Well, you can grab your Bibles and... Make your way back to the book we've been studying for some time now, 1 Corinthians. We're in chapter 8. We introduced chapter 8 last time, really just began to set the stage for understanding this whole section, a section that I think will end up being very, very practical and relevant for us today, especially as young people. I was just thinking, you know, there's so many ways in which we, and I think especially in this demographic, at least when I was even your age, I don't think all that much has changed. But there is a temptation to misuse and abuse what we call our freedom in Christ. Great doctrine, right? We certainly are free in Christ. There are many liberties that we have that fall under this category of Christian liberties. And yet, I have found over the years, over 10 years, shepherding young adults in the church that rarely are there young people who practice their liberties in a very mature way. And so this section, I think, really is going to help us hone in on some things, particular questions, additional things we need to be considering as believers before we just dive headlong into some Christian freedom that we claim to have. So that's just kind of what came to the surface last week. Just a quick review, especially for those who weren't here. Last week we established the situation that Paul was trying to address there in Corinth. He begins to confront them about another sort of manifestation, if you will, of worldliness in their church. You know, immorality was a problem. They had a hard time separating from that from their previous life. Now you get to this section and Paul has to say to them and address yet another thing, practice, in which they found it very difficult for many understandable reasons to separate themselves from the culture around them and from their old pagan lifestyle. You remember we argued that the main issue here that Paul addresses and begins to address, notice verse 1, chapter 8, is what he describes as things sacrificed to idols. Just word and word, really idol sacrifices. And we argued last time that Paul's issue wasn't in this section strictly speaking with food itself, right? This isn't three chapters on a Christian diet, what's clean and unclean. at the end of the day, but rather Paul's problem in bringing this particular issue up was what was associated with that meat and that food. In fact, if you chase that word around, I think I said last time, you know, you go to Acts chapter 15, you read the Jerusalem Council, you go to Revelation chapter 2, and the letters to the churches, Thyatira and Pergamum especially, that Jesus has to write to them. You see everywhere that things sacrificed to idols, eating things sacrificed to idols is never actually allowed. It's actually prohibited. The apostles, you remember, as soon as God started saving Gentiles, they got together in Acts 15 and wrote and made sure that everybody understood that they were to abstain from this word, things sacrificed to idols. So I think the problem here that Paul is addressing is that the Corinthians were pushing against that. They didn't understand why the apostles would say that. After all, I thought all things were clean. And so Paul has to help them and shepherd them in their thinking. By the way, I mentioned last time, so by the time you get to chapter 10, the real issue comes out, right? It's not food. Notice chapter 10, you remember verse 7, Paul flatly warns the Corinthians there, do not be idolaters. as Israel was. It's like, why does he bring that up in the section about eating meat sacrificed to idols? Because that was the issue. And he tells them there, chapter 10, verse 14, then his conclusion is at the end of this entire section, therefore my beloved flee from idolatry. That was his pastoral heart and burden. That was the real concern, idolatry. Not food, not diet, not what was clean or unclean, not even the conscience primarily. But his concern was that they separate themselves from their old pagan roots and from the idols of their day. That now as Christians, you must live a very different life than what you lived before. In fact, you remember he will write to them later in 2 Corinthians 6, don't be bound together with unbelievers. What partnership of righteousness with lawlessness? What fellowship is light with darkness? What harmony has Christ with Belial? What does a believer in common with an unbeliever or what agreement, listen, has the temple of God with idols? Therefore come out from their midst and be separate. And yet, it would seem, as we sort of read through this section, it would seem that some of the Corinthians were guilty of personally still continuing to participate in the cultic meals of false gods and pagan temples, rather than coming out and being separate. Notice chapter 8, 1 Corinthians 8, notice verse 10, the situation that Paul brings up there. And I don't think it's hypothetical, I think that this actually happened, which is why he's bringing it up. He says, look, if someone sees you who have knowledge, dining in an idol's temple will not his conscience, if he's weak, be strengthened to eat things sacrificed to idols. That was the problem. They were still participating in that way. So, all of that to say, unlike Romans 14 here, Christian liberty is not Paul's primary concern in this section. It only comes up because the Corinthians were using their so-called freedom to justify And this is the key, to justify and rationalize their ongoing association with what was prohibited with idol worship. But it becomes just such a helpful section then for us to sort of troubleshoot our own treatment of our liberties, doesn't it? Because it helps us as you'll see as we walk through this, to sort of evaluate, look, your own heart and say, to look at and examine your approach to Christian liberties so that you can be careful that you aren't guilty of this same thing, of using your liberty to excuse license. that your liberty not become license for sin, not become a covering for evil, an excuse for some kind of idolatry because you just want what you want, but you're justifying it by claiming this idea that, hey, I'm free in Christ. That's a real problem. It's a real danger. And Paul has to address it here. I also wrote this thing real quick. I thought of this just to help you a little bit. In our own language, maybe modernize the terminology a little bit to help you just even grasp further what exactly, how exactly they were rationalizing this. So listen to the fact that the real problem was idolatry, and they were excusing it by their liberties, it would have sounded something like this in a conversation with Paul. Hey, we know that these idols aren't real, that their food won't really help or hurt us, so what's the difference between going to Zeus's barbecue on Thursday and going to Outback Steakhouse on Saturday. What's the difference, right? There's no such thing as Zeus, so what's the difference? What harm can there be? After all, not only, think about this, not only is the meat freshly butchered at Zeus' temple on Thursday because of all the temple sacrifices going on, but it also happens to be cheaper because of all the surplus from the ceremonies on that day. I mean, you can understand that, right? And just throw in that mix, add to that then this argument of immense social pressure that would have accompanied the weekly invitations to dine at the pagan temple for work, for holidays, civic ceremonies, family celebrations. Just put yourself in their shoes. It's no wonder they found it difficult to say no to things sacrificed to idols. So maybe that helps you understand a little bit of the situation and the dilemma that Paul is having to address now. So what's the question for us tonight? Critical question for us tonight is how do we keep from being guilty of what they did? How do we keep that from happening? How do we keep from excusing some kind of lust or idolatry that we have, rationalizing it by claiming our liberty in Christ? Paul's answer in chapter 8, is twofold. This is kind of big picture where we're going. He says, when it comes to the practice of our Christian liberties, there are two biblical principles that rise above all others that should take precedence over our theological knowledge of any so-called conscience issue of freedom that we have. Do you remember what they are? Josué says, yes, by the nodding of his head. What are they? Love for God, love for others, our relationship with God, and our relationship with our neighbor. In other words, think about this. That's just the big picture, where Paul's going in all of chapter 8. That's what he sets forth for us. And it's no surprise, right? Simply knowing, think about this, Paul's saying this, simply knowing what God's Word says. about some particular issue is not the only factor to consider when deciding if you should participate in it. I mean, just think about it. Just sit there and be honest with yourself. How many of you, that's the only question you've asked before participating in the liberty? I'm guilty of that too. Nor is that question of, is it okay? Nor is that the most important factor, Paul says, though it is a necessary one to know what the Bible says, whether it prohibits or not. But if you get to the point where you're saying, well, I don't see where the Bible doesn't prohibit that, are you done? Are you done asking questions? Paul says, no. Rather, you need to ask at least two other questions. Big picture. What does this say? How does my love for God and my love for others and my love for my neighbor impact this decision? Those are more important and should ultimately, Paul is actually going to say, those questions should determine what you do with your liberty. To put it another way, love and not liberty is the highest law in the Christian life. That may be simple, that may be something you understand, but it's worth stating. Love, not liberty, is the highest law that you must live by. So tonight, we're going to first consider how our relationship with God should govern our use of Christian liberties from verses 1 through 6. Hopefully, we'll get through it. Next time, we'll consider how our relationship to others should govern the use of our Christian liberties from verses 7 through 13. That's kind of the big roadmap. But there's another outline coming, so hang on. Let's read verses 1-6 for now. We'll walk through it together. Paul writes, Now concerning things sacrificed to idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies. If anyone supposes that he knows anything, he is not yet known as he ought to know, but if anyone loves God, he is known by him. Therefore concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that there is no such thing as an idol in the world, and that there is no God but one. For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth, as indeed there are many gods and many lords, yet for us there is but one God, the Father from whom are all things, and we exist for Him. And one Lord Jesus Christ by whom are all things, and we exist through Him. Here, Paul begins to address this issue of idol sacrifices, something that would have been very familiar to the Corinthians, but perhaps not to us. So Charles Hodge explains what this would have looked like. And I think this is helpful information. I didn't give it to you last time, but he says that the victims or the animals offered in sacrifices were usually divided into three parts. One was consumed on the altar, another was given to the priest, and a third was retained by the offerer. The portion given to the priest, if not needed for himself, was sent to the market. The portion retained by the offerer was either eaten at his own table or within the precincts of the temple." Both things that Paul is going to actually, in these three chapters, address. The Christians, he says, therefore, if they bought meat in the market, or if invited to the houses of their heathen friends, or to the festivals in the temples, were liable to have these sacrifices placed before them." That's the dilemma, right? So, what was to be the Christian's relationship now to these idol sacrifices? Well, before Paul gets practical, which he will eventually do, instead of just drawing a black and white line in the sand concerning their outward behavior, he begins, notice, by addressing their heart. And I love that this is his approach as a shepherd, because think about this, so often in a discussion about liberties and practice, we tend to want to jump to the application at the end, right? We tend to want to say, hey, listen, just, Paul, just tell me what to do and what not to do. Tell me what I can do and tell me what I can't do and be as specific as possible. Just give me the list. Draw the boundaries for me. And we like that, right? Because it's easier, right? Maybe some of you thought through some of the conscience issues that we brought up last week, right? Drinking, tattoos, smoking, dancing, music, certain types of entertainment, Harry Potter, Halloween. I mean, like seriously, homeschool, public school, vaccines. And probably many of you are just saying, Kevin, just tell me what to do. Tell me what I can and can't do. And that's so much easier because why? We don't have to think when it's black and white. We don't like gray because we don't have to examine our motives and carefully consider our own hearts. And Paul says, you're not off the hook. Paul does not just blanket this issue. Here he begins by focusing first on the high-level principles and motives that should govern your decision about liberties and gray areas. And it should be no surprise to us that the first principles have to do with our relationship with God. Specifically, our love for God and our worship of God. Our love for God, verses one through three, and our worship or service to God, verses four through six. So here's your outline for tonight. According to those two divisions in this text, these first six verses, before we decide to participate in any liberty or activity, We should be asking these two questions in addition to, what does the Bible say? Once you've answered that, and listen, and once you've determined this falls in the category of a liberty, then you're not done yet until you ask these questions. Is this an act of love to God? Verses one through three. Can I do this as an act of my love and affection for God? Verses one through three. Number two, is this an act of worship or service to God? Can I legitimately do this with that as my motive? verses four through six. So these two questions really get at the heart of why we do what we do. And even when it comes to practices that aren't commanded or necessarily forbidden in the scriptures, these two questions still apply. Because glorifying Him is to be our motive, not just for clearly black and white moral decisions that we have to make, but also in the gray. And not just, listen, let's throw everything else out there, let's throw everything else in there that isn't controversial. How about, where should I move? What should I wear? What job should I take? What school should I go to? What major should I major in? These are gonna apply to any and every one of those decisions where it's not clearly spelled out specifically for you in the Bible. That's why this is such a helpful text. In fact, Paul will conclude these three chapters, I think that's with the often quoted verse, 1 Corinthians 10 31. Anybody know what that says? Maybe you've memorized it. I'll start it for you. Whether then you... I don't think sleep's in there, but yeah, it's implied. Yeah, whatever you do, including sleep, Lachlan, thank you. That's fine. Do all to the glory of God. Now, we may say that a lot, but what does that actually mean? What does that actually mean and how does it come to bear on your practice of liberties? First, notice verses one through three. To do something to the glory of God means that our motive must be love for Him. That much we know, that much this text tells us. It seems basic, but the first question we did ask before participating in any activity, and especially if it's controversial or questionable is, is this an act of love to God? Can I with any integrity say in my heart of hearts that I am about to do this out of my genuine love for the Lord? It's a good question. It's a great test. And it's no surprise to us that love is at the front of this. Paul's gonna go on, 1 Corinthians 16, verse 14, to say, let all that you do be done in love. This is the highest and greatest principle according to 1 Corinthians 13, verse 13, you know, the love chapter, right? But now faith, hope, love abide these three, but the greatest of these is love. It's no surprise. It was even outside of this letter in the teaching of our Lord. You remember when Jesus was being tested in Matthew 22 by the religious leaders, the lawyer asked him, hey, which is the great commandment of the law? And his answer was to quote Deuteronomy 6, you shall what? Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind. All throughout Scripture, we see that love is both the summary and fulfillment of the law. In other words, if we're truly governed by this grand motive, we can be sure that we will always do what is right. And the same is true here when it comes to gray area decisions and wisdom, principles, and practices. Love for God, not liberty, is the highest law that should govern our behavior. Notice precisely, though, how Paul makes this point here. He does so by giving us two reasons why love is more important than simply knowing your freedom. Here in verses one through three. So, love for God. He gives us two reasons why love for God is more important than just knowing your freedom. First, look at verse one. He says, it is the love of God, not merely your knowledge of God, that produces real spiritual maturity. Guys, do you realize that it is your love for God, not your knowledge of Him itself or alone, that actually produces real spiritual maturity. Notice verse 1, now concerning things sacrificed to idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies. Now, how many of you have heard that second part before? Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies. See, we need to clarify something here because before we just take this bumper sticker and imagine that Paul is against all kinds of theological education and learning, let's be careful and let the context inform what he says. To be clear, notice the contrast here is not between knowledge and ignorance. The contrast is not between knowledge and ignorance. Paul's not saying, in other words, knowledge bad, stupidity good. That's not what he's saying. In other words, there's no inherent virtue in being unlearned and having no theological acumen at all. That's not okay. That's not his point. So don't run away from hour-long sermons, okay? Don't run away from studying your Bible. Don't run away from studying theology. We would be wrong to argue from this verse that Paul thinks it's always better to know less theology, which is sadly how I've heard this verse used before. That's not his point. Instead, if we're going to be precise, notice what is the contrast? The contrast here is between what knowledge by itself produces and what love alone can produce. Does that make sense? That's the contrast. Knowledge alone by itself produces arrogance. But love alone produces real spiritual maturity, real growth. Notice, knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies. That's the contrast. More literally, maybe your translation is knowledge puffs up but love builds up. I like that parallelism. And it captures those two words because the verb to make arrogant pictures something that is swollen in pride. It's the language of overinflation and implies a lack of true substance despite the grand appearance of something, right? It's that idea. It looks really big, but there's really no substance to it. There's nothing behind it, ultimately. It just looks big. On the other hand, the verb to edify here is the language of real progress, solid construction, real growth. It pictures the legitimate painstaking work of building a building. It implies the strengthening and growing of a useful structure. That's the idea. This is the great difference, listen, between what only love can produce. and what knowledge alone can produce. Think about it. One is an illusion. The other is the real deal. And maybe we can capture it this way. Instruction without affection does not lead to real edification. Instruction without affection does not lead, Paul says, to real edification. It just leads to something fake. Knowledge without love can only lead to the appearance of godliness, Paul says. But love for the truth and love for God is the key to real substantive spiritual growth. Only love for God can produce a life that truly glorifies and honors God. I mean, think about that in your own life. I mean, how many of you have learned theology in the past and it hasn't made a difference in your life because you didn't love it? You didn't love it. Love is what takes that knowledge and works it out and works it into your heart that actually produces true godliness. substantive growth. It's not enough just to know something on paper and in theory. That's why Paul writes, if you're taking notes, 1 Timothy 1 verse 5, you don't have to turn there, just listen. He says there, the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. You know what that tells me? See, Paul's aim in all his teaching and all his instructing, his aim was not just to impart knowledge or transfer facts, right? That's not why we do Friday nights. It's not why I study all day to give you this, just to data dump on you guys. No, Paul says it was not just to increase learning in his ears for the sake of learning. His goal was to increase their love, to grow their love for God. That's the purpose of the truth. 2 Thessalonians 2 verse 10 tells us the difference between those who are ultimately saved and those who are otherwise deceived in the last days is not the knowledge of the truth, but rather the love of the truth. But let's be clear here, of course, We need to balance this out. Knowledge itself is not the problem, right? Indeed, knowledge is a gift from God. Knowledge is absolutely necessary. And in fact, back in chapter one, verses five and six, Paul, even in this very letter, thanked God that in everything you were enriched in Him, in all speech and all knowledge, so that you're not lacking in any gift. Paul thanked God for that grace, the grace of knowledge. And we would certainly affirm that knowledge, especially knowledge of God, is necessary and essential for the Christian life. But Paul's point here is that knowledge itself is not sufficient. It's not sufficient. See, in order to make sure that my practice of liberties, let's tie it back to that, is actually glorifying to God, And it's actually contributing to my sanctification, and my Christ-likeness, and my spiritual growth. That it's actually edifying me, not just puffing me up. It's not enough for me to simply know what God does or doesn't say about an issue. Because even the right doctrine in the wrong hands with the wrong heart can lead to the wrong practice. And that was precisely the Corinthian problem. In fact, the Corinthians were notorious for their lack of love. Paul will address this same problem again later in chapter 13, probably a much more familiar passage to you. And just like the exercise here, though, Just like the exercise of spiritual gifts in that context, it is equally true here when it comes to the exercise of your Christian liberties, that knowledge without love is like a noisy gong, a clanging cymbal, and prophets mean nothing. In other words, it fails to produce what it claims to produce. Without a genuine love for God, all of our claims to spiritual maturity because of how much we know is actually hollow pride. But unless love is clearly your motive, your practice of Christian liberty will always be in danger of immaturity. You may think that you're mature because you have knowledge that a weaker brother doesn't have. Have you ever thought that? Oh, yeah. I know it's not a sin to do this. They think it's sinful. Look at those guys. They're staying away. We are mature. They are not. Paul says, look, if love is absent, You're probably self-deceived about your level of spiritual maturity. You're probably puffed up, and when someone pokes you with a needle, you're not really mature. So notice that is precisely where his argument goes next, verses two and three. Not only is love more important than knowing your freedom because it produces real spiritual maturity. Notice second, because it's just a sub-point to verses one through three. because the love of God proves real spiritual intimacy. Not only does love produce real spiritual maturity, love is better than just theoretical knowledge because it is love, not theoretical knowledge, that really proves spiritual intimacy. Love is the fruit, not knowledge. Paul sets up another contrast now. Notice that is parallel to the first one. Look at verses two and three. If anyone supposes that he knows anything, he's not yet known as he ought to know. But if anyone loves God, he is known by him. As you hear in verse two, Paul essentially pulls back the facade of the one who's puffed up in his knowledge. In other words, you could ask the question, hey, why is the person who lacks love but has knowledge overinflated, right? Why is that? Here's the answer. Because actually what he thinks he knows, he doesn't really know as he should. After all, real knowledge of God is not simply intellectual, Paul says, it is also relational. By the way, the tense of these verbs are telling. It should say, literally, if anyone thinks that he has come to know. In other words, Paul is describing someone who thinks that he's arrived at final knowledge on a particular issue just because he's all the mental facts about it, right? This is someone who imagines, who supposes, who thinks Doesn't really know, but he thinks, he believes in himself that he knows and that he now has come to a place where he knows all that there is to know about that issue because he's exhausted the content about the subject. And Paul says of that person, you know what? He proves by his lack of love in the practice of his liberty that he doesn't actually know God as he ought to know Him. Think about it, beloved. You may think you know all that there is to know about a particular doctrine of Scripture. You may think that you've arrived in your understanding of some theological issue pertaining to your freedom in Christ, and that you may actually be true. I mean, think about that. That may actually also be true in the sense that you could list out all the pertinent passages on that topic. But until your theological and theoretical knowledge is accompanied by actual love and affection for this God, Paul says you don't really know Him as you ought to know Him. You know Him intellectually. You know Him theologically. But you don't know Him relationally. You don't know Him intimately. And we know this is Paul's point because of the contrast he gives in verse 3. Notice verse 3. But if anyone loves God, He is known by Him." This is a radical statement. Paul gets here and he clarifies for us, look, you see, real intimacy with God is not ultimately in how much we know of Him, but in whether He knows us. To be known by God is classic biblical language for intimacy and relationship with God. 2 Timothy 2 verse 19, the Lord knows those who are His. You wanna know if you belong to God? You wanna know if you have a close, deep, intimate relationship with Him? If He is yours and I am His, what should you be looking at? How much do you know? Not necessarily, but do you love him? Do you love him? It is our love for God that proves our real spiritual intimacy. You know, it makes more biblical sense to say, I know and I belong to him because I love him. That's the logic and the syntax of the gospel. That's what we see here. You see why Paul makes such a big deal out of our love for God now in these first three verses? Do you see why love for God is so much more important than simply knowing that you're technically free to do something? Because why? Number one, love for God produces real spiritual maturity, and two, love for God proves real spiritual intimacy. Your knowledge of your liberty and your carefree practice of it, take any issue and just test it on this, okay? It doesn't automatically prove your spiritual maturity and intimacy with God. It doesn't, just because you think you're free to do it and you do. That doesn't prove, that alone and the fact that you know you're free to do it, doesn't prove that you're mature and that you're walking closely with Christ. It could be that in your pride and in your arrogance, like the Corinthians, you just think you're mature and you think you're close to God, when in fact, you are not. You're just justifying some lust that you have, some selfish desire. Because you like the social setting, because you like the culture that comes with it, because you just like it. So before you participate in any kind of Christian liberty, make sure that you ask yourself, is this an act of love to God? Is what I'm about to do really, can I say with integrity, this is motivated by a genuine love for Christ, or is it more of a love for self? How can I know that? You say, well, that's a really big, broad, searching question about my motives. How do I discern that? Let me help you further. How do you examine your motive then? How do I know that what I'm doing is out of love for God and not love for myself? Well, one way to know, think about this passage, is by looking at the fruit of your life, when you participate in it, and then working backwards to the root. So what do I mean by that? If love produces, think about this, do the logic with me, if love produces real spiritual maturity and proves real spiritual intimacy, then you could ask yourself if your practice of Christian liberties is doing both of those things. Or if your liberties have the tendency to make you proud and self-satisfied and condescend to other people. In other words, here are a couple questions to get at that. Does the use of my liberty build me up? There's maturity. and deepen my relationship with God, there's intimacy. Or do I flaunt my Christian liberty in an effort to prove to others how mature and strong I think I am? Which is it? How do you talk about your liberties with others? What's important to you when you speak of your liberties? What are your priorities? Those may help you discern whether or not you're motivated by love for God or love for self in the practice of your Christian liberties. But very quickly, there's a second related question. Not just, is this an act of love to God? But is this, this will be much quicker, even though it's longer. Is this an act of worship and service to God? That's an equally legitimate question. Verses four through six. In other words, does it demonstrate that my allegiance is to the one true God alone? Look at verses 4-6, "...therefore concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that there is no such thing as an idol in the world, and that there is no God but one." For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth, as indeed there are many gods and many lords, yet for us there is but one God, the Father from whom are all things, and we exist for Him. And one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him. You see, having laid down for us this high principle of love, here in verse 4, Paul reintroduces to us the specific issue he's been applying all of this to, and this time with a little bit more specificity, right? Concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols. And notice also in this verse, Paul now gives us the content of this knowledge that the Corinthians were claiming. In other words, he spells out for us what they were boasting about knowing that allowed them to participate in this freedom. This is the knowledge that they possessed that allowed them to participate in eating the sacrificed idols. It comes to us in two succinct statements in verse four, notice, that there's no such thing as an idol in the world, and that there's no God but one. Are those true statements? Yes. In other words, some of those who were arrogantly flaunting their liberties in Corinth had pretty good theology. And they championed the fact that idols weren't real and only God was real, both of which are very true and biblical statements. And we would say amen and amen. But the problem was with what they concluded from those true statements. It was how they were using that theology to then justify their idolatry. You see, their conclusion was that, hey, because idols aren't real, think about this, and only God was real, then any participation in the cultic ceremonies of idol worship, such as eating idol sacrifices in the pagan temple, perfectly harmless. After all, those deities, they're not real deities. They don't exist, so as long as I have that knowledge, my participation is not wrong. I'm just there for the filet. But notice what Paul's response is to that conclusion. Look at verses 5 and 6, and we'll end here. He says, for even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth, as indeed there are many gods and many lords, yet for us there is but one God. He agrees with them, the Father from whom are all things. But here's his conclusion, and we exist for him. We live for him. And one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him." Do you see what Paul's doing here? He doesn't refute the content of their knowledge because it's biblical, but he does draw some very different practical conclusions from it than they did. He says, here's the conclusion. Instead of justifying what you can get away with, how about this? Think about the reality that there is only one God, and let that make everything that you do be done for Him. We exist for Him. We exist through Him. You see, Paul, unlike the Corinthians, For Paul, the fact that God is the one and only true and living God did not therefore mean he could participate in idol worship because idols weren't real. That's not his reasoning. That's not where he goes. In fact, did you notice verse 5? In a sense, Paul says, look, even if they were real, Even if there are many gods, even if there are many lords, like many people claim, it wouldn't change anything. The fact that God is still the one true God for us means that everything we do should be done in service to and in worship of Him and Him alone. See, the doctrine of the exclusivity of God for Paul meant that we should worship him alone with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength in every area of our life, so that not even in the gray areas can we say that we're exempt from asking the question, can I do this as an act of worship unto Christ? That should cover every decision. not just the ones that are obvious, not just the ones that He says yes, He says no. After all, not only do we exist for Him, we also exist through Him. Think about this. In other words, everything we might do in this life as Christians, we now do for God the Father through our Savior Jesus Christ. You ever thought about that? Absolutely everything. This is the theology of Galatians 2.20. I've been crucified with Christ. It's no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself up for me. There is no compartmentalization. So next time, guys, You're thinking through your own participation in a controversial issue of Christian liberty. Don't just ask the question, is this wrong? Why can't I do it? Rather, ask yourself this, can I do this as an act of worship for God through Christ? Will this action show others that I worship God and Him alone? You see, that would have clarified the issue for them big time. is serving Him exclusively my motive for doing fill in the blank. You see, if you're only searching scripture to rule out certain behaviors, you're missing the point, aren't you? That's not why we have, that's not why we've been saved. Just so that we could avoid certain things that are clearly taboo. That's not why we're saved. That's not why God is God. God is God because we must live for Him. We were made for more than avoiding obvious sins. We were made to live for His glory, which means that everything we do in life must fall under this banner, from the significant, guys, to the mundane, from the black and white to the gray. Everything should be offered up to Him as an act of service and worship because He alone is God. So listen, before you decide to participate in any liberty or activity, you should be asking these two questions. Is this an act of love to God? Verses one through three. Is this an act of service and worship to God? Verses four through six. Your relationship to God matters on those issues. Just because he hasn't said anything clearly about it, doesn't mean it doesn't matter, right? Doesn't mean these things don't still apply You need to consider that. Will this glorify Christ? What bearing does this have on my relationship to the one I have said I love and the one I have said that I worship? Next time we'll see in the second half flowing right out of that is, The outworking of that then is, do you love your neighbor? Do you love your neighbor? But we'll get to that next time. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for this text. It's so challenging to us at the highest level. Father, we thank you for the clarity, of Scripture. We thank you that you give us these principles that probe us in every way, that there aren't just pat, sort of generalized blanket statements that We are forced, Lord, to examine our hearts and to ask the hard questions. Lord, we pray that indeed we would be those who are mature and who do walk closely with you, who love you and long to serve you in every way with all that we have, that we would ask the right questions. that we would long to live for your glory, even in those things that are gray. Lord, help us to that end, we pray, for your glory's sake, in Jesus' name, amen.