Those who do not claim Christ may look at Christianity and think, "How constricting! So many rules!" At least, I know that's what many people in my life, even some Christians, have said. Yet, I hope that you have found that these "rules" or boundaries have actually led to more freedom and peace in your life. I know they have mine! That's the beauty of Christ. Life with Him has been immeasurably less constricting, and instead has freed my heart to live with joy and assurance. I know that I don't do this thing correctly all the time, but it is most certainly the way I desire and try to live! It's true, as I continue to grow in Christ, I find more and more freedom, not constriction.
So it was with the Corinthians. It was quite normal for sheep, goats, etc, to be sacrificed to the pagan gods in the temple, and after they bled to death on the altar, they would sell the meat to the local butcher who would sell it to the townspeople! I had always wondered what happened to all that meat, and now I know! So, the Christians struggled with whether or not they should buy this mean since it had been sacrificed to a pagan god.
I have to tell you that if someone would have asked me what I thought the Bible would say about this, I would have guessed that it would say we should not eat it because of the unholy purpose it had been used for, but instead, this is what Paul says:
4 So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that “An idol is nothing at all in the world” and that “There is no God but one.” 5 For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”), 6 yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live. In other words, he is saying that these supposed "gods" are nothing -- they are the equivalent of a tall tale -- and they have no power or identity. They are just wood or stone. And even if there are any other forces or gods in the world (like the pagan gods or other lords of nations), it doesn't matter because ours is the true God from whom all things came! He is the one with all the power!
Isn't that crazy how much assurance Paul has? He's not concerned at all about actually eating the meat, because it's as if a child played with a little, and then we ate it. That's all the pagans were doing, in other words, mere "play" as far as any real power is concerned. Jesus is the God, the Lord, the Master.
7 But not everyone possesses this knowledge. Some people are still so accustomed to idols that when they eat sacrificial food they think of it as having been sacrificed to a god, and since their conscience is weak, it is defiled. 8 But food does not bring us near to God; we are no worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do. Oh, there's that word knowledge again. Remember from yesterday, that knowledge means nothing if it without love? And not everyone, including myself apparently, really understands this knowledge and freedom that comes when we know who the one True God is! So logically, nothing happened to the meat when it was sacrificed to the idol because the idol is nothing -- it's just a piece of stone. The meat at the butcher is still just like any other meat!
But many of these new Christians were probably former idol worshipers themselves, and it was difficult for them to separate their knowledge from their former way of living. They thought that there was still something bad in the meat from being in the pagan altar and that the evil might be going into them. That way of thinking was ingrained in them, and it was not going to change overnight. Fortunately for us, our closeness with God is not graded based on our diet, but Paul wanted the Christians to be sensitive to the new believers in this.
9 Be careful, however, that the exercise of your rights does not become a stumbling block to the weak. 10 For if someone with a weak conscience sees you, with all your knowledge, eating in an idol’s temple, won’t that person be emboldened to eat what is sacrificed to idols? 11 So this weak brother or sister, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. The issue becomes your others-centered view. You may know that there are freedoms in the Lord, but if a new Christian sees you, the mature and knowledgeable Believer, participating in an activity that they are still struggling over, the danger is that he may become terribly confused and mixed up in his conscience about the issue, and begin down a path that might be destructive to them because they have not yet matured in their faith.
One area where I see this very prevalent today is in the idea of alcohol. You and I may differ on the idea of alcohol (and I'm not saying that I know I'm right), but I think from what I've read in the Bible that there is a freedom in Christ that allows me to enjoy a glass of wine, not in excess, but within boundaries that the Bible sets up. However, I am also very aware that many Christians feel strongly that they shouldn't have even a sip. And who am I to say that they are wrong and MY knowledge is right?! Paul has something very strict to say about this:
12 When you sin against them in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. 13 Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother or sister to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause them to fall. If I am the cause of wounding the sensitive conscience of a fellow Believer, then I have sinned, it says. I should be more concerned about him/her than I am about having my glass of wine! I don't want my freedoms to lead others away from Christ, and I most certainly do not want to think that my knowledge is superior.
We are all learning, aren't we? We are all a work in progress. So yes, we have freedoms. But more important than freedoms is the way we love and respect each other. That is the key today, my friend! Be sensitive to the other Christians, especially the newer ones, around you.
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