ADORATION – Reflect on God’s Greatness
GOD IS SOVEREIGN
God presides over every event, great or small, and He is in control of our lives. To be sovereign, He must be all-knowing and all-powerful, and by His sovereignty He rules His entire creation. 1 Chronicles 29:11-13
1 Chronicles 29:11-13
Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor,
for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.
Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power
to exalt and give strength to all. Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name.
Praise God that He is Sovereign
Praise God that he has presided over every event in your life. Praise him that He is in control of everything that will happen today in the lives of all the people on the planet. Praise him that he has always been sovereign over every event, for all of time.
CONFESSION: Confess your sins to God and receive his continued mercy.
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9
THANKSGIVING: Giving thanks to God for his specific blessings in our lives.
“Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.” Psalm 100
SUPPLICATION: Bringing our requests to God.
- Bring your personal prayer requests to God.
- Pray for Austin and Jenni. Ask God to provide visas for their teammates
- Pray that Austin and Jenni would be faithful many roles that God has placed them in.
- Ask God to speak to you and direct you as you read the scriptures.
SCRIPTURE READING:
1 Corinthians 8 New International Version
Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that “We all possess knowledge.” But knowledge puffs up while love builds up. 2 Those who think they know something do not yet know as they ought to know. 3 But whoever loves God is known by God.
4 So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that “An idol is nothing at all in the world” and that “There is no God but one.” 5 For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”), 6 yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live.
7 But not everyone possesses this knowledge. Some people are still so accustomed to idols that when they eat sacrificial food they think of it as having been sacrificed to a god, and since their conscience is weak, it is defiled. 8 But food does not bring us near to God; we are no worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do.
9 Be careful, however, that the exercise of your rights does not become a stumbling block to the weak. 10 For if someone with a weak conscience sees you, with all your knowledge, eating in an idol’s temple, won’t that person be emboldened to eat what is sacrificed to idols? 11 So this weak brother or sister, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. 12 When you sin against them in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. 13 Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother or sister to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause them to fall.
SCRIPTURE REFLECTION:
So, would you eat the meat offered to idols or not? Would you attend an event held at a
temple for idols or not? Why do you answer that way? Paul would say to you that It is okay
if you would not eat and it is okay if you would. How does that make you feel?
Uncomfortable? Insecure? Ready to fight for your position? Or maybe just fine? Absolutes
are things that are true for everyone, everywhere, all the time. Just because there are
absolutes it doesn’t mean that everything is an absolute. And just because not everything is
an absolute doesn’t mean absolutes don’t exist at all. It can be a struggle to wrestle with
what is absolute and what is just something that is important for you to do or not do. As
you wrestle with these issues…try not to wrestle with others. Love them instead.