Year 8, Day 97: Job 3

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What we have in this chapter feels like a pity party.  To be fair, it largely is a pity party.  Job goes on and on about how bad his life is and how better it would have been to not be allowed to have lived past his birth!  That’s a pity party to me.

To be fair to Job, remember all that ahs happened to him.  God lifted him up as a target.  Satan accepted the offer and stripped Job of his wealth, livelihood, family, and health.  His wife is encouraging him to curse God and die.  He has little form of support in his time of crisis.  I certainly can’t fault him for feeling a bit of frustration in the moment.

This is a great chapter to look upon humanity and learn.  Often our first response to tragedy is shutting down in hopelessness.  That’s where Job is here.  He feels hopeless because of the proximity to his troubles. He’s still getting used to his new status quo.  Hopelessness is to be expected.

Don’t forget to look ahead, though.  Job doesn’t stay here.  Job will move beyond hopelessness and actually become a bastion of faith against the arguments of his friends.  While he is in the midst of his pity party right now, he won’t stay here.  This is crucially important.  Hopelessness is natural immediately following a tragedy.  But we should not stay there longer than is necessary to get accustomed to the situation.  We must move beyond hopelessness in order to be able to speak faith into a world that needs it.

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Year 8, Day 96: Job 2

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Once more we see Satan coming into the presence of God.  He is roaming the earth, looking once more for anyone against whom he can act.  Once more God points out Job.  God demonstrates to Satan that in spite of the calamity Job is still worshipping God.  Satan argues that Job is only loyal because Job himself wasn’t touched.  God completely removes the hedge around Job and Satan strikes him with horrible disease.

For me, this is where the story truly gets interesting as a case for human study.  When this happens, Job picks up some pottery and scrapes his skin.  It could be that Job was cutting himself to try and release any evil within.  It could be that Job was looking to inflict some pain to help take his mind off of the agonizing sickness.  It could be that Job was simply scraping off puss and oozing wounds.  He could have been trying to use the ashes to dry out the skin and help get rid of the condition.  We don’t honestly know what Job was doing when he sat in ashes and scraped his skin with pottery.  What we do know is what Job never did.  Job didn’t stop believing in God.  Job never once questioned his relationship with God.  That’s utterly amazing.

Job’s friends come by.  They make a point to come and see Job.  Just to prove how bad his affliction had become, his friends no longer even recognize him.  They are so stunned at Job’s appearance and his suffering that they just sit with him in silence.  No words can make sense of what has become of this faithful man of God.  Job’s friends start off so well.  They simply minister in presence, not offering bad advice or shallow platitudes.

Then we see Job’s wife.  She comes to him, disgusted by what she sees.  She advises Job to just curse god and die.  This is why we don’t ever hear about the faith of Job’s wife.  She’s stuck in the awfulness of the moment.  She has no vision.  She has no ability to transcend the moment. She can see no easy way out, so she advises quitting, offering up a harmful last word in life, and dying.  What a perspective of absolute hopelessness from Job’s wife!

When hardship comes, we always have choices.  We can be a quitter with no hope and no vision like Job’s wife.  We can be a silent minister of presence like Job’s friends – for now, at least.  Or we can be faithful in the midst of our struggle, always looking beyond the moment for other things to come like Job.

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Year 8, Day 95: Job 1

Theological Commentary: Click Here

I love the book of Job.  Don’t get me wrong.  Somewhere in the middle I’ll tire a little of the constant debate.  The book is a little on the long side.  That’s no reason to not like the book, though.  The book is an incredible perspective in human fallibility.  It is also a great perspective on how human beings can convince themselves that anything can make sense.

First, take Job.  He is clearly a righteous man.  God even acknowledges Job’s righteousness as he brings Satan’s attention to Job.  Job certainly cares about worshipping the Lord.  Job cares so much about relationship with God that he even worships and offers sacrifices on behalf of those he loves just in case it might do some good.  Job is a man who takes his faith seriously.

In that light, notice that it is God who brings Satan’s attention to Job.  God specifically asks Satan if he’s noticed Job.  Satan affirms that he has and also affirms that he is powerless to do something about Job because God has placed a hedge around Job.  Don’t overlook the subtle point in this passage!  Satan is clearly acknowledging that his power is inferior to that of God.  Satan can only do that which God does not explicitly prohibit him from doing.

All of this leads us to the major point that people rush to get out of this chapter.  God removes his hedge of protection around Job and Satan leaps at the chance to afflict Job.  His wealth is stripped from him.  His children are killed.  Job’s life crumbles at his feet.

What is Job’s response?  Job’s a realist.  That’s why I love him.  His perspective is harsh, but honest.  He came into the world with nothing; should he go out of the world with nothing he still has done no worse than break even!  Why should he expect that if he came into the world with nothing that he should leave the world with anything?

In that brutal honesty, Job worships.  He doesn’t mourn.  He doesn’t throw a pity party.  Job worships. Job acknowledges his reality in the presence of God and proclaims the greatness of God.  That’s humbleness and maturity right there.  That’s one of the most respectable responses to loss I have ever seen.

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Year 8, Day 94: 2 Corinthians 12 & 13

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In chapter 12 we get more of the same from chapter 11.  Paul speaks about the thorn that was given to him.  What’s vital in this chapter is that we see why the thorn was given to him.  Paul has to deal with it because God wants Paul to know that His grace is sufficient for him.  The thorn in Paul’s side is there to keep him humble and keep him focused on God.  If Paul was a so-called super apostle, then what need would Paul have of God?  In his weakness, though, Paul has every opportunity to see God at work.

In chapter 13 we return to the topic of Paul’s visit to the Corinthians.  In these closing words, Paul speaks rather sternly.  Look for the key.  What is it that has Paul’s concern?

Paul is concerned that there are people living in unrepentant sin.  That’s really important.  Paul doesn’t fear that there are sinners in the church.  Of course there are!  Paul fears that there are people in the church who are not repenting.

What is the big deal about unrepentant sin?  People who repent will listen.  When confronted, they will consider that they are in the wrong rather than get defensive about their being right!  People who repent are humble.  They know they can be wrong.  People who repent are teachable.  They know there is always more to learn.

Paul isn’t bothered by the fact that he might go to Corinth and find problems.  Any gathering of human beings will have problems.  Paul is concerned that that he may go to Corinth and find people who aren’t interested in repenting of their sin.  That’s a big difference.

There is a simple illustration to show Paul’s point.  Remember David?  David was a sinner and his sins are spoken of publicly in the Old Testament.  However, he is remembered as a man after God’s own heart in spite of his sin.  Why?  God knew David’s heart.  God knew that David was open to repenting.  It isn’t the amount of sin that is the issue.  What matters is the condition of our heart and our openness to repentance.

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Year 8, Day 93: 2 Corinthians 11

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1 Corinthians is an incredibly inspirational chapter.  It doesn’t start out that way, but it ends well.  It begins with Paul talking about other people and his ministry.  I don’t want to get dragged into that for too long, but I do want to show why it is that Paul isn’t getting along with them.  It isn’t that Paul wants their loyalty.  It isn’t that Paul wants their praise or their fandom.  Paul believes that the people who have come among them are teaching them a different Gospel.

Paul doesn’t go into details here, but we know from elsewhere in the letters that the Corinthians were being misled by thinking that they had to become Jewish in order t be truly saved by Christ.  They were being confused by people teaching them that if they weren’t circumcised or if they didn’t keep the kosher laws then they weren’t really saved.  This is what has Paul upset!  This is why he calls them false apostles.  Jesus saves.  We are saved because of Christ and only because of Christ.  Anything I do is a response to God’s salvation, not because I am earning salvation.

Moving beyond that point, look to the end of this passage to where Paul boasts.  Most people boast in their accomplishments, their education, their wealth, their social status, their kids, or their job.  What is it that Paul boasts in?  Paul reminds the Corinthians about all the places that God has been there for him.  Paul talks about the turmoil and the trials.  Paul does this so that he can focus upon God!

This is a very inspirational point.  When I brag about myself in any of the ways that I lifted up above, I’m pointing the attention to me.  But when I talk about the trouble and the turmoil, I have a great opportunity to point the focus upon God, who was there for me at ever turn. For Paul, greatness is in God and it is found when His hand is at work.

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Year 8, Day 92: 2 Corinthians 10

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As Paul starts into the last third of this letter, he offers up a little defense of his ministry.  Apparently, there are those in Corinth who are arguing with his advice.  There are people who are questioning his credentials and his authority to speak.  They are claiming themselves to be better to listen to than Paul.

This has Paul fairly upset.  However, Paul knows that there is little that he can do besides to speak logically.  We cannot force faith; neither can we force faithful responses.  We cannot mandate people listen.  All we can do is to keep our head about us and speak words of truth.  If people listen, they listen.  If they don’t there really isn’t much we can do about it anyways.  That’s the funny thing about free will.  It allows us to each make up our own mind and choose our own course – for right or for wrong.

To be honest, this type of thing aggravates me, too.  As Christians, we should not be fighting and doubting one another.  We should be united in Christ, not winning the biggest fan club.  We should be teaching truth, not subjugating one another’s teaching.  We should be speaking with reason and allowing others to make up their own minds, not forcibly convincing others to behave a certain way.

If we boast, we should boast in Christ.  What can I do that has any value apart from Him?  What work can I do with my hands that is good unless He is the one who guides me?  What gifts can I use that He has not first given to me?

I am saddened when Christians fight against one another.  Yes, we will have differences of opinion.  We will utilize different logic.  But can we not understand that God has made us unique and we must make room for one another?  So long as I am not promoting sinfulness, must I think exactly like another?  Are not the mysteries of God so unfathomable that each of us can try to seek truth in ways that make sense according to how god has made us?

In the end, our goal is simple.  I should not be about creating followers for myself.  I should be about making disciples of Jesus Christ.  That is the goal.

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Year 8, Day 91: 2 Corinthians 8-9

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I have had the culmination of three aspects of my life come together in a way that displays the divine providence of God.  The first aspect is my blog and my daily reading.  The second aspect is my teaching career and my need for a quote for a painting that a student wants to do for me as her graduation present.  The third aspect is the coming of Easter and my personal reflection upon the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

In preparation for Easter, I’ve been looking through some of my favorite books.  One of them is the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan.  As I was reading that book, I came upon the following quote: “The thing that matters most is how we use what we have been given, not how much we make or do compared to someone else.  What matters is that we spend ourselves.” When I read that, I knew that was the quote I wanted to give to the student to include in her painting for my classroom.

Then I read the passage for today, Easter, April 1^st.  Paul is talking about a collection that he is taking up to give to the Jewish orphans and widows in Jerusalem.  He is encouraging the Corinthians to give out of their abundance to fill the need of the people in Jerusalem.  In doing so, we can be assured that God will give out of His abundance so that our needs will be met.

The culmination of all of these things caused me to think beyond the obvious realm of money.  When we give out of our surplus, I think God wants us to think beyond our pocketbooks.  We can give of our time.  We can give of our love.  We can give of our patience.  We can give of our forgiveness.  There is so much that we can give because God’s abundance is poured out so faithfully upon each of us!

That is a true Easter message.  He gave us His own Son as a model for us to give to the world.  God spent Himself so that we can have life.  We now go and do likewise.

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Year 8, Day 90: 2 Corinthians 7

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Paul speaks much about grief and correction in this chapter.  Paul says that his earlier letter has grieved him.  He isn’t grieved because of the effects of his letter; he is grieved because he had to write the letter.  He is grieved because of the need to write it.  He is grieved because it was a potential stressor in the relationship.

This is the dangerous part of living in truth.  People who dwell with God cannot hide from truth.  They cannot push truth under the rug.  When they see evil, they confront it with truth.  When they see sin, they confront it with truth.  When they see oppression, they confront it with truth.

The problem is that confrontation usually leads to stress.  Confrontation opens the door for potentially damaged relationships.  It really all depends on how the other person is going to receive the truth.  If they receive it poorly, confrontation leads to the breakdown of relationship.

Mind you, people who walk in God take that risk.  What good is a friend who only tells you what you want to hear?  What good is a teacher who never challenges you out of your current place?  What good is a mentor who only talks about how great you are?  What good is a pastor who only talks about the great ways you embody Christ? We need all these things, certainly.  But we need more than these things.  When we deserve it, praise is great.  When we don’t deserve it, praise is empty and hollow and serves no purpose.

Teachers, friends, and mentors know when to uplift with the truth.  Teachers, friends, and mentors who are worth their salt know when to challenge and speak truth.  When genuine truth is shared among Christians, it might be done in fear and trepidation but it should always lead to growth and maturity.

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Year 8, Day 89: 2 Corinthians 6

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Paul speaks to the Corinthians about being a temple to God.  We are to have fellowship with God, He is to dwell in us.  He will live among us.  He will walk among us.  He will be a Father to us.  We will be His sons and daughters.

What does this mean for us?  We are to live like we believe it to be true!  We are to live apart from the ways of the world.  We are to live in manners which are clean to the Lord.

What does this really mean?  How does this look in practice?  Paul actually gives us many explanations in his writing.  One such explanation comes in the first half of this chapter.  When we adapt the ways of the Lord and live by them, we are a display of purity.  We live with greater knowledge.  We can show greater love.  We can stand in truth.  We embody the power of God.

That’s not all that this means, and especially on Good Friday we can be moved by the other side of life with God.  When we live apart from the ways of the world we will know the world’s rejection.  Many in the world will afflict us.  They will persecute us on account of our faith.  We may experience physical hardship.  We may even be imprisoned or killed for our truth and love.  We may experience hunger as we live a life of generosity instead of greed.

There is nothing more satisfying than life with God.  God bring hope to a broken world. He gives life when the world would strive to take it away.  He makes love possible when we should instead feel hatred.  He grants peace when anxiety could take over.  That is an incredible gift to give to the world.  But it does come with a price.  Jesus know this cost.  Jesus was crucified so that He could bring peace and love.  It is that same sacrificial love that drives Paul to care about the Corinthians.  It is that sacrificial love that should drive us each and every day.

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Year 8, Day 88: 2 Corinthians 5

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In this chapter, Paul gives us great reason to celebrate and have hope.  This chapter is all about our position with Christ versus our position with the world.  We know that Christ died for all.  Therefore, Paul concludes, we have all died.  We are no longer in this world, we are in the realm of Christ.  We are no longer to judge things according to the worldly ways but instead we are to judge things according to the ways of God.

What that means is that we can always have hope.  When I am persecuted, I know that I have a home in God that cannot be taken away.  When I am mocked, I know that I have relationship with a God who always loves me.  When I am abandoned, I know that I have a God who calls me to Him.  When I am threatened, I know I have a God who can protect me and who can usher me home to a dwelling that none can prevent me from obtaining. 

We have no reason to be eternally afraid!  Yes, we can fear what people may do to us in this life, but we have little reason to truly fear.  After all, should my life be taken from me now I am rewarding with knowing God in an all new and different manner!

So, what do we do now?  We are ambassadors.  We live out the truth we know.  We do not worry; we do not fret.  We present an image to the world that speaks about our faith and our hope.  We live out our joy so that others may see it, find inspiration, and know the same joy.

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Year 8, Day 87: 2 Corinthians 4

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What does the life of the Christian look like?  Paul gives us a great description here.  “We have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways.  We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s Word. By the open statement of truth we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God.”

The Christian is one who renounces deceitful behavior.  We don’t look to trap others.  We don’t look to step on other people to put ourselves in a better position.  We don’t give false testimony about God and His ways.  We devote ourselves to being seen as a blessing into the lives of other people.

Why do we do these things?  Paul goes on to tell us that, too.  We do it for the sake of Jesus.  We do it so that we carry the crucified savior wherever we go.  We do it so that in our affliction we show perseverance.  In our persecution we are not destroyed.  We do it to show that one can live in this world but not be of it.  We do it to show that the God-infused character of the human being can rise above the world.

We do it for the sake of the rest of the world, just as Christ came and died for the world.  We put aside our sinful humanity so that we may look to the other and display a divine love.  We do it to show that while our exterior is being worn down, our inner character is built up and renewed every day by God.  We do it to show an eternal character to a transient world.

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Year 8, Day 86: 2 Corinthians 2 & 3

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Every single good parent will tell you that there is a difference between hurt and harm.  Hurting someone means that you occasionally do something that another person doesn’t like.  Harming them means that you are doing damage – physical, emotional, relational, etc – to them.  Any parent that has sent a child to timeout, who has grounded a teenager, or who has gotten up from a dinner out and left before it was over because their child was throwing a tantrum knows this truth.  When we implement discipline, it can hurt.  But discipline in love does not harm.  It teaches.

That’s what Paul is talking about in this chapter.  When we confront one another in spiritual truth, we should not intend harm.  We do not want to cause damage.  What we want to do is to give time to think, consider actions, and perhaps change a position or course of action.  It hurts to receive correction, but properly given correction actually strengthens people and the relationships that bind them together.

This is even more true when we talk about forgiveness and add that to the conversation.  When we have experienced a few hard times of correction and we realize that relationship does go on and we do move past our mistakes, we can deal with correction even easier.  If I realize that the person I am correcting loves me as a brother, it is easier to step in and work for positive change in their life.  If I am corrected by someone that I ultimately know loves me as a brother, it is easier to take the correction.

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Year 8, Day 85: 2 Corinthians 1

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As we open up the book of 2 Corinthians, we notice that there is a distinct lack of joy in these words.  Paul does not offer up any thanksgiving for the people.  This is extraordinarily odd for Paul.  Usually, Paul speaks great words of praise.  At the very least, Paul acknowledges the people.  Here, though, we have nothing.  We have a short section about the glory of God and then Paul gets down to business.

Why would Paul neglect to say words of thanksgiving to the people?  The reasons are fairly simple.  The most obvious reason, as we will see later in the book, is that the Corinthians haven’t resolved anything.  They are still bickering.  They are still treating people unfairly.  There is still sexual immorality going on among the people.  Nothing’s changed.  Paul’s earlier words have fallen upon deaf ears.

There’s another reason that Paul may express no thanksgiving.  Paul has experience turmoil in his present locale.  Paul has had to change his plans.  He wont winter in Corinth.  In fact, he has to scuttle plan B, too.  He won’t even come and visit.  He has to rely upon writing another letter, knowing full well that his first letter wasn’t effective.

That being said, we get a really neat perspective on leadership with Paul.  Although he is irritated for multiple reasons, he is still trusting God.  He is still looking for God’s hand at work.  He looks to the trouble he’s in and the fact that he cannot get to Corinth and concludes that God is sparing the Corinthians.  He concludes God is sparing them, and perhaps even sparing himself from either a fruitless venture or perhaps even making a mistake.  I respect this about Paul.  Even when things don’t go his way, he is still willing to look to and trust in the Lord.  He may not be overly happy about what happened, but he puts that aside to continue to be a servant of the Lord.

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Year 8, Day 84: 1 Corinthians 16

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In this chapter we finalize Paul’s letter.  He mentions that the Corinthians should be diligent in saving up a little money so that when he comes he doesn’t have to make a collection for the orphans and widows in Jerusalem.  We know that this was a personal ministry of Paul, done in hopes to endear the Gentile Christians to the Jewish Christians in Jerusalem.

Paul then mentions that he wants to stay with them when he comes.  He is planning on an extended stay.  I think there is as much threat as promise in this.  Paul wants to come and stay with them so that he can renew his acquaintance with them, naturally.  He has some friends there.  It will be a friendly visit.

However, I’m sure that he wants to stay a while so that he can do some extended teaching.  It’s one thing to write a letter, it’s another thing entirely to teach in person.  He wants to make sure that he has the time to speak freely and clearly on the topics covered here in the letter.

Additionally, I am sure that Paul wants to spend some time so that he can investigate other areas of concern.  With a quick visit, issues can be buried or swept under the rug.  In an extended visit, things will begin to surface.  Paul wants to make sure that the community is living as they should be.  After all, that is the gist of this letter.

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Year 8, Day 83: 1 Corinthians 15

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1 Corinthians 15 is one of my favorite chapters in Paul’s writing because he spells out the most important truths in such simple detail.  To bring this letter of unity to a close, Paul ends with simple truth.  Christ came and Christ dies for our sake.  We know salvation because Christ came and only because Christ came.

This, then, speaks to the resurrection.  Christ died and was raised from the dead.  Those in Christ, then, can expect the same conclusion to happen tot them!  If Christ was raised, we will be, too!

This should make sense.  If there is no resurrection, why come to earth to save us.  If we simply die and cease to exist, why bother atoning for our sins?  The point of atonement is that life can be restored to them manner in which God intends.  The point of atonement is so that once we are restored into relationship with God that relationship can continue on into perpetuity.

This takes Paul into a conversation about our future existence.  Naturally, we cannot know exactly what such a life will feel like or even look like.  There are a few things that we can know, though.  Life with God into the eternal future will be eternal.  We will be immortal.  We won’t be omnipotent, but we will not be concerned with time or death.

This is the crux of the faith.  This is what should bring us unity.  We are sinners; Christ came to die for our sake.  Because Christ died for our sake, we can live in relationship with God.  Because of our relationship with God, we will live forever with Him under His power in an eternal and immortal existence.

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Year 8, Day 82: 1 Corinthians 14

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As we draw near to the conclusion of 1 Corinthians, Paul continues his theme of unity.  In this chapter, he applies it to the teaching in the community.  Paul tells people that while speaking in tongues is good, speaking words of prophesy are better.  Before we go too much further, we need to remember what prophesy is to the Christian.  Prophesy in the Bible is not predicting the future.  Prophesy is uttering a word of teaching from the Lord intended to speak to another person.

Think about why this is necessary.  Isn’t it easy to be impressed and amazed by someone who does something as foreign as speaking in tongues?  Human beings are easily impressed by the exotic.  At the same time, isn’t it easy to overlook someone who is simply teaching and giving advice?  How often do students in school tune out their teachers, daydream, or simply not allow themselves to get caught up in learning?  Paul needs to give this lesson because we allow ourselves to place more importance of the outwardly amazing and undervalue the more mundane.

At the same time, think about this in terms of unity.  What is more likely to bring unity, words that nobody can understand or words that everybody can understand?  What is more likely to be misunderstood, an action that is difficult to explain or an act that explains itself?  Paul knows that communal unity is built on concrete and timely teaching from the Lord.

As for the second half of this chapter, Paul extends this idea into our worship.  Paul realizes that the best way to build a community is to build an environment that is orderly and sets reasonable expectations.  People want to know what to expect.  People want to know that they can rely on concrete and meaningful teaching.  It isn’t necessarily about giving people what they want; it is about giving people a reliable and meaningful experience.  That will build unity in the community.

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Year 8, Day 81: 1 Corinthians 13

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1 Corinthians 13 is typically classified as the Love Chapter.  That makes sense, as love is the focus of nearly every sentence in this chapter!  Of the thirteen verses in this chapter, the word love doesn’t appear in only five of them, and in one of them the pronoun it, used multiple times, directly refers to love.  This chapter directly teaches us about love.

The question, though, is why?  Remember the greater context of 1 Corinthians.  Paul is concerned about division and controversy.  He is concerned about the unfair treatment of some and the preferential treatment of others.  He is concerned about the unity of the church.  What better concept to use to teach about unity than the idea of love?

After all, what is true love all about?  True love is about the selflessness that comes when we put ourselves aside and think about others first.  Love is gentle.  Love is kind.  Love does not boast.  Love is not arrogant.  Love is not rude.  Love bears all things and love endures all things.  Look at what all of those things have in common.  Each of those things are accomplished when we put others ahead of ourselves.

When do we have division?  We encounter division when people forget to love first.  When do we get a lack of trust?  We get a lack of trust when we forget to love one another first.  When does the community break down?  The community breaks down when we seek our own agendas and forget to love the other person first.

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Year 8, Day 80: 1 Corinthians 12

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It should be no surprise that when we move to the next chapter that Paul continues to talk about the unified body of Christ.  What can we learn from this?  Paul was deeply concerned with the level of division within the Corinthians. He was worried that the level of division would be a major detriment to the congregation.  He continues to teach about unity from many different angles because a lack of unity is a tremendous threat to a community.

Paul tries to speak to unity with respect to the spiritual gifts.  Yes, people are individuals.  We all have different gifts and God equips us to play different roles in His kingdom.  We shouldn’t be trying to make carbon copies of one another because God has made us unique.  At the same time, our uniqueness should not divide the church!  Our gifts should add to the community, not split it!  Our interaction within the community should cause it to grow together, not give it reason to fracture.

In fact, with the analogy to the body to which Paul moves, he brings the discussion into greater focus.  Paul is blatantly honest when he says that the individual is not more important than the body.  The hand is not more important than the body.  Neither is the eye or the foot or even the heart.  After all, what would a single member of the body be if it didn’t have a body to which it belongs?  How useful is a hand without an arm, much less an entire body?  The desires of the one should never outweigh the needs of the many.

Furthermore, Paul goes a step further to make sure that we don’t undervalue certain parts of the community.  We all know that there are flashy people who command attention easily.  Just like it is easy to notice a person’s hair or their eyes, it is easy to give some people more attention than the rest.  However, the reality is that there are parts of the body that are easily overlooked but highly important.  How long will a regular person live without their liver or spleen, yet how often do we notice it or even remember its function?  Our sinuses provide an integral function to the working of our body, but how often do we notice them until they are stuffed, plugged, or draining?  We need to learn to value the whole community, especially those who are easy to overlook.

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Year 8, Day 79: 1 Corinthians 11

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As I read through this passage, I am always drawn to the second half and drawn away from the first half.  Today is no different.  I’ve been focusing so much on divisions and unity that my eye seems to naturally go to the second half.

In this passage, we hear Paul mention that the Corinthians are even making a debacle of the Lord’s Supper.  Some people are coming and getting drunk.  Other people are being neglected.  I think we have two problems here – drunkenness and a lack of hospitality – wrapped underneath the umbrella of God’s grace.

First of all, let’s take drunkenness.  Here is a reason for offense.  Some people are coming to get communion and all that they see is the wine.  They drink not out of celebration for God’s love, but in order to have the alcohol work its magic.  Rather than think about what their actions are doing to the community, they are enforcing their desire for alcohol upon the community.  The will of the individual is causing division because it is being asserted over the good of the community.

Then we have the issue of people being neglected.  There are some who are simply not able to come to communion because others are consuming it all!  This is an utter lack of hospitality.  Once more we see that the gluttony of some is causing division.  The will of the individual for utter consumption is being asserted over the good of the community in the sharing of resources.  Gluttony, the consumption of one above what is necessary or even customary, causes division in the body of Christ.

The sad part is that all of these things exist under the greater umbrella of Christ and His love for us.  Communion is first and foremost a celebration of the sacrificial nature of Christ!  I find it truly sad that even an act of sacrifice can become a cause for the sin of greed within the individual to rise up and destroy community.

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Year 8, Day 78: 1 Corinthians 10

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Having looked at the chapter from yesterday, we come today to Paul’s clarification.  If we take yesterday’s reading alone, it could easily lead us to think that we can do anything we are able to justify so long as we don’t do it in the presence of people that it offends.  There is truth in that.  So long as our actions are not truly rooted in sin, then we are correct.  God created this world.  That which is not sinful is a part of God’s creation.

Here we find the counterbalance to the easily overstated freedom of the last chapter.  We must be in Christ.  I don’t have the freedom to do anything I want, I have the freedom to do anything that is in God and therefore not rooted in sin.

To put it another way, my perspective should be on bringing glory to God.  Actions that bring myself or the people around me into a closer relationship with God or a greater understanding of His being are awesome!  We have the freedom to do anything that brings people closer to God.  What we need to do, though, is recognize that because of differences in people that there may be those who are offended by our methods.  Therefore, we have an obligation to not offend others by our methods of helping people draw closer to God.

For me, that is one of the core ethics of life.  God has made me to be a certain way.  Sin has corrupted His creation, allowing me to do things that don’t please God.  I first need to chase away sin and its control as I seek God’s ways and His love.  As I do that, I should be careful to not offend others who are also pursuing God.

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