Rev. David Holwick ZC
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
September 2, 1990
1 Corinthians 8
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I. Church motto in Celeste's hometown of Pepperell, Massachusetts:
"In Essentials Unity,
In Non-Essentials Liberty,
In All Things Charity."
A. Problem is deciding what is essential.
1) Liberal. God may exist.
2) Conservative. Hair over ears, pants on women.
B. Many see Paul focusing on non-essentials in this chapter.
1) Incorrect. It is critical because people are being destroyed.
C. Salvation is at stake here.
1) The most sophisticated Christians are ones at fault.
2) Higher than correct doctrine is correct love.
II. Archaic issue - food sacrificed to idols.
A. Most meat was previously offered in idolatrous worship.
1) Priests ate it, and often got gout.
2) Worshippers ate some in a ritual meal.
3) Rest was sold at local market.
B. "Supermarket" meat. See 10:25-27
1) (Any food can be eaten with thanksgiving.) 10:26
a) Food doesn't have spiritual value.
2) OK to eat if it did not offend a brother.
3) Non-essential issue.
C. Ritual meal meat. 8:10
1) Part of pagan worship.
a) (Comparison to our church suppers)
2) Main issue in chapter 8. 8:10
a) To us it is meaningless, but some of them were being
destroyed by it. 8:11,(13)
III. "Strong" [Rom 15:1]
A. They were knowledgeable (like Paul).
1) Idols have no real existence. 8:4
2) Food is food; no spiritual significance. 8:8
3) Conclusion: It doesn't matter what we eat or where we eat it.
a) But Paul does have a problem with it - 10:20-21
1> Participation involves fellowship with demons.
b) Therefore their knowledge was incomplete. 8:2
B. They tried to convert (build up) the weak to their way of thinking.
1) They used their inadequate knowledge as a club.
IV. "Weak" (weak converts on verge of backsliding)
A. Their knowledge was confused.
1) They believed in Jesus.
2) But they still thought the demons of their former religion
were real, and they feared them. 8:7
B. Their salvation was at stake. 8:11
1) Idols brought back vivid memories.
a) Their faith may not have been as solid as it should have.
b) Eating in a temple was like a recovering alcoholic having
a glass of wine.
2) They are in danger of drifting back and being "destroyed." 8:11
a) Stumbling block involved losing salvation, not just
being offended. 8:9
V. Love is more important than knowledge.
A. Love doesn't build our egos up.
1) (False) sophistication can do this. 8:2
2) If we love [God], we are known by God. 8:3
B. Love builds people up. 8:1
1) Think of them first of all as "brothers." 8:11
2) Put their interests ahead of your own. 10:24
3) Limit your personal freedoms for them. 8:13
C. Individual vs. group.
1) Personal "freedoms" put us first.
2) Love puts the community first.
D. Therefore the "strong" should not try to force them to compromise
in non-essentials, much less the essentials. 8:13
VI. Dangers.
A. Don't confuse essentials and non-essentials.
You have heard of South Africa's "apartheid" policy.
Here is how it began: in churches.
In 1828, a Malaysian slave brought her dark-skinned husband
to church there.
The official teaching of the Dutch Reformed Church was that no
one should be discriminated against concerning communion.
But some of the whites were offended that this man would be
sharing the Lord's Supper with them.
The leaders of the church knew these whites were "weak" in
knowledge, but quoted 1 Cor. 8:13, and ordered the
dark-skinned man to stay away.
The essential issue here was not discomfort during communion,
but the exclusion of a person "for whom Christ died."
Paul would never agree with what they did.
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B. The issue is not "offending" people, but living in a way that
leads others away from God.
1) How sensitive are you to other people?
2) Is your personal freedom more important to you than they are?
3) Do you seek their salvation? 10:33
C. The "weak" shouldn't be allowed to run roughshod over the "strong."
1) Narrow people can ruin churches.
2) On non-essentials, Christians must live in harmony. Rom 14
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