1 Corinthians: A 9-Day Devotional For WomenSample

Rights and Wrongs
1 Corinthians 8

The early church father Tertullian tells us that observers of the church in the second and third century said of Christians, “See how they love one another.” It was meant as a criticism at the time, but it still shows how and why the Christians stood out from their society. 

But the comment might not have been made of the Corinthian church in Paul’s day. Rather than outdoing each other in showing love and honor (Rom. 12:10), they tried to outdo each other in many far less consequential ways—whether it was competition in terms of so called “knowledge” (1 Corinthians 8), in freedom during worship (11:2–16), in abundance of food at the Lord’s meal (11:17–34), or in spiritual gifts or power (12:4–30; 14:1–40). 

What made them different from their culture was not how they loved each other, but what criteria they used to decide who was in the in-crowd and the outcrowd. The strong had little regard for the weak, and they were more concerned about their “rights” than about doing right. They were forgetting that the Lord had died for each person, and that they were each a treasured part of his body. 

How far they had wandered from the way of Christ! He did not despise the weak—he was himself rejected and despised (Isaiah 53) and delighted to draw near to weak people. He did not exalt himself—“he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Phil. 2:1–8). He did not insist on his rights and freedoms—he surrendered his rights and freedoms, out of love for the Father and for us. He went so far as dying for us. He was not strong or wise by human standards, but “Christ crucified” is the power and wisdom of God (1 Cor. 1:23–25). 

The Corinthians had forgotten that strength or wisdom or power or reputation were not the highest prize. Love is. And so they were to seek the good of others, not their own good (10:24). 

This meant building up the faith of those with fragile faith, and not putting stumbling blocks in their way. With those who did not yet know Christ, it meant removing every offense and obstacle other than “the offense of the cross” (Gal. 5:11). 

Paul lived like this. He would not eat meat if it would lead “weak” believers to sin against their conscience (1 Cor. 8:9–13). He lived as a Jew to win the Jews. He lived as one outside the law to win those outside the law. He became weak to win the weak. He became all things to all people, that by all means he might win some (9:22). 

Paul was simply following Christ. And this is the great call on us today (11:1). —Claire Smith