1 Corinthians 10:29-33 - Do all to the glory of God

10:29,30

All this is done for the sake of conscience, and the prime concern is the conscience of the host. So how could all this apply in our day, in which food in supermarkets has not been offered to idols, so the immediate issue does not apply in the West. Well suppose someone gives you a mug with a zodiac symbol on it. If nothing else is said then it is just a mug. Get on and drink your coffee! However, if the person then starts talking about horoscopes then this could be a great opportunity to start talking about the gospel, and about the One who really determines our futures. (You could probably still drink the coffee 😏). Paul then goes back to saying things in favour of the freedom side.

So what are we to make of the whole issue, and Paul’s approach to it? We should look at the matter as a whole, we should have concern for other people, we should not try to be “over righteous”. We have an inbuilt tendency to get legalistic about things, this is part of human nature. We need to be aware of this tendency, and to be on our guard against it...

10:31

“Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God”. This stresses the fundamental change that takes place when a person truly comes to Christ and what is involved in repentance. Before coming to Christ a person lives their life primarily for themselves, the focus of their thoughts is themself. This was showing itself in the attitudes of some in Corinth in relation to eating food that might have been offered to idols, and was indeed was at the root of most of the problems raised in the letter. “How does this affect me?” was the basic question they were asking. Instead, our focus should be “how can I glorify God?”, and this will often involve putting the wellbeing of others above ourselves, but will sometimes be just a matter of putting God first. In the LGBT debates consider the arguments put forward by those on the sin-affirming side, they are all man centered, not God centered. We need to make sure that our lives are focused on God.

10:32,33

“Give no offense”. Now this needs to be read in its context, or else it becomes, like “judge not”, an excuse for ignoring or condoning sin. Paul is stressing the whole focus of our lives, which should be to see the church built up and others brought into the kingdom. We do not seek our “own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved”. So we avoid giving needless offense.