For a Moment of Transcendence (1 Cor. 11:17-27)

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1 Corinthians 11:17-27

New International Version (NIV)

Correcting an Abuse of the Lord’s Supper
 17 In the following directives I have no praise for you, for your meetings do more harm than good. 18 In the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you, and to some extent I believe it. 19 No doubt there have to be differences among you to show which of you have God’s approval. 20 So then, when you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat, 21 for when you are eating, some of you go ahead with your own private suppers. As a result, one person remains hungry and another gets drunk. 22 Don’t you have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God by humiliating those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? Certainly not in this matter!

 23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

 27 So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.

It's a Good Thing to Think (1 Cor. 11:1-6)

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1 Corinthians 11:1-6

New International Version (NIV)

1 Corinthians 11

 1 Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.
On Covering the Head in Worship
 2 I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding to the traditions just as I passed them on to you. 3 But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man,[a]and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head.5 But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. 6 For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head.

Footnotes:
  1. 1 Corinthians 11:3 Or of the wife is her husband

Examples and Warnings (1 Cor. 10:1-14)

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1 Corinthians 10:1-14

New International Version (NIV)

1 Corinthians 10

Warnings From Israel’s History
 1 For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. 2 They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.3 They all ate the same spiritual food 4 and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. 5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.

 6 Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. 7 Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.”[a] 8 We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did—and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. 9 We should not test Christ,[b] as some of them did—and were killed by snakes.10 And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel.

 11 These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the culmination of the ages has come. 12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! 13No temptation[c] has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted[d] beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted,[e] he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

Idol Feasts and the Lord’s Supper
 14 Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry.

Footnotes:
  1. 1 Corinthians 10:7 Exodus 32:6
  2. 1 Corinthians 10:9 Some manuscripts test the Lord
  3. 1 Corinthians 10:13 The Greek for temptation and tempted can also mean testing and tested.
  4. 1 Corinthians 10:13 The Greek for temptation and tempted can also mean testing and tested.
  5. 1 Corinthians 10:13 The Greek for temptation and tempted can also mean testing and tested.