1 Corinthians 10:23-24
“Everything is permissible” – but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible” – but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.
Sometimes it’s hard to know when we should be sensitive to a weaker believer. Paul gives us a simple rule of thumb – we should always be sensitive and gracious. Even though we have tremendous freedom in Christ, we should not exercise our freedom at the cost of hurting a Christian brother or sister. If doing something in front of a young Christian would cause them to stumble, then we should not do it. Even though some actions may not be wrong, they may not be in the best interest of others.
People have a funny way of holding Christians accountable for all of their actions. When people don’t understand the freedom given to us from Christ, they become judgmental or religious. Now our freedom does not mean we can do things that are clearly forbidden, but it is the gray areas that I am talking about. For example, having a glass of wine is not forbidden. Getting drunk however, is. (Ephesians 5:18, Proverbs 23:20) Going into a restaurant with a big Buddha statue out front is not forbidden, bowing down and worshiping Buddha, is. (Exodus 20:3)
Even things we do that may not be forbidden may not always be beneficial or constructive. We need to weigh our actions very carefully, especially when we are around others. We need to always do what is best for others, so that they might be saved. Simply put all things we do should be done for God’s glory, even the little things like eating and drinking.
