1 Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord?
2 Even if to others I am not an apostle, to you at any rate I am, for you are the seal of my apostolate in the Lord.
3 To those who want to interrogate me, this is my answer.
4 Have we not every right to eat and drink?
5 And every right to be accompanied by a Christian wife, like the other apostles, like the brothers of the Lord, and like Cephas?
6 Are Barnabas and I the only ones who have no right to stop working?
7 What soldier would ever serve in the army at his own expense? And who is there who would plant a vineyard and never eat the fruit from it; or would keep a flock and not feed on the milk from his flock?
8 Do not think that this is merely worldly wisdom. Does not the Law say exactly the same? It is written in the Law of Moses:
9 You must not muzzle an ox when it is treading out the corn. Is it about oxen that God is concerned here,
10 or is it not said entirely for our sake? Clearly it was written for our sake, because it is right that whoever ploughs should plough with the expectation of having his share, and whoever threshes should thresh with the expectation of having his share.
11 If we have sown the seed of spiritual things in you, is it too much to ask that we should receive from you a crop of material things?
12 Others have been given such rights over you and do we not deserve more? In fact, we have never exercised this right; on the contrary, we have put up with anything rather than obstruct the gospel of Christ in any way.
13 Do you not realise that the ministers in the Temple get their food from the Temple, and those who serve at the altar can claim their share from the altar?
14 In the same way, the Lord gave the instruction that those who preach the gospel should get their living from the gospel.
15 However, I have never availed myself of any rights of this kind; and I have not written this to secure such treatment for myself; I would rather die than that . . . No one shall take from me this ground of boasting.
16 In fact, preaching the gospel gives me nothing to boast of, for I am under compulsion and I should be in trouble if I failed to do it.
17 If I did it on my own initiative I would deserve a reward; but if I do it under compulsion I am simply accepting a task entrusted to me.
18 What reward do I have, then? That in my preaching I offer the gospel free of charge to avoid using the rights which the gospel allows me.
19 So though I was not a slave to any human being, I put myself in slavery to all people, to win as many as I could.
20 To the Jews I made myself as a Jew, to win the Jews; to those under the Law as one under the Law (though I am not), in order to win those under the Law;
21 to those outside the Law as one outside the Law, though I am not outside the Law but under Christ's law, to win those outside the Law.
22 To the weak, I made myself weak, to win the weak. I accommodated myself to people in all kinds of different situations, so that by all possible means I might bring some to salvation.
23 All this I do for the sake of the gospel, that I may share its benefits with others.
24 Do you not realise that, though all the runners in the stadium take part in the race, only one of them gets the prize? Run like that -- to win.
25 Every athlete concentrates completely on training, and this is to win a wreath that will wither, whereas ours will never wither.
26 So that is how I run, not without a clear goal; and how I box, not wasting blows on air.
27 I punish my body and bring it under control, to avoid any risk that, having acted as herald for others, I myself may be disqualified.
Versículos relacionados com 1 Corinthians, 9:
Chapter 9 of 1 Corinthians addresses the question of Paul's apostolic law and how he chooses not to use his rights so as not to be an obstacle to the gospel. He discusses the role of an apostle and what it means to be a servant of Christ.
Matthew 10:10-11: "Do not take gold, no silver, nor cover in their belts; they do not take any travel bag, nor extra tunic, nor sandals, nor staff; for the worker is worthy of his livelihood." In this verse, Jesus is instructing his disciples before sending them on a mission and tells them to take nothing to them. This is related to the theme of Chapter 9, where Paul talks about how he chose not to use his rights as an apostle.
Philippians 4:17: "It is not that I am looking for offers, but I am seeking fruit that increases your credit." In this verse, Paul talks about how he is not looking for financial offerings, but a fruit that increases church credit. This shows how he is not interested in using his position to get personal financial benefits, but to help the church.
2 Corinthians 11:7-9: "Or did I eat any sin by lowering me so that you were high? Nothing I will be heavy. In fact, both in me and in Tito, we have not proceeded in any way sinful about you. " In this verse, Paul is talking about how he didn't charge anything from the Corinthians, unlike other preachers who were charging for his services. This shows how he chose not to use his right as an apostle to be paid for his work.
1 Peter 5:2-3: "Shepherd the flock of God who is under your care, not out of obligation, but because you want to serve God; not out of greed, but goodwill; not as dominators of those who were to them entrusted, but as examples for the flock. " In this verse, Peter is talking about how shepherds should shepherd the flock of God. This is related to the theme of Chapter 9, where Paul is talking about how he chose not to use his apostolic rights to be an example for the church.
Philippians 2:16: "Firmly retaining the word of life, that I may be proud of the day of Christ that I have not ran or struggled in vain." This verse talks about the importance of maintaining God's Word and preaching it faithfully, without discouraging or giving up. This relates to the theme addressed in 1 Corinthians 9 on spiritual race and the need for perseverance and self -control.
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