The believer’s freedom

"All things are lawful,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful,” but not all things build up.  Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbour (1 Corinthians 10:23–24).

This is the guiding principle that Paul lays out when he talks about Christian freedom. He is saying that as Christians, although we are freed from legalism and from all arbitrary rules to prove our faith, and all things are lawful to the believer, not all things are helpful. He sees a bigger picture. He sees that our actions are significant in the area of whether they edify our fellow brothers and sisters. If what we do causes our fellow believers to stumble, Paul says we should refrain from doing it. In the context of the Corinthian church, Paul says he will not eat meat that had been offered to idols if eating it makes his brother stumble (1 Corinthians 8:13). In fact, Paul goes on to say in 1 Corinthians 9 that he is giving up the rights and freedoms of an apostle just so that he may not be a burden or stumbling block to others for the sake of the gospel.

Paul’s goal in life was to win people to the gospel, so he sought to remove as many obstacles to the gospel as possible. For Paul, Christian freedom is not divorced from the call to be servant of the gospel. They are intertwined and enjoined together not as an intersection of two divergent themes, but as one homogeneous circle of Christian freedom. In other words, true freedom in Christ is to do whatever it takes to love one’s neighbour for the sake of Jesus.

This is what Paul had in mind when he wrote, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). We glorify God when, out of love for him, we lay down our rights and freedoms in eating or drinking or whatever in order to do what is most loving toward others, either for the “progress and joy [of their] faith” (Philippians 1:25), or that they may be saved (1 Corinthians 9:22). (quote*).

We need to see the statement in the context of Paul writing to the Corinthians from chapter 8 to chapter 10 so as to grasp the point about glorifying God. It is not wrong to say that God is glorified when we wholeheartedly give thanks and enjoy the food and drink, as these came from him. Paul said in 1 Timothy 4:4–5 that everything created by God is good and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving. However, when eating or drinking or acting among fellow believers, consider glorifying God in a more excellent way — that is, to do everything in pursuit of the ultimate spiritual good of your neighbour for the sake of Jesus.

Having said that, we may encounter grey situations where we may not know the appropriate action to take as a Christian. For example, a friend may invite you and a new believer to a party where there are plenty of drinks, wild dancing and loud secular music. Or, you may be invited by a good friend to participate in a non-Christian festival, where you may take food that has been offered to idols. Or, you attend your boss’s parent’s funeral wake and he may ask you to hold a joss stick as a sign of respect. These are situations where we need God’s wisdom to guide us to act in a manner that will not stumble our fellow believers but instead, build up their faith.

There are five guiding principles that can help us navigate the grey-area situations. They are formulated as five questions guiding us to take the right actions to enjoy our Christian freedom: 

1. Will it build up?

2. Will it serve others?

3. Will it glorify God?

4. Will it leave my conscience clear?

5. Could it enslave me or lead others to sin?

In Christ, our freedom is precious — but it is even more beautiful when it becomes a channel of blessing to others and a spotlight on God’s glory. Deacon Lee Pak Choon

Quote * - Jon Bloom (@Bloom_Jon)  How to do everything to the glory of God