1 Corinthians 9: Duty to Concede, Members Boast to Point to ☧

Rev. Stewart Crown, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in Palo Alto, California, joins host Rev. AJ Espinosa to study 1 Corinthians 9.

“Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right, but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ.” God gives us rights that we may give them up for others, Paul says in 1 Corinthians 9. Although he had more rights than most as an apostle, he did not consider these rights his due “compensation” for the work of the gospel: “For necessity is laid upon me.” Rather it was his own duty, as an individual Christian, to give these up for the sake of the Greek world. As Christ gave up His rights as priest and king before illegitimate usurpers, so we as Christians give up our rights, even for those who are mistaken or “superstitious,” solely for the sake of love.