Beloved, I am glad to share with you today the above theme from 1 Co 16:1 and following. Indeed, the decree we are examining does not pronounce on the nature of the things defended, but takes care of their expediency, the Gentiles having in fact had the habit of doing all these things. It should be noted that these practices were not things defended by law alone; they were either contrary to the established order of the Creator God, or contrary to a defense made of Noah when the meat was given to him to eat. The woman was to have a relationship with man only in the sanctity of marriage, and this is a great blessing; life belonged to God; all communion with idols was an outrage against the authority of the true God.
Let Moses teach his own laws; but these things were contrary to the intelligent knowledge of the true God. What the decree contains, therefore, is not a new law imposed by Christianity, nor an accommodation to the prejudices of the Jews: the decree does not have the same kind of validity as a moral ordinance, obligatory in itself; but it is the expression, for christian intelligence, of the terms of man’s true relationship with God, in the things of nature. If one acts in such a way as to make it seem that it is irrelevant for man to recognize that life belongs to God or the opposite, I still sin if I accept or sanction this way of doing things.
For we are not defiled by the thing I eat, but I lack Christian understanding of the rights of the Creator God. As for fornication, it also falls into the category of offenses against Christian purity, as well as offenses against the order of the Creator God; so that this is directly about good or evil and not just about God’s rights revealed to my mind. This was important as a general principle, more than in the detail of the things themselves. In short here are the established principles: Purity through marriage according to the institution of God at the origin (the fact that life belongs to God) the unity of God as the only true God. In other words: God; life; and God’s ordinance for man, from the beginning. The same is true of the foundations that the assembly lays as the basis of its decree: “He seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us.”
In relation to practice, the assembly in Corinth was in a very poor state; and, being asleep as to justice, the enemy sought to mislead it also as to faith. However, as a body, it kept the foundations of truth, and as for the external spiritual power, it shone with great brilliance. The apostle, in his epistle, had dealt with the disorder that reigned among these faithful, and his spirit had been relieved to some extent by fulfilling this duty of fidelity to them, for after all they were Christians and an assembly of God. In the last chapter, Paul speaks to the Corinthians with this feeling, although he could not bring himself to go to Corinth, because he had intended to visit them by going to Macedonia first, and a second time by returning from this land.
He does not say here why he did not go to Corinth on his way to Macedonia, and he speaks with uncertainty about his stay in Corinth when he arrived there on his return from Macedonia: if the Lord allowed it, he said, he would spend some time with the Corinthians. The second epistle will explain all this to us. In the state in which the Corinthians were, his heart did not allow the apostle to visit them; but he nevertheless treats them with tenderness, as Christians still beloved, giving them directions that suited the circumstances of the moment.
They were to make a collection for the poor saints of Jerusalem, as had been agreed with the apostles when Paul, recognized as an apostle of the Gentiles, left Jerusalem. The apostle did not want this collection to be done in haste when he arrived; but everyone had to set something aside, every week, to the extent of his prosperity: then Paul would send to Jerusalem the people the Corinthians would choose, or he would take them with him if he were to go to Jerusalem himself.
Paul thought he would stay until Pentecost in Ephesus, where a great door had been opened to him, and where there were many adversaries. If these two things: “the open door” and “the opposition” go together, that’s a reason to stay there. The open door is, on God’s part, an encouragement that commits us to action; the activity of the adversaries makes this necessary in relation to the enemy. A closed door is something other than opposition. For men do not listen when the door is closed.
The following verses have been compiled for your edification and grouped together for your better understanding.
- The authority of the Church
Mt 16:19 I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven: what you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and what you untie on earth will be untied in heaven. John 20:23 Those to whom you forgive sins will be forgiven; and those to whom you will hold them, they will be held away from them. Acts 16:4 As they passed through the cities, they recommended that the brethren observe the decisions of the apostles and elders of Jerusalem. Heb 13:17 Obey your leaders and have deference for them, for they watch over your souls as they should account for them; so be it, that they may do so with joy, and not with groaning, which would be of no benefit to you.
- The Duty of Charity
-The order of Moses: Dt 15:12-14 If one of your Hebrew brethren, man or woman, sells himself to you, he will serve you six years; but in the seventh year you will send him home free from home. 13 And when thou shat return him free from your home, thou shat not return him empty; 14 Thou shat of gifts of your cattle menu, of thy area, of one’s press, of what thou shady by the blessing of jehovah thy God.
-The counsel of the wise man: Pr 25:21 If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat; If he is thirsty, give him water to drink. Isaiah 11:1 Then a branch will come out of the trunk of Isai, and an offspring will be born from his roots. Lk 21:2-4 He also saw a poor widow, who put two small coins in it. 3 And he said: I tell you in truth, this poor widow has put more than all the others; 4 for it is from their superfluous that all these have put offerings in the trunk, but she has put of her necessities, everything she had to live on.
-Liberality in the Church Acts 4:34-35 For there were no needy among them: all those who owned fields or houses sold them, brought the price of what they had sold, 35 and placed it at the feet of the apostles; and distributions were made to each one according to whom he needed it. Acts 11:29 The disciples resolved to send, each according to his means, help to the brethren who inhabited Judea. 2 Co 8:2 In the midst of many tribulations that have tried them, their overflowing joy and deep poverty have produced with abundance rich gifts on their part. Phil 4:16 you were the only ones to do so, for you were already sending me to Thessaloniki, and twice, enough to provide for my needs.
- Biblical Rules Regarding Gifts
-According to the income Dt 16:17 Everyone will give what he can, according to the blessings that Jehovah your God has bestowed upon him. Mt 5:42 Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.
-Without ostentation Mt 6:3 But when you give alms, let your left hand not know what your right is doing,
-Free Mt 10:8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, purify the lepers, cast out demons. You have received for free, give for free. Lk 6:38 Give, and it will be given to you: a good measure shall be poured into your womb, tightened, shaken and overflowing; for you shall be measured with the measure which you have used. Lek 12:33 Sell what you have, and give it as alms. Make yourself purses that do not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven, where the thief does not approach, and where the ringworm does not destroy.
-With simplicity Rom 12:8 and the one who exhorts to exhortation. Let him who gives do so with generosity; let the presiding president do so zealously; may he who practices mercy do so with joy.
-Regularly, every week 1 Co 16:2 Let each of you, on the first day of the week, set apart at home what he can, according to his prosperity, so that they do not wait for my arrival to collect the gifts.
-With joy 2 Co 9:7 Let everyone give as he has resolved in his heart, without sadness or constraint; for God loves the one who gives with joy.
- Vigilance against sin and temptation
Dt 4:9 Only, beware of yourself and watch carefully over your soul, every day of your life, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and that they come out of your heart; teach them to your children and to your children’s children. Ps 39:2 I said: I will watch over my ways, Lest I sin by my tongue; I will put a brake on my mouth, as long as the villain is in front of me. Mt 26:41 Watch and pray, that you may not fall into temptation; the spirit is well disposed, but the flesh is weak. Acts 20:31,therefore, Thy, remembering that for three years I have not ceased night and day to exhort each one of you with tears. 1 Co 10:12-13 So let him who thinks he is standing beware of falling! 13 No temptation has occurred to you that has not been human, and God, who is faithful, will not allow you to be tempted beyond your strength; but with temptation he will also prepare the way out, so that you can bear it. Col 4:2 Persevere in prayer, watch over it with thanksgiving. 1 P 5.8 Be sober, watch. Your adversary, the devil, prowls like a roaring lion, looking for who he will devour.
From all of the above, we note that God does not act to attract attention. For if God acts, the activity of the enemy is only a reason not to abandon the work. He had engaged Apollos, who had already been blessed to them, to go to them, and he thought that he might still be useful to them: he was not afraid that Apollos would move him into the hearts of the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 16:12). But Apollos shared Paul’s sentiments; he was not willing to recognize or seem to support by his presence what prevented the apostle from going to Corinth, especially since there were people there who wanted to use his name to make it the standard of a party in the assembly. Free in his movements, Apollos wanted to act according to the judgment that the Lord would give him to form. It can be noted that Paul, as other passages show, used someone to write his epistles; the one at the Galatians is an exception. He noted the accuracy of the epistles sent to the assemblies by writing, in his own hand, the greeting at the end; he thus showed the importance he attached to the accuracy of their verbal content, and confirmed the principle of exact inspiration. His heart is poured out (1 Corinthians 16:24), and he consoles himself in that he can recognize all Corinthians in love. The apostle warns them; but in fact, in the most serious cases of sin spoken of in this epistle, in cases where the discipline of God was exercised, where that of man had to be applied, the guilty are regarded as Christians. In addition, the apostle pronounces anathema against those who did not love the Lord Jesus. It is sweet, after the faithful correction of all abuses, made with anguish of heart, to see the spirit of the apostle enter by grace into the enjoyments of charity in his relations with the Corinthians. Our prayers sustain you in the enjoyment of charity, in the name of Jesus.
PRAYER OF ACCEPTANCE OF JESUS CHRIST AS LORD AND PERSONAL SAVIOR
I now invite every person who wants to become a new creation by walking in the truth, to pray with me the following prayer:
Lord Jesus, I have long walked in the lusts of the world ignoring your love for humans. I admit to having sinned against you and ask your forgiveness for all my sins, because today I have decided to give you my life by taking you as Lord and personal Savior. I recognize that you died on the cross of Calvary and rose from the dead for me.
I am now saved and born again by the power of the Holy Spirit. Lead me every day to the eternal life that you give to all who obey your Word. Reveal yourself to me and strengthen my heart and faith, so that your light may be shining in my life right now.
Thank you, Lord Jesus for accepting me into your divine family, so that I may also contemplate the wonders of your kingdom.
I will now choose a nearby watering point to baptize myself by immersion, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
All adoration, power and glory are yours, now and forever and ever. Amen!
I would be happy to respond to any questions and comments you may have, before sharing with you tomorrow on “Paul and his afflictions.”
May the Lord Jesus Christ bless you abundantly.
David Feze, Servant of the Almighty God.