Wednesday, August 20, 2008

1 Corinthians 8 -- Wednesday, 8/20

Today, read 1 Corinthians 8 on your own at least one time. As you read, make notes in a notebook or in the margins of your Bible. Record all of the insights God gives you. Don't read my remarks until you have first done this yourself.

Here are the insights I wrote down along with the verses they go with...

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8:1 (NKJ) Now concerning things offered to idols: We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies.

Lord, may my faith be characterized more by how it loves than by what it knows.

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8:6 (NLT) But we know that there is only one God, the Father, who created everything, and we live for him. And there is only one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom God made everything and through whom we have been given life.

Praise God that He is the one, sovereign, all-powerful God. Praise Jesus through whom God made everything and through whom we have eternal life.

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8:8 (NLT) It’s true that we can’t win God’s approval by what we eat. We don’t lose anything if we don’t eat it, and we don’t gain anything if we do.

There is no longer lists of approved and non-approved foods for believers.

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8:10 (NLT) For if others see you—with your “superior knowledge”—eating in the temple of an idol, won’t they be encouraged to violate their conscience by eating food that has been offered to an idol?

Violating your conscience is a sin even if your conscience is not well informed.

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8:12 (NLT) And when you sin against other believers by encouraging them to do something they believe is wrong, you are sinning against Christ.

If my influence causes someone to be likely to violate their conscience then I have sinned.

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8:13 (NLT) So if what I eat causes another believer to sin, I will never eat meat again as long as I live—for I don’t want to cause another believer to stumble.

The Christian life is not about me exercising my freedoms. The Christian life is about me sacrificing my freedoms to encourage others in their walk with the Lord.

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Don't forget to spend time in prayer... CHAT...

Pastor Noel

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