Matthews Family Herald

Just to briefly add on to the other post I made about "To the Weak I Became as Weak," my daughter reminded me, essentially, of this verse:

1 Corinthians 8:9 But take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock to them that are weak.

and to add to that:

1 Corinthians 10:33 Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved.

Tieing those two together, insisting on my own liberty and freedom, even to the exclusion of others, is basically putting my profit above others.

Before I get going, someone might think I'm suggesting that in order to win others, I might or we might need to commit sin. We are not commanded to sin in order to be acceptable to all, absolutely not.

1 Corinthians 6:9-11 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

With that cleared up, (Liberty in Christ is not permission to sin or an excuse to sin. Sin is not means to an end either) we may be required, however, in order to win others to the Lord, to do things that are not necessary for us personally, but necessary for those persons we are around in order to either function as part of the Body with them, or to win them to the Lord if they are not yet born again.

So, this means maybe we'll need to maintain a certain haircut, eat certain foods or abstain from certain foods. This may mean going to a church building or not going to one. This may mean putting on a certain uniform or clothes or submitting to certain frameworks or organizational structures that are temporal, but being used by the Lord for a purpose, and which may be where we are called "for such a time as this." Recalling now Esther who ended up serving a worldly King. The King raised her to a royal position, but God orchastrated the whole thing for a larger purpose and not for Esther's own gain. She gave up her will to God as was thus used to bring the deliverance of her people.

Esther 4:14 For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?

Thanks Rachel for reminding me of how selfish it can be to insist on certain liberties in Christ at the expense of others within the Body or without the Body.