Scripture Reading: Romans 14:1-8
1 Corinthians 6:12 AMP “Everything is permissible(allowable and lawful) for me; but not all things are helpful(good for me to do, expedient and profitable when considered with other things). Everything is lawful for me, but I will not become the slave of anything or be brought under its power.”
What masters you? I’m easily mastered. Unfortunately it isn’t always by the only One who has a right to master me. That One is, of course, my Lord and Savior. The Greek word translated “Lord” is Kyrios. It means master of something, thus having absolute authority over it; as the object after verbs of rejoicing, trusting; through His aid and influence, by His help. So, we’re mastered by what we trust, by what influences us, by what we turn to for aid.
God has been so kind in allowing all food to be permissible. But it isn’t all beneficial. It isn’t as much about what we eat as about when and why. Anything we eat when we are not hungry isn’t beneficial. When I think of something that isn’t beneficial, I think of something that has a negative effect. Paul takes it a step further by saying he won’t be mastered by anything; he won’t become a slave of anything or be brought under its power.
When it comes to food, I’ve been mastered at each extreme. I’ve trusted food to meet a need that only God can meet. I’ve turned to it to aid me in procrastination. And I’ve been influenced by it to the point that I have felt powerless to resist food that I wanted even when I knew my body didn’t need food at all. I’ve also been consumed with the latest research on nutrition. I’ve spent far too much time planning what I would or wouldn’t eat.
God created our bodies perfectly. He knows our needs….He even knows our wants…and He wants only what is best for us. That’s why He alone is worthy to master us. He alone is worthy to be trusted, to be the One who influences us, to be the One from whom we seek aid. I would never say out loud that I love or trust food more than I love or trust God. Yet, when I eat for any reason other than physical hunger, that is what my actions say. We can trust God with everything, including our eating. When we look to Him to meet all our needs, He always meets them in the best way possible.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Friday, January 16, 2009
It's Time to Rebuild the Temple
Scripture Reading: Haggai 1:2-9
Haggai 1:2 NLT “This is what the LORD Almighty says: The people are saying, ‘The time has not yet come to rebuild the LORD’S house—the Temple.”
Do you ever put off taking care of yourself because it isn’t Monday or it isn’t New Year’s Day? 1 Corinthians 3:16 says, “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?” Just as God’s house was in ruins in those days, we can let His temple be in ruins today. Just as He wanted to be honored in His temple in those days, He wants to be honored in His temple, your body, today. Our bodies, after all, are not ours. God bought us with a very high price.
In Haggai’s day, God’s people were never satisfied. They had food to eat but not enough to fill them up. They had clothing to wear but not enough to keep them warm. God said to them through Haggai, “Consider how things are going for you! ...and rebuild my house” Meditate on that. “Consider how things are going for you.” How are things going for you? Are you satisfied with God or are you looking for something else to satisfy you? In 1 Corinthians 6:20, the King James Version tells us to glorify God in our bodies and in our spirits which are His. Body, soul and spirit are pretty hard to separate. If we neglect one, it affects the others. Could it be the dissatisfaction many of us feel is caused in part from neglecting God’s temple? Today is the day. It’s time to rebuild the LORD’S house.
Haggai 1:2 NLT “This is what the LORD Almighty says: The people are saying, ‘The time has not yet come to rebuild the LORD’S house—the Temple.”
Do you ever put off taking care of yourself because it isn’t Monday or it isn’t New Year’s Day? 1 Corinthians 3:16 says, “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?” Just as God’s house was in ruins in those days, we can let His temple be in ruins today. Just as He wanted to be honored in His temple in those days, He wants to be honored in His temple, your body, today. Our bodies, after all, are not ours. God bought us with a very high price.
In Haggai’s day, God’s people were never satisfied. They had food to eat but not enough to fill them up. They had clothing to wear but not enough to keep them warm. God said to them through Haggai, “Consider how things are going for you! ...and rebuild my house” Meditate on that. “Consider how things are going for you.” How are things going for you? Are you satisfied with God or are you looking for something else to satisfy you? In 1 Corinthians 6:20, the King James Version tells us to glorify God in our bodies and in our spirits which are His. Body, soul and spirit are pretty hard to separate. If we neglect one, it affects the others. Could it be the dissatisfaction many of us feel is caused in part from neglecting God’s temple? Today is the day. It’s time to rebuild the LORD’S house.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
God’s Temple or My Palace?
Scripture Reading: 1 Kings 6:1-7:1
1 Kings 7:1 NLT “Solomon also built a palace for himself, and it took him thirteen years to complete the construction.”
God gave Solomon very specific and detailed instructions for building His temple. The temple where God would come and dwell among His people had to be exactly right. Today, our bodies are the temples where God dwells among His people, and they have already been built to exact specifications. God has already taken care of building His temple. He created our bodies perfectly. We are fearfully and wonderfully made. Our job is to maintain the temple that God has built.
Sometimes I get carried away with getting the latest fitness information. Okay, I admit sometimes I get obsessed with reading and experimenting with the latest scientific research regarding how to best take care of my body. After all, it is the temple of the Holy Spirit, right? But, considering God has already taken care of the details, how scientific do I really need to be? Is it possible that my obsession with fitness could keep me from doing the very things that God wants me to be fit enough to do?
Solomon took 7 years to build the Temple. He took 13 years to build his own palace. Yes, exercise is one of the ways God intends for us to maintain the temple that He has created. But when we spend an excessive amount of time and energy learning about exercise, studying the benefits of exercise, planning how to exercise and actually exercising, could it be that we are really building our own palaces?
1 Kings 7:1 NLT “Solomon also built a palace for himself, and it took him thirteen years to complete the construction.”
God gave Solomon very specific and detailed instructions for building His temple. The temple where God would come and dwell among His people had to be exactly right. Today, our bodies are the temples where God dwells among His people, and they have already been built to exact specifications. God has already taken care of building His temple. He created our bodies perfectly. We are fearfully and wonderfully made. Our job is to maintain the temple that God has built.
Sometimes I get carried away with getting the latest fitness information. Okay, I admit sometimes I get obsessed with reading and experimenting with the latest scientific research regarding how to best take care of my body. After all, it is the temple of the Holy Spirit, right? But, considering God has already taken care of the details, how scientific do I really need to be? Is it possible that my obsession with fitness could keep me from doing the very things that God wants me to be fit enough to do?
Solomon took 7 years to build the Temple. He took 13 years to build his own palace. Yes, exercise is one of the ways God intends for us to maintain the temple that He has created. But when we spend an excessive amount of time and energy learning about exercise, studying the benefits of exercise, planning how to exercise and actually exercising, could it be that we are really building our own palaces?
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