1 Corinthians 10:12-22 The Cup of the Lord Alone
Format for Your Devotions
Instructions: Do not read my example devotion until you have completed your own devotional time in the scriptures. Reading my thoughts first may limit your own understanding. Let the Holy Spirit speak to you alone before looking to see what anyone else has to say, whether it is me, a Bible commentary, or a friend. Let God speak to you before you let another person speak to you. I have provided a format, but modify it to fit your needs. For example, I usually combine my application and prayer together talking to God about the application to my own life. You can go through this devotion process mentally, speaking out loud, or in writing as you wish. Don’t worry if you are not following this process exactly. Sometimes, I add extra information and sometimes I emphasize one part more than others. However, you should always think about what you learn about God from this passage.
Step 1: Pray–Ask for the Holy Spirit’s guidance first of all and that God may reveal the lessons that He wants you to have that day. Request that God protect you from Satan’s distractions (and the devil will try to distract you whether it is pinching the baby or putting you to sleep). Ask to see God more clearly as you read and think about the passage.
Step 2: Read the passage–Read to get an overview of the information first. Then start looking at specific parts after the first reading. You may read a larger or smaller section than I have here because you do not have to follow my organization at all.
Step 3: Understand the passage–You can summarize, ask and answer your own questions about the passage, visualize the story, analyze the characters, and relate this passage to other scriptures and personal experiences.
Step 4: What does this reveal about God?–What do you learn about the Father, Son, and/or Holy Spirit from this passage?
Step 5: Apply this to your own life.
Step 6: Prayer
My Example Devotion: March 3, 2020 1 Corinthians 10:12-22
Note: In the devotion examples, I leave my questions and thought processes in the text because I am trying to demonstrate that a devotional time is a dialogue with God about what you are reading from His word. As such, any questions or ideas that you have should be explored by talking it out with God. These example devotions are not my attempts to teach you what the meaning of a particular scripture is. They are an attempt to teach you the process of devotions, which is a combination of prayer and Bible study where you explore ideas with God as you read His word.
Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry. I speak as to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread. Consider the people of Israel: are not those who eat the sacrifices participants in the altar? What do I imply then? That food offered to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be participants with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. Shall we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than he?
(Understanding the Text) Originally, I thought that Paul was saying that it was okay to eat meat offered to idols because they were not real, but that we shouldn’t because it might hurt some Christians who still associated their past worship of idols with eating the meat. Actually, Paul was truly saying this message, but it was not his only argument against eating meat offered to idols. He now brings out another argument for why people should not eat such meat.
Paul starts out by saying that there is no temptation that others have not been faced with before and that God will always provide a way out of the temptation. Then Paul says that he is about to give them a logical argument. He says that when we drink the cup and eat the bread of communion it is part of our worship of God which shows our solidarity with Jesus’ sacrifice and our connection with each other in that we are Jesus’ body. Then he goes back to the old temple worship service. He points out that eating part of the sacrifice makes them part of the worship of Yahweh. Paul says that in eating meat that is part of idol worship, the eater becomes a participant in that worship, not because idols are gods, but because there are demons behind the idol worship. Thus, the meat eater takes part in a ceremony that honors a demon in place of God. Thus, it is a form of idol worship, even though the eater does not believe in the idol.
(Application) I think this is like when I used to read rotten books but make a judgement that something was not worthy of attention. I thought that I was not participating in the rotten behavior expressed in the writing, but in reality I was. I was being corrupted by reading it, even when I was distancing myself from the meaning. Too many times we think we can participate and distance ourselves without being corrupted not realizing that life simply doesn’t work that way. Eventually, we are corrupted. I guess the same is true of movies also. We watch sinful actions and think that it doesn’t matter because we personally have not and would never choose such actions, but we don’t realize that we are being corrupted by the very act of watching.
(Revelation of God) Paul puts down the idea that we in our own wisdom know better than God what is good for us. We are not stronger than God to tell Him what we judge is best. Instead, we need to respect that God loves us and wants what is best for us and KNOWS what is best far better than anything our own human wisdom and power can think of.
(Application) Too many times, we sit down to eat with demons in this world. Sometimes, we do so unknowingly, but most times the Spirit has convicted us that there is something wrong, and we just ignore His counsel. Idol worship, sexual immorality, longing for a past sinful life, and arrogance that places one’s own knowledge and trust in one’s own abilities above those around and even above God are the sins of the Corinthians and the sins of humans. Paul diagnoses that problem as being a mixture of these four issues and calls it sitting down to dine with demons. It is in humility that we have wisdom. It is in looking to Jesus that we realize the beauty of our present lives over our past lives. It is in self-control that we are free to have pleasure, and it is in limiting our actions that we are free of the taint of idol worship.
(Application / Prayer) My application for myself is that I need to listen when the Spirit tells me not to do something, even when I don’t quite understand with my intelligence what the problem is. I need to look to Jesus for my satisfaction. I pray to be one with You in all my life and to realize the beauties around me so that I do not long for the ugliness of the past. I pray for the humility that does not strive to take away someone else’s rightful privileges and the ability to work for You without becoming arrogant thinking that it is my own talent that brings success.