1 Corinthians 10

Bible Passage:  1 Corinthians 10

All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify. Let no one seek his own, but each one the other’s well-being.

(1 Cor 10:23-24)

In 1 Corinthians 10, Paul addresses the problem of idolatry. Obviously, there were some believers in the church at Corinth, who were still eating food that had been sacrificed to idols. We do not know why they did so, but one of the possible scenarios we can imagine is that they did so for social purposes. Maybe their family members were idol-worshippers, which required them to partake of food offered to idols for the sake of family harmony. Or maybe their friends and business partners were idol worshippers and would invite them for feasts where food would be served that had been offered to idols.

On the surface it may seem as if there’s nothing special about it because, as long as we do not worship idols, it seems fine. In certain societies, social commitments make it hard to avoid food offered to idols. But here the problem was that these people consciously participated in these gatherings and consciously ate of food offered to idols (whatever their motivation was). In the spiritual realm, this equals having a part with the demons and provokes God’s anger (1 Cor 10:20-22).

Sometimes we may be like these Corinthians. Out of our ignorance, we think that we are free to do whatever we want as long as we don’t kill and rob. Then, there are things in the “grey zone.” They seem partly right and partly wrong, but the Bible does not mention explicitly what to do in such a case. More often than not, we just go ahead with it out of necessity or personal desire. Typical examples include smoking or holding hands when we date. The Bible does not say, “Do not smoke” or “Do not hold hands if you are not married.” But the Bible does say that our body is the temple of God and that “[i]f anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are” (1 Cor 3:17).

So does smoking defile the temple of God? We all know that smoking, just like taking any other drug, harms and destroys the body. Does holding hands prior to marriage defile the temple of God? We might argue that it doesn’t, as long as our thoughts are holy towards each other—but let’s be honest: Can a young man and woman really be so holy that they would never think of more physical touch or even sex, once they’ve started touching each other? Yes, some of us may fare well, and we may hold hands happily until the day we get married, without having committed sexual immorality. But for others, it may the beginning of their destruction due to lack of self-control.

So although many things seem lawful for us, they may not necessarily be edifying. In addition, they may cause great harm to other brothers and sisters, who may stumble and fall because they followed our example. So next time we want to do anything that’s in the “grey zone,” let’s stop to consider its impact on others first. Let’s not become a stumbling block for others, but seek “the profit of many, that they may be saved” (1 Cor 10:33).