1 Corinthians 10:14-11:2, Called to Edify
Theological Proposition/Focus: It is all about God and therefore it is all about what God wants not what an individual wants.
Homiletical Proposition/Application: The call of a Christian is a call to give up anything and everything needed in order to edify the body.
Introduction:
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Text: 1 Corinthians 10:14-11:2
Setting the Stage:
As a church we have used the phrase otherish. When we use that phrase we remind ourselves that we are called to put others first. I want to suggest to you that the cure to so many of our problems is putting others first but it is so hard to do. You see it goes against our nature. For the church in Corinth their insistence on factionalism was destroying their fellowship. One item that Paul particularly wanted to deal with was the Corinthians question about food offered to idols. Paul had dealt with this already once in Chapter 8 where he reminded the Corinthians that knowledge was not all it is cracked up to be. Love for others should drive us to be considerate. Now Paul comes back to the issue of food offered to idolatry and offers a deeper analysis of the issues involved while simultaneously establishing a principle, we are called to edify the body.
Preview: As christ followers we have a great responsibility and so we must be careful that we are asking the right questions so that our decision making encourages others to follow Christ.
Body
The call to follow Christ brings with it a great deal of responsibility. (14-22)
Remember, Paul has already addressed food offered to idolatry in chapter 8. Paul's entire argument in chapter 8 was something like "be careful that nothing you do causes your brother to stumble." Now Paul is going to dig in to the question again but from a different angle. In the first half of chapter 10 Paul reminded the Corinthians that Israel, despite having every advantage still fell for idolatry. I think that Paul's point is that sin is sneaky and easy to fall into. It is from this background that Paul reopens the case of idolatry. Verse 14 is a reminder, it is easy for Christians to fall into idolatry without even realizing how far they have slipped. The solution is to flea. Corinthians need to remember is that
Those who follow Christ are part of something much bigger than themselves. (14-17)
As followers of Christ we are joined together as the body of Christ. Last week we celebrated the Lord's Supper together. In celebrating the Lord's supper we are reminded that we are individually and corporately bound together with Christ. We are a community and thing that unites us is the the death of Christ. The word that the NIV translates as Participation is the greek word κοινωνία. This Greek word carries the idea of fellowship, brotherly unity, a deep bond. At our church we don't call the Lord's Supper communion because there is some baggage associated with the term communion, but I want us also to realize that in making that choice we are also losing something. In the Lord's supper we are we should have κοινωνία. Why, because we are part of something far bigger than just our individual preferences or desires. Paul will deal more thoroughly with the Lord's Supper later, but for now Paul wants us too remember that the Lord's Supper is a visible reminder of the fellowship to which we belong.
With this in mind Paul moves onto a truth that deserves some special attention.
There is a reality sitting behind our version of reality that must always be considered. (18-20)
Paul begins with an important principle. We join ourselves together when we do things together. Maybe that is advisor to you but I think it is a little more profound than we sometimes consider. When you participate in something you identify with that something. Verse 18 reminds us that when the Israelites made sacrifice at the alter they were participating and identifying with whatever the alter represented. In the case of Corinth, the people who in their knowledge that an idol was not a real God opted to join together with an activity that was idol worship were in fact participating in idol worship. More than that, while the idol was in fact nothing, there is a spiritual reality that sits behind the idol and the people were becoming participants in that very reality. I really think this is a deep idea that is pretty simple. Our knowledge can get us into a lot of trouble because even though something may be nothing, that does not mean that participation with that nothing is nothing.
Let me give you an immediate application. In two days many people are going to celebrate Halloween. Some of us will dress up and go Trick or Treating and have a grand time. However, we need to be careful that as we participate we ensure that at no point are we in fact participating in that which is occult. We may know that ghosts, goblins, etc are nothing but that does not mean that there is not great evil sitting behind that nothing! Be careful!
In fact, in general, we need to make sure that we realize that
Those who follow Christ need to choose Christ. (21-22)
The issue is not a contrast between pagan and Christian meals (that is what it looks like on the surface). No, what Paul is pointing out is that sitting behind that surface level issue, the issue is a contrast between the Lord and demons. The issue is not an issue of being strong enough that you can be part of something evil without falling. The issue is allowing any part of your allegiance to be to anything that is opposed to God. We must be discerning!
Image: Hidden Agenda
Have you ever worked with someone who has a hidden agenda? Sometimes it can be good, sometimes it can be bad, I guess it depends on the agenda. Once you start working with someone who has a hidden agenda you begin to realize that there are all sorts of seemingly innocent things that are not so innocent but actually part of the agenda. We need to realize that the devil has an agenda.
2 Corinthians 11:13-15 states "13 For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve."
Satan wants to destroy you, to trick you into worshipping him instead of Christ. I am convinced that Satan is clever enough he can trick you into practices that in fact bring no honor to Christ at all. In Corinth Satan had tricked Christians into what was essentially demon worship convincing them that they were demonstrating spiritual strength by showing that they could eat food offered to an idol because they were so spiritually strong. Think about it for just a moment. Satan had literally tricked the Corinthians into worshipping demons thinking they were in fact demonstrating spiritual maturity!
MTR: Carefully examine your practices and ask "are my regular practices consistent with a Christ-honoring agenda?"
The call to follow Christ is a call to ask the right questions. (23-24)
Stop asking the question "is this behavior allowed?" (23)
Start asking the question "is this beneficial?" (23)
Start asking the question "is this constructive?" (23)
Start looking out for others. (24)
Image: There are bad questions and in most cases bad questions are self-centered.
MTR: Start asking the right questions.
Three basic principles can be sued to guide the Christ Follower in their decision-making process. (25-33)
Principle 1: You are not free to do whatever you want, you are free to serve Christ. (25-27)
Principle 2: You may need to give up some pretty obvious freedoms for the sake of others. (28-30)
Principle 3: The glory of God, good of many, and salvation of others are your guiding principles. (31-33)
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MTR: Evaluate your decisions through the lens of a Christ Follower.
Our aim is to be able to say "Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ. (11:1)
Here is what it all comes down to. If you want to know if a particular activity is allowed you really can ask yourself this question. Can/should others follow me as I participate. If the answer is no, then we have a problem.
