Resource Manager Posted February 26, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2012 26 February 2012 Exodus 39; 40Psalms 1021 Corinthians 10 "WE MUST NOT PUT CHRIST TO THE TEST" Paul’s comments on Moses and how the people “all passed through the sea and all were baptised into Moses” [1 Corinthians 10:1,2] obviously relate to what we have been reading in Exodus. Paul then states, “For they all drank from the Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ.” [1 Corinthians 10:4] What does he mean? Their baptism in the sea was symbolic of the baptism to come and which the Corinthian believers had experienced. Moses had, at God’s command, been able to produce water from the rock as we read in Exodus 17. This pointed forward to Christ, Jesus knew this and was to say, “on the last day of the feast” when he “stood up and cried out, ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ [John 7:37,38] These words related to what he had earlier said to the Samaritan woman that, if she had asked, “he would have given (her) living water” [John 4:10] which he then explained, “the water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life” [John 4:14] Paul draws a vital lesson in our Corinthians chapter; it is the lesson of the tragic failure of the Israelites in the wilderness, a failure the Corinthians must aim to avoid. Paul writes, “Now these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did” [v.6] despite the evidence of God’s care and guidance. Paul makes a particular point in 1 Corinthians 10:11, “Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction.” Among the things written down Paul particularly notes, as a common temptation, “it is written, ‘the people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.’ We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did … we must not put Christ to the test ...” [1 Corinthians 10:7-9] Our Master sees the motives we have in our hearts. Near the end of today’s chapter Paul states a simple but profound principle we must all aim to keep, “whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” [1 Corinthians 10:31]. A final thought: a “rock” cannot literally follow, but Jesus used exactly the same phrase as Paul did when he taught, “Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” [John 8:12] and again, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” [John 10:27] In following Christ, it means he also follows us, providing for our needs (as distinct from our wants) Let us follow the lessons that were written down for our instruction.-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted February 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 27, 2012 27 February 2012 Leviticus 1; 2Psalms 1031 Corinthians 11 “THOSE WHO FEAR HIM” The phrase “those who fear him,” meaning, who fear God occurs three times in our Psalm reading today. The sense of ‘fear’ is - to be in heartfelt awe of what God must be. This is a Psalm that should reach deep into our hearts; it is particularly encouraging to those who are thinking God has cut off their contact with him because of their behaviour. This Psalm of David tells us to “Bless the LORD, O my soul and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases … who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy” [Psalm 103:2-4]. He adds, “The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love … he does not deal with us according to our sins” [Psalm 103:8,10] Psalm 103:11 has the first reference to fear. We read, “For as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him.” Two verses further on we read, “As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.” The point is made yet a third time, “the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him” [Psalm 103:17]. God’s steadfast love, compassion, mercy and forgiveness are not for everybody and anybody – it is for those who seek to develop the right attitude of mind toward him. The Apostle John writes, “We love because he first loved us.” [1 John 4:19] God has always had this attitude toward human beings - because “God made man in his own image.” [Genesis 9:6] God said this to Noah and his sons as they were about to repopulate a devastated earth, but we know succeeding generations largely failed to fear God. It is a challenge to us to try to see human life from God’s point of view. He looks out on a “sea” of humanity who create “gods” of their own imagination – or think all life that exists is just the end result of an incredible timeless sequence of “accidents”!! How can God continue to ‘love’ those who have not the slightest thought for him, or who have ‘gods’ of their own imagination? Is not the answer obvious! Another question! Do most who say they believe in God really fear him? How many take his benefits, his mercy, forgiveness, and love for granted? Our Corinthians reading illustrates the wrong attitudes among many believers there: they came together to remember Christ in the way he requested at the last supper. But Paul tells them, “any one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgement on himself, that is why many of you are weak and ill … when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.” [1 Corinthians 11:29,30,32] So many in Corinth had no fear and awe of God because their attitude was all wrong. These are all lessons for us to appreciate as we seek “all his benefits.” Let us try harder to be true children of God and to be among those “who fear him.” -------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted February 28, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 28, 2012 28 February 2012 Leviticus 3; 4Psalms 1041 Corinthians 12; 13 "IN WISDOM YOU HAVE MADE THEM ALL" In today’s Psalm [Psalm 104] we read, “O LORD, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.” [Psalm 104:24] Today, as naturalists and others explore more of the earth, they are discovering more and more living things they never knew existed. It has long been acknowledged that there is an incredible interdependence in nature – what a totally wonderful architect is the Creator! He created innumerable things, trees, plants, animals, insects, birds, etc. They are interdependent in a whole variety of ways, yet human beings, especially the ‘western’ mind, in discovering more and more of this, is more determined than ever to say it is all the result of blind chance. The God-fearing person sees God as the Master Creator behind it all, even the adaptability within species, which men used to call micro-evolution, is part of his overseeing handiwork. So we see God in his “wisdom” has made them all. What kind of “wisdom” is this? We immediately thought of David’s Psalm 139 as he meditated on God’s all seeing eyes; “such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it.” [Psalm 139:6]. Yet the modern God-disbelieving mind refuses in his pride to see the situation from this perspective. When we come to Psalm 111 we will read, “Great are the works of the LORD, studied by all who delight in them. Full of splendour and majesty is his work … the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding.” [Psalm 111:2,3,10] Solomon in Proverbs says, “The LORD by wisdom founded the earth; by understanding he established the heavens” [Proverbs 3:19] Finally our thoughts went to the epistle of James, “Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom … the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits …” [James 3:13,17] Those who seek and develop this wisdom will one day know far more of God’s creative wisdom for they will then be “equal to angels.” [Luke 20:36].-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Resource Manager Posted February 29, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 29, 2012 29 February 2012 "EARNESTLY DESIRE SPIRITUAL GIFTS" Being Leap Year there are no readings listed for today so we read and discussed yesterday’s and tomorrows readings in 1 Corinthians 12; 13; 14 as these chapters together contain Paul’s advice to the believers at Corinth about the proper way to use spiritual gifts. He says that “each was given the manifestation of the spirit for the common good” [1 Corinthians 12:7]. Paul is concerned about the degree of competition among them and that some were failing to use the gifts in the ways intended. The majority were Gentiles and had had no previous awareness of Israel’s God and his messages through the prophets or the Law. The gifts were essential for they had no Bibles to read like we do today. Let us appreciate the flow of connecting thoughts from 1 Corinthians 13 into 1 Corinthians 14 to grasp a central point in Paul’s message. In 1 Corinthians 13 he had said that the gifts of tongues, knowledge and prophesying would one day cease [1 Corinthians 13:8,9]. Ignoring the chapter break we read, “So now faith, hope and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love. Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy.” [1 Corinthians 13:13; 14:1] The gift of prophecy has the primary meaning of speaking messages from God and, as we see in the Old Testament, they were mostly messages about attitudes and events happening then and God’s approval or disapproval, usually the latter! Properly used this First Century gift was invaluable in building up the believers until the Gospels were written, copied and circulated. The value of the gift of prophecy is most clearly seen in 1 Corinthians 13:24,25, “if all prophecy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all … he will worship God and declare that God is really among you.” But if they were talking in tongues, the opposite happened, see 1 Corinthians 13:23. Today we have the full testimony of God’s word and we need to adequately know it so it becomes part of our thinking and we can unfold the promises and ways of God to any unbeliever who enters or “anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you” [1 Peter 3:15] We also noted Paul’s comment, “as in all the churches of the saints, the women should keep silent in the churches … they are not permitted to speak” [1 Corinthians 14:33,34] and we recall how Jesus only chose men as disciples and, on occasions, sent them out to preach [Luke 9:1-6]. However it is also clear that men and women teamed together in teaching the ways of God (eg Acts 18:26); it is only “in the churches” – in the services, that the women are “not permitted to speak.” Paul told them to “earnestly desire the higher gifts” [1 Corinthians 12:31] and today we have the greatest gift of all until Christ comes, the gift of the Bible. Let us “earnestly desire” to read it every day.-------- DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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