself—an ugly sight, like a woman with her head shaved. This is basically the origin of these customs we have of women wearing head coverings in worship, while men take their hats off. By these symbolic acts, men and women, who far too often butt heads with each other, submit their “heads” to the Head: God.

Don’t, by the way, read too much into the differences here between men and women. Neither man nor woman can go it alone or claim priority. Man was created first, as a beautiful shining reflection of God—that is true. But the head on a woman’s body clearly outshines in beauty the head of her “head,” her husband. The first woman came from man, true—but ever since then, every man comes from a woman! And since virtually everything comes from God anyway, let’s quit going through these “who’s first” routines.

Don’t you agree there is something naturally powerful in the symbolism—a woman, her beautiful hair reminiscent of angels, praying in adoration; a man, his head bared in reverence, praying in submission? I hope you’re not going to be argumentative about this. All God’s churches see it this way; I don’t want you standing out as an exception. - The Message -

Last year a female Japanese pop star shaved her head in an act of contrition for spending the night with her boyfriend. She broke band rules. Minami Minegishi, a member of popular all-girl group AKB48, even appeared on a video to offer a tearful apology, begging to be brought back into the band.

She was observing a traditional Japanese practice of making amends for violating society’s rules and breaching honor.

Scripture says “give honor to whom honor is due…” (Romans 13:7). So, of course, Paul thanks the church for honoring him by maintaining the traditions he taught them. However…he reminds them these traditions came from Christ so the honor goes to Christ who has all authority to establish our standards.

And, there’s more…

We all live under some intermediate authority…that ultimately leads to God. So, when we honor that authority we honor God. Conversely, when we dishonor our intermediate authority we do a lot of damage. We dishonor that authority, we dishonor God and we dishonor ourselves.

It’s ugly…like a woman with her head shaven.

I wonder how many of us are overdue for a trip to the barber.

Live boldly out there today...

1 Corinthians 10: 23-32, The believer’s freedom

Looking at it one way, you could say, “Anything goes. Because of God’s immense generosity and grace, we don’t have to dissect and scrutinize every action to see if it will pass muster.” But the point is not to just get by. We want to live well, but our foremost efforts should be to help others live well.

With that as a base to work from, common sense can take you the rest of the way. Eat anything sold at the butcher shop, for instance; you don’t have to run an “idolatry test” on every item. “The earth,” after all, “is God’s, and everything in it.” That “everything” certainly includes the leg of lamb in the butcher shop. If a nonbeliever invites you to dinner and you feel like going, go ahead and enjoy yourself; eat everything placed before you. It would be both bad manners and bad spirituality to cross-examine your host on the ethical purity of each course as it is served. On the other hand, if he goes out of his way to tell you that this or that was sacrificed to god or goddess so-and-so, you should pass. Even though you may be indifferent as to where it came from, he isn’t, and you don’t want to send mixed messages to him about who you are worshiping.

But, except for these special cases, I’m not going to walk around on eggshells worrying about what small-minded people might say; I’m going to stride free and easy, knowing what our large-minded Master has already said. If I eat what is served to me, grateful to God for what is on the table, how can I worry about what someone will say? I thanked God for it and he blessed it!

So eat your meals heartily, not worrying about what others say about you—you’re eating to God’s glory, after all, not to please them. As a matter of fact, do everything that way, heartily and freely to God’s glory. At the same time, don’t be callous in your exercise of freedom, thoughtlessly stepping on the toes of those who aren’t as free as you are. I try my best to be considerate of everyone’s feelings in all these matters; I hope you will be, too. - The Message -

Oh, it’s not about me?

The freedom is wonderful. Because of God’s grace and redemption I’m no longer bound by all the restrictive rules my dad taught me. I can go to movies. I can dance (well, Mali says I can’t) and I can have a glass of wine now and then.

Paul thinks I might have missed the point. Of course we can do those things…but we want to live well so we can help others live well...not so we can immerse ourselves in our newfound privileges. The closer we live to the edge of sin the less capable we are of fulfilling that mission.

When I have trouble with my computer at work I don’t call one of my chaplains for help. I did that once and…enough said. I now call our computer management department. Those guys are brilliant. And, guess what? They “WANT” me to call them. That’s why they’re here.

When was the last time somebody asked you how they can better live for Christ? Has it been awhile? Maybe they don’t realize you’re an expert.

Live boldly out there today…

1 Corinthians 10:14-22, In our image

So, my very dear friends, when you see people reducing God to something they can use or control, get out of their company as fast as you can.

I assume I’m addressing believers now who are mature. Draw your own conclusions: When we drink the cup of blessing, aren’t we taking into ourselves the blood, the very life, of Christ? And isn’t it the same with the loaf of bread we break and eat? Don’t we take into ourselves the body, the very life, of Christ? Because there is one loaf, our many-ness becomes one-ness—Christ doesn’t become fragmented in us. Rather, we become unified in him. We don’t reduce Christ to what we are; he raises us to what he is. That’s basically what happened even in old Israel—those who ate the sacrifices offered on God’s altar entered into God’s action at the altar.

 Do you see the difference? Sacrifices offered to idols are offered to nothing, for what’s the idol but a nothing? Or worse than nothing, a minus, a demon! I don’t want you to become part of something that reduces you to less than yourself. And you can’t have it both ways, banqueting with the Master one day and slumming with demons the next. Besides, the Master won’t put up with it. He wants us—all or nothing. Do you think you can get off with anything less? – The Message –

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We’ve heard the term “creating God in our own image”. We all do it. It’s like the pull of gravity. And, we’re all subject to the laws of nature. Human nature, too...

It’s most evident by the hermeneutic gymnastics we use to justify our lives. We don’t approach God’s word anticipating benefit. We ignore God’s word in the expectation that it will simply get in the way of things. And…if we even bother…we are prepared to explain how God’s word “doesn’t mean what it says”.

 Paul says when (we) see people reducing God to something they can use or control, get out of their company as fast as (we) can.

Paul also provides a key to get out of this rut. The picture of the Eucharist is a picture of God joining us. He joins us to “lift us up” to Himself, not lower Himself to our level. Even more…everybody who faithfully partakes of the Lords’ Supper experiences the same thing.

So, don’t simply run “from” those folks who create God in their own image If we do, we simply find ourselves alone. Run “to” those who are journeying toward the image of God. In the company of these saints we will find power and truth.

But, how do we know who we should “run to?” Here’s another key: Find the people who refuse to live the Christian life at the lowest common denominator. Find the ones who aren’t willing to pollute their lives with extraneous things that, while not sinful, are not helping our journey toward God.

Hmmm. I’ve got some work to do.

Live boldly out there today…

1 Corinthians 10:1-13, Living in the Shadow of Glory

Remember our history, friends, and be warned. All our ancestors were led by the providential Cloud and taken miraculously through the Sea. They went through the waters, in a baptism like ours, as Moses led them from enslaving death to salvation life. They all ate and drank identical food and drink, meals provided daily by God. They drank from the Rock, God’s fountain for them that stayed with them wherever they were. And the Rock was Christ. But just experiencing God’s wonder and grace didn’t seem to mean much—most of them were defeated by temptation during the hard times in the desert, and God was not pleased.

The same thing could happen to us. We must be on guard so that we never get caught up in wanting our own way as they did. And we must not turn our religion into a circus as they did—“First the people partied, then they threw a dance.” We must not be sexually promiscuous—they paid for that, remember, with 23,000 deaths in one day! We must never try to get Christ to serve us instead of us serving him; they tried it, and God launched an epidemic of poisonous snakes. We must be careful not to stir up discontent; discontent destroyed them.

 These are all warning markers—danger!—in our history books, written down so that we don’t repeat their mistakes. Our positions in the story are parallel—they at the beginning, we at the end—and we are just as capable of messing it up as they were. Don’t be so naive and self-confident. You’re not exempt. You could fall flat on your face as easily as anyone else. Forget about self-confidence; it’s useless. Cultivate God-confidence.

No test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he’ll never let you be pushed past your limit; he’ll always be there to help you come through it. – The Message –

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We want to be close enough to the Glory of God to benefit…but just distant enough so His presence won’t overwhelm us. “Living in the shadow of glory” is counterintuitive since there are no “shadows” in the presence of God (James 1:17). Yet…we scurry for the shadows on a daily basis. 

My dad pastored a church that was a mere shadow of its former glory. It was crumbling around him. When we talked about it he said “Lee, we have unrepented sin in the history of this church that God will not condone and cannot bless. Unless we can cleanse our past we will never create a future”.  The church felt comfortable in the shadows. It never rebounded.

Shadows are the consequence of sin and are opportunities to hide. The church in Corinth is a perfect illustration. It’s why Paul wrote the letter. The temptation to do things our own way is understandable. It’s part of our self-centered human nature.

But…it never works…

So Paul reminds them so. He points to several incidents in the historical life of Israel that demonstrated God’s unwillingness to overlook bad behavior. Of course, we might be special…gifted…and able to get away with things God never condoned in the past.

Or, maybe not…George Santayana said “Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it”

I know…it’s tough always being “on stage” with no margin for error. But it’s possible. Paul reminds us no test or temptation that comes your way is beyond the course of what others have had to face. All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he’ll never let you be pushed past your limit; he’ll always be there to help you come through it.

Live boldly out there today…

1 Corinthians 9:15-27, Follow the Money

Still, I want it made clear that I’ve never gotten anything out of this for myself, and that I’m not writing now to get something. I’d rather die than give anyone ammunition to discredit me or impugn my motives. If I proclaim the Message, it’s not to get something out of it for myself. I’m compelled to do it, and doomed if I don’t! If this was my own idea of just another way to make a living, I’d expect some pay. But since it’s not my idea but something solemnly entrusted to me, why would I expect to get paid? So am I getting anything out of it? Yes, as a matter of fact: the pleasure of proclaiming the Message at no cost to you. You don’t even have to pay my expenses!

Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people: religious, nonreligious, meticulous moralists, loose-living immoralists, the defeated, the demoralized—whoever. I didn’t take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ—but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I’ve become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life. I did all this because of the Message. I didn’t just want to talk about it; I wanted to be in on it!

You’ve all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You’re after one that’s gold eternally.

I don’t know about you, but I’m running hard for the finish line. I’m giving it everything I’ve got. No sloppy living for me! I’m staying alert and in top condition. I’m not going to get        caught napping, telling everyone else all about it and then missing out myself. – The Message -

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Our government has established a limit on the amount of carbon emissions a company is permitted. If the company is going to exceed that limit they must purchase “carbon credits” from an authorized broker. A carbon credit is a permit representing the right to emit one ton of carbon dioxide.

The broker has purchased these credits from companies that are not going to use the full allowance of greenhouse gas emissions. He then turns around and sells them, at a profit, to companies that need permission to exceed their limit.

And…Al Gore has government contracts to manage as much as $3.4 billion in carbon credits.

My nephew AJ, and I, recently argued about climate change. He is of the persuasion that we are killing our planet with greenhouse gasses and we need to do something…urgently.  He may be right, I don’t know. This is what I do know…for sure. When Al Gore, the most vocal spokesman on global warming, villainizes greenhouse gas producers he is talking about a concern from which he is personally profiting.  He actually benefits when nothing is done to lower emissions. Can I really believe his hysteria? What if it’s all a giant ruse for a few people to become obscenely rich?

We call this a “conflict of interest”…  

Does it matter? Well, it depends on the message. Killing the planet might be important enough that Mr. Gore should forego his profits in order to ensure his message is not tainted. Mr. Gore’s response to this implication was “Do you think there is something wrong with being active in business in this country? I’m proud of it”.

OK…follow the money.

Certainly the Gospel is that important. It’s why Paul made it a point to never profit from his role as an Apostle. He said I want it made clear that I’ve never gotten anything out of this for myself, and that I’m not writing now to get something. I’d rather die than give anyone ammunition to discredit me or impugn my motives”.

As believers, any questionable behavior on our part pollutes God’s message of grace and forgiveness. Yet, many of us live on the margins of propriety. It doesn’t only hurt our reputations…it hurts God’s. Here’s the question: Do we want our lives to influence people for Christ? If we do, we need to avoid conduct that may be permissible but is not beneficial.

Live boldly out there today…

 

 

 

1 Corinthians 9:1-14, Paul’s example of freedom

And don’t tell me that I have no authority to write like this. I’m perfectly free to do this—isn’t that obvious? Haven’t I been given a job to do? Wasn’t I commissioned to this work in a face-to-face meeting with Jesus, our Master? Aren’t you yourselves proof of the good work that I’ve done for the Master? Even if no one else admits the authority of my commission, you can’t deny it. Why, my work with you is living proof of my authority!

I’m not shy in standing up to my critics. We who are on missionary assignments for God have a right to decent accommodations, and we have a right to support for us and our families. You don’t seem to have raised questions with the other apostles and our Master’s brothers and Peter in these matters. So, why me? Is it just Barnabas and I who have to go it alone and pay our own way? Are soldiers self-employed? Are gardeners forbidden to eat vegetables from their own gardens? Don’t milkmaids get to drink their fill from the pail?

I’m not just sounding off because I’m irritated. This is all written in the scriptural law. Moses wrote, “Don’t muzzle an ox to keep it from eating the grain when it’s threshing.” Do you think Moses’ primary concern was the care of farm animals? Don’t you think his concern extends to us? Of course. Farmers plow and thresh expecting something when the crop comes in. So if we have planted spiritual seed among you, is it out of line to expect a meal or two from you? Others demand plenty from you in these ways. Don’t we who have never demanded deserve even more?

But we’re not going to start demanding now what we’ve always had a perfect right to. Our decision all along has been to put up with anything rather than to get in the way or detract from the Message of Christ. All I’m concerned with right now is that you not use our decision to take advantage of others, depriving them of what is rightly theirs. You know, don’t you, that it’s always been taken for granted that those who work in the Temple live off the proceeds of the Temple, and that those who offer sacrifices at the altar eat their meals from what has been sacrificed? Along the same lines, the Master directed that those who spread the Message be supported by those who believe the Message. – The Message -

It’s not uncommon to hear people ask “who was Paul anyway?” in response to something he has written. The clear implication is…they don’t like what he said. This is a common tactic for all of us. When we can’t refute the message we repudiate the messenger.

So, of course, Paul says don’t tell me that I have no authority to write like this. And then he uses a personal example of where he had freedom to demand something but didn’t.

Servants of God have a right to decent accommodations, and a right to support. It seems like all the other missionaries who traveled through the area were treated properly…except Paul.  He asks “so, why me? Are soldiers self-employed? Are gardeners forbidden to eat vegetables from their own gardens? Don’t milkmaids get to drink their fill from the pail?” And…he quotes the Mosaic Law.

 But here’s the point. Paul says we’re not going to start demanding now what we’ve always had a perfect right to. Our decision all along has been to put up with anything rather than to get in the way or detract from the Message of Christ. It may be fairly easy to sacrifice amenities such as wine and caviar for the sake of our fellow believers. The real question is more basic: Could we give up our food and clothing?

Live boldly out there today…

1 Corinthians 8:1-3, Freedom with Responsibility

The question keeps coming up regarding meat that has been offered up to an idol: Should you attend meals where such meat is served, or not? We sometimes tend to think we know all we need to know to answer these kinds of questions—but sometimes our humble hearts can help us more than our proud minds. We never really know enough until we recognize that God alone knows it all.

 Some people say, quite rightly, that idols have no actual existence, that there’s nothing to them, that there is no God other than our one God, that no matter how many of these so-called gods are named and worshiped they still don’t add up to anything but a tall story. They say—again, quite rightly—that there is only one God the Father, that everything comes from him, and that he wants us to live for him. Also, they say that there is only one Master—Jesus the Messiah—and that everything is for his sake, including us. Yes. It’s true.

 In strict logic, then, nothing happened to the meat when it was offered up to an idol. It’s just like any other meat. I know that, and you know that. But knowing isn’t everything. If it becomes everything, some people end up as know-it-alls who treat others as know-nothings. Real knowledge isn’t that insensitive.

We need to be sensitive to the fact that we’re not all at the same level of understanding in this. Some of you have spent your entire lives eating “idol meat,” and are sure that there’s something bad in the meat that then becomes something bad inside of you. An imagination and conscience shaped under those conditions isn’t going to change overnight.

 But fortunately God doesn’t grade us on our diet. We’re neither commended when we clean our plate nor reprimanded when we just can’t stomach it. But God does care when you use your freedom carelessly in a way that leads a fellow believer still vulnerable to those old associations to be thrown off track.

For instance, say you flaunt your freedom by going to a banquet thrown in honor of idols, where the main course is meat sacrificed to idols. Isn’t there great danger if someone still struggling over this issue, someone who looks up to you as knowledgeable and mature, sees you go into that banquet? The danger is that he will become terribly confused—maybe even to the point of getting mixed up himself in what his conscience tells him is wrong.

 Christ gave up his life for that person. Wouldn’t you at least be willing to give up going to dinner for him—because, as you say, it doesn’t really make any difference? But it does make a difference if you hurt your friend terribly, risking his eternal ruin! When you hurt your friend, you hurt Christ. A free meal here and there isn’t worth it at the cost of even one of these “weak ones.” So, never go to these idol-tainted meals if there’s any chance it will trip up one of your brothers or sisters.- The Message –

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Many years ago I worked with a subordinate who abused our petty cash. I had given him access and told him to use it when emergencies came up. How would I have known a six-pack of beer was an emergency? One of the things we discover, as opportunities and freedoms increase, is how trustworthy we actually are.

If we have no opportunity to sin we cannot take credit for not sinning…

John 8:36 says “if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed”. While this is wholly true it does not give license to be sloppy with our attitudes and actions. In the Corinthian church people were wondering about eating meat offered to idols. Paul makes this point: If there are NO OTHER GODS than our God, nothing happens to the meat when it is offered. Therefore, it is safe to eat.

But…we need to be sensitive to the fact that we’re not all at the same level of understanding in this… God does care when you use your freedom carelessly in a way that leads a fellow believer still vulnerable to those old associations to be thrown off track… Christ gave up his life for that person. Wouldn’t you at least be willing to give up going to dinner for him? I notice Paul doesn’t add the caveat “unless he’s a moron”.

 I know we “CAN” do a lot of things. I just wonder if we “HAVE TO”.

Live boldly out there today…