This Week's Sunday School Lesson, "Use Your Knowledge To Show Your Love", 6/13/14

USE YOUR KNOWLEDGE TO SHOW YOUR LOVE

 

1 Corinthians 8:1-13

 

There were idol temples in Corinth. It was the practice that meats were offered in

those temples to the idol gods. That which was not consumed or eaten in their

service were sold in the market place. 

  

V:1. " Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that we all possess knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up."

 A. Under the Law, the Israelites were forbidden to participate in idol worship and

       and not to eat that which was offered to idols.  Num 25:2. Ps 106:28

    1. Christians have this knowledge that Christ fulfilled all the requirements of the

         Law   and we are no longer under the penalty of the law

    2. We have this knowledge that all things were made by Christ.

    3. We have this knowledge that what Christ has made clean is clean.

 B. We must be careful to not let the knowledge we have build us up to the point that

      we are unconsidered of the lack of knowledge of others.

     1. Other Christian may not have the knowledge we have and affected by the

         liberties  we exercise.

    2. There will be times when we know what do is right, but seem wrong to the

         uniformed.

 C. Whatever liberties we have should be exercised with love for our brothers and

       sisters   in Christ.

    1. All that we do should be done to build up the body of Christ.

    2. Christian love requires us to be considerate of others.

    3. Knowledge applied without love can be hurtful, harmful and a stumbling block

        to Christian unity.

 

V: 2. The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know."

 A. The pursuit of knowledge may make you think you know everything.

     1. The pursuit of knowledge may make you think when someone speaks you need

          to correct them.

     2. You will probably never know everything about any one thing.

     3. You should always  be opened to learning more.

     4. Even someone who don't know, can point you in a direction where your

         knowledge  can be increased.

 B. The moment you think you know it all is a red flag that you are puffed up.

    1. To know should include knowledge acquired by actual experience.

    2. Unless you have walked in another's shoes, you don't have all the knowledge

        to judge him.  

 

V: 3. "But the man who loves God is known by God."

 A. The man who loves God is known by others.

     1. Those who love the Lord keep His commandments.

     2. Those who love the Lord loves his brothers and sisters.

 B. God knows the hearts of those who love Him.

     1. The evidences of our love is our pursuit to edify our brother or sister with our

         action.

     2. The evidence of our love for our brothers and sisters is when we choose not to do

         what we are at liberty to do, because our actions would harm their spiritual

         growth.

 

 V:4. " So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that an idol is nothing

     at   all in the world and that there is no God but one."

 A. Idols are made by human thoughts  and their images worshiped by those who are

      ignorant of the true and living God.

     1. Spiritual mature Christians know that idols are nothing and worship of them is

         foolish.

     2. Paying any attention to the worship of idols and giving any important to them

         is harmful to Spiritual growth and maturity.

  B. Buying food in the open market that may have been sacrificed during idol worship,

       is nothing.

     1. Food that has been sacrifice to nothing has not been devalued nor made unclean.

     2. Food that was sacrificed in idol worship was made by God and made  for man's

         consumption and looses no value because of misguided practices.

 

V:5. " For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many "gods" and many "lords"),"

 A. Misguided men have called many things that God made their gods.

     1. Man deny the existence of the true and living God yet accept that which God

         made as their god.

     2. There is no power in sun, the moon  or anything God made to bless or save,

         yet some men would choose dead objects over the power of God.  

 B. God is the power of the entire creation.

    1. It is God the Father that gives us strength,

    2. It is only Jesus that saves us from our sins                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

 

 V:6. " Yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live."

 A. "Yet for us"

      1. The Lord set us apart from the world for His glory.

      2. All believers in Jesus Christ are God's elect.

      3. Some were chosen for Heaven and some were not.

      4. Some were chosen to live after God's own heart and some were not.

      5. We were not chosen to serve dead idols, but chosen to serve the living God.

 B. The believer serves one God who is the eternal Father.

     1. We are united with God through the blood of Jesus Christ.

     2. The world serves many gods. The gods of their imagination.

     3. Anything we put before God can be our idols.

 C. The God we serve is the creator of all things.

     1. God created every thing out of nothing.

     2. God the Father maintains, provides for and protects that which He created.

     3. It is through Him we live and have our being.

 

V:7. " But not everyone knows this. Some people are still so accustomed to idols that when they eat such food they think of it as having been sacrificed to an idol, and since their conscience is weak, it is defiled."

 A. The early Church was formed with believers who were trained and tutored by the

     Law.

     1. They brought with them their customs, traditions and practices under the Law

          into the Church.

     2. Those who become mature in the faith, know that idols are nothing and eating

          food offered to idols is no sin against God.

  B. There are many still weak in the faith who don't know the difference between the

       Law and Grace.

      1. When they read the Law (the first 5 books of the Bible), they are convicted by

           it and in their minds condemned by it.

      2. Those still weak in the faith, don't know that Jesus death on the cross fulfilled

          all the requirements of the Law.

          a. Jesus death on the cross redeemed us from the penalty of the Law.

          b. Jesus is the final sacrifice, once and for all times accepted by God the

              Father for  the sins of all mankind.

      3. Those who are still weak in the faith don't know that idols are nothing and

          sacrificing food to idol account for nothing.

          a. Why should we give credit to idol worshipers practices by believing

              what they do can defile anything that God has made?

          b. Food offered in idol worship cannot defile us. But it is our giving

              credit to what they do that defiles us.

 

 V:8. " But food does not bring us near to God; we are no worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do."

 A. The only thing that brings us close to God and keeps us close to God is our

      obedience  to His commands.

    1. It has been said that there are 613 commands in the Law.

    2. Jesus gave us two new commands which fulfill all the Law and the prophets.

           a. The first is the Love the Lord with all your heart, your mind and your

               strength.

           b. The second is to love your neighbor as yourself.

 B. Those who are weak in the faith do not understand how to put into

      practice the new commands of the Lord.

   1. Jesus said, "It is not what goes in to the mouth that defiles us, but what comes out

       of   the mouth that defiles us."

   2. What goes into the mouth comes out the other end.

   3. What comes out of the mouth comes from the heart.

 

 V:9. " Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak."

 A. I once saw a well known preacher drinking wine in a restaurant. Being weak in the

      faith and ignorant of the Word, I thought it was a sin against God.

    1. I read in the Word that Paul told Timothy, to stop drinking water only, but drink

        some wine for your stomach and your persistent health problems. 1 Tim 5:23

    2. Drinking wine is not the problem, but the excessive abuse of the command is the

        problem.

       a. Don't get drunk with wine is another command. Eph 5:18

 B. For those who don't know these commands and are weak in the faith, drinking wine

      is a stumbling block to their spiritual growth.

    1. Just because we have the liberty to a thing does not mean we should always

        exercise that liberty. 

    2. Someone weak in the faith, may be made weaker by our liberty.

    3. The love we have should cause us to refrain from doing that

         which is harmful to our brothers or sisters.

    4. A careful study of the Word will bring our brothers and sisters to an
 

        understanding of our Christian liberty.

       a. Understanding the Word strengthen our faith.

       b. We have this responsibility to teach the weak so they will have an

           understanding   of the Word.

 

 V:10. " For if anyone with a weak conscience sees you who have this knowledge eating in an idol's temple, won't he be emboldened to eat what has been sacrificed to idols?"

 A. The Greek work for "emboldened" means to build up.

     1. We should build up others for their good and not for bad.

     2. If someone who is weak in the faith see a mature Christian doing what he thinks

         violates God's commands, he may be moved to ignore God's commands.

     3. It is our responsibility to reframe from exercising our liberty until they are

         educated.

 B. Training in the Word is necessary for those weak in the Word to grow spiritually.

    1. We all have some growing to do.

    2. Understanding how and when to apply the principles of living given in the Word

        is important to us and to the weak.

    3. The love of our neighbors is the key to doing what is necessary to build them up.

 

 V:11. " So this weak brother, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge."

  A. Christ died for sins of all of us.

     1. We all grow into spiritual maturity at different rates and different times.

     2. God has been patient with us to allow us to grow into spiritual maturity.

  B. We must be patient and compassionate enough to allow others to grow in the

      Lord.

     1. Those weak in the faith presents an opportunities to those mature in the faith

         be role models for Christ and to teach the Word of God.

     2. When we are all on the same page, Christ will be glorified in all our actions.

 

 

 

 V:12. " When you sin against your brothers in this way and wound their weak

  conscience, you sin against Christ."

  A. We can sin by doing what is right.

      1. We harm our weak brothers by exercising Christian liberty when they don't

           understand the truth in what we are doing.

      2. Our job is to edify Christ in all our actions.

          a. Our actions become sinful when a weak brother is weaken because of what

             we  do.

          b. If we take time to teach the Word concerning what we do, than the weak 

              brother   will become stronger in the faith.

  B. In the Church, we sin against our brothers when we complain about them and point

       out their faults to others.

      1. We all have faults that need correcting.

      2. The weak brother or sister can be discouraged by our actions.

 

 V:13. " Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat

   again, so that I will not cause him to fall."

  A. Our decision to do or not to do should be based on the love of our brothers.

     1. When we only consider what we want to do, we run the risk of affecting a weak

         brother or sister.

     2. To know weather our action affect our brothers and sisters, we have to know

   

         what  they believe.

         a. We can only know a person if we spend time with him/her.

         b. Fellowship and Bible Study is the key to getting a right understanding of the

             Word.

   B. The Apostle Paul gave an example of his restraint from exercising his Christian

        liberty to edify and build up his weaker brother.

      1. How we practice Christian principles is just as important as knowledge of

          Christian principles.

      2. A religion without love is not a religion at all.

  

Rev.  M Mitchell , Ass Pastor of GMBC