I Corinthians 10:31
(NIV)
Whether you eat or drink or whatever you
do, do it all for the glory of God.
I Corinthians 10:23-31 focuses on the
Christian conscience (see also Romans 14).
Christians must never do things from a selfish standpoint. Rather, Christians should think about what
best benefits others. Indeed so much
easier said than done. In verse 27, Paul
advised his readers that if a believer is invited to an unbeliever’s home for
dinner, you should go and eat whatever is set before you, asking no questions
for conscience’s sake. However, if you
are there with another believer and that believer has a weaker conscience than
you, then you are to do nothing that will cause that weaker Christian (or even
the unbeliever) to stumble (see also Romans 14:23). If the meat served has been offered to idols
and you know that the weaker Christian would have a problem with you eating it,
even if you don’t have a problem eating it, you should not eat it. This is the background for Paul stating in
this passage that whatever you do, including eating and drinking, do it all for
the glory of God.
The primary principle to follow in the life
of a Christian is to glorify God in everything that you do. A second primary principle is described in
verse 32 where the Christian must also do all he/she can to put others’ needs
first and do nothing to cause them to stumble.
What does it mean to glorify God? Well, first realize that you were created to
glorify God. You must never forget
this! You are here on this earth to
glorify God. You ask, “why am I here,
why I am alive, what is my purpose?” It
is to glorify God with what he has given you—time, talent, and treasure---and
in all that you do in your life. Isaiah
43:7 declared: “Everyone who is called
by My name, whom I created for My glory, whom I formed and made”. Whether you believe this or not, the Bible is
clear that God created you for His purpose and pleasure. Colossians 1:16 (Message) says that “For
everything, absolutely everything…….. everything got started in Him and finds
its purpose in Him.” You were not
brought into this world by accident. God
created you (read Psalm 139:13-16) and because He created you, you are never
insignificant. He created you for His
purposes and if you haven’t already (or even if you have) you need to read Rick
Warren’s book Purpose Driven Life to help you realize what your purpose
in life is if you don’t already know.
OK, so what does it mean to glorify God as
His created child? Well, it’s simple
although of course it’s easier said than done.
To glorify God means to bring Him honor in everything you do---what you
think, what you speak, what you do. You
glorify God by what you do with your body (I Corinthians 6:20). You glorify God by putting Him first in your
life, meaning that you have no other idols, no higher priorities in your life
other than to please Him. You please Him
by being obedient to what He says in His Word.
Of course, you need to know what His Word says. To glorify God means that you speak about Him
to others, that you are not ashamed of your relationship with Him. You glorify God by doing good works that
others see and they in turn glorify God (Matthew 5:16). To glorify God is to talk to Him, to listen
to Him, to think about Him often throughout your day, not just on Sunday
morning for an hour or so. To glorify
God is to give thanks to Him everyday for all His provisions and
blessings. Glorifying God also includes
suffering for Him, with suffering often the result of your denying yourself
sinful pleasures in deference to Him.
Your ultimate goal in life is to become more and more like Christ and reflect
the glory of God in you (II Corinthians 3:18b)
The best way to glorify God is to ask
yourself before doing anything whether or not you think God would be pleased
with what you are about to do. The
problem is that most of us never think to ask that question before we proceed
to do it or say it or think it. It’s a
discipline that must be learned through daily practice and daily discipline
that some master and others never do.
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