Howbeit there is not in every man that knowledge: for some with conscience of the idol unto this hour eat it as a thing offered unto an idol; and their conscience being weak is defiled.
This isn’t fair. But it doesn’t have to be. Let me explain.
John Gill writes of this passage:
“The apostle is not speaking of heathens, in whom there was no knowledge of the one true God, the author of all things, and of the one Lord Jesus, the only Saviour and Redeemer; but of Christians, in whom there was the knowledge of these things, but not in all of them—the knowledge of this, that an idol was nothing; for though they knew that an idol was not God, and had no true deity in it, nor was it any true representation of God, yet fancied that it had an influence upon food that was offered to it.”
He goes on to say:
“And since there were such persons that were so ignorant and weak, it became those who had more knowledge to be careful how they laid stumblingblocks in the way of such, to the prejudice of their consciences…”
There are Christians—saved people—who know they have been delivered from devilish things, yet still believe those things can have some influence. A mature Christian understands that these things are nothing in the world. They have no power and no effect upon the believer whatsoever. But because there are less mature Christians who are genuinely troubled by such things, the rest of us ought to “be careful how they [lay] stumblingblocks in the way of such.”
I believe this applies most practically within a local church context. It would be impossible to avoid offending the conscience of every sincerely held but strange doctrine represented in every church we encounter.
It may not seem fair—but it is Christian grace—to think of others, especially within our own church, and to take care that we avoid unnecessary offense against them, even when we know they really shouldn’t be offended.
#StrongerAndWeaker #ChristianLiberty #LoveLimitsKnowledge #LocalChurchGrace #WalkInCharity
Are You a Stumblingblock? The Hard Truth About Christian Liberty
If this study challenged how you think about Christian liberty and charity, take a moment to share your thoughts in the comments—have you ever chosen restraint for the sake of someone else’s conscience, or struggled when someone didn’t do the same? Your insight may help another believer more than you realize.
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