Glory Be To God

Posted on by korgrocker

“So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Don’t give offence to Jews or Gentiles or the church of God. I, too, try to please everyone in everything I do. I don’t just do what is best for me; I do what is best for others so that many may be saved.”
1 Corinthians 10:31-33 NLT

In Christ, we are free. Jesus said that in John 8:36, “So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free”. A bit later on in John’s Gospel, Jesus also said, “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life” (John 10:10). However, there are several considerations that have so far emerged in the 1 Corinthians letter, as we enjoy the freedom we have been granted in our “rich and satisfying life”. 

The first is that everything we do should be done with God in mind. For the Corinthians, this initially focused on food offered to idols, but Paul expanded this to include everything we are involved in, adding a catch-all. In 1 Corinthians 6:12, Paul wrote, “You say, “I am allowed to do anything”—but not everything is good for you. And even though “I am allowed to do anything,” I must not become a slave to anything”. This can be true in several ways, as we are adept at forming habits, which can be both beneficial and detrimental. Because of sin, bad habits often prevail, and we must be vigilant to avoid falling into this trap.  

Another consideration is the impact our behaviour has on other believers. Paul particularly highlighted offending Jews and Gentiles, something very sensitive in those days, because the church in Corinth would have had people from both backgrounds in the church there. In modern churches here in the UK, there is no longer the same issue, but we must still be aware of other sensitivities. In the church I attend, there are several lovely Nigerian families, but their culture is very different to mine, and because of that, I have to be very sensitive to their backgrounds. 

Yet another consideration concerns offending the church of God. This is very easy to do, as we mix with other fellowship groups, movements and denominations. There are a plethora of beliefs in Christianity, and some are deeply cherished by their adherents. I used to live near a family with cessationist beliefs that clashed with my own continuationist beliefs, and care had to be adopted as we discussed the things of God. And then there are differences in liturgies and even versions of the Bible, with some Christians including the books of the Apocrypha in their churches, even though most don’t, something that can perhaps cause a conflict in theology.

So Paul’s approach was to try his best to please everyone. But in many ways, this was something that Paul wasn’t very good at, if the physical abuse he suffered is anything to go by. The overriding factor for Paul was the phrase, “I do what is best for others so that many may be saved”. The sad thing was that most people in the Mediterranean lands, as is the case today throughout the world, have a different view of what is best for them. People generally prefer to live their sinful lives without anyone pointing out to them the eternal consequences of such a choice. And so believers will experience pushbacks from the very people who would benefit from their message of the Good News about Christ.

Today, it is the behaviour of Christians that speaks the loudest to the unbelievers in our society. There is an old saying, “Preach the Gospel and if necessary use words”, and although only partly true, this has a point. A common objection heard from those invited to attend a church service is that the congregation there is full of hypocrites. A sad indictment, which unfortunately can be true. But Jesus said, “In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father” (Matthew 5:16). Paul wrote about the connection between our salvation and good works in Ephesians 2:9-10, “Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago”. It is a fact that in the UK, most charities have a Christian influence, as the good deeds being performed by Christians demonstrate their faith in God.

But in all that we do, we do it for the glory of God. This includes not only our good deeds but also the way we conduct our lives. Paul wrote, “My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). A believer who lives their life trusting in God will shine like a beacon in a world that is lost and dying. They will be a beacon that will shine with God’s glory everywhere.

Dear Heavenly Father. Please help us shine for You today, so that Your glory is reflected everywhere we go. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Honourable Behaviour (1)

Posted on by korgrocker

“Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbours. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honourable behaviour, and they will give honour to God when he judges the world.”
1 Peter 2:12 NLT

Imagine the following fictional scenario – a Christian family each Sunday walk out to their car in the drive, dressed in all their finery, carrying their Bibles, and drive off for church, returning just as immaculate a couple of hours of so later. There is the man and his wife, and two children, a boy and a girl. They are noticed by the neighbours each week, and their diligence in following their faith is well known in their community. But on a Friday night, the husband can perhaps be found in the local pub, cursing and swearing with the locals. The wife attends an activity group in the next village and is well known for her tendency to gossip. Well, these are exactly the sort of situations that we must guard against. Peter wrote, “Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbours”. Living properly means we must behave in a way that corresponds to our faith.

Jesus was scathing about hypocrisy. He hated the behaviour of people who claimed to be holy and full of faith but who were full of lies and deceit inside. In Matthew 23 we read, “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness” (Matthew 23:27-28). On my morning walk today, and after a very windy night, I came across a branch about a metre long and a few centimetres thick. Outside the branch looked all as it should be, bark intact and apparently healthy, but when I examined the inside at the point of breakage, it was rotten. I showed a dog walker and he reflected that it was a bit like society – looking good on the outside but rotten within. A cynical point of view, but perhaps he had a point. The Apostle John wrote in 1 John 4:20, “If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see”? The Apostle James wrote in James 1:26, “If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless”. There are plenty of verses in the Bible about the way we should behave, internally and externally.

The duty of all believers is to “walk the walk” and “talk the talk”. In other words, we must behave in a way that coincides with our faith. And not just how we think God wants us to behave, but in a way that our neighbours think we should behave. As an example, it isn’t necessarily wrong to have a drink at a bar with our friends, but, perhaps for the sake of an alcoholic neighbour or workmate, it might be better to avoid doing that, or at least only drink something that is alcohol free. In James 1:22, we read, “But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves”. In other words, we must behave in a way that aligns with God’s Word, because that is the way He wants us to live and for the benefit of the “unbelieving neighbour” who lives next door. Our lives sometimes will be the only manifestation of the Gospel people will see. St Francis of Assisi is credited with the quotation, “Preach the gospel at all times. And if necessary, use words“. Perhaps a very valid point when we consider “honourable behaviour”.

Dear God. We are Your representatives here on Planet Earth. Please help us to live in an honourable way so that You get all the glory. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Evil Behaviour

Posted on by korgrocker

“So get rid of all evil behaviour. Be done with all deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and all unkind speech. Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment, now that you have had a taste of the Lord’s kindness.”
1 Peter 2:1-3 NLT

Continuing his theme from the last chapter, Peter starts with a “so”. He ended the previous verse in chapter 1 with the reminder that the believers in the five provinces had heard the Good News. They had responded to the preacher and became believers, children of God. And because of that Peter introduced a “so”. There are consequences to being born again. We enter a phase in our lives where we have dual nationality. We are citizens of the country in which we are born or in which we live, but we are also citizens of the Kingdom of God. As children of God, as believers in the Word, we have responsibilities. Hence the “so”. 

As children of God we cannot continue to live our old sinful lives. Paul wrote to the Ephesian believers, “Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception” (Ephesians 4:21-22). Paul wrote “throw off”. Peter wrote “get rid of”. But the message is the same. We pilgrims, regardless of how long we have been believers, must clean up our lives and live as we would expect the children of the living God to behave. So how to we go about this? Paul continued in Ephesians 4:23-24, “Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy”. We can’t clean up our lives on our own. After all, we read in Jeremiah 17:9-10a, “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? But I, the Lord, search all hearts …”. Only the Holy Spirit will bring about a transformation in our lives, but we have our responsibilities as well. We listen to the gentle whisperings of the Holy Spirit within us, and say a massive “Yes!” in response. It may take a while to reprogram our minds to conform to God’s way but persevere we must, because only He knows what is best for us.

Grace is a wonderful quality, and one that, coupled with love, will go a long way to correct our “evil behaviour”. We must think before we respond because in that way we allow God to help us to avoid, for example the “unkind speech” that Peter wrote about. Our tongues can be a constant problem to us, as James wrote in his letter. “Indeed, we all make many mistakes. For if we could control our tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other way … In the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches. But a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire. And among all the parts of the body, the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting your entire body. It can set your whole life on fire, for it is set on fire by hell itself” (James 3:2,5-6).

We must also align our thoughts to God’s ways. Paul wrote in Romans 8:5-6, “Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace“.

The wonderful thing is that our relationship with our Heavenly Father is not benign and unfruitful. It is active and transforming. He is a loving Father who wants the best for all His children.

Father God. We embrace all that You have for us. Please help us to become more like Your Son Jesus. In His name we pray. Amen.