April 3, 2020
1 Corinthians 8:1-3, 13
1 Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that “We all possess knowledge.” But knowledge puffs up while love builds up. Those who think they know something do not yet know as they ought to know.  But whoever loves God is known by God.

13 Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother or sister to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause them to fall.
New International Version (NIV)
               How are you doing with your idolatry?  Most of us don’t give much thought to idols.  We may pride ourselves in not being like those who have little pantheons of Gods to which they bow down.  Not so fast.  The apostle Paul equates greed with idolatry (Ephesians 5:5, Colossians 3:5).  Anything which dominates our thoughts can become an idol.  It might be a person, a possession, or a pastime, or a passion in our lives.  If we think about anything more than we think about Christ, we run the risk of idolatry.  Some have observed that the Coronavirus Pandemic has revealed and even removed some of our idols.  Entertainment, wealth and sports can become more important to us than God. 

                In Corinth people still offered sacrifices to idols.  When we lived in Katy twenty years ago, our favorite donut shop put donuts on a plate in front of the Buddha statue on the counter.   As far as I know, the Buddha never ate the donuts.  Neither did the idols in the ancient world.  What to do with the food?  They resold it.  Some in the church realized idols were not real and so had no qualms about eating the meat.  Others who had been steeped in idolatry had pangs of conscience about eating such meat.  As we see on facebook and twitter so often, they began to choose teams and condemn each other.

                Worse than eating meat sacrificed to an idol was sacrificing a brother or sister on the altar of superior knowledge.  Those who knew better than to believe in idols thought the snowflakes who used to believe in idols should just get over it.  Their knowledge puffed them up with pride.  Those who had stronger concerns about returning to the idolatry of their past felt like the idol-meat eaters were giving them a bad example to follow.  They too were puffed up by knowing they were right.  Knowledge puffs us up and makes us proud.  Love doesn’t puff up but builds up.  So when we love, we may disagree with others but genuinely care about their concerns.  This calls for humility.

                The greater concern of believers in the church is never for our own rights.  We don’t tell people who disagree with us to “build a bridge . . . and get over it.”  The danger in disputable matters is not that we hurt a brother or sister’s feelings, but that we somehow use our freedom to empower them to violate their own consciences.  Paul was a carnivore by conviction.  He could eat the meat and sleep well.  But he never wanted his freedom to cause another to sin.  For their sake, he would give up his rights.  Like Jesus.  Jesus did not claim his rights on the cross.  Instead he surrendered them to save the world.  We follow in his steps.

Pray with me:         
Father, we thank you for your provision for us.  Each day, each breath, each morsel of food is a gift from your hand.  Help us, I pray, to care carefully for others who struggle with sins we have not faced.  Reveal our idols to us today.  Let not our pride make an idol of self-interest before which we bow.  Put it to death like a poisonous snake we pray.  Give us the gift of humility.  Help us to love each other the way you have loved us, surrendering our rights.  Move us beyond pride in our knowledge to knowledge of our pride.  Then help us to live with love for others.  In Jesus’ name.   Amen.
Join us in memorizing the Word.  Scripture for this week:    
Matthew 5:27-28
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart."
Our 2020 Every Day with Jesus readings will follow the Foundations New Testament reading plan.  Copies of the reading plan are available at Tallowood Baptist Church, or download your copy at REPLICATE.ORG 
We would love for you to join us as we read the New Testament through this year, five chapters a week.  In addition I will continue my long-standing practice of reading one Psalm a day through the year.  Use Robby Gallaty’s H. E. A. R. plan to study each chapter (also found at REPLICATE.ORG). Highlight verses which speak to you, explain what they mean in your own words in a journal, apply them to your own life, then respond by doing what God tells you to do.  
Joyfully, 
Duane 

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