Personal Devotions
Notes from Mark's personal Bible reading and meditation
With a goal to apply one truth from each day's reading to my life that day
Sep 17, 2022, 8:30 AM
Passage Read: 1 Corinthians 14-15
Meditation Verses: 14:36-38
Thought
Everything Paul has written here, concerning spiritual gifts and women in the assembly, perhaps even all the book of Corinthians, all these things are commands of God, not just of Paul. For any church or group to think that they can change these things just because they don't like them or agree with them is arrogance, as if the Word of God came to them alone, as if they are the first and last and alone know what God desires.
Sep 16, 2022, 8:31 AM
Passage Read: 1 Corinthians 12-13
Meditation Verse: 13:11
Thought
Paul was an apostle, which he lists as the first among spiritual gifts. He didn't lay aside that gift as he grew in his understanding and practice of love, but neither did he promote his exercise of his gifts. As an apostle, he basically had all the gifts, including prophecy and tongues and healing, and he exercised all of them, but not to promote himself or his spirituality. He had visions and taught from those visions without always announcing that this was from a vision from God.
Sep 15, 2022, 8:41 AM
Passage Read: 1 Corinthians 10-11
Meditation Verses: 11:29-31
Thought
Communion is not a simple eating and drinking a little bread and juice in remembrance of the Lord, it is powerful under the guidance of the Spirit. Those who eat and drink without examining themselves, without recognizing that the elements represent and remind us of the death of Christ for our sin, these are liable to judgment. Paul says that many have already been judged with weakness, feebleness and even death.
Sep 14, 2022, 8:33 AM
Passage Read: 1 Corinthians 8-9
Meditation Verses: 9:24-27
Thought
Paul is in effect challenging every believer to compete with each other, so as to be the one victor. The implication is that we each should be working at greater self-control than the next believer, greater godliness than the next brother. But we think that everyone who enters the race wins a crown, so it's not about the race itself but about gaining entrance through faith in Christ. But Paul blows that out of the water here, especially as he continues, saying how hard he works to control and discipline his body so as not to be disqualified for the prize.
Sep 13, 2022, 8:35 AM
Passage Read: 1 Corinthians 6-7
Meditation Verse: 7:19
Thought
Circumcision and other rituals that we use to include people as Christians don't matter. What matters is keeping God's commands, walking in His ways. We are not a Christian because we performed some ritual, we are a Christian because we believe Jesus is God and as God He instructs us how to live. If I don't walk in His ways, how can I say I belong to Him, even if circumcised? But if I trust and obey Him, it is clear that I belong to Him.
Sep 12, 2022, 8:36 AM
Passage Read: 1 Corinthians 4-5
Meditation Verses: 5:11-13
Thought
There's all this talk of Christians shooting their wounded whenever we call out a sinner, especially one who's been concealing their sin for a while. Yet were actually supposed to call out unrepentant sinners. We're supposed to rebuke privately those we first hear to be in sin, but those who refuse to repent, we're supposed to cast out of fellowship. The world thinks that's harsh, but they're the ones who want to keep on sinning!
Sep 11, 2022, 8:37 AM
Passage Read: 1 Corinthians 2-3
Meditation Verses: 3:17-18
Thought
Paul affirms the inclusion of the Corinthians in Christ, but also warns and corrects them. Right here he says that they are the sanctuary of God, then in the next sentence warns that anyone who thinks he is wise needs to become a fool so that he may become wise. Apparently there are those among the Corinthians who think they are very wise by the standards of the world, but that means they don't know much about Jesus and His ways, so he warns them that they need to become fools in the eyes of the world so that they may learn to be truly wise, such wisdom coming from the fear of God.
Sep 10, 2022, 8:17 AM
Passage Read: Romans 16 - 1 Corinthians 1
Meditation Verses: Romans 16:17-18
Thought
Anyone who teaches doctrine contrary to what Paul taught needs to be avoided. Such men are not serving the Lord or the church, but their own bellies. They are seeking to gain leadership over a group of believers so that those Believers can support them, and they'll teach whatever they need in order to gain a following. Because their motivation is not Christ and the Truth, they have no intention of knowing the Truth and therefore cannot teach it accurately.
Sep 9, 2022, 8:20 AM
Passage Read: Romans 14-15
Meditation Verses: 14:20-21
Thought
There are those who believe certain foods to be wrong to eat, like the Hindus. If they were to come to Christ, they might have a difficult time accepting those who eat meat, especially cows. In sensitivity to them, until they became convinced in the Lord that eating any meat was acceptable to God, I would need to refrain from eating beef, at least in their presence. It would be challenging for someone like that to suddenly throw off everything they believed from their youth.
Sep 8, 2022, 8:21 AM
Passage Read: Romans 12-13
Meditation Verse: 12:16
Thought
I need to be careful not to pay special attention to some and less attention to others. Not to be arrogant but to be humble, and not to give special treatment to the mighty or the powerful, but give the same treatment to all, rich and poor, influential and insignificant. I need to recognize that God has chosen more of the poor to be saved than the rich and powerful. I need to accept that God knows what He's talking about and trust His judgment.