Jump Start # 1787

1 Corinthians 10:31 “Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”

Eating meats—nothing to do with diet or health, but everything to do with faith. The culture of the first century world brought many clashes between believers and the pagan community that they were no longer following. Simple things as going to the market to buy food, now became a question of “what is right and what is wrong.” Meats were often first sacrificed to the pagan gods before they were sold in the markets. A person could purchase meat that had been offered to a specific god. This was more than a personal preference, such as supporting your favorite team, it was thought that there were special powers connected to certain gods. This became a huge problem for those new Christians. Should they eat those meats?

Two chapters in Corinthians, chapter 8 and chapter 10, and a chapter in Romans addresses this problem. It was more than just a personal preference, it effected how others viewed them and how they viewed others. Simply having a meal became a big deal. Would one be condemned because he ate something he shouldn’t have? If one didn’t eat certain foods, why could others? So many layers of issues. So many problems. Finger pointing, guilty conscience and not knowing what to do prompted God to give some very practical instructions that are found in 1 Corinthians 10.

• Don’t ask, but if you know, don’t eat. That takes care of meats sacrificed to idols
• Don’t be a part of idolatry
• Don’t do just what you feel like, think about others
• Just because you have a right, doesn’t make it right

Our verse, near the end of this section, sums up these principles, “whatever you do, do all for the glory of God.” Don’t do what you want. Don’t do what others want. Do things with the mindset of God. We should always do things for the glory of God. These words are similar to what the Colossians were told, “whatever you do, in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (3:17). Honor God by what we do.

All of this takes me to a show I watched recently about Ernest Hemingway, the American author. He tops the lists as one of the greatest authors in America. His life, however, wasn’t so great. A drunk, immoral, profane, arrogant and troubled with dark thoughts, he came from a family of suicides and that was his choice as well. His writings were impressive. His life wasn’t. Rich, famous, but a lost soul that was tormented with depression and addictions. I’ve had Hemingway stuck on my mind for a while. What if he had become a Christian? What if Hemingway wrote books about Christ and our walk with Him? What if Hemingway wrote these Jump Starts? My first thought to that is he would not have been rich and famous and few would have read his writings. People are not interested in that, especially today. But just think what great good he could have done for the Lord, had he poured his talents and energy into the kingdom. What if he used his abilities for Christ. What if, as Paul said in our verse today, Hemingway did all for the glory of God? Wouldn’t that have been amazing!

But doesn’t that principle stand with us today? All throughout the kingdom we have men and women who have gotten advanced degrees and have years of experience in all kinds of areas. We have some who are brilliant writers. There are some who are gifted in knowing how to market and publicize things. There are those who are wonderful teachers. There are those who are gifted in music. Others have a flare for the drawing and painting. Talented and gifted people fill the kingdom of God. Yet, are we utilizing those talents in the kingdom? Do we pull from those who know how to come up with a great phrase, make it look attractive and promote it? Do we use them to help advertise a Gospel meeting? Those that are so gifted in music, are they using their talents to write fresh hymns? How about turning some of the artsy folks loose in the church buildings and make things brighter and more attractive?

Are we doing all for the glory of God with our talents and abilities? We spend years in college learning how to do things, we spend a lifetime using that knowledge to build a career, but do we ever use those talents for the kingdom? Just about every congregation I know is full of amazingly talented people. Is all this ability being used only on the secular world? Take something as simple as a sermon CD or a printed tract. Put a little color and a snappy picture on the front, and it is amazing how it will grab attention. The clothing manufacture, Tommy Hilfiger, once said that he could have two identical shirts side by side on a rack, same shirt, same color, same price, and the one that had his Hilfiger logo on it will out sell the other one every time. Just a simple logo. Marketing. He understood it and used it.

We need to open the barn doors and allow talented brethren to use their abilities to enhance the kingdom of God. Putting a picture on a sermon CD isn’t going to bring down the forces of evil, but it may be just the thing that makes a person stop, look at it, and pick it up and then listen to it. Isn’t that the overall purpose anyway? The same with a printed track. Make it attractive. Make it readable. So often, most of this all falls to the preacher. He is busy writing, preaching and teaching. Many do not have the skill set nor the vision to do these things. This is where a church works like a team. Someone writes the material and someone else puts it together, makes it attractive and promotes it. There are people who use Facebook every day in their jobs. Imagine if they used those talents to help the church?

Imagine Hemingway being a Christian and writing Jump Starts. Imagine you, doing what you do so well, using that for the kingdom of God. Whatever you do, do for the glory of God—is more than a statement about what we eat, it’s a statement of life. Use your talents for the kingdom. Suggest things. Offer to help. Make some samples and show them to the elders. Work as a team player.

Just imagine…

Roger