1 Corinthians 8:1

Now, as touching things offered unto idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies... But take heed, lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to those that are weak... Wherefore, if meat makes my brother to stumble or to be offended, I will eat no flesh while the world standeth, lest I make my brother to offend. (1 Corinthians 8)

When liberty and love collide, Christ-like love is always the more excellent way.

A New Question from a Troubled Church

The church at Corinth had many problems. They struggled with immorality within that hindered their witness without, they were filled with divisions, and they had many questions. Several weeks ago we looked at their first question, concerning those married and single in the church. Now, continuing the questions they had written to Paul, we come to chapter 8, where Paul addresses something that may seem odd to us but was an everyday matter for those in Corinth: "Now concerning those things that are offered unto idols."

In ancient Corinth, as in most Greco-Roman cities of the first century, idolatry was the rampant norm. In nearby Athens, just 55 miles away, Paul came upon an altar inscribed "to the unknown God" (Acts 17). Corinth was filled with places of worship. On nearly every corner stood another altar to a different god. They had temples to Apollo, Diana, and Zeus, but also many minor deities the people bowed before.

A Polydemonistic Culture and the Marketplace of Idol Meat

Aside from being polytheistic, the Greeks and Romans were also polydemonistic—they believed the air was filled with evil spirits of every kind. These spirits were thought to constantly try to invade and possess human beings, and the easiest way they did so was by attaching themselves to food. When a person ate that food, they would be invaded by the demon. What a fearful society to live in!

To deal with this, they believed these spirits could be removed if the food was first sacrificed to an idol. So after buying a beast to feed your family, you would go to a temple, offer a portion to the god, give a portion to the priest, and take the rest home. The priests received so many sacrifices that they could not eat it all, so the surplus was sold cheaply outside the temples or in the open marketplace. If you wanted a good deal—and who doesn't?—you bought meat sacrificed to an idol. Not only was it cheaper, but the "problem" of demons had already been handled.

This seems foolish to us. We don't really encounter food sacrificed to idols in 21st-century Southern California, though in some parts of the world such practices still exist. But while we don't share Corinth's traditions, we have things not far off from this, as we'll see.

The Dilemma and the Jerusalem Letter

It was practically impossible to find meat in Corinth that had not been sacrificed to an idol. If you interacted at all with unbelievers—at weddings, festivals, social occasions, many of which involved pagan worship—you were likely to be served idol food. This caused a genuine dilemma for some in the church.

The dilemma was amplified by the letter from Jerusalem after Acts 15. There, Paul, Silas, Barnabas, and the leaders gathered in council over the new Gentile believers, and the letter they drafted instructed them to abstain from meats sacrificed to idols. In a city where such meat was commonplace, this provoked the question: what's the issue? And in a divided church, it became another opportunity for division. So Paul has to address it.

The Narrow Path Between Two Pits

We are not faced with idol meat today, but there are dozens, if not hundreds, of things believers hold as wrong, bad, or unholy that are not actually written in Scripture. So Paul's teaching here applies to us. You won't find a section at the store labeled "clean meats sacrificed to Apollo," but there are other issues.

There is a narrow path between two deep pits in the Christian life. One pit we might call carnal licentiousness—saying, "I have liberty in Christ, I can do whatever I want," as the Corinthians did when they claimed "all things are lawful to me" (1 Corinthians 6:12). The other pit is Pharisaic legalism—where we accumulate so many rules in our own lives that we apply them to everyone and declare them unrighteous for not doing as we do. Between these two pits is the way of love that we are to walk. The way of love is traveled with care and circumspection by the one who, with Christ-like character, esteems others higher than himself.

Two Cultures in One Church

When that letter from Jerusalem reached Corinth, likely brought by a Jewish believer, the Jewish Christians would have said amen, for the Old Testament law clearly forbade meat sacrificed to idols. But the Gentile Christians had grown up under Greco-Roman culture where this was simply normal; it didn't even cause them concern.

While some Gentile believers were so steeped in idolatry that they too had qualms, I'd suggest the larger problem came from the Jewish side. As believers matured and gained knowledge, they came to see that idols are nothing and the food was inconsequential. In Mark 7, Jesus taught the very same thing to the Pharisees who were upset that His disciples ate without the prescribed ritual hand-washing: it is not what goes into a man's mouth that defiles him, but what comes out of his heart.

Knowledge Puffs Up, but Love Edifies

Some in the church were holding their superior knowledge over others—"Don't you get it? Idols aren't a big deal; there's something wrong with you." Paul answers: "We know that all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies."

A little bit of knowledge is a very dangerous thing. How many of you have tried to show someone how superior your knowledge was, only to discover you weren't as knowledgeable as you thought? We can wound people with our knowledge, and since we are to be Christ-like, we must be very careful with it. Liberty was a big thing to the Corinthians, and liberty is a huge thing to Americans. We are focused on our rights—"I'm an American, I can do what I want." But somewhere along the line, in Corinth and in American churches, liberty and license have been exalted over love.

As Paul will say in 1 Corinthians 13, "Though I have all knowledge and understand all mysteries, if I have not love, I am nothing." J.B. Phillips translates this passage: "While knowledge makes a man look big, it is only love that can make him grow to his full stature."

An Evangelistic and Discipleship Issue

We are called by the Great Commission to make disciples of all nations, so we must consider the evangelistic and discipleship implications of emphasizing our rights over our love. If we always emphasize our liberty, we hinder people coming to the knowledge of the truth and growing in it. Often it is more loving to bear with the infirmities of the weak than to exalt our liberty.

Paul says in Romans 15:1, "We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let every one of us please his neighbor for his edification." It falls upon the strong believer to come down and disciple the weaker one, not to say, "Listen, you weakling, figure it out." None of us would call ourselves the weak one—we all like to think we're strong. But if we're the strong ones, that means we must sometimes walk more in humility than in liberty.

True Knowledge Knows How Little It Knows

Knowledge is to be sought after; it is impossible to obey what is not known. God said His people were "destroyed for lack of knowledge" (Hosea 4:6), and He is the one who gives man knowledge (Psalm 94:10). There is no premium placed on ignorance in Scripture. Yet knowledge is essential but not sufficient; by itself it makes man arrogant and must be mixed with love.

True knowledge helps individuals see how little they know. Someone defined knowledge as "the process of passing from an unconscious state of ignorance to a conscious state of ignorance." How many of you, as teenagers, knew everything? How many of you have since recognized you didn't? He who knows not that he knows not is a fool; he who knows not, and knows that he knows not, is wise.

So Paul says, "If any man thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet as he ought to know. But if any man love God, the same is known of God." You might expect Paul to say that if a man loves God, he knows God—but that's not what he says. Which is better: to love and know God, or to be loved and known of God? Many say "I love God" and "I know God," but at the end of the day it is far more important to be loved and known of Him. John called himself "the disciple whom Jesus loved." We might have written "the disciple who loved Jesus," but John gloried in being loved by Christ. Let us rejoice not in superior knowledge, but in being known and loved of God.

An Idol Is Nothing

Paul returns to the issue in verse 4: "As concerning the eating of those things offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is no other God but one... For to us there is but one God, the Father... and one Lord Jesus Christ."

Though many things in our culture and others are reverenced as gods, the theology of Paul and of the whole Bible is that there is one God, and every other small-g god is nothing—some, as we'll see in 1 Corinthians 10, are actually demonic entities, but they are not God. The psalmist says the idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands: "They have mouths but they speak not, eyes but they see not... and those that make them are like unto them" (Psalm 115). Isaiah describes the foolishness of a man cutting down a tree, burning part to warm himself and bake bread, then carving the rest into a god and bowing to it, saying, "Thank you for feeding me." That god can do nothing.

Take Heed Lest Your Liberty Become a Stumbling Block

So the one with knowledge says, "Idols are nothing, the food is nothing—case closed." Not so fast. Verse 7: "However, there is not in every man this knowledge. For some with conscience of the idol unto this hour eat it as a thing offered unto an idol, and their conscience being weak is defiled."

You may understand the idol is nothing, but others with a weaker conscience are troubled, perhaps because of some past association. So Paul says, "Meat commends us not to God: neither if we eat are we the better, neither if we eat not are we the worse. But take heed, lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to those that are weak." Yes, you have liberty in Christ. But is that liberty laying a stumbling block for the weaker one? If so, we—like Christ—prove our strength not by high-minded liberty but by humble love.

Application: Our Modern "Idol Meat"

You may wonder what application this has for us. It's 13 days till Christmas—shouldn't we be talking about Jesus in the manger? We don't have idol meat, but we do have Christmas, which is an issue in our culture. Some believers ask, "Why would you celebrate Christmas? Don't you know it was based on a pagan holiday, that Jesus wasn't born on December 25th, that Jeremiah 10 speaks of cutting down a tree and decorating it with silver and gold and calls it an abomination?" Some people are genuinely stumbled by it.

If you are seeking to witness to a Jehovah's Witness, it's probably not wise to invite them to your Christmas party or send them a Christmas card. "That doesn't seem very nice," you might say. But if it stumbles them and hinders your witness, perhaps you shouldn't. The way of love is more difficult than simply walking in licentiousness or legalism. It's easier to check out; it's harder to yield your liberty so another might be built up in Christ. We could break out the Bible and prove our liberty to that person, or we could simply walk in love and not offend them—not because we never offend anyone (the gospel itself offends those who perish), but because there are things we can lay aside that diminish needless offense.

The Story of Mr. Mohammed

This is an evangelistic and discipleship issue. If you're ministering to a Muslim, it's probably not wise to share your great pulled-pork recipe. Dr. Henry Ironside tells of a Muslim man, Mr. Mohammed, who came to faith and became a strong believer. At a church gathering, a young girl offered him a sandwich and he asked what kind it was. When told it was pork and ham, he asked for beef, lamb, or fish; there was none, so he politely declined.

The girl laughed and said, "Mr. Mohammed, you surprise me. Are you so under the law that you can't eat pork? Don't you know Christians are at liberty to eat any kind of meat?" He answered, "I am at liberty, my dear young lady, to eat it—but I am also at liberty to let it alone. I was brought up a strict Muslim. My father is nearly 80 and still a Muslim. Every three years I return to India to render account of the business and visit. When I arrive, my father asks, 'Mohammed, have those infidels taught you to eat the filthy hog meat yet?' and I answer, 'No, father, pork has never passed my lips.' Then I have opportunity to preach Christ to him. If I took one of your sandwiches, I could not preach Christ to my father the next time I am home."

To Sin Against a Brother Is to Sin Against Christ

"For if any man see thee which hast knowledge sit at meat in the idol's temple, shall not the conscience of him that is weak be emboldened... and through thy knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died?" Some in Corinth had strong attachments to the old life or to the Hebrew law that made these things a real problem. But perhaps some were unbelievers watching the Christians—and if they saw believers were no different, going to the temples and eating there, they might be hindered from coming to faith.

We do have liberty in Christ, but at times it must be set aside in favor of love. The issue is not holiness—it doesn't make us more holy—it's our witness, our ability to evangelize and disciple. The stronger bears with the weak not for his own pleasure but for the other's edification. The strong one does not say, "Suck it up, princess." The strong one yields and humbles himself, just as Christ in Philippians 2 "made himself of no reputation, took the form of a servant, and humbled himself to the point of death." The way of love is the way of Christ.

Willing to Lay It Down

Paul shows the seriousness of this in verse 12: "When you sin so against the brethren and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ." Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount that to cause one of the least of these to stumble, it would be better to have a millstone hung around your neck and be cast into the depths of the sea. So Paul concludes in verse 13: "If meat makes my brother to stumble, I will eat no flesh while the world standeth, lest I make my brother to offend."

How willing are we to lay down our rights? If something in our lives is inconsequential—Scripture says nothing about it—yet it offends or stumbles someone, are we willing to lay it down for the sake of love and Christ's kingdom? The person's concern may be foolish, but you'll never minister to them by saying, "That's stupid." If a certain movie or genre causes someone to stumble in their faith because you exercise liberty, would you give it up? Yes, we have great liberty in Christ, but for the sake of the kingdom of God we sometimes lay those things down that others might be lifted up to the Lord.

Closing Prayer

Father, we thank You for Your word, although at times it is convicting. I pray that at this very moment, when the enemy would love nothing more than to snatch this away and have us instantly think about what we'll do this afternoon, You by Your Spirit would plant Your word deep in our hearts. You desire that we be conformed into Your image, that we walk in a way that is Christ-like. You did not leave us comfortless when You ascended, but gave us the Spirit of truth who guides us in all truth and teaches us all things. So Holy Spirit, cause Your word to bring forth fruit in this area. Help us to see as You see, to be mindful of those around us—not striving to be inoffensive, for the gospel is an offense to those who perish, but if we are being offensive for the sake of our own desire and not for the sake of Your word, that we would be willing to lay it down so people might see You and not us. We thank You that You saved us not by works of righteousness, but by grace through faith, and have given us liberty in Christ to do many great things—and also liberty, as we saw in the story of Mohammed, not to do something when that gives us opportunity to share the gospel with someone who doesn't live or see the way we do. May it be so, we pray, for we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.