Friday – 1st Corinthians 10 - To the Glory of God

 

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ST Corinthians 10:31 summarizes much of what we have been studying: "Do all to the glory of God." Of course, Paul had been discussing the pros and cons of eating meat offered to idols. Here he adds the eating of manna & the drinking of water (vs. 3-4) as well as the consumption of quail and ale (vs. 6-7), of the bread and wine of communion (vs. 16), of holy sacrifices (vs. 18), of heathen sacrifices (vs. 25) and of party food (vs. 27). Now, while God's grace toward us means that (in a sense) nothing we do matters, His grace in us means that everything we do can matter. As a missionary, one might eat fried termites for the glory of God. The important thing is not the ingredient in the dish; the important thing is our attitude and purpose in partaking. We eat to strengthen our temple and to be a blessing to others. We do not eat just to satisfy our own cravings.

 

Eating and drinking being universal, it is a great place to begin in a discussion of what Christians should and shouldn't do, and how and why we should do what we do. There is another physical need, which is on the list of common necessities: sex. Having instructed us to keep God's agenda in mind as we feed our stomachs, Paul moves on to this category (vs. 7-8). He bluntly condemns sexual sins. Beyond that, Paul forbids presumptuous sins (vs. 9), complaining (vs. 10), pride (vs. 12), idolatry (vs. 14), foolishness (vs. 15), defiance (vs. 22), callousness selfishness (vs. 23-24), and offending others through our own carnality (vs. 32). So, we are free, yet our freedom demands that we not waste that freedom.