Chapters 8 and 9

1 Corinthians 8-9

Turning to food offered to idols, the Apostle Paul began by emphasising that knowledge makes one proud while love builds up.

In the city of Corinth, idol worship was rampant. Oftentimes, the Corinthians would offer food to their ʻgodsʼ in the various temples. Some of this food would be eaten in the temple premises with friends invited to join in; in big offerings of food, some of the food ended up in the markets for sale to the public.

The Corinthian believers might be invited to some of these gatherings in the temple surroundings; they might also buy such meat in the market for their own consumption. To the enlightened and knowledgeable believers, it was not wrong to partake such food. Otherwise, they would have to keep away from social gatherings with unbelievers. They would also need to refrain from buying meat in the market, for it was common to have the market selling such meat. That would not be helpful, for they were also aware that idols were not really gods and there was and is only one true God whom they worshipped.

However, younger believers who were associated with the worship of such idols prior to becoming Christians might have their conscience pricked when they observed the older Christians eating this meat. They might end up being stumbled; some might even be encouraged to return to idol worship, thinking that it was perfectly acceptable. For older Christians to ignore the consciences of the relatively less knowledgeable believers in such matters and to continue to insist on their freedom to act according to their knowledge would not be a loving thing to do if it caused the younger ones to stumble.

A head full of knowledge should be governed by a heart full of love; real Christ-likeness is seen in this kind of love, a love which builds up rather than stumbles. No believer should compromise anotherbelieverʼs conscience by imposing his knowledge on one whom he considers ignorant, or his ʻstrengthʼ on one who is ʻweakʼ. Instead, the Christian should use his new God-given freedom in Christ to set others free to be the best they can be for God. It is no wonder that Apostle Pauldeclared that if food caused his Christian brother to stumble, he will never eat meat, lest he be the stumbling block to this brother.

Here we see love taking precedence over knowledge in the exercise of the believerʼs freedom in Christ; to adopt the opposite behaviour is to deny Christ and to devalue His cross. A weaker brotheris equally precious to God as the stronger believer; to despise someone who is that valuable to God is to oppose Christʼs values. It is tantamount to sinning, not only against the brother, but also against Christ. We are collectively the body of Christ with Christ as the head; to sin against another member of Christʼs body is effectively sinning against the head Himself.

Sacrifice is the characteristic by which love is recognised; the way of love meant the way of the cross for our Lord Jesus Christ. It is the way of our Lord and it ought to be the way of His servants. A crucified life-style means that our choices are governed for the good of others and our decisions are based on their spiritual well-being. We see that love, not knowledge, was the governing principle in Apostle Paul’s life and he was prepared to surrender his freedom, rather than exercise it in a manner that would harm his brother in Christ. Such a principle is the principle under the cross of Christ. It is uncommon even among so-called mature Christian believers today. This may explain why we choose “knowledge” as the preferable option, for we need not deny ourselves and it is good for our egos. The way of love is the way of the cross which is the only path that will lead to true freedom in our Lord Jesus.

Paul went on in chapter nine to look at the nature of his Christian freedom in the light of his own ministry. After warning the Corinthian believers to take care that their “rights” and “knowledge” did not become a stumbling block to the weak, he now focused on how the principle of loving, self-sacrificing service governed all the decisions he made in his own ministry as an apostle. He followed the footsteps of “Jesus Christ and Him crucified” in ensuring that his freedom was always cross-shaped. Paul readily gave up his own rights for the gospel benefits of others. This was the hallmark of his apostolic ministry.

He first defended his apostleship by affirming that he had seen the Lord Jesus and that the existence of the church of Corinth itself was proof of the divine enabling in his ministry as an apostle. He then established his rights as an apostle: he had the right to receive financial support for his ministry; he had the right to be accompanied by a wife like the other apostles; he need not work another job to earn a living but could concentrate on the ministry. Paul showed that even the principle of Godʼs decree in the Torah stated that an ox helping the farmer to thresh his crop had a right to eat some of the product. Surely God was not justconcerned for the ox but the principle applies also to man. Paul was indicating that he had a right to share in the spiritual harvest, not just spiritual things but also material things, as he had laboured spiritually among the Corinthians.

Then comes the punchline: Paul had not made use of these rights and did not intend to! Why? He and his co-workers endured anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel. To them, something is far more important than their personal rights: the gospel of Christ. Their primary objective was the clear proclamation of the gospel and the unhindered spread of this good news. Paul did not criticise those who used their rights for he was fully aware that those employed in the temple service get their food from the temple.

As for Paul himself, the essence of his freedom lies in his ability to use his freedom to deny himself, for the sake of the gospel. He knew he had every right to be financially supported by the Corinthian church, but he was concerned that this could lead to a misunderstanding that would undermine the progress of the gospel in that context. He declared that although he was free from all, he had made himself a servant to all, for the sake of the gospel.

Paul disclosed that he was under a divine compulsion to preach the gospel and he was convicted that a life of gospel preaching isinseparable from a life of gospel sacrifice. Paul saw his self-denying sacrifice as expressing the very essence of the message of Christ crucified. Therefore, he would not allow anyone to deprive him of this approach in his ministry.

As a servant to all, Paul was willing not to assert his rights.Instead, he sacrificed his rights as he brought the gospel to various groups. He was willing to adapt his approach as long as he did not need to compromise the ways of the Lord in order to win as many as possible for the gospel.

Paul then turned his attention to athletes competing in a race. The city of Corinth was familiar with this illustration as it hosted the Isthmus games regularly. The runners exercised discipline, self-control, not only in the race, but also in the preparations in order to win a perishable wreath. Only one runner would receive this prize and all the runners were very clear of their goal to win.

There ought to be the same level of determination, discipline and dedication at the heart of the believerʼs spiritual life and race. The prize for finishing the Christian race is not just something perishable but an eternal prize! And the winner is not just one individual; all faithfulservants of Christ will receive this prize. Paul here was not referring to salvation but rather to the reward for faithful service.

Paul knew that the whole course has to be completed until thefinishing line. He was aware that he himself could be disqualified if he did not exercise self discipline even though he had preached to others. He had to keep the goal and the finishing line in mind. This is awarning to believers and churches not to be ill-disciplined spiritually and just to drift along without any gospel urgency and radical discipleship.

Listen to the words of J. I. Packer in Seeing God in the Dark:

A mistake is to suppose that growth in grace is automatic; to suppose that it is something you need not bother about because it will look after itself, something which is guaranteed, particularly if you are aprofessional minister, missionary or church officer. The enemy wants to encourage all who seek to serve God to take it for granted that as we doour job we shall automatically grow and mature in Christ and thereforeneed not bother about sanctification at all. He wants to encourage us tothink this way because, if we are not striving to grow, we are actually in danger of doing the very opposite, namely, shrinking as a person behind the role we play.

Note that we need to be striving to grow. Paul speaks of discipline, self-control, wholeheartedly running the race, bringing ourlazy, self-indulgent bodies and our proud, selfish spirits under the daily challenge of Christʼs authority. But we need to know that it is by God’senabling through His Spirit. This does not preclude daily discipline, self-control and the partaking of the disciplines of grace, offered to us through the study of the Bible, Christian fellowship, community worship, communion and the other graces. Some call it grace-driven effort. This effort needs to be deliberate and directed, not aimless and sporadic. This effort is empowered by Godʼs Spirit.