Now concerning food offered to idols: we know that “all of us possess knowledge.” This “knowledge” puffs up, but love builds up. 2 If anyone imagines that he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to know. 3 But if anyone loves God, he is known by God.
4 Therefore, as to the eating of food offered to idols, we know that “an idol has no real existence,” and that “there is no God but one.” 5 For although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”— 6 yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.
7 However, not all possess this knowledge. But some, through former association with idols, eat food as really offered to an idol, and their conscience, being weak, is defiled. 8 Food will not commend us to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do. 9 But take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.10 For if anyone sees you who have knowledge eating in an idol's temple, will he not be encouraged, if his conscience is weak, to eat food offered to idols? 11 And so by your knowledge this weak person is destroyed, the brother for whom Christ died. 12 Thus, sinning against your brothers and wounding their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ.13 Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble.

Meditation
Love looks to lift others up, not push them down by prioritizing our personal preference. Love builds up, seeking to bless others over and against burdening them. Love lives life for the gain of others, giving ourselves away, because this is how Jesus Christ has loved us.
 
Christians have always had difficulty loving one another. The sixth issue (of ten) Paul addresses in 1 Corinthians is not unique to Corinth. We have meditated on Paul’s addressing of loving weaker Christians in Romans 14 and his direction for gospel humility in Church family life together (Philippians 2). Love must build up Christ’s body.
 
There is more at stake than enjoying one’s rights. Love is more important than personal preference. Knowledge of rights in Christ and the theological ability to win an argument is important, but not as important as loving God’s family.
 
The Corinthian’s debated about eating food offered to idols. While Christians did not always have the right to eat temple meat, it was OK if it was not a part of a pagan religious ritual. Those who did not believe this are called “weak” in conscience because they are unknowledgeable in their theology. But if eating meat when you are right theologically makes a fellow Christian stumble, you should lay down your right and walk in love by abstaining from eating meat.
 
Jesus, who perfectly loves,  laid down His rights to lift us up, Jesus was killed so believers can live. Our response should be to lay down our rights so love can build up God’s family.
 
Richly Dwelling
-What stands out to you in today’s reading about love building up by laying down our rights for the conscience of others?
 
-How do you prioritize keeping your rights rather than loving others to build them up?
 
-Jesus laid down His life  to build you up in grace. How does this reality move you to want to walk in love as He has loved us, giving Himself for us?
 
Key Verse
1 Now concerning food offered to idols: we know that “all of us possess knowledge.” This “knowledge” puffs up, but love builds up. 

Better is a poor person who walks in his integrity
    than one who is crooked in speech and is a fool.

2 Desire without knowledge is not good,
    and whoever makes haste with his feet misses his way.

3 When a man's folly brings his way to ruin,
    his heart rages against the Lord.

4 Wealth brings many new friends,
    but a poor man is deserted by his friend.

5 A false witness will not go unpunished,
    and he who breathes out lies will not escape.

6 Many seek the favor of a generous man,
    and everyone is a friend to a man who gives gifts.

7 All a poor man's brothers hate him;
    how much more do his friends go far from him!

He pursues them with words, but does not have them.
8 Whoever gets sense loves his own soul;
    he who keeps understanding will discover good.

9 A false witness will not go unpunished,
    and he who breathes out lies will perish.
10 It is not fitting for a fool to live in luxury,
    much less for a slave to rule over princes.

11 Good sense makes one slow to anger,
    and it is his glory to overlook an offense.

12 A king's wrath is like the growling of a lion,
    but his favor is like dew on the grass.

13 A foolish son is ruin to his father,
    and a wife's quarreling is a continual dripping of rain.
14 House and wealth are inherited from fathers,
    but a prudent wife is from the Lord.

15 Slothfulness casts into a deep sleep,
    and an idle person will suffer hunger.
16 Whoever keeps the commandment keeps his life;
    he who despises his ways will die.

17 Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord,
    and he will repay him for his deed.

18 Discipline your son, for there is hope;
    do not set your heart on putting him to death.
19 A man of great wrath will pay the penalty,
    for if you deliver him, you will only have to do it again.

20 Listen to advice and accept instruction,
    that you may gain wisdom in the future.

21 Many are the plans in the mind of a man,
    but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.

22 What is desired in a man is steadfast love,
    and a poor man is better than a liar.

23 The fear of the Lord leads to life,
    and whoever has it rests satisfied;
    he will not be visited by harm.

24 The sluggard buries his hand in the dish
    and will not even bring it back to his mouth.

25 Strike a scoffer, and the simple will learn prudence;
    reprove a man of understanding, and he will gain knowledge.

26 He who does violence to his father and chases away his mother
    is a son who brings shame and reproach.

27 Cease to hear instruction, my son,
    and you will stray from the words of knowledge.

28 A worthless witness mocks at justice,
    and the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity.

29 Condemnation is ready for scoffers,
    and beating for the backs of fools.
 
Meditation
The number one description of God in the Old Testament includes His “abounding in steadfast love.” Men like Boaz are pictures of God’s character and conduits of God’s steadfast love to the world (Ruth 2:20), the aspiration for “what is desired in a man…” (22).
 
The story of Boaz and Ruth captures several key aspects of today’s proverbs: Wisdom compels the poor to walk in integrity, the wealthy to use their wealth to bless the poor and honor their Maker, to work hard while trusting the sovereignty of God to solidify God’s plans… and the lynch pin is God’s man Boaz embodying God’s character as a conduit of God’s work.
 
Boaz’s provision for the poor is described in the aspirational desires of verse 22: full of God’s steadfast love. When God’s people are full of God’s love then it will be “more than enough” for God’s world. Walking in wisdom is a gracious invitation to align with God’s character as it reveals the powerful purpose of participation in God’s work to love as He has loved us.
 
This wisdom is the spine of Christian life taught in the New Testament. “As dearly loved children, walk in love as Christ has loved you, giving Himself for you…” (Ephesians 5:1-2). Christians are loved as children of God and are called to show love by giving ourselves away. This love ethic is in alignment with God’s character and allows us to be a conduit for God’s work.
 
Jesus is the treasury of wisdom because He totally embodied the steadfast love of God!
 
Richly Dwelling
-Does your life align with God’s character? Do people see God’s character in you and God’s love through you?
 
-What do people see when they look at you? What does this say about your understanding of God’s love and God’s ways?
 
- Jesus is the treasury of wisdom because He totally embodied the steadfast love of God in His humanity!  How can you walk with Jesus to know God’s love and walk in wisdom to show God’s love? Be specific.
 
Key Verse
22 What is desired in a man is steadfast love, and a poor man is better than a liar.

“Call now; is there anyone who will answer you?
    To which of the holy ones will you turn?
2 Surely vexation kills the fool,
    and jealousy slays the simple.

3 I have seen the fool taking root,
    but suddenly I cursed his dwelling.

4 His children are far from safety;
    they are crushed in the gate,
    and there is no one to deliver them.

5 The hungry eat his harvest,
    and he takes it even out of thorns,
    and the thirsty pant after his wealth.

6 For affliction does not come from the dust,
    nor does trouble sprout from the ground,
7 but man is born to trouble
    as the sparks fly upward.
 
8 “As for me, I would seek God,
    and to God would I commit my cause,
9 who does great things and unsearchable,
    marvelous things without number:
10 he gives rain on the earth
    and sends waters on the fields;
11 he sets on high those who are lowly,
    and those who mourn are lifted to safety.

12 He frustrates the devices of the crafty,
    so that their hands achieve no success.
13 He catches the wise in their own craftiness,
    and the schemes of the wily are brought to a quick end.

14 They meet with darkness in the daytime
    and grope at noonday as in the night.
15 But he saves the needy from the sword of their mouth
    and from the hand of the mighty.

16 So the poor have hope,
    and injustice shuts her mouth.
17 “Behold, blessed is the one whom God reproves;
    therefore despise not the discipline of the Almighty.
18 For he wounds, but he binds up;
    he shatters, but his hands heal.

19 He will deliver you from six troubles;
    in seven no evil[d] shall touch you.
20 In famine he will redeem you from death,
    and in war from the power of the sword.

21 You shall be hidden from the lash of the tongue,
    and shall not fear destruction when it comes.

22 At destruction and famine you shall laugh,
    and shall not fear the beasts of the earth.

23 For you shall be in league with the stones of the field,
    and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with you.
24 You shall know that your tent is at peace,
    and you shall inspect your fold and miss nothing.

25 You shall know also that your offspring shall be many,
    and your descendants as the grass of the earth.
26 You shall come to your grave in ripe old age,
    like a sheaf gathered up in its season.

27 Behold, this we have searched out; it is true.
    Hear, and know it for your good.”
 
Meditation
A sincere friend can say something stupid to someone suffering. Early in my shepherding days I kindly said something to someone who had just lost a loved one. My heartfelt intentions to consul were misguided and resulted in a heavier heart for the family member. What I did not understand is the key to understanding today’s reading:
 
Any message to someone suffering centered on anything but the cross of Christ will ultimately lead to deeper despair or drive them to a false gospel.
 
Eliphaz is the first to speak to suffering Job, a well-intentioned friend sincerely seeking to help. Eliphaz contextualizes suffering (1-7) before encouraging Job towards good things: Humbleness (8-16) and meekness (17-27). Worthy of note, Eliphaz’s words include the only saying from Job clearly quoted in the New Testament (vs 13 is quoted by Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:19). The problem is that Job’s suffering is not loving discipline from the Lord or Divine punishment for Job’s unrighteousness. Job is a believer who is in the right before God, a reality transforming Eliphaz’s wise words into a weapon furthering Job’s suffering.
 
The righteous reason for Job’s suffering catapults us to the cross of Christ and compels us to consider our counsel and understanding of suffering for Christians today. Children of God further God’s redemptive work by suffering with Christ, becoming like Christ in death, knowing we will be glorified with Christ (Romans 8:15-17; Philippians 3:10). Christian counsel, too, must reach further, wisdom beyond our understanding that can only be captured in the cross of Christ.

Richly Dwelling
-Do you identify with Eliphaz, well intended words of comfort that actually contribute to the struggle of a friend or family member?
 
-How does understanding suffering point us to the cross and how does that help you understand suffering for believers?
 
-Do you seek to become like Christ in His death? Why or why not? What does it look like for you?
 
Key Verse
13 He catches the wise in their own craftiness, and the schemes of the wily are brought to a quick end.

These are the inheritances that the people of Israel received in the land of Canaan, which Eleazar the priest and Joshua the son of Nun and the heads of the fathers' houses of the tribes of the people of Israel gave them to inherit. 2 Their inheritance was by lot, just as the Lord had commanded by the hand of Moses for the nine and one-half tribes. 3 For Moses had given an inheritance to the two and one-half tribes beyond the Jordan, but to the Levites he gave no inheritance among them. 4 For the people of Joseph were two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. And no portion was given to the Levites in the land, but only cities to dwell in, with their pasturelands for their livestock and their substance. 5 The people of Israel did as the Lord commanded Moses; they allotted the land.
Caleb's Request and Inheritance6 Then the people of Judah came to Joshua at Gilgal. And Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God in Kadesh-barnea concerning you and me. 7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land, and I brought him word again as it was in my heart. 8 But my brothers who went up with me made the heart of the people melt; yet I wholly followed the Lord my God.9 And Moses swore on that day, saying, ‘Surely the land on which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance for you and your children forever, because you have wholly followed the Lord my God.’ 10 And now, behold, the Lord has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the Lord spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day eighty-five years old. 11 I am still as strong today as I was in the day that Moses sent me; my strength now is as my strength was then, for war and for going and coming. 12 So now give me this hill country of which the Lord spoke on that day, for you heard on that day how the Anakim were there, with great fortified cities. It may be that the Lord will be with me, and I shall drive them out just as the Lord said.”
13 Then Joshua blessed him, and he gave Hebron to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for an inheritance. 14 Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite to this day, because he wholly followed the Lord, the God of Israel. 15 Now the name of Hebron formerly was Kiriath-arba. (Arba was the greatest man among the Anakim.) And the land had rest from war.

Meditation
I pray the Lord revives older generations of Christians to lead younger generations in claiming the power of God’s promises. I pray for vigorous older saints to steward their lives so the next generation and people from every nation will know God and the richness of His promises in Jesus, until they say with Paul, “I have fought the good fight and finished the race” (2 Timothy 4:7).
 
Caleb was eighty-five years old when he finally went into the promised land. His exemplary character is emphasized in personal description (8) and by the narrator (14). Caleb’s wholehearted pursuit of God and his promises during his days of spying (Numbers 13) continues to burst forth in his passion to claim the inheritance of God’s promises (10-12). Caleb’s vigor comes from concrete confidence in God’s ultimate victory.
 
Interestingly noted, Caleb was of Kenezzite lineage (6). Kenezzites were descendants of Kenaz, offspring of Esau and associated with Edomites. This suggests the ancestry of Caleb is non-Israelite and that his family was at one time grafted into God’s people. As Rahab the gentile was saved by faith in God and incorporated into God’s kingdom (Joshua 2), so too this foreign bred boy is the first noted to claim the promises of the Kingdom. The greatness of God’s promises are for every generation and people from every nation.
 
With vigor, we need the older generation of Christians to steward God’s victory for the next generation and people from every nation.
 
Richly Dwelling
-What stands out to you about Caleb’s description and his passion?
 
-Why is it important to note Caleb was both old and from gentile ancestry when considering the call for seasoned saints to steward the victory of God and the power of His promises in Christ?
 
-Who are you stewarding God’s promised victory to and for? How can you walk forward in faith, trusting God will lead you in relationships of discipleship with others?
 
Key Verse
10 And now, behold, the Lord has kept me alive, just as he said, these forty-five years since the time that the Lord spoke this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness. And now, behold, I am this day eighty-five years old. 

​“You shall not see your brother's ox or his sheep going astray and ignore them. You shall take them back to your brother. 2 And if he does not live near you and you do not know who he is, you shall bring it home to your house, and it shall stay with you until your brother seeks it. Then you shall restore it to him. 3 And you shall do the same with his donkey or with his garment, or with any lost thing of your brother's, which he loses and you find; you may not ignore it. 4 You shall not see your brother's donkey or his ox fallen down by the way and ignore them. You shall help him to lift them up again.
5 “A woman shall not wear a man's garment, nor shall a man put on a woman's cloak, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord your God.
6 “If you come across a bird's nest in any tree or on the ground, with young ones or eggs and the mother sitting on the young or on the eggs, you shall not take the mother with the young. 7 You shall let the mother go, but the young you may take for yourself, that it may go well with you, and that you may live long.
8 “When you build a new house, you shall make a parapet for your roof, that you may not bring the guilt of blood upon your house, if anyone should fall from it.
9 “You shall not sow your vineyard with two kinds of seed, lest the whole yield be forfeited, the crop that you have sown and the yield of the vineyard. 10 You shall not plow with an ox and a donkey together. 11 You shall not wear cloth of wool and linen mixed together.
12 “You shall make yourself tassels on the four corners of the garment with which you cover yourself.
Laws Concerning Sexual Immorality13 “If any man takes a wife and goes in to her and then hates her 14 and accuses her of misconduct and brings a bad name upon her, saying, ‘I took this woman, and when I came near her, I did not find in her evidence of virginity,’ 15 then the father of the young woman and her mother shall take and bring out the evidence of her virginity to the elders of the city in the gate. 16 And the father of the young woman shall say to the elders, ‘I gave my daughter to this man to marry, and he hates her; 17 and behold, he has accused her of misconduct, saying, “I did not find in your daughter evidence of virginity.” And yet this is the evidence of my daughter's virginity.’ And they shall spread the cloak before the elders of the city. 18 Then the elders of that city shall take the man and whip him, 19 and they shall fine him a hundred shekels[c] of silver and give them to the father of the young woman, because he has brought a bad name upon a virgin[d] of Israel. And she shall be his wife. He may not divorce her all his days. 20 But if the thing is true, that evidence of virginity was not found in the young woman,21 then they shall bring out the young woman to the door of her father's house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death with stones, because she has done an outrageous thing in Israel by whoring in her father's house. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.
22 “If a man is found lying with the wife of another man, both of them shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman. So you shall purge the evil from Israel.
23 “If there is a betrothed virgin, and a man meets her in the city and lies with her, 24 then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city, and you shall stone them to death with stones, the young woman because she did not cry for help though she was in the city, and the man because he violated his neighbor's wife. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.
25 “But if in the open country a man meets a young woman who is betrothed, and the man seizes her and lies with her, then only the man who lay with her shall die. 26 But you shall do nothing to the young woman; she has committed no offense punishable by death. For this case is like that of a man attacking and murdering his neighbor, 27 because he met her in the open country, and though the betrothed young woman cried for help there was no one to rescue her.
28 “If a man meets a virgin who is not betrothed, and seizes her and lies with her, and they are found, 29 then the man who lay with her shall give to the father of the young woman fifty shekels of silver, and she shall be his wife, because he has violated her. He may not divorce her all his days.
30  “A man shall not take his father's wife, so that he does not uncover his father's nakedness.
 
Meditation
Grace awakens believers to grow in godliness. Mercy moves Christians away from being conformed to the patterns of this world to being transformed more into the image of Jesus. Redemption releases God’s people to relish in a holy life of obedience.
 
Moses doubles down on teaching holy living for God’s redeemed people (Leviticus 19 is the crown jewel). Holiness belongs to God alone in the absolute sense. God’s people, redeemed from the penalty and power of sin, grow in godliness through living a holy life- a life set apart for God and obedient to God. God’s people are designed to be distinguished from non-believers in every area of life.
 
Israel was given the prescription to reinforce the distinction of holy living in daily life by practicing preservation of purity in everything: working with animals (1-4), gender specific clothing (5), planting (9), plowing (10), clothing (11), and sexual relations that protected people and purified marriage (13-30). Singularity of focus in simple steps of life was designed to strengthen the people’s understanding of their call to be holy and invites believers today to celebrate this invitation (1 Peter 1:16).
 
 
Richly Dwelling
-The New Testament teaches Christians are to be holy as God is holy (1 Peter 1:16). Do Christians live distinct in daily life through obedience to God and His direction in everything?
 
-How does the seemingly monotonous details of Moses’ direction double down on God’s desire for His redeemed people to live in holiness?
 
-Where do you need to live a more holy life, distinguished from the world by allowing God’s mercy to mold you more into the image of Jesus? Be specific.
 
Key Verse
9 “You shall not sow your vineyard with two kinds of seed, lest the whole yield be forfeited, the crop that you have sown and the yield of the vineyard. 

​Now concerning the matters about which you wrote: “It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.”2 But because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband. 3 The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. 4 For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. 5 Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.
6 Now as a concession, not a command, I say this. 7 I wish that all were as I myself am. But each has his own gift from God, one of one kind and one of another.
8 To the unmarried and the widows I say that it is good for them to remain single, as I am. 9 But if they cannot exercise self-control, they should marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion.
10 To the married I give this charge (not I, but the Lord): the wife should not separate from her husband 11 (but if she does, she should remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband), and the husband should not divorce his wife.
12 To the rest I say (I, not the Lord) that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her. 13 If any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever, and he consents to live with her, she should not divorce him. 14 For the unbelieving husband is made holy because of his wife, and the unbelieving wife is made holy because of her husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy. 15 But if the unbelieving partner separates, let it be so. In such cases the brother or sister is not enslaved. God has called you to peace. 16 For how do you know, wife, whether you will save your husband? Or how do you know, husband, whether you will save your wife?
Live as You Are Called
17 Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him. This is my rule in all the churches. 18 Was anyone at the time of his call already circumcised? Let him not seek to remove the marks of circumcision. Was anyone at the time of his call uncircumcised? Let him not seek circumcision. 19 For neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but keeping the commandments of God. 20 Each one should remain in the condition in which he was called. 21 Were you a bondservant when called? Do not be concerned about it. (But if you can gain your freedom, avail yourself of the opportunity.) 22 For he who was called in the Lord as a bondservant is a freedman of the Lord. Likewise he who was free when called is a bondservant of Christ. 23 You were bought with a price; do not become bondservants of men. 24 So, brothers, in whatever condition each was called, there let him remain with God.
The Unmarried and the Widowed
25 Now concerning the betrothed, I have no command from the Lord, but I give my judgment as one who by the Lord's mercy is trustworthy. 26 I think that in view of the present distress it is good for a person to remain as he is. 27 Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be free. Are you free from a wife? Do not seek a wife. 28 But if you do marry, you have not sinned, and if a betrothed woman marries, she has not sinned. Yet those who marry will have worldly troubles, and I would spare you that. 29 This is what I mean, brothers: the appointed time has grown very short. From now on, let those who have wives live as though they had none, 30 and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no goods, 31 and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.
32 I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord.33 But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, 34 and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband. 35 I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.
36 If anyone thinks that he is not behaving properly toward his betrothed, if his passions are strong, and it has to be, let him do as he wishes: let them marry—it is no sin. 37 But whoever is firmly established in his heart, being under no necessity but having his desire under control, and has determined this in his heart, to keep her as his betrothed, he will do well. 38 So then he who marries his betrothed does well, and he who refrains from marriage will do even better.
39 A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord. 40 Yet in my judgment she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think that I too have the Spirit of God.

Meditation
The gospel of Jesus Christ gives believers a primary identity, a secure position as children of God to live from. Gospel identity frees believers from establishing significance or worth in circumstances of life. Christians are secure in the approval of God in Christ (Galatians 1:10).
 
“You were bought with a price,” writes Paul. “Do not become servants of people” (23). Bought with the blood of Christ, Christians receive a primary identity. We are not primarily our social status or marital status. We are God’s people and in any circumstance we shall and must celebrate security by living freely in Christ. The lie is to believe changing circumstances or situations will bring satisfaction or a deeper sense of significance. The truth is that digging deeper into our primary identity will bring the life for which we long.
 
“This present form of this world is passing away,” (31b) so believers must not prioritize primary identities of this world over identity in Christ. “Staying where God has called” and “remaining as you are” are ideas tying together this theme and uniting today’s reading. Married should continue marital relations (2-5), widows should remain unmarried (8-9), married Christians should remain married (10-11; even to non-Christians 12-16), circumcised should stay the same (18-19), servants should stay free in the Lord (21-23), and unmarried should remain unmarried (26-40). The point: The primary identity of believers is not social or marital status.
 
We belong to the Lord! Dig deep into the primary identity the gospel affords.
 
Richly Dwelling
-How do you look at marriage, work, and social status differently if your primary identity is your status as a child of God?
 
-The lie is to believe changing circumstances or status will give you what your heart is hungering for. Where do you see your own tendency to look for a change of status or circumstances to give you what only Jesus can give you?
 
-Love goes deep. The blood of Jesus buys you and nothing can separate you from God’s love in Christ. How then should you live out of this identity in service to Christ? Be specific.
 
Key Verse
23 You were bought with a price; do not become servants of people…