We talked yesterday about the internal consequences of pride. Pride has a wider effect than the corruption of our hearts, though. It can cause us to harm other Christians, which is exactly what happened in Corinth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Read 1 Corinthians 8:7-13.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 7<\/strong> However, not all believers know this. Some are accustomed to thinking of idols as being real, so when they eat food that has been offered to idols, they think of it as the worship of real gods, and their weak consciences<\/em> are violated. <\/span>8<\/strong> It\u2019s true that we can\u2019t win God\u2019s approval by what we eat. We don\u2019t lose anything if we don\u2019t eat it, and we don\u2019t gain anything if we do.<\/span><\/p> 9<\/strong> But you must be careful so that your freedom does not cause others with a weaker conscience<\/em> to stumble. 10<\/strong> For if others see you\u2014with your \u201csuperior knowledge\u201d\u2014eating in the temple of an idol, won\u2019t they be encouraged to violate their conscience<\/em> by eating food that has been offered to an idol? 11<\/strong> So because of your superior knowledge, a weak believer for whom Christ died will be destroyed. 12<\/strong> And when you sin against other believers by encouraging them to do something they believe is wrong, you are sinning against Christ. 13<\/strong> So if what I eat causes another believer to sin, I will never eat meat again as long as I live\u2014for I don\u2019t want to cause another believer to stumble.<\/p>1 Corinthians 8 (NLT)<\/strong><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Paul uses the word syneidesis<\/em>, which we translate as \u201cconscience,\u201d three times in just seven verses. As our English translation implies, Paul\u2019s talking about the part of our brain that distinguishes between right and wrong. He repeats the word three times to emphasize his point\u2014violating your conscience as a Christian is a sin. If we think something\u2019s wrong and do it, we sinned against God.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some of the Corinthians evidently knew what we read yesterday\u2014that idols aren\u2019t real gods. They took their freedom in Christ as a free ticket to dine at the pagan temples with their friends. Some people in the church thought their practices were wrong, but, since they saw their friends doing it, they felt pressured to join in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Those who were eating meat sacrificed to idols didn\u2019t see the harm they were causing to other Christians. Paul says that to lead another Christian to act against his or her conscience is to lead them into sin. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In their pride, the Corinthians thought they, as free people in Christ, could do whatever they wanted with no consequences. But they were actually pushing people to go against their conscience, which\u2014for those people\u2014were sins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is part of the gray areas we talked about in the sermon. There are things\u2014such as media intake, alcohol consumption, or the price of our newest outfit\u2014that might not trip our conscience. But it does trigger someone else\u2019s.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Think about what those gray areas might be for you. Take TV for example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What shows are you okay with watching? Does your enthusiasm for a show pressure other Christians to watch it?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n As people who risk living an others-centered life, our goal should be to live in such a way that other Christians can look on and follow suit with a clear conscience. That might mean giving up drinking in public or buying less expensive jewelry or keeping off political Facebook threads. It might mean sacrificing for the sake of other Christians. <\/p>\n\n\n\n What could you do to consider other Christians\u2019 consciences the next time you sit down to do something with a friend?\u00a0<\/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":" We talked yesterday about the internal consequences of pride. Pride has a wider effect than the corruption of our hearts, though. It can cause us to harm other Christians, which is exactly what happened in Corinth. Read 1 Corinthians 8:7-13.\u00a0 7 However, not all believers know this. Some are accustomed to thinking of idols 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-224003","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1corinthians"],"yoast_head":"\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>