Principles of Christian Freedom

Yes, all things are lawful. But There are some limitations. All things are not expedient, that means beneficial. All things do not edify, that means build up.

So, what you want to find out is this: it's lawful, but is it beneficial and does it build up? Welcome to Grace to You with the Bible teaching of John MacArthur. I'm your host, Phil Johnson. It's safe to say that Christian life is something of a paradox. Consider this.

Only those who lose their lives will ever actually find eternal life. In a similar way, it's slavery to Jesus Christ that paves the road to true Christian freedom. But in day-to-day practice, what kinds of things are you free to do or free not to do in Christ?

Well, today on Grace to You, we're going to continue John MacArthur's theme of knowing God's will by considering the issue of Christian freedom. John's lesson today is titled Principles of Christian Freedom. And with the lesson now, here's John. In 1 Corinthians 10, verses 23 through 11, verse 1, we have Paul's final statement regarding Christian liberty.

Now, to begin with, by way of an introduction, this section contains one of the most important and essential statements in the entire Bible. In fact, it is a statement that is vital because it encompasses everything else in all that the scripture says and brings it down to one statement, and it's in verse 31. It says at the middle of verse 31, Whatever you do. Do all to the glory of God.

Now that is the bottom line on the Christian life. That is basically the meaning of life. For anyone. We are here for one primary Reason, and that is to glorify God. Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

You can't make a more general statement than whatever you do. Do it all to the glory of God. The command is very simple.

Now, let's put it in its context and take a look at the passage. One of the most urgent areas in which we must glorify God is in the use of Christian freedom. This is one of the most urgent areas. We must glorify God in the use of our Christian freedom. Our Christian liberty.

And by Christian freedom, I don't mean the right to vote. I mean, the liberty that you have in Christ to do things in the area the Bible doesn't talk about. Christian Liberty.

Now, how are we going to glorify God in the use of our liberty? How are we going to say, well, look, the Bible doesn't forbid this or this, whether it's eating meat offered to idols, drinking wine, going to this entertainment, to that entertainment, shopping on Sunday, reading the funnies on Sunday morning, you know, to whatever it might be that is in your particular cultural heritage, is something that may be approved or disapproved, whatever that gray area is for you, how do you apply this principle so that you can do everything that you do to the glory of God? I want to do that. In the gray area. How do I do it?

You got to know three things. Number one, the principles. Number two, the purpose. Number three, the pattern. That's what I want to show you from these verses.

These three things will enable you. To glorify God in the use of your Christian freedom. Let's look at the principles first. The principles, the purpose, and the pattern. Principles number one.

We're going to give you four. And that's what Paul does. Four overlapping principles. And these four principles are given in order for us to use our liberty so that it glorifies God. Principle number one.

Edification over gratification. Look at verse 23. Principle number one. And Paul is summarizing everything he's been saying. All things are lawful for me.

All things are not expedient. All things are lawful for me, but all things There's the word edify not.

Now notice twice it says all things are lawful. Back in chapter 6, twice in verse 12, it said, All things are lawful. This was a slogan the Corinthians were using. Apparently, when Paul had been there at one time, he had used that phrase that all things are lawful, and they had made it a slogan.

So, whenever they wanted to go out and do anything, they said, all things are lawful, all things are lawful.

Somebody said, You shouldn't do that, all things are lawful. See, it became a little slogan. You know, the Bible doesn't say we can't do it. Paul said, all things are lawful, and this was their little deal. See, everywhere they went, this was their slogan.

And the basis upon which they did anything, their general principle for all behavior was flashing the little slogan, all things are lawful. And it probably came from Paul because it is true. In the gray area, it's not talking about evil, it's talking about the non-moral, the amoral. In that area, yes, all things are lawful. But There are some limitations.

All things are not expedient, that means beneficial. All things do not edify, that means build up.

So, what you want to find out is this: it's lawful, but is it beneficial and does it build up? You don't want to say, Well, I want to do it because it's neutral. You say, I want to do it because it's positive. And if you've got a choice between a neutral and a positive, you want to do a positive. And if all you've got in your life is choices between neutral and neutral, you're not doing anything.

There's not enough time to do that, just neutral things.

So how do you say, how do you deal with it? Is it expedient? That means beneficial. Is it going to build up? Is it beneficial?

Will it build up? That's the key. That's edification over gratification. You're not trying to gratify yourself. You're not trying to satisfy your own ideas.

You're not trying to do what pleases you. You're trying to do what builds you up and builds anybody else up who will be involved.

Now, edification is a very vital word. It comes from the Greek word oika demea, which literally means to build a house. What is going to build up? Figuratively, metaphorically, it means Spiritual growth. This is the issue.

Everything that I do, everything that you do as a Christian is to be to the end that we are built up, that we grow in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, as Peter puts it in 2 Peter 3:18.

Now the New Testament just, it's got gobs of information about building up people. But there are four basic tools that build us up. Number one, the word. Read the Bible. Paul says to the Ephesian elders in Acts 20, verse 32: I commend you to the word of his grace, which is able to what?

Build you up. The word will build you up. Secondly, preaching and teaching. Coming to hear the preaching of the Word of God will build you up. 1 Corinthians 14, 3, Paul said of the Corinthian assembly, instead of speaking in tongues all the time, what you ought to be doing is prophesying or preaching, because preaching has the end of exhortation, consolation, and edification.

It'll build you up. The reading of the Bible, the study of the Bible will build you up. Preaching will build you up, love will build you up. 1 Corinthians 8.1. Knowledge puffs up, love.

Builds up. And a fourth thing that builds you up is obedience, obedient service. Ephesians 4:12 says, When the saints do the work of the ministry, the body of Christ is what? Filled up.

So what edifies? Study the word? The hearing of the word? Love. Obedience, service.

These things build you up.

Now, beloved, you want to do what builds you up.

So you want to study the Bible, you want to go hear the Bible proclaimed, you want to love, and you want to obey. And you'll be build up.

Now, this is really a very vital thing in our lives. In 1 Corinthians 14, we'll get into this in a week or two. into chapters 12 to 14, which is a unit. No, it'll be about a month, I guess. But anyway.

Realistically, right? Six months? No. 1 Corinthians 14:26, the end of the verse. The end of the verse says, let.

All things be done unto edifying. Let everything you do have as a end result that it builds you up. All things be done unto edifying. Let it build you up. 2 Corinthians 12.19.

Same thing. The end of the verse. But we do all things, dearly beloved, for your edifying. We do all things to build you up. All things to edify you.

Ephesians chapter 4. Verse 29. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good. As it fits the need of edifying. Everything you say, let it build up.

1 Thessalonians chapter 5, verse 11. Edify one another. Build each other up. Everything you do, build up. See?

There you have it. The guide for our life then is to do what builds us up. It is edification over gratification that determines what I do with Christian liberty.

So I asked myself this question: do I have the right to do that? Yes. Will it build me up and will it build up the people around me? If I answer yes to both of those, I do it. If I answer no, I don't do it.

Practical guideline. Principle number two, 1 Corinthians chapter 10, verse 24. First one is edification over gratification. The second one gets even more specific: others over self.

Now you're saying, well, let's see. Is it going to build me up? Uh-huh. Yes, but it's not going to build him up because he doesn't have that liberty. He's a weaker brother.

It'll offend him. All right, then I don't do it. Because when it comes to choosing between what builds me up and what builds him up, I do what builds him up. Others overself. Verse 24.

Let no man seek what? his own, but every man What's the next word? An others. And rather than wealth there, I'd almost think you could use the word edification. Don't seek your own, but another's edification.

When it comes down to a choice, I've got to choose. I could do this, and it's not going to offend me. It's going to be a good thing. It'll build me up, but it's going to offend him that I don't do it. That's the second principle.

And this is really the principle of love. I'm going to do what is spiritually beneficial for both of us if I can, but if I have to make a decision, I'll do what's most beneficial to him and sacrifice my liberty. And in the long run, that'll be most beneficial to me, won't it? Because in loving him I have built myself up because love, what? Builds up.

I may say, well, I could do that, and boy, that'd build me up. That'd help me to enjoy my liberty. Be good. but it'll offend him. Then don't do it.

Can't descend to him. Love him, and love will build you up more than if you exercise your liberty and tear him down. Because that becomes a sin. All right, every Christian then in his liberty has to be guided by a spiritual principle, and that is love your neighbor as yourself. You know, it's hard, I think, for us to relate to this because selfishness is such a dominant thing.

What have you ever done? Or what have you ever not done? Because of someone else. What are you giving up for somebody else so they don't stumble?

Well see ya. Others over self. Say, well, it's my liberty to do what I want, so don't push me into a corner. You have to crucify self and self-desire somewhere, or you're never going to know what it is to be. to really be fulfilled as a Christian.

It's a disaster to the church anyway and to the fellowship of believers, and everybody exercises their liberty and doesn't care about anybody else. That's what happened in Philippi, and everybody was going at it. And Paul says, You better cool it. You better get like-minded, and everybody better start thinking about somebody else. Look not every man on his own things, but what?

Philippians 2.4 on the things of others. Let everything be done in lowliness and meekness, each esteeming others what? better than themselves. And that's what he's saying.

So, principle number one: edification over gratification, whatever's going to build me up and build him up, that's what I'm going to do. But if it comes down to building me up or him, I'm going to do what builds him up. If it means sacrificing something on my part, and because I've loved him and done that, that'll build me up anyway. Principle number three. Liberty over legalism.

And here's the balance. Here's what creates the tension at this point. We could all get in a straitjacket pretty soon because there's somebody who's against everything. You know, if you look long enough, you'll find somebody who won't you do anything. You just go around like this all the time.

Am I all right? Am I all right? Am I right? Is that offending you or it's not offending you?

Okay. How's my tie? Is it no? I mean, you could get to the place where, you know, there's somebody who's.

sort of got their little quirk on everything.

Now how do you find your balance?

Well, one way is you don't run around asking everybody. I would like you to turn in a list of things to me that offend you. No, no, said Just cool it on that and enjoy. See, don't make, don't be too fussy about this deal. Liberty over legalism.

Verse twenty-five.

Now here's how he illustrates it. Whatever is sold in the market, eat. Asking no question for conscience's sake. You go to the market, don't say, say, Mr. Butcher.

The word shambles in the Old King James, it simply is the Greek word for butcher shop. Makalan, market, butcher shop. When you go there, don't say, Sir, I would so like to eat this piece of meat. Where did it come from?

Well, I don't know. I bought it off a guy who was. Oh, where was that guy? Have you seen that guy around? I must check with him.

And you're going to trace this thing back and find out that long before the cow was even killed, somebody put a hand on it and dedicated it to Zeus. Oh, I can't eat it. Here's your meatback. He says, ridiculous. If you're going to buy it there, just keep your mouth shut.

Don't ask any silly questions. Go home and eat. Enjoy. Don't be over scrupulous. Don't get picky.

There's no sense in making a mountain out of a molehill. Verse 26, the earth is the Lord's anyway, and the fullness thereof He made them all, so eat them and enjoy them. If it isn't an issue, for goodness sakes, don't make it an issue.

Now, Paul has already condemned going to an idol feast and getting into the celebration at the feast and the festival because that's communing with demons. Remember last week? But when you're going to a marketplace and it's detached from the idol feast, it ceases to have any religious significance at all. He says, buy it and eat it and don't worry about it. There's no sense in putting burdens on your conscience.

Don't ask needless questions. Enjoy your liberty. Don't give it up. And any quote: Psalm 24:1: The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, anyway. Don't be too fussy.

Don't create difficulties. Everything is the Lord. He made everything to be received with thanksgiving, right? 1 Timothy 4, 4, and 5. Just give thanks and eat it.

But you might have a different situation, verse 27. If any of them that believe not, here's an unbeliever, some pagans, they bid you. They bid you and actually they bid you over to their house for dinner. You have a bunch of unbelievers invite you to dinner. And you'd be disposed to go, and you say, I want to go.

I like to go over to that's my family, or that's my old acquaintances before I was saved. I want to go. Whatever is set before you, eat. Asking no question for conscience's sake. The word is a legal term, meaning don't make an investigation.

You sit down, you just eat it. You don't say, now about this food here, I'd like to know where you got it. Just eat it. You have freedom, folk. Live it up.

Don't ask stupid questions that are going to only cause your conscience problems. Nothing wrong, incidentally, from this verse, there's nothing wrong with going to dinner with a sinner. You can go to a pagan's for dinner, and it's a great idea. The only thing the Bible forbids is in 1 Corinthians 5, 9 to 11, it says you can eat with sinners, just don't eat with Christian sinners. Those that are living in sin as Christians need to be cut off from the fellowship.

Eat with sinners, not Christian sinners. And so go over and enjoy it. For liberty, Christ has made us free, Galatians 5. Stand fast in your liberty. Don't give up your liberty.

Don't let anybody take your liberty. Paul says in Galatians 2:4, they tried to spy out our liberty. We wouldn't let them. Enjoy your liberty. Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is what?

Liberty. Enjoy it. Not legalism. Don't concentrate on it. You go over to somebody's house and they serve you a nice meal and you don't say to them, say, Was this cooked in wine?

Eat it. Just eat it. You want to, at all costs, avoid legalism. See, that's the point. Don't be picky.

Are you don't want to offend the weaker brother. But at the same time, you certainly don't want to make sure that all weaker brothers stay weak their whole lifetime because we all condescend to their level. See, that's the tension here. You say, well, how do you help the guy? You restrict your liberty, and then you get alongside of him, tell him why you restricted your liberty, and help him to grow up so that he can enjoy his liberty.

And then when he gets to enjoy his, you'll enjoy yours too.

So, when you condescend to that level, when you go down to that brother's level and you go down to help the weaker brother, make sure that you build up the weaker brother so together you can enjoy your liberty and he'll begin to realize everything Christ meant him to be. You don't want to make sure the legalists all stay legalistic because we all continually bow to them. We want to get down there, but we want to teach them why we're doing it, and we want to help them with their liberty so they'll grow out of that legalism. We limit our liberty not to offend, but we certainly should teach the weaker. brother the truths of freedom so he'll grow out of his legalism.

You see, it's very comfortable to be a legalist because you don't have to do anything internally. It's all in a box for you. You have a little list: I don't, I do, I don't, I do, I don't, I do.

Sometimes I do, I don't, I do. You've got all your little lists there, and that's a lot easier than living by the Holy Spirit's power because that you have to yield to in an internal way.

So, you want to take somebody out of the little box of rules, and you want to allow them to have the freedom to operate in the freedom that God has given them. All right. All right, three principles: edification over gratification, others over self, and liberty over legalism. And there's one other principle. Condescension over condemnation.

Condescension over condemnation. Let's go back to this dinner at the pagan house. Verse twenty-eight. You've got another Christian friend there. He's at the dinner too at the pagan house.

And he says to you, This is offered in sacrifice to idols.

So you're sitting there ready to get dig into this nice piece of steak, and he's saying, Hapes. That's offered to idols meet. You're saying What'd you have to bring that up for? I'm hungry. I'm not a one who offend my host, right?

Does this really bothers you? I don't I don't believe we can eat meat offered to idols. What do you do? Verse 28. It says what to do.

Don't eat it. For his sake that showed it, and conscience's sake. Whose conscience? Not yours. Jump to verse 29.

Conscience, I say, not yours, but his. If it bothers his conscience, don't eat it. You say ah. What's my host gonna think? Here I'm sitting, I'm sorry, it's lovely.

I d I I can eat. You defend the host. You're right. And here's the th here's another principle. If you have to choose between offending a Christian and offending a non-Christian, offend a non-Christian.

So you're kidding me? Nope, that's what it says. If you have to choose between offending a Christian and offending a non-Christian, offend a non-Christian.

You say, Hey, w we're trying to win him. The way to win them is for them to see the validity and the honesty and the purity of your Christianity, right? And if you're sitting at the table fighting each other, He's not going to Get a Christian message no matter what you eat. You see? The way to win people, Jesus said, is to love each other.

Isn't that right? You love each other, and the world's going to know we're his disciples. If you have to choose between offending a Christian and offending a non-Christian, offend a A non-Christian. And make sure you maintain the unity of the love of the body of Jesus Christ because that's the greatest testimony that we have in the world. See, that's his point.

So Condescension rather than condemnation. Don't do something that's going to make your Christian brother condemn you. Verse 29: Why is my liberty judged by another man's conscience? In other words, I certainly don't want to say, well, I'm going to do this and have him condemn me for it. I don't want to get in a position where my liberty, my act of liberty, is going to be condemned by another man's conscience.

The word judge means condemned. Don't let him condemn you. Injure your host, if you will. And you know what your host will see? he will see an act of love.

And he will say, if that man loves that. Other brother. Enough to make that sacrifice. There must be something to that. Verse 30 adds a further point.

If I by grace be a partaker, in other words, if If I recognize God has given me this food. Why would I be evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks?

Now, let me tell you what that means. It would be pretty ridiculous. To say thank you, Lord, for the gracious gift of this food. And then go ahead and eat it while your brother was condemning you. That's inconsistent.

Don't thank God. and go out and do something that's going to make some other Christian condemn you for doing it. Lord, thank you for the marvelous liberty that you've given me. Lord, bless this meal and eat up and drink up. And here's a Christian brother condemning you, condemning you.

That's ridiculous. You can't thank God for something that another Christian brother is going to stumble over.

So condescension over condemnation. If you have to choose between a Christian and a non-Christian, offend a non-Christian at that point in order that your love might be made manifest to the world. And I don't mean that you should just run out and offend non-Christians just at will. Just in case you might think that. Verse 32 says, Give no offense, neither to the Jews, nor to the Greeks, nor to the church of God.

The basic rule, beloved, don't offend what? Anybody? But if you have to choose, offend yourself before you offend a weaker brother. And if you have to choose, offend an unbeliever before you offend a weaker brother. But if you can, don't offend anybody.

Condescension over condemnation. Don't do anything, it's going to cause somebody else to condemn you.

Now, there are the principles, beloved. Let's go to point two, the purpose. Why does he give us the principles? Why does he tell us edification over gratification, others over self, liberty over legalism, condescension over condemnation? Verse 31.

Therefore, here's why.

So that whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, it will be done all what? The glory of God. God is glorified when you do it with these principles in mind. You want to glorify God? Do you think it's important to glorify God or to be a reproach to God?

They glorify him. You want to glorify him? Follow the principles. What is the purpose? Bang, verse 31: that God will be glorified.

Lastly. The pattern. It's fine to have the principles. Fine to have the purpose. But Paul closes with a very typical, practical word.

He says, let me give you a model to follow. First Mm-hmm. Give no offense, neither to the Jews, nor to the Greeks, nor to the Church of God. And there you have the three divisions, incidentally, of humanity. Israel the Gentiles and the Church.

Don't offend any of you. And here comes the pattern. Even as. What's the next word? Ah.

Paul says, I'm the model. I'm the pattern. Even as I please all men. In all things, not seeking my own profit, but but the profit of many that they may be what? Saved.

And here it sums it up. Don't offend the unbeliever. The first idea was don't offend yourself. Do what builds you up. Second, don't offend the weaker brother.

If you have to offend an unbeliever, to keep from offending A weaker brother than offended unbeliever. But finally, Paul says, If you can avoid it, don't ever even offend an unbeliever. Do whatever you have to do that they may be saved. And here is the sum of it: verse 1. Be ye followers of me.

Do it like I did it, because I'm doing it like. Christ did it. Follow me, I'm following Christ. Example is vital. Folks?

No occasion. Give no offense, no occasion to sin, no cause for stumbling. Don't do anything that offends anybody, Jew, Greek, or the church. No action of ours should prevent a Jew from coming to Christ. No action of ours should prevent a Gentile from coming to Christ.

No action of ours should prevent a Christian from growing to maturity and being built up. And no action of ours should prevent us from being built up.

So Paul closes with a word of example. Do what I do. I'm doing what Jesus did. Let's pray. Thank you, our Father, for This word Thank you for The truth that we find in these pages.

Truth that is so very, very practical, and we pray that you would teach us by your Holy Spirit to apply it. That we might with everything that we do Bring glory to your name. and never a reproach. Help us to avoid sin.

so that we can avoid your chastening.

so that your name would not be polluted. In the eyes of the world. Father, I pray. This prayer, glorify your name, Father. in us.

In Jesus' name. Amen. You're listening to Grace to You, the Bible teaching ministry of John MacArthur. Today's lesson titled Principles of Christian Freedom showed you what it takes to experience the true freedom in Christ that is laid out in Scripture. Of course, John MacArthur's goal in every message he preached was to help people just like you benefit from the pure teaching of God's Word.

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Now for the entire Grace DU staff. I'm Phil Johnson. Keep in mind, Grace to U television airs this Sunday on DirecTV Channel 378. Join us next week for John MacArthur's study called The Pillars of Christian Character. It's a compelling look at key attitudes that you need to cultivate to thrive in your Christian life.

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