Friday, January 16, 2009

Body

We are making our way through a letter Paul wrote to Jesus followers in Corinth. Today, we are going to read a longer passage than normal; but for me, it begins one of the most beautiful passages Paul ever wrote. Enjoy.


1 Corinthians 12
12 The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. 13 Some of us are Jews, some are Gentiles, some are slaves, and some are free. But we have all been baptized into one body by one Spirit, and we all share the same Spirit. 14 Yes, the body has many different parts, not just one part. 15 If the foot says, “I am not a part of the body because I am not a hand,” that does not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear says, “I am not part of the body because I am not an eye,” would that make it any less a part of the body? 17 If the whole body were an eye, how would you hear? Or if your whole body were an ear, how would you smell anything? 18 But our bodies have many parts, and God has put each part just where he wants it. 19 How strange a body would be if it had only one part! 20 Yes, there are many parts, but only one body. 21 The eye can never say to the hand, “I don’t need you.” The head can’t say to the feet, “I don’t need you.” 22 In fact, some parts of the body that seem weakest and least important are actually the most necessary. 23 And the parts we regard as less honorable are those we clothe with the greatest care. So we carefully protect those parts that should not be seen, 24 while the more honorable parts do not require this special care. So God has put the body together such that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity. 25 This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other. 26 If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad. 27 All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it. 28 Here are some of the parts God has appointed for the church: first are apostles, second are prophets, third are teachers, then those who do miracles, those who have the gift of healing, those who can help others, those who have the gift of leadership, those who speak in unknown languages. 29 Are we all apostles? Are we all prophets? Are we all teachers? Do we all have the power to do miracles? 30 Do we all have the gift of healing? Do we all have the ability to speak in unknown languages? Do we all have the ability to interpret unknown languages? Of course not! 31 So you should earnestly desire the most helpful gifts. But now let me show you a way of life that is best of all.


Body. I love analogies. They help me understand complex concepts. The idea that God can bring together people from such different backgrounds and form one “body” that works together to provide healing and share hope ... to love ... is both beautiful and mystifying. Sadly, in the centuries since this letter was penned, that same body has spread both love and hate, anger and peace, because we have allowed our pride to overcome His humility and our fear to interfere with His hope. The good thing is that it is never too late to return to the original mission. Maybe that is why Paul said, “...You should earnestly desire the most helpful gifts”.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Help

We are making our way through a letter Paul wrote to Jesus followers in Corinth. Today, Paul moves on to a new topic.


1 Corinthians 12
1 Now, dear brothers and sisters, regarding your question about the special abilities the Spirit gives us. I don’t want you to misunderstand this. 2 You know that when you were still pagans, you were led astray and swept along in worshiping speechless idols. 3 So I want you to know that no one speaking by the Spirit of God will curse Jesus, and no one can say Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit. 4 There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. 5 There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. 6 God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us. 7
A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. 8 To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge. 9 The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. 10 He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. 11 It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.


Help. There are some days when I read God’s Word and it seems a little ambiguous or irrelevant. There are other days (like today) when a thought jumps right off the page and applies directly to my life. For me, the thought that stood out was actually an entire verse ... seven. “A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other.” When we accept God’s grace and believe in Jesus, God (in the form of the Holy Spirit) moves in ... into our heart, into our mind, into our life. According to Paul, He brings along a “house” warming gift ... a spiritual gift. Which raises two important questions ... Have you identified your gift? Are you using it to help others? I didn’t say the application would be easy ... just obvious and relevant.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Examine

We are making our way through a letter Paul wrote to Jesus followers in Corinth. Today, Paul requests an attitude check.


1 Corinthians 11
23 For I pass on to you what I received from the Lord himself. On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread 24 and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.” 25 In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people - an agreement confirmed with my blood. Do this to remember me as often as you drink it.” 26 For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again. 27 So anyone who eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily is guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 28 That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. 29 For if you eat the bread or drink the cup without honoring the body of Christ, you are eating and drinking God’s judgment upon yourself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and sick and some have even died. 31 But if we would examine ourselves, we would not be judged by God in this way. 32 Yet when we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned along with the world. 33 So, my dear brothers and sisters, when you gather for the Lord’s Supper, wait for each other. 34 If you are really hungry, eat at home so you won’t bring judgment upon yourselves when you meet together. I’ll give you instructions about the other matters after I arrive.


Examine. When I was in elementary school, the church our family attended offered “Junior Church” for 3rd through 6th graders. Once you entered junior high, you had to move upstairs to “big” church. Every week, one of the leaders would randomly yell, “Attitude check”. We would yell back, “Praise the Lord”. I don’t know if it was a true reflection of our current attitude as much as a learned response. Paul’s contention, when it comes to the Lord’s Supper, is that we need an “attitude check” because it is so easy to go through the motions. The reality is, my attitude toward that moment is really a reflection of the current state of my relationship with God. So what would your response be ... apathetic ... distracted ... humble ... grateful? “Attitude check?”

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Together

We are making our way through a letter Paul wrote to Jesus followers in Corinth. Today, Paul calls us to be united.


1 Corinthians 11
17 But in the following instructions, I cannot praise you. For it sounds as if more harm than good is done when you meet together. 18 First, I hear that there are divisions among you when you meet as a church, and to some extent I believe it. 19 But, of course, there must be divisions among you so that you who have God’s approval will be recognized! 20 When you meet together, you are not really interested in the Lord’s Supper. 21 For some of you hurry to eat your own meal without sharing with others. As a result, some go hungry while others get drunk. 22 What? Don’t you have your own homes for eating and drinking? Or do you really want to disgrace God’s church and shame the poor? What am I supposed to say? Do you want me to praise you? Well, I certainly will not praise you for this!


Together. In each of our weekend services, we offer what we call Communion (or the Lord’s Supper). For us, it includes a small piece of bread and a small cup of grape juice. For the early church, the Lord’s Supper took place in the context of an entire meal. In both experiences, they are/were meant to be times of remembering for Jesus followers .... remembering Jesus’ sacrifice, God’s grace, our gratitude ... and the unity of the church. I love the quote David K. Lowery wrote in response to this passage, “The early Church was the one place in all the ancient world where the barriers which divided the world were down. ... A Church where social and class distinctions exist is no true Church at all. A real Church is a body of men and women united to each other because all are united to Christ.”

Monday, January 12, 2009

Independent

Welcome back to the Journey!
Thanks for your patience during the break.
We are returning to our journey through a letter Paul wrote to Jesus followers in Corinth. Today, Paul challenges some of our attitudes and philosophies.



1 Corinthians 11
2 I am so glad that you always keep me in your thoughts, and that you are following the teachings I passed on to you. 3 But there is one thing I want you to know: The head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 4 A man dishonors his head if he covers his head while praying or prophesying. 5 But a woman dishonors her head if she prays or prophesies without a covering on her head, for this is the same as shaving her head. 6 Yes, if she refuses to wear a head covering, she should cut off all her hair! But since it is shameful for a woman to have her hair cut or her head shaved, she should wear a covering. 7 A man should not wear anything on his head when worshiping, for man is made in God’s image and reflects God’s glory. And woman reflects man’s glory. 8 For the first man didn’t come from woman, but the first woman came from man. 9 And man was not made for woman, but woman was made for man. 10 For this reason, and because the angels are watching, a woman should wear a covering on her head to show she is under authority. 11 But among the Lord’s people, women are not independent of men, and men are not independent of women. 12 For although the first woman came from man, every other man was born from a woman, and everything comes from God. 13 Judge for yourselves. Is it right for a woman to pray to God in public without covering her head? 14 Isn’t it obvious that it’s disgraceful for a man to have long hair? 15 And isn’t long hair a woman’s pride and joy? For it has been given to her as a covering. 16 But if anyone wants to argue about this, I simply say that we have no other custom than this, and neither do God’s other churches.


Independent. In a recent meeting, I had a friend share that the one thing God is teaching her right now is dependence. We have a natural urge to be independent. It isn’t an urge that should be suppressed; but tempered with a true understanding of God. As Jesus followers, we need to learn how to filter all of our decisions through the lens of dependence on God. It may be difficult for us to really understand this issue, of a woman covering her head, because it isn’t an issue in our western culture. It shouldn’t be difficult for us to understand why it is so important to remember our dependence on God ... that “everything comes from God”.