Having said that Paul deals frequently in principles, it’s worth asking ‘What are the guiding principles he gives us in 1 Corinthians?’ As the Message version puts it, just because something is ‘technically legal’ doesn’t make it ‘spiritually appropriate.’ All things may be lawful, but here are some questions we should ask ourselves before we do anything:
- Will this lead me to freedom or slavery? (1 Cor 6:12 “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything.) That extra glass of wine or biscuit might not be sin, but it may well be reinforcing a habit that needs to be broken. Sin very easily has mastery over us, but this should not be the case, for Christ has broken the chains of sin and given us the power to say no!
- Will this make me a stumbling-block or a stepping stone? (1 Cor 8:13 ‘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.’) Paul constantly wants us to build each other up, not tear each other down. We can inspire others and urge them on to greater things in God, or we can, through discouragement, cynicism and lack of faith, cause them to trip up or, worse still, lead them into sin (as the ten spies did when returning from their scouting trip.)
- Will this build me up or tear me down? (1 Cor 10:23-24 “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive. No one should seek their own good, but the good of others.) We need to consider others, but we also need to do that which is beneficial all round.
- Will this please only me or will it glorify Christ? (1 Cor 10:31 ‘So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.‘) There’s great freedom in living not to earn God’s favour but from the position of knowing we are loved and cherished by Him. Living to please God is a delight, not a duty.
- Will this help me to win the lost to Christ or turn them away? (1 Cor 10:33 ‘For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.’) Other people are reading us, whether we’re aware of it or not. (2 Cor 3:1-3) Let’s let our whole life sing for Christ.
‘May the words I say
And the things I do
Make my lifesong sing
Bring a smile to You.’ (‘Life Song’, Casting Crowns)