All right, thank you. Let's open our Bibles together
this morning through the book of 1st Corinthians
and the 8th chapter. 1st Corinthians chapter
8, and I'll invite you to read along in your
copy of the Bible as I read the scripture for
us in the New American Standard Version. Now
concerning praying the sacrifice to idols, we
know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge makes
arrogance. but love edifies. If anyone supposes
that he knows anything, he has not yet known
as he ought to know, but if anyone loves God,
he is known by him. Therefore, concerning the
eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know
that there is no such thing as an idol in the
world, and that there is no God but one. For
even if there are, so called God, whether in
heaven or on earth, as indeed there are many
gods and many lords, yet for us there is but
one God, the Father, from whom are all things,
and we exist for Him, and one Lord, Jesus Christ,
by whom are all things, and we exist through
Him. However, not all men have this knowledge,
but some, being accustomed to the idol, until
now. eat food as if it were sacrifice to an idol,
and their conscience being weak is defiled. The
food will not commend us to God. We are neither
the worst if we do not eat it, nor the better
if we do eat. But take care, lest this liberty
of yours somehow become a stumbling block to
the weak. For if someone 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? For through your knowledge
he who is weak is ruined, the brothers for whose
sake Christ died. And thus by sinning against
the brethren and wounding their weak conscience
when it is weak, their conscience when it is
weak, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if food
causes my brother to stumble, I will never eat
meat again. that I may not cause my brother to
stumble. Well, these seem like strange words
far out of touch with where we live in the end
of the 20th century. But in fact, they're very
vital to what we are facing in our world today.
Paul in this chapter is confronting a new concern
that the people in Corinth had written to him
about. It begins with a matter of Christian liberty.
as he addresses here, which Paul has already
touched upon in chapter 6 and verse 12 in our
study. But we're going to find that this theme
carries through, actually, chapter 11. So what
Paul wants to talk about here introduces a whole
subject that generally is under the category
of Christian living. And it will take four chapters
of this book for him to give his heart regarding
what he wants to say. The cultural issue that
brings the issue of Christian liberty into focus
here is the eating of meat that had been sacrificed
to idols. He's talking about pagan worship. There
were times when animals were offered to these
pagan gods. And when that was done, the meat
of the sacrifice was usually divided into three
portions. Part of it was burned on the altar
to the pagan god. Part of it was returned to
the offeror so that he went home with some meat.
And then a third part was given to the cultic
priest who offered to this god on behalf of the
sacrifice. And that priest would either use it
himself or he would sell it. on the market, and
that was one way that he supported himself. So
that was the cultural issue that the Corinthians
were facing. Remember, many of them had come
out of that sort of a background. Now the problem
for the Christians arose in three ways. Since
these public sacrifices were often sold to the
market, the market then would turn around and
sell them to the public. keeper. The meat that
had been offered to idols was less costly. And
so there were families who struggled, should
I, in order to help my budget, buy this keeper
meat, even though it has been offered before
this to one of the pagan gods? Another way that
the issue would arise was that unsaved friends
might invite a Christian to their home for dinner.
And obviously they would serve a delicious meal,
but that meat that was a part of the meal very
likely would have been a part of an offering
to a pagan god. Should a Christian go to a non
-Christian's home and eat that sort of food?
Then a third way the question arose was that
in many public, many public social gatherings
were held at pagan temples. And so as part of
these public occasions they would be in situations
where they would be given food to eat that had
been offered to idols. So what to do? Is it right
to eat or not to eat this kind of food? To participate
and to eat might suggest the approval of the
idols and that whole religious system. But others
said, no, that system doesn't mean anything.
This is good food. It's just meat. So we should
eat it. And there were people on both sides of
this issue. Now, of course, it's not new in the
church in our day that there are people on at
least two sides of every issue. That was the
case here. Now you say, well, how does all of
this affect my life because I haven't really
had any meat lately offered to an idol? Well,
when I first began preaching 25 years ago, it
wasn't too hard, frankly, to find activities
that were disputed among Christians, as to whether
it was right or wrong, where the scripture didn't
give a clear statement of prohibition. But there
was dispute nonetheless. There are fewer of those
today than there were 25 years ago. I'm not sure
that's a compliment. I think that the fact that
there are so few things considered by the Western
Church to be taboo in the late 90s is probably
a sign of our Laodicean spirit, to be honest
with you. As I thought about this this morning,
what kind of an issue is there today where there
is disagreement among Christians? something that
would sort of relate to the idol thing here.
And I came up with one, and there may be more,
and this may not be the best one, but I know
that it's relevant because I've heard it discussed
within our church and within the fellowship of
people I know. And that is should a Christian
go to a casino for entertainment. We see ads
in the newspaper all the time about so -and -so
appearing at one of the casinos in the state
of Minnesota. And we hear these promotions about
this or that being given away and this jackpot
being won. Should a Christian go to a casino?
We've got two Christians here. We'll call them
Jim and Tim. How's that? Nobody I know. But Jim
says, you know... I've got some extra money that
I use in recreation, and whether I use it for
fishing or to go to a casino, it's my choice.
So I think I'm just going to go up to the casino
this Friday night and see if I can win some money.
And if I don't, you know, I will use it on gas
and bait anyway. And so, who did I say that was,
that Jim? Okay, that was Jim. Now let's talk
10 minutes. Tim says, you know something? Gambling
was part of my past. I did that when I was a
non -Christian. And to me, to go to a casino
is really participating in something that's very
ungodly because that's how I wasted a lot of
my money and my family's money before I became
a Christian. I saw the futility of all of that.
So now Jim sees him on the street and he says,
hey, you want to go to the casino with me on
Friday night? You see, there is exactly the kind
of an issue we're talking about in 1st Corinthians
chapter 8. The one man has a rationale as to
why this is OK for him. He has a knowledge about
it. The other person has a conscience that is
stricken with guilt. regarding going to casinos.
Now, there are probably other examples that you
can think of as to how this sort of a chapter
applies. But let's take a look at what the apostle
says. The first thing he talks about is what
knowledge says in verses 1 through 6. Now, he's
talking here about a specific issue, so let's
think about that for a moment. He says, we all
know something. We have come to know something
by God's revelation. There is some knowledge,
he says, that we value. He says, we may not know
everything yet, but there is something that we
do know. He says in verse 4, we know that idols
are nothing. They're nothing. Idols are lifeless.
It may be a front for a demon spirit that receives
some kind of joy out of being worshipped through
this idol, but the idol itself is wood, it's
stone, it's some sort of a metal. Idols are nothing.
No idol can represent the immaterial and glorious,
immortal God of the universe. Idol is nothing.
We know that. Paul says secondly, we also know
that there's only one God. Verses 4 through 6
he talks about this. He says this one God has
revealed himself distinctively to us. He is the
Father. By that Paul is saying that God is a
personal God, like a father is a personal being.
And like a father has authority in his family,
this personal God has authority in our lives.
He says he is the source of the creation. He
is the source of it. It all came from him. He's
the cause of it. He says we also know that this
one God is our one Lord, Jesus Christ. He is
the agent. Everything came into being through
him. And not only that, it exists by him. is
sustained by Him. That is who the one true God
is. Paul says we know this, and the implication
is that because this one God that we know created
everything, there is nothing that is unclean,
including this meat that has been offered to
idols. He has created all things for us to enjoy
and to eat, thankfully and in a right way. And
so holding a piece of meat before an idol, offering
it up to the so -called God, neither defiles
this piece of meat, nor does it harm it nutritionally.
We know that. That's what knowledge says. In
the verses 7 through 13, he talks about what
love does. First of all, love realizes something.
verses seven and eight. What does love realize?
What does it realize? Well, love, in the Christian
part, realizes that not everyone knows the truth
about idols. Now, they may, in their belief system,
other Christians may know in their belief system
the idols are nothing, but that hasn't yet soaked
down into their soul so that it affects their
behavior and their experience and their conscience.
Love realizes that there are some so accustomed
to idols that they cannot break away from the
mental hole that those idols have on them. And
eating the meat of idols reminds them of their
past revulsive practices in the temple. And Paul
says in that sense they are weak. They are not
yet able to discern the spiritual principles.
involved in the meat. And love realizes that.
Not everybody knows yet down deep this truth
about the idol. Love realizes that and therefore
eating meat that is offered to idols for that
person with a weak conscience defiles him. He
feels guilty. He feels condemned because of what
he's done. Now the food itself has absolutely
no bearing on his relationship with God whatsoever.
It's just food. But his conscience does have
a bearing upon his relationship with God. And
for him, with a weak conscience, to eat the meat
defiles his conscience and therefore affects
his relationship with God. Love realizes those
things. Now, love realizes something else. Love
realizes, love remembers. It not only realizes,
but love remembers. Verses 9 through 12. Love
remembers something. What does love remember?
Love remembers, first of all, that my liberty,
that is my right to exercise my Christian freedom,
must not become a stumbling block to somebody
else. Verse 10 is an illustration of that. That
fits in with the whole scene that we described.
Love remembers that I should not use my freedom
to cause somebody else to be strengthened or
encouraged to do what is wrong for them. It also
remembers that to cause another to stumble is
very serious. Love remembers that to cause another
to stumble is to cause him to perish. Now Christ
died to keep him from perishing. That's what
he said. Christ died to keep him from perishing
eternally. But if I, using my rights and my freedom
that I feel as a mature Christian caused my brother
to stumble, then I am in a sense causing him
to perish. Paul is using that here in a figurative
sense. He means to be ruined. He suffers loss
of his well -being spiritually. He suffers loss
of an effective and joyful life as a Christian,
of his full reward as a Christian because I caused
him to stumble. And love remembers a third thing,
and that is to cause another to stumble is also
to sin against Christ. Can I say it? He says
if I use my liberty to cause another person to
stumble in his Christian life, I've not only
sinned against him, but I have sinned against
Jesus Christ himself because my brother is in
Christ as I am. And if I sin against him, then
I cannot but sin against my Lord as well. And
so Paul tells us here what love does. It realizes.
It remembers. And thirdly, love resolves. Love
resolves. In verse 13, we come to the conclusion.
And what does love resolve? Paul says love resolves
never. to do anything that causes another to
stumble or to be trapped in pen. Never by any
means, that is the resolution, never by any means
do what will cause my brother or my sister in
Christ to stumble in his or her life and to become
trapped in pen. Now that was Paul's own principle.
That was what he applied to his life. And next
week in chapter 9, you'll see that. But here
is God's point in this whole chapter about this
strange leap that's offered to idols. Here's
his point. That knowledge puffs up. It makes
arrogance. But love builds up. Get edified. Back
to verse 1. Love builds up, but knowledge puffs
up. And here's what he's saying. When I, as a
Christian, focus on my opinion and not the good
of my brother, I will end up sinning against
him and sinning against Christ, and I will ruin
my brother. My opinion, whether it be right or
wrong, tends to puff me up if I focus on it.
Now I want you to notice that what these people
knew to be true was absolutely doctrinally correct.
Idols are nothing and there is one God. What
they knew to be true was right, but Paul says
even good theology can make you proud. if you
focus on what you know and what your opinion
is, rather than on what is good for your brother.
So the question I have to ask myself and you
today is this. Do you have an issue about which
your opinion is more important than the good
of your brother? Do you have an issue in your
life that is more important to you than what
your opinion is on it, than what is good for
your brother? If that's what you're focusing
on, you're going to end up ruining your brother
and sinning against Jesus Christ. Because when
I focus on what I think, and what my opinion
is, and what my knowledge is, even if it's right
knowledge, When I focus on that, it ends up making
me proud. But when I focus on what is good for
my brother, what helps him, what ministers to
him, it builds him up. And that, says Paul, is
what we ought to be concerned about. And so to
go back to Jim and Tim. What are Jim to do? What
should be his decision about going to the casino?
Should he go and not tell Tim because he doesn't
want Tim to stumble? Should he forget going altogether?
I leave that to you to decide. This is one of
those cases where the Word of God does not give
us yea or nay. It says, here is the principle.
Now you apply it, and remember that how you apply
it is what you've given answer for as a judgment
to the Christ. Let's pray together. As we come
to the Lord's table, it is important that we
come with our hearts prepared and cleansed. It
is important that there not be issues between
us and others. It is vital that we be living
our lives under the Lordship of Christ. It is
very important that we not be focusing on our
opinions, what we know to be true, but rather
how we can be used by God to build up our brother,
who may be weaker than we are in certain respects.
So let's examine our hearts as we come to this
truth, and remember that that's how Jesus lived.
And that's what these elements represent. That
He went to the cross and gave up His right as
the Holy Son of God. He gave up His right and
laid down His life for what does us eternal dead.
May the Holy Spirit cause each of us to search
our hearts and to meditate deeply about what
this bread means, so that we may truly eat it
with gratitude. Amen. The same spirit of this
table this morning emphasizing our relationship
with the Lord and with one another, we have an
opportunity to participate in the Elder's Fund
today. That fund is specifically there to help
others in the great church family as they have
financial need. The early church practice supporting
each other and bearing each other's burdens,
even the financial ones that they would run into.
Do you care to participate in that fund this
morning? The offering box in the back of the
church is going to be used for that and indicate
on the check that this is for the elders' funds.
Also tonight, don't forget we have the great
gospel reunion tonight. That'll be a fun time
celebrating the Lord and old -time gospel music.
Be sure to come on out for that. It's a warm
Sunday, but come on back for that anyway. So
it'll be a fun time here this evening. And as
we leave the Lord's house this morning, Let's
get up and greet each other. Those that you haven't
met, say hi to, or as we say in Colorado, say
howdy. And we'll see you all back here next week,
where it's next.