Articles
Christians and Idols 1Cor. 8-10
Christians and Idols
1 Corinthians 8 thru 10
When Paul arrived in Corinth he found it full of idols and temples to the idols. Through his preaching some of the Corinthians were converted to the true and living God. Yet they still lived among the same people, customs, and religion that they always did. Becoming a Christian can change the person but it doesn't immediately change his surroundings, family, or associates.
Many of the idols were 'patron gods' of the various 'guilds'. That meant to work in the guild you would be aligned with an idol. To become a Christian and deny the validity of this idol was to deny the very guild and association of your profession.
When your fellow workers gathered for a feast, would you continue to participate? When you were invited to eat at the idols temple, would you participate? We, in western society, do not have much of a problem with the actuality of such idolatry and meat offered to idols. Our brethren elsewhere in the world DO continue to have to deal with such. A bigger problem for us is how to deduce any principles from this and then figure out how to apply them. Here are three such ideas.
We should learn NOT to Cause a stumbling block with our faith. It is OK to eat meat offered to an idol knowing that idols are nothing and hence the meat is just meat and acceptable as food (1Tim. 4:3-5). Yet, if a brother is yet 'mindful' of an idol, watching you eat he might misunderstand and think you are worshiping and acknowledging the idol. He might then 'be emboldened' to actually commit idolatry following what he perceived you to do. The principle at the very foundation of this involves our putting our brethren's needs ahead of our own.
We then learn to forego our right to protect and help our brethren. This was the mind of Christ that we were exhorted to have (Phil. 2:1-11). Thus we are exhorted: "Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up" (Romans 15:2). In chapter 9 of this letter Paul showed that it was his 'right' to be supported for preaching yet, to avoid causing problems with the Corinthian brethren, he REFUSED to use such right. Such action produced some hardships in Paul's life (having to then work AND try to give full attention to preaching, having to arrange support from OTHER churches, etc.). He was willing to do this to protect and encourage the brethren in Corinth.
We also must learn not to violate our own conscience. To VIOLATE your conscience shows a rebellious attitude: even though I think it WRONG I will do it anyway. While the action may in fact not be wrong / sinful, if you think it is and do it anyway, you are wrong. The conscience is NOT an infallible guide. The conscience (literally: with knowledge) can and must be educated until its sense of right and wrong is aligned with God's. While we are developing and educating our conscience, we MUST live by it. We are seeking God's kingdom and righteousness, how can we then willfully engage in that which we think is wrong? We can't.
Bible study is not always easy. The application of Bible principles can be extremely difficult. Learning what a passage meant to the original recipients must take place first. Then we extrapolate the principle that is being put forth. We then learn to apply that principle to our lives which may be very far different from the original reader's life. Be not ignorant, but understanding what the will of the Lord is (Eph. 5:17). Hugh DeLong
