Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that “We all possess knowledge.” But knowledge puffs up while love builds up. Those who think they know something do not yet know as they ought to know. But whoever loves God is known by God.
So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that “An idol is nothing at all in the world” and that “There is no God but one.” For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”), yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live.
But not everyone possesses this knowledge. Some people are still so accustomed to idols that when they eat sacrificial food they think of it as having been sacrificed to a god, and since their conscience is weak, it is defiled. But food does not bring us near to God; we are no worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do.
Be careful, however, that the exercise of your rights does not become a stumbling block to the weak. For if someone with a weak conscience sees you, with all your knowledge, eating in an idol’s temple, won’t that person be emboldened to eat what is sacrificed to idols? So this weak brother or sister, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. When you sin against them in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother or sister to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause them to fall.

• 1 Corinthians 8:1-13

Noted Biblical Scholars, Teachers, and Preachers Comments

1 Corinthians 8:1 ‘things offered to idols’: “The Greeks and Romans were polytheistic (worshiping many gods) and polydemonistic (believing in many evil spirits). They believed that evil spirits would try to invade human beings by attaching themselves to food before it was eaten, and that the spirits could be removed only by the food’s being sacrificed to a god. The sacrifice was meant not only to gain favor with the god, but also to cleanse the meat from demonic contamination. Such decontaminated meat was offered to the gods as a sacrifice. That which was not burned on the altar was served at wicked pagan feasts. What was left was sold in the market. After conversion, believers resented eating such food bought out of idol markets, because it reminded sensitive Gentile believers of their previous pagan lives and the demonic worship. we all have knowledge. Paul and mature believers knew better than to be bothered by such food offered once to idols and then sold in the marketplace. They knew the deities did not exist and that evil spirits did not contaminate the food. See note on 1 Tim. 4:3. love edifies. Knowledge mingled with love prevents a believer from exercising freedoms that offend weaker believers and, rather, builds the others up in truth and wisdom (cf. 13:1–4).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Corinthians 8:5 ‘so-called gods’: “Some were outright fakes and some were manifestations of demons, but none were truly gods (Ps. 115:4–7; Acts 19:26).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Corinthians 8:6 ‘one God, the Father … and one Lord Jesus Christ’: ”A powerful and clear affirmation of the essential equality of God the Father and God the Son (cf. Eph. 4:4–6).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Corinthians 8:7 ‘conscience … is defiled’: “The consciences of some newer converts were still accusing them strongly with regard to allowing them to eat idol food without feeling spiritually corrupted and guilty. They still imagined that idols were real and evil. A defiled conscience is one that has been violated, bringing fear, shame, and guilt. See notes on Rom. 14:20–23.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Corinthians 8:8 ‘commend us to God’: “The idea is of bringing us nearer to God or making us approved by Him. Food is spiritually neutral.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Corinthians 8:8-11 ‘spiritual freedom vs. weakness’: “Paul acknowledges that food in and of itself can’t bring us close to God, regardless of whether we eat it (8:8). At issue here is not harming brothers and sisters in Christ by practicing something that is a stumbling block to them (8:9). After all, we don’t want to do something that causes a fellow Christian to fail to move forward in his or her faith. Some of the Corinthians rightly recognized that idols are nothing and, so, had no problem eating food sacrificed to idols. But, if their liberty encouraged a believer with a weak conscience to also eat the food, the latter would experience spiritual harm. We must not ruin the faith of a brother or sis-ter for whom Christ died (8:10-11).
“Paul is talking about believers who are seeking to honor God and grow in their faith, but are not yet at a spiritual level where they can exercise the full spiritual freedom they have in Christ. We should not intentionally do anything to harm the spiritual progress of such fellow Christians. We don’t want to exercise our knowledge and freedom in such a way that we cause them to stumble. Our Christian liberty may be legitimate in and of itself, but if it causes a weaker brother or sister to fall, we have sinned against them. So let’s act in love toward such individuals so that their faith is strengthened and not undermined.”

• Tony Evans, The Tony Evans Bible Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Corinthians 8:9 ‘freedom as a trap’: ”Paul said the believers could actually trap somebody through the use of their liberty. He writes, ‘Beware lest somehow this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to those who are weak. For if anyone sees you who have knowledge eating in an idol’s temple, will not the conscience of him who is weak be emboldened to eat those things offered to idols?’ (verse 9).”

• David Jeremiah, 1 Corinthians (Jeremiah Bible Study Series)

1 Corinthians 8:10-12 ‘Real Idolatry under a mask of meat’: “Real idolatry, not just the eating of meat, was the issue at hand. Paul denied that any true ‘gods’ were involved in paganism but pointed out what the Corinthians failed to note: Pagan religion was often the locus of demonic activity. The issue was not that of merely ‘offending’ someone in the church but of weakening someone’s commitment to Christ. The Corinthians had arrogantly insisted on their own rights and freedoms and had jeopardized the spiritual well-being of others.”

• Dorothy Kelley Patterson, General Editor, NIV Woman’s Study Bible (Patty Comber, Pauline Epistles contributor)

1 Corinthians 8:10 ‘Cults and Superstitions’: “Meat was eaten frequently in connection with religious sacrifices. Birds were sacrificed often; oxen on special occasions. Leftover meat was kept by the priests and worshipers. What they did not use themselves would be sold in the marketplace, with or without information that it had been sacrificed. Paul warned against eating this meat in a pagan temple, but allowed it to be eaten in a household (1 Cor. 8:10; 10:25).”

• Timothy B. Cargal, et al., The Chronological Study Bible

1 Corinthians 8:11 ‘Christ died for the weak’: ”The apostle Paul used a loving rebuke when he wrote to the church in Corinth, ‘And because of your knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died?’ (8:11). In essence, Paul was saying, ‘Jesus gave up His life for this brother. Will you not give up your precious right to exercise your liberty in order to help him?’ It is a strong rebuke.”

• David Jeremiah, 1 Corinthians (Jeremiah Bible Study Series)

1 Corinthians 8:12-13 ‘help the weak to become strong’: “Paul takes this matter a step further. To insist on exercising our liberty at the expense of weaker Christians is not only to sin against them but to sin against Christ (8:12). As Paul himself learned, Jesus takes sins against his church (his ‘body’) seriously (see … Acts 9:3-5). Therefore, if eating meat sacrificed to idols caused spiritual harm to other believers, Paul would never again eat it (8:13). He would go out of his way to avoid hindering the spiritual development of another Christian. Love for one another must come first.
“Are you willing to let your freedom be subordinated to love? Let us not use our knowledge to hurt someone else who does not yet have our knowledge. Don’t trip up others in their spiritual progress; rather help them on their journey to know; love, and obey God.”

• Tony Evans, The Tony Evans Bible Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Corinthians 8:13 ‘do everything with your brother’s well-being in mind’: ”Paul went on to say, ‘If food makes my brother stumble, I will never again eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble’ (verse 13). Paul was trying to help the believers understand that their conduct as Christians was not as easy as finding out what is on the do and don’t list and then indiscriminately exercising their freedoms. Rather, their freedoms had to be limited by their concern for their brothers and sisters in Christ.”

• David Jeremiah, 1 Corinthians (Jeremiah Bible Study Series)

1 Corinthians 8:13 ‘set a good example’: “Will the course considered lead a fellow Christian to sin by your example?”

• Dorothy Kelley Patterson, General Editor, NIV Woman’s Study Bible (Patty Comber, Pauline Epistles contributor)

My Thoughts

Now that the sexual immorality issue is resolved, Paul digs into the issue of food sacrificed to idols.

The point is that you went to the market and they have meat for sale.  You have no idea whether that meat was freshly butchered this morning or if it is left over meat from the pagan worship service.  If the pagan had leftovers, they profited from it by selling the meat at a market.  You might smell the formation of bacteria due to the meat being old, but the pagan sacrifice leaves no marks.

With that in mind, people who were afraid to eat meat that had been sacrificed to a pagan god had to become vegetarians, not necessarily vegans.  They would never know when they bought meat at the market – thus they could never eat meat unless they butchered it themselves.

But now, the comparisons start.  The folks who had a guilty conscience due to the “tainted” meat would claim those who ate the meat to be sinners for having done so.

I grew up in a legalistic family in a legalistic community.  We did not have any openly advertised pagan worship, but there were differences in the worship service between the various denominations.  Because it was not the way we did “it” in our church, the other church was sinning.  At least two denominations in our community felt it a sin to attend a church that did not do things exactly as they did them.  Since the difference was a sin, then the denomination was written off as heretical or worse, they were in apostacy.

In a recent Sunday school class, one of the members brought up the concept that the things that we differ on from denomination to denomination are the two sacraments that Jesus instituted: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

I never had a Baptist friend who came to our youth group because we were not a true Christian church.  We sprinkled, but they emersed.  Odd, when baptism is only a symbol of what the Holy Spirit has already done in your life.  And does it matter whether the blood and wine represent Christ’s blood and body or physically become His blood and body?  It does when you have leftovers.  The leftovers must be consumed, or you have what the Corinthian church had.

While I grew up in a very “godly” town, there was a lot of people each Monday morning who greeted their neighbors with a smile and then prayed about how sad it was that all those nice people were going to Hell because they did baptism and communion “wrong.”

In the Sunday school class, a few weeks ago, we talked about how during the COVID lockdown, we would get a cracker and some water, and that became our bread and wine.

I am allergic to something associated with grapes.  I can drink wine with no ill effects.  Of course, I do not drink too much.  And I have learned that the tiny communion cup is not a lot of what makes me ill.  I have had every kind of reaction imaginable from dry mouth to vomiting to my face swelling, and everything in between.  But a small cup does not set this off – other than a rare dry mouth – itchy roof of the mouth and increased sinus issues.  When I was in Germany in the military, the protestant pastor would prepare the “wine” tray with half wine and half grape juice.  I took the wine, but the fear of sending an alcoholic off the bandwagon prevents that in a civilian congregation.

I take the grape juice these days with a prayer that I am in God’s hands as a result.  And isn’t that why we take the wine and bread anyway?  Jesus sacrificed Himself, and by no other means can we have salvation.

But Paul’s bottom line is that it comes down to our neighbor.  Knowledge tells us that we can eat meat sold at the market, regardless of where it came from, but love tells us to not do something that would cause our neighbor to stumble.

If we had held to that standard, there would be less denominations.

But then, some “stumbling” these days come from people who invent the offense in order to manipulate the others.

We need wise counsel.  We need to stay in prayer.  We cannot rearrange our worship based on those who find offense in everything just to keep the righteous among them silent.  But the righteous must discern whether their practices are founded in Scripture or just what they are comfortable with doing.  In either case, being judgmental over non-critical issues is dangerous.

Some Serendipitous Reflections

1 Corinthians 8 1. Where in your life is one person’s ‘freedom’ another’s ‘stumbling block’: To drink or not to drink? To wear certain styles of clothes? To listen to ‘New Age’ music or not? To pursue a certain standard of living? To be involved in certain political causes?
“2. Of the issues where you have been on the ‘weak’ side, how did you feel toward those who ignored your concerns?”

• Lyman Coleman, et al, The NIV Serendipity Bible for Study Groups

First Corinthians 8 has one set of questions.

Substitute whatever group for any reference to a small group or ask who could come to your aid.

If you like these Thursday morning Bible studies, but you think you missed a few, you can use this LINK. I have set up a page off the home page for links to these Thursday morning posts. I will continue to modify the page as I add more.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.