This passage is ultimately about glory, specifically God’s glory. Glory can be defined in many ways. Many of these ways are inadequate for defining glory according to the Bible. God’s glory comes in two forms, both of which are recognized by the American Heritage Dictionary.

(2) “Something conferring honor or renown.” God’s glory is the ’something’ which He has that is characterized by his perfect honor and perfect renown. God already has all of this type of glory. There is no one else who is characterized by perfection according to any attribute. God’s perfection, which makes Him worthy of all honor and all renown is His glory.

(1) “Great honor, praise, or distinction accorded by common consent; renown.” This is the definition which is going to be addressed by this passage. It is like Psalm 29.2, “Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name.” In that the letter of 1 Corinthians was written to the saints in Corinth, it is the churches calling to ascribe glory unto the LORD. This glory is the very attribute which distinguishes God from man in that He is worthy of all honor and praise. We, as the church, can bring glory to God in this way, by living in such a way, so as to display God as worthy of all praise and honor.

PRINCIPLES OF CHRISTIAN LIBERTY

1. Others Better than Yourself (v. 24)

In the previous section, it was suggested that many things which are not sin, should be avoided because they do not edify. This passage seems to take it a step further. Not only should we do what is edifying for our own growth and our own consciences, but we too should do what is edifying to others. Remember edifying means building up. It is what makes them stronger Christians.

1. Liberty Better than Legalism (vv. 25-27)

We are not looking for a legalistic way of life. Remember the meat is just meat. It is good for food even if it was sacrificed to idols. The sin is not eating the meat. So, we should not be so legalistic as to perform preventative inspection on everything we are to do to make sure it lines up with our list of dos and don’ts. It’s like this. If you are morally opposed to alcohol consumption, there is no need to announce it at every social gathering and inspect the candies and cakes for traces of rum, like you are deathly allergic to them. Instead, avoid the rum cakes and the rum cherries. If someone says there is alcohol in something, avoid that. If we make a show of it, we offend, and the goal is to edify. Galatians 5.1 says, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” If we abandon our God given liberty for a yoke of legalism, we have defied the freedom which Christ has given us; we sin.

1. Conscience Better than Condemnation (vv. 28-30)

The big question here is, “Why is my freedom judged by another’s conscience?” (v. 29). This passage is simple. If we exercise our liberty and eat the meat from the alter knowingly, even though it is just meat, then we risk affecting the conscience of the other man, since he, as a non-believer, believes the meat was sacrificed to a different god than our own. To him it is idolatry. We have become hypocrites in his eyes. To go back to the alcohol example, if you have friends who know that you don’t partake of alcohol for moral reasons, then it would be unwise for you to knowingly partake any amount of alcohol with them knowing. You will be slandered for it, even though it is your God given use of liberty.

PURPOSE OF CHRISTIAN LIBERTY (vv. 31,32)

Remember I said we would be talking about glory? The reason that we must consider these things is to that God would be glorified in all we do. Sure, we have liberty to do all sorts of things, but the bottom line is that, even where we have liberty, not all things edify and if they do not edify, then they do not bring glory to God. As an example, God is not glorified by my watching of television. It’s not sin, but there is no edification in it. Since there is no edification, it does not bring Him glory.

This is one of those read between the lines sort of verses. Does Paul expect that we can possibly do all things—brush my teeth, drive to work, sleep, etc—with the explicit purpose of edification for myself and others? No. This is the goal. What we should be able to accomplish is a long term pattern of glorifying God more and more over time. So where the goal is not attainable, it is yet tangible, because it is measurable.

PRODUCT OF PROPER USE OF CHRISTIAN LIBERTY (v. 33)

Paul closes this chapter with a snippet of his own life. He says that he pleases everyone in everything he does. This is not a prideful statement. He is doing this in order to show us the product of a life lived for the glory of God. It is “that they might be saved.” ‘They’ are the unbelieving whose conscience we have been so worried about. As we do all things for all men, making proper use of our liberty, not abandoning it for legalism, we God uses us to draw others to Himself, that they might be saved.

The early church did this well. In Acts 2.42-47, Luke gives us an account of the church in Jerusalem. As they did all things for edification of the body of Christ and for the non-believer, “…the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved” (v. 47).

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The Purpose of Christian Liberty–1 Corinthians 10.24-33