“But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.”

So idols do not exist, because there is one and only one God. Therefore, if a Christian happens to buy food in the marketplace that has been used in idol worship, he or she is at liberty to do so without being unfaithful to God. Its prior association with idolatry does not change the meat in any way. Paul goes so far as giving an extreme example of a Christian “dining in an idol’s temple.”

We might wonder why on earth a Christian would think it was a good thing to eat in an idol’s temple. Paul is using an extreme situation to make a point. Yet, if we understand what it means to focus on Christ and Him crucified, then we are indeed free from the strictures of do’s and don’ts; we are enlightened with the knowledge of the singularity of one God and the clear implications that therefore idols do not exist. So, yes, one can dine in an idol’s temple with a clear conscience that he is not being unfaithful to God in worshipping idols. It is a matter of moral and spiritual integrity at the core. God is his judge.

However, that is not the end of the discussion. Having Christian liberty to do something does not mean that we should be free to do it, as ironic as that may sound. I do not lose my salvation by smoking tobacco, but it is not smart to use my “freedom” to smoke (like C.S. Lewis did to the end of his days). I may be free to step off a cliff because of my depression and warped thinking that suicide is the answer, and not lose my salvation—but that doesn’t mean suicide is an acceptable thing to do. I can think myself to be “free” to have illicit sexual relationships and not lose my salvation, for I am not under law but under grace. Yet my freedom will cause suffering, shame, and great loss to my relationships (as it did for King David).

So, what does it mean then to be free? The answer is this: we are free from the motivation to gain grace; we now have the freedom to be motivated by grace. That is a huge difference. Christ and Him crucified means we have been given grace abundantly in our salvation. So what does this “motivation by grace” look like faced with our freedom to eat food offered to idols? (In some parts of the world, where pagan worship is still practiced widely, this exists as a very real issue among Christians.) Or smoking, wearing certain clothes, gambling, etc.? We should consider the effect our “liberty” has on our brothers and sisters in Christ. I must not let my freedom cause a Christian to stumble back into practices that cause his or her weak conscience to stumble.

Lord, help me be more concerned about others’ weaknesses than my freedom.