1 Cor 11 Examine - self - Eat, Drink, Live

Scripture selections are taken from the Rock Church Daily Bread Reading schedule for each month. “Lena’s Journalin’” are Lena’s comments on the specific passages from her Daily Journal.

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1 Corinthians 11:1-34
1And you should follow my example, just as I follow Christ's.
Instructions for Public Worship
2I am so glad, dear friends, that you always keep me in your thoughts and you are following the Christian teaching I passed on to you. 3But there is one thing I want you to know: A man is responsible to Christ, a woman is responsible to her husband, and Christ is responsible to God. 4A man dishonors Christ F54 if he covers his head while praying or prophesying. 5But a woman dishonors her husband F55 if she prays or prophesies without a covering on her head, for this is the same as shaving her head. 6Yes, if she refuses to wear a head covering, she should cut off all her hair. And since it is shameful for a woman to have her hair cut or her head shaved, then she should wear a covering. F56 7A man should not wear anything on his head when worshiping, for man is God's glory, made in God's own image, but woman is the glory of man. 8For the first man didn't come from woman, but the first woman came from man. 9And man was not made for woman's benefit, but woman was made for man. 10So a woman should wear a covering on her head as a sign of authority because the angels are watching.
11But in relationships among the Lord's people, women are not independent of men, and men are not independent of women. 12For although the first woman came from man, all men have been born from women ever since, and everything comes from God.
13What do you think about this? Is it right for a woman to pray to God in public without covering her head? 14Isn't it obvious that it's disgraceful for a man to have long hair? 15And isn't it obvious that long hair is a woman's pride and joy? For it has been given to her as a covering. 16But if anyone wants to argue about this, all I can say is that we have no other custom than this, and all the churches of God feel the same way about it.
Order at the Lord's Supper
17But now when I mention this next issue, I cannot praise you. For it sounds as if more harm than good is done when you meet together. 18First of all, I hear that there are divisions among you when you meet as a church, and to some extent I believe it. 19But, of course, there must be divisions among you so that those of you who are right will be recognized!
20It's not the Lord's Supper you are concerned about when you come together. 21For I am told that some of you hurry to eat your own meal without sharing with others. As a result, some go hungry while others get drunk. 22What? Is this really true? Don't you have your own homes for eating and drinking? Or do you really want to disgrace the church of God and shame the poor? What am I supposed to say about these things? Do you want me to praise you? Well, I certainly do not!
23For this is what the Lord himself said, and I pass it on to you just as I received it. On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took a loaf of bread, 24and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is given F57 for you. Do this in remembrance of me." 25In the same way, he took the cup of wine after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant between God and you, sealed by the shedding of my blood. Do this in remembrance of me as often as you drink it." 26For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord's death until he comes again.
27So if anyone eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily, that person is guilty of sinning against the body and the blood of the Lord. 28That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking from the cup. 29For if you eat the bread or drink the cup unworthily, not honoring the body of Christ, F58 you are eating and drinking God's judgment upon yourself. 30That is why many of you are weak and sick and some have even died.
31But if we examine ourselves, we will not be examined by God and judged in this way. 32But when we are judged and disciplined by the Lord, we will not be condemned with the world. 33So, dear brothers and sisters, F59 when you gather for the Lord's Supper, wait for each other. 34If you are really hungry, eat at home so you won't bring judgment upon yourselves when you meet together. I'll give you instructions about the other matters after I arrive.
FOOTNOTES:F54: Greek his head. F55: Greek her head. F56: Or then she should have long hair. F57: Some manuscripts read broken. F58: Greek the body; some manuscripts read the Lord's body. F59: Greek brothers.
Copyright Statement: Holy Bible, The New Living Translation

~ Lena’s Journalin’~
How many people (or should I say American people) do you know of that are willing to consciously follow another person? This is quite the bold statement the Apostle Paul is making. “Follow or mimic or copy or imitate me, Just as I follow Christ” “Just as I follow Christ” is of course the key statement, and many would even pick that apart deciding WWJD, before ever considering following a physical human person’s example. This unwillingness to follow people has caused the church to be challenged in its great commission, for there is no discipleship without following, and so if no one wills to follow another, there are no disciples. So where is the assembled army of God, then? A bunch of independent individuals volunteering to fight principalities and powers? We must realize that there is a solid order set even amongst demonic spirits, they know their place, without position there is no power. So they easily and readily “get in line”.
Then there are the BIG questions to ask, “What if they stumble, or fall, or they act as if they are human and make a mistake?” Have you ever stumbled, fallen, been human, or made a mistake? What do you do about it? Pray, learn, make corrections, forgive, pick up any pieces and get back on the road headed in the right direction. Then do the same with and for the persons you’ve committed to the Lord to follow after.
There’s a principle of God concerning following. It is sign to the spirits in the heavenlies that we follow Christ. It is a sign of being under authority and covering. Being covered, having one’s head covered in the spirit realm is very important and it is a symbolic mark in God’s kingdom of who is His and who is not.
The spirit of rebellion likes to stand alone and have no one tell them what to do, where to go or to teach them anything. In the spirit their head is not covered, they are marked, but not for God. It shows in the spirit.
The church, the bride, is labeled as female, the church is a “she”, male and female persons, if called the church, are “female”. This principle of order applies to all of us within the church.
See the order of responsibility (remember ability to respond) here? Men have a responsibility, God is looking for them to fulfill, women have a responsibility God is looking for them to fulfill, even Christ as a human had a responsibility to fulfill here before His Father.
Where it says that every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head means- she should desire to gain further understanding first, give account, be open, and uncover her motives ahead of time to one above her for help’s-sake, that she’d not be shamed or shame the one she represents! Doesn’t that put a new light on that scripture?
It is speaking of the order of responsibilities of each person on earth for protection of the ambassadorship and the warfare.
Ya know how I said it is a mark in the spirit realm of who belongs to whom? See vs 10 as a sign of authority because the angels are watching. We’re not just speaking of the good and sweet heavenly angel messengers, we’re talking about all angelic beings and rulers of the atmosphere’s all around us. 2/3rd‘s are godly, 1/3rd are not.
Do you remember we are engaged in an all out war of God and satan? Obedience vs. the rebellion, light vs. darkness etc?
Paul is speaking of positions for the warfare and for protection in it. He starts out by saying follow (someone as they follow Christ, even if they make a mistake)- make a covenant commitment to be face to face with some human who is after God. This is a warfare position.
He tells how God has already set up kingdom governmental rule. These are people to follow… Christ- God, Men –Christ, women-men, etc. This is who God is looking at to give accountability to Him for who’s in position with them for protection from the further rebellion and from the onslaught. He then begins to speak of the strength that is needed for the activity of warfare. We eat and drink with and for God and with and for one another. We eat together for strength to go forward in taking the atmosphere’s back for Our Lord and King! We eat together as a further sign in the heavenlies of unification, which increases and establishes the rule and governmental power of God’s heavenly kingdom on earth.
He says eat, but don’t eat in strife. Why? Strife is not a characteristic of those who are of God’s Divine kingdom being set up on earth. Strife is an attribute of the rebellion, which God is against. So settle the matters and eat together.
So there’s also an order to eating and drinking, or rather partaking of the oneness of Christ together. Why? Inside of order is found the increase of His governmental power. God is a God of order.
Division means: two different visions. So there are two different visions among you. You want it done this way, and you want it done that way, and she wants it another way, God isn’t having it His way on earth amongst that mess! Look at the root of division here - there must be divisions among you so that those of you who are right will be recognized! WOW! Pretty brutally honest, huh?
That’s rebellion manifested, rebellion opposes unity and godliness and God. How ‘bout submission, humility, yielding? Now we’re talking! Bring that to the table, please. Talk about order! In that no man is magnified, but God is greatly glorified.
A definition of “poor” here is “needy”. We shame the needy. We don’t like or want to help them out. It’s almost like we are saying, “They have what they deserve”, mentality. The poor we will always have with us- Jesus taught us to give to those who do not deserve our giving, help those who can’t seem to help themselves for whatever reason, give not expecting a pay back or a reciprocation from them. This is the epitome of true love expressed, to love those who will not love us in return. To extend our souls for the hungry. Invite them to eat and drink with our families.
ON THE VERY NIGHT HE WAS BETRAYED- He took the bread anyway! Broke it signifying He’d die for the betrayer anyway, and He’d forgive him of his outright intentional sin! An intentional offense.
Then He says as often as You have an opportunity to eat will you also remember this action and do the same, for those who shame you, and betray you. Will you forgive them too, as I have? Will you give thanks willingly to God for their lives, seeking their forgiveness in case they repent and can be saved?
Unworthily means – has not weighed out the importance of the matter at hand. Has given no forethought of, so there’s a disregard of what is to be accomplished.
Will you pour out your strength, take pain upon your own physical body, and give of your life to the unloving and unlovely? Do you have to curse them for what they do, or can you bless them, by living as examples, not of what is earned, but what was paid for?
This is worthily eating and drinking. This is the glorification of God in His body who say they are one Body with Him.
The waiting on one another is the regarding part. Did I offend you, did you offend me, do we have any breeches, are we in harmony or divided? This is why we wait, that we’ll all serve Him in eating and drinking together and we’ll not just rush into it, maybe skipping over an important issue of love and the restoration of unity.

Daily Thought to Ponder -
“Oh Give Thanks to the Lord for He is Good!”