Circuit Thoughts — Are You Inviting Or Chasing?

Paul faces an interesting dilemma with the church in Corinth. In fact, he had quite a few interesting issues with the church in Corinth. The one I am alluding to has to do with Chapter 8 of 1st Corinthians. The issue at hand is the eating of meat. Not the type of meat, mind you, but the way it was cooked.

I know; Crazy, right? Well, the real question was: Do you eat meat that was used as a sacrifice to an idol? You see, in Corinth, you could eat for free, if you didn’t mind where the meat came from. Every day there was some sort of celebration going on, and many times the animal that was sacrificed was given to the community. The problem was that many of the newer Christians felt that it was wrong to eat meat that was sacrificed to idols. It also didn’t help that the Apostles had put this prohibition on the books some 20 or so years earlier as the church was just beginning. Anyway, many of the more mature believers saw no problem with the meat, regardless of how or why it was cooked.

Paul pointed out that the reason the meat was cooked or how it was cooked wasn’t the issue. It was the heart of the person who ate it that needed to be considered. The novice believers began questioning their faith when they saw the more mature believers hanging out at the pagan barbecues. The more mature Christians were kind of, well they were pulling the old “bless your heart” routine (and we know what that means). The problem arose when the “mature” Christians expected the novice Christians to agree with the practice. In essence, the mature ones were putting up stumbling blocks to the novice faith.

Now, I’m not saying eating meat offered to idols is right or wrong. The issue was, how was it bringing glory to Christ? The answer is it wasn’t.

This is where it gets personal. When was the last time you looked at how your personal practice affected the belief of others? Part of the issue of declining church numbers is probably based on our fighting about who is right. Just like the Corinthians, we have many who are on both sides of any issue. For those of us who are more experienced, we need to make sure we are not laying stumbling blocks to someone’s faith. If my actions, even though acceptable for me, cause someone else to stumble, then I have sinned. To act in such a way that chases people from the church is to stand against the very love we profess for Christ.

Yes, we who are more mature in Christ are responsible for the growing faith of our sisters and brothers. We must be ready to help someone grow in Christ, even if it means not going to the barbecue today.

Just a thought.

Shalom my friends. See you in church.