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Sketches from the Life of Paul
with the worship of Baal-peor that many of the Hebrews fell through
licentiousness, and the anger of God was manifested toward them, and
twenty-three thousand were slain by the sword at the command of God
through Moses.
The apostle adjures the Corinthians, “Let him that thinketh he
standeth, take heed lest he fall.” Should they become boastful and
self-confident, and neglect to watch and pray, they would fall into
grievous sin, and call down upon themselves the wrath of God. Yet
Paul would not have them yield to despondency or discouragement.
Whatever might be their temptations or their dangers, he assures them,
“God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye
are able; but will with the temptations also make a way to escape, that
ye may be able to bear it.”
Paul enjoins upon his brethren to inquire what influence their words
and works will have upon others, and to do nothing, however innocent
in itself, that would seem to sanction idolatry, or that would offend the
scruples of those who might be weak in the faith. “Whether therefore
ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. Give
none offense, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church
of God.”
The apostle’s words of warning to the Corinthian church are ap-
plicable to all time, and are specially adapted to the wants of our day.
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By idolatry he did not alone mean the worship of idols, but also self-
ishness, love of ease, the gratification of appetite and passion. All
these come under the head of idolatry. A mere profession of faith
in Christ, and a boastful knowledge of the truth, does not constitute
a Christian. A religion which seeks only to gratify the eye, the ear,
and the taste, or which permits any hurtful self-indulgence, is not the
religion of Christ. It is in harmony with the spirit of the world, and is
opposed to the teachings of the Holy Scriptures. Festivals and scenes
of amusement, in which professed members of the Christian church
imitate the customs and enjoy the pleasures of the world, constitute a
virtual union with the enemies of God.
The Corinthians were departing widely from the simplicity of the
faith and the harmony of the church. They continued to assemble for
worship, but with hearts that were estranged from one another. They
had perverted the true meaning of the Lord’s supper, patterning in a
great degree after idolatrous feasts. They came together to celebrate