1 Corinthians Chapter 6: verse 12 (NIV -UK)
“I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything.
1 Corinthians Chapter 6: verses 19-20 (NIV- UK)
Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honour God with your bodies.
Colossians Chapter 3: Verse 23 (NIV-UK)
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters…
Matthew Chapter 6: Verses 31-33 (NIV – UK)
So do not worry, saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?” For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
I’m still thinking of Sunday’s sermon – “Do you see this woman?” (Luke 7:44) It seems from Paul’s letter that people in the Corinthian church at this point felt that they could live however they chose. That they had a right to do so. Seems a bit familiar when we fast forward to today doesn’t it?
God gave us free will. We can make choices. But we have to accept the consequences of those choices, don’t we? If we have chosen to follow Jesus that means we need to follow His example. People will be watching how we react, and if they know we are Christians, they will, rightly or wrongly, expect us to behave in a certain way. Therefore, we need to always be mindful who it is we are serving. If we choose to ignore God’s teaching in order to do as we please, we are not bringing Him the glory He deserves. Paul reminded the Corinthians of the cost that had been paid by Christ for us to live as God intended. We must always remember then that by choosing that road, we must submit to the standards that God has set for us. We can’t have it both ways. In Matthew Chapter 6 verse 24 – Jesus taught His disciples that we can’t serve two masters. We can’t seek to please ourselves and God. And we can’t be an effective servant of God if we don’t pay heed to what He says. I think that’s why Jesus got angry with the Pharisees and other religious leaders of the day. They claimed to be doing things for God, when in reality they were pleasing themselves. Even today, we know that nobody likes a hypocrite.
If our faith and our testimony are not wholehearted, we can’t expect anyone to pay heed to what we say. Do people look at us and say, “Do you see this woman – she really lives out her faith”, or do they say, “Do you see this woman – isn’t she supposed to be a Christian? Its our choice. Let’s make the right one!
Dear Lord,
We can never take lightly the price that was paid, so therefore we should never take lightly the manner in which we live as Your Ambassadors. Help me to be wholehearted in all that I do in doing it as for You. I ask in Jesus’ Name. Amen.