1 Coríntios 10

1 Coríntios 10

Wesley: “If you would judge of the lawfulness or the unlawfulness of pleasure, then take this simple rule: Whatever weakens your reason, impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your sense of God, and takes off the relish of spiritual things—that to you is sin.” IS IT PROFITABLE? - J. Wilbur Chapman said, “My life is governed by this rule: Anything that dims my vision of Christ or takes away my taste for Bible study or cramps my prayer life or makes Christian work difficult is wrong for me, and I must, as a Christian, turn away from it.” This was how Susannah Wesley defined “sin” to her young son, John Wesley: “If you would judge of the lawfulness or the unlawfulness of pleasure, then take this simple rule: Whatever weakens your reason, impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your sense of God, and takes off the relish of spiritual things—that to you is sin.” Christian liberty -- J.R. Miller We should keep watch over our words and deeds, not only in their intent and purpose — but also in their possible influence over others. There may be liberties which lead to no danger for us — but which to others with less stable character, and less wholesome environments — would be full of peril. It is part of our duty to think of these weaker ones, and of the influence of our example upon them. We may not do anything in our liberty, which might possibly harm others. We must be willing to sacrifice our liberty — if by its exercise, we endanger another's soul. This is the teaching of holy Scripture: "Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another." Romans 14:19 "Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall." Romans 14:20-21 "Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak. For if anyone with a weak conscience sees you who have this knowledge eating in an idol's temple, won't he be emboldened to eat what has been sacrificed to idols? So this weak brother, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. When you sin against your brothers in this way and wound their weak conscience — you sin against Christ. Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall." 1 Corinthians 8:9-13 "All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others." 1 Corinthians 10:23-24 1 Corinthians 10:24 Let no one seek his own good, but that of his neighbor. Amplified Let no one then seek his own good and advantage and profit, but [rather] each one of the other [let him seek the welfare of his neighbor]. Wuest Let no person be seeking his own good but that of the other person. (Eerdmans Publishing - used by permission) Zodhiates Let no one continue to seek his own selfish good, but each one the good of another who is different. NET 1 Corinthians 10:24 Do not seek your own good, but the good of the other person. NLT 1 Corinthians 10:24 Don't be concerned for your own good but for the good of others. ESV 1 Corinthians 10:24 Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor. NIV 1 Corinthians 10:24 Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others. GNT 1 Corinthians 10:24 μηδεὶς τὸ ἑαυτοῦ ζητείτω ἀλλὰ τὸ τοῦ ἑτέρου. KJV 1 Corinthians 10:24 Let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth. YLT 1 Corinthians 10:24 let no one seek his own -- but each another's. ASV 1 Corinthians 10:24 Let no man seek his own, but each his neighbor's good. CSB 1 Corinthians 10:24 No one should seek his own good, but the good of the other person. MIT 1 Corinthians 10:24 Let no one look out only for himself, but let him be concerned for the other person. NKJ 1 Corinthians 10:24 Let no one seek his own, but each one the other's well-being. NRS 1 Corinthians 10:24 Do not seek your own advantage, but that of the other. NAB 1 Corinthians 10:24 No one should seek his own advantage, but that of his neighbor. NJB 1 Corinthians 10:24 Nobody should be looking for selfish advantage, but everybody for someone else's. GWN 1 Corinthians 10:24 People should be concerned about others and not just about themselves. BBE 1 Corinthians 10:24 Let a man give attention not only to what is good for himself, but equally to his neighbour's good. seek: 1Co 10:33 1 Cor 9:19-23 13:5 Php 2:4,5,21 1 Corinthians 10 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries Related Passages: Matthew 5:43-48 “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.’ 44 “But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 “For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 “If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? 48 “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. NOT SEEKING OUR OWN ADVANTAGE Let no one seek his own good, but that of his neighbor - Paul is telling the Corinthians to stop continually seeking they own selfish good. Let no one is present imperative and don't be deceived by attempting to do this from some "altruistic" motive because our fallen flesh will fight that tooth and nail. In short, to continually obey this command which is basically a call to "die to self" (and manifest " agape" love which is self-less love) necessitates that we depend on the Holy Spirit to obey. There is simply no other way! Self does not want to take second seat to another, even if he is our nearest, dearest neighbor! Neighbor is actually the word heteros which means another who is different (not identical). Some take this to be a reference to an unbeliever for they certainly are spiritually different. On the other hand, this could be a reference to another believer who holds a different opinion for example in regard to eating meat sacrificed to idols. "The desire of God, Jesus Christ, and the apostles is that our lives may be structured to be possessing the character of God in constantly seeking that which is good, not only for ourselves, but for others who may differ from us." (Zodhiates) Zodhiates -Paul is admonishing believers here that the life of the Christian should not be one of constantly seeking his own selfish benefit, as Lot did when his uncle, Abraham (read Ge 13:8-12). A Christian should not seek a life of ease and comfort, but a selfless life that will benefit others. Paul urges us not make a selfish decision at any time. We must never give self the preeminent position in our lives, but we should rather give it to God who indwells us. Let us never lose sight that our example is being followed by the other members of the body of Christ with whom we are joined together. Paul gives an excellent "commentary" on this verse in Philippians 2:4-5+ writing " Do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus." O Lord, how often selfishness Will raise its ugly head, So help us, Lord, to conquer it And show Your love instead. —D. De Haan The heart of our problem is selfishness in our heart. Alan Redpath comments that either way believers are to "live sacrificially for other people. You are saved not only that you might serve the Lord but that you might live before other people so that nothing you do, in your actions or reactions will cause offense. You will be able to go into the homes of non-Christian people and eat with them, converse with them; you will move among them in a natural manner, but never for one moment will you lower your standard of Christian living. You will do nothing that will put any kind of hindrance in the way of another, nothing that will be a stumbling block to him. Your first concern is the spiritual wealth of that person. It may be a social date or it may be a formal occasion, but deep down in your heart your one purpose is that you might enrich that man spiritually. You are on the King’s business, and He grants no vacations. This is the first rule of the road. I would pause a moment to underline something: it is clear from the teaching of the apostle here that the Christian as an individual, or the Christian fellowship as a group, is not called upon to live in some watertight compartment, inoculated against possible contamination through contact with unconverted people (cf 1 Cor 10:27). We are to move among them, talk with them, live with them — but always maintain the standard of Christian living. Principles must never be lowered; stumbling blocks must never be put in the way of an unbeliever. The one objective on every occasion is not a social contact; rather, the great concern of the child of God is the spiritual enrichment of his friend. The Christian’s mission in this world is not primarily seeking to make himself more holy, but through contact with an unbelieving world to do everything in his power to win others to Jesus Christ." (The Road to Heaven - 1 Corinthians). Paul alludes to this principle in the propagation of the Gospel writing For though I am free from all men (ANOTHER WAY OF SAYING "ALL THINGS ARE LAWFUL" IN 1 Cor 10:23), I have made myself a slave to all (PAUL DENIED SELF - GAVE UP HIS "RIGHTS"), so that I may win more. 20 To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might win Jews; to those who are under the Law, as under the Law though not being myself under the Law, so that I might win those who are under the Law; 21 to those who are without law, as without law, though not being without the law of God but under the law of Christ, so that I might win those who are without law. 22 To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some. 23 I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it. (1 Cor 9:19-23+) Seek (2212)(zeteo) implies giving attention and priority to and deliberately pursuing after which is most common sense of this word. Uses of zeteo in the Corinthian letters - 1Co. 1:22 ="Greeks search for wisdom;"; 1Co. 7:27 = "Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be released. Are you released from a wife? Do not seek a wife." 1 Co. 10:24; 1 Co. 10:33; 1 Co. 13:5; 1 Co. 14:12; 2 Co. 12:14; 2 Co. 13:3 The Trouble With Me Read: Jonah 4:1-10 Let no one seek his own, but each one the other's well-being. —1 Corinthians 10:24 Selfishness comes in many forms, and we are all prone to it. I was reminded of this while driving on a toll road. My wife Ginny and I were hoping to get home early that evening, but a traffic jam held us up for almost 2 hours. Although Ginny mentioned that there may have been a serious accident up ahead, I gave this little thought and kept grumbling about the delay. But when the traffic began to flow again, we saw six mangled cars next to the highway. A wave of conviction swept over me. “Forgive me, Lord,” I prayed, “and please help the victims and their families.” The Bible gives many examples of selfish attitudes. Jonah was upset because a worm had destroyed a vine that shaded him from the scorching sun (Jonah 4:9). Yet he didn’t care that many men, women, and children in Nineveh might be destroyed. In Mark 10:37, we read that two disciples selfishly asked for positions of power in Christ’s coming kingdom. And in Paul’s first letter to the Corinthian church, we see many examples of selfish behavior (1 Cor 1:10; 3:3; 5:1; 6:6-8; 11:21). God calls us to put the good of others ahead of our selfish desires (1 Corinthians 10:24). Forgive us, Lord, and help us to do just that! Warren