February 19
Purging out the leaven
1 Corinthians 5:7-8

 

7: Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened.  For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:
8: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Paul compares the acceptance of sin in a body of believers to leaven in a lump of bread dough.  He’s talking specifically here about a person who was involved in a sexual relationship with his father’s wife.  He says rather than mourning that something like this was going on in their church they were still boasting about the condition of their church.   Most likely, they were arrogant because God was moving in such a great way among them, yet they were missing the importance of the attitude of the heart.  They were missing the point of living a pure and sincere life before God which, in God's eyes, is greater than learning to tap into His power.

A little leaven leavens the whole lump (verse 6).  If a church becomes complacent about these things then the attitude will spread.

 

Confession:

I "keep the feast" with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.  I will celebrate and recognize Christ as the sacrificial Passover Lamb and will not take lightly what He has done for me.  I will remember that a pure and sincere heart before God means more than great displays of His power.

Obedience is a tree of life!