"But in the following instructions I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for the better but for the worse. For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part, for there must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized."
How pitiful it would be for a Christian to faithfully go to church week after week, even multiple times a week and for God to say to him, "Your going to church was a waste of time," or perhaps closer to the text, "Your going to church hurt your walk with Me." Such a statement would be devastating, but the seriousness of these instructions warrants the severity of the warning.
The Corinthians were observing the Lord’s Table (or communion) in a fashion that was so damaging that it made church attendance counterproductive. Before addressing the specific problems with their observance of the Lord’s Table, Paul shows us the foundational problem—divisions among the believers.
Verse eighteen says, "when you come together as a church, . . . there are divisions among you." They were coming together, and yet they were not together. The divisions mentioned in earlier chapters were among factions within the church. Groups of believers had aligned themselves with this or that person. But here the divisions are social and economic. People were allowing what they had to make a clear distinction between them and their fellow believers.
There are some distinctions that are natural and beneficial. For example, there are some people in churches who passionately follow after God. When they come to church, they sing from their heart, and throughout the week you can see that God has done something special and humanly unexplainable in their lives. Other people in churches profess to know God, but when you look at their lives, you cannot see anything different in their lives from the life of an unbeliever. That kind of natural distinction must be recognized because it helps us know how to better minister to the different types of people in our church. However, separating believers on the basis of something as spiritually irrelevant as economic status, is in no way beneficial. In fact, those kind of distinctions can make church attendance worthless.
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
1 Corinthians 11:16
"If anyone is inclined to be contentious, we have no such practice, nor do the churches of God."
Does this mean 1) if some people don’t agree, don’t be contentious about this issue, just let it be, or does this mean 2) don’t be contentious about this issue, simply obey? I think that the second interpretation is intention of the statement, but I also believe that the first is true.
The text seems to be urging the people not to resist obeying. We might say "This is our practice regarding head coverings; it is not our practice to be contentious, so don’t be." That being said, if some disagree (as most do), I should not be contentious either. Whether or not others should do this or that is not as important to me as doing right personally. God does not hold me accountable for other people’s choices; He holds me accountable for my choices.
Does this mean 1) if some people don’t agree, don’t be contentious about this issue, just let it be, or does this mean 2) don’t be contentious about this issue, simply obey? I think that the second interpretation is intention of the statement, but I also believe that the first is true.
The text seems to be urging the people not to resist obeying. We might say "This is our practice regarding head coverings; it is not our practice to be contentious, so don’t be." That being said, if some disagree (as most do), I should not be contentious either. Whether or not others should do this or that is not as important to me as doing right personally. God does not hold me accountable for other people’s choices; He holds me accountable for my choices.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
1 Corinthians 11:13-15
"Judge for yourselves: is it proper for a wife to pray to God with her head uncovered? Does not nature itself teach you that if a man wears long hair it is a disgrace for him, but if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For her hair is given to her for a covering."
This is the point where many people discussing the issue of head coverings, mistakenly assert that the hair is the covering and that coverings on top of the hair are not needed, citing "her hair is given to her for a covering." However, the fact that God gave women hair for a covering is being used here to support the assertion that they ought to put something over their hair during public worship.
We might restate it this way, "See, it is natural for wives to wear a head covering when they pray. Look at the way men and women are made. It's natural and beautiful for women to have longer hair than men. God designed women to be this way, and the design points to the fact that they should wear a covering in public worship."
This is the point where many people discussing the issue of head coverings, mistakenly assert that the hair is the covering and that coverings on top of the hair are not needed, citing "her hair is given to her for a covering." However, the fact that God gave women hair for a covering is being used here to support the assertion that they ought to put something over their hair during public worship.
We might restate it this way, "See, it is natural for wives to wear a head covering when they pray. Look at the way men and women are made. It's natural and beautiful for women to have longer hair than men. God designed women to be this way, and the design points to the fact that they should wear a covering in public worship."
Friday, March 28, 2008
1 Corinthians 11:10-12
That is why a wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. 11 Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man of woman; 12 for as woman was made from man, so man is now born of woman. And all things are from God.
Men have a strong inclination to be corrupted by power and authority. This tendency can easily lead an authority figure to take advantage of those under his leadership. Caring more for his personal comfort than the wellbeing of those he leads a boss, government official, pastor, or husband can think of himself as important and others as unimportant—after all he is the one who makes the decisions. God makes it clear in these verses that we are equal before Him.
Though women were made for men, men would not be around without women. We need each other. The man who thinks himself better than women because of what the Bible says about men and women in not treating Scripture properly. God made us so that we needed each other and more importantly He made us so that we need Him. God is the superior one. He is the creator and sustainer.
Men have a strong inclination to be corrupted by power and authority. This tendency can easily lead an authority figure to take advantage of those under his leadership. Caring more for his personal comfort than the wellbeing of those he leads a boss, government official, pastor, or husband can think of himself as important and others as unimportant—after all he is the one who makes the decisions. God makes it clear in these verses that we are equal before Him.
Though women were made for men, men would not be around without women. We need each other. The man who thinks himself better than women because of what the Bible says about men and women in not treating Scripture properly. God made us so that we needed each other and more importantly He made us so that we need Him. God is the superior one. He is the creator and sustainer.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
1 Corinthians 11:7-9
"For a man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God, but woman is the glory of man. For man was not made from woman, but woman from man. Neither was man created for woman, but woman for man."
We need to acknowledge the truth and give heed to it, even if it flies in the face of our culture. Husband and wife are equals before God, our culture accepts this, and later verses testify to this truth. But these verses show us that equal does not necessarily mean the same. God had different reasons for creating men and women, and because of God’s design, men and women have different roles and find deeper fulfillment in doing what each was designed for.
Recognizing man’s need, God created woman for man. She was designed to complement or complete him. In a marriage relationship a woman who supports her husband publicly and privately does bring glory to her husband. The husband also has a responsibility to make the wife better by leading her in the right direction, but man’s primary responsibility is to glorify God. This is the wife’s responsibility too, but one of the main ways she does this by honoring her husband.
The wife wearing a head covering is a symbol of her recognition of this relationship. The symbol is important, but the underlying relationship and heart attitude is far more important.
We need to acknowledge the truth and give heed to it, even if it flies in the face of our culture. Husband and wife are equals before God, our culture accepts this, and later verses testify to this truth. But these verses show us that equal does not necessarily mean the same. God had different reasons for creating men and women, and because of God’s design, men and women have different roles and find deeper fulfillment in doing what each was designed for.
Recognizing man’s need, God created woman for man. She was designed to complement or complete him. In a marriage relationship a woman who supports her husband publicly and privately does bring glory to her husband. The husband also has a responsibility to make the wife better by leading her in the right direction, but man’s primary responsibility is to glorify God. This is the wife’s responsibility too, but one of the main ways she does this by honoring her husband.
The wife wearing a head covering is a symbol of her recognition of this relationship. The symbol is important, but the underlying relationship and heart attitude is far more important.
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