1 Corinthians 7:20-40, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: RESPOND TO GOD’S PROMPTINGS

To walk in the Spirit, respond to the promptings God gives you! Don’t sense any nudging? Just be patient and wait. Jesus told the disciples, “wait for the gift my Father promised—the Holy Spirit” (Acts 1:4-5).

Abraham waited for the promised son. Moses waited forty years in the wilderness. Jesus waited thirty years before he began his ministry. God instills seasons of silence in his plan. Winter is needed for the soil to bear fruit. Time is needed for the development of a crop. And disciples wait for the move of God. “God guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way,” a beautiful promise in Psalm 25:9.

It’s nice to be led by a master. Won’t you let your Master lead you?

From More to Your Story

1 Corinthians 7:20-40

Yes, each of you should remain as you were when God called you. 21 Are you a slave? Don’t let that worry you—but if you get a chance to be free, take it. 22 And remember, if you were a slave when the Lord called you, you are now free in the Lord. And if you were free when the Lord called you, you are now a slave of Christ. 23 God paid a high price for you, so don’t be enslaved by the world.[a] 24 Each of you, dear brothers and sisters,[b] should remain as you were when God first called you.

25 Now regarding your question about the young women who are not yet married. I do not have a command from the Lord for them. But the Lord in his mercy has given me wisdom that can be trusted, and I will share it with you. 26 Because of the present crisis,[c] I think it is best to remain as you are. 27 If you have a wife, do not seek to end the marriage. If you do not have a wife, do not seek to get married. 28 But if you do get married, it is not a sin. And if a young woman gets married, it is not a sin. However, those who get married at this time will have troubles, and I am trying to spare you those problems.

29 But let me say this, dear brothers and sisters: The time that remains is very short. So from now on, those with wives should not focus only on their marriage. 30 Those who weep or who rejoice or who buy things should not be absorbed by their weeping or their joy or their possessions. 31 Those who use the things of the world should not become attached to them. For this world as we know it will soon pass away.

32 I want you to be free from the concerns of this life. An unmarried man can spend his time doing the Lord’s work and thinking how to please him. 33 But a married man has to think about his earthly responsibilities and how to please his wife. 34 His interests are divided. In the same way, a woman who is no longer married or has never been married can be devoted to the Lord and holy in body and in spirit. But a married woman has to think about her earthly responsibilities and how to please her husband. 35 I am saying this for your benefit, not to place restrictions on you. I want you to do whatever will help you serve the Lord best, with as few distractions as possible.

36 But if a man thinks that he’s treating his fiancée improperly and will inevitably give in to his passion, let him marry her as he wishes. It is not a sin. 37 But if he has decided firmly not to marry and there is no urgency and he can control his passion, he does well not to marry. 38 So the person who marries his fiancée does well, and the person who doesn’t marry does even better.

39 A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. If her husband dies, she is free to marry anyone she wishes, but only if he loves the Lord.[d] 40 But in my opinion it would be better for her to stay single, and I think I am giving you counsel from God’s Spirit when I say this.

Footnotes:

7:23 Greek don’t become slaves of people.
7:24 Greek brothers; also in 7:29.
7:26 Or the pressures of life.
7:39 Greek but only in the Lord.

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion
Thursday, May 19, 2016

Read: Psalm 119:97-104

Mem

Oh, how I love your instructions!
    I think about them all day long.
98 Your commands make me wiser than my enemies,
    for they are my constant guide.
99 Yes, I have more insight than my teachers,
    for I am always thinking of your laws.
100 I am even wiser than my elders,
    for I have kept your commandments.
101 I have refused to walk on any evil path,
    so that I may remain obedient to your word.
102 I haven’t turned away from your regulations,
    for you have taught me well.
103 How sweet your words taste to me;
    they are sweeter than honey.
104 Your commandments give me understanding;
    no wonder I hate every false way of life.

INSIGHT:
When we hear the word law, we think of obligations and regulations, so the psalmist’s exclamation of love for God’s law might sound strange to our modern ears. However, the Hebrew word translated “law” is torah and literally means “direction” or “instruction.” At this point in Israel’s history, Torah had become the designation for the books of Moses. In the Hebrew context it included more than just the religious and civil regulations. It also included the stories, songs, poems, and laws in the first five books of the Old Testament. Yahweh had spoken, and His instructions and directions—whether through law, story, or song—always lead to wisdom (Ps. 119:98).

Great Literature

By Joe Stowell

How sweet are your words . . . , sweeter than honey to my mouth! Psalm 119:103

Recently I came across an article describing what constitutes great literature. The author suggested that great literature “changes you. When you are done reading, you’re a different person.”

In that light, the Word of God will always be classified as great literature. Reading the Bible challenges us to be better. Stories of biblical heroes inspire us to be courageous and persevering. The wisdom and prophetic books warn of the danger of living by our fallen instincts. God spoke through various writers to pen life-changing psalms for our benefit. The teachings of Jesus shape our character to become more like Him. The writings of Paul orient our minds and lives to holy living. As the Holy Spirit brings these Scriptures to our minds, they become powerful agents for change in our lives.

Lord, thank You for Your Word and its powerful influence in my life.
The writer of Psalm 119 loved God’s Word for its transforming influence in his life. He recognized that the ancient Scriptures handed down from Moses made him wise and more understanding than his teachers (v. 99). It kept him from evil (v. 101). No wonder he exclaimed, “Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long,” and “How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (vv. 97, 103).

Welcome to the joy of loving great literature, especially the life-changing power of God’s Word!

Lord, thank You for Your Word and its powerful influence in my life. Help me learn to put its truth into practice.

The Spirit of God uses the Word of God to change the people of God.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Thursday, May 19, 2016

Out of the Wreck I Rise

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? —Romans 8:35


God does not keep His child immune from trouble; He promises, “I will be with him in trouble…” (Psalm 91:15). It doesn’t matter how real or intense the adversities may be; nothing can ever separate him from his relationship to God. “In all these things we are more than conquerors…” (Romans 8:37). Paul was not referring here to imaginary things, but to things that are dangerously real. And he said we are “super-victors” in the midst of them, not because of our own ingenuity, nor because of our courage, but because none of them affects our essential relationship with God in Jesus Christ. I feel sorry for the Christian who doesn’t have something in the circumstances of his life that he wishes were not there.

“Shall tribulation…?” Tribulation is never a grand, highly welcomed event; but whatever it may be— whether exhausting, irritating, or simply causing some weakness— it is not able to “separate us from the love of Christ.” Never allow tribulations or the “cares of this world” to separate you from remembering that God loves you (Matthew 13:22).

“Shall…distress…?” Can God’s love continue to hold fast, even when everyone and everything around us seems to be saying that His love is a lie, and that there is no such thing as justice?

“Shall…famine…?” Can we not only believe in the love of God but also be “more than conquerors,” even while we are being starved?

Either Jesus Christ is a deceiver, having deceived even Paul, or else some extraordinary thing happens to someone who holds on to the love of God when the odds are totally against him. Logic is silenced in the face of each of these things which come against him. Only one thing can account for it— the love of God in Christ Jesus. “Out of the wreck I rise” every time.

WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS

We are not fundamentally free; external circumstances are not in our hands, they are in God’s hands, the one thing in which we are free is in our personal relationship to God. We are not responsible for the circumstances we are in, but we are responsible for the way we allow those circumstances to affect us; we can either allow them to get on top of us, or we can allow them to transform us into what God wants us to be.  Conformed to His Image, 354 L


A Word with You, by Ron Hutchcraft
Thursday, May 19, 2016

Wrapping Jesus In Hard Words - #7659

It's an English-speaking church. The visiting pastor was Hispanic. He spoke in Spanish, using an interpreter to help his audience understand. I've spoken through an interpreter. So, you either have to say half as much or it takes twice as long. The pastor chose the latter. It took quite a while to get through his message. To be honest, I know some minds started to wander at times. At the end of his message, the pastor surprised everybody. He spoke to them completely in English. And he made a promise-the next time he would definitely speak in English. Of course, some folks were just a little frustrated. He could have spoken in the language of the people he was talking to; he just chose to speak in his own.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft, and I want to have A Word With You today about "Wrapping Jesus In Hard Words."

It doesn't matter how important your message is, how sincere it is if you deliver it in words the other person can't understand. And not all language problems are linguistic. Parents of teenagers know that. What their kids are saying may be some kind of "English", but who can understand what they mean?

More importantly, when Christians tell about Jesus in church words, how many people without Christ can understand what they're saying? That's not just a casual question. It really matters, because the message of Jesus is life-or-death information-like the directions to get out of a burning building. Every missionary to another culture knows you can't just settle for the easy thing; speaking in the language you're comfortable with. You don't just transmit the Gospel, you have to translate it. It's unacceptable that people might miss Jesus because I didn't put it in words they can understand.

American church folks speak a language I call Christianese. And sometimes I'm not sure we even understand what some of our words mean! But we tell people they need to be "born again", to "accept" or "receive Christ", to "become a Christian" or be "saved." And they either have no idea what those words mean or they have the wrong idea. The same is true of important words like "sin" and "Savior" and "believe." We think we've told them about Jesus, but they have no idea what we meant.

Thus, our word for today from the Word of God. It's a great prayer request from the Apostle Paul himself in Colossians 4:3-4. "Pray for us...that God may open a door for our message...Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should" Then he also asked people to pray that "whenever I speak, words may be given me..." (Ephesians 6:19). The words you use matter. Proclaiming it clearly can make the difference.

So ask the Lord to help you hear yourself using Christianese and to help you find non-religious words to explain what a person needs to know to come to Christ. For example, sin can be explained as "you running your life instead of God running it" or "hijacking your life from your Creator." In our time, a "Savior"? Well, that would be a rescuer; someone who rescues you from a deadly situation you can't get yourself out of. That's exactly what Jesus came to be for us.

What does it mean to "believe" in Jesus? Most people would say they do, but not by the Bible's definition. The Bible's meaning is similar to what a drowning person would do when a lifeguard came; what a dying person would do when the rescuer comes. You hold onto Him as if He's your only hope. When did you do that with Jesus? That's what believe means. "Whoever believes in Him (grabs Him like He's their only hope) will have eternal life."

The most urgent, the most important news in the world needs to be delivered in words that a lost person can understand-non-religious words! We can do it if we choose to do it. There's someone you know whose only hope is hearing about and understanding what Jesus did on that cross for them. Would you please put Jesus where they can reach Him.