1 Corinthians 8

Intro theme story  

Have you ever wondered whether you should go to party?

In the ancient world to be invited to a party was a big deal. They were social occasions marking: weddings, anniversaries, family occasions, national and local events, political launches, business deals, and office parties.

There were places in ancient cities that were vast in size, some as big as cinema complexes, some as sprawling and lavish as the Trafford Centre. These were palaces of food. Some with the zoo-like busyness of the Arndale food hall, others were more with the intimate ambience of  

Do you know what these palaces of food and community life were called?

Temples.  

For example, the temple of Asclepius at Corinth, had three dining rooms, each with space for 11 guests on couches lining the walls.  

You see, meat was a delicacy and some believed that meat had more bad spirits than a burger has trans-fats – and it was believed that the way you cleansed it, was by offering it as an act of worship in the temple.

This idol blessed meat was then shipped into temple ‘meal-deal’ boxes for their food halls, or shipped out to the super-market.  

Either way, if you lived in Corinth, and you were on a protein drive or social drive – it would take you on to a collision course with idol worship.  

Which is why in [1] Paul, extending the conversation from last week about a Christian’s freedom to get married or remain single, switches his attention, to the question of should a Christian exercise their freedom and eat meat sacrificed to idols.  

Reveal theme

Can you see, this is a complex issue. For how you answer it, will not only influence your choices on the menu but also potentially your social life, and career prospects.

But what makes it worse, was this challenge, has the potential to divide the church.  

For this passage will bring this issue to the surface:

It is possible to be theologically well taught, a considered role model in the church community with a track record for sacrificial service and yet be dangerously spiritually immature.

Tie to the passage  

The mark of being a dangerous Christian is you have no recent memory of inconveniencing some aspect of your life for a fellow Christian that you think is being a fool.

[11] sums up the danger graphically:

So this weak brother or sister, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge.

Reveal structure  

So what do we need to grasp from this passage to not be dangerous in this church when navigating the complexities of culture:

1. Know that church is made up of two types of believers

2. Know that church is built on strong being inconvenienced by the weak.

Explore the passage as relates to theme

1. Know that the church is made up of two types of believer

Paul identifies two types of people in the church, one group he labels ‘the knowledgeable’ and the other group he labels ‘the weak’.  

‘The knowledgeable’ group are referenced right out of the gate in [1].

What is it that they’re so smart about?

I think it’s the fact that they have genuinely grasped some true, deep and culturally applied theology.

In chapter 1 Paul commends many in church have having the spiritual gift of knowledge- a good thing.  

We get a glimpse of knowledge that they had grasped in [4], that contrary to the Greco-Roman culture, they know that [idols are nothing].

More specifically, Paul affirms their theological engine in [5-6], where he gives them an A+ for their understanding of the universe…

The result of their enlightened minds is that all things belong to the Lord…

Meaning they get the fact that God’s world is full good blessings for Christians to enjoy, and all cultural artefacts:

• Films

• Books

• Tv shows

• Art exhibition  

• Theatre  

• Holidays  

You name it, have aspects that are tainted by sin, and aspects that reflect the goodness of the one and only creator God.  

Food offered to idols was a good example. In the Greco-Roman culture all food sold in their equivalent of Asda or Aldi would have been offered to idols at some point in the process from field to shelf.  

And these ‘Knowledge crew’ have a theology that can say with a clear conscience- “That’s not great but it’s okay’

These guys would have been the culture vultures, passionately declaring that Christians should boldly engage with the world, and ideas, and creativity because we serve a creative God who  

But there’s a suggestion that some people in this group would have gone further – their knowledge was being weaponised against others who were more cautious, perhaps more culturally conservative.

To look down upon them as being lesser Christians  

When Paul says [8] eating or not eating means nothing he’s taking aim at those who were proudly eating the food dedicated to idols precisely because it was a badge to say “I’m such a strong and sophisticated Christian I can step into a danger zone and come out smelling of roses.”

It’s like someone saying “I watched 50 shades of grey to admire the cinematography and hand in heart I could pass a lie detector test on mental purity. And if you can’t do the same, then you’re not really a serious Christian like me.”

Go to the party at the temple- easy!

And in comparison Paul describes the second type of person in the church of Corinth and indeed at City Church, and it’s a group in [9] he labels them the ‘weak.’  

It’s group that struggles with grey areas in the Christian walk, rather they see things through a black white lens - that’s right that’s wrong, that’s godly and that’s ungodly.  

For this group eating meat that had been offered to an idol was definitely wrong.  

Most likely this group was made up on new Christians, people who had been deeply involved in the worship of the gods..., perhaps deeply invested in the ritual temple prostitution that would also happen at these social gatherings; and having been snatched from that world by Christ, they are deeply sensitive to anything that looks or feels similar.

One missionary recounted…

Theologically that is not accurate because, there are no Hindu gods who are battling it out for supremacy from the God of the Bible.

And it is this lack of theological accuracy that causes them to be super sensitive to idol sacrificed food, and that is what Paul calls ‘weak’.

Now before we look at how can one church community can navigate and unite with these two groups operating side by side.

The first application is to recognise that the church community is complex and not everyone thinks like you.

If you were here two weeks ago for the baptisms you six people all confess Christ, but how they got there, what lives they left behind were six different stories.  

In this church we never merely disagree with people who don’t think like us, we first get curious about their context or journey into the church that has shaped the way they think.

2. Know that church is built on the strong being inconvenienced by the weak.

So how should these two groups get along in the church, because unsurprisingly both groups think that they are right and the other is wrong?

Paul believes that both groups need to change.  

Starting with the group labelled as the ‘Weak’.

Paul is clear – for this group your theological understanding is not right for if it was,  you’d be more robust, more discerning, more able to handle the chaotic greyness of living between Jesus’ first coming and his second coming.  

We know this, because the label ‘weak’ is not a good one. ‘Weak’ here is not in the same category as cute, like a tiny puppy, or weak but lovely new born dear barely able to stand under its own weight.  

No, for Paul, ‘weak’ is not good, it anticipates you will not stay weak but will become spiritually strong.  

How about the ‘Knowledge Crew’?

Paul agrees with their theology but has this to say about them - [2-3]

² Those who think they know something do not yet know as they ought to know. ³ But whoever loves God is known by God.

In other words, if you think you have knowledge but it does not lead you to love God more – and by consequence become a more loving person – then your knowledge is useless.

All you have is inflated pride – but you are not walking closely with the Lord – despite the fact you’ve got a head like a Bible commentary, your you-tube obsessions are all Bible based stuff, and you can quote scripture like you’re spitting bars in a rap battle.  

If you’re in this group – Paul says you need to change too.  

But here’s the radical application from Paul in how he wants these two groups to interact in the church, and it’s a surprise:

He turns to the ‘Knowledge Crew’ and he says [9], ‘Be careful, however, that the exercise of your rights does not become a stumbling block to the weak.‘  

He will go on to say in [10-13], it’s your job to lay down your rights and inconvenience yourself for the sake of loving your younger brother or sister in Christ.  

This stings a bit doesn’t it? If you are right, you still have to flex in the direction of the brother and sister who is wrong. But it also makes sense, because if you first instinct is ‘Absolutely not, my theology is bang on point, they’re the ones that need to learn a hard lesson in truth’, that is the revealer that the wonderful knowledge you have is more about your pride than it is about loving God, and by consequence loving others.  

But as we begin to apply this with more precision, we need to have a sense of what danger is it that Paul fears for the weaker group if the ‘knowledge crew’ don’t flex?

[10] suggests the fear is that the baby Christian will be dragged back into their old way of life and their confidence in Christ be eroded.

This is supported by [13] where the concern is the person will ‘fall into sin’.

I think it might look like this:

Imagine Dave (older Christian) and Sandy (a new believer) are invited to a work party at the temple of Zeus - everyone’s going to be there, but Sandy doesn’t want to go. Why?  Because, Sandy used to be absolutely committed to worshiping Zeus…

But Dave, persuades him to go, that they’ll be fine, that there is no Zeus, and even that it would be good to socialise and show that Christians are normal people.

Then the BBQ is brought out – the blessing Zeus is pronounced, and Sandy starts to sweat. He’s trying to remember that there is no Zeus, or at least Jesus is bigger, and the memories are flooding back of when he would depend on Zeus for everything.

But Dave tells him to put on his ‘big boy pants’ and just eat the BBQ! So Sandy does, and as he eats the meat he feels that familiar feeling that he’s growing stronger, more confident, that Zeus is empowering him again, just like the old times – and it feels great.

In fact it felt so good, Sandy returns to the temple the next day. And the next. And even after church he pops in, because surely there’s no harm in Zeus helping him in parts of his life where Jesus can’t.

Do you see the danger?

Apply

So how do we apply this? Do we never challenge Christians who have wonky theology just in case it leads to their fragile faith being undermined?

I think this is a difficult passage to directly apply to us today - it’s not an easy translation.

That said, some of you come from cultures where your families will eat food offered to idols and this discernment is very relevant.

But we can apply this more broadly.  

Paul’s concern seems to focus on specifically loving new believers who have come from a dark past where before they trusted in Jesus they were deeply committed to complex and strong bad habits or addictions, or relationships that could easily suck them back in.  

Where a young Christian is wonky on first order gospel faith, they need to be corrected;  

but where they are vulnerable to the enticements of a past life, then, the older Christian must inconvenience themselves for sake of their brother and sister in Christ until their faith has matured and strengthened to no longer being acutely vulnerable.

Let me be practical – in a healthy church the general principle is those of you who have been Christians longer ought to be the ones exercising more patience than anyone else.  

You must love your younger siblings in Christ, with the patience of parents changing nappies at 2am.  

And it is beholden on you, to ask the questions, be aware of the life stories of the younger Christians in the church so you can discern if you need to personally flex so that you don’t:

• Take them to a bar

• Take them to a club  

• Take them anywhere that their past might drag them back into the grip of hell.  

Because to know them that well is the beginning of loving them well.  

Gospel Engine

That’s hard work, I get it, why would we put ourselves out like this?

Because all our knowledge, all our theology should be built on a single memory of Christ, that we cannot shake, and we cannot forget, and it’s always there no matter how old and tired we get.

Do you remember what you like before you were a Christian?  

I can tell you, though, I probably wasn’t there – you were an idiot. You didn’t have a clue, some of you knew that and some of you didn’t - but we all remember, we were utterly lost and were as foolish as lemmings following the queue of everyone else over the edge of the cliff.  

[Luke 23:34]

Jesus on the cross….

Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”

And then Luke immediately, follows that incredible statement, by saying that the soldiers stripped him naked, and played games for his clothes.  

If we had been there, we would have rolled the dice too, and thought we were so clever, and that we had 20/20 vision, a naked bleeding man behind us, and the buzz and laughter of friends around us, and if we were there – we would have thought we were so clever.  

“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”

When we knew nothing, Christ chose with love in his eyes, to die on the cross me.

Cliff hanger question  

You see, mature Christians struggle to use that word ‘inconvenience’, when it comes to other brothers and sisters in Christ, it kind of gets stuck in our throats – doesn't it?

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