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Pathways Through Paul
Daily Devotional
July 23
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Today's Pathway:
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Paul is finishing his teaching concerning Christian liberty. He has already established that the spiritual needs of others are more important than our exercise of our freedoms in Christ. So in verse 31 he writes an oft-quoted verse:
"Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God."
While this is certainly relevant to the discussion of liberty, it is applicable in every facet of the believer's life. First, let's look at it as it relates to Christian liberty. All decisions concerning doubtful disputations, or questions concerning whether or not we should exercise our "rights" as believers, can be answered by the statement "do all to the glory of God". Whether or not we should eat meat sacrificed to idols is determined by what will bring glory to the Lord. Whether or not we should drink at the "table of devils" (verse 21) is determined by what will bring glory to God. Paul has already shown that using our liberty brings glory to Him, and has shown that choosing to not use our liberty so as to not cause someone else to stumble also brings Him glory. So, in every questionable situation, the determining factor is, "what will bring glory to God?"
However, every part of the believer's life should bring glory to God. How we conduct ourselves, the language that we use, the topics that we discuss, the priorities that we have, the activities that we participate in; all of these must be governed by our desire to glorify God. There is really no distinction between our "spiritual" life and our "secular" life. Bob Jones Sr. put it this way:
"For the Christian, everything in life is sacred. All ground is holy ground. Every bush is a burning bush. And every place a Christian is, the temple of God is there."
Some Christians seem to compartmentalize their lives. They view Sundays as being for the Lord, but other days are for themselves. They do their best to bring glory to God at church and in certain other situations, but in their "private" lives they give very little consideration as to what might please the Lord and bring others to Him. "Do all" means to "do all"; 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year.
In verses 32-33 Paul says that bringing glory to God includes not causing others to stumble in their spiritual lives. Whether they be Jews or Gentiles, saved or lost, church members or not, the believer has the responsibility to make choices that do not negatively impact those around him. He writes that instead of offending others, he was choosing to "please all men". This does not mean that he compromised his message so that the ungodly would be "pleased" to hear him. The truth that men are sinners and need a Savior is offensive to those who reject it. Jesus Christ Himself is referred to as "a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence" (I Peter 2:8). What it does mean is that he was more concerned about others than he was about himself. He wanted there to be nothing in his life that would cause them to reject him personally. John MacArthur wrote,
"That many people are offended by the gospel is their problem, but when they are needlessly offended by our way of living, that is our problem; and it dishonors the Lord."
Paul's desire, according to the end of verse 33, was that men would be saved, and if he had to sacrifice his own "profit" to accomplish that goal, he was willing to do so. However, he could never bring someone to Christ if he changed the Gospel message itself. James Scudder concluded,
"When it comes to the truth of the Gospel, there was no fudging on Paul's part. He wouldn't lower his standards or change his message to accommodate those who didn't believe. He believed that if he watered down the Gospel to please people, then He would cease to be serving Christ. Yet, when Paul talks about 'pleasing all men in all things,' he is describing the sacrifices that often have to be made to win people to Christ. He would do whatever it took to win someone to the Lord."
Do we have that level of commitment to the Lord and to the souls of men?
Pastor Mark J Montgomery
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