The last several weeks have presented challenges to getting devotionals done for the blog, but I think I have reached a point where I can once again try to bring encouragement with insights from God’s Word, thank you for your patience!

Normally we have a midweek review of the previous week’s message, but this is Thursday so this will not be a review per se, but there is a thought from last week’s message that calls for more emphasis in my mind. There was a scripture that I referred to that is an important principle for the believer seeking to honor the Lord Jesus Christ.

“So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do,

do everything for the glory of God.”

1 Corinthians 10:31

In context, Paul finished a discussion about Christian liberty with this verse.  The reference to food came from the debate as to whether a believer should eat food from a sacrifice.  Paul prefaced the conversation with, “Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial.” (10:23)  In other words there are a lot of things a believer can do, but some things don’t build up a person, in particular other people who may or may not have the same frame of thinking as you do as a believer.  This applied to what believers ate or drank when out in the marketplace or people’s homes. Paul wrote “the earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it” (10:26) to establish the truth that the food itself was not the issue. Paul admonished that a person should eat whatever is sold in the market or whatever is set before them unless the person specifically tells them this food is from a sacrifice.  Paul then says not to eat it for consideration and conscience sake of the one who told them.  Probably because they were conscientious about serving such food to the believer.

Paul was getting to a point, if in Christian freedom I can eat anything God has given for food, offered in sacrifice or not, and receive it with thanksgiving for its provision, then why am I criticized?  Verse 32 gives Paul’s reason, “Give no offense to Jews or Greeks or the church of God.” There is a greater reason for exercising thoughtfulness and even restraint in our Christian liberty and that is, so we do not present a stumbling block to non-believers or place obstacles for growth in front of young believers.  As a result we have this principle to follow in our Christian freedom: Whatever you do as a believer and follower of Jesus Christ do not let the use of your freedom cause others to doubt the truth of God so that you can faithfully bring glory to God in everything you do!

So, keep this principle in mind when deciding what you do and why you do it, so that whatever you do you do it for it for the glory of God!