It\u2019s a great feeling when we know something someone else doesn\u2019t. Whether it\u2019s the best route to a burger joint, the proper way to change a tire, or the name of the president of Turkey, pride bubbles up in us when our knowledge surpasses everyone else\u2019s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The same pride can show up in us as Christians\u2014it certainly had for the Corinthians. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Flip to 1 Corinthians 8 and read verses 1 to 6.<\/strong> What \u201cknowledge\u201d had the Corinthians learned? What effect did it have on them?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 1<\/strong> Now regarding your question about food that has been offered to idols. Yes, we know that \u201cwe all have knowledge\u201d about this issue. But while knowledge makes us feel important, it is love that strengthens the church. 2<\/strong> Anyone who claims to know all the answers doesn\u2019t really know very much. 3<\/strong> But the person who loves God is the one whom God recognizes.<\/p> 4<\/strong> So, what about eating meat that has been offered to idols? Well, we all know that an idol is not really a god and that there is only one God. 5<\/strong> There may be so-called gods both in heaven and on earth, and some people actually worship many gods and many lords. 6<\/strong> But for us,<\/p> There is one God, the Father, Many of the Corinthians knew that idols weren\u2019t real. There\u2019s only one God. All other gods are false. But that knowledge had puffed up their pride. We\u2019ll talk about the external consequences of their pride tomorrow. Today we\u2019ll focus on the internal destruction pride can have on us.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Take a look at the verse in 1 Corinthians 8:1 again. Paul uses two phrases that clue us into the negative consequences of pride. The first is about knowledge, which \u201cpuffs up.\u201d The Greek word physioo <\/em>literally means to inflate\u2014 Paul\u2019s using the word figuratively. He\u2019s getting at that feeling of pride that swells up when we know more than another person. But as we see in verse 2, that knowledge only makes us more prideful\u2014so much so that we\u2019re blind to what we don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The other phrase is \u201cbuilds up.\u201d Instead of puffing up our pride and blinding us to our faults, love strengthens us. God\u2019s love is the antithesis of pride. Why? Because God\u2019s love is everything pride isn\u2019t\u2014it\u2019s self-giving, humble, and others-focused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pride will make you think you\u2019re better than you really are. It will pull you away from the risk of an others-centered life. Pride can come from what we know, but it can also stem from countless other areas\u2014 our looks, our car, our job, our family, our workout routine, our house, or our church.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pick one thing that\u2019s a source of pride for you. Maybe it\u2019s what you know about the Bible or the places you\u2019ve seen in the world or the type of job you have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Reflect on why that area of your life produces pride in you. Talk to God about it.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Then spend a few minutes praying about how you could use that source of pride to serve other Christians.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Text your response to the above prompting questions to your group and\/or share it as a comment below<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" It\u2019s a great feeling when we know something someone else doesn\u2019t. Whether it\u2019s the best route to a burger joint, the proper way to change a tire, or the name of the president of Turkey, pride bubbles up in us when our knowledge surpasses everyone else\u2019s. The same pride can show up in us as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"\n Welcome!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Welcome to the book of 1 Corinthians. As we study this letter, we\u2019ll step into ancient Corinth while reading the words Paul wrote to the fledgling church. We\u2019re going to see that, like all churches, the Corinthian church wasn\u2019t perfect. They had a problem. A big problem. And it grew to such an epic proportion that it poisoned the church in various ways. Paul wrote to provide the antidote. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In this study, we\u2019re going to explore Paul\u2019s solution to both the problems in Corinth and in us. Through his words, we\u2019ll learn more about Jesus\u2019s plan for a people who live radically different lives than the world around them. But we\u2019ll also take a hard look in the mirror and ask the Spirit to point out our own self-centered attitudes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Reading the Bible isn\u2019t just something we do to impress people or to check off on a to-do list. It\u2019s about getting to know God. It\u2019s about shaping every minute of our lives to reflect Jesus. It\u2019s about thinking differently in the power of the Spirit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n So as we approach each week, we\u2019ll focus on one main idea. That main idea will point us to change how we think, feel, and act. <\/p>\n\n\n\n This week, we\u2019ll see that resolving relational disunity begins in our hearts because division is a symptom of self-focus. From this main idea, we have three goals: <\/p>\n\n\n\n First Corinthians will take us on a journey. We\u2019ll look at the struggles of one of the first local churches in all of history. We\u2019ll see that the Corinthians weren\u2019t much different from us. And we\u2019ll realize that Paul\u2019s words to them still ring true today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But before we jump into 1 Corinthians, spend a few minutes writing out a short prayer to God. Ask him to use this study to change you. <\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n Open up your Bible to 1 Corinthians. Go ahead and read the entire first chapter. As you read, ask yourself this question: What was the problem in the Corinthian church?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n 1 Corinthians 1:1\u201331 (ESV): <\/p> 1\u00a0Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes, \u201cI will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.\u201d<\/p> 20\u00a0Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21\u00a0For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. 22\u00a0For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23\u00a0but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24\u00a0but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25\u00a0For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.<\/p> 26\u00a0For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27\u00a0But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28\u00a0God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, 29\u00a0so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. 30\u00a0And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31\u00a0so that, as it is written, \u201cLet the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n The Corinthian church suffered from division. We\u2019ll see it all throughout the book. The struggling church fought over leadership, spiritual gifts, food, marriage, and theology. Since the theme of disunity runs throughout the letter, it\u2019s tempting to think that was the church\u2019s problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But it wasn\u2019t. Disunity was only a symptom of a far more insidious\u2014and common\u2014 disease. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Did you catch the real issue that was going on in Corinth? It was selfishness. They were so consumed with themselves that they tried to solve their problems their own way, held on to their culture, and, as a result, blasted chasms between them and other Christians.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n No one likes to admit to selfishness\u2014 especially people who claim to follow Jesus. But it often sneaks into our lives in ways we don\u2019t readily see. And then it spills over in ways we never expect. For the Corinthians, their selfishness led to severe divisions in the church. What is it for us? We\u2019ll spend the rest of the study unpacking that very question.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now that we know the main problem Paul\u2019s tackling in 1 Corinthians, take a moment to be honest with God. Write down any fears or concerns you have about confronting the problem of selfishness. Ask God to use this study to turn your gaze to him.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-224001","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1corinthians"],"yoast_head":"\n
by whom all things were created,
and for whom we live.
And there is one Lord, Jesus Christ,
through whom all things were created,
and through whom we live.<\/span><\/p>1 Corinthians 8 (NLT)<\/strong><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
2\u00a0To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:
3\u00a0Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4\u00a0I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, 5\u00a0that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge\u2014 6\u00a0even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you\u2014 7\u00a0so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8\u00a0who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9\u00a0God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
10\u00a0I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. 11\u00a0For it has been reported to me by Chloe\u2019s people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. 12\u00a0What I mean is that each one of you says, \u201cI follow Paul,\u201d or \u201cI follow Apollos,\u201d or \u201cI follow Cephas,\u201d or \u201cI follow Christ.\u201d 13\u00a0Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? 14\u00a0I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15\u00a0so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name. 16\u00a0(I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) 17\u00a0For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.
18\u00a0For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19\u00a0For it is written, <\/p>