Showing Love in Liberties

Transcript

GR 1324
05-14-06
Showing Love in Liberties
1 Corinthians 8:7-13
Gil Rugh

In 1 Timothy 3:15 the Apostle Paul wrote to young Timothy and said I am writing to you so that you will know how to conduct yourself in the household of God, in the family of God, which is the church of the living God. And the church is God's family. It belongs to Him. We become members of that church by birth, we become part of God's family by birth. Peter wrote in 1 Peter 2 and said, you have been born again by the living and abiding Word of God. So you become part of God's family, not by a physical act of joining a church or being baptized or partaking of communion, but you become a member of God's family by believing in God and the work He has done in providing salvation through the death and resurrection of His Son.

Now as members of God's family, He has requirements of us. We are to live in a way that is acceptable and pleasing to. Him. And that's what Paul is writing about in
1 Corinthians 8. God is using the Apostle Paul as His spokesman to give instruction to His family and how they are to conduct themselves. This becomes very important in the section before us, covering chapters 8-10, where Paul will be dealing with matters relating to our allegiance to God, our faithfulness to Him, in the context of idolatrous worship, and also the love that we are to express to one another as brothers and sisters in the family of God. And as we will see again it is absolutely essential as God's people that we are manifesting love toward God and toward one another as His people.

In this section of the letter to the Corinthians, Paul is responding to issues that the Corinthians have written to him about. If you remember, if you've been here regularly, in 1 Corinthians 7:1 Paul began, now concerning the things about which you wrote. They had written to him and addressed certain issues and asked for his response. The first of those, you remember, had to do with sex and marriage. That covered all of chapter 7. Now chapter 8 begins by Paul saying, now concerning things sacrificed to idols. Another area that you have asked about and written concerning. And this subject will really cover three chapters as we have it in our Bibles—chapter 8-10. And Paul will address the issue of idols and the believers' relationship to false worship becomes a very, very pertinent issue. I'm often asked as a pastor about questions, is it all right for me to attend a service in this particular context, context where it is involved in a false worship system. But we have a relative getting married there, or there is going to be a funeral there, there is a confirmation there. Is it acceptable for me to be involved? Paul will address that more specifically when we get to chapter 10. First he's going to deal with the issue of how we respond to one another in love and putting others before ourselves.

Paul said regarding things sacrificed to idols the question comes, is it all right for a person who has placed their faith in Christ to eat food that has been sacrificed to idols. You remember that was the general practice, both in what we would call the secular food markets, just part of the life in the Greco Roman world, that food was first sacrificed to idols, particular gods, and then it was offered for consumption. You could purchase it in the marketplace, you might eat it at a friend's or acquaintance's home if they invited you for dinner. There might be a celebration in an idol temple where this kind of food would be served. Some of you have attended other contexts, perhaps something that took place in a house of worship, a church or other kind of religious facility, and you were invited there for something that was semi-secular function, but they were using the fellowship hall, if you will, of that place. Well in biblical times they did that, and could be invited to this particular temple and it wasn't so you could worship, but of course everything you ate in that temple would have first been offered to that god. All of that raised questions. Can a believer partake of this? And Paul's response was we all know about idols, verse 1. We all have knowledge about these things. And you understand, if all you have is knowledge, that just makes you arrogant. So he said at the end of verse 1, knowledge makes arrogant, love edifies; knowledge puffs up, love builds up. And that word translated “arrogant” at the end of verse 1, remember, means to fill with air, to blow up with wind. You're just a windbag if all you have is knowledge. Facts alone are not what we are looking for, even as God's people.

But that knowledge, that understanding and grasp of truth that has permeated our lives and now manifests itself in the love that we demonstrate toward one another. And that is what is used to build up other believers and build the body of Christ to maturity. And if you only have knowledge and think you know something, you really don't understand and know the way you should know. That was verse 2.

Verse 3, if anyone loves God he is known by Him. This is foundational. He talks about our relationship with God as a love/know relationship. If we love God we have been known by Him, He has known us, placed His favor upon us, His love, His intimacy. And now we love Him and if anyone loves God, He is known by Him. Then we looked in I John 4, and in verse 21 we read this, and this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also. So there is a disconnect going on in the family at Corinth, the family of God at Corinth. Because if anyone loves God, God has commanded that he also must love his brother, the fellow believer. But the Corinthians are thinking that just knowing things about God and His will is sufficient. And so they are not acting in love toward other believers, and as a result they are demonstrating disobedience to the head of the family, if you will, for it is God's family.

So the fact that we belong to God, there is only one God, that through His Son, Jesus Christ, we enter into a relationship with Him, are known by Him and come to love Him, that's foundational to everything. So he emphasized that relationship, verse 5, in the world there are many things called gods, many people worship different gods and so on, but we know there is only one God. The end of verse 4, there is no God but one; verse 6, for us there is one God, the Father from whom are all things. We exist for Him. One Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we exist through Him. That is foundational to everything. Now there are a lot of things we may know, and we know the absurdity of false gods and idols and other worship systems, we know that there is only one God and He is the source of everything. There is only one Lord, Jesus Christ, and it is only through Him that a person can have life. People think that is narrow today, they would say that is unloving. That is simply truth. It is not loving to tell someone a lie. Oh well, as long as you go to church, as long as you have certain things you believe, as long as you do your best it will be all right. Because the Bible is clear, there is only one God and there is only one way to enter into a relationship with this God, that is through His Son, Jesus Christ. And that is what Jesus taught, of course, when He was on earth and said, I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but through Me. And as Paul wrote to Timothy, there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus. That's it. That's not true because I say it, it's not true because this particular local church believes it, it is fact and truth because that's what the eternal God, the only God there is has said.

Now that is foundational. And as God's people we know and understand that, and we believe that. But it's not enough to stop there. Now that is to be manifest in the lives that we live. And that's where Paul is going to go. Back up to Romans 14 where Paul is addressing a similar subject—what kind of foods you should eat or not eat. There the context relates to the Mosaic Law and its instructions regarding foods out of the Old Testament as we have it. In the letter to the Corinthians Paul is dealing with food sacrificed to idols, but the same basic principle will be involved. What kind of foods should we eat or should we not eat? Are we required to eat or are we not required to eat? Note the foundational principle. Romans 14:6, he who observes the day observes it for the Lord. He who eats does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God. He who does not eat, for the Lord he does not eat, he gives thanks to God. For not one of us lives for himself, not one of us dies for himself. For if we live, we live for the Lord; if we die, we die for the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's. For to this end Christ died and lived again that He might be Lord both of the dead and the living. So you see in that context of discussing what kind of foods should we eat or not eat, how does the Mosaic law apply, Paul says you have to understand the foundational issue here is the relationship we have with the living God. And everything we do is done in light of that relationship. And we have that relationship through Jesus Christ who died and lived again. And that supersedes everything, because it transcends death. Because whether we live or whether we die, we belong to the Lord. So that relationship governs everything. Same foundational principle as Paul has established in 1 Corinthians 8.

So come back to 1 Corinthians 8. We are picking up with verse 7, and what Paul is going to do in verses 7-13 is show their responsibility to demonstrate love toward fellow believers in the use of the liberty and authority that they have in Christ. These Corinthians, many of them prided themselves in knowing something about grace and liberty and authority in Christ. And Paul said they are right as far as they go. The problem is, they know precious little about the subject of love, and the using of liberty and authority in a loving way in their relationship with other believers. This is a burden of Paul, when we get to chapter 13 the whole chapter will be taken up with developing the subject of love in the life of a child of God.

Look how verse 7 goes, however, not all men have this knowledge. And that word translated however is one of the Greek words for the conjunction but. And it's the one that denotes a strong contrast. He's unfolded the knowledge that we have and that there is only one God, and only one way to Christ, and idols are nothing, and there are no other gods. But not everyone has this knowledge. Now he said in verse 1, we all have knowledge, we have that general knowledge. But when it comes down to living that out, not all have the knowledge of how this works out in our lives.

He goes on, but some being accustomed to the idol until now eat food as if it were sacrificed to an idol, and their conscience being weak is defiled. This truth that we all know has not been grasped fully by some, and many of these at Corinth came out of a pagan background, just like many of you have. And when they do things that were associated with their pagan worship, it's troubling to them. And some of them are recent converts. Remember it has only been about five years since Paul left Corinth. And he spent 18 months at Corinth, so these are relatively new believers, and then some of them have come to know Christ, of course, in the time since he left. And now they are in a situation where there is a group in the church at Corinth who are parading their knowledge that idols are nothing and so if idols are nothing, food sacrificed to nothing hasn't changed. It's just food. So we can partake of that food freely, because an idol is nothing. There is only one God, if there is only one God that means this other god, this idol, is a nothing. So why should I be concerned whether that food has been offered to something that doesn't exist.

Well there is a line of truth to that, that's not all there is to be said about even the idol, as we'll see when we get to chapter 10. But that is true as far as it goes. The problem is, you have believers in the church at Corinth that are greatly troubled because they can't partake of this food knowing it's been sacrificed to an idol without connecting that to the worship of an idol. So some being accustomed to the idol until now eat the food as if it were sacrificed to an idol. To them it's not just food, it's part of a worship system. And in eating this food I have a sense of declaring an allegiance to this god, of committing myself in an act of worship to this god. And that defiles their conscience because they know they should only worship, now, the one true God. And so their conscience is defiled, it's marred, it's troubled. They feel that they have done what is wrong, they truly believe in their heart that they have been guilty of worshiping another god. That's a serious matter. Now we're in the matter of worshiping, and they're eating it as sacrificed to an idol, as part of idol worship.

Back up to Romans 14 again, we'll be going back and forth since there is similarity in many of the things said. Romans 14:14, Paul says, I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself. This is in the context of certain foods, clean and unclean, in connection with the Mosaic Law which said certain foods are clean, certain foods are unclean. Paul says I realize now that none of that is pertinent. But to him who thinks anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. Now the problem is not in the food itself, but now it is in the heart and mind of the person eating the food. And when they partake of it, their partaking of it in Romans 14 with the conviction in their mind that this is something the Lord would not have me do, this is something that would be defiling in my relationship with Him. To proceed and do that is saying what? I don't care if my relationship with the Lord is defiled.

Look down in verse 23, but he who doubts is condemned if he eats because his eating is not from faith. And what is not from faith is sin. I mean, I don't want to do, now we're in an area where we agree. The idol is nothing, the food is nothing, being clean or unclean is not an issue with the food in Romans 14, but I should not violate my conscience in an area where we would say there is liberty. You may be right, it may be all right for me to eat that, but I can't do it with a good conscience. That means if I do it, it is sin for me. May be all right for you, that's between you and the Lord. It's not all right for me, it still bothers my conscience. Maybe someday when I'm as mature as you are and I have an opportunity for more growth, I will see it more clearly and I will be able to do it without my conscience being troubled. But right now I can't, and in my heart and mind I would believe I am doing something that is detrimental to my relationship to the Lord, and I cannot do that. Paul said that's a serious matter. We ought to understand that as believers. Sometimes we come to know something and our next step is to try to beat it into another believer because he's got to see it our way, because we know it's right. Doesn't mean we don't talk about it, we don't continue to teach truth, but there are areas where there is freedom. And as Paul is going to go, it's not going to be required that we eat certain kinds of food, any more than it is a fact that we have liberty to eat it. And that's where Paul will go.

Come back to 1 Corinthians 8:8, but food will not commend us to God, we are neither the worse if we do not eat, nor the better if we do eat. Important point. The person here with knowledge has to be careful that he doesn't go to seed with his knowledge, because in arguing that food offered to an idol is nothing, he can come to the point where he is arguing that you should eat this food. Now you're making an issue of food from the other side. The weaker person with the weaker conscience is saying I couldn't do it, I don't believe it's right. We have to be careful now you don't have the knowledge of a stronger person saying you must eat it. But you understand, the point is, food is nothing. It won't make your relationship to God any stronger if you do eat it. We're not the worst if we do not eat, nor the better if we do eat. So why are those with knowledge making such a point that it is important for these others to eat?

You know this still becomes a problem, these kinds of external issues. Turn back to Mark 7. Jesus addressed this whole subject very clearly during His earthly ministry, and it's still something the church glosses over. We recently celebrated Easter and many people celebrate what they call Lent prior to Easter. And you know during Lent they have articles in the paper, what you are going to give up. I don't know why I still remember this, when I was a young boy, I remember, I gave up Ovaltine one year for Lent. Must have been traumatic, must have been a tremendous sacrifice because now all these years later I remember giving up Ovaltine for Lent and I don't remember if I lasted all 40 days or not. I can't expect a sacrifice like that to go too long. But you know we think, why would I give up something? Our family was semi-religious, we weren't even believers at that time, but the idea if you give up something and you don't eat that God will be happier. I mean, He'll be more pleased. Listen to what Jesus says in Mark 7:14, after He called the crowd to them again He began saying to them, listen to Me all of you and understand. There is nothing outside the man which can defile him if it goes into him. But the things which proceed out of the man are what defile the man. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear. That seems pretty clear to us, doesn't it. When He had left the crowd and entered the house His disciples questioned Him about the parable. They don't understand what He's talking about. What you put into your mouth doesn't defile you, it's what comes out of your heart. He said, are you so lacking in understanding also? Do you not understand that whatever goes into the man from outside cannot defile him? Because it does not go into his heart, it goes through the normal digestive system process.

Verse 20, He was saying that which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed the evil thoughts, fornication, theft, murder, adultery, deeds of coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things proceed from within and defile the man. And you'll note here, Jesus places the origin of sin in our conduct within our own heart, within our own mind. We like to put it in our circumstances, in how we were raised, in the environment, in poverty or wealth. Jesus said all these external things are not what make you sin, evil comes from within your own evil heart. We are fallen, sinful beings. That's where sin comes from. Why do people commit adultery? I couldn't help it, they did this. Wrong. Each of us sins when we are enticed and drawn away by our own lusts, James says.

Now here he is talking about food. I remember being told when I was young person after I became a believer that I should never smoke because your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and you don't think you want to fill that with smoke, do you? I'm not arguing for cigarettes, I don't smoke, I've never smoked, I'm not planning on it. I remember reading Charles Spurgeon's sermon when he said he hoped to smoke a cigar to the glory of God when he was done. That's his business, I don't have any intention, so don't think I'm trying to cover up something here. My point is, that's not a good argument. There may be other reasons to tell young people and older people alike why they shouldn't smoke, but you understand putting a cigarette in your mouth is not what defiles you, any more than putting a candy bar in your mouth is what defiles you. We have all kinds of Christian health books because our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit and we have to be careful what we eat because we want to take care of the temple. Didn't they ever read Mark 7? I mean Jesus would have to say to them, do you not understand? Are you so lacking in understanding also? I mean, these kinds of arguments. Now I'm not saying it's wrong to write a health book, and maybe some foods are more healthy than others, and maybe it's good to exercise, and maybe it's good not to smoke. But we oughtn't to use unbiblical arguments to try to make a point. And the point is, the physical things you put in your mouth are not what defiles your heart. They may not be good for your body, but you don't defile the temple of the Holy Spirit in that way. What defiles the temple of God as the temple of God is what comes out of that heart—sin, even as a believer.
So the point here, and thus at the end Mark 7:19, thus He declared all foods clean. So the argument in Romans 14, are some foods clean and unclean according to the Mosaic Law? The fact is no. There still are people writing books on the importance of eating according to the Old Testament guidelines. Maybe for a health reason you want to, but that wasn't the point in the Old Testament. When He told Peter go ahead and have a ham sandwich, He wasn't saying, I don't care if you die of cancer, go ahead. I mean, we're talking about spiritual principles, not health principles here. We don't want to misuse the Word by making a mockery of the Word. All right, so we established the principle that food going in your mouth is a nonissue regarding your relationship with the Lord.

Come over to Colossians 2. Always the tendency to move to make externals what are important in our relationship with God and in our worship. And we begin to identify a certain kind of setting, a certain kind of auditorium, a certain kind of physical order of service. And all of a sudden that gets changed and we say I can't worship. There would be some people who wouldn't get through the service if they came here and I started to preach first, then we had the singing afterwards, and then we closed with the offering. Some would say, I just didn't feel like I worshiped. And part of what happens is we begin to associate worship with certain physical activity and certain physical procedures. I remember when I was in Bible college many years ago, had a professor who said, those of you who go into the pastorate, maybe you ought to change the order of service rather regularly, just so people don't begin to think in their minds that worship is following this order. We all have that. Some of you have to sit in the same seat every week, and if you don't it just sort of unsettles you, doesn't it? I realize we have comfort zones, but really, does it have anything to do with worship? But we do, I always know where to look for Marilyn, she always sits in that seat. But you know if she weren't there it wouldn't be any less worship if she moved over and sat here. Now it would foul me up because I wouldn't know where to look for her. But these physical things we have to be careful of.

The issue of foods and external things, when it comes to these matters Paul can speak very firmly and he writes to the Colossians. Colossians 2:16, therefore, let no one act as your judge in regard to food or drink, or in respect to a festival, a new moon, a sabbath day, which are a mere shadow of what is to come. The substance belongs to Christ. Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and worship of angels. And they take their stand, they saw visions, so this must be the way you are supposed ........... The end result is you're not holding fast, verse 19, to the Head, who is the source of all life for the body. Verse 20, if you've died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why as if you were living in the world do you submit yourself to decrees such as do not handle, do not taste, do not touch. And all these things are destined to perish because remember they are tied to this physical life. We've already seen that in Corinthians. This physical life is passing away, all these things are going to be burned up. Why do we make those the central thing in our relationship to God? Look at verse 23, these are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom, in self-made religion, self-abasement, severe treatment of the body. They are of no value against fleshly indulgence. We say, they have such discipline, they've really learned how to discipline their body. Well, that's why it's good, I want my kid in athletics, they'll learn how to discipline their bodies. That will make them more faithful in their service for the Lord. Rubbish. You know those things are of no value against fleshly indulgence. Now there is a place for the discipline of our body, we get to that in chapter 9. We need to be careful. So when teachers want to come in and make this a necessary part of our relationship to the Lord even for salvation or for sanctification, Paul comes down with both feet on them.

Turn over to 1 Timothy 4. We didn't take the time, but in Colossians2 he laid the foundation of a true relationship to God through faith in Christ. In 1 Timothy 3:14-16 he talks about the work of Christ and then verse 15 which I quoted to you when we began, the household of God which is the church of the living God. Then note chapter 4 verse 1, but the Spirit explicitly says that in the latter times some will depart from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron. Men who forbid marriage, we talked about that whole matter in the context of 1 Corinthians 7 and the place of marriage and sex in marriage and so on. And advocate abstaining from foods which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude. It is sanctified by means of the Word of God and prayer.

There may be physical reasons for my health, it would be better for me to not eat this or to eat this. But there is no spiritual reason involved there. God created everything. And you say, He didn't make Snickers bars. Well He did make the ingredients if you back up far enough. Well I don't know about sugar. Well, where did the sugar cane come from, on we go. I don't want to get too far aside because I don't want to get into the battle.

Come back to 1 Corinthians 8. Some of you know, I can eat in a peculiar way. If I eat differently, it won't make any difference to my spiritual life. It just has to do with how I feel better physically. Could I weigh 300 lbs more than I do and have a good relationship with the Lord? Yes. Could I weigh 300 lbs less than I do? Yes, because then I'd be in glory. So my weight is not a spiritual issue. We ought not to make it that.

All right, chapter 8 verse 8, a verse you ought to highlight because it needs to be used today. We are neither the worse if we do not eat, the better if we do eat. All right, so there is liberty here. Liberty to eat, liberty to not eat. But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. Now we come to what is a crucial issue. The word “liberty,” exusia. It's the word that means authority, power. So in the context you realize you have liberty, authority to do something. It's within your right, your power to do it, you have liberty to do it. Take care that this authority, this liberty of yours to eat or not eat does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. Stumbling block referred to a stone that was in the path that causes someone to stumble, trip, fall. It impedes their progress.

All right we know food doesn't make you better. It doesn't make you worse in your relationship with God. Now that you know this, though, be careful how you use what you know. It's not just a matter of arguing for your rights. But he has nothing to say to the one with the weak conscience, it's all directed toward the stronger, to the knowledgeable one. Be careful that what I know doesn't get misused and have a detrimental impact on another. I don't want what I know and the knowledge I have of my rights and authority in Christ to impede someone's growth and development in their relationship with Christ. And now he elaborates.

For if someone who sees you who have knowledge dining in an idol's temple, will not his conscience, if he is weak, be strengthened to eat things sacrificed to idols? Now I have some friends, they say we're going to the temple of Isis and all kinds of people will be there and we're going to be getting together for a good evening of games and fun. There will be lots of food. I'll say, sure, I can come. I have a new believer looking at me that used to worship in the temple of Isis. They know that nothing goes on in the temple of Isis that isn't done under the auspices of Isis, and there is no food that can be eaten in that temple that is not first offered to Isis. And I go there and say, Isis is nothing, a creation of man's mind. There is only one God, and this food is really good. And offering it to Isis didn't change anything. But this weak Christian that can't get out of their mind, I know when I ate that food in the temple of Isis that was part of my worship of Isis. That's a terrible thing to do to worship Isis instead of the living God. So now they look, he's strong, he's been a believer longer than I have. I've been learning from him and he knows more about the Word than I do, and if it's all right for him it must be all right for me.

So their conscience is strengthened. Interesting word, “strengthened.” It's the same word translated “edify” at the end of verse 1, “love edifies.” But here we're using our knowledge to build someone up to do the wrong thing, the wrong thing for them because they won't be able to do it with a clear conscience. So their conscience is strengthened to eat things sacrificed to idols. Well isn't that good? No, it's not good because it defiles their conscience.

Look at the next verse and see the disastrous effects. For through your knowledge he who is weak is ruined, the brother for whose sake Christ died. I mean, that is about as strong as you can get. That word ruined, it's often used for people going to hell. It means they are destroyed. They don't lose their salvation here, but their relationship to the Lord has suffered a crushing, disastrous setback. You've led them back into idol worship. You say wait a minute, I though an idol was nothing. No, but false worship is something. The worship of other gods is something. Other gods are nothing. The worship of other gods is a serious matter. And they have come back and been led into partaking of this food, it's all right to go to the idol's temple and eat, it's all right to eat foods sacrificed to idols. But for them this is an act of worship to an idol. Now that's the problem, and for someone who now is a believer and knows he must worship the only God, then become involved in false worship, there cannot be anything more ruinous. Do I want to be guilty of that? Oh no, I didn't mean they ought to worship Isis, I just meant Isis is nothing, the food is good. But for them it's the worship of Isis, taking just one of the gods for example.

And you'll note the seriousness of this, verse 11, through your knowledge, you who know so much, the one who is weak is ruined, destroyed. And this one who is weak is the brother, we're in the family now, the brother for whose sake Christ died. I mean, would I want to be guilty of that? Here is a fellow believer, a member of the family of God, but I've used my knowledge to destroy him when Christ loved him enough to die for him. And I've made food a bigger issue. You don't expect me to give up this good food, do you? That's his problem, not mine. Well that's my problem. I mean, we do that in our families, don't we? We have older children and younger children and we may leave the older children there in charge in the family. They know certain things, but they are to know that certain things would not be good for their younger siblings. And they come back and have done something and the younger sibling has gotten into trouble trying to do it, we hold the one with knowledge accountable. Right? You should have known better. But, Dad, it was all right. It wasn't all right with your brother. You should have known. So in one sense they may be arguing, yes, it would be all right. What made it not all right was their younger brother. Sometimes there are certain streets, maybe some of your kids are old enough to cross. But when you have your brother or sister with you, you go to the light and cross down there. But, Dad, I go across there all the time. It's not all right when your brother is with you. Is that a double standard? No, it's just the proper application of the knowledge.

Now Christ died for this person, that has to be my first thought. That's foundational for me, isn't it? It's like Paul laid this foundation, I have a relationship with the living God and love Him because Christ died for me and it's through Christ that I now belong to God. Now I understand that this fellow believer is one for whom Christ died. I don't want to do anything that would impede their growth, that would hinder their relationship with Christ, that would set them back, that might bring ruin. All of a sudden the whole issue of food and whether I eat or not has become a bigger issue for the person who has knowledge than it is for the person who doesn't. Because I am now in such a responsible position. Isn't that the way love functions, looking out for the person and not yourself; not putting you first but putting them first? That's love. That's a big hurdle we have to get over in our marriage relationship, isn't it? Two sinners get married, even redeemed sinners, we have to learn to think of the other person first, put them first, be concerned about them first. So it is here, we are a family.

I had a pastor call me, maybe a month or so ago, one of the biggest problems he is having in his church, he has some knowledgeable Christians. And they are just such a problem in the church, and what they know is correct, but the way they are using it in the church is just causing so much trouble. And they've been working on 1 Corinthians 8 and we talked about that. What a sad situation. Can't say that what they know is not correct, but what they are doing with what they know is being misused and as a result they will have a split in that church, I'm afraid.

Verse 12, so by sinning against the brethren, we're talking about inner family relationships here, we're talking about believer with believer. By sinning against the brethren, by wounding their weak conscience, by your example as well as your words, leading them to do something that defiles their conscience. By sinning against the brethren, wounding their conscience while it is weak, and that wounding is a strong word. Beaten their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ. Even when we know so much and we're proud of our knowledge and we know we're right, we look around and say well, it's their problem. But when I sin against Christ it is my problem, and when I sin against a fellow believer in this way, I have sinned against Christ. It's my problem, not their problem. They'll have to learn to get over it. They’ll have to grow up. In God's time they will. I just need to be careful I've grown up and functioning in the maturity of knowledge that produces love and not sinning against Christ. I cannot sin against the brethren and not sin against Christ. This is a serious matter. Now I have undermined their relationship and growth in Christ, and I have hindered my growth because now I am in rebellion and have sinned against Christ.

So Paul's conclusion to this. Therefore, if food causes my brother to stumble, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause my brother to stumble. Bottom line for me is not my rights, bottom line is what will help my brother to grow. Paul understood his liberty and freedom as well as anyone, and when it became a matter of defending the gospel against false teaching, he would defend it stronger than anyone. But when it comes to exercising my rights, I can be quick to give them up. That's what all of chapter 9 will be about, Paul using himself as an example of how he is willing to give up his rights. And if it's an issue of food, doesn't matter what the food. If that troubles you, that's okay, because I don't need to eat it. Because my growth in Christ is not dependent upon my eating it, so let's not make it an issue. It bothers you, fine, I'll just have what you are having. That's great. I don't think I ought to drink diet Coke, that's fine. What about iced tea? No tea? Okay, water good? Water's good, it is for me, too. I mean, is that the big issue of my Christian life, what I eat and don't eat. I know it's nothing, but you don't. Now this can't be turned around, and note that Paul doesn't, where those who consider themselves weak now are in a position that I can tell people what they can do and not do because it bothers me. This is not just an opportunity for the arrogant to assert their arrogance and get their way. You'll note he doesn't address the weak at all here, they can't tell the strong what to do. Because as he covers more fully in chapter 14, the weak aren't to tell the strong or the knowledgeable what to do. But the knowledgeable are to make a decision in light of their love relationship with the Lord. They love God, verse 3, and are known by Him. And they are using their knowledge properly. The weak aren't in a position to tell them they can't do it, that would be a misuse of the Word. But the knowledgeable, the strong, are to be using their knowledge in a loving way, and so, sure, we give it up. It doesn't matter to me, I can do without it, and I don't have to do it like oh I can make this sacrifice. You don't know how I was looking forward to having that steak, but if it's going to bother you I guess I'll do without it. It's nothing to me, because what matters to me is my relationship to Christ. What matters to me is your relationship with Christ. We read this and say, of course, I'd want to make that same sacrifice. Then we get done and 98.9% of the bickering in the church is over nothing. Why would we do that?

Come back to Romans 14, we'll read a few verses and be done. Verse 19, so then let us pursue the things which make for peace and the building up of one another. Romans 15:1, now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not please ourselves. Each of us is to please his neighbor for his good, to his edification, for even Christ did not please Himself, but as it is written, the reproaches of those who reproached you fell on Me. We have our relationship to the living God through Jesus Christ, the one who willingly gave up everything to love us and die for us. Now that we've been brought into a relationship with the living God and are privileged to love Him because He first loved us, we are also to manifest that love in our relationships, dealings, activities with one another. That means we always have to have the other believer on our mind when we're making our decision. And that is a privilege, isn't it? To function as part of God's family in a relationship with God's people.

Let's pray together. Thank you, Lord, for the greatness of your love for us, that immeasurable love, that love demonstrated in the giving of your Son, who willingly bore reproach, bore our sins in His body on the cross that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. Thank you, Lord, for loving us, thank you that we can love you, thank you, Lord, for the privilege of loving one another. And Lord as we grow in knowledge, we grow in love so that you are honored with our lives, that we are growing and that we become instruments to aid in the growth of others. We pray in Christ's name, amen.