The biggest complaint my friends and I had while in high school was that there was nothing to do on the weekends. It was a ritual to complain about the total lack of activities. I grew up in Houston, then, the fifth largest city in America.
In reality, our complaint was that we did not have the money to do the things we wanted to do. We had the freedom to do many things, as Houston provided, many activities for teenagers many of which were free. We chose to hang around with one another complaining about not having anything to do.
Freedom in the balance
In Christ Jesus, believers are the most free people in the world. Many believers express their freedom by pushing the boundaries of what has been considered acceptable Christian behavior. Years ago, dancing was considered a sin in which no good Christian would engage, but some believers would express their freedom in Christ through dancing.
Other believers choose not to exercise their freedom. They decide to hold onto ritual and tradition. This tradition might find expression in a particular dress code for church.
Freedom in Christ raises many question. What is a sin? What sins should I avoid as a Christian? What is right? What is wrong? These questions face Christians today as well as in the first century.
Freedom and love
In 1 Corinthians 8:1-3, the Apostle Paul gave the key to understanding his thoughts on having the knowledge of freedom in Christ, expressing that freedom and expressing love. The apostle knew those who act out of love toward God and toward others are the ones who have an intimate relationship with God.
Those in Corinth who understood their freedom in Christ allowed their knowledge to puff up their attitudes. They viewed anyone without the same knowledge as themselves as inferior. Their goal should have been to act out of love and not knowledge.
Freedom at the market
The actions in question in 1 Corinthians 8:4-6 focus on the issue of eating meat. Does a Christian have the freedom to eat meat? The answer today is the same as in the first century, a resounding “yes.”
Of course, the issue was not simply eating meat. In the first century, Jewish observance of food laws was significant, to say the least. About two-thirds of the ancient Jewish case rulings dealt with food issues. Thus, eating with Gentiles would be a perilous activity in which the breaking of a food law could occur even without one’s knowledge.
Meat in the Roman world was served at temples which served as a place for cultic meals and functioned as an ancient type of butcher shop. Naturally, this meat came from animals sacrificed to the gods. Could a believer eat such meat? Some in Corinth said “yes,” emphasizing their freedom, while others said “no,” stressing their continued observance of the food laws.
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Freedom in the gray
Eating meat is not an issue for Christians today any more than dancing appears to be. What about drinking alcohol, assisting an undocumented worker or rooming with someone of the opposite sex with separate bedrooms?
Paul said we all have freedom, yet that freedom needs to be held in check for those with a weaker faith. In other words, allowances should be made for those who are more legalistic. Freedom should not be lived in front of others who think the activity is morally questionable. Of course, such allowances can be taken too far, but that was not Paul’s concern.
Christians should live as if people are watching. In fact, they are watching. A reputation can be seriously damaged just by saying a few inappropriate words in front of others. “Just listen to how Christians cuss” has been uttered on more than one occasion by those who do not follow Christ.
Living with an understanding of how others view your lifestyle can be considered oppressive. Living with same regard toward others also could be considered a loving gesture. That is how 1 Corinthians 1:3 describes it.
Freedom, self and God’s glory
With 1 Corinthians 10:23-33, Paul summarized much of his argument concerning Christian freedom and eating meat. He noted Christians are free to do “everything” but not everything is constructive. Self-pleasure is not a Christian ideal. Instead, seeking what is best for others is an exceptionally Christ-like ideal.
The question “What is a sin?” can mask a deeper question—“What can I get away with?” Each of these questions is misguided. The question Paul might suggest in light of 1 Corinthians 10:31 is “How can I glorify God?”
To glorify God will involve living in such a way as to avoid causing others to stumble. A Christian’s actions should not encourage another to participate in something that is a sin for them to do. At the same time a Christians should not live in such a way as to cause others to judge them for their actions. That, too, would be causing another to sin.
To glorify God means to live in a pleasing way before God, even in the mundane activities of eating and drinking. Embracing this lifestyle will benefit the believer. Jesus described this life as abundant in John 10:10.
To glorify God means to live life in such a way as to benefit others. This life will involve lifestyle evangelism, living a witness before others that reveals the light of Christ (Matthew 5:14-16).
Exercising freedom in Christ is not about one’s pleasure in life. Freedom in Christ is to be exercised so others may be saved.
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