Myself and Others

“Nor for me, but for God, and not just for God but for God all”

We in the Messiah have the liberty to do all things in the will of God. We are not restricted in that way, that we cannot eat this or that, or cannot do this or that. We have full and complete freedom to live righteously and in living righteously, to eat all things except food offered to idols and blood.

Let us examine: 1Corinthians 10:23-33 KJV

But we are heavily restricted. What is lawful, what we can do, is not always the best thing to do. We aren’t free to live our lives without the consideration of others. We aren’t free to live a hedonistic life of pleasure. What restricts us is others. It’s funny, because that’s a real important restriction. In sin and in himself, man naturally only cares for himself. The Messiah has set us free from serving only ourselves.

He Himself came to serve other, not to be served. His entire existence on this earth had nothing in it for him, no glory, no enjoyment. He did it entirely for the glory of the Father and for us. He considered us. Let us not be selfish then, and only consider ourselves, but follow in His example of giving our rights, our existence, our time, our choices, over to God and consequently limiting ourselves by others.

Rule #1: “All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.” You may be free to do all things but you are not required to live hedonistically. You may be free to do all things, but you must consider whether they are beneficial, edifying, useful, encouraging, etc. to others. In other words, “Consider others better than yourself”.

 Rule #2: “Let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth.” We must come to a point that our first consideration is not me, but others. It natural, for example, standing at a table of food, to take plenty of what I like, and perhaps unconsciously leaving nothing for others of what they like. We cannot seek our own. That is not God’s way. If that was God’s way the Messiah would never have come.

Rule #3: “Whatsoever is sold in the shambles, that eat, asking no question for conscience sake: For the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof.  If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake.”

“But if any man say unto you, This is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof: Conscience, I say, not thine own, but of the other: for why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience? For if I by grace be a partaker, why am I evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks?”

For the sake of your conscience, don’t ask questions but simply “eat what is set before you”(Luke 10:8) However it is not only your own conscience you must consider, but others’ also. Yes, even the “ridiculous” scruples of others must be allowed to control us, after all, to us it no longer matters. We are limited by others. You must consider the peace of mind and conscience of other people. You may not exercise your full rights to liberty. Here we come to the final rule:

Rule #4: “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God: Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved.”

We can be exceedingly obnoxious, proud, boastful, and self-serving. That is not the way. We must take care to offend no one. It is better than for you not to preach the gospel or profess to be a follower of the Messiah if you turn people away from the gospel and from Jesus through your selfishness.

Do you know that a lot of times we established Christians become obnoxious and judgmental? We immediately see how others are wrong, others are in bondage, other are ignorant, and we turn people away from the gospel. We see idol-worshippers and mock them for worshipping Satan. We see Jews and mock them for being Pharisees. We scoff, we offend others by being culturally insensitive, we preach the gospel with such arrogance and such little actual care for others. We just want to be right, to prove others are wrong, to intimidate, to flaunt our liberty. Paul was just the opposite. 

Is God glorified if I choose to eat this and not that? Is God glorified because I choose to wear blue instead of yellow? Is God glorified because I observe such and such? Nothing inherent in these activities glorifies God. God doesn’t need your "glory".  You cannot understand the first statement without the second, namely, that you are to glorify God before others, namely Jews, Gentiles, and fellow disciples.The name of God is to glorified among the nations when they see your righteousness.

We must take exceeding care indeed to offend no one, because we are supposed to preach only one offense and that is the cross. To marr the offense and work of the cross through our own prejudice, insentivities, or selfish pride is to present a mutilated gospel. In fact, when we interact with others, we must be nothing short of the cross and nothing more than the cross. We must be to others the exact representation of the gospel. In that way we must glorify God before others.  

What did God give you freedom for? So you can be selfish? So you can live for yourself? So you can kill yourself through hedonistic living? No! So you can save others too! The right attitude is that because God has given deliverance to you, you should long that others be delivered from death too.

Please all men in all things if you must to bring to Christ. What else matters? My right to this, my right to that? Lay you your individual subjectivities, your rights, your preferences, lay them all down. Seek not for your own comfort but the comfort of those not saved. Seek not for your own “reward in heaven” but leave it to the Father. Let yourself be limited by others. Show complete deference, humility, meekness, and longsuffering towards and especially towards those who least deserve it or even those who have the selfish boldness to demand it. Let others be selfish as long as you are not, so that they may be saved and God may be glorified in their eyes and through their salvation. Be a quiet lamb, led to the slaughter, put to death by wolves because it is for the salvation of the ravenous beasts that you are slaughtered.

Nevertheless it doesn’t mean we must partake of, condone, or allow others to hurt others or to sin. Of course not! The meek lamb is also the righteous lamb.

Let us rewind a bit and read chapter 9 of 1^st Corinthians:

1. We have much freedom and much opportunity, but we can choose not to use this power, just in case it should hinder the gospel. Paul is not even talking about abusing rights. He is talking about what is  rightful and lawful, but which he has chosen not to demand just in case it is unedifying. He used none of these opportunities.
2.   Make the gospel of Christ without charge. “Freely receive, freely give”. Give without expecting anything in return.
3.   Paul preaches the gospel out of necessity. He’s not in it to gain any glory or earthly recognition or earthly retribution for himself. His reward and contentment alone is found in the preaching of the gospel itself.
4.  We are free from all men let am completely willing to be servant of all so that as many can be saved as possible.
5. Be temperate in all things; be self-controlled; bring your body under subjection.
6. Reach out absolutely for the unsaved. You may have to throw aside everything “Christian” and “traditional” and familiar to you to reach the Jews. In fact, to reach the Jews, you have to throw everything out of your comfort box and take only one offense, that is the cross, and that is the gospel. To reach those in Asia in Africa you have to throw away everything “English” and “Western” and “Civilized” and “European” and learn to speak only one language (love) and teach only one message (the cross).  Ultimate love is the cross and the cross is where all selfishness ends. Love is where all selfishness ends. There is no religion, no rhetoric, no rules, to the cross, only love. Love, and a  life laid down for the lost. And we call others to this cross. Christ did not go on the cross to be the giver of love to everyone, and everyone the receivers. No! He calls His disciples to go the cross, to be transformed also into a giver of love and a vessel of love and a body of love and not only dispense love and grace but to call many more to this life-transforming cross that yields all yet demands us to yield all.

And unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain them that are under the law; To them that are without law, as without law, (being not without law to God, but under the law to Christ,) that I might gain them that are without law. To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. And this I do for the gospel's sake, that I might be partaker thereof with you. Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. (1Co 9:1-27 KJV)