1 Now about food which has been dedicated to false gods. We are well aware that all of us have knowledge; but while knowledge puffs up, love is what builds up.
2 Someone may think that he has full knowledge of something and yet not know it as well as he should;
3 but someone who loves God is known by God.
4 On the subject of eating foods dedicated to false gods, we are well aware that none of the false gods exists in reality and that there is no God other than the One.
5 Though there are so-called gods, in the heavens or on earth -- and there are plenty of gods and plenty of lords-
6 yet for us there is only one God, the Father from whom all things come and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things come and through whom we exist.
7 However, not everybody has this knowledge. There are some in whose consciences false gods still play such a part that they take the food as though it had been dedicated to a god; then their conscience, being vulnerable, is defiled,
8 But of course food cannot make us acceptable to God; we lose nothing by not eating it, we gain nothing by eating it.
9 Only be careful that this freedom of yours does not in any way turn into an obstacle to trip those who are vulnerable.
10 Suppose someone sees you, who have the knowledge, sitting eating in the temple of some false god, do you not think that his conscience, vulnerable as it is, may be encouraged to eat foods dedicated to false gods?
11 And then it would be through your knowledge that this brother for whom Christ died, vulnerable as he is, has been lost.
12 So, sinning against your brothers and wounding their vulnerable consciences, you would be sinning against Christ.
13 That is why, if food can be the cause of a brother's downfall, I will never eat meat any more, rather than cause my brother's downfall.
Versículos relacionados com 1 Corinthians, 8:
Chapter 8 of 1 Corinthians deals with the issue of eating foods offered to idols, something that was common in the culture of the time. Paul advises the Corinthians to be careful not to do something that can scandalize the weaker brothers in the faith, even though they themselves know that there is no problem eating such foods. It is important to remember that Paul's focus is not the issue of diet itself, but the importance of considering brothers' welfare in faith. Below, five verses related to the topics covered in this chapter:
Romans 14:13: "So let us fail to judge one another. Instead, let us make the purpose of not stumbling or obstacle on our brother's path." In this verse, Paul talks about the importance of not judging the other brothers and making the purpose of not putting obstacles in their path, which relates directly to the council given in 1 Corinthians 8.
1 Corinthians 10:23: "All things are lawful, but not all are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all build." Here Paul reinforces that not everything that is lawful is beneficial for building the Christian community, which is a message similar to what he says in 1 Corinthians 8.
Acts 15:29: "Aplify of foods sacrificed to idols, blood, the flesh of suffocated animals, and illicit sex. In this verse, we see the advice given by the apostles about abstaining from foods offered to idols, a matter similar to that discussed in 1 Corinthians 8.
Galatians 5:13: "For you, brothers, have been called to freedom. But you do not use freedom as an excuse to live according to the flesh; before, serve each other with love." Here Paul talks about the freedom we have in Christ, but also warns us not to use it as an excuse for acting selfishly or to scandalize other brothers, a message similar to that given in 1 Corinthians 8.
1 Thessalonians 5:22: "Go away from every form of evil." Although this verse does not speak specifically about the theme of eating foods offered to idols, it brings an important message that we move away from all that can be harmful to our faith and building the Christian community.
Fejezetek: