Day 2 - Sept 15
Daily Reading: 1 Corinthians 5
Theme of the Day: Fresh Oil
Special Verse: Psalm 92:10 NKJV - 10 But my horn You have exalted like a wild ox; I have been anointed with fresh oil.
PERSONAL PRAYER FOCUS: Pray for a fresh anointing of the Holy Spirit for daily living.
OUTWARD PRAYER EXPRESSION: Pray for pastors and ministry leaders to be strengthened and refreshed.
-
BLAME SHIFTING
As a very small child, probably around five years old, I managed to combine two “crimes”… no actually three… into one episode. Here’s the caper. First, I stole a red writing pen off the counter of a drug store… I got away with that one. Next, I thought it would be a good idea to try it out by writing my name, “Bob Reeve,” on the wall by my bed… and that’s where things went south. When my mother discovered this, she came to have a talk, which lead to my third crime… denial.
For some reason, I decided to accuse my little brother John (3 years old) of writing my name on the wall by my bed. Needless to say, I didn’t get away with that one. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the only time I’ve tried to shift the blame off of myself onto someone else. It seems to be human nature to want to point out the faults of others. In 1 Corinthians 5, Paul deals with a very ugly situation within the church, not among unbelievers. In our verse today, the Apostle goes so far as to say that it would be impossible to avoid the sins of the world—the implication being this, don’t worry about someone else, worry about yourself.
There is a super important lesson here: followers of Jesus are to adjust their own behavior to that of Biblical morality, not necessarily the world. Why do you expect those who do not know God, to act like they do? Instead of judging unbeliever’s, let’s judge our own lives and our own spiritual family, not those who are without faith. Perhaps if we took care of the church’s issues instead of pointing fingers at the world, then the world just might take notice that it is not us who are condemning them.
Focusing on the misdeeds of the world is sort of like blaming your little brother for the red ink on the wall.
