Read 1 Corinthians 10:1-171 Corinthians 10:1-17
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
Don't Worship Idols
10
1 a Friends, I want to remind you that all of our ancestors walked under the cloud and went through the sea.
2 This was like being baptized and becoming followers of Moses.
3 All of them also ate the same spiritual food
4 ; . and drank the same spiritual drink, which flowed from the spiritual rock that followed them. That rock was Christ.
5 But most of them did not please God. So they died, and their bodies were scattered all over the desert.
6 What happened to them is a warning to keep us from wanting to do the same evil things.
7 . They worshiped idols, just as the Scriptures say, “The people sat down to eat and drink. Then they got up to dance around.” So don't worship idols.
8 Some of those people did shameful things, and in a single day about twenty-three thousand of them died. Don't do shameful things as they did.
9 And don't try to test Christ, r Christ: Some manuscripts have “the Lord.” as some of them did and were later bitten by poisonous snakes.
10 Don't even grumble, as some of them did and were killed by the destroying angel.
11 These things happened to them as a warning to us. All this was written in the Scriptures to teach us who live in these last days.
12 Even if you think you can stand up to temptation, be careful not to fall.
13 You are tempted in the same way that everyone else is tempted. But God can be trusted not to let you be tempted too much, and he will show you how to escape from your temptations.
14 My friends, you must keep away from idols.
15 I am speaking to you as people who have enough sense to know what I am talking about.
16 When we drink from the cup that we ask God to bless, isn't that sharing in the blood of Christ? When we eat the bread that we break, isn't that sharing in the body of Christ?
17 By sharing in the same loaf of bread, we become one body, even though there are many of us.
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Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. I speak as to wise men; you judge what I say. Is not the cup of blessing which we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ? Is not the bread which we break a sharing in the body of Christ? Since there is one bread, we who are many are one body; for we all partake of the one bread.
1 Corinthians 10:14-171 Corinthians 10:14-17
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
14 My friends, you must keep away from idols. 15 I am speaking to you as people who have enough sense to know what I am talking about. 16 When we drink from the cup that we ask God to bless, isn't that sharing in the blood of Christ? When we eat the bread that we break, isn't that sharing in the body of Christ? 17 By sharing in the same loaf of bread, we become one body, even though there are many of us.
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Ask yourself: what are you most passionate about? Passion is a very strong impulse and when misdirected, can, at best, be distracting to the Christian’s walk, and at worst, replace that which truly matters in a Christian’s life.
As football season rolls around, we will find people so passionate about many things that are inconsequential in light of eternity. Have you ever paid attention to crowds at Clemson football games or rabid soccer fans in Europe. Have you ever thought: “What if we had that kind of enthusiasm and zeal for the things of Christ? What would the church and the world look like then?”
The truth is: Christ’s passion for us exceeds even the most fanatical football or soccer fan. Praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus began to more fully carry the burden of our sins on his shoulders, and the Bible even records that Jesus sweat blood. He asked God to, if possible, “let this cup pass from me.” But faced with the knowledge that he would suffer a grim episode of torture and execution, Jesus remained steadfast, praying to the Father: “Your will be done.” He then went to the cross, and even though he could have called down a legion of angels to rescue him, he remained there, carrying our humiliation and our guilt, and even asking the Father to forgive the very ones who mocked him. This type of sacrifice is unmatched by any other faith in the world. One can study all the major religions to their fullest and never find a loving, sacrificial and personal god like that of the Bible.
This brings us to 1 Corinthians and Nehemiah, who at the beginning of the book was faced with the consequences of the nation of Israel’s actions. The walls of Jerusalem had been burned. Again and again leading up to that point, the Israelites had lost their focus and lost their passion, falling into idol worship and straying from their God. As recorded in Nehemiah:
We have acted very corruptly against You and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses. “Remember the word which You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful I will scatter you among the peoples; but if you return to Me and keep My commandments and do them, though those of you who have been scattered were in the most remote part of the heavens, I will gather them from there and will bring them to the place where I have chosen to cause My name to dwell.’”
Nehemiah 1:7-9Nehemiah 1:7-9
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
7 by choosing to disobey you and the laws and teachings you gave to your servant Moses. 8 . Please remember the promise you made to Moses. You told him that if we were unfaithful, you would scatter us among foreign nations. 9 But you also said that no matter how far away we were, we could turn to you and start obeying your laws. Then you would bring us back to the place where you have chosen to be worshiped.
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The people of Israel’s struggles were certainly on the mind of Paul as he was penning the letters to the Corinthians. He told the church in chapter 10 to view Israel’s example and learn from it, reminding the body of the bread (Christ’s body) that was broken and the blood (which was spilled) for our sins. As the walls of Jerusalem were burned by the inequity of God’s people, so was Christ’s body broken by our own inequity. So too, as the walls were rebuilt, Christ was resurrected, building His church on the “rock,” which is the truth that Jesus is the “Christ, the Son of the living God.”
He (Jesus) said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.”I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.
Matthew 16:15-18Matthew 16:15-18
English: Contemporary English Version (1999) - CEV
15 Then Jesus asked them, “But who do you say I am?” 16 Simon Peter spoke up, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” 17 Jesus told him: Simon, son of Jonah, you are blessed! You didn't discover this on your own. It was shown to you by my Father in heaven. 18 So I will call you Peter, which means “a rock.” On this rock I will build my church, and death itself will not have any power over it.
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Christ’s passion, simply, is us and His church. Where does your passion lie? Being passionate about family, friends, interests and careers is fine, as long as those things are secondary to our passion and commitment to the one who gave up his place at the right hand of the Father to become one of us, to suffer a carnal death and display the fullest form of sacrificial love possible, His arms outstretched on the cross, waiting for you to receive his free and spotless gift.
Today, pray that God throughout this week would keep your clearly focused on your call and His passion, for you to become more like Christ and be salt and light to your friends, co-workers, family and neighbors.
Thank you, Jeremy, for today’s devotion! You tied the theme in beautifully with the series Ray is doing right now.